Iowa Congressman Leonard Boswell will be among the Vietnam helicopter pilots featured in a History Channel two-hour documentary on Saturday night entitled “The Personal Experience: Helicopter Warfare in Vietnam. Boswell of Davis City served as an Army assault helicopter pilot in 1965 and ’66 and for another tour in ’68 and ’69, and he’s one of the pilots featured in the program. Boswell says he “saw a lot of stuff, and helicopters were pretty risky business.” Boswell was interviewed by the documentary’s producer last summer about how he dealt with combat and people trying to kill each other.Boswell talked about what combat was like — and the kind of reception he got when he returned home. Boswell says he was treated with a great deal of indifference. He says he could count on the fingers of one hand the people in his home community that showed any interest in it.Boswell says a few years ago, though, the nearby town of Bedford threw a welcome home party for Vietnam-era veterans and that helped. He says the all-day event did give him some relief.Boswell got an advance copy of the documentary and watched it a couple of weeks ago. Seventy-one million U-S homes subscribe to the History Channel.Boswell has served in the legislature and Congress since his retirement from the military.
