This road trip began on January 31, 1968 and ended four weeks later at the Western wall of the ancient City of Hue, in the former South Vietnam. He has been talking with the 101st Airbornes air cavalry team, which was loitering nearby. On June 9, 1969, after weeks of bitter fighting, the 101st Airborne saw victory on the horizon, Courage Under Fire: The 101st Airbornes Hidden Battle at Tam Ky, https://www.historynet.com/turning-point-at-tam-ky-the-101st-airbornes-hidden-battle-vietnam/, Jerrie Mock: Record-Breaking American Female Pilot, These 7 Foreigners Helped Win the American Revolution, How Operation Homecoming Was Sprung into Action to Repatriate American POWs. Stoner tells the medic, Nothings happening! Doc tells Stoner, Loosen the tourniquet. That works. He did two tours in Vietnam and retired as a sergeant major. Constituted on 15 November 1962 in the Regular Army, it became an element of the 101st . From Arrival to Ripcord: The 101st Airborne in Vietnam, July 1965 to July 1970. SOUTH VIETNAM FORCES: 22nd . Sgt. In 2014, the three Soldiers and other veterans of the unit visited Fort Campbell and spoke to current members of the 327th. Subscribe to receive our weekly newsletter with top stories from master historians. Units based at Phu Bai during this period included: On 20 October 1972 the base was handed over to the South Vietnamese.[12]. Apparently the idea was to make the NV. Run for it! Taylor and Westmoreland were both former commanders of the division, which was known as the Screaming Eagles. The 101st Airborne Division has a long and storied history, including combat jumps during the invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944, and the subsequent Market-Garden airborne operation in the Netherlands. The immediate target is the enemy position on the berm, 50 meters to their front. Camp Eagle (also known as LZ El Paso and LZ Tombstone) is a former US Army base south-east of Hu in central Vietnam. These pictures of the Hue Citadel were taken from the front, gunner's seat of a cobra from D-158-101st Abn Div, 1970 Images courtesy of Tom Kehoe: Various views along the bank of the Perfume River flowing through Hue Images courtesy of Tom Kehoe: Soc Trang Airfield from the air Image courtesy of Milton Lowden 121st AHC: The Road to Soc Trang . I have never been colder in my life. Brown and Wintenburg each spent about a year in Vietnam, and both men struggled with anxiety for years. THUA THIEN PROVINCE BASE CAMPS/FIREBASES. In late November 1967, the base was named Camp Hochmuth in honor of Bruno Hochmuth, Commanding General, 3rd Marine Division, who was killed in a helicopter explosion north of Hu. The photo speaks of the volume of the 101st Airborne Division's and U.S. Army's commitment to anywhere in the world to defend our liberties and those of others. The airfield is now used as Phu Bai International Airport. Thurston is wounded and unable to move. After the partition of Vietnam, it became a part of . If ever in the Vietnam conflict there was a forward edge of the battle area, Firebase Ripcord in the year 1970 . They are still suffering effects of heat exhaustion. Roy knows the medic and the wounded men are in danger and yells for them to pull back to the companys perimeter. Vietnam War: Elements of 2nd Brigade and 2nd Squadron, 17th Cavalry, 101st Airborne Division 10 miles NW of Hue during Operation Carentan II, 1 May 1968. Copyright 2021 DrRichSwier.com LLC. But now, 50 years later, they relish opportunities to reunite with fellow 101st Airborne . The new Corps also co-operated closely with the ARVN 1st Division in the area. At 8:45 a.m., the Cav team goes off station to rearm and refuel. Capt. The buildup of formal U.S. military units had begun on 8 March 1965, when two battalions of Marines landed at Da Nang. 4 Nov 1968 Army Reporter Vietnam Communiqu for the period Oct 16-22 Hue, Thua Thien Province, I Corps-- In a week of light action paratroopers of the 101st Airborne Division reported killing 20 enemy soldiers.During a reconnaissance-in-force operation eleven miles south of Hue, B/1-506th Infantry discovered an enemy basecamp composed of several huts and bunkers. One held to each ear. Among them is the ancient city of Hue. At 04:25 a.m., the medevac is canceled due to dangerous flying conditions. Once bandaged, Strand is surprised when Doc tells him he will also go out on the next medevac. The last Army division to leave Vietnam, the remaining elements of the 101st Airborne Division returned to Fort Campbell, Kentucky, where today it is the Armys only airmobile division. They normally are at or near the rear of Recon when the unit is moving. Men, women and children with their hands tied with barbed wire behind their backs with gun shots in the back of the head by their NVA occupiers. The Vietnamese Airborne Division began as companies organized in 1948, prior to any agreement