"Jim Doyle" wrote in message
...

"Kevin Brooks" wrote in message
...

"Jim Doyle" wrote in message
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"Cub Driver" wrote in message
...

If you were going to name a couple of the greatest writers about
military aviation, who would they be?

I want personal recollections, not history. I'd like names that
large
numbers of people would recognize.

For personal recollections: 'Chickenhawk' by Robert Mason is
awe-inspiring.

It's about his year as a Heuy pilot in Vietnam ('66 I think) - don't
know
if
I'd classify him as one of the great writers, but it's very well
written.
If
you like the perfect balance between the historical and human sides of
military aviation/warfare it'll be the right book for you.

My own recollection of that book, now grown hazy by the march of time,
was
that it seemed to be more of a tome of excuses..."How I Ended Up Getting
Snagged for Smuggling Illegal Narcotics, and Why My Vietnam Experience
Was
To Blame..." would have been a good second title. My brother was a Huey
pilot in that same war, and he did not hold that particular book in
great
regard.

Brooks


It seemed to me very honest and frank which is why it struck a chord, but
obviously I wasn't there so can't say whether it is a fair representation.
Was it Mason blaming Vietnam for his subsequent troubles, or the account
of
his time in Vietnam that your brother didn't like?

IIRC it was the fact that he used his Vietnam experience to try and excuse
his little legal fiasco. I actually made the mistake of buying a copy and
when I skimmed it later and caught that angle I put it aside--I mentioned it
to the older brother later, and he sort of scoffed at the book, which he had
read himself.

Brooks


Jim