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SIDEWINDER 3 ZERO: Can You Ever Go Back?

What happens when the war ends, but the war inside you doesn’t?

Decades after serving in Vietnam, a decorated Air Force veteran returns to the places that shaped his life, confronting combat memories, survivor’s guilt, PTSD and unfinished grief. Part memoir, part historical fiction, SIDEWINDER 3 ZERO is an unflinching journey toward understanding, remembrance and hope.
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Fifty Years Later, He Returned to Face What Never Left

SIDEWINDER 3 ZERO follows a Vietnam veteran back to the battlefields of his youth, where old memories collide with the present. Moving between combat experiences and a decades-later return to Vietnam, Gregrey Bassine explores survival, loss, PTSD, marriage, friendship and the difficult possibility of healing.

Two Tours in Vietnam – Fifty Years of Memories

For the veterans who carried the war home. For the families who carried it with them. For anyone searching for a way forward.

★★★★★
I couldn’t put this one down. The flying and combat scenes were exciting, but what really got to me was what happened after Vietnam and how those experiences stayed with him for so many years.

★★★★★
My dad served during the Vietnam era, so parts of this book hit pretty close to home. It gave me a better understanding of what many veterans went through and why coming home didn’t necessarily mean the war was over.

★★★★★
If you’re interested in military aviation, you’ll enjoy this book. I knew very little about OV-10 Broncos or Forward Air Controllers before reading it, and I found that part of the story fascinating.

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The Man Behind the Memories

Gregrey Bassine grew up in a small Oregon town before enlisting in the U.S. Air Force during the Vietnam War. After serving in Vietnam and earning three degrees, he built a successful career in direct-response advertising. Now retired, Gregrey draws upon his military experiences, memories and decades of marriage to tell a story about war, survival and finding a way forward.

read greg’s story

Where the Memories Happened

Hootch at Lai Khe

OV-10 Bronco in action

 Song Be Basecamp

Nui Ba Den Mountain

NEVER FORGOTTEN

newyork weekly

Can You Ever Go Back? Gregrey Bassine Revisits the War That Never Left

Gregrey Bassine grew up in a small Oregon town before enlisting in the U.S. Air Force during the Vietnam War. After serving in Vietnam and earning three degrees, he built a successful career in direct-response advertising. Now retired, Gregrey draws upon his military experiences, memories and decades of marriage to tell a story about war, survival and finding a way forward.

New York Weekly

Connect With the Story

Have a question about SIDEWINDER 3 ZERO, Gregrey Bassine, or the journey behind the book? Get in touch with us for book inquiries, media opportunities, speaking requests, interviews, or information about Gregrey’s story.

ABOUT THE BOOK

the story behind the story

A decorated Vietnam War Veteran, permanently disabled by severe PTSD after serving two tours with an elite, high-casualty unit, spent decades haunted by combat, survivor’s guilt and relentless nightmares.

In Vietnam he signed up for a third consecutive tour believing he was already dead; it was just a matter of time before a bullet caught up with him. He was just nineteen when he had his first combat kill, the first of many!

The Veteran was part of a military experiment designed to measure the effectiveness of combining elite Air Force Forward Air Controllers (FACS) with US Army Ranger LRRP teams. They lived and died together.

Veteran’s wife of forty years bears the emotional weight of his struggles while he searches for his path toward healing.

When the Veteran’s wife discovers a Veterans Administration-approved program that allows Veterans to revisit Vietnam with a personal guide, he reluctantly agrees to return to the places where his most painful memories were made. As he retraces the battlefields of his past, he confronts the trauma that has defined his life, hoping to leave the pain behind; where it belongs.

His journey eventually brings him back to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall, where he honors his fallen friend Ray. There, an unexpected meeting with a younger Veteran creates a powerful moment of understanding, healing and hope for them both.

About The Author

Gregrey Bassine

A Life Shaped by Service, Memory and Survival

Gregrey Bassine grew up in a small Oregon town and enlisted in the Air Force during the Vietnam War, unknowingly stepping into covert frontline operations. After an honorable discharge, he earned three degrees before building a successful direct-response advertising agency that he operated for more than 25 years. Today, retired and married for more than four decades, Gregrey writes from lived experience about war, memory, resilience and life after service.

GET HELP

If you think you might have PTSD, or have suffered traumas that stay with you, understand that life can continue after enduring traumatic loss. Please be open to accepting the support of others. There is a path to recovery for combat veterans; my war just happened to be Vietnam. Regardless of your own experience, whether at home or abroad, there is hope! PTSD is a disorder that does not discriminate based on who you are or what you do. If you feel something is wrong, remember that help is available. Please take the time to reach out and do some research. Assistance is there for you, and I promise your life can improve significantly. It did for me, and that’s why I wrote this story. 

Veteran Suicide Hotline

Every day, eighteen military veterans in the United States commit suicide. If left unrecognized and untreated, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder can lead to severe depression and a sense of hopelessness, which may result in a veteran taking their own life.

If you are a veteran and feel something is not right, or if you are a family member of a veteran who appears to be struggling, please seek help by calling 988 and selecting option 1, or by texting 838255. They are there to support you!

The Veterans Crisis Line offers free, confidential support 24/7—by phone, chat, or text. A real person will answer and assist you, regardless of what you’re experiencing. You don’t have to provide your name, address, or any identifying information.

REVIEWS

A Story That Stays With You

What Readers Are Saying

SIDEWINDER 3 ZERO brings readers face-to-face with the memories of war and the realities that can follow a veteran home.

★★★★★
I couldn’t put this one down. The flying and combat scenes were exciting, but what really got to me was what happened after Vietnam and how those experiences stayed with him for so many years.

★★★★★
My dad served during the Vietnam era, so parts of this book hit pretty close to home. It gave me a better understanding of what many veterans went through and why coming home didn’t necessarily mean the war was over.

★★★★★
If you’re interested in military aviation, you’ll enjoy this book. I knew very little about OV-10 Broncos or Forward Air Controllers before reading it, and I found that part of the story fascinating.

★★★★☆
This isn’t a polished Hollywood version of war, and that’s what I liked about it. Some parts move faster than others, but the personal nature of the story kept me reading.

★★★★★
I expected a Vietnam combat story. What I didn’t expect was how much of the book would deal with family, PTSD, memories and trying to live a normal life after coming home. That made the book for me.

★★★★★
There were places where I felt like I was right there in the aircraft with him. The descriptions of flying missions over Vietnam felt real without becoming overly technical.

★★★★☆
A very personal look at Vietnam from someone who experienced the war from a perspective I hadn’t read much about before. I especially liked that the story continued into his later life instead of ending when his tour was over.

★★★★★
The return to Vietnam was probably my favorite part of the book. After everything that came before it, going back decades later gave the story an emotional ending that stayed with me.

★★★★★
As a veteran, I recognized some of the feelings in this book even though my own experiences were different. The brotherhood, memories and difficulty of leaving certain things behind came across as genuine.

 ★★★★★
This book surprised me. I bought it because I enjoy military history, but by the end I was much more interested in the man behind the missions and what the war did to the rest of his life. Definitely worth reading.

★★★★★

What impressed me most was the honesty of the story. Sidewinder 3 Zero doesn’t end when the shooting stops—it shows how the war followed a young man home and affected his life for decades.

★★★★★

I picked up Sidewinder 3 Zero expecting a combat story and found something much deeper. It is ultimately a story about memory, survival, relationships, and the difficult process of healing.

★★★★★

Readers interested in Vietnam, military aviation, and veterans’ experiences will find plenty here. What makes the book different is its willingness to explore both the battlefield and the psychological wounds that can remain for a lifetime.

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