"Out Of Step, Part One: A Vietnam War" Memoir Reveals The Hidden Intelligence Battleground Behind "Radio Research"
Out Of Step - Part One, A Memoir of the Vietnam War is the second part of Francis Hamit’s memoir that continues the story from book one, A Perfect Spy, which introduces readers to a rarely seen side of America’s Vietnam War experience: the covert world of Army Security Agency intelligence operations, known in-country under the cover name “Radio Research.” In this second installment of his memoir, author Francis Hamit recounts and reflects on the first two years of his service (1967–1969), moving from Basic Training and stateside intelligence preparation into the daily realities of a Top Secret military intelligence organization operating alongside conventional units.
Assigned to an airborne radio direction finding (ARDF) unit in Vietnam, Hamit’s story follows the unusual tension of working a war where visibility is both a weapon and a liability. Out Of Step - Part One explores how signals intelligence shaped the conflict and how North Vietnam’s cryptographic capabilities challenged American efforts to see clearly without being seen. Hamit brings a veteran’s immediacy to the page, while extending beyond personal recollection through research into formerly classified histories.
The memoir also examines controversial training practices at Fort Devens, Massachusetts, including Col. Lewis Millett’s Tactical Training Course, where simulated capture and interrogation pushed into morally unsettling terrain. Hamit’s account does not seek easy conclusions. Instead, it traces how institutions apply pressure, how people adapt, and how the consequences persist long after orders are carried out.
Hamit’s Vietnam experience includes day-to-day service at Can Tho Army Airfield with the 156th Aviation Company (Radio Research), where he worked as a clerk and courier while supporting intelligence operations that the broader Army often barely understood. He also incorporates brief contributions from John Watje and John Reed, expanding the narrative beyond his own viewpoint and filling in moments when others were present where he was not.
Out Of Step - Part One, A Memoir of the Vietnam War is available now. Get your copy on Amazon and Barnes & Noble today.
Literary Titan praises the book’s candor, sharp-edged humor, and refusal to present Vietnam as a tidy myth or conventional war story. The review highlights Hamit’s attention to the “social physics” of Army life and his depiction of intelligence work as a lived system, bureaucratic, occasionally absurd, and always consequential. It also notes the memoir’s impact for readers drawn to Vietnam history, memoir, espionage, SIGINT, and coming-of-age narratives.
About the Author
Francis Hamit became a professional writer while serving in the U.S. Army Security Agency, where he edited a unit newspaper and developed the craft that would shape his career. After his service, he attended the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, ultimately earning an MFA in Fiction. He went on to work as a journalist in Chicago and Los Angeles, while also writing across forms including novels, plays, and screenplays.
Hamit’s published works include the anti-war play Memorial Day and the novels The Shenandoah Spy, The Queen of Washington, and Meltdown. His film projects include Christopher Marlowe, The All American, and Love In A Time of War. He is also the author of the nonfiction book Security Matters and the memoir A Perfect Spy. He currently publishes through Substack under his own name.
Information contained on this page is provided by an independent third-party content provider. XPRMedia and this Site make no warranties or representations in connection therewith. If you are affiliated with this page and would like it removed please contact [email protected]
