Saigon Guns by Col. John T. Hoffman

2025 Addendum to The Saigon Guns

Tue, 14 Apr 2026 00:07:52 GMT

2025 Addendum to The Saigon Guns, by John T. Hoffman

In February of 2024 a box arrived at our home via the US Mail. The box had no return address or indication as to who sent it. Inside were more than 500 pages of my military records, most of which I already had copies and, for the most part, were routine records of my military service before and after my duty in South Vietnam in 1971 and 1972. But interspersed within the stack of records were documentation of my service in South Vietnam, many of which I had never seen before. Many of these documents from Vietnam had been marked as classified, but with the classification marked through with the word “declassified.” Here, finally, was documentation of my service with the 48th AHC and F Troop, 8th Cavalry in 1972! Who sent the records and why, at this late date remains a mystery. But what is clear is that our combat service records from that period were sequestered for some reason and withheld from our official military records.

On the medical front, in late 2024 I was again diagnosed with cancer. This time it was a form of metastatic throat cancer, another common cancer for Vietnam veterans. After an initial biopsy and removal of 28 lymph nodes in my neck, one of my VA Doctors recommended that I undergo treatment at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. After an initial assessment by oncology at Walter Reed in February of 2025, I was scheduled for chemo and radiation treatment. In March of 2025 my wife and I moved up to Bethesda, MD for a three-month course of chemo and radiation at Walter Reed. Even though this was the most current, high-tech and comprehensive treatment available, it was as close to medieval as anything I have ever experienced. The doctors told me at the outset that this was one of the most painful and difficult courses of cancer treatment that one can experience. I underwent multiple courses of chemo and 35 rounds of radiation to my neck. The latter weeks of the treatment were simply brutal. I lost around 45 pounds and was so debilitated by the end that I could barely function. I was able to avoid a feeding tube and continued to eat on my own, but only in very, very small portions. Recovery took months, of course. But today I am just about as functional and capable as I was before the treatment, though I am quite a bit smaller. I can do most anything I did before, though I have much less stamina and have to pace myself. I can eat most things, but due to the damage in my throat from the radiation, swallowing remains difficult. I have to eat food in very small amounts. So, eating a normal meal takes me longer than most. I have also lost some of my ability to taste things. Eating food is no longer the enjoyable part of the day that it once was. A small sacrifice, I suppose, but eating is now more of a chore than a pleasure. All that said, I have been able to maintain my new weight …… which is 20 pounds less than when I was in Vietnam! I have, for sure, fared better than most Vietnam veterans who have suffered through the various cancers that are caused by our service in South Vietnam. A large part of that is clearly the amazing care I received over the years from the team at Walter Reed. For that I am most grateful.

Reviews of The Saigon Guns

Wed, 14 Feb 2024 21:12:06 GMT

The Saigon Guns reviews

Editorial Reviews:

The Saigon Guns - "A Must Read" - Reader Views
John Thomas Hoffman
Koehler Books (2023) ISBN: 978-1646639465
Reviewed by Tammy Ruggles (06/2023) Five Stars

In-Depth, Personal Account of Battle You Will Never Forget. "The Saigon Guns: A True Story of Aerial Combat in the Fall of 1972" by John Thomas Hoffman, is a richly detailed and important personal account of the last year of US-led conflict operations in South Vietnam. The author paints a picture most United States citizens have never encountered concerning what happened during that final year. When America withdrew from the fight, the fight still wasn't over, and the US had remaining forces that still fought back against North Vietnam and the Soviets, even though they were considered disposable.
This is the story of the bravery, strength, and resilience that occurred there during that time. This author was a combat helicopter pilot during this final year, 1971-1972. What a history lesson! This book reads like a novel, but it actually happened, and the accompanying images add a dimension of realism and accuracy. The work brings you into the time period, the conflict, the mood of the public, everything. Hoffman's style makes reading feel like watching a film. This story deserves to become a documentary someday, for all the world to see. Writers and veterans like Hoffman are needed, to tell the world what happened from their point of view, their man-on-the-street account, or, in this case, pilot-in-the-sky. His personal accounts of how he went from ROTC to Army Ranger to helicopter pilot, and what happened afterward, are unforgettable. His book won't let the world, or you for that matter, forget.
If you want fine details and first-hand stories that make up the life of this hero, you won't be disappointed. On one hand, you think, this is a superhero. And on the other you think, well, he's a regular guy doing extraordinary things. Maybe he's both. I'm just glad he wrote this book because it serves as a history lesson, but also a memoir of just ONE person in the Vietnam conflict. Even though this is a fine read, you may feel disappointed in the way some of the veterans were treated when they arrived home. Where were the celebrations over the Saigon Guns being found and destroyed? Where were the honors? Had America moved on?

