U.S.Navy Seawolves

Author: Daniel E. Kelly
Publisher: Ballantine Books
ISBN: 0307492265
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 295

Book Description
There were no dry runs for Seawolves in Vietnam. They put their lives on the line—every time. In the Viet Cong-infested Mekong Delta, where small SEAL teams were always outgunned and outnumbered, discovery brought swift, deadly consequences— and a radio call for backup from the United States Navy’s very best: the Seawolves. The whir of approaching rotor blades signaled their arrival as they tore through the jungle at treetop level, gunners hanging off the skids, shooting M-60s, raining down their lethal mix of high explosives and incendiary death. Seawolf Dan Kelly describes the origins of this extraordinary outfit. Put through a training program unlike any other, these men emerged to perform unparalleled feats of courage. The stories of these elite warriors capture America’s real heroes in all their guts and glory, and demonstrate why the Seawolves are known as the most successful and most decorated unit in the Vietnam War.

Seawolves

Author: Daniel E. Kelly
Publisher: Ballantine Books
ISBN: 0307490610
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 337

Book Description
They called themselves Seawolves . . . The men of SEALs, PBRs, and SF called them saviors . . . Created in 1967, the HAL-3 helicopter squadron--aka Seawolves--provided quick-reaction close air support to SEALs, PBR River Rats, and Special Forces advisers and their troops. During the five years of the unit's existence, the seven detachments of Seawolves amassed stunning statistics: 78,000 missions, 8,200 enemy kills, 8,700 sampans sunk, and 9,500 structures destroyed. These 200 men collected a total of 17,339 medals. This is the story of one of those men. . . . Taking enemy fire while braced against the rocket pod of a Huey gunship and shooting an M-60 freehand in 110 mph winds was just part of Dan Kelly's job in Vietnam. As a gunner in the all-volunteer Seawolves, he served with distinction until three bullets bought him a trip home. Here is his amazing story of the Seawolves--a harrowing tale of unsung heroism and undaunted courage in combat.

Fire from the Sky

Author: Richard C. Knott
Publisher: US Naval Institute Press
ISBN: 9781591147763
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
This is the dramatic history of the HAL-3 Seawolves, the U.S. Navy's first and only helicopter gunship squadron of the Vietnam War. The squadron was established "in country" to support the fast, pugnacious river patrol boats of the brown water navy. Flying combat-worn Hueys borrowed from the Army, the mission of the Seawolves quickly expanded to include rapid response air support to any friendly force in the Delta needing immediate, no-holds-barred assistance. Operating in two-plane detachments from specifically configured LSTs, hastily constructed bases, and primitive campsites, the navy gunships and their crews responded to calls within minutes. Flying in all kinds of weather, day and night, they arrived at tree-top level with forward-firing rockets and flex-guns blazing. Door gunners hung outside the violently maneuvering helicopters delivering a hail of fire with their hand-held M-60 machine guns. The Seawolves inserted SEALs deep into enemy territory, and extracted them, often despite savage enemy opposition. They rescued friendly combatants from almost certain capture or death, and evacuated the wounded when Medevac helicopters were not available. Gleaned from historical documents and the colorful recollections of more than sixty Seawolf warriors, this is the first complete history of the most decorated Navy squadron of the Vietnam War. Naval aviator Richard Knott recounts the story of the Seawolves from the dawning of the concept to the moment the last squadron commander turned out the lights.

Combat at Close Quarters

Author: Edward J. Marolda
Publisher: Government Printing Office
ISBN: 9780945274735
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 86

Book Description
This work describes riverine combat during the Vietnam War, emphasizing the operations of the U.S. Navy’s River Patrol Force, which conducted Operation Game Warden; the U.S. Army-Navy Mobile Riverine Force, the formation that General William Westmoreland said “saved the Mekong Delta” during the Tet Offensive of 1968; and the Vietnam Navy. An important section details the SEALORDS combined campaign, a determined effort by U.S. Navy, South Vietnamese Navy, and allied ground forces to cut enemy supply lines from Cambodia and disrupt operations at base areas deep in the delta. The author also covers details on the combat vessels, helicopters, weapons, and equipment employed in the Mekong Delta as well as the Vietnamese combatants (on both sides) and American troops who fought to secure Vietnam’s waterways. Special features focus on the ubiquitous river patrol boats (PBRs) and the Swift boats (PCFs), river warfare training, Vice Admiral Elmo R. Zumwalt Jr., the Black Ponies aircraft squadron, and Navy SEALs. This publication may be of interest to history scholars, veterans, students in advanced placement history classes, and military enthusiasts given the continuing impact of riverine warfare on U.S. naval and military operations in the 21st century. Special Publicity Tie-In: Commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War (Commemoration dates: 28 May 2012 - 11 November 2025). This is the fifth book in the series, "The U.S. Navy and the Vietnam War." TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction The First Indochina War The Vietnam Navy River Force and American Advisors The U.S. Navy and the Rivers of Vietnam SEALORDS The End of the Line for U.S. and Vietnamese River Forces Sidebars: The PBR Riverine Warfare Training Battle Fleet of the Mekong Delta High Drama in the Delta Vice Admiral Elmo R. Zumwalt Jr. Black Ponies The Swift Boat Warriors with Green Faces Suggested Reading

Sea Wolf of the Confederacy

Author: David W. Shaw
Publisher: Sheridan House, Inc.
ISBN: 1574092073
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 258

Book Description
David Shaw is the author of America's Victory and a number of other books. He lives in Maine.

