Guardian Angel: Life and Death Adventures with Pararescue, the World's Most Powerful Commando Rescue Force

by William F. Sine

US Air Force Pararescue is the most skillful and capable rescue force in the world, taking on some of the most dangerous rescue missions imaginable. PJs (short for para-jumpers), are members of an elite unit whose commando skills are so wide-reaching they often seem like something out of science fiction. They routinely tackle perilous operations that are beyond the capabilities of other rescue organizations, and sometimes dare the seemingly impossible. Since their inception in 1947, PJs have saved more than thirty thousand lives. They can pluck near-frozen climbers off jagged mountaintops and recover shot-down jet pilots stranded deep in hostile territory. In the dead of night, the PJs parachute into ominous, black, twenty-foot-tall waves to save distressed seamen, and they brave the cruelest and most desolate deserts to recover victims. US Air Force pararescuemen have played a prominent role in every armed conflict since the Korean War, rescuing thousands of soldiers from behind enemy lines. Guardian Angel provides a rare glimpse at a PJ’s mind-blowing adventures. You follow Sgt. Sine’s trek across exotic lands and share his encounters with mysterious cultures. Learn what it takes to lower from a helicopter onto the slippery decks of storm-tossed ships to rescue dying sailors. Feel what it’s like to be caught in the middle of a bomb blast so powerful that it tears high-rise buildings in half, and flattens armored vehicles hundreds of yards away. Soar high above towering jungle trees and experience the danger of swinging on a slim cable below a helicopter, while performing a mid-air rescue of a pilot, dangling from his chute a hundred feet above a mountain slope. Go to war in Afghanistan and parachute onto a nocturnal battlefield, surrounded by land mines, to help a mortally wounded soldier. This is a deadly serious When things go wrong, they can go terribly wrong. Aircraft crash into mountainsides, killing all onboard, while some PJs live through horrendous helicopter crashes only to struggle with freezing temperatures, snapped limbs and torn flesh in a desperate fight for survival. This book presents true stories of uncommon courage told from the perspective of the actual men in the arena. PJs belong to an exclusive brotherhood and forge unbreakable bonds of loyalty, commitment, and sacrifice. They do these things for their country, to protect their brothers in arms, and to honor their “That Others May Live.”

Genres: Military Fiction, History, Nonfiction, Military History, Memoir, War

338 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

William F. Sine spent twenty-eight years as a pararescueman, during which time he participated in high-profile humanitarian and combat rescue missions around the world.

After retiring from the air force as a senior master sergeant in 2003, he became the first civilian to secure a teaching position at the Pararescue and Combat Rescue Officer School in New Mexico.

The recipient of numerous military awards and decorations, including the Distinguished Flying Cross with Valor and the Purple Heart, Sine is the author of the nonfiction book Guardian Angel: Life and Death Adventures with Pararescue, the World's Most Powerful Commando Rescue Force as well as the military thriller novel Tricklock: Operation Powerful Vendetta.

Reviews

[JD · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book chronicles the adventures and misadventures of William Sine's 28-year career as a US Air Force pararescueman (PJ). He takes you along on all his tours of duty to some great locations where they are always engaged in hair-raising rescues, where any slip-up could be your last, and then playing hard afterwards. Though he served in predominantly peaceful times in US history, these pararescuemen is always on the front lines of rescue operations from sinking boats, air crashes to lost climbers where they save peoples' lives on a daily basis. Good read and recommended if you are interested in the subject.

[Jude Walko · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a great insight into the work and heroism, of modern day PJs (pararescue jumpers). They are responsible from everything to saving downed pilots behind enemy lines, retrieving astronauts after splashdown, and rescuing both military and civilians in extremely precarious places or combat zones.

The next time someone jokes about the "chair force", ask them if could hold a candle to any PJ.

Even if you're not necessarily a military or history buff, you will probably find this a fascinating read. There are some first person accounts of insane incidents like the retrieval of remains from Congressman Mickey Leland's downed plane in Ethiopia or the time MSgt. Rob Disney got half his face shot off. It's a wild ride full of adrenaline and anecdotes.

If I had one problem with the book, it is that it was riddled with typos and grammatical errors to the point where it became a distraction. As an author myself I am not infallible and even find some in my own works from time to time, but this one, at least the digital version I read, was in serious need of an editor. Hopefully subsequent reissues will fix these problems, as the book really is an incredible read.

[Anne Fox · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a memoir of a man who served in the Air Force's pararescue teams. As anyone who has spent any time in the military or affiliated with the military knows, such recollections span from the serious to the irreverent to the utterly hilarious. On that last score, more than one recollection of a prank played had me laughing so hard I cried. Most memorable among these (to me, at any rate) was the story of the capture of the tooth fairy and the escapade with placing a sea cucumber in the toilet of a couple other service members. No, I'm not going to spoil it—read the book!

