Published by Patriot Media, Inc.
An almost true story of naval aviators fighting a vicious air war over North Vietnam in the fiery autumn of 1967 ... and of the families waiting for them back home "in the world."
The novel covers a two-week period in a day by day account of flight operations and the heroic acts of men flying the hostile skies of North Vietnam. Many of the exploits in the book are based on the author's Vietnam War experiences as an A-6 Intruder pilot.
The cover art, Moonlight Intruders, is courtesy of Craig Kodera, a famed aviation artist whose work is on display in the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.
REVIEWS
The Association of Naval Aviation reviewed Those '67 Blues in the fall 2011 edition of their magazine, Wings of Gold, as follows:
Those ’67 Blues by B.K. Bryans. As one reviewer wrote, “This my kind of book. It has the accurate detail that satisfies the guy who’s ‘been there and done that’ and intrigues the guy who wishes he could have. Blues takes you through virtually every aspect of the carrier war in 1967 and does it so precisely you feel as if you are right there getting shot at.”
This is a story about the aviators who went in harms way big time. “At night,” writes Bryans, “Navy all-weather A-6 Intruders went in low and alone.”
A brief excerpt: “The SAM that hit their A-6 right after weapons release knocked out everything electrical, set the port engine on fire, and caused the plane to shake like a dice cup.”
Bryans knows his subject. He flew A-6s during the war earning a Silver Star and DFC, and commanded VA-35 aboard USS Nimitz.
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‘I loved Those ’67 Blues, but it touched nerves that I thought were long buried. It has the authentic feel of someone who has actually flown combat missions in that war that I’ve found missing in most of the books I’ve read on the subject. The emotion conveys so well.’ by Tony Tambini, Vietnam War A-4 / A-7 pilot.
‘Those ’67 Blues is my kind of book. It has the accurate detail that satisfies the guy who’s “been there and done that” and intrigues the guy who wishes he could have. Blues takes you through virtually every aspect of the carrier war in 1967 and does it so precisely you feel as if you are right there getting shot at. Those readers who flew into the flak, missile, and MIG mess in North Vietnam will relive the adrenalin rush that comes from dodging SAMs, and feel the heartbreak of seeing our guys going down in flames or swinging under a chute (if they’re
lucky). To the curious readers, you can’t get any closer to being there than Those ’67 Blues.’ by Phil Waters, Vietnam-era A-6 Bombardier/Navigator
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AUTHOR'S COMMENT
There is also a review of Those ’67 Blues on Amazon.com that claims the stories in it are nothing
like real combat. Hogwash! Here are some facts:
The Alpha Strike against the Kep Airfield described in the book took place on June 11, 1967.
(It has a big asterisk in my flight log.) The actions “Mike” takes in the book were exactly the ones I took,
including the low-level pull-out over the flak sites.
The flight into Laos to save some Green Beret’s is a true story, except that my wingman and I were
flying A-6’s, not A-4s.
The story of blowing up a church is true. One of my wingmen hit the church and got the
secondary explosion described in the book.
President Johnson really did come up on the radio as our flight of four A-6’s neared the target
bridge near China. He dictated dive headings, dive angles, and bombs-per-pass.
(You cannot make stuff like that up.)
On the night of October 26, 1967, my B/N and I flew the night mission into Hanoi exactly as
“Mike” and “Terry” fly it in the book … except that we were not hit. We were both awarded
Silver Stars for the mission.
These missions are detailed in my memoir Flying Low.
B.K. Bryans
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Amazon.com has a Kindle e-book of Those '67 Blues for only $2.99 US, and
BarnesandNoble.com has it as a Nook e-book for only $2.99 US. There are also glossy paperback versions published by Patriot Media, Inc.
available at the publisher's web site, Amazon.com, and BarnesandNoble.com.
Click here
 to download a Kindle e-book copy of
Those '67 Blues for only $2.99 US from Amazon.com.
Click here
to order a 6" x 9" glossy paperback copy of Those '67 Blues for $17.22 US
from Amazon.com.
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 to order a 6" x 9" glossy paperback copy of
Those '67 Blues for $17.23 US or a $2.99 Nook e-book from Barnes and Noble.
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 to order a 6" x 9" glossy paperback copy of
Those '67 Blues for $17.95 US from Patriot Media, Inc.
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