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Flight
In 1964, I embarked on a journey that was to be my life's adventure. I hired on as a pilot for Air America and its clandestine operations in Southeast Asia.
Flying for the CIA's secret airline was a dream come true. Air America's operations were unknown. Its schedules were irregular. Its pilots were shadow people. It was the world of spooks, covert air ops and adventure. I had already been a pilot for more than half of my life when I left my home in Detroit for the wild escapades that awaited me in Southeast Asia. Air America had been the pinnacle of my life and, had the trajectory remained steady, my world and my career should have gone onward and upward from that point.
The intent of telling my story is to take the reader on an historical journey of a little-known place in time through my own personal account. Within the context of history, my narrative is not to be considered anything but my own experience.
The ranks of Air America were comprised of a host of patriotic professionals who deserve a place of honor in the annals of history. However, many colorful characters wore the Air America wings, and inside the course of my narrative, the reader will be subjected to people and situations that cannot be filed neatly under anything resembling normal sanity.
Most names, except those of a known or high-ranking or public nature, and those I wish to recognize for heroic performances, have been changed to protect the innocent and guilty alike.
Flying for the CIA's secret airline was a dream come true. Air America's operations were unknown. Its schedules were irregular. Its pilots were shadow people. It was the world of spooks, covert air ops and adventure. I had already been a pilot for more than half of my life when I left my home in Detroit for the wild escapades that awaited me in Southeast Asia. Air America had been the pinnacle of my life and, had the trajectory remained steady, my world and my career should have gone onward and upward from that point.
The intent of telling my story is to take the reader on an historical journey of a little-known place in time through my own personal account. Within the context of history, my narrative is not to be considered anything but my own experience.
The ranks of Air America were comprised of a host of patriotic professionals who deserve a place of honor in the annals of history. However, many colorful characters wore the Air America wings, and inside the course of my narrative, the reader will be subjected to people and situations that cannot be filed neatly under anything resembling normal sanity.
Most names, except those of a known or high-ranking or public nature, and those I wish to recognize for heroic performances, have been changed to protect the innocent and guilty alike.
350 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 9, 2019
46 people are currently reading
52 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
May 11, 2021
Neil Hansen can really spin a yarn, and with the help of Luann Grosscup, both of them have put together a really wonderful memoir of war and its aftermath.
From the harrowing skies over Vietnam and Laos, to Hansen's desperate scramble for adrenaline and meaning back in the world, this is a fine document of America's secret wars and the men who fight them. (And the women who are involved too.)
Neil, an eccentric, fun-loving aviator speaks with humanity, humility, and ultimately poignancy about his role and experiences in the wider Vietnam conflict and his dalliance with drug smuggling upon his return home. He is candid about the mental toll that flying in a combat zone takes, and presents frank picture of what war does to everyone it touches. Most Vietnam-era memoirs end with a serviceman being rotated back to the States, Hansen's war zone service ends with him witnessing the crush and terror of humanity trying to flee the final curtain.
The final act of the book, Hansen's descent into drug smuggling, his incarceration, and his own self-driven rehabilitation, largely with the aid of Buddhism, is as powerful as his unappreciated war-time service.
Fantastic book. If you're interested in Air America, covert aviation operations, or flying in general (Hansen and Grosscup don't skip on technical details that aviation fans will appreciate), this book is recommended. Also check out Neil Hansen on The Team House podcast. He's a great raconteur.
From the harrowing skies over Vietnam and Laos, to Hansen's desperate scramble for adrenaline and meaning back in the world, this is a fine document of America's secret wars and the men who fight them. (And the women who are involved too.)
Neil, an eccentric, fun-loving aviator speaks with humanity, humility, and ultimately poignancy about his role and experiences in the wider Vietnam conflict and his dalliance with drug smuggling upon his return home. He is candid about the mental toll that flying in a combat zone takes, and presents frank picture of what war does to everyone it touches. Most Vietnam-era memoirs end with a serviceman being rotated back to the States, Hansen's war zone service ends with him witnessing the crush and terror of humanity trying to flee the final curtain.
The final act of the book, Hansen's descent into drug smuggling, his incarceration, and his own self-driven rehabilitation, largely with the aid of Buddhism, is as powerful as his unappreciated war-time service.
Fantastic book. If you're interested in Air America, covert aviation operations, or flying in general (Hansen and Grosscup don't skip on technical details that aviation fans will appreciate), this book is recommended. Also check out Neil Hansen on The Team House podcast. He's a great raconteur.
