Pak Six: A True Story
by G. I. Basel
Our Price: $38.87
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $0.01 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: G. I. BaselEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1992-06-01
ISBN: 0515090050
Number of pages: 172
Publisher: Jove Books
Book Reviews of Pak Six: A True Story
Book Review: View from the Bottom Up
Summary: 5 Stars
"Pak 6", by Gene I. Basel, is an autobiography of Mr Basel's service during the Vietnam War in 1968, piloting an F-105 Thunderchief (or Thud as it was affectionately nicknamed) in combat missions in Laos and North Vietnam. I had recently read Jack Broughton's "Thud Ridge", which was also a memoir about the air war circa 1968, and it whetted my curiosity, so I bought this book.
Both are excellent books; in Thud Ridge, pilot Jack Broughton was a Colonel and the Vice-Wing Commander at Korat Royal Thai Air Base (the number two ranking officer at the installation), and he both flew combat missions and was responsible for managing many non-flying aspects of the base. Mr Basel was assigned as a Captain at Takhli Royal Thai Air Base during roughly the same period ... the most common pilot officer rank. Thus, one of the differences between two books is of the perspectives given by each author ... by virtue of his position, Col Broughton was more in-the-know about the big picture, but unfortunately, the big picture largely consisted of irrational restrictions placed on the pilots by desk-bound bureaucrats higher up the chain of command. Capt Basel, on the other hand, was more focused on the operational aspects of his assignment, although he and the other pilots were well aware of the restrictions placed upon them from above (and these restrictions led almost directly to the death or capture of many pilots). As an analogy, think of the differing viewpoints and responsibilities of Col Potter and of Capt Hawkeye Pierce in the TV show MASH.
Mr. Basel's book starts out fairly light-hearted and gets more serious as combat losses mount and stress increases. It gives a good view of what it was like to be an F-105 pilot during the Vietnam War. It is a fairly short book, but it's riveting from the first page to the last.
Summary of Pak Six: A True Story
A first person account of flying missions over North Vietnam in 1967. Most missions over the city of Hanoi. A tense and verified accurate account in which the author is shot down and narrowly escapes capture and imprizonment by the North Vietnamese.Vietnam Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in Vietnam Books
The Sacred Willow: Four Generations in the Life of a Vietnamese Familyby Duong Van Mai Elliott
Oxford University Press, USA; Published: 1999-04-08; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $13.90
Price in other shops:
The Facts of Life: Science and the Abortion Controversyby Harold J. Morowitz, James Trefil
Oxford University Press, USA; Published: 1994-08-04; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.83
Price in other shops:
Seven Firefights in Vietnamby John A. Cash
Dept. of the Army; Published: 1998-05-18; Paperback; Book
Best price: $39.00
American Power and the New Mandarins (Pelican)by Noam Chomsky
Penguin USA (P); Published: 1969-10-25; Paperback; Book
Price in other shops:
Guns Up!by Johnnie Clark
Presidio Press; Published: 2002-01-02; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.20
Price in other shops:
The Unwanted: A Memoirby Kien Nguyen, Klen Nguyen
Back Bay Books; Published: 2001-03; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $7.99
Price in other shops:
Buddha's Child: My Fight to Save Vietnamby Nguyen Cao Ky
St. Martin's Griffin; Published: 2003-07-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.98
Price in other shops:
Stealth Patrol: The Making of a Vietnam Ranger, 1968-70by Bill Shanahan, John P. Brackin
Da Capo Press; Published: 2003-10-20; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $26.00
Chickenhawkby Robert Mason
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 2005-03-29; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.65
Price in other shops:
100 Missions North/ a Fighter Pilot's Story of the Vietnam Warby Kenneth H. Bell
Brassey's Inc; Published: 1993-04; Hardcover; Book
Price in other shops:
Similar Books and other products
The River Ratby G. I. Basel
Morris Publishing; Published: 1998-01-01; Paperback; Book
Price in other shops:
Going Downtown: The War Against Hanoi and Washingtonby Jack Broughton
Crown; Published: 1988-07-06; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $39.23
Lucky's Bridgeby Tom Wilson
Bantam; Published: 1993-09-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $214.74
Going Downtown: The War Against Hanoi and Washingtonby Jack Broughton
Pocket; Published: 1990-02-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $110.00
Rupert Red Two: A Fighter Pilot's Life From Thunderbolts to Thunderchiefsby Jack Broughton
Zenith Press; Published: 2008-01-15; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $5.78
Price in other shops:
Tango Uniformby Tom Wilson
Bantam; Published: 1994-02-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $29.99
Thud Ridge: F-105 Thunderchief missions over Vietnamby Jack Broughton
Crecy Publishing; Published: 2006-11-15; Paperback; Book
Best price: $11.45
Price in other shops:
Palace Cobra: A Fighter Pilot in the Vietnam Air Warby Ed Rasimus
St. Martin's Paperbacks; Published: 2007-08-28; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.44
Price in other shops:
100 Missions North: A Fighter Pilot's Story of the Vietnam Warby Ken Bell
Potomac Books Inc.; Published: 2003-04-15; Paperback; Book
Best price: $12.68
Price in other shops:
When Thunder Rolledby Ed Rasimus
Presidio Press; Published: 2004-09-28; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.15
Price in other shops: