Fifty Years Before the (Rotor) Mast

This book is a memoir of 50 years flying helicopters in a variety of situations. Included are rescues, combat operations, mountain and off-shore flying, medical evacuations, flight instruction and numerous flight missions that require pushing the flight envelope to the maximum. Highlighted are Ben Van Etten's five years as a flight captain with Air America, Inc. in Thailand and the unpublicized war in Laos. During that period the author describes in detail his interaction with other pilots and his "customers," primarily the CIA. The book also includes geographical and historical observations from a first person prospective. And a vivid description from inside the cockpit during many lifesaving missions. This book should tweak the interest of aviators and non-aviators alike.