During the Vietnam War, Pan American, the largest international airline in the United States,

was flying planes in and out of an active combat zone.

And those planes were staffed with ordinary flight attendants.

Flying into Saigon, there was nothing glamorous about it.

We were in a 707, and we always dove for the runway, and we were flying into a war zone.

Karen Walker-Rion started as a flight attendant for Pan Am in 1969, right in the middle of

the Vietnam War.

It was as dangerous as it sounds.

You know, youth is, we think we're invincible.

There were times though, especially once when the cockpit asked me, Karen, would you go

after and see if we're taking any fire?

And that really caught my attention.

The pilot thought the plane may have been hit by sniper fire.

He sent Karen to the back to look at the window and check for holes.

Oh, I was moving fast.

It was really, really moving as fast as I could through the plane to the tail.

The plane was full of our soldiers.

And of course, some people have their hands up.

They want something.

And you have to say, we'll be right with you.

You know, you don't look panicked while you're on a mission like that.

Because everyone's looking at your face when you're a flight attendant.

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