I think badmouthing Mason is a bunch of crap. I spent a tour in Vietnam flying Army helos, and I have told people that Chickenhawk is so very true to what we did that I would sign every page.
Some who knew Mason might have said that stuff, but like swift boat idiots who decide to defame their buddies decades later, all they do is smear themselves.
Mason, and all the other Army pilots I flew with are really heroic, did a dirty job, took big risks, and in the end, deserve to be recognized for that. (I guess this seems self serving, cause I am in that group, but I was the only shivering, scared idiot, the rest were heros!)