One Day Too Long

Rating:
Summary: I WAS THERE.
Review: As one of the pilots of Jolly Green 67 I simply want to thank Dr. Castle for his comprehensive and historical accurate account of the events at Lima Site 85. This is a story that begged to be told; Dr. Castle pulls no punches, providing a riveting and revealing account. His work was a key factor in the eventual recognition of the heroic efforts of Sgt. Etchberger at the Enlisted Hertiage Hall, Maxwell AFB Annex (formally Gunter AFS), Montgomery AL. A great read.

Rating:
Summary: I WAS THERE.
Review: As one of the pilots of Jolly Green 67 I simply want to thank Dr. Castle for his comprehensive and historical accurate account of the events at Lima Site 85. This is a story that begged to be told; Dr. Castle pulls no punches, providing a riveting and revealing account. His work was a key factor in the eventual recognition of the heroic efforts of Sgt. Etchberger at the Enlisted Hertiage Hall, Maxwell AFB Annex (formally Gunter AFS), Montgomery AL. A great read.

Rating:
Summary: An American tragedy in Laos.
Review: Congratulations to Dr. Castle for this fine book. A meticulously researched historical work of the finest order that reads like a Tom Clancy action novel. A bombshell that exposes one of the most egregious and hitherto publicly undisclosed tragedies of the Vietnam War. In March 1968 an NVA sapper team avoided detection and attacked a top-secret radar bombing facility (code name Jolly Green) which was manned by sixteen "civilianized" Air Force technicians. The site, LS 85, was located on a mountain top in Laos less than twenty-five miles from the North Vietnam border. The attack caught the technicians off guard and resulted in the loss of the site to the communist forces. Two of those dedicated volunteers manning the site were confirmed killed, five were rescued alive (one died on the evacuation flight) and the remaining nine have never been accounted for and their status remains unknown. This incident holds the distinction of being the largest single loss of Air Force ground personnel during the entire Vietnam War. Why did the Air Force continue to operate this site in the face of considerable evidence the site would soon fall under bombardment and attack by large NVA forces gathering in the area? Was it incompetence or was the site considered so essential to the North Vietnam bombing effort that the loss of the men was an acceptable risk? Dr. Castle looks at these questions in detail. One Day Too Long chronicles the history of Site 85 from its initial concept of operations through the tragic consequence of this miscalculation. But the story does not stop there. It also relates the stoic efforts by one widow to find answers to questions about her husbands death at this site the government was unwilling to provide. This book should be mandatory reading for all future military leaders.

Rating:
Summary: An American tragedy in Laos.
Review: Congratulations to Dr. Castle for this fine book. A meticulously researched historical work of the finest order that reads like a Tom Clancy action novel. A bombshell that exposes one of the most egregious and hitherto publicly undisclosed tragedies of the Vietnam War. In March 1968 an NVA sapper team avoided detection and attacked a top-secret radar bombing facility (code name Jolly Green) which was manned by sixteen "civilianized" Air Force technicians. The site, LS 85, was located on a mountain top in Laos less than twenty-five miles from the North Vietnam border. The attack caught the technicians off guard and resulted in the loss of the site to the communist forces. Two of those dedicated volunteers manning the site were confirmed killed, five were rescued alive (one died on the evacuation flight) and the remaining nine have never been accounted for and their status remains unknown. This incident holds the distinction of being the largest single loss of Air Force ground personnel during the entire Vietnam War. Why did the Air Force continue to operate this site in the face of considerable evidence the site would soon fall under bombardment and attack by large NVA forces gathering in the area? Was it incompetence or was the site considered so essential to the North Vietnam bombing effort that the loss of the men was an acceptable risk? Dr. Castle looks at these questions in detail. One Day Too Long chronicles the history of Site 85 from its initial concept of operations through the tragic consequence of this miscalculation. But the story does not stop there. It also relates the stoic efforts by one widow to find answers to questions about her husbands death at this site the government was unwilling to provide. This book should be mandatory reading for all future military leaders.

