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Sky Is Falling : An Oral History of the CIA's Evacuation of the Hmong from Laos

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Gayle Morrison spent nine years interviewing members of the Hmong hill tribe who were forced to flee to the United States after the fall of pre-communist Laos.

She has succeeded in assembling their recollections into a coherent and dramatic account of the emergency evacuation of the villagers in May 1975. The US-sponsored airlift represented the final act in a secret struggle conducted in Laos by the CIA during the Vietnam War.

At the center of the story is the charismatic General Vang Pao, the military and societal leader of the Hmong people, who risked assassination in a final futile effort to make it possible for his people to remain in their homeland. Also compelling is Jerry Daniels, the tough, loyal, resourceful director of the CIA's Hmong operations.

But some of the most moving accounts in this collection are those of average people thrust into extraordinary circumstances: a woman gives birth in a cramped airplane flying over the Mekong, a long-time soldier watches helplessly as three of his children are suddenly killed by friendly fire, a student returns from college to find his family home abandoned and ransacked.

The villagers' accounts capture in plain language the trauma and sadness of a proud people who must reluctantly accept defeat and banishment from their own land at the hands of the Pathet Lao communist forces.

A poignant account of a people whose dignity and sheer will to survive allowed them to endure an unimaginably painful challenge. Highly recommended.

With extraordinary vision, Sky is Falling author Gayle L.Morrison layers dozens of transcripts of the gripping personal stories of the men and women, Hmong and CIA, who witnessed, indeed who conducted, the CIA evacuation of their Hmong allies from their mountain fortress at Long Cheng at the end of the war in Laos. The book's insistent and provocative truth-telling reveals the chaos and heartache of May 1975 in a way that is at once cinematic and psychologically engaging.

In reading these devastatingly real, simple, compelling and complete tales, the whole scene in Laos emerges in your mind and heart: beleaguered general Vang Pao, Air America pilots, Jerry Daniels, the CIA liaison to the general, Hmong students; fifty or so key people's dozens of interviews are layered to recreate the time scale and sense of the events. Complete with photographs, flight logs, glossary and excellent index, this compact and well constructed book will engross and enlighten any reader, as well as history buffs and scholars.

Morrison interviewed a lot of Hmong participants in those last days, as well as American pilots Jack Knotts, Dave Kouba, etc. Eye-opening insight into the abandonment of one of America's most clandestine installations of the secret war in Laos. Detailed accounts of Matt Hoff's and Les Strouse's final flights into 'LS20 Alternate' as well. Some truly rare photos -- Long Tien in 1972, '73, '74, '75. Knotts and Kouba at the evacuation ramp on May 14, 1975, the last day. The Hmong -- from top leader Vang Pao to in-the-street tribespeople, no less proud, and no less tragic.

Finally, a haunting pair of photos -- top secret Long Tien in 1973, and another one, as mysterious as ever, from exactly the same angle and height (about 1000 feet above the runway), in 1995.

A compact, tightly-woven and compelling tale.

I truly enjoyed this book. I came away with a very different point of view. I was directly involved with the evacuation of DaNang, Nha Trang and Saigon in April '75 and to some extent in Loas in May of the same year and saw the refugees, in mass panic carrying babies and what possessions they could, trying to flee before the communists came. Gayle related the evacuation of Long Chen (20A) from the eyes of the Hmong refugees. It is a view that I never saw and hope that I never have to witness again.

Gayle Morrison has written an excellent book on the history and plight of the Hmong people in Laos during the Secert War in Laos. Her book's focus is the last battle these brave people fought, defending their mountain headquarters in northern Laos. Morrison is a talented writer who captures the feelings and spirit of what it must have been like to have been there. An excellent read.

Author Morrison has done a service by compiling a book of recollections about one of the most unknown events of our time: the air evacuation of Hmong General Vang Pao and many of his Hmong soldiers from Laos in May 1975. The Hmong were a staunch and effective American ally against the North Vietnamese and Lao Communists, but went down to defeat along with the Americans. Except for a few Americans, notably Jerry "Hog" Daniels of the CIA, the Hmong would have been abandoned to die in Laos.

Morrison gives little background and explanation for the events of May 1975, but plunges into the story with quotes from the participants, especially the Hmong. There are a number of rare and valuable photographs and good maps. The stories themselves are often priceless, first hand vignettes of history: for example, Gen. Heinie Aderholt's tale of hearing of the evacuation and his forthright -- and irregular -- finding and hiring of a C-46 pilot to fly the Hmong out of Laos.

Much of the material is compiled from the Hmong themselves, whose voices have only barely been heard in America. These were people on our side who deserved better at the bitter end of the Vietnam war. If you're not familiar with the outlines of the story some background reading may be useful. Roger Warner's, "Backfire" (also called "Shooting at the Moon") is good.

Smallchief

There will be many people (beside the Hmong) thankful that someone has taken the time to record this important event in history. The book has a distinct niche (human) in my education on the "happenings" in Laos. This is my fifth Laos subject book and is a must read! USAF in Thailand '69 veteran.

Having personally experienced the evacuation at Long Cheng on that fateful day in May 1975 (though, missed the plane), this book not only brings back memory but also will serve as a historical reference for generations. This book reveals the struggles and life-changing decisions (whether right or in error) that Hmong leaders had to face, which causes me to appreciate them more.
Khoua|