Chapter 4
IP Perry landed the TH-55 on the tarmac facing the hut. The helicopter idled.
“Tell Wilson he’s next. He should be over in the hut,” IP Perry said while he noticed the Army bus parked by the side of the hut.
Michael nodded he understood the IPs instructions.
“And keep your head down. I don’t want to fill out a mountain of paperwork explaining why your head is missing,” IP Perry said.
The blades of the TH-55 slowed down, and Michael unbuckled his harness and got out.
Michael ducked down while he rushed over to the hut.
He stopped by the hut door, turned around and glanced back at the TH-55. “Why do you hate me?” he said and still looked like he wanted to cry.
Michael walked inside the hut and removed his flight helmet.
He looked around the hut. He saw tables where the other candidates waited for their first lesson in the helicopter.
“Eric, you’re next,” Michael called out the second he spotted the table where Eric, Bruce, and Calvin waited.
Eric jumped up with his flight helmet in hand from one of the tables and rushed over to the door.
Michael walked over to the tables looking like he lost his puppy.
Eric rushed out of the door almost tripping over his combat boots.
“How was it?” Bruce asked Michael with a sparkle in his eyes.
“Is it easy to fly?” Calvin asked with a sparkle in his eyes.
Michael did not reply right away while he sat down at the table. “It’s exhausting. That’s all I can say,” he finally said and remained tight-lipped while he looked depressed. He wiped the sweat off his forehead with the right sleeve of his flight suit.
Michael remained quiet during the wait time in the hut while Eric had his first lesson. Bruce and Calvin were chatterboxes talking about their glorious futures flying helicopters.
Thirty minutes had passed. Then you could hear the TH-55 descending back to the flightline.
A little while later, Eric strutted into the hut and grinned ear-to-ear.
“Weston, you’re next,” Eric said while he strutted over to the table with his huge grin still stuck on his face.
Bruce jumped up with his flight helmet in hand.
“That was awesome,” Eric said while he sat down next to Michael.
Bruce rushed out of the hut with his flight helmet on his head.
Eric looked over at Michael who looked ever so depressed while he stared down at the floor. “How did you do? I can image you showed that IP a thing or two.”
“Naw. I was all over the fucking place. I couldn’t keep her still. I couldn’t believe it. I thought it would be so easy. I don’t know what went wrong. I’ve been practicing the use of those controls in my mind for years,” Michael said. His inability to handle the helicopter seemed so surreal.
“Don’t worry. I also sucked at flying it. I heard that it gets easier every time you go up,” Eric replied and patted Michael on his shoulder to show his support.
“I sure hope so,” Michael said and started to have serious doubts he has the talent to be a helicopter pilot.
Michael remained quiet while Bruce and Calvin went up in the helicopter for their lesson.
Later on that day, Vinny stepped inside the hut. “Okay ladies, time to get back on the bus,” he told everybody in the hut.
“Where’s Calvin?” Eric asked.
“I flew the TH-55 back to the main heliport with IP Perry,” Bruce replied.
Michael, Bruce, Eric, and the other candidates walked out of the hut and headed to the bus.
All the candidates boarded the bus exhausted from their first lessons. Plus they all had huge sweat stains on the back of their fatigue shirts. Michael still pouted. He thought his life was over.
After some chow at the Chow Hall, most of the candidates wanted to head out for some fun.
The barracks was busy while the candidates changed into fresh khaki uniforms. It was time to relax for the evening.
Eric spotted Michale in his bunk still in his fatigue pants. “Michael, don’t you want to head out to the movies?” Eric said.
“Naw, I’m going to stay in tonight. Have some serious studying,” Michael replied while he held up one the operator’s manual for a TH-55.
“The Green Berets movie is playing at the base theater. Bruce and Calvin are going,” Eric replied.
“It’s important that I do some more studying,” Michael replied then went back to reading his operator’s manual.
“But it’s a John Wayne movie with Huey’s,” Eric pleaded as the last attempt.
Michael ignored him while he kept his head buried into his book.
“You’re not expected to be perfect during the first lesson. It takes practice,” Eric said to change his mind.
“Have fun,” Michael said while he continued to read his book.
Eric knew it was useless, so he walked away and met up with Bruce and Calvin.
A few hours had passed, and Michael fell fast asleep with the TH-55 operator’s manual on his chest. He started dreaming.
In Michael’s dream.
He flew a TH-55 helicopter over the countryside fifteen miles east of Fort Wolters.
The TH-55 was all over the place.
It flew up one hundred feet.
It flew down three hundred feet.
It made a steep banked turn to the right.
It made a steep banked turn to the left.
It started spinning around in a circle.
It started flying backward with the bubble aimed upward.
It started spinning around in a circle.
Michael looked scared to death, losing control of the helicopter. It was spinning out of control all over the sky.
The TH-55 spun toward a large clump of trees.
Michael froze in fear while he saw the tree branches approaching fast at the bubble.
Michael moved the cyclic and collective control. The bubble of the TH-55 still smacked into the trees.
The TH-55 started falling bubble first to the ground.
The tail rotor got snagged on some tree branches.
It hung upside down.
Michael looked down at the ground that was twenty feet below.
He saw IP Perry staring up at him from down below. “You’re eliminated!” IP Perry yelled in a dreamy voice while he pointed up at the crashed chopper hanging in the trees.
Michael looked down at IP Perry and wanted to cry.
He heard the laughter of his nine candidates while they all walked over and stood by IP Perry. They all pointed up at Michael. “You’re eliminated,” all the candidates yelled out, pointing up at Michael. They laughed again.
Back to reality.
Michael woke up to the sound of laughter of his fellow candidates. They were coming back from an evening of partying.
Michael looked around the barracks in a daze.
It took a few seconds for him to realize that he crashed a chopper in a dream.
“You missed a great movie,” Eric said while he walked up to Michael’s bunk.
“I know, but I needed to study this operator’s manual,” Michael replied, then yawned.
“Looks like you read the book with your eyes closed.”
“I fell asleep,” Michael replied then got up from his bunk. He got his toothbrush and toothpaste out of his locker and headed to the latrine.
Twenty minutes had passed.
Michael was asleep in his bunk in his white boxers and tee shirt.
He started another dream.
In his second dream.
Michael wore fatigues with Private stripes and a combat helmet. He walked through the jungle with four other ground pounders.
Bullets started dancing all around Michael’s combat boots.
He turned around, and the other four soldiers ran away. Michael was in the jungle all alone while more bullets danced all around his combat boots.
Michael ran through the jungle in a panic. Bullets zinged through the nearby vegetation.
Michael almost peed his pants. Those zinging bullets were inches past his helmet.
Eight bullets ricocheted off his helmet. He stopped dead in his tracks, scared to death.
His eyes widened in fear. He saw five Vietcong dressed in black outfits in front of him with Russian AK-47 rifles in hand.
“You’re eliminated,” one of the Vietcong called in broken English.
“You’re eliminated,” the rest of the Vietcong called out in unison in broken English.
All the Vietcong laughed and pointed at Michael. They stopped laughing, got serious then aimed their rifles at him.
Michael froze in fear.
They all fired their AK-37s at the same time. The sound of gunfire echoed in the jungle.
Back to reality.
Michael jumped up in his bunk in a sweaty panic. He looked around for any Vietcong then realized he had a bad dream. He looked relieved but nervous about falling asleep and having more bad dreams.
He was soon fast asleep. The dreams did not return.