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hi this is Anita from the Dusty Roads
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podcast where we like to talk about all
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things about living life as a global
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When many people think about the Vietnam
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War or as they call it here in Vietnam
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the American war one of the things that
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comes up is the Huey helicopter which
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was basically the Bell
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UH-1 you know helicopter which is known
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as a Huey And this helicopter rose to
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prominence during the Vietnam War as it
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was used you know became sort of the
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emblem of the war It you know redefined
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battlefield mobility and offered a
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previously unseen mix of versatility It
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was used a lot for medevac and other
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UH1 or the Huey helicopter took off into
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the skies as an emblem of American
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innovation However shortly after its
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debut the chopper became the defining
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symbol of the Vietnam War Part of the
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reason it became a defining symbol was a
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gamecher from the get-go Its
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introduction brought a new sense of
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mobility and flexibility on the
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battlefield You know unlike before the
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troops could now be transported quickly
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across the challenging terrain The the
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helicopter was able to land go up and
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down uh drop into hot zones and evacuate
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quickly So it really changed the entire
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course of the war It made the American
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military more agile and became a crucial
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advantage in the unpredictable
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environment of Vietnam But it wasn't
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just about moving troops It also served
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as a gunship a medevac for the wounded a
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cargo transporter and a flying command
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center So the Huey began to have many
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different roles You know it also it took
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the media spotlight as television became
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a household staple in the 1960 Images
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and footages of the Hueies in action
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captivated many audiences back home They
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were seeing airlifting soldiers raining
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down firepower and saving lives And this
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became you know constant media presence
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with this um helicopter began to be
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etched into the minds of many of the
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Americans with the Huey as you know you
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know in their public minds They saw this
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as part of the war It symbolizes the
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experiences of those who served in
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Vietnam You know for the veterans the
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sound of the Huey could be instantly
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transport them back to the jungles or it
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could get their comrades out you know
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that were hurt It became more than a
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helicopter It became a witness to the
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bravery the sacrifices and the
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complexities of the Vietnam or the
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American war you know its legacy endures
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you know not just you know in military
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history but also in popular culture From
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movies to documentaries and even to
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memorials the Hueies portrayed as the
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iconic image of the Vietnam conflict You
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know it's fascinating how a piece of
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technology can transcend its initial
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purpose and become such a powerful
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symbol And this really became a powerful
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symbol of the Vietnam conflict the
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Vietnam War or as they call it here in
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Vietnam the American War So how did the
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Huey become a symbol of Vietnam War well
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it was through its versatility on the
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battlefield and its presence in the
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media and its deep connection to the
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experiences of those who were saved So
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the Huey in many ways is not just a
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helicopter It was a Vietnam war flying
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through time carrying stories of courage
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resilience But the Huey also what's
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important is it has an influence on
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helicopter design It's a you know became
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a true icon of innovation has influenced
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the design of future helicopters beyond
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its versatility and symbolic nature
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Introduced design elements that have
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become staples in the blueprint of
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One of the most influential design
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features is the the rotor system The
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Huey utilized a twoblade central rotor
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system that was simple yet effective
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making it more reliable and easier to
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maintain than the more complex systems
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found on earlier helicopters You know
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this emphasis on simplicity and
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reliability of course would have been
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very important during wartime but it's
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been carried over to many modern
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helicopters ensuring that they perform
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in various conditions without needing
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maintenance Another thing that was
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groundbreaking about the Huey was the
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aspect was the Huey's use of the turbo
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shaft engine This was a significant
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shift from the piston engines used in
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earlier helicopters The turbo shaft
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engine offered more power and was
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lighter and it also contributed the
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Hughes capability to fulfill various
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roles from cargo transport to medevac
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missions Today the turbo shaft engine is
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a standard among helicopters providing
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necessary power and efficiency for
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The Hueie's cockpit design too also made
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waves It featured large windows that
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offered pilots unparallel visibility
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This was a critical factor in combat and
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rescue missions Nearly all military and
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civilian helicopters have adopted this
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design element recognizing the
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importance of a visibility for safe and
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efficient operations So they really
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expanded the windows there so that so
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the pilots would have this very large
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view of the landscape Perhaps one of the
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most impact of the Hueies um design yet
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the most subtle modular approach to
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mission equipment The Huey can be
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quickly configured with various weapons
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medical equipment or cargo transport
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apparatus This made it highly adaptable
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So this became very important and a key
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feature of the design of this So it made
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it a very versatile type of helicopter
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allowing it to be able to fly a high
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range of missions with a single airframe
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by simply swapping out
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equipment Yeah The noise of the Huey
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chopping through the air became a symbol
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of hope for many and a sound of terror
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for others And this you know really
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became one of the uh symbols of the
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Vietnam War era or as known here as the
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American War While modern um helicopters
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haven't eliminated noise there has been
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an emphasis on designing more efficient
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rotor systems that produce different
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sound signatures Even though noise is
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still an issue with the helicopters but
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the Huey certainly became a symbol
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through their noise when you look at you
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know helicopters you can look at the the
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Huey helicopter and see how it became
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such an important symbol during this
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time But not only that as you see how
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during this wartime era we were able to
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use the things that were learned to be
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able to build a hel better helicopter
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today and how many of those design
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elements today have continued to become
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an important um element in aviation
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You know for pilots and the crew the
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HOIE was more than just a machine It was
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actually a lifeline And each mission
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whether it was medevac rescue transport
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or combat assault you know it began with
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a they had you meticulous flight check
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So the you know the Huey really became
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this great symbol of the war itself to
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hear the you know the humming of those
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blades that was going on You know the
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mechanics of course were also very
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important in all of this being able to
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you know keep the helicopters up in the
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air You know today if you go to Vietnam
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and you go to any of the war museums
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you'll be able to see some of these
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helicopters there that are in some of
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the war museums that the um Vietnamese
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have on display you know So really you
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know the Huey was very much a symbol of
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you know America during this time and it
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really did in many ways prove to be a
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symbol of the Vietnam War I really you
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know enjoy this because of the fact that
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you know living here in Vietnam myself
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as I you know you I've seen some of
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these helicopters in person but not only
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that is just to see you know how things
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like this have evolved over time and and
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how the use and how the helicopter was
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used during this time changed probably
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aviation history for many years to come
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If you'd like to be able to read more my
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co-author James Johnson has written a
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blog entitled The Huey the icon of the
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Vietnam War We'll put a link in the
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description so that you can be able to
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read about it and be able to learn more
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about the Huey He's got a lot more
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information on here than what I'm
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talking about here and some great u
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photos and other things which show about
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the Huey helicopter and how important it
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was during this era of time and for this
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war Thank you so much for listening We
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hope that you've enjoyed this Dusty
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Roads podcast and that you'll subscribe
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