Operation Dumbo (1995)

Operation Dumbo: Directed by Simon Wincer. With Danny Glover, Ray Liotta, Denis Leary, Doug E. Doug. To keep the loyalty of a village during the Vietnam war, a U.S. Army officer and his unit struggle to deliver it a live elephant.

“In 1968, I was the CA NCO (Civil Affairs Noncommissioned Officer) for Co. C, 5th SFG(A), 1st SF, HQed In DaNang, RVN. I was not directly involved with the mission but had a front row seat and the officers I worked under kept me apprised of the progress. These facts might be of interest:u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003e1. u0026quot;Ouru0026quot; Top Secret operation had two elephants called Bonnie and Clyde.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003e2. The elephants were not dropped in slings or standing up as depicted in the movie. They had to be tied down to airdrop cargo pallets. If they were hung in slings, their own weight would have suffocated them. If they had been dropped standing up, their weight would have caused fatal physical harm upon landing. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003e3. Two veterinarians were flown from England to sedate and revive the animals. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003e4. The purpose was not for a ceremony but for a much more practical reason. A sawmill had been built in the village to help its economy. The mountain trails were much too narrow to use bulldozers to drag the trees to the mill and someone came up with this idea. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003e5. The mission ultimately was a failure. The elephants were juveniles (weight!!!) and were much too small to drag the large logs. Growing elephants eat a lot. The village chief complained that the villagers were being forced to travel deeper and deeper into VC controlled territory to collect banana trees for their fodder. I donu0026#39;t know how this problem was resolved.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe movie was much more interesting and fun, as the actual mission was pulled off without a hitch and had little entertainment value. My credibility could be verified on my website which I am required not to include, but Iu0026#39;ll be glad to provide it to anyone who is interested. There is a direct contact link available.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eFor those reviewers who chose this forum to again knock a war over 36 years gone, SHAME ON YOU! You have only exposed your own ignorance. As all soldiers in every war , some Americans conducted themselves better than others. As this mission actually went (and as depicted in this DRAMATIZATION), many of us worked tirelessly to improve the lives of the Vietnamese. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eI am most proud of my days in Vietnam when I was privileged to provide food, cooking utensils, clothing and other necessities to peoples displaced by the war. Many good American lives were lost directly attempting to prevent harm to Vietnamese people. I risked my life more than once, not in combat, but in aiding u0026quot;commonu0026quot; villagers in tasks they could not accomplice themselves. My OIC (Officer in Charge) was shot down and killed while attempting to evacuate refugees from a besieged A-Camp. HE DID NOT HAVE TO BE ON THAT AIRCRAFT. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eYou are welcome to your opinion and can state it per the First Amendment but, ethically, you should study and actually know a little bit about the topic before you share an opinion. And for Heavenu0026#39;s sake, keep political opinions on political forums. u0026quot;Dumbo Dropu0026quot; hardly glorified warfare. It just exposed the truth that a little bit of good can be found in most things, even things as tragic as warfare.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAnd to the reviewer who doubted that anything funny ever happens in warfare: You too, speak out of ignorance. I spent two years in country and had many genuine good times, often with the fine Vietnamese soldiers with whom I worked.”