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Lam Son 719 videos...


BBall

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Hey guys,

 

A few weeks ago I began making an MP mission attempting to depict some of the flying during Operation Lam Son 719 in the spring of 1971, and this morphed into the idea to make a video to pay tribute to the air crews that flew during those horrific few weeks.

 

If you're unfamiliar with the operation, it was basically an effort to inderdict or destroy the Ho Chi Minh trail through Laos into South Vietnam. A recent Congressional ruling forbade the use of U.S. ground troops, so it essentially became an all ARVN operation with U.S. force relegated to supporting roles only.

 

The one big exception was the use of U.S. air assests. Air Force and Navy bombers and fighters were used, but the bulk of the flying fell to the U. S. Army helicopter units. Cobras, LOACHes, Kiowas, Chinooks, and of course, our beloved Hueys flew thousands of sorties in support of the ARVN forces.

 

In the end, the trail was not destroyed, the ARVN were less than victorious, and history has painted it with a very unfriendly brush. It was not only the largest helicopter operation of the entire war, but indeed one of the costliest.

 

In the credits, I used the term "short video", and my teenage daughter gave me a huge ration of crap over it...lol. She is (of course) right, it's not short... 25 minutes in length. Obviously, I couldn't put it up on "the Tube" in one vid, so it's split into two parts.

 

A couple of suggestions when watching the videos:

 

1). Crank up the sound. I used the music of that time frame, and IMHO, it's some of the best ever written. My guess is that the "old farts" amongst us (present company included), will love the tunes in the video.

 

2). Select the "HD" option.

 

3). I personally don't select the "Full Screen" option (I use "Large player"), IMHO, it looks way too washed out in full screen mode (I am BY NO MEANS any sort of expert/professional on this type stuff... I'm a rank amateur). In an effort to have a modicum of historical accuracy in terms of the weather (it was the beginning of the monsoon season), I chose an overcast day in an early morning time frame for most of the vid. This makes it seem rather dark but "c'est la vie"...

 

Bell-UH-1H-Iroquois-Huey_P1-2.jpg

 

Links to the videos on You Tube:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUEIohvBIyw

 

and,

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3pJIi5ZOIA

 

I hope you enjoy them,

 

BBall

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Amateur my ass!!! :) You did a bang up job! And a nice ending as well...Good job!


Edited by hansangb

hsb

HW Spec in Spoiler

---

 

i7-10700K Direct-To-Die/OC'ed to 5.1GHz, MSI Z490 MB, 32GB DDR4 3200MHz, EVGA 2080 Ti FTW3, NVMe+SSD, Win 10 x64 Pro, MFG, Warthog, TM MFDs, Komodo Huey set, Rverbe G1

 

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Really nice two videos mate !

 

Loved watching them from beginning to end ;-)

 

Just wish we have real DCS : Edge Vietnam coming out.

 

No newws about Edge for a while now... It's obvious the good old Caucasus won't fit any more latest add ons ...

[sIGPIC][/sIGPIC]

CPL(A)IR ME/SEP/MEP/SET - CPL(H)

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My first post here is on a great set of videos. I really enjoyed your tribute and would be very interested in how you put the whole mission together.

 

Lam Son 719 is covered in the book Rattler One-Seven for anyone who wants more info from a pilot who experienced it.

 

Thanks for the effort you put into these.

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I enjoyed the videos and I was touched by a son's tribute to his father and to the others who fought in the Lam Son 719 operation. I remember reading about that operation and thinking then that the outcome was predictable. With few exceptions, the ARVN was incapable of prevailng in a sustained engagement with the NVA. IMO, Lam Son demonstrated that on a grand scale and set the stage for the ultimate NVA victory in the war.

 

Your Dad and I at least walked on the same dirt during that war. I was with the 26th Marines and spent a few months at Khe Sanh after the battle of Hill 881S in 1967. OK place to visit but you wouldn't want to live there.

 

May your Dad RIP and I'm thankful for his service to his country.

[sIGPIC][/sIGPIC]

 

3rd Mar Div

RVN '66-'67

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Hey guys,

 

First of all, thanks for all the nice words regarding my video(s). It was fun to make, took a few days of being chained to the computer, but in the end, seemed to come out O.K.

 

UH1Fan,

 

Of the many books I've read regarding helo flying in Vietnam, that seems to be THE ONE that I haven't gotten to yet. I've heard it's incredible, and can't wait to add it to my list. Not sure how to answer your question about how I put the mission together. The short answer (of course) is by using the Mission Editor, FRAPS, WIndows Movie Maker and a general knowledge of the storyline. I will say that I spent quite a bit of time just "cruising around" the map looking for a suitable "moutainous" and "jungle looking" spot to have it all take place.

