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Ray Vaske

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At first, Ray Vaske couldn't find Dong Ha on the map. The helicopter pilot was attached to an artillery battalion up near the DMZ and when he did get there, he found out the chopper he was going to fly was different than the one he'd been flying. It was time for some on-the-job-training. (6:15)

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His helicopter was unarmed. Ray Vaske ferried battalion commanders around and did some scout work, all the while admiring the beautiful scenery of Vietnam. His entire outlook was altered when, during a briefing, he got a lesson in the absurd rules of engagement of the time. The weather was often his most immediate problem and he describes a tense flight through the monsoon clouds. (7:48)

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There were occasional potshots at his helicopter, but Ray Vaske had one incident where he just missed getting knocked down by an RPG. The weather was another big problem, once causing him to dip his skids in the ocean. Back at the base, the Vietnamese barber gave him a painfully close shave. A few weeks later, they found out, maybe, he had other things on his mind. (7:45)

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He was getting pretty "short." Ray Vaske was near the end of his tour in Da Nang and they sent him on to Vung Tau to wait out the last few days. One night at 4 AM, he was awakened with some big news. (4:45)

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Ray Vaske has some observations on the way the Vietnam War affected everyone involved, the battalion commander whom he admired, and he remarks on the song that every Vietnam veteran seems to remember. (2:59)

Raymond Mitchell

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He nearly missed the height requirement, but Raymond Mitchell became a Marine, a squad leader, in fact. He shipped out with the 1st Marine Division for the Pacific and saw action from Guadalcanal to Okinawa. (4:37)

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Just before he hit the beach at Peleliu, Raymond Mitchell was asked to switch squads with another squad leader. This saved his life. Before the battle was over, he faced a long ordeal pinned down on a cliff by enemy fire. (3:22)

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You go from an LST to a landing craft to the beach, where men begin dying. When Raymond Mitchell hit the beach at Peleliu, the first thing he saw was the gruesome sight of dead Marines. When he got to Okinawa, there was less resistance on the landing, but some news came in that dampened everyone's mood. (4:20)

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Once the north end of Okinawa was secured, the Marines headed south, where they relieved an Army division. That unit had been reinforced by calling up engineers and Raymond Mitchell had to show them how to use their machine guns. (3:43)

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He was in a sugar cane patch in Okinawa when the shells started falling. Raymond Mitchell saw two men go down and as he started toward them, another round exploded next to him. Shrapnel tore into his leg and he went down. (4:12)