Uploaded May 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
The Dark Reason Door Gunners Didn’t Survive Vietnam
When the war in Vietnam began, military commanders were pretty much certain that speed and altitude alone would keep helicopters safe in this new way of warfare. Well, they were wrong—and enemy fire very soon forced a painful re-think.
It all began with crew chiefs firing M60s out of open doors, over improvised Huey gunships, all the way to the Cobra, and the entire attack helicopter concept we have today.
The Dark Reason Door Gunners Didn’t Survive Vietnam
When the war in Vietnam began, military commanders were pretty much certain that speed and altitude alone would keep helicopters safe in this new way of warfare. Well, they were wrong—and enemy fire very soon forced a painful re-think.
It all began with crew chiefs firing M60s out of open doors, over improvised Huey gunships, all the way to the Cobra, and the entire attack helicopter concept we have today.
