Victor R. Beaver began flying in 1967, when he attended the U.S. Army Aviation School during the height of the Vietnam War. He spent fourteen months in Vietnam in the late 1960s, after which he was released from active duty and received an honorable discharge in 1971. He began work on “The Sky Soldiers” in March 1976, finally completing the manuscript in May 1996. He then began the long and grueling process of perfecting his work. He is currently employed by as an emergency medical service helicopter.