
The Book
About the Author
Book Reviews
Talks
& Lectures
The Nixon Note
Formation Photographs
The Signed Lithograph 
Son Tay Coin
C-130 Pictures & Videos
Research
Materials
Son Tay Raider
Association |
|
THE BOOK

$17.95 (9.5 x
6.25)
ISBN 0-9723589-0-0
A thrilling eyewitness account
of the secret humanitarian mission in 1970, by one of the air commando pilots who flew the
amazing 'C-130' aircraft on the edge of a stall, at night, while leading six helicopters
in close formation deep into North Vietnam for a daring rescue attempt of POWs being held
in the shadows of Hanoi.
It's a
two-part story and describes the same raider-pilot's return to Son Tay prison 24 years
after the raid, in broad daylight with only camera in hand, including his high-anxiety
confrontation and arrest by North Vietnamese police.
Included are 71
rare pictures and diagrams, most never declassified or previously published until now.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
 |
-
-
-
- Bill Guenon
- Air Commando Pilot
|
William A.
"Bill" Guenon, Jr., a Pennsylvania native, has spent the majority of his
aviation career covering many facets of the transportation industry for both military and
civil applications on a global basis. Bill
served in the U. S. Air Force as a Command Pilot and Senior Air Traffic Controller. A bit of an adventurer, Bill finished third in the
Great Atlantic Air Race, which started from the top of the Empire State Building in NYC
and ended atop London's Post Office tower building. Although self-sponsored, his
commendable time of 7 hours, 39 minutes, and 42 seconds was accomplished in 1969, using a
Pan Am "Clipper" 707 well before the supersonic Concorde went into commercial
service.
Currently, when
not involved with consulting chores for his company, Omni-Alliances, Bill can usually
be found mingling at air shows, aviation exhibitions, and aerospace museums.
REVIEWS AND PRAISE FOR
SECRET and DANGEROUS:
- “There are few moments in American
history that Americans of the left, the right, and the middle can all
look to with equal pride and celebration. The attempted rescue of
American POWs from the Son Tay Prisoner of War Camp during the Vietnam
War is one of these. Told from an insider’s perspective, SECRET And
DANGEROUS: Night of the Son Tay P.O.W. Raid is a riveting and
entertaining tale of men willing to risk everything for their fellow
men, It summons up in exquisite detail both the technical and human
aspects of this mission which was in NO WAY a failure. As much a tribute
to the spirit of freedom as it is to the mission itself, Bill Guenon’s
book is a must read for those who celebrate the American Spirit, even
more for those who question whether it still exists. Well done, Bill.
Well done, Raiders!”
- RICHARD STEINBERG;
New York Times & international
- bestselling author of The Gemini Man, Nobody’s Safe,
-
The 4 Phase Man, and coming this summer: CAIN.
-
- "It's a thrilling account of a secret
humanitarian and daring mission during the Vietnam conflict written by
one of the pilots who flew the lead aircraft. He recounts the incredibly
complicated operation on a personal and very revealing basis. It's so
real, you will have the feeling of having flown the amazing C-130
yourself."
- Lt. Gen. LeRoy J. Manor, USAF (Ret.)
Commander, Joint Contingency Task Force
Son Tay
P.O.W. Raid
-
- "Air Commando pilot Bill Guenon has
written the only first-hand account of the incredible 1970 raid to free
American P.O.W.s held deep in North Vietnam. Guenon, call sign, "Cherry
One" flying his C-130 low, slow...20 knots below landing speed...in the
dark of night operating in radio-silence, led six rescue
helicopters to Son Tay -- then orbited the scene deploying flares,
battle-sound simulators, and napalm bombs for ground beacons. His story
is up close and personal with behind-the-scenes anecdotes that tell "the
rest of this amazing story", including some surprising details. This
one's a must for the keen, aviation book collector.
- MARK BERENT, author,
Storm Flight, last of his five-book
- series on the Vietnam war
-
- "The Son Tay POW raid was one of the most
daring and adventurous events in the Vietnam War, and sitting in the
cockpit of the lead aircraft made Bill Guenon eminently qualified to
tell the story as it really happened. The book is well written and
filled with details, some heretofore unknown. But there is more. The
sensitive account of his return to Son Tay years later as a tourist
provides a poignant counterpoint to the story. Secret and Dangerous:
Night of the Son Tay POW Raid is a must read for history buffs and
those interested in the Vietnam War Era."
- RON
STANDERFER, author, The Eagle's Last Flight
"Guenon tells it like it was in his utterly fascinating story of the
daring raid on Son Tay -- one of the most remarkable flying feats in
the entire Vietnam War. His eyewitness account is especially poignant
because he returned to Son Tay as a tourist to relive the thrilling memories. Pilots especially will savor its realism."
-
- - WALTER J. BOYNE, retired Air Force colonel and former
- Director, National Air & Space Museum, has penned
- more than 29 military-aviation books
-
- SECRET And DANGEROUS is a superb documentary that should be
required reading for anyone who flew missions in Southeast Asia or fly
today’s military aircraft. Thank you for what you did a lot of years
ago.
-
- - ROGER S. VAN DYKE, MD, Lt Jg,
pilot & author,
- The
Sky Keeps no Memories: The 94th Bomb
- Group – An American Airman and His Letters, 1942-43
"This must-read adventure, [particularly in light of the
precision CAS (Called-in Air Strikes) that defeated the Taliban and al-Qaida in
Afghanistan in 2001 and '92] is a gripping and most candid tale of the incredible mission
Son-Tay, flown deep into North Vietnam...its inspirational caliber ranks right up there
with the Doolittle raid on Tokyo!"
- ROBIN MOORE, author of
The French Connection, The Green Berets, and
The Hunt for Bin Laden
"You have
masterfully written an important history of what I will always believe were our finest
hours in Southeast Asia."
- BEN SCHEMMER, former editor of
The Armed Forces Journal
"...written
by an experienced special operations pilot who shares his story in the working-lingo of
highly trained elite forces."
- JON REYNOLDS, Brig. Gen. USAF (Ret.)
Son Tay POW
"...perhaps
the most detailed read on flying the daunting Son Tay Raid!"
- DAVID BROOKS, 20th Century Fox Studios
TALKS & LECTURES
The author, air
commando pilot Bill Guenon, gives lectures and talks detailing the highlights of the Son
Tay mission and his return to Vietnam 24 years after the raid. If you are interested
in retaining him for a talk at your event, please contact him at Bill@secretanddangerous.com . These presentations can be given in either
PowerPoint or overhead vu-graph slides. The talk is flexible enough that it can be tailored to the
topic or theme of your event.
Organizations where Bill has presented the
raider’s real story:
- Television
The History Channel: Technical
advisor to production team for filming their
recently aired documentary on
the raid.
Local TV studio
live-presentations in Ashland, Brockton & Watertown, Mass
Universities
Boston College Sr.
history class, and the U.S. Air Force ROTC detachment
Tufts University,
Fletcher School of International Law & Diplomacy
- U.S. Air
Force Academy, Colorado Springs, CO
U.S. Naval War College,
Newport, RI, visiting lecturer
-
UMass at Lowell, U.S. Air Force
detachment
Museums
New England Air Museum,
Windsor Locks, CT, Open Cockpit Sundays
Oshkosh, WI Air Venture
Museum during summer flight extravaganzas
Aerospace Museum, San
Diego, CA
Aviation Museum,
Richmond, VA
American Helicopter
Museum, West Chester, PA
- Hiller Aviation Museum, San Carlos, CA
- Museum of Flight, Seattle, WA
- National
Museum of the U.S. Air Force, Dayton, OH
- Historical Societies
Historical Societies of
Ashland, Burlington, Lexington, and Weston, Mass
American Aviation
Historical Society, Phoenix, AZ
Conventions, Meetings & Shows
Classic Jet Aircraft
Association’s annual convention, Tucson, AZ
Wings of the North annual
AirExpo, Minneapolis, MN
Daedalian meetings and
other aviation-minded groups
Special Operations
Association’s annual convention
VFW, American Legion &
other veteran groups
- The Army Air
Force Roundtable, Cheshire, CT
Civil Air Patrol regional and
wing meetings
Rotary Club luncheons
THE SIGNED LITHOGRAPH 