It was worse than that, according to this book, which purports that the US government lied about what happened (saying that the US Army wasn't involved in combat operations when they actually were). Hoffman and those with him were treated like a dirty little secret, never to be mentioned again. Readers will realize that Hoffman isn't just retelling experiences. He is a charismatic writer. For example, when he's describing the different feelings of what it's like when your aircraft is hit in an assault. When you mix good writing with detailed personal accounts, you get a must-read like "The Saigon Guns: A True Story of Aerial Combat in the Fall of 1972", by John Thomas Hoffman

Literary Titan Five Stars

9/6/2023

“In The Saigon Guns", John Thomas Hoffman offers a riveting narrative of his time serving in the Republic of Vietnam. While many Americans who valiantly fought alongside him in the early 1970s found themselves

marginalized and disregarded upon their return, Hoffman courageously shines a light on their lived experiences, juxtaposed against the backdrop of the growing influence of Russian advisors aiding the North Vietnamese.

Beyond merely chronicling war tales, this book seamlessly weaves in elements of a personal memoir. Before enlisting, John led an ordinary life, working as a part-time fireman and ardently pursuing his studies at Georgetown University. These rich anecdotes provide a layered understanding of the man before his immersion in the tumultuous world of warfare.

The Saigon Guns stands as a testament to Hoffman’s courage. To share a narrative that has largely been erased from official histories and to do so with such raw honesty is genuinely commendable. It’s a sweeping journey:

from the heart-wrenching sorrows of war, exhilarating adventures in the skies, and intense training sessions to introspective reflections on pivotal life moments. I wholeheartedly recommend this illuminating read to military

veterans, history enthusiasts, and anyone keen on uncovering the intricate facets of the Vietnam War.”

Military Writers Society of America :

MWSA Review

The Saigon Guns by John Thomas Hoffman

The Saigon Guns by John Thomas Hoffman is an interesting and thought-provoking story of one soldier’s tour of duty during the final year of the Vietnam War. The story that John Hoffman tells has apparently never been told before, and his readers should be thankful that John made the effort to tell this story despite the wishes by some in our government that it never see the light of day.

Author Hoffman tells his story of a young enterprising man who works his way through college doing the types of jobs that many of us only dream of doing. Aa a fireman, a policeman, and a bartender, he did it all in order to pay his way. With all this work, he had little time for the normal social life of a college student. Still somehow, he managed to work hard enough that he was appointed the cadet commander of his ROTC detachment. The patriotic son of a military pilot, the author aspired to serve his country, just as his father was doing. For reasons that are not completely clear in the book, the author is directed to testify before Congress while still a student at university. In many ways, this one event shapes the author’s initial career in the Army.

Once commissioned, the author goes on a strange and wonderful odyssey in the Vietnam era American Army. As a new second lieutenant, he attends Ranger training and earns his tab. He then becomes a military policeman and is sent to helicopter training, where he excels. After earning his helicopter pilot wings, he is sent to Vietnam where he spends the last year of the war in service to his country, but under circumstances that deny him recognition of that service.

Hoffman tells the story of his participation in the Vietnam War during a period of time in which the government of the United States was actively denying that soldiers were still serving there. This is the true story of a real American hero. The story deserved to be told, and now it finally can be, thanks to John Hoffman.

