This book is the factual story of the development of armed helicopters in the US Army and their first employment in combat. The story is dramatically told by the courageous men who lived it--flying daily into enemy infested areas facing murderous fire from automatic and anti-aircraft weapons. In late 1961 the US Government deployed five Transportation Helicopter Companies (H-21 lift ships) to South Vietnam to increase the mobility of South Vietnamese ground forces. The Viet Cong quickly recognized that the H-21s were unarmed and began shooting at them endangering the lives of American crewmen. A helicopter company equipped with 25 UH-1 helicopters had been cobbled together on Okinawa by the Commander US Army Pacific. Believing the company was soon to be deployed to Vietnam, the men assigned to the unit armed its helicopters by scrounging weapons systems left over from WW ll and Korea stored in Army/Air Force depots in Okinawa. Machine guns and 2.75 inch rockets were jury rigged onto the UH-1s. .Officially designated the Utility Tactical Helicopter Company, but widely known as the UTT, the company deployed to Saigon in September 1962. After some jurisdictional squabbles with the Air Force over roles and missions, UTT began combat operations in October. It quickly became widely known for professionalism and the courage of its crew members. Such was its fame that for years South Vietnamese military personnel called all armed helicopters UTT. Unfortunately over its years in RVN the Company endured frequent designation changes--UTT/68th/197th/334th Armed Helicopter Company. Why remains a mystery even today. The Companys legacy is strong and endures today. Armed helicopters are a major component of US Army combat forces. The current Army Apache program (over 600) is a direct descendent. Additionally, the Marines and Navy have strong armed helicopter programs, as does every major military power in the world. Ironically it all began with a small group of courageous men mounting scavenged weapons [mostly outmoded] on helicopters originally designed for medical evacuation. This is their story.

He had new medicine to help with his anger, and we saw Mary, our counselor, three times a week, alone and together. Things were going very well, and it was not uncommon for him to sleep over. In the following weeks, everything seemed fine, except we were anxious for him to come home. Maybe soon, Mary said, but we should keep doing what we were doing since it was going so well. Then our nightmare began. What was it that put him over the edge and become the man that he hated so much? He would cross over that line and become the man that everyone feared. He would not be the Mark we all loved ever again. I still believed with all my heart that he would never really hurt me. I will never forget his haunting words on the phone earlier. He'd called nine times, begging me to let him come home. I said, "No, you're really scaring me." Every time he'd slam down the phone and threaten me. "I can't live another day without you, and I won't." Were my son Jimmy's words about to come true? "Mark is crazy, someday he is going to kill someone!" My story is as funny as it is tragic. It is scarier than I could have ever imagined. What I put my children through is unimaginable to me now. But I did it! I'm not sure I will ever forgive myself for being so selfish and not putting them first. I thank God every day that they have been able to forgive me. I am one of the lucky ones. God has blessed me in so many ways. I hope you enjoy my story and that, in some way, it may help you see the truth in your own relationship and what so easily really can happen.

“I was born in a land of bayous, raised between rivers,” writes Glenn Blake in his latest collection of short stories. “There is a place in Southeast Texas where two rivers meet and become one. There is a long bridge over these waters, and as you drive across, you can look to the south and see where the Old River and the Lost River become the Old and the Lost. You can look out as far as you can see and watch this wide water become the bay.” The stories in Return Fire are set in the swamps, bayous, and sloughs of Southeast Texas, a region that is subsiding—sinking inches every year beneath the encroaching tides. The characters who inhabit Blake’s Southern landscape struggle to salvage what they can of their hopes and dreams. They are the walking wounded—cautious, crippled, capable of any act. Magnolias, water, mescal, stars, and fire return again and again in these seven sparse—yet tightly written—vignettes.

