Shadow of the Blade

In the Shadow of the Blade

In the Shadow of the Blade (2004) is an award-winning documentary by Patrick and Cheryl Fries. Its heart is a single restored Vietnam-era UH-1 “Huey” helicopter — tail number 65-10091 — flown across America to more than forty landing zones in eight states, bringing veterans and Gold Star families back to the aircraft that defined their war. The sound of the rotor blades unlocked stories that had been held for thirty years.

For the Wolfhounds, the Huey is woven into every memory. It carried them into every fire support base and every landing zone along the Cambodian border, flown by crews like the Hornets of the 116th Assault Helicopter Company. The sound of the blades is one every Wolfhound remembers.

The film won “Best of Show” at WorldFest-Houston and the Vietnam Veterans of America President’s Award for Outstanding Documentary. “Huey 091” now rests in the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, in the Price of Freedom exhibit.

Kermit Schayltz asked that the film be remembered here, alongside the Wolfhounds’ own story. Learn more at intheshadowoftheblade.com.