Review by Larry Sharrar (July 2023)

Review Genre: Nonfiction—History

Number of Pages: 424

Word Count: 142344

The Saigon Guns

By Col. John T. Hoffman, USA, Retired

Review by Peter Tsouras

This is one of the best books I've read in years. It is destined to be a classic of the Vietnam War. The author writes in a style that makes you feel you are right there with him, quite an achievement for a first book. The book covers the heroic exploits of Army Aviation in stopping the North Vietnamese Easter 1972 offensive against South Vietnam. You will read of the largest Army Aviation mission in history to support the South Vietnamese counteroffensive and the destruction of the Soviet long-range artillery that threatened Saigon. It also covers the extensive Army Aviation combat after the official statement that all Army combat operations had ceased in June in line with President Nixon's public statement. The men of these aviation units were denied all decorations for heroism and their records were purged of anything that confirmed their presence in South Vietnam after June 1972. On their way home, these men were stripped to their shorts and dog tags and all their personnel possessions confiscated (against the law) to include their aviators' logbooks so that they would have no record of their service in Vietnam. Many would be denied VA treatment because there was no proof of their service. They were given surplus PX clothes to pick through for their miserable flight home. Despite the government's contemptable treatment of honorable men, the most shameful in our history, it is the story of dedication to duty performed with great skill and bravery. Anyone interested in Army aviation, the Vietnam War, or the art of war in general should buy this book. I cannot recommend it too highly. This is a book you will want to share with your friends.

Peter Tsouras

Author of 30 book and a Retired US Army Lt Col

Why I wrote this book.......

Wed, 08 Nov 2023 21:24:00 GMT

Why I wrote The Saigon Guns

I was recently asked in an online interview why I wrote this book. Many friends and acquaintances have asked me that same question. Some suggest to me that I was promoting my involvement in the War in Vietnam. A few others suggested I am seeking recognition.

The truth is that I and others who were in Vietnam in 1972 wanted the history of that period documented and published. The fact is that the official US Army history, as recorded in the “Army Green Book”, has no record of US Army Aviation operations in South Vietnam from May to December 1972. After many discussions, including many with my father before he passed away, it was clear to me that someone had to write this history down. I had many personal records and unit orders, as well as small pocket type memorandum books of mission and duty notes, that I would give to my dad in Saigon to carry home for me, along with letters home and photos that I kept from that period. My contemporaries from both the 48 ^th AHC and F/8 Cav would see these at unit reunions and tell me that I should write the history.

When I had my first chapter drafts complete, I felt that they were cold and dry narratives of many of the actions and events in 1972. Several fellow unit members read them and felt they did not convey the emotion, the danger, the risks, and the consequences to each of us that needed to also be recorded. Joe Bathanti, former North Carolina Poet Laurate and a professor at Appalachian State University in Boone, NC suggested to my PTSD writing group at the Asheville Veterans Hospital that we should write about our own experience and from our own perspective on those experiences.

That is the path I took. I have presented the history of that period in South Vietnam from the perspective of a US Army helicopter pilot, who actually lived it. I took several attempts to get the Department of Defense to approve the early drafts of my narrative. I originally titled the book “Blue Ghost Blue”, my call sign in F/8 Cav. But that was seen as too clunky for a title. A friend pointed out that the history of our operations culminates with the search for, and destruction of the Soviet guns intended to destroy Saigon and shift the outcome of the Paris Peace Talks. So, the title of the book became “The Saigon Guns”. In 2018, DoD approved my book draft, subject to removing some “personally identifying information” of other unit members and some senior leaders.

I offer it to my readers as the history of my units in South Vietnam in 1972 from my perspective. I hope it conveys that experience, with its exciting drama, danger, fear, loss, frustration and, yes, pain. Members of my units in South Vietnam during that period have nearly all told me or have written reviews that state, while it is my story, it does convey the history of our units and reflects their own experiences. I have already heard of family members of former unit members who tell me that they now have a much better understanding of their father, brother, or uncle. In several cases I have received truly heartfelt, sometimes tearful, thanks from members of their family.

