Taking Fire: The True Story of a Decorated Chopper Pilot

by Charles W. Sasser and Ron Alexander

Book Overview

Nicknamed "Mini-Man" for his diminutive stature, a mere five-foot-three and 125 pounds in his flight boots, chopper pilot Ron Alexander proved to be a giant in the eyes of the men he rescued from the jungles and paddies of Vietnam. With an unswerving concern for every American soldier trapped by enemy fire, and a fearlessness that became legendary, Ron Alexander earned enough official praise to become the second most decorated helicopter pilot of...

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312980175
• ISBN13: 9780312980177
• Release Date: April 2002
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press
• Length: 320 Pages
• Weight: 0.39 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 4.2" x 6.9"

Customer Reviews

Very interesting and readable book

This is one of the best vietnam-era non-fiction books that I have read. The book describes the Vietnam War experiences of Ron Alexander, who enlisted in the U.S. Army out of high school in 1963 and ended up in the 82nd Airborne Division. Later, after getting a good score on an Army aptitude test, he was invited to go to OCS school and ultimately became a 2nd Lt, then volunteered for helicopter flight school and finally became a helicopter pilot enroute to Vietnam in 1969. Once in Vietnam, he was sent to join the 1st Cavalry Division and fly a UH-1 "Huey" to transport combat troops to and from 'LZ's in combat areas. He served a 12-month tour and was promoted to Captain after 6 months in-country. Alexander recounts numerous anecdotal stories of his experiences during his 12-month stint and interlaces those with an overview of the Vietnam War. Alexander never presents himself as a gung-ho warrier but he did believe in the overall Vietnam mission when he arrived in-country. By the time he leaves 12 months later, he no longer does, although he remains in the Army after Vietnam and serves in the reserves for many more years. The stories in this book are fascinating and very well written. Alexander (and presumably Sasser) do a remarkable job of painting a picture of life at the helicopter base, the types of missions, the people, the conditions, etc, in a way that no other Vietnam War book has done. This kind of portrayal can probably only be written at a distance of many decades when the painful memories and emotions dull and an overall perspective is possible. There is no sugar-coating here, but it is a very readable depiction. One thing that comes through is the utter hopelessness of the mission. The authors describe strategic missions carried out in the early years of the war, before Alexander arrived which had, as their objective, to reduce the war-making ability of the North Vietnamese Army (NVA). By the time of Alexander's arrival, however, the emphasis in Alexander's AO is on intelligence-gathering patrols, support for Fire Support Bases (FSBs), and staying alive until they could rotate home. No one believed that the war was 'winnable' or even knew what 'winning' would look like. Most of the missions that Alexander describes flying are to carry small numbers of troops into patrol areas or to extract those troops from 'hot' LZs when they have made contact with the enemy and are in danger of being wiped out by superior numbers. I was very suprised to see negative reviews on this book. The people writing the negative reviews seem to generally feel that Alexander embellished his own role and/or inaccurately depicted events they were familiar with. I found specific objections to the book at two sites: http://groups.msn.com/ApacheHeadhunters/booksonapacherecommendationsandcriticscorner.msnw http://www.9thcav.com/Trashing%20A%20Troop.htm Generally, though, even his critics seem to agree that Mr. Alexander was a decorated UH-1 pi

Good story of one man trying to survive

This is an amazing book about the life of a helo pilot and his friends. This book is full of fighting and extreme action. It introduces you to fighting in Vietnam and how dangerous flying helos can be. I give this book a five because it is a very easy read but it also is full of battles and action. If you want to learn about helocopter pilots live this is a must read!!!

Vietnam Veteran and Avid Vietnam Book Reader

I have read approximately 200 books on the Vietnam war, and I have to say Taking Fire is the best of all. I never realized how dangerous the helicopter pilots jobs were. This is absolutely the most exciting book I have ever read. It is one of those books you can't put down. I have the most respect and admiration for Ron Alexander that I have ever had for anyone else. What a remarkable man. I just wish I knew if he had an e-mail address where I would be able to correspond directly with him. Thank you Ron for publishing such a terrific book.

Honest and Exciting Story of the Horrors of War

This was not an easy book to read because of the helicopter techno language, military jargon and profanity. In addition to that, I do not pretend to be an authority on war books. However, Alexander's book appears to be an honest and exciting recounting of his time in Vietnam. Several chapters into the book, I found it hard to put down. This book gives the reader insight to the many harrowing experiences many of our men and women in uniform experienced during the Vietnam war and of their bravery as they honorable served our country. This book allowed me to feel some of the emotions, confusion, stress and fear of these soldiers. At times you feel as if you should be on the sidelines cheering the good guys on.In addition to their war experience, this book gives an honest accounting to how these brave men and women were treated upon their return. I would recommend this book to anyone who is curios about the Vietnam war or to those who want something to read that will challenge them emotionally. As the mother of a son serving our country in the Navy, it certainly gives me alot to think about should this country decide to go to war again.

INCREDIBLE READ!

Alexander's recounting of his days in Vietnam is as harrowing and insightful as anything I have read on the war. The bravery of these young men is staggering. I would recommend this to anyone curious about the Vietnam war or just interesting in reading something that takes your breath away.