The book has its flaws and could use an editor, with the errors being a little too numerous for me. They aren't serious detractions, but noticeable nonetheless. I would have given five stars had it not been for the editing issues.

Military units evolve on a regular basis, and I'm sure pararescue has done so. Still, if one wants to know what it takes to be one of the military's elite, reading this book will be a great start.

[Rev. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank God for PJs

A wonderful introduction to the amazing warriors who are the Guardian Angels of battle. They save lives and bring home other warriors who would be lost without them. The hardest training I ever did was a vacation for them. They were scary fit, and that's just the physical side. Reading this redoubled my admiration for these battlefield emergency doctors who make house calls by parachute into active firefights.

[Trina Matous · Rating 2 out of 5]

This subject has a lot of potential. I was attracted to the subject and the job the PJs do regularly to help and protect. Unfortunately the actual writing falls short of the potential. The author is suddenly married, then suddenly a single parent with no mention of anything else. The book unnecessarily repeats facts and is filled with typos. It needed a good editor to reach its potential. In the end, I couldn’t finish.

[Drew Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

SMsgt. Sine has a fascinating story to tell, both of his experiences and of some of his brother PJ's. The book is not badly written, although the author is sometimes wordy as he waxes rhapsodic. Unfortunately, he is a little more sparing of his words when describing some events. This is a great look at a little known military skill set, overall. Glad to have read it.

[Darryl Updegrove · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liked some aspects of the book, but not others. Interesting stories towards the end, but some times I just got tired of reading the macho man mentality. I guess it's needed for a job like that. Interesting to think I was not that far away in Bahrain while he and his friends were getting blown up in the Khobar towers in Saudi.

[Jim Heivilin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unknown heroes

Military history fans know about the green berets, the rangers and the SEALs but these guys may be more badass than all the others. The Pararescue guys not only are badass special operators but combat medics too.

[Nick Hailey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hoo-yah!

Great book. I would recommend it for a read anytime. Though I wouldn't call it a classic, Sargent Sine's tales of PJ adventuring and rescuing are quintessential to the modern warrior's spirit.

[Alex! · Rating 5 out of 5]

Definite insight.

I still don’t know if being a PJ or a CRO will bring me the fulfillment I’m looking for. However this book’s constant examples and stories have given me definite insight into what that life would be like. I’m thankful for having read it.

[Kenneth G Matney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read.

Gives you the full flavor of the PJ experience. Happy to read about his career after our brief training sessions in the PI. All PJ's are true hero's.

[Skye · Rating 3 out of 5]

y

[Edward · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good read, some editing/proofing errors, but did not really detract from the story. Found it more interesting since most of the experience is before the current war on terror.

[Ace Ohoolihan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Filled with humor and devotion towards a badass job

[Tim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you for your service. Could have used another run by the editor's desk.

[Kevin M · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disappointing. Only a portion of the book is about missions and training. A little self serving from time to time.

[Shelby Fuller · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good book on everything the AF “PJ” teams do. Only 5-10% of the students make it through the grueling training.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good adventure read. I couldn’t put it down.

[James Vines · Rating 5 out of 5]

An attention holder the whole time. Guardian Angel is a book that held my mind with so many questions and fantasies of my wanting’s for the Special Warfare lifestyle. I have read this book for two reason’s, the first is that I am currently enlisted in the US Army and signed my contract for Airborne Infantry with Ranger Selection, so I have many questions of what lifestyle I am getting myself into. The second, and main reason, is for a school project on ethnography for skydivers. Ethnography is a descriptive and submissive way into a culture and society to everyone understands. For the skydiver’s culture, I will place myself in the shoes in any way shape or form, and try to understand why the do what they love to do, and even how they do it. I’m trying to relate skydiver’s with Pararescueman because these men live their lives to protect other’s, SO OTHER’S MAY LIVE. PJ’s skydived, or Halo Jump, or any other type of jump, quite frequently. I have read in the book they jump from moving helicopters to the ocean below. This book is very descriptive and visually compelling when reading, “Our top sergeant was furious. Red faced and apoplectic, he began cussing and yelling at everyone until PJ Brian Berg calmly said, “Sergeant Wagner, no sense in crying over spilt milk!”(Sine 60) Mr. Sine himself is a phenomenal writer when it comes to what his experiences were and how he wrote to the reader, is definitely an attention holder. “My bemused teammates cautiously peered over the ledge and saw me crucified on a giant prickly pear cactus. I felt like I was nailed to the plant, unable to move a muscle.” (Sine 49) I, myself, got a huge kick out of the mistakes and injuries he had received when going through training because it shows me, many true warriors are who they are through mistakes and pain, they just learn from them.

[Andrew · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is about combat-trained paramedics who literally jump out of airplanes and helicopters to save wounded soldiers. That is an awesome job. Unfortunately this book is poorly edited, and the Kindle version has a large amount of typos and grammatical errors.

