Charles Slezak:  

July 4, 1943 at 12:59 PM I was born in Berwyn, Ill. That¿s a suburb south west of Chicago on July 4, 1943. At the age of Five we moved to North Riverside, Ill a suburb a few miles west of Berwyn. I attended the A. W. Komarak Grade School and graduated in June of 1957. From there I went to Riverside-Brookfield High School and graduated in June of 1961. I didn¿t start college until January of 1962. In-between high school and college I worked for my Dad at his business. He owned a hollow metal steel fire door company. I learned a lot at my Dad's company. We made fireproof doors mainly for factories. I did all the jobs from welding fabrication, to installing the door locks and hinges and bending the metal on the brake presses. I also worked on the weekends at the local gas station down the block from my house where I had worked part time while in high school. I started at 15 just pumping gas. The owners, Jim and Dick however, liked me and soon had me doing grease and oil changes. Later on they taught me to do tune ups. I¿ll never forget the first time Jim asked me to drive a customer home. Remember I was 15? I didn¿t say anything and actually dove the customer home and drove the car back to the station where I admitted I didn¿t have a driver¿s license. Well, Jim said ¿you didn¿t hit anything, did you?¿ I said ¿no.¿ Jim then said OK no problem. In those days it wasn't a problem. One summer, between my Junior and Senior years in high school Jim and Dick decided to take a vacation together for 2 weeks. I was just 16 at the time. They had me run the station for two weeks. I had part time mechanics coming in during the day and evening hours to help with the shop work. At the end of the day I had to order more gas and oil supplies and count the money and take it to a night depository. At this same time in my life I also was part of a Dance Band. I played Trumpet. Being in Chicago, we played Polkas for the older set of Bohemians and Polish in the area. We played at picnics, weddings, dances and so forth. I also played trumpet in the grade school and high school bands. In high school I was also in the Marching Band. In January of 1962 I started college at Southern Illinois University. My course of study was Automotive Technology. I graduated in December of 1963 but had to wait until June of 1964 to receive my Associates of Technology Degree. From there I started working at small tune up shop in Brookfield, Ill by the name of Lizalek¿s Automotive Shop. I learned much more from Gus, the owner, then I could have ever imagined at the time. I used to call Gus a mechanics, mechanic. That was because any time another shop in the area had a problem that they couldn¿t figure out they would bring it to Gus to fix for them. Of course that was without telling their customers about it. I worked for Gus for a year and a half until Uncle Sam got me in the draft. I went in to the Army in April of 1965. I did my basic at Ft Knox and AIT at Ft Rucker. At Rucker I was in an experimental class. We did the first basic Aviation class and then they jumped us directly into 67N20 Turbine Engine, UH-1 class. I was the Honor Graduate in my class of about 52 people. From there it was off to Viet Nam. I traveled on my own from Travis AFB to Saigon on a Continental Airlines 707. Once in Saigon I was put into Camp Alpha at Tonsonute. I spend a few days waiting around for my in country assignment. About the third day I was called into the Orderly Room and told to pack my duffel bag and board a helicopter that would pick me up on the pad in 15 minutes. The helicopter would be from the 101st . Airborne. I told the Sergeant I wasn¿t Airborne qualified. He said it didn¿t mater, I was a Crew Chief and I wasn¿t going to jump out of any airplanes anyway. So it was off to one of the greatest adventures of my life. A life changing experience with the greatest group of guys anyone could ever imagine. I spent the first three weeks in the Maintenance Platoon. An opening came up for a Crew Chief in the Second Flight Platoon on Warrior 25. I volunteered and again the rest is history. That¿s where I first met my number one, excellent Aircraft Commander, Jerry Turner. We did many, many operations in the Mekong Delta and north of Saigon Areas. Camau, the Plain of Reeds, Viton (SP), Rac Gau to name just a few. We also flew up North of Saigon in the Hobo Woods, Iron Triangle and Michelin Rubber Plantation areas. But the one I remember most is the few weeks that we spent up North in Tuy Hoy (SP). That¿s where we first had the pleasure of supporting our 101st ground forces. While up there we also supported the ROK Marines. After that it was back to the Delta to support the ARVNS again. In April of 1966 I transferred to the Gunship Platoon. Jerry had rotated back home and I was in the mood for a change. Some payback you might say. Our Gunship Platoon was called the ¿Thunderbirds¿. I was T-Bird number 1. I got exactly what I was looking for too. Payback. The ¿T-Birds¿ were the best of the best. Besides covering for the Warriors on CA¿s (Combat Assaults) we also did various missions on our own. Lots of night missions over the numerous canals of the Delta. It was exhilarating, life changing again. I rotated back Stateside in September of 1966. I was stationed at Ft Carson, Co. Guess I have to admit it, YES I WAS CAV. ¿D¿ Troop 4th of the 12th CAV. After Five months at Ft. Carson I was given my papers and I went back home and my old job at Lizalek¿s Automotive Shop. The problem was I had Aviation in my blood now. So I looked into getting my A&P Ticket. Gus, not being the type to hold anyone back, agreed to let me work part time at night while I attended school at an Aviation College a few miles away. I graduated from Lewis College in April of 1968 with my Airframe and Power plant Ticket Issued by the FAA. I hired on with American Airlines at O¿Hare Airport in Chicago as an Aircraft Mechanic. I spent 4 and a half cold years working on the ramp and in the hangar at O¿Hare. I met my first wife, Beverly, a few years later and was married. She had two boys from a previous marriage, whom I adopted. In 1972 I mentioned to her that I always wanted to live in LA since my parents took me there for a vacation in 1950. She agreed and I put in a transfer that night at work. By the time I got home I had a phone call from work telling me my transfer went through and I was going to Los Angeles. I had to be there in two weeks. Things happened fast after that phone call. I sold a car, sold my house, my wife quit her job, we packed our belongings in a 20 ft U-Haul and were off to California. We rented a 2 bedroom apartment in Redondo Beach the day after arriving in CA. It cost more then the house payment I was making on my 1,600 SQ ft house and ¼ acre lot in Hoffman Estates, Ill. Our eyes sure opened wide. My wife immediately got a job at Xerox in their accounting department. I went to work on the midnight shift at LAX. We did what is called ¿B¿ Checks on 747¿s and DC-10¿s. This was about the time of the big gas rationing crunch. American had lay o...Expand for more