“That the book simultaneously succeeds on the individual soldier level makes it a standout for any reader with an interest in the airmobile aspect of the Vietnam War.”—Vietnam Magazine.

The Gunner and the Grunt is written in the voices of two soldiers who fought in the same battles as members of the same recon unit but from different angles. Michael Kelley, the “Gunner,” was flying in an armed helicopter above the jungle providing suppressive fire support, while Peter Burbank, the “Grunt,” was down in the jungle on foot patrol involved in fire fights with Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army troops.

The book follows these two Boston boys from army training through deployment to the war zone and the shock of first combat missions, to helicopter air assault “Search and Destroy” operations from the Cambodian border to the sands of the South China Sea.

• Front Cover
• Half-Title Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Contents
• Acknowledgements
• Prologue: The Lost Gunship
• Chapter One: High School Warriors (Mike)
• Chapter Two: Basic Combat Training (Mike)
• Chapter Three: Helicopter School (Mike)
• Chapter Four: Flying Shawnee Bananas (Mike)
• Chapter Five: Guns and Rabbits (Pete)
• Chapter Six: Airborne Infantry (Pete)
• Chapter Seven: Going to War (Mike)
• Chapter Eight: Aero Rifle Blues Platoon (Pete)
• Chapter Nine: Aero Weapons Red Platoon (Mike)
• Chapter Ten: The Bong Son Campaign (Mike)
• Chapter Eleven: The Crow’s Foot Battle (Mike)
• Chapter Twelve: Aero Scout White Platoon (Mike)
• Chapter Thirteen: Charlie Alpha Combat Assault (Pete)
• Chapter Fourteen: Hot Rod Pilot (Mike)
• Chapter Fifteen: In Memory of Our Commander
• Epilogue: Mike
• Epilogue: Pete
• List of Major Campaigns, 1965–1966
• List of Weapons of War
• 1st Squadron, 9th Cavalry Commanders 1965–66
• Air Cavalry Units in Vietnam
• A Closing Poem
• Photo Credits
• Selected Bibliography
• Glossary of Terms
• Plates