The author served our country for twenty-eight years and has a lot of great stories to tell. For example, he was in the barracks that were bombed in Saudi Arabia in 1996. After regaining consciousness, he freed himself from the building and then helped others for hours before finally letting someone help him. He also tells stories of other heroic pararescue jumpers.

But, this book is in need of a good editor. The introduction is a jumble of facts hastily arranged to say "buy this book!" The subject matter is something that most adult American men would find interesting, so I don't understand why the author tries to sell the book so awkwardly.

The rest of the book is filled with simple mistakes that a proof-reader would catch. The Kindle version has obvious typos like "The PJ [pararescue jumper] School has been located in Albuquerque since 197&" and "Our final destination is Saudi Arabia, an Islamic country where alcoholic is banned." Granted, the Saudis probably ban alcoholics in addition to alcohol, but it is hard to stay focused when there are glaring mistakes like these.

So, I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys military memoirs and doesn't mind raw, poorly formatted stories. It is a shame that the publisher didn't put the time and energy required into making this a high quality product. They could have spent some more time and made this a superb book.

[Jordan Larsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you’ve ever dreamed of what it’s like to be a real-life superhero, this gripping and exhilarating memoir by former PJ legend William Sine is as close as you’ll ever get without actually hurting yourself. As a member of the world’s most elite rescue squad for more than thirty-years, William Sine and his colleagues live a very uncommon but incredibly amazing and rewarding lifestyle in the select fraternity that is Pararescue. U.S. Air Force Pararescue teams see action in a variety of diverse and dangerous environments: From the sweltering jungles of the Philippines, to the malevolent seas and crevasses of Iceland, to the terror of experiencing the bombing of the Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia and rescuing downed aircrews behind enemy lines in Afghanistan. This is the reality of what it truly means to live by the creed, “That Other’s May Live.”
However, the life of a PJ isn’t all adrenaline and testosterone, there are times spent training for future emergencies, customizing special equipment to rescue astronauts out at sea after reentry, outrageously funny moments with Pararescue teammates, and light-hearted family moments such as becoming a father for the first time and raising a rambunctious child as a single parent who eventually grows into a crazy young teen later on in life desperately in need of a stable and straight path into adulthood. If you loved Michael Hirsch’s “None Braver: U.S. Air Force Pararescuemen,” William Sine’s riveting memoir makes for a great companion book.

[Derek White · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent and gripping look inside the little-known world of the "rescue commandos" of the U.S. Air Force. Who answers the call when Navy Seals need to call 911? It's their military brothers-in-arms, the U.S. Air Force Pararescuemen or "PJs."

This book moves along at a good pace with story after story of both the author, William F. Sine, and his PJ brothers-in-arms. PJs should be some of the most celebrated military special operators, but because their role is typically non-combat they just don't get the press. But these guys exemplify some of the best that the U.S. has to offer--and in their special role as rescuers of those who have been injured they may even deserve a greater nod.

Trained to shoot their way in and shoot their way out, PJs are prepared to die rescuing the sick and injured. Their motto is "That Others May Live."

Sine is an uncommonly good writer for a person whose focus was active military duty.

There were several unfortunate typos that the publisher left in the edition I read, but Sine can't be blamed for that.

[G · Rating 2 out of 5]

The stories in this book are very detailed and are incredibly interesting to read. However, this book is in desperate need of an editor. At some parts of the book, large pieces of information are simply repeated while other facts are assumed to be already known by the reader. In one chapter the author talks about his wife giving birth and the next chapter has him saying that he was a single parent. This book has a lot of potential to be another great military memoir, but simply does reach the necessary level of composition.

[Carlos Rivera · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great read by a hero!

This first hand account of para rescue jumpers or PJ's is an excellent way of seeing what these heroes do on a daily basis. The missions, danger, loyalty and camaraderie are woven throughout the book, and the author is to be commended for telling his story in an easy to read, yet intimate manner. Hats off for an excellent book!!

[Linda Goudreau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good reading....

I am one of the ones mentioned in this book that did not know of these great pararescue guys. Sorry to say! This book brought home all the heroic and unbelievable stories of Pararescue soldiers. Mr Sine is a hero in my book, will there be any more stories??? Many thanks, Amarillo Turtle

[gerald milford · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read

kept me close a bit choppy jumping from one adventure to another. the transitions didn't make sense but the stories were great.

[Tammy-Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting but not what I was looking for...

[Meagan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating book. Well-written narrative descriptions of events, contextual history, and very, very exciting.

[A.R. Moler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Had some editing issues by I enjoyed the tale.

[BookTrib.com]

Members of the U.S. Air Force Pararescue—also known as the PJs—are the real-life incarnations of Mission Impossible’s Ethan Hunt. Since 1947, they’ve soared above jungles, swung from helicopter cables, and dove into bombs blasts with one goal in mind: to save the lives of others. For our entire review of Guardian Angel - and more books that'll have you reading through the night - click here! https://booktrib.com/2017/07/9-inspir...