I never expected or intended my book to be a best seller. Many elders, high school teachers and college professors have told me over the years, starting with my travels in post-war Europe in the early 1960’s, that the only history that is remembered is that which has been written down and published. That was graphically demonstrated to me as a young man with the book by Cornelius Ryan entitled The Longest Day. His history is that which is most referenced for June 6, 1944. That was the intent of my humble effort in writing The Saigon Guns.

John T. Hoffman

EVERYTHING I EVER NEEDED TO KNOW IN LIFE I LEARNED AS A HELICOPTER PILOT IN VIETNAM.

Fri, 07 Jul 2023 19:57:24 GMT

EVERYTHING I EVER NEEDED TO KNOW IN LIFE I LEARNED AS A HELICOPTER PILOT IN VIETNAM.

s is a subtitle for your new post

Author unknown, but widely shared and respected!

Once you are in the fight, it is way too late to wonder if this is a good idea.

It is a fact that helicopter tail rotors are instinctively drawn toward trees, stumps, rocks, etc. While it may be possible to ward off this natural event some of the time, it cannot, despite the best efforts of the crew, always be prevented. It's just what they do.

NEVER get into a fight without more ammunition than the other guy.

The engine RPM and the rotor RPM must BOTH be kept in the GREEN. Failure to heed this commandment can affect the morale of the crew.

Cover your Buddy, so he can be around to cover for you.

Decisions made by someone above you in the chain-of-command will seldom be in your best interest.

The terms Protective Armor and Helicopter are mutually exclusive.

Sometimes, being good and lucky still is not enough.

"Chicken Plates" are not something you order in a restaurant.

If everything is as clear as a bell, and everything is going exactly as planned, you're about to be surprised.

Loud, sudden noises in a helicopter WILL get your undivided attention.

The BSR (Bang Stare Red) Theory states that the louder the sudden bang in the helicopter, the quicker your eyes will be drawn to the gauges. The longer you stare at the gauges the less time it takes them to move from green to red.

No matter what you do, the bullet with your name on it will get you. So, too, can the ones addressed "To Whom It May Concern".

If the rear echelon troops are really happy, the front line troops probably do not have what they need.

If you are wearing body armor, they will probably miss that part.

Happiness is a belt-fed weapon.

Having all your body parts intact and functioning at the end of the day beats the alternative.

If you are allergic to lead, it is best to avoid a war zone.

It is a bad thing to run out of airspeed, altitude, and ideas all at the same time.

Hot garrison chow is better than hot C-rations which, in turn, are better than cold C-rations, which are better than no food at all. All of these, however, are preferable to cold rice balls, even if they do have the little pieces of fish in them.

Everybody's a hero ... on the ground ... in the club ... after the fourth drink.

A free fire zone has nothing to do with economics.

The further you fly into the mountains, the louder the strange engine noises become.

Medals are OK, but having your body and all your friends in one piece at the end of the day is better.

Being shot hurts.

"Pucker Factor" is the formal name of the equation that states the more hairy the situation is, the more of the seat cushion will be sucked up your asshole. It can be expressed in its mathematical formula of S (suction)+ H (height) above ground) + I (interest in staying alive) + T (# of tracers coming your way)

Thus the term 'SHIT!' can also be used to denote a situation where high Pucker Factor is being encountered.

Thousands of Vietnam Veterans earned medals for bravery every day. A few were even awarded.

Running out of pedal, fore or aft cyclic, or collective are all bad ideas. Any combination of these can be deadly.

There is only one rule in war: When you win, you get to make up the rules.

C-4 can make a dull day fun.

There is no such thing as a fair fight-only ones where you win or lose.

If you win the battle you are entitled to the spoils. If you lose you don't care.

Nobody cares what you did yesterday or what you are going to do tomorrow. What is important is what you are doing-NOW-to solve our problem.

Always make sure someone has a P-38. Uh, that's a can opener for those of you who aren't military.

Prayer may not help . . . but it can't hurt.

Flying is better than walking. Walking is better than running. Running is better than crawling. All of these, however, are better than extraction by a Med-Evac, even if it is, technically, a form of flying.

If everyone does not come home, none of the rest of us can ever fully come home either.

Do not fear the enemy, for your enemy can only take your life. It is far better that you fear the media, for they will steal your HONOR.

