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3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
Excellent True Story - A Winner - Must Read Jan 06, 2010
By Deborah Nolan Abernathy
"Proud Daughter of American Hero"
"A Duck Looking for Hunters" is an excellent book about Forward Air Controllers (FACs) written by a FAC who was there, flew 423 combat missions, and tells it all like it was. Chapter 32 "Ban Me Thuot and The Best FAC", is a glowing tribute to the FAC named Dan Preston (pseudonym). In this true story, The Commander in Chief, President Lyndon Baines Johnson, pins The Silver Star for Valor in Combat on Preston's chest at Pleiku Air Base. The bizarre circumstances of the story made me laugh and cry at the same time, because Dan Preston's actual name is John Francis Nolan, and I am his daughter. Since everything about Preston (Nolan) in the book is highly favorable, the author has given me permission to reveal his true identity. After the book was published, the author continued his attempts to find my father, but Dad had died of natural causes ten years earlier. The author did locate other family members, including me. I am proud to report that subsequent to the time of the story, my father returned to Vietnam voluntarily and was awarded his second and third Silver Star as well as the Distinguished Flying Cross. He continued to deserve the title "The Best FAC". Lt. Col. Amend's writing style is candid and readable. The entire book is a winner. You must read it! Deborah Nolan Abernathy
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
No punches Pulled Dec 16, 2009
By Donn A. Byrnes
Dale does a great job of telling his story in a factual and direct manner. As a fellow Air Force pilot it was possible for me to relate to his experiences without difficulty. My flying career also gave me the background to see the truth and the drama in his sometimes understated adventures. The FAC business in Vietnam was brutal and immediate, yet Dale lays it out in a personal dialog that has you on the edge of your seat. He even weaves in a few self-induced adventures of his own and other FACs.
Nobody wants to float around in an unarmed, single engine, puddle jumper, deliberately looking for people who are dead set on blowing you out of the sky, yet Dale Amend and his fellow FACs did that every day. And they did it effectively and with style and grace - most of the time.
His views and stories on the administrative foolishness that combat aircrews have to put up with while at the same time putting their fannies on the line daily, ring so true to those of us who have been through very similar adventures in silliness.
If you are looking for a book to give you a front seat view of a Bird Dog FAC's daily life and adventures, this is it. No fluf, no ooh ah, just the straight story. A DUCK LOOKING FOR HUNTERS certainly opened my eyes to a world of Air Force flying that I had never seen before.
Donn A. Byrnes
Col. USAF (Ret)
Author of:
BLACKBIRD RISING - Birth of an aviation legend and AIR SUPERIORITY BLUE - The F-15 story.
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
A Duck Looking for Hunters Dec 15, 2009
By Lola R. Eagle
The autobiographical story of a Forward Air Controller (FAC) pilot during the Vietnam War, reprised from his daily letters home to his wife. With warmth, insight, a phenomenal memory for detail, and a great writing talent, Lt. Col. Amend tells us what it was like for these men who confronted their mortality each day as they sought out the enemy and led the bombers in to find their quarry. These were not the draft card burners. These were the men who did the work their country demanded of them, many of whom returned in body bags or maimed and broken.
Amend does not gloss over the horrors of that war, but tells it as he lived it, mixing in a keen wit and a wry sense of humor, framing for the reader pictures of the days of these men who daily faced the very definite possibility of death as they went about their duties under enemy guns.
In the midst of the danger, lack of extracurricular activities, and homesickness, however, they also found something to laugh at, something to joke about, something to occupy their down time. There were wagers made on the outcome of their on-going battles with the rats that plagued their living quarters. Incompetent and unloved officers who harassed the men and put them in unnecessary danger were the butt of their disparaging jokes. Tennis matches that kept them in shape when they weren't flying, and singing groups that fed their need for spiritual revivification helped them contend with the loneliness and foreignness that haunted them. For Amend, a profound faith and love of family sustained him through it all.
With knowledge and memories given only to those who lived it, Amend shares his recapitulation of a year in the Vietnam War which should be required reading for teachers of American history, as well as any American who wants to know how our servicemen felt and worked through their obligations during that time.
Educational, entertaining, uplifting, written with uncommon authorship and excellently edited, this book needs to be a national best-seller.
Reviewed by Lola R. Eagle, free-lance writer and author of "From the Eye of an Eagle," "The Music of her Life," and "More Visions in Verse."
2 of 2 found the following review helpful:
Authentic and Educational Dec 06, 2009
By Joleita J. Felte
"Avid Reader"
Any writer worth the designation manages to be authentic, and Lt. Col. Dale Amend has certainly done that. His excellent sense of humor makes the reading more enjoyable, but more importantly, he is brutally honest in depicting the reality of war, which is certainly anything but pleasant to read about. He tells about the good, the bad, and the ugly.
The book is also educational. The author explains technical procedures which are not within the experiential knowledge of many readers; for example the explanation of Radio Range and the U-D antenna. The description of how the FAC pilot produced his own maps and used them to locate targets was new information for me, as was a lot of other information included in the book.
I don't recall learning from the media anything about how the Vietnam war affected the American missionaries serving the Montagnard people. One chapter in the book gives a brief history of the mission, which was established in 1911, the author's friendship with the missionaries, and the eventual demise of the mission as a result of the Communist Tet Offensive in January, 1968.
Readers will enjoy reading about the experiences of one Forward Air Controller and gain a new appreciation for those who lived the history of the Vietnam War.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Duty, Honor, Country Jan 30, 2010
By Jack L Tindall
A monumental and heartwarming account of one Forward Air Controller's experience in Viet Nam. Lots of battle drama, political incites, and personal accounts of
courage, character, sacrifice, innovation, commitment to fellow servicemen, anguish over separation from family, incidental service above and beyond the call to Christian missionaries serving the native people amidst the havoc of war, faith and survival. The book is well written with plenty of historical context. Fascinating read.
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