On this episode of the podcast, Tim K. sits down in the Texas Hill Country with Johnny Hubbs who served in the United States Army’s famed 229th AHB (Assault Helicopter Battalion, 1st Air CAV) in a position he couldn’t have even imagined for himself, as an OJT (On the Job Training) Door Gunner on a Huey Gunship. Some, including Johnny, will tell you that the lifespan of a Door Gunner in Vietnam was approximately six seconds. On top of not receiving the allotted, technical flight training pre-deployment, the dangers that Johnny faced from the air varied anywhere from technical malfunctions to pilot error to enemy artillery and small arms fire. Couple that with the fact that Johnny’s missions fluctuated from mop-up duty to mail carrier for the front line troops to carrying the precious cargo of America’s infantry on night and day missions and you have an almost certain recipe for terror.

The environmental and logistical elements were constantly changing while the enemy maintained a ferocious approach. But, Hubbs’ dedication to his duty and fierce focus from the air served him well, and he completed his time in Vietnam… only to come home to a country that was torn from within. The mere presence of Johnny and his compatriots served as a reminder of a tumultuous time Americans wanted to leave in the past, and they would make him feel this the instant he returned to U.S. soil. Although Hubbs did spend some time talking about combat, most of this podcast remains true to the core mission and the discussion of reintegration; something that challenged Johnny mightily for decades after the war.