A grunt is the true reason for the existence of the helicopter. Every helicopter flying in Vietnam had one real purpose: To help the grunt. It is unfortunate that many helicopters never had the opportunity to fulfill their one true mission in life, simply because someone forgot this fact.

If you have not been there and done that . . . you probably will not understand most of these.

In the rotary wing community in combat in the Republic of Vietnam uncommon valor was a common virtue……every day!

Our F Troop, 8th Cav “Angel”

Wed, 24 May 2023 14:55:29 GMT

New Title

Our F Troop, 8 ^th Cavalry Angel

In early October of 1972, I was flying a UH-1H “Huey”, accompanied by two Cobra gunships. Our mission was to interdict NVA infiltration into the area south of the US Air Force base just outside the city of Da Nang. My aircraft crew consisted of myself as PIC and AMC for the mission, my co-pilot a young Warrant Officer, and three enlisted crew. We operated as a team and knew each other pretty. The enlisted crew consisted of our Crew Chief and two gunners manning an M2 50 Cal and two M-60 machine guns. They provided us with a lethal punch of our own. But the Snakes were the real fire power we brought to the fight.

I knew my entire crew knew their jobs and we looked after each other at all times. We were informal most of the time in the aircraft when in flight. But I knew they expected me to bring them home safely after every mission. I always had their safety in the mission execution formula on every fight into bad guy territory. And I know that they were “on-mission” even before we were ever airborne and always well after. Your crew, whether in your aircraft or those with you on mission are everything, Without them you have no sting, your weapons will do nothing, and you will not get home.

This was a night operation, referred to as a Night Hawk mission. We were sent out to catch North Vietnamese Army forces on the move and out in the open. Our night vision system was the “Mark-One Eyeball,” with five pairs in my aircraft always on watch. Operating blacked-out also reduced our visual signature and made targeting our aircraft much more difficult. Our mission was to interdict NVA infiltration into the area in southern Quang Ngai Province from the mountains to the west. The NVA had been moving small units into the central portion of the province so that they could move against the US Air Force base just outside of the city of DaNang. Our job was to find and engage these forces with direct fires and indirect fire support to minimize their ability to attack the air base. We had 105mm M-102 guns on call, along with mortar fires and more air assets, if needed.

We operated both day and night, depending upon the intelligence available on enemy activities or events that occurred. Our night operations, referred to as Night Hawk missions, were conducted in the dead of night, with our aircraft blacked out, to catch NVA forces out in the open, moving or preparing to conduct infantry, rocket, or mortar attacks. These nighttime missions were the rule during this remote deployment from the rest of the Troop back at Danang Air Force Base.

One night we learned of a suspected impending attack on an ARVN security position south of the air force base. We launched at midnight with two Guns and my Slick. I was the Air Mission Commander for the mission. In addition to commanding the small force, I coordinated our operations with supporting US Air Force assets and the ARVN forces on the ground. There was a US Advisor with the ARVNs on the ground located in a small base camp outside the perimeter of the Air Force base. We arrived in the vicinity of the ARVN position to observe sporadic small arms fires being exchanged between the ARVNs and the NVA force on the ground. As we flew at tree-top level, due to the threat of shoulder fired Soviet SA-7 anti-aircraft missiles, the enemy small arms fires often passed around, below, even sometimes above us. Initially, we had some difficulty locating the main force of the NVA on the ground, as they seemed widely dispersed based upon the small arms fire we could observe, whose tracers were most often green in color. US supplied ammunition employed red tracers, so we could normally identify the enemy force by the color of the tracers, especially at night. But not always. The enemy also employed captured US weapons and ammunition, so sometimes we observed a mix of red and green tracers from suspected enemy positions. The ARVNs were careful to only fire US ammunition when we were supporting them, to reduce friendly-on-friendly engagements.

