In the Vietnam War and earlier much of the mission that is today performed
by drone aircraft was then done with small unarmed fixed wing airplanes
flown by on-board pilots. Many knew this mission as FAC (Forward Air
Control). The Marines termed it TACA (Tactical Aircraft Controller Airborne).
Most of the public just called them "spotter planes."
The most most numerous and recognizable aircraft model performing this
mission was the O-1 Bird Dog, essentially a two seat, single engine Cessna.
The 220th Aviation Company was a U.S. Army Bird Dog unit that flew the
border area between the (then) two Vietnams for almost the entire duration of
the conflict. The chapters accessed by the link below are small clips from the duty tour
of one pilot who served with the 220th from December, 1967 to August, 1969.
If this sort of thing interests I hope you find it enjoyable. Click here:
Here are sounds clips from actual missions of a 220th Aviation Company pilot recorded in the cockpit on an early consumer tape cassette player.
Sky Pilot
Sky Pilot was the title combat troops in Vietnam gave to unit chaplains. The name came about because they frequently descended from the sky in a helicopter prior to combat operations to address and bless the troops. They then returned to the sky in the manner they arrived leaving the men to soon do battle. Eric Burdon and The Animals used the name and mission of the Sky Pilot to ask poignant questions about religion's relationship with war in the 1968 song of that name. The presentation below recites those quesions in the context of those who joined their battles not on the ground but in those same skies travelled by the Sky Pilot on his mission.
Related Links:
Catkiller Web Site