I read an article by a USAF fighter pilot that said his commander told the pilots to bring their own sidearms, as they were in short supply. Naval and Marine pilots also seemed able to use their own handguns. Jeff Cooper used to have a Q&A column in Guns & Ammo then, and he fielded quite a few questions about which gun was good to take to Vietnam. Many indeed came from pilots and other officers.

Life and other magazines often showed Special Forces men with personal handguns.

And Gen. Westmoreland had that ivory-handled Randall Model 1 knife...