This dark night, the green tracers were flying with unusual intensity, if widely dispersed. The NVA could hear us but could not track us in the dark unless we flew right over them. When we did, we flew at high speed to reduce the time window the NVA had to engage us. So, most of the NVA fire intended to hit us went wildly wide of us and filled the sky around with green streaks of light, something like a 1950’s science fiction movie. It was unnerving and all very dangerous. But we focused on the mission at hand: find the main enemy force and engage it so that the ARVN forces could accurately target it with indirect fire. The bad guys knew our gambit well and exercised excellent fire discipline to not give away their main force location. So, we flew over the suspected locations and began to engage positions we could identify based on enemy AA fire and observed forces on the ground.

It was not long before we found a large force of NVA that was moving toward the ARVN position. We circled back over the location and my gunners, on both sides of the aircraft sitting and standing in the open doors, began to call out fires and enemy elements on the ground. The more eyeballs observing the better and my extra crewman enabled an additional weapon to engage the enemy, if needed. In this case, in addition to the customary two door gunners, I had one extra gunner, Jim Fentress, sitting in the left-hand cargo door with an M-60 machine gun and an M-79, 40mm grenade launcher close at hand. The M-79 was useful for engaging enemy anti-aircraft positions and hardened targets below us.

As we flew over the enemy force, the crew called out enemy firing at us on our right and I banked in the direction to observe the location and to enable me to call out that location to the Guns with us. Just as I did that, the crew called out heavy fire coming at us from the left. I quickly and abruptly banked back to the left in a steep turn to allow the two gunners on that side of the aircraft to return fire and to aid in directing the Cobra Gunships with us to engage the enemy that was firing at us. As I got well into the steep turn, I suddenly felt the sharp tug on the controls as the aircraft’s center of gravity shifted slightly to the left. I heard one of the crew yell out over the intercom: “Holy shit…..Fentress just fell out!” I was well into the left turn, as the monkey strap attached to Fentress went taunt at the bottom of his fall. I looked back and, sure enough, Fentress was gone from the cargo compartment doorway. “Oh crap” I thought, he must be hanging under the aircraft about 4-5 feet below us. I flattened the turn and yelled over the intercom to pull him up. Then I heard the firing of an M-60 firing directly below us and saw the flashes from the muzzle blast of Fentress’s ’60 down through the aircraft’s chin bubble below my feet. I began to lift the aircraft straight up as I pulled in collective to gain altitude to prevent dragging Fentress through anything on the ground and to help reduce the ability of the enemy to target Fentress himself. In fact, momentarily there was no ground fire that I saw coming up at us as we rapidly rose into the dark night sky. Almost immediately, Fentress was pulled back into the aircraft by the gunners in the back. He plugged back into the intercom and excitedly said “I fell out in the steep turn……but I am okay. Sir let’s not do that again.” Thank God for the monkey strap that saved him.

I was truly relieved and silently thanked God for saving him. But I also had to refocus on the mission and get the guns engaged on this enemy position. Then, in unison, every NVA soldier below began to fire at us. Tracers went everywhere and it was time to pull back. The guns expended their rockets and “chunker” fire from their chin mounted 40mm gun on the general area of the enemy force, as we pulled up slightly and away from the intense ground fires. The enemy force gave away their main position and friendly artillery fires were now inbound, called in by the ARVNs on the ground.

It was about to be a very bad night for the NVA attack force below us. It had nearly been so for us as well. Jim Fentress was back on board, and we had no casualties. We did have, we found later, a few new holes in our Slick. We were all quite unnerved by the night’s turn of events, despite our overall mission success. Jim Fentress had a new nickname after that night: “Angel.” We still call him that. I often think about what it must have been like for him to fall into the midst of the enemy force, only a few feet above the ground, at night, in the middle of a battle. What a ride that must have been, even if it only lasted a few, very long minutes. And what did the NVA troops on the ground think when a door gunner dropped out of the helicopter into their midst firing an M-60 machine gun as he flew though the sky just above them like superman! It certainly must have stunned them, as they did not immediately engage him or us. Angel’s fame spread fast through the troop and was even written about by an AP reporter, Richard Blystone, who visited us while we were operating out of Chu Lai for that mission.

Battles That Never Were.........

