Suddenly, his words are drowned out by the roar of diving jets. Navy F4s dip and wheel overhead, spewing rockets and bombs. Fireballs erupt just outside the compound. The Colonel looks up and sees me taking his picture. With a big smile he points at the abandoned theater.
Marines dash into the center of the compound as clouds of yellow smoke billow up into the gray sky.
Skimming low over the horizon, the lead Sea Stallion helicopter fills the sky, followed by another. The two helos settle to earth inside the compound, their rotors continuously turning at full pitch. In seconds they have formed a perimeter around the compound and dig in. Simultaneously, another Marine, holding the hand of the nun, leads a group of 100 Americans and Vietnamese on the run from the DAO building. Less than 90 seconds after Colonel Herbert Fix's lead Sea Stallion has settled down, it takes off at full pitch, carrying its precious cargo, as another helo lands in its place and the process starts again.