Rampant Raider: An A-4 Skyhawk Pilot in Vietnam

by Stephen R. Gray

A member of Light Attack Squadron 212 s "Rampant Raiders," A-4 pilot Stephen R. Gray writes about his experiences flying combat sorties from the deck of an aircraft carrier during one of the most intense periods of aerial combat in U.S. history. From the perspective of a junior naval aviator, Gray reveals the lessons he learned first at the Naval Aviation Training Command and then in actual combat flying the Skyhawk from USS Bon Homme Richard in Vietnam. Training strengthens commitment, Gray points out, allowing ordinary men like him to fly dangerous missions. Readers will discover how circumstances created heroe--heroes who managed to overcome their personal fears for a greater cause--and how, despite the lack of public support for the war, the men remained committed to one another. The book addresses how men react to service during contentious political times to offer lessons relevant today.

Genres: Aviation, Military History

384 pages, Hardcover

First published September 15, 2007

Reviews

[Neueziel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a great book for anyone that is completely obsessed with military aviation and wants to see what pilots really experienced. The reason I gave 3 stars is because the book is very technical, using lots of terms related to flying, more so than other accounts I've read. The non-aviation crowd will probably find this book dry and boring. It doesn't have the colorful cast and humor of Bogeys and Bandits, which is a more entertaining story to digest, but I think I like this book more.

If you've always dreamed of being a pilot and the most mundane of of cockpit details excites you (like me) this book is a must own.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Spends half the book on his training to be a Naval Aviator, then on his combat deployment to Vietnam. Would have liked to read about the second one.

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'll freely admit in my teen years I was a huge fan of Top Gun and wanted to be a Naval Aviator more than anything else. The love of Naval Aviation started earlier say at age 4 when I attended an air show at NAS South Weymouth and saw the Blue Angels for the very first time. Since I realized the closest I would ever get to a cockpit of a Navy aircraft was through pages of a book or an open cockpit day at an air museum I have read as many books as I could get my hands on about Naval Aviation. my respect for Naval Aviators really no bounds and Rampant Raider is an excellent addition to books about Naval Aviation.

Mr. Gray takes the reader through his reasons to enlist into the Navy and to the completion of his first combat cruise. He brings the reader through his training with candor and highlighted only the more important parts of the training. His writing style is clear and informative which gave technolgical information but not overwhelming amount. His description of combat again is clear but gripping. Rampant Raider is highly recommended. I hope Mr. Gray will complete his combat experience in another book. I enjoyed his writing and couldn't put down the combat portion of the book.

[Robert Hepple · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stephen Gray’s account of his experiences as a US Navy pilot in the 1960s, taking you first through various training units before he was posted to VF-212 (hence the title) on the USS Bon Homme Richard flying A-4C Skyhawks into Vietnam in 1967. The attention to detail is amazing in many respects, including the sub-type details of aircraft flown, their flying characteristics, the units and their locations, the weapons and systems used, and a lot of operational details that help so much in understanding what Gray was going through at the time. This comes across very strongly in his descriptions of Intense Vietnam operations and their inevitable cost in losses of fellow aircrew. He also gives his personal opinions of the way in which the Vietnam War was fought, including the view that interference from the Johnson administration seriously compromised operational effectiveness at times, together with his opinions of some anti-war protests by US citizens. This was my sort of aviation book – the attention to detail was just what I look for, whilst the period setting was nostalgic in both historical terms and description of flying classic aircraft types that, for the most part, exist only in museums.

[Sid · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well written and I finally found out about the shoot down of my flight instructor.