October 12, 2019
Absolutely loved it. It is a meticulously, but not boring at all, account of one human's participation in war-related events that affected his whole life. It tells the untold story of how civilians are drawn into war and then generally ignored in history books. It also reveals how our government refuses to acknowledge the contributions of these men and women who placed themselves in harm's way. It really struck me personally as I was there, along with thousands of other military personnel, involved in the 'secret war' and felt completely ignored before Hansen's wonderful story.
May 9, 2021
Probably the most intellectually honest piece of first person history I've ever read about a poorly understood set of activities in southeast asia during the US involvement in Vietnam.
The author offers his history as a pilot for Air America and, in so doing, presents us with all his personal moral failings without offering poor excuses or blaming the actions of others. I found this book to be almost overwhelmingly candid and yet I never lost the empathic hold, the understanding of the risks and the convictions that kept him on his path.
I highly recommend this book and hope to actually get to meet Mr. Hansen. I think I'd be proud to know him.
The author offers his history as a pilot for Air America and, in so doing, presents us with all his personal moral failings without offering poor excuses or blaming the actions of others. I found this book to be almost overwhelmingly candid and yet I never lost the empathic hold, the understanding of the risks and the convictions that kept him on his path.
I highly recommend this book and hope to actually get to meet Mr. Hansen. I think I'd be proud to know him.
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May 18, 2023MWSA Review
Flight: An Air American Pilot’s Story is a rip-roaring tale of flying thoughout Southeast Asia for the CIA's clandestine airline, Air America, during the Vietnam War. Practically the complete arc of the U.S. involvement in Indochina can be seen through the author's eyes during his time with Air America, from 1964 into the early 1970s.
The descriptions of harrowing flights though poor weather, small airfields, and often under enemy fire are fast paced and very detailed. Adjectives such as "earthy" or "gritty" are too pale to describe the voracious and chaotic non-flying activities of the author and some of his dysfunctional Air America comrades. Readers who do not care for strong language, graphic sex, and excessive alcohol use should be forewarned.
The author most likely suffered the same post traumatic stress that plagued Vietnam combat troops, and he suffered some of the same tragic post-war consequences as many of those veterans. His personal journey is both illustrative and inspiring in a low-key way.Readers with an interest in the Vietnam War, clandestine services, the history of southeast Asia in the 1960s and definitely flying will enjoy this book.
Review by Terry Lloyd (May 2023)
Flight: An Air American Pilot’s Story is a rip-roaring tale of flying thoughout Southeast Asia for the CIA's clandestine airline, Air America, during the Vietnam War. Practically the complete arc of the U.S. involvement in Indochina can be seen through the author's eyes during his time with Air America, from 1964 into the early 1970s.
The descriptions of harrowing flights though poor weather, small airfields, and often under enemy fire are fast paced and very detailed. Adjectives such as "earthy" or "gritty" are too pale to describe the voracious and chaotic non-flying activities of the author and some of his dysfunctional Air America comrades. Readers who do not care for strong language, graphic sex, and excessive alcohol use should be forewarned.
The author most likely suffered the same post traumatic stress that plagued Vietnam combat troops, and he suffered some of the same tragic post-war consequences as many of those veterans. His personal journey is both illustrative and inspiring in a low-key way.Readers with an interest in the Vietnam War, clandestine services, the history of southeast Asia in the 1960s and definitely flying will enjoy this book.
Review by Terry Lloyd (May 2023)
July 28, 2020
Memoir of Air America
This autobiographical work memorializes the efforts and sacrifices of the pilots and aircrew members of the CIA Air America operations in Southeast Asia during the war in Vietnam. The author does this by recounting his own personal tribulations and flights in this theater of operations. He also lays bare his personal failures and successes after his return to the continental United States from the war zone. For those interested in our fight (both overt and covert) in the Republic of Vietnam, Laos, Thailand and Cambodia, it is a worthwhile read.
This autobiographical work memorializes the efforts and sacrifices of the pilots and aircrew members of the CIA Air America operations in Southeast Asia during the war in Vietnam. The author does this by recounting his own personal tribulations and flights in this theater of operations. He also lays bare his personal failures and successes after his return to the continental United States from the war zone. For those interested in our fight (both overt and covert) in the Republic of Vietnam, Laos, Thailand and Cambodia, it is a worthwhile read.
November 22, 2020
A Buddha Pin on a lapel
There are hero's in this world that wish nothing but to be remembered as good as what they do so that those around them have a better life, A better world. They do this without wishing any medals or awards only the compensation from the acknowledgement of a job that needed to be done was done well to the best of their own ability. These are American heroes, they need to be remembered and honored if only by knowing about what was done ultimately for humanity.