over armed forces in Vietnam. Maybe this is it, a day early. This time they are the ones in danger. ZA 184-903 PLEI KLENG Airfield. Vietnam War: Elements of 2nd Brigade and 2nd Squadron, 17th Cavalry, 101st Airborne Division 10 miles NW of Hue during Operation Carentan II, 1 May 1968. Otherwise, there would be several more casualties. But that also is another story for another day. A recently captured enemy soldier reported their casualties had reduced their companies to around 60 men. In the process, we set up an LZ and began withdrawing the injured.". What mattered was that it was life and death, and what mattered was keeping each other alive. Hamburger Hill was the scene of an intense and controversial battle during the Vietnam War. The Battle of Hue took place in the former Republic of South Vietnam and occurred from January 31 to March 2, 1968. . ft. 472.3 RECORDS OF HEADQUARTERS OF THE U.S. MILITARY ASSISTANCE COMMAND VIETNAM (MACV) 1958-73 2,270 lin. $21.99. I remember Art Greenspon was on one knee crouching and I had a strange feeling that something was behind us looking. When he returned from R&R a few weeks back, he asked to give up his RTO job and be a rifleman in the platoon with the guys. "I graduated from high school in 1964 and went to work with my father," said Sewell. 4 Gary Winkler and Spc. He acquired more copies of the photo and passed it out to Soldiers in his platoon where most of them stashed it away for their return to the United States. said Brown. Lets go! The Recon soldiers drop their rucks and sprint as hard as they can go the 100 meters (109 yards) to Deltas perimeter. Once American patrols had time to sweep the surrounding countryside and verify that no enemy units were nearby, Cushman moved the 1st Battalion, 501st Infantry, to Landing Zone Jane on 30 January to assist Colonel Rattans 1st Brigade in operations against Base Area 101.. The enemy continues to advance from the northwest on Deltas position, hidden from direct observation from Roy and Whartons position. Stoner looks at the bag, the soldier and then back to Doc. A Shau Valley looking south. There is a collective sigh of relief when it is clear the rounds arent on target. Attempts by Hue Approach Control to reestablish contact were unsuccessful. We headed off to Hue and when we got there proceeded to cross over the perfume River Bridge into Hue and then turned off to the east along a canal. "My brother convinced me to go down to the recruiter's office," said Witenburg. of the valley was the major North Vietnamese Army (NVA) staging area For more information contact: drswier@gmail.com. Sahrle and his men begin yelling at Recon, Get out of there! Militarily, Tet was decidedly an Allied victory, but psychologically and politically, it was a disaster. ALL AMERICANS - Variant Patch - US 82nd . 472.3.2 Records of the Office of the Deputy Chief . ", "The 101st will always be the only unit in my mind." "My mother wrote, 'this is why we worry about you.' It brought a tear to my eye when I saw that. The next day would be crucial. In late 1969, the 101st Administration Company (101st Airborne Division) was moved from Bien Hoa Army Base to Phu Bai. . ", "What people didn't understand back then but understand more now is that we were Soldiers doing our jobs," said Wintenburg. B Company "Varsity" 159th Aviation Battalion, 101st Airborne. On June 8, it seemed that little progress had been made. In Courage Under Fire: The 101st Airbornes Hidden Battle at Tam Ky, he gives a detailed, day-by-day account of his battalions actions during the operation, with a focus on Delta Company. Artillery batteries from the . George Washington had complained vociferously about the flood of questionable foreign volunteers. [2]:156, The base was named "Camp Eagle" when the 101st Airborne Division moved their headquarters here in March 1969.[1]. the primary military port in the old Vietnamese city of Hue As he and a detail of men drove a vehicle convoy through the . The delayed muffled booms rapidly echo across the mountainside. The deadly fire on the USS Forrestal began with the accidental launch of a rocket. $48.00. Due to the weather air strikes were limited, thereby leveling the field of battle between my battalion and the 90th NVA Regiment. The A Shau Valley was one of the strategic focal points of The DrRichSwier.com is a not-for-profit news forum for intelligent Conservative commentary. As they moved out to reinforce their fellow Screaming Eagles, they made contact with the enemy. Later, it is estimated the enemy is a reduced-in-strength battalion from the NVA regiment defending Hill 376. An athlete, the physical aspects of the military drew him in. The war was at its height with the constant contact between U.S., NVA, and VC forces. History is a guide to navigation in perilous times. "As we were moving forward, the platoon behind us made contact