- $ 230.00
- Limited Edition, Signed and Numbered, 20" x 24"
-
- CHERRY-ONE AND FRIENDS
Commemorating the Son Tay P.O.W. Raid of 1970
- Own a Rare Piece of History
- After acquiring the litho, one may seek out other P.O.W.s and
raiders for their personal autograph of the print, thereby adding to its
value and accelerated appreciation.
- This exciting new creation was commissioned by an air commando pilot on
Cherry-1 a
- C-130 the raids lead aircraft. It captures the essence
of flying the daunting assault-force on the edge of a stall, with three of the six
helicopters in formation flying toward Son Tay prison tucked in the shadows of Hanoi.
An original Giclée fine art reproduction, its signed by the raids commanding
general, four raiders, a Son Tay P.O.W. and the artist,
William Beyer, a noted New England
painter and watercolorist of distinction. The patches are rare and represent each of the
major service units who participated in the raid..
Long awaited, this numbered, limited-edition lithograph is highly sought after by the
discerning collector of fine historic military prints a unique opportunity thats
now available!
Print signers are:
LeRoy Manor, Brig Gen. USAF,
Commander, Joint Contingency Task Force
Wm. A. Guenon, Jr., Capt.,
USAF, C-130 Pilot, "Cherry-1"
Thomas L. Stiles, Capt, USAF,
C-130 Navigator, "Cherry-1"
George W. Petrie, 1st Lt. USA,
Special Forces, "Blueboy"
Frederic M. Donohue, Maj.,
USAF, HH-53 Pilot, "Apple-3"
Jon A. Reynolds, Capt, USAF,
Son Tay Prisoner of War
William Beyer, Artist
Raid patch images are:
Son Tay Raider
7th Air Commando Squadron
Rare mushroom patch (Kept in the Dark - Feed on
Horse Stuffings)
USA Special Forces
USAF Air Rescue Service
4th Allied P.O.W. Wing
THE NIXON NOTE
-

- $ 2.00
Recently discovered 8.5 x 11 full-color copy of
the handwritten note of raid confidence from President Nixon to Melvin Laird, Secretary of
Defense, written just days before the raid.
FORMATION
PHOTOGRAPHS

$5.00 "Cherry One" & Friends
$8.00 Gaggle Departure
Left: Select 8 x 10 glossy: high over Florida's
Duke Field runway 18, a modified picture of Cherry One, the raid C-130E(I) leading five
HH-53's and one HH-3 which intentionally crash-landed inside Son Tay (closest helicopter
on the left side of the C-130). Photo was taken to document the raiders' existence
if they failed to return.
Right: Select 8 x 14 glossy: C-130E's commence a
tactical "flying elephant" formation takeoff (USAF - E. Lewis, Jr.)
THE POSTER
$16.00
Exclusive 18 x 26 full color
poster of the book cover.
- SON TAY COIN
-
-
- $10.00
This limited edition coin commemorates the Son
Tay raid and Cherry One, the lead C-130E(I) for the mission.
All items will be signed by the
pilot.
Questions? Contact Bill@secretanddangerous.com
|