Customer Reviews

My Secret War

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I am an avid fan of flying and military history. Of the hundreds of books I have read on flying in the military, this is the best! My book is worn out from the many readings. Each and every time I read it, I become Drury as he experiences the sights, sounds and sensations of flying the Skyraider in Vietnam. I can almost smell the aviation fuel, feel the humidity, enjoy the completion of another mission along with him. After all, isn't this what we want from a good book? You won't be disappointed with "My Secret War!"

Richard Drury's My Secret War is a must read for Vietnam aviation buffs. As one who flew in that ill fated war I can attest to Mr. Drury's views and experiences. It was indeed the best of times and the worst of times. We were immortal and believed only in ourselves and our fellow comrades. We fought, laughed, and sometimes died longing to return home to the land of the "Big BX", only to be ridiculed once we got home. Mr. Drury brings home the sights, smells, and feels of that far away war fought in secret places that no one talked about. He highlighted the daily drudgery that we thought of as fun. The small, damp rooms with the constant AC, the smiling Momma-sans, the happy local drivers, and the sad but cute children that seemed to be everywhere. The flying was fun, deadly, and exhilarating all at the same time. Only in combat can one feel all this at once. Mr. Drury did an excellent job of bring this to the reader.
Highly recommended if you want to know what it was like to fly, fight, and possibly die in a land far away which the average American only glimpsed on the CBS evening news with Uncle Walter.

I have read this book several times and found it to be one of my favorite. I kind of wish that it would be reprinted. I would get a fresh copy to share with friends, because my original book is definitely a keeper which I would not want to lose.

I appreciate the author's perspective about higher ranking officers which may have had their own career ambition dictate how they served instead of flying and fighting for for their men. Their motivations should have been more noble. I can relate to those type of military experiences which made me question on how higher ranking personnel got there. Of course I know not every commander fell into that category. I had a down to earth commander who won the Medal of Honor for his USAF flying in S.E. Asia. I pictured that commander (name withheld) as having a personality much as the author, but somehow he managed to hang in their to make a career in the USAF. If I met more officers like the former or men as Richard S. Drury during my time of service, I think an air force career would have been more worth while for me. To get back on topic, the book was a pleasure to read and get an inside scoop on how life was like during the Vietnam War in the USAF.

One of the very best combat memoirs I've ever read. The author is not only an experienced combat pilot, but a highly gifted writer as well.

Not only is the author a brave and skilled fighter pilot, he is a gifted writer.

This is a first-hand account that puts you in the pilot's seat during the author's year-long tour of duty in the Vietnam War during which he flew 220 combat missions. The squadron's mission was close-quarter warfare against the NVA's heavily-defended supply routes through Laos. The aircraft he flew was the 1944-vintage A-1 Skyraider, which was built to be flown by man rather than by a computer. Richard Drury weaves together the true story in a manner that puts you inside his head as he wrestles with and conquers the fear that accompanies every man who flies off to engage a determined enemy day after day and night after night.

The pilot's biggest fear is going down in the jungle alive and facing merciless torture from the Viet Cong. It is hard to imagine how precious life must feel to a man who has been shot from the sky; then listened to the screams of his co-pilot being slowly tortured to death by a savage enemy while he himself shudders wounded and hidden in the jungle all night as the enemy beats the bushes searching for him; then at daybreak he witnesses the hours-long aerial combat at tree-top level as A-1 fighter pilots try to subdue the enemy anti-aircraft guns long enough for a rescue helicopter to hover in and scoop him from the jaws of death. Richard Drury and his heroic comrades participated in dozens of these daring rescue operations. He tells about it a manner that puts you in the battle and lets you come as close as an on-looker can come to feeling the fear, excitement and exhilaration that evolves over the course of the fight and then the joy of the man who is "returned to the land of the living". And there are many brave and good men who never return; Drury gives you a peek into the lives of some his friends and fellow heros who did not make it back. He reflects on how facing and surviving death changed his outlook on life and made him recognize what is truly important in life.

He volunteered for this special duty because he believed in freedom and was willing to lay his on the line for the just cause. But most of all he came to this place because he loved to fly and the A-1 Skyraider was as pure as flying could get, and this was the last time in history that the ancient A-1 Skyraider would see combat action. There is plenty of flying for fun in between the fighting where he aptly describes the beauty and freedom of the sky, along with the not so fun experiences of being hurled about the sky by thunderstorms, wind, lightning and rain. Drury also gives insight into how it felt to be risking your life every day in a "limited engagement" war, and how demoralizing it was to hear some of the falsehoods coming from the press back home and seeing pictures of the actress who posed at the trigger of anti-aircraft guns with her arms around our enemy.

Anyone who has been in the military knows that some of the best and bravest men do not "fit the mold" and so they find themselves left behind while some who are less-deserving advance up the ranks. Drury expresses his disgust at some of shams that he witnessed, but mostly he focuses on the brave and unselfish warriors who are closer to him than family. And so as his tour of duty draws to a close, the non-conforming Drury faces the decision of whether to leave the Air Force or stay for the pure joy of flying.

Richard Drury has done a great job of giving us an insight into a war that didn't officially exist at the time. He describes the people and the flying in a great way that shows us the frustrations associated with a bureaucracy at war. This book is a highly recommended read for anyone with a curiosity about the Air War in Vietnam.

One of the best air war memoir of any era. Captures well the flavor of the US military mentality of the time (not very flattering). Very well written by a romantic aviation history fanatic who considers himself lucky to have flown the last big piston fighter in the US inventory.
Highly recommended.

I am currently an Air Force pilot and this is one of my favorite books. I highly recommend this book. Mr Drury's writing is top-notch and puts you in the cockpit of the Skyraider. Reading this book was a sobering view through his window of the Vietnam War.

This is a great read for anyone who is interested in the Southeast Asia War from 1965-1973, particularly Vets who were in the US Air Force like myself. The book covers a year of the war everyone there knew about, but did not talk about. In my own case, the author was flying in certain areas at 10,000 feet while I was flying over the same areas at 37,000-38,000 feet. A very differant perspective.

I enjoyed reading this book. True life account of a vietnam war pilot flying in a squadron from Laos in an outdated relic of a plane. True drama. If you like flying, this is a great book as it has plenty of hands-on flying, for the pure joy of flying. It also has plenty of actual combat mission drama from the pilot's seat. The author also spends a lot of time in the book grousing about the futility of it all and pointless (in the grand scheme of things) nature of the missions being assigned, and the feelings of being mere pawns in a greater game that make no sense to the soldier or airman on the front lines... Unfortunately, this all sounds very familiar in mid-2009 with the various "limited engagements" being carried on in various parts of the world... Will we ever learn? Despite the depressing parts, the book is a lively read that keeps moving and tells of many unsung, heroic actions which only those who were there will ever truly know of or appreciate. (Book also includes a photo section with many black and white photo's of the planes in question)