Rattler One-Seven: A Vietnam Helicopter Pilot's War Story (North Texas Military Biography and Memoir Series, No. 1)

Rating:
Summary: Rattler One-Seven Review
Review: If you have ever wanted to know what it was like to be a helicopter pilot during the most significant war in our history where helicopters were used, this is a MUST READ. Not only do you sit in the seat with the pilots and the gunners, but you will FEEL the war exactly as a 19 year old pilot experienced it: saving soldiers lives in the field, risking everything for the wounded, and ultimately having a front row seat to the greatest helicopter assault ever used in warefare--Lam Son 719. Find out why the soldiers in the field called these "Rattlers" the bravest soldiers in the war. You won't find this in any history books! It is one of the most unique books I have ever read.

Allen Schemmel
Hendersonville, TN

Rating:
Summary: The way that it really was!
Review: Rattler One Seven is a rare view into the mind, heart, and emotions of one boy's journey into manhood through the firestorm of the Vietnam Conflict from Special Secret Operations to the little known but bloodiest operation of the entire war, Lamson 719. Chuck Gross relives the days and events that tested every fiber of his being as a young idealistic American assault helicopter pilot. His story is personal and candid. He shares exactly what he thought and felt as he transitioned from a midwestern high school graduate into a seasoned Senior Aircraft Commander in three short but unforgettable years. The facts and events that he relates in his "memoir" are, to the best of my knowledge and recollection accurate, and at times painfully so. I know this because I also served as a helicopter Aircraft Commander in his unit. My call sign was Rattler 12 (One Two)
The author brings the reader into the 71st Assault Helicopter Company of the infamous Americal Devision from his arrival through his departure and finally to his return to an ambivalent nation. To those of us who served with Chuck in 1970 -1971 this book is, in many ways, our story too. He includes the good and the bad as he pulls no punches in airing some of our dirty laundry along with the unembellished acts of heroism that characterized our unit's daily operation.
This book will appeal to the seasoned veteran and the history buff as well as the novice reader just being introduced to the Vietnam War. It is clearly and carefully written and includes many mundane facts that, to my knowledge, are not recorded in the rest of Vietnam War history but were so much a part of the culture shock of the "Vietnam experience"