Ted Kennedy was scheduled to visit Vietnam to review refugee operations. I was assigned to escort his forward team to assist in selecting refugee campsites for potential visits. In a Huey helicopter gunship, we headed for the Cam Ran Bay area and other points south, accompanied by a second gunship. Ten minutes after lifting off from touring a camp, our helicopter suddenly began ejecting smoke from the engine. Our pilot took emergency action to land.
We were perched atop a dike between rice paddies, the runners of the Huey barely settled on either edge of the dike. The accompanying Huey circled overhead, its gunners on the lookout, while the forward team and I evacuated our chopper hurriedly. Our gunners remained aboard, always at the ready. We were trapped in an unsecured, remote area, carrying a big shot from Washington...