There are hero's in this world that wish nothing but to be remembered as good as what they do so that those around them have a better life, A better world. They do this without wishing any medals or awards only the compensation from the acknowledgement of a job that needed to be done was done well to the best of their own ability. These are American heroes, they need to be remembered and honored if only by knowing about what was done ultimately for humanity.
May 10, 2020
A very excellent written book. Started the humor in the initial pages about how the author was recruited, I really can't just put the book aside, but the most impressive part is in the latter pages. It described how quite a number of ex-Air America Pilot could not manage a decent retirement after their service is over, including the author, they had to turn to fugitive for a living or better retiremnet life. that may be a sign of trouble in this Money is no 1 world.
March 9, 2022
Air America
A lifelong fan of the subject, here it is all in one place. Covert airlift and warts-and-all highlife in Laos is masterfully told, offering a real sense of adrenaline junkies flying for a cause. Through author introspection, the coming-of-age aspect add humanity to the story that otherwise could be just about flying in combat (and a damn fine story at that). Loved this.
A lifelong fan of the subject, here it is all in one place. Covert airlift and warts-and-all highlife in Laos is masterfully told, offering a real sense of adrenaline junkies flying for a cause. Through author introspection, the coming-of-age aspect add humanity to the story that otherwise could be just about flying in combat (and a damn fine story at that). Loved this.
July 19, 2022
Great Book
I walked into this with somewhat low expectations. Man was I wrong. This was a phenomenal read that I had a hard time setting down.
I hadn't read a Viet Name era book in many years, but I'm glad I bought this one.
As a professional pilot myself, I stand in awe of what that cadre of pilots did. The writing was excellent and I'm glad I found this book. Excellent read!
I walked into this with somewhat low expectations. Man was I wrong. This was a phenomenal read that I had a hard time setting down.
I hadn't read a Viet Name era book in many years, but I'm glad I bought this one.
As a professional pilot myself, I stand in awe of what that cadre of pilots did. The writing was excellent and I'm glad I found this book. Excellent read!
December 1, 2023
A real page turner if you love flying
One man's incredible tale of survival and adaptation to an ever changing environment that demands personal re-invention and moral development with each iteration. If you love flying and have an interest in Vietnam and the cost of social disorganization, this book is for you. I found it to be the first "page turner" I've read in a good long while.
One man's incredible tale of survival and adaptation to an ever changing environment that demands personal re-invention and moral development with each iteration. If you love flying and have an interest in Vietnam and the cost of social disorganization, this book is for you. I found it to be the first "page turner" I've read in a good long while.
May 21, 2022
Enjoyed this book, particularly first and last thirds. Lots of good stories in middle third, including humor and jokes on people, dead or alive, (probably how he got through some pretty rough stuff) but I thought the humour and jokes were a bit overdone in the end. But what a life, and pleased it turned out pretty well for him after the various turns of events for him.
February 11, 2020
Very Authentic
The author has a style very similar to Ernest Gann. He has a very engaging and descriptive prose. I used to come in contact with Air America Pilots in South Vietnam where I was an Army Aviator flying the U1A Otter out of Can Tho.
The author has a style very similar to Ernest Gann. He has a very engaging and descriptive prose. I used to come in contact with Air America Pilots in South Vietnam where I was an Army Aviator flying the U1A Otter out of Can Tho.
December 28, 2021
I didn't really like this book like I wanted to and thought I would. I don't really have any legitimate gripes about it. I just maybe had a completely different expectation that wasn't met? Not sure. Just didn't get into it.
February 8, 2020
Not what I expecred
I didn't really care for the way this book started out but looking at the big picture -it was pretty interesting.
I didn't really care for the way this book started out but looking at the big picture -it was pretty interesting.
October 25, 2021
Great addition to the story of Air America and the US involvement in Loas. Full of great stories.
March 28, 2022
An exceptional and well written tell all, it felt like I was sitting at the bar listening to Neil relive his life with Air America and thereafter
January 8, 2024
A fascinating in mating story and life
May 14, 2020
WOW! If you love aviation history, you have to read this!
What a journey this story takes you through. Having made some bad decisions myself, I can relate to the author’s stories and consequences. Get this book now and read it.
What a journey this story takes you through. Having made some bad decisions myself, I can relate to the author’s stories and consequences. Get this book now and read it.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews