A Hundred Feet Over Hell: Flying with the Men of the 220th Recon Airplane Company Over I Corps and the Dmz, 1968-1969 [Illustrated] [Hardcover]

In [A Hundred Feet Over Hell], there is a universal truth: warriors don't fight for their country or flag, they fight for each other, often going far beyond what their country asks. It was an honor to serve at the same time as these men. This story is about the nation's best! --Lance W. Lord, General, USAF (ret)-- A classic story of war...from hell-raising antics in the clubs and bars to hair-raising combat operations, where death was often only inches away, this is a must-read. Those who have 'seen the elephant' will instantly identify with actions of their fellow warriors. Flying an unarmored aircraft well within the effective range of every enemy weapon on the battlefield to protect the grunts in close combat takes a special breed of heroes. This book chronicles the exploits of such men. --Gary L Harrell, LTGen, USA (ret)--Jim Hooper s gripping account of the legendary Catkillers of the 220th Recon Airplane Company once again shows us the spirit and ethos of American warriors. It shows the sheer guts, ingenuity, compassion, and humor of those who serve in defense of freedom...a tribute to the Catkillers, and the thousands who follow in their footsteps. Brigadier General Robert H Holmes USAF-- A moving tribute to the men that flew these small aircraft with skill, courage, determination and a whole lot of brass, Mike Seely, BG(ret) USA-- I flew A-4 Skyhawks out of Chu Lai, and then Bird Dogs with the VMO-6 Fingerprints at Quang Tri for the second half of my tour, You have done a magnificent job of presenting the deadly environment we all faced on a daily basis. I can't thank you enough for telling the story of the Catkillers, because it is a story not only about them, but everyone who flew in I Corps. Your book is outstanding- --Jim Lawrence, LtCol, USAF (ret)--I find I have to read parts over and over again because my mind fades away as I reminisce. The setting covers so many places I've been - Quang Tri, Dong Ha, Rockpile, Vandergrift, Con Thien, and others. Having been in a grunt unit and in 3rd Force Recon in I Corps I truly felt a part of the pictures you painted. [Hooper does] a remarkable job of providing the sights and sounds of a unit in trouble... --Tom Wilson, 3rd Force Recon--Jim Hooper s gripping account of the legendary Catkillers of the 220th Recon Airplane Company once again shows us the spirit and ethos of American warriors. It shows the sheer guts, ingenuity, compassion, and humor of those who serve in defense of freedom...a tribute to the Catkillers, and the thousands who follow in their footsteps. Brigadier General Robert H Holmes USAF-- A moving tribute to the men that flew these small aircraft with skill, courage, determination and a whole lot of brass, Mike Seely, BG(ret) USA-- I flew A-4 Skyhawks out of Chu Lai, and then Bird Dogs with the VMO-6 Fingerprints at Quang Tri for the second half of my tour, You have done a magnificent job of presenting the deadly environment we all faced on a daily basis. I can't thank you enough for telling the story of the Catkillers, because it is a story not only about them, but everyone who flew in I Corps. Your book is outstanding- --Jim Lawrence, LtCol, USAF (ret)--I find I have to read parts over and over again because my mind fades away as I reminisce. The setting covers so many places I've been - Quang Tri, Dong Ha, Rockpile, Vandergrift, Con Thien, and others. Having been in a grunt unit and in 3rd Force Recon in I Corps I truly felt a part of the pictures you painted. [Hooper does] a remarkable job of providing the sights and sounds of a unit in trouble...Jim Hooper s gripping account of the legendary Catkillers of the 220th Recon Airplane Company once again shows us the spirit and ethos of American warriors. It shows the sheer guts, ingenuity, compassion, and humor of those who serve in defense of freedom. --Tom Wilson, 3rd Force Recon

This rather starteling title actually chronicles the operation of the 22oth Recon.Airplane company over 1 Corps and the DMZ, Vitnam 1968-1969. Flying at low level at 100 mph over hostile territory was not for the faint hearted, and this is their story or rather the individual stories of a number of pilots and observers. In fact the work of at least one of these men was featured in a film where the pilot monitered th progress of a survivor on his way back to safety. This is not a book to review blandly as it is far to complicated with each pilot telling his own story, but if you are interested in this period of history you will find it an absorbing read and well worth looking out for. --Military Aircraft monthly, November, 2009--This collection of first-hand accounts by Forward Air Controllers flying unarmed Cessna Bird Dogs in the Vietnam War shows the hazards of these operations which performed vital missions but seldom received the coverage given to the fighters and bombers --Aeroplane Magazine, November, 2009

THE VILLAGES There is still pride in Sarge Means' voice as he talks about his time flying in Vietnam with the aviators of the 220th Recon Airplane Company, otherwise known by their call sign, the 'Catkillers.' Flying in the flimsy two-seat, propeller-driven Cessna 0-1 Bird Dogs, the Catkillers had the dangerous job of forward observers, patrolling I Corps and the Demilitarized Zone in the northernmost combat zone in South Vietnam.They were there to keep an eye on the DMZ and watch out for any enemy troops coming south that might engage American soldiers on the ground.They found and stopped the enemy before they could attack, and they supported the men on the ground by calling in artillery and air strikes once a battle began. 'We were called the eyes of I Corps,' Means, a resident of the Village of Sabal Chase, said.Few people know the story of the Catkillers, but many soldiers owed their lives to the brave flights made by those heroic pilots. It is a story that is finally being told through the efforts of Jim Hooper, a war correspondent, author, and brother to Catkiller Bill Hooper. Not willing to allow people to forget the Catkillers, Hooper has written a book told from the point-of-view of the Catkillers themselves, titled 'A Hundred Feet Over Hell.'-'My initial goal was to chronicle his (Bill's) experiences, though I didn't feel qualified to do so until seeing combat as a freelance journalist 20 years later,' Hooper said. 'Not long after I started prompting him for his memories, it became glaringly obvious that I couldn't tell his story without including the men he flew with.'Searching for other members of the Catkillers became Hooper's mission, and in what he describes as a eureka moment, he finally got in touch with Means.Through Means, Hooper then was able to connect with other Catkillers and even an infantryman who credited Bill with saving his life during an intense battle.'Jim called me I was assigned at Fort Rucker, Alabama at the time about 15 years ago, and he said he was writing a book,' Means recalled. 'That started a chain reaction. It kind of snowballed from there.'Slowly, Hooper was able to get the Catkillers to share their memories.He said he wanted to use the voices of the men themselves to tell the story because it was the only way to really get across to readers what it meant to be a Catkiller.'Combat is an intensely personal phenomenon; each participant sees and remembers it from a unique perspective and with a unique voice,' Hooper explained. 'To homogenize their recollections in the third person would have stripped them of that uniqueness. I felt it important to establish each character in his own words.'Means said he was impressed at how the book definitely captured what it meant to be a Catkiller.'For those of us that were over there, it was just as if we were back there, back in the cockpit flying the missions,' Means said.In 'A Hundred Feet Over Hell,' Hooper recounts some of the Catkillers' most memorable missions, but he also focuses on another aspect of the men who made up the unit lifelong bonds that came from fighting together.'Despite the war, it was the camaraderie we had, the love for one another, the sharing. I've always felt that. It was special,' Means said.The book also serves as a confirmation of the importance of what Means and his comrades did in Vietnam.The story of their contribution was something Hooper said he didn't want to see disappear with time.'The Catkillers flew the most dangerous missions of any army Bird Dog unit in Vietnam, yet nothing had been written about them. If I could ensure that they weren't forgotten, then I had a responsibility to do so,' Hooper said. ----Daily Sun, August, 2009

This is the story of a handful of young pilots who operated in the northernmost part of Vietnam, along the DMZ. The only aerial unit to support front-line Marines, the 220th Recon Air Force rescued trapped soldiers, delivered supplies, and often made the difference between rescuing a wounded comrade and returning them to their family and loved ones, or laying the corpse to rest in a military grave. From hair-raising tree-top flying, search-and-rescue missions, perilous supply drops, evasion and pursuit, these immediate and harrowing accounts of air combat will fascinate and enthral all and every reader.