By Christopher Miskimon
Michael Kelly, the Gunner, flew fire support missions in a UH1 helicopter. Peter Burbank, the Grunt, served as an infantryman, relying on the support those helicopters could give him in battle. Both were in the 1st Cavalry Division, which at that time was doing something new in warfare: carrying soldiers into battle aboard helicopters in large numbers for the first time. Both men came from Boston but saw the war from the perspective of their assigned roles. Burbank patrolled the jungles and took part in search and destroy missions. Kelley flew overhead, providing machine gun and rocket fire for the infantry. Unlike the foot soldiers, Kelley got to ride, but his ride was a big, inviting target. Both faced North Vietnamese Army troops and Viet Cong guerrillas, striving to survive their time in Vietnam.
This co-written memoir follows the two authors as they enter the army, go through training and go to war. It provides a fascinating look at two men doing very different but very intertwined jobs in a combat zone. As the Vietnam era veterans are aging, we are fortunate that many of them are recording their experiences for subsequent generations. This book earns its place among them.
The Gunner and the Grunt: Two Boston Boys in Vietnam with the First Cavalry Division Airmobile (Michael L. Kelly and Peter Burbank, Casemate Books, Havertown PA, 2024, 196 pp., photographs, appendices, $34.95, hardcover)
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