Flying Black Ponies

Author: Kit Lavell
Publisher: Naval Institute Press
ISBN: 1612515657
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 342

Book Description
The tragic, the comic, the terrifying, the poignant are all part of the story of the Black Pony pilots who distinguished themselves in the Mekong Delta during the Vietnam War. Flying their turboprop Broncos "down and dirty, low and slow," they killed more of the enemy and saved more allied lives with close-air support than all the other naval squadrons combined during the three years they saw action. Author Kit Lavell was part of this squadron of "black sheep" given a chance to make something of themselves flying these dangerous missions. The U.S. Navy's only land-based attack squadron, Light Attack Squadron Four (VAL-4) flew support missions for the counter insurgency forces, SEALs, and allied units in borrowed, propeller-driven OV-10s. For fixed-wing aircraft they were dangerous, unorthodox missions, a fact readers quickly come to appreciate.

River Rats

Author: Ralph Christopher
Publisher: AuthorHouse
ISBN: 146348853X
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 292

Book Description
The United States Navys fight for control of the waters of Southeast Asia. By far the greatest contribution of the narrative is the insight it provides into the hows and whys of United States involvement in Vietnam, and the attempt of that involvement to bring freedom to those who were unable to achieve it by their own efforts. We see the United States more as a caretaker and less as a policeman in terms of motivation for its involvement half a world away. Andwe see the tremendous price paid by those who served to ensure that freedom ordinary men who, by fate, were thrown together in a strange land, and who fulfilled a part of their destiny, and their Nations, on the brown water. Weldon Bleiler

Sea Wolves

Author: Tim Clayton
Publisher: Abacus
ISBN: 9780349122892
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
Sea Wolves is the story of the crews who bravely manned British submarines in the Second World War. This small band of highly trained and highly skilled individuals fought in the front line for six long years, undertaking some of the most dangerous missions of the war. Britain's Sea Wolves operated close to shore in mined waters, attacking German warships and heavily guarded convoys. But in the course of these vital operations, the submariners suffered devastating casualties. This is the vivid, thrilling story of the survivors and their promising young comrades who fought with such courage, in the face of the sickening terror. 'Clayton's pages are peopled with eccentrics . . . Full of the picturesque detail of cramped submarine life . . . the monotonously throbbing engines; the sudden panic dives; the smells of oil, unwashed bodies and rotting food; the stifling lack of space . . . Sea Wolves is a fine memorial to these men' Nigel Jones, Literary Review

The U.S. Naval Institute on Vietnam: Coastal and Riverine Warfare

Author: Thomas J Cutler
Publisher: Naval Institute Press
ISBN: 1682470490
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 185

Book Description
The U.S. Naval Institute Chronicles series focuses on the relevance of history by exploring topics like significant battles, personalities, and service components. Tapping into the U.S. Naval Institute's robust archives, these carefully selected volumes help readers understand nuanced subjects by providing unique perspectives and some of the best contributions that have helped shape naval thinking over the many decades since the Institute’s founding in 1873. Among the various aspects of the U.S. Navy’s “in-country” experiences in Vietnam, small-craft operations are among the most significant. Revealed in this collection from the Naval Institute’s archives are Operations Market Time, Game Warden, and SEALORDS, as well some lesser-known aspects of the Navy’s iconoclastic venture into the green and brown waters of Southeast Asia.

Riverine Craft of the Vietnam Wars

Author: Roger Branfill-Cook
Publisher: Seaforth Publishing
ISBN: 1526749076
Category : Crafts & Hobbies
Languages : en
Pages : 195

Book Description
“Provides clear and succinct descriptions of the various craft used not only by American forces but those of the French and South Vietnamese Navy.” —Army Rumour Service (ARRSE) The ShipCraft series provides in-depth information about building and modifying model kits of famous warship types. Lavishly illustrated, each book takes the modeler through a brief history of the subject, highlighting differences between ships and changes in their appearance over their careers. This includes paint schemes and camouflage, featuring color profiles and highly detailed line drawings and scale plans. The modeling section reviews the strengths and weaknesses of available kits, lists commercial accessory sets for super-detailing of the subjects, and provides hints on modifying and improving the basic kit. This is followed by an extensive photographic gallery of selected high-quality models in a variety of scales, and the book concludes with a section on research references—books, monographs, large-scale plans and relevant websites. This volume is something of a departure for the series in covering a wide variety of the types, at first improvised and then purpose-built for the Brown Water conflict. Besides the well-known American involvement, the book also covers some of the craft used by the French in their earlier struggle with Vietnamese guerrillas. With its unparalleled level of visual information—paint schemes, models, line drawings and photographs—this book is simply the best reference for any modelmaker setting out to build one of these unusual craft. “Very well written . . . The author’s interest, knowledge and enthusiasm come through the content and make the title so appealing to the reader.” —Armorama