A young Air Force pilot, identified as 'Doc Blanchard,' pauses beside the cockpit of his aircraft at a forward airbase in Southeast Asia. Pilots of Air Commando and Special Operations squadrons flew rugged, propeller-driven aircraft like the A-1 Skyraider on close air support and search-and-rescue escort missions throughout the Vietnam War, often from austere, dusty airstrips like the one seen here. Project: 218943