Details
RIDE OF THE VALKYRIES
by Simon Atack
Overall Print Size: 31¼" x 23½"
Edition Size: 500
Secondary Market
No aircraft came to symbolize the war in Vietnam more than the Bell UH-1 Iroquois, better known to the men who flew, and fought from this aircraft - and to those who were to owe it their survival, by just one never-to-be forgotten name - the 'Huey'. Ideally suited to the terrain of South Vietnam ¬- formidable mountain peaks, dense jungle, almost every other acre of land under water, and the fact that large tracts of the countryside were controlled by the Vietcong and impassable, the Huey became one of the US Army's most effective weapons of the war. With the ability to carry eight fully equipped troops, the Huey was also ideal for use as Medevac 'flying ambulances', which were to create their own legend. By the end of the conflict the Huey's had notched up a staggering 34 million combat sorties flown! In July 1965 the 1st Air Cavalry, equipped with 500 Huey's arrived in South Vietnam to begin what became the longest tour of duty in American combat history. Under the command of the flamboyant Colonel John Stockton, the 1st Air Cavalry went on the immediate offensive, swiftly creating a devastating impact on the enemy, bringing them to battle wherever they could be found.
Simon Atack's dramatic "RIDE OF THE VALKYRIES" depicts an outbound seek-and-destroy Huey-slick mission flown by a ten-ship formation of the 229th Assault Helicopter Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Air Cavalry Division, almost immediately after the unit first arrived in South Vietnam during the monsoon season. With the rotors beating their unforgettable thunderous 'whoop', the Huey's fly down a mist ¬shrouded valley and over the Cao Dai Monastery at An Khe. On 14 November, this famous Regiment fought the US Army's first major battle against the North Vietnamese Army in the Ia Drang valley in one of the bloodiest and fiercest actions of the entire war.
In addition to the artist this print is individually signed in pencil by TWO Huey veterans:
- Huey flight commander Captain RICHARD L. BUZEN
- Medal of Honor Recipient Chief Warrant Officer MICHAEL J. NOVOSEL
Comes with a Certificate of Authenticity.