183:881994714 (John T Hoffman) — Sat, 01 Oct 2022 03:30:00 GMT

In the summer of 1972, the President of the United States, Richard M. Nixon, informed the American public and the world, that he was pulling all American Combat troops out of the South Vietnam. Except he didn’t.
This was a period when a pitched battle for the entire country was underway for South Vietnam. North Vietnamese troops, equipped, logistically supported and often led by Soviet soldiers, had invaded South Vietnam just as the peace talks in Paris were beginning to make some amount of progress. As America drew down its Army combat forces in South Vietnam, considerable American Combat Power was thrown into the battle to stop what became known as the 1972 Easter Offensive by North Vietnam. This was air power on a scale not seen since World War Two. Massive strikes by United States Air Force aircraft, from Late WWII era A-1E piston powered fighters to B-52 strategic bombers and virtually everything in between, large and small. The United States Navy committed vast numbers of carrier based Navy and Marine fighter and bombers. Ordinance of all kinds, from WWII to the newest, high-tech weapons, smart bombs and new types of explosives, were rained down on the communist forces to stop them in their tracks and destroy vast numbers of their armored vehicles with much success.

And the United States Army? Well, it pulled its forces out and went home, except it didn’t. At least not all were pulled out. But those where were left in South Vietnam were officially denied. Their operations, though there were many hairy, dangerous and incredible ones, “officially’ did not happen. The heroism of many dedicated Americans, in the face of mortal combat every day for months, was and still is denied.

To this day, the U.S. Army aircrews, maintenance, security, infantry and support troops in those units still are told that “officially” their service in combat in South Vietnam from June to December 1972, did not happen and is not credible in their records. While you might say who cares now, those soldiers and their families certainly do. Worse, getting care provided routinely to combat veterans by the U.S. Department of Veterans Administration is most often denied because of that “officially” denied period of service in combat in the Republic of South Vietnam in 1972.

I was one of those U.S. Army Soldiers. I was a Regular Army Captain, a Ranger and Combat Helicopter Pilot. And I, like all of my comrades in the three U.S. Army Air Cavalry Troops who were left in South Vietnam in direct combat with North Vietnamese forces were declared expendable. All our operations, despite the official orders from the senior command in Saigon to carry them out, were declared to never have occurred, right up until mid-December 1972.

When I came back from Vietnam in December of 1972, I was to take leave, talk to no one in the media and await orders for my next assignment. When I reported into 18th Airborne Corps, Fort Bragg, NC, in April of 1973 I was asked where I had been. Surprised, I told them on leave from Vietnam. The Corps G-1 Staff told me that I had been considered AWOL because I was supposed to report to Fort Bragg the previous June. I was stunned. I asked to see the Corp G-1 himself. I was told he would not see me and to report to my new unit, the 196th Aviation Company. The 196th is a Chinook unit at Simmons Army Airfield on Fort Bragg. I reported into to the unit commander and told me to disregard what I had been told at the Corps G-t shop. I soon found out that in my “official” Officer Personnel Record microfiche, there were no records from that period in South Vietnam. Instead, there was a letter, on 18th Airborne Corps Letterhead, that simply stated “The whereabouts of Captain John T. Hoffman during this period is unknown by this Command”.

This issue was an aggravation for the rest of my military career, yet I retired as a full Colonel. It was also an issue for me when, after I retired, I was diagnosed with Lung Cancer as the result of exposure to Agent Orange in South Vietnam. For two years the VA denied me care at the local VA hospital because “Officially” I never served in South Vietnam. Then through a senior official’s intervention, the VA was enlightened in my case, and I was accepted for care. I have always been concerned about who from my unit did not get that care because no one intervened.

Many have asked me to write down my story of service as a combat helicopter pilot in South Vietnam. For many years I used my notes from that period to draft chapters that I shared with friends and family. I also tried to get my father, a Class of 1944 West Point Graduate and retired U.S. Air Force Colonel, to consider co-writing a book about our time in South Vietnam, but he never quite got around to writing his own story before he died of lung cancer as the result of exposure to Agent Orange. Yes, we were both serving in South Vietnam in 1972.

To read the rest of my story, look for my book, The Saigon Guns, at your favorite online book seller.