Customer Reviews

Red Bird Down : A Novel about Air Cavalry and Aero-Scouts in Vietnam

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

From the beginning, I am amazed that young "Kev" shares many of the feelings and emotions I had when first arriving in country. I had the honor of serving with the author in C Troop 7/17th Air Cav and his book has helped me to see what we all endured. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in how the Air Cav worked in Vietnam. This book is a very effective tool to help with the healing many Vietnam Vets need. If you read no other book about the Vietnam war, read this one. Pray that our fighting men and women never have to endure an experience as this again.

With two tours with the 1st Cav Div (Airmobile) in Vietnam, I had ample opportunity to see this small craft in action. When they hovered close enough in hostile territory to find foot prints, I was glad that I piloted a large Chinook and did not have such missions.

This is a true-to-life depiction of how light observation helicopter pilots sought out the enemy so that other units could engage them. To do this took unheard of courage and Red Bird Down does them a grand tribute and truth. This book is a must read for anyone to understand airmobile operations.

LTC Carle E. Dunn, USA-Retired

For those seeking an in-depth, firsthand perspective of the Great Helicopter War of Vietnam that is far beyond what any history book can offer, Red Bird Down is an absolute must-read. Although presented in the genre of fiction, the experiences of young Kevin closely parallel those of author Bruce Carlson as he makes the transformation from a young "Newbie" pilot into a highly skilled Scout. Get into the flight helmet and truly experience the joys of flight, the taste of fear, the intimacy between a pilot and his "bird", the pain of conflicting views of those "back home", the camaraderie of those who must put their lives into each others' hands, and the unspeakable loss of a dear friend. Red Bird Down is to the Vietnam War as All Quiet On The Western Front is to World War I.

Red Bird Down is a living story of life in an air cavalry unit in Vietnam. Bruce Carlson brings the young men and boys who fought the helicopter war to life. The characters become flesh and bone and the reader is drawn into the daily life of the crewmembers as they come to grips with their fate. Doing their job and 'staying alive'is their goal. How they did their job will keep the reader on the edge of his seat.

The main character's development into an experienced scout is intense and will bring back many memories of anyone that flew in an air cavalry unit. It will be even more intense to anyone that did not fly in the air cavalry.

You will not want to put this book down. You will feel different when it is finished.

I enjoyed this book, it brought back memories of when I was in Vietnam. I was in 7/17th Cavalry when Bruce was, only in a different troop. I was in maintenance and repaired the red birds. I have flown in LOH during this time and can relate well to the book. Bruce is very colorful and there is no bad lanquage I would let my wife and daughter read this book. Bruce is very detailed as to the actions of combat. There is some sad parts when people died. But combat involves death. The end of the books deals with some political problems faced by the troops. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in Army avaition and avaition in Vietnam.

Author Bruce Carlson has written a real action packed novel about the air cavalry and aero-scouts in Vietnam. It will take you across the skies and the mountains and the rivers of Nam as you are transported back to the Vietnam helicopter wars of late 60's. It brings you all those colorful aviation characters that feel and sound like real people. In fact, the entire book's story line is based loosely on Bruce's old outfit and his own tour of duty. So it has that realistic sense of place and time that only a pilot could have written.

In the story, you see this idealistic young officer who has visions of changing the world and helping the South Vietnamese people get a democratic government arrive in-country. In short order, his real education begins to reshape his outlook on the war and the country he is sent to help. In time, he becomes a hardened veteran whose goal is get everyone back safely and alive if possible.

The reader will find that this story is well told and full of action. Bruce who is now an ordained minister has crafted a masterpiece of literature for military genre books. Well worth picking up and reading.

Anyone who was there will enjoy this book. It was the way it really was without all the hype. Great Book. For you that weren't there it's a chance to see what it was like in country.

This book is an excellent and accurate portrayal of air cavalry operations in Vietnam. The men who flew the outrageously dangerous air cav aeroscout mission, men like author Bruce Carlson - Kev in the book - did things face to face with the enemy few have ever experienced and, unfortunately, few will ever really understand. The story not only describes the situations they encountered - hovering around in the trees deep in enemy controlled territory, looking for signs of the Viet Cong and NVA, intentionally drawing fire in order to initiate a contact, risking their lives to save others - but also explains the psychologocal impact the mission had upon, and the emotional toll the mission exacted of, the young men who flew the little birds in combat. Anyone who has seen or expects to see, "We Were Soldiers" should read this book. For one important fact omitted in the movie is how General Kinnard, commander of the First Cav, knew where to insert Mel Gibson's (LTC Hal Moore's) battalion. It was as a result of two weeks of recon operations flown by the 1/9th Air Cav Squadron - conducting the same kind of close-in recon described by Bruce Carlson in "Red Bird Down." In real life it was the 1/9th Air Cav and its aeroscouts, such as Kev and his crew, who found and engaged the NVA unit near the base of Chu Pong Mountain and kicked off what became the battle of the Ia Drang Valley. Read about how the air cav really worked in "Red Bird Down." As a former air cav gunship pilot, I highly recommend "Red Bird Down."

I read the book and liked it so well that I bought 2 more copies and gave them as gifts. Powerful reading. In depth look at war from the youth of the sixties. Our youth was stolen. I am always looking for different perspectives about the Vietnam conflict. Thanks Bruce for the powerful book.

I usually do not read a lot of fiction, but during an extended stay in the hospital I got introduced to military novels. An ex-military friend of mine recommended I start with a novel about the Air Calvary in Vietnam. It was "Red Bird Down".

Not knowing what to expect I dove in head first into reading "Red Bird Down". After a while I noticed my mind wandering due to the realism of the setting. I had been an Air Calvary pilot and it brought back a lot of memories. At times it was hard for me to remember it was just a novel. It was written in such realism until it was sometimes hard to differentiate between fiction and possibly non-fiction. You can tell that the author not only wrote about the Air Calvary, but he also lived it.

I would highly recommend this book to any reader. I would especially recommend it to military and aviation buffs.