Firebirds

Rating:
Summary: This is a Great book!
Review: Another great book about the boys that helped so many of us stay alive.I am not a queer, but there were time that these pilots got us out of hot spots, and if I had met them I probably would have gotten beat up, but I would have probably have tried to kiss them. God Bless these brave men

Rating:
Summary: Intense, definitive, a great book
Review: Chuck Carlock is a veteran of the Vietnam War and a member of a military helicopter pilots association, which gives him access to both his memories and those of his buddies. Fly with him as he takes you out on missions in Huey gunships and slicks (so named because they carried no guns, hence their sides were 'slick') as he crisscrosses some of the hottest spots in the theatre. And when he's done with you, his buddies step in and take you on med evac hops and Special Forces inserts deep inside Cambodia. Hands down, this is the best book of 'Nam chopper flying I've read (except for perhaps 'Chickenhawk'). And after you've read this book, pop 'Apocalypse Now' or 'Platoon' in the VCR (or DVD) and get the total 'Nam experience.

Rating:
Summary: This is a Great book!
Review: Firebirds is the best military aviation book I have ever read. It pulled me into the action both in the air and behind the scenes. The use of real names and photos gave me confidence in the basic accuracy of the stories, something often missing in other helicopter pilot books. Mr. Carlock's credentials as an aircraft commander in both gunships and slicks reveals a pilot that had the experience, leadership, and stamina to know and understand what was really happening. There's a big difference between logging a few hours as an acting aircraft commander and living with the responsibilities of being one. I noticed one reviewer said he had a hard time following the storyline. Novels have storylines. This book instead, tells a reader what flying helicopters was really like and puts the reader inside the cockpit as well as the pilot's head. This is the one to read!

Rating:
Summary: No Chickenhawk
Review: First I must say that I found Chuck Carlock and engaging charactor. I'm afraid that his book "firebirds" however was something less than engaging. It was confusing and very fragmented in that I had a hard time following the story line. I would also like to add that though I didn't really care for the book, My hat is forever off to Carlock for the services that he and so many others rendered to this country. The ever nagging question "why" were we there is really moot. We were there for better or worse.

Rating:
Summary: "No" was never in a helicopter pilot's unwritten philosophy
Review: I Corps and northern II Corps were very dangerous places in Vietnam. Artfully recalling day to day missions might seen boring, but when you combine it with happenings back in the World, things are really placed in perspective. Chuck Carlock and the "Firebirds" were at the very epicenter of the hodge-podge Americal Division as it was growing into the massive command it would eventually become. All royalties from the sale of book are donated to the 71st AHC Association. Tom Payne, RVN 66-67, Bandit32

Rating:
Summary: good job firebird
Review: I'm the Burroughs in the book. Congratulations Chuck on a job well done.

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Summary: This is really the BEST!
Review: I've read many military aviation books through the years and this is really the best. It captures the human emotions, machines, strategy, tactics, operations, excitment, dangers and the combat scences are excellent. Go get it!

Rating:
Summary: Good but not great
Review: This is a good book, but I wouldn't call it one of the best. I preferred William T. Grant's book. I can think of two things which would have made this book better, which I have seen in other first person accounts: 1) Continuity - the narrative is split into small stories, instead of flowing. 2) Books which deal with Special Forces or their helicopter support seem the most exciting, and the men seemed to have a tighter friendship which makes me empathize with them. The author mentions there were pilots who continually volunteered for LRRP missions.

One unique and interesting thing in this book was an account about the author's 1993 return to Vietnam. He toured several of the battle sites he fought on, and interacted with the Vietnamese tour guides.

Rating:
Summary: FIREBIRDS: The Best First Person Account of Helicopter Comb
Review: While I find the title a bit presumptious, I did note that Chuck Carlock experienced a lot of bullet holes in the olive drab fuselages of the Charlie models he flew in his area of Vietnam. My experiences were in the Delta, where I think we had a greater variety of tasks and episodes to discuss and carry out. My time with the Outlaws of the 175th Avn. Company were far more enjoyable that being "up-north" with these American units described. I know what I missed. Still, it is good that some of us helicopter pilots have recorded our flying deeds in this once-in-a-lifetime experience, one we treasure now that we survived it!! Chuck salutes many of his fellow pilots at the end of the book and shows that many Vietnam vets are now successful men of stature and success in their communities.

Rating:
Summary: FIREBIRDS: The Best First Person Account of Helicopter Comb
Review: While I find the title a bit presumptious, I did note that Chuck Carlock experienced a lot of bullet holes in the olive drab fuselages of the Charlie models he flew in his area of Vietnam. My experiences were in the Delta, where I think we had a greater variety of tasks and episodes to discuss and carry out. My time with the Outlaws of the 175th Avn. Company were far more enjoyable that being "up-north" with these American units described. I know what I missed. Still, it is good that some of us helicopter pilots have recorded our flying deeds in this once-in-a-lifetime experience, one we treasure now that we survived it!! Chuck salutes many of his fellow pilots at the end of the book and shows that many Vietnam vets are now successful men of stature and success in their communities.