COL Michael Gilpin, U.S. Army, Vietnam

Michael Gilpin had an interest aviation at a young age but had never pursued flying. He joined the Army with an option to pursue Officer Candidate School near the end of his college years. Even as he became an officer and started training, he was still in the infantry.

But soon he would switch to pilot training - specifically helicopter pilot training. He deployed to Vietnam in 1971 as a Huey pilot bringing Air Cavalry personnel in and out of combat.

In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Col. Gilpin shares his first thoughts of Vietnam and offers more detail on the missions he was part of. He also focuses on two particular missions: one where his Huey crashed and another where he and his team were tasked with helping to rescue American personnel held prisoner by the enemy.

Later, Gilpin tells us about the solemn duty he had to meet the remains of a childhood friend and bring them home. And he tells us about the powerful encounter he had in an airport while on that assignment.

Plus, he recalls his return to Vietnam decades later and both the positive and negative experiences that came with that trip.