| Sock it to ‘em baby
Garry Cooper & Robert Hillier
Allen & Unwin
318 pages, $29.95
Volume 11, No. 47, July 13, 2006
ONE of the lesser-known RAAF contributions in Vietnam was the work of the RAAF Forward Air Controllers who served on exchange with the US Air Force.
Aussie Gary Cooper was one of the few who flew with them, and in this new biography we are taken into the hell-for-leather world of these brave men.
The reader is taken back to 1968 Vietnam, where Cooper is posted in support of the US Army’s 9th Infantry Division. Flying the diminutive Cessna Bird Dog, Cooper flies time and again into enemy fire to mark the way for the fast air support.
Never one to let the troops down, he received a number of recommendations for US bravery awards, but the politics of the time prevented them eventuating.
The book is written quite matter-of-factly, with vivid descriptions that almost allow you to smell the clouds of napalm as you flash by in your Bird Dog.
A riveting tale of a brave pilot. If you’re into Australian aviation then you’ll enjoy this one.
– Lt Cameron Jamieson.
Clive Caldwell Air Ace
Kristen Alexander
Allen & Unwin
288 pages, $35
Volume 11, No. 47, July 13, 2006
CLIVE Caldwell should be a household name, but history has been less than kind to his memory.
With 27½ aerial victories, he was Australia’s highest scoring fighter pilot in World War II. Brought back from North Africa to assist with the defence of Northern Australia, Caldwell went on to fly Spitfires against the Japanese.
As the war moved north towards Japan, Caldwell followed, but in 1945 his career went into a spin when he was accused of illegal liquor trading and was investigated for his role in the so-called Morotai Mutiny.
Kristen Alexander has written a magnificent book about this enigmatic man. With the help of Caldwell’s widow and peers Alexander has written the definitive book on a man who loved his country and flew with a passion that was an example to all who served under his command.
The book celebrates his achievements and tells the tale of how a green fighter pilot went on to become one of Australia’s top aces, only to become a casualty of command.
– Lt Cameron Jamieson.
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