The Freedom Shield

The 191st Assault Helicopter Company in Vietnam

By: Maj. John D. Falcon (Ret)

Narrated by: Shawn Compton

A Vietnam War helicopter pilot shares arresting accounts of flying troops into hot LZs and medevacking the wounded under fire.

The Freedom Shield brings together stories of veterans of the 191st Assault Helicopter Company, who were tasked with carrying troops into battle, attacking enemy positions, and evacuating the wounded in their UH-1 Iroquois "Huey" helicopters. The unit was assembled from a hodgepodge of hand-me-down aircraft, used equipment, and overlooked personnel-its appearance belied the invaluable work the crews of the 191st would undertake during the Vietnam War. This narrative of the Company, told through collected stories of veterans, defines a breed of soldier newly minted in Vietnam: the combat assault-helicopter crewman.

The 191st pilots, crews, and support personnel vividly share the details of what it was like to be at war and forced to rely on your fellow crewmembers for your own survival. Their accounts of helicopter combat at the height of the Vietnam conflict accurately recreate the sights and sounds of the battlefields, the fear and horror of watching close friends torn to pieces, and their feelings on returning to base. Their message is infinitely clear: "The price of freedom is painful."

©2020 John D. Falcon (P)2024 Tantor

war is war. always different always the same.

this history is so valuable. being that our military has little or no institutional memory

The helicopter at work

Excellent description of the use of helicopters during the Vietnam war. The author gives an opinion shared by many veterans that fought in Vietnam: the progress of the war was hindered by politicians and in particular the State Department who forbade entry into Laos and Cambodia to interdict the Ho Chi Minh trail that supplied the enemy.