Rating:
Summary: An exposure of a shameful episode in US history.
Review: I have a very personal reaction to "One Day Too Long" in that Mel and Ann Holland were our military sponsors when my family and I were first assigned to an AC&W squadron in southern Spain in early 1961, and I worked with Mel until he rotated to the States. It is embarrassing and shameful to learn how both the military and civilian authorities were willing to sacrifice those men in order to cover up their own mistakes, but I suppose if ALL the truth were known about SE Asia operations, we would not be able to stand it. Dr. Castle has perfomed an invaluable service for democracy. EVERYBODY should read this book! (Ann, we'd love to hear from you!)

Rating:
Summary: An exposure of a shameful episode in US history.
Review: I have a very personal reaction to "One Day Too Long" in that Mel and Ann Holland were our military sponsors when my family and I were first assigned to an AC&W squadron in southern Spain in early 1961, and I worked with Mel until he rotated to the States. It is embarrassing and shameful to learn how both the military and civilian authorities were willing to sacrifice those men in order to cover up their own mistakes, but I suppose if ALL the truth were known about SE Asia operations, we would not be able to stand it. Dr. Castle has perfomed an invaluable service for democracy. EVERYBODY should read this book! (Ann, we'd love to hear from you!)

Rating:
Summary: Compelling story of a good cause gone bad.
Review: I was assigned to a electonic surveillance system at NKP Thailand. We went operational in Nov 1967. During my first days in Thailand, I lived at the Siam Intercontinental Hotel in Bangkok. After office hours and weekends, were spent poolside at the Siam where we became friends with many of the Airforce Pilots from various bases. Among them were Col Giraudo and Major Frank Billingsley of the 355th at Takhli. Our system, Task Force Alpha, used the Dustys and the Zorros at NKP and RF4's from Korat. What amazes me, as a participant in some of the high secret operations, is discovering how many other secrets there were that were unknown to those of us in the field. The Colonel [amazing that he made general with his outspokenness] has unfortunately passed away. He could handle one hell of a lot of "Stingers". Does Doctor Castle have an email address. Would be interested in his comments about Task Force Alpha.

Rating:
Summary: Gripping and insightful, Hard to put down
Review: Meticulously researched and profusely documented, Dr. Castle has set the standard for all other books on this subject. His skill as a renowned researcher, academic, and archivist has produced the best Vietnam era book written on the subject of POW/MIA's. If you want to know why we have never recovered a living MIA from SE Asia, and never will, read Chapter 14 and the conclusion chapter to understand why. This book exposes the myth of "The Highest National Priority", and shows how the US Government has mismanaged the issue for years. This book took a lot of courage for someone of Dr. Castle's stature and position to write, because it is going to upset a lot of important people with the truth.

Rating:
Summary: More than 5 stars
Review: This is a extraordinarily powerful, interesting and well written book. It covers the entire history (1965-date) of an obscure (to some) chapter in America's war in Southeast Asia -- the loss of Lima Site 85 in Laos to communist attack. The whole history is fascinating -- from the decision to set up this site, to what it (briefly) did, the decisions from the squad level all the way up to the US Embassy in Vientiane and the President in Washington about its mission, operation and defense, to the current efforts to get the truth out of the Lao and Vietnamese governments about MIAs. The author has the background to write this fascinating history and writes compellingly. He's not afraid, where appropriate, to use blunt language like "shameful toadying" and "fraud". I've been a sceptic in the past of some of the distrust of the US government shown by POW/MIA families and partisans, but this book opened my eyes. Phou Pha Thi should have been better defended or abandoned earlier. A great account of (mostly) good intentions and (too often) flawed execution. The author writes convincingly of 1960's combat and 1990's political maneuvering. The treatment of COL Clayton, the commander of the site when it was overrun, by the current "investigators" was particularly revealing and chilling. I was a US Army Signal Corps officer during the Vietnam war and know all too well what it's like to have to be visible on a mountaintop to perform your mission and the need for good defense. I've spent the last 4 years as a civilian in Cambodia. So I have some parallels with the authors' experiences. A great book no matter what your view on the war.