Bonnie-Sue

By: Marion F. Sturkey

Narrated by: Dennis McKee

Author Marion F. Sturkey, a former Marine "Bonnie-Sue" HMM-265 helicopter pilot, combines fascinating detail with grim realism in this eloquent saga of Marines at war. Weaving actual military records with personal accounts from the helicopter crews, he breathes life into the daily struggle of the soldier.

Step through this unique looking-glass into the volatile crucible of combat in Vietnam. Taste the danger and fear, the madness and passion, and experience the love and brotherhood shared by the pilots and aircrewmen of the "Bonnie-Sue".

©1996 Marion F. Sturkey (P)1999 Blackstone Audio Inc.

Critic reviews

"This is our story, told some twenty to thirty years later, but as chilling and touching to us who were there as if it took place yesterday." (Marine Corps Aviation Association)

"The detailed history of the Marine helicopter pilot has never been written in such a hard, cold-steel, factual way as this great book reveals." (Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association)

Todd

Phenomenal story! Very in depth and vivid.
The narrator is at times challenging to listen to, he's rather robotic sounding when he reads quotes aloud.
Don't let this detract from the amazing story.
I'm very glad to have listen to this book.

Excellent historical account of the Vietnam war

I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this audiobook.
There were several evenings when I had to 'just keep listening' to find out if the daring helicopter pilots would be able to rescue the grunts!

Excellent Mid 60s History of Marines in Vietnam.

The pros aren't real descriptive but for those interested in heavy contact, WOW! Stories are told of all types of situations and missions. A lot takes place in Vietnam below the DMZ in I Corps. I had much respect for the Marines and Corpsman in Grunt, Recon, Helicopter, and all the other units stationed in Vietnam but I now have an exponential amount of respect for them! Semper Fi Brothers, thank you for your distinguished and outstanding service!

Bonnie-Sue (Unabridged)

I am a Marine Recon Veteran familiar with the areas of operation written about and the units involved. The narrative is so well crafted that I could smell the jet fuel, feel the vibrations and the deafening sound inside the 46s. After visiting the Bonnie-Sue website I could also see the faces of the men involved. I especially appreciated the after action reports as they described the action in the dry terse terms of Marine Corps History.
Semper Fi

Good story but too much minutia

This was an interesting story with a lot of action-filled sequences. I'm glad I listened to it.
Having said that, I believe it would have been a much better experience without including the unnecessary details such as the military map grid coordinates for every single event. Much of this book contains what are probably direct quotes from after -action reports. The information in those reports should have been paraphrased to include only information necessary to tell the story to the reader/listener. Most of those citations of coordinates could be replaced by something like "the northwestern part of the (name of valley or mountain range)" which would not have taken anything away from the story being told. It was probably done that way because it was less work to leave those details in than to edit them out.
Still, this was a good tribute to those individuals who flew the H-46 and H-34 helicopters in the Vietnam War. They were brave and honorable men who deserve to be remembered for their remarkable and often heroic efforts to help the guys on the ground to win battles and to survive their time fighting the communists in Viet Nam.

Best Vietnam book on Marine Helecopter Squadrons

My Dad was in Vietnam and flew the H-46, and for me this book brought life to stories and places my Dad has told me about. Sturkey was in Vietnam after my Dad, but the accounts of Marble Mountain, Dong Ha, Khe Sahn, and Danang were very much like they were when my Dad was there.

Great Book!

Very intense reading

Very good book ,the attention to detail is very good very happy i pitched this book

Awesome Stories

This book is highly historical like a documentary with many stories intermixed throughout the book.
I enjoyed the details. Little bit of swearing, mostly worked out for effect.

Bonnie Sue

I found this to be an interesting book to listen to, it not only discribed the danger of the Chopper pilots but also the grunts and Recon teams that they flew all over Nam. It also describes the willingness to risk their lives to help the Grunts on the ground. Thats what it was really like. I am a Viet Nam Vet, and I was in Recon. These Pilots could fly. It was a feeling like no other. Listen to this book.

Bonnie Sue

Excellent book. Few words mispronounced but the description of events, sights and sounds are right on. Brought back a lot of good and bad memories.