Vietnam Above The Treetops: A Forward Air Controller Reports By John F. Flanagan

[wartimecollectables.com]

I just finished Vietnam Above The Treetops: A Forward Air Controller Reports By John F. Flanagan, published in 1992. Flanagan served as a FAC in Vietnam in 1966-67. The majority of his time was spent in support of Special Forces Detachment B52 Project Delta. I have read many books about Vietnam, from personal narratives to straight forward history, but I feel I came away from this reading with at least a little better understanding of and appreciation for the frustration felt by many for the half hearted approach the US Government took to waging the war in South East Asia. “Rules of Engagement”, limiting contact, body count versus measureable gains, the red tape of supply and support requests that could mean life or death, and border questions made a hard fight even harder. Flanagan splices post war conversations with wartime friends into the text giving an added dimension to the understanding, as best an observer 50 years removed, can have.

 

 

[FIGMO]

I read this book too and found it vey informative. A copy of it has a permenant spot in my library. I consider it one of the better USAF FAC books on the market.