Oral history interview of Walter Gillican "Gill" Autrey Jr.

In this interview, Gill Autrey recalls his experiences serving as a helicopter pilot in the United States Marine Corps during the Vietnam War. He recalls how and why he enlisted in the Marine Corps and his Officer Candidate School training. He was sent to an Army flight school because the Marine Corps needed pilots more quickly than they were able to train them. He recalls further training in instruments and tactical procedures, including a humorous incident during his first solo cross country flight when his map blew out the helicopter window and he was forced to land at a local gas station to buy another. He received orders to Okinawa for a year, but volunteered to go to Vietnam to acquire the combat experience he felt he would need if he made the Marine Corps a career. He described the jungle survival training he received at Clark Air Force Base and a Studies and Observation Group (SOG) operation in which he participated where they inserted special forces and Montagnard forces in Laos. He describes in detail a number of his Vietnam experiences, including working with Korean Marines, rescuing monsoon victims, and participating in Lam Son 719. He describes how a fellow pilot created a fairly effective homemade bomb sight by placing duct tape on the helicopters Plexiglas nose and unusual ways in which they dealt with limited visibility and difficult weather. He remembers returning home and seeing his daughter for the first time. He received orders to the 8th Marine Division at Camp Lejeune, where he worked with infantry troops. He recalls serving as an instructor pilot in California and experiences he had there, including flying formation with gray whales as they migrated along the coast. After separating from the military, he returned to his hometown of Valdosta where he served on the city council and later served as mayor. He describes in detail struggling with PTSD and depression, their effects on his marriage and family, treatments he received, and several inpatient psychiatric hospital experiences, including shock therapy. He describes how later treatments helped him recover and the deep sense of satisfaction he has in his current work, running his own river cruise business in Apalachicola, Florida. He reflects on his military service and his family.||Heavy Helicopter Squadron 362; Heavy Helicopter Squadron 462; 3rd Battalion, 8th Marine Division; "Mustang"; Engine Air Particle Separator (EAPS); Jim Schaefer; Iran hostage rescue; Studies and Observation Group (SOG); Operation Tailwind; "Barrel Bombers"; Marble Mountain; ROK Marines; "sucker hole"; UF Shands Psychiatric Hospital||Gill Autrey served as a helicopter pilot in the United States Marine Corps in the Vietnam War.