 

Again, it's from an MP mission that I constructed for our LAN group to fly, and the idea to "film" it just became something of a lark. In regards to the nuts and bolts of the procedure, I would fly a segment of the mission, then fire up FRAPS, launch the "track file" from what I just flew and record what I needed with FRAPS during the track file (thus being able to switch views during the filming and not worry about flying the helo at the same time....lol). Rudimentary to be sure, but it got the job done. After getting what I needed, I'd plop it into Windows Movie Maker and edit as needed....

 

jjohnson241,

 

Thank you sir for your service. God bless you and your fellow Marines... My Dad relayed to me yarns about times that they would drop off ARVN troopers, and hours later on the return to extract them, they would take fire from the same dudes they had dropped off earlier! Not sure what that was all about, but he said it would invariably end with a middle finger out the window, and a "F them...they can walk home!" attitude as they abandoned the approach...lol. Not meaning to cast dispersion on the ARVN as a whole, for I'm sure there were units that fought with distinction, but sadly, that seems to be the exception and not the rule.

 

Again, from a proud son of a combat Army aviator, and the proud father of a young Army officer, I offer my thanks and gratitude for your (and their) service.

 

{S}

 

BBall

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BBall,

I see (by peaking at your Profile picture) that you're an aviator. I envy you. Always wanted to learn to fly but never pulled the trigger.

 

Regarding the ARVN, we were never confortable when ARVN units were on our flank or "had our back". Enough said.

 

Lastly, please pass along to your son my appreciation for his service and my wish for a great career as an Army officer.

 

Your pride is well deserved.

[sIGPIC][/sIGPIC]

 

3rd Mar Div

RVN '66-'67

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Yeah, I was bitten by the flying bug early in my life.

 

PPL at 17, aviation university, flight instructing/night freight/commuter airline and finally "the show" at age 27. My near vision kept me out of a military cockpit, but it did whatever it did, and I was 20/20 at my airline interview. I've always regretted the fact that I was never part of the military world of flying, but even though my road was different then my (and my Dad's) plan, it was no less exciting and rewarding.

 

I see these flight simulations as an extension of ALL of our love and passion for things aviation. It's the one big vector we all seem to share. One day in the not so distant future, I'll hang up my airline spurs, and only the virtual cockpit will be left to satisfy that need...but I'm sure it will do just fine. My LAN buddies come from vastly different careers, but because we share the love of aviation and the virtual skies, they are (IMHO) no less a pilot than I.

 

If you've ever sat down in front of a joystick/throttle/pedals setup, fired up a Spad/Spitfire/A-10 or even...lol...the wonderful Huey, then you DID learn to fly. Maybe not where the clouds are real, and the mistakes are forever, but if you put any effort toward learning it, and it put a smile on your face and a song in your heart, then you were indeed flying my friend.

 

Again, thanks for all the kind words. My son is (I'm sure) a fine man to serve with. He has the rare combination of intellect, humor and honor, and we couldn't be more proud of him (or his two sisters).

 

Have a great day,

BBall

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Maybe it's because that was my generation, or maybe because I was in SEA 69-70 as an Air Force gunner, but that was a very well done video tribute. My thoughts and prayers go out to the many KIA/MIA/POW. Thank you sir for putting this together and allowing me to share! :thumbup:

WH_Blaster (Larry) :beer:

US Air Force (Retired, 1961-1981)

 

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  • 1 month later...
Of the many books I've read regarding helo flying in Vietnam, that seems to be THE ONE that I haven't gotten to yet. I've heard it's incredible, and can't wait to add it to my list.

I´m reading it right now (almost done actually) and have to say when it comes to the topic of Hueys in Vietnam I liked both "Snake Pilot" and especially "To The Limits" much better. "Rattler One-Seven" seems to lack a certain... well... "flow" to it. It´s more a collection of various stories which feel detached from each other even though they all happened during the author´s tour. Also, often various soldiers, pilots etc. are introduced at great length only to never be heard of again just one paragraph later. Last but not least I have noticed a number of grammar and spelling mistakes, something I consider unacceptable for a professional publishing company (then again, that might be the pedantic German in me speaking, so take it with a grain of salt).

 

That being said, it´s still a good book and despite the above shortcomings I enjoyed reading it. A large part of the book is dedicated to Lam Son 719, and those parts are actually quite interesting (and seriously hair-raising, I might add). Just don´t expect even the tiniest bit of technical information in the book, because there is absolutely none.

- Two miles of road lead nowhere, two miles of runway lead everywhere -

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