“Charged with adrenaline, RETURN FIRE is a high-speed police thriller that never lets you off the edge of your seat. Equal parts mystery and action thriller, RETURN FIRE is page-turning fiction at its very best.” —the American Author’s Association As a decorated SWAT sniper, Barry Ozeroff’s aim as a storyteller is just as deadly accurate. RETURN FIRE is everything you could ever want in a thriller. —Steve Hamilton, Edgar Award-winning author of NIGHT WORK. SWAT sniper Ben Geller and his family have a lot on their plate. They were victims of a recent hostage siege, their debts far outweigh their earnings, and they’re trying to adopt a troubled young African-American boy. So the last thing they need is to be stalked by a madman with a grudge, a creative imagination, and fifteen million dollars. Ben has other problems as well. Of the three ladies in his life, the only faithful one is his eight-year-old daughter. The other two—the wife he thought he knew, and the badge-wielding girlfriend who’s maybe just a little too possessive—are both full of surprises. When the stress gets to him, and his job is threatened by an excessive force complaint, Ben realizes he’s lost all control of his life. Then things begin to change for the better, leaving Ben back in full control. But better isn’t always what it’s cracked up to be, and control isn’t just something Ben's lost, it’s something he never had. And now, in RETURN FIRE, Ozeroff fans get the payoff they’ve been waiting for.

August 1914, Britain is aflame with war and patriotism. Men from all over the country rush to enlist, volunteering to fight for King and country. Most are young and innocent and cannot possibly foresee the horrors that await them on the bloody battlegrounds of the Western Front. How many of them will survive? Brothers Tom and David Duke have spent most of their lives playing rugby together. With the advent of war, however, they too choose to enlist, each for his own reason: Tom has an insatiable lust for adventure, and David simply cannot let his brother go to war without him. They become soldiers, and together will face the untold horrors of the First World War. Their innocence and boundless enthusiasm propel them into the infamous Battle of the Somme in 1916. The following year, they face the unspeakable horror of Passchendaelle, a name that would become synonymous with the ineffable futility of the Great War. What began as patriotic adventure becomes a fight for survival. The brothers cannot escape the brutal reality of war which has unforeseen and tragic consequences for them and the people they love most. Based on the official war diaries of the Eleventh Battalion, the London Regiment, this historical novel tells a gripping story of the true tragedy of the Great War.

Immortal is the only single-volume English-language survey of Iran’s military history. CIA analyst Steven R. Ward shows that Iran’s soldiers, from the famed “Immortals” of ancient Persia to today’s Revolutionary Guard, have demonstrated through the centuries that they should not be underestimated. This history also provides background on the nationalist, tribal, and religious heritages of the country to help readers better understand Iran and its security outlook. Immortal begins with the founding of ancient Persia’s empire under Cyrus the Great and continues through the Iran-Iraq War (1980–1988) and up to the present. Drawing on a wide range of sources including declassified documents, the author gives primary focus to the modern era to relate the build-up of the military under the last Shah, its collapse during the Islamic revolution, its fortunes in the Iran-Iraq War, and its rise from the ashes to help Iran become once again a major regional military power. He shows that, despite command and supply problems, Iranian soldiers demonstrate high levels of bravery and perseverance and have enjoyed surprising tactical successes even when victory has been elusive. These qualities and the Iranians’ ability to impose high costs on their enemies by exploiting Iran’s imposing geography bear careful consideration today by potential opponents.

Dramatised real historical events. A story of the clash of two powerful larger than life historical characters in the first quarter of the nineteenth century which culminated in a fatal shot fired on Dover beach in 1826.

The Battle of Powder River occurred on 17 March 1876 in southeastern Montana. Historians and researchers have consistently overlooked the importance of this battle on the outcome of the Great Sioux War of 1876. Colonel Joseph J. Reynolds set out to destroy the Indian camp established by the combined Cheyenne and Oglala Sioux in order to push the Indians back to the reservations and allow miners to enter the Black Hills to mine gold. Reynolds failed to accomplish this mission. The intelligence from his Indian scouts was flawed. Logistically, the soldiers were not fed, clothed, armed, or supplied for actions against the Indian tribes during the winter months. There was no written doctrine for the soldiers to follow. Tactically, Crook was delinquent because of the overconfidence in his force against the Indians. Crook failed to support Reynolds with troops, ammunition, logistics, and supplies. The outcome of this battle contributed to the defeats of Crook at the Rosebud and Custer at Little Big Horn because it caused the Indians to form a massive nation for self-preservation. Historians estimate that Crook faced more than 1,500 warriors at the Rosebud and Custer faced more than 2,500 braves at the Little Big Horn.