with the enemy; we held our position in order to care for the wounded Soldiers from the other platoon. Jokingly, Doc tells Stoner, Ill put you in for a Combat Medic Badge! Stoner smiles and gives a quick, No thank you! Quietly, he is glad he could help. After eight hours of furious fighting, a change in wind direction prompted the Spanish to break off read more, Nearly one billion television viewers in 74 countries tune in to witness the marriage of Prince Charles, heir to the British throne, to Lady Diana Spencer, a young English schoolteacher. B Company, 101st KINGSMEN! ByFebruary 10, the offensive was largely crushed, but with heavy casualties on both sides. While Strand waits for a medevac, his thoughts turn to Rada. At least, that is the plan. 101st Airborne Division arrives in Vietnam, https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/101st-airborne-division-arrives-in-vietnam. The enemy gunners have overshot Alpha Companys position, but not by much. Military Issued Coming Home Letter -- Remember this? "Watson Baldwin was the finest platoon sergeant I had when I was in the Army," said Wintenburg. The Marines were pinned down behind this wall near the old citadel and radioed for support. Jeremiah Purdie . Outnumbered 10 to 1 the brave US Marines and South Vietnamese Army troops defend the city with their lives. General Melvin Zais , commanding General of the 101st United States Airbourne Division greets a fellow American soldier. Doc makes sure he hasnt overlooked any life-threatening wounds and applies bandages to the worst of them. Was a former U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps base south of Hue, in Central Vietnam. When asked about the photo and why it became internationally famous, each Soldier cites the fact of how it showed the day-to-day lives of Soldiers in conflict. They collapse inside the perimeter. As I turned to glance back, he took the photo.". 472.2 RECORDS OF THE MILITARY ASSISTANCE ADVISORY GROUP (MAAG) VIETNAM 1950-64 154 lin. The operational unit was later re-designated as the 8th Radio . Pfc. The top of the rock is a perfect place for locating the large international orange panel that marks their position for friendly aircraft. As I was in-processing for basic training, I attended a briefing for Officer Candidate School [and] decided to apply during basic training. For a welcome change, it is not well-aimed. Pride in themselves, pride in each other, pride in their unit. The following narrative is courtesy of Special Forces Gear: At dawn on the first day of the TET holiday truce, Viet Cong forcessupported by large numbers of North Vietnamese troopslaunch the largest and best coordinated offensive of the war, driving into the center of South Vietnams seven largest cities and attacking 30 provincial capitals from the Delta to the DMZ. Republishing of columns on this website requires the permission of both the author and editor. Delta Company Commander LT Cleo Hogan recalls, During the night of 24 February, more than 500 rounds of 105MM, 155MM and 8-inch artillery were fired into the vicinity of YD728206 [near Hue]. The group then remained in the Da Nang area until departing Vietnam. "Considering that I came from a very small town in Maryland, I feel my career was very successful and I am proud to have served our country." "A lot of the jobs didn't interest me, but I saw a picture of a paratrooper behind the recruiter's desk and he noticed I was big into football and weight training back then and he said I'd make good airborne material. The two medics in Recon, Spc. In 1969, the 85th Evacuation Hospital moved from Qui Nhn and was established at the northwest end of the airfield, adjacent to Highway 1. Doc enlists Stoner to help treat those who are in the worst condition. He is also setting up and sequencing artillery fires. November 28, 2014. Patch - GRIM REAPER - 101st Airborne - HUE, PHU BAI - Vietnam War - #.637. The officer would continue to serve for 24 more years after the conflict retiring in 1996 at the rank of Colonel. Cadillac was founded out of the ruins of automotive pioneer Henry Fords second failed company (his third read more. A Navy ship in the South China Sea added its guns to the fight. . Hitlers early years did not seem to predict his rise as a read more, By the beginning of 1967, The Doors were well-established members of the Los Angeles music scene. To receive our weekly newsletter with top stories from master historians any agreement over armed forces in Vietnam, became. Patch - GRIM REAPER - 101st Airborne - Hue, in Central Vietnam also co-operated closely with enemy. To the fight station to rearm and refuel, pride in their unit stoner smiles and gives a quick No... More information contact: drswier @ gmail.com the Army, it seemed that little progress had been made Company 101st... In Vietnam, https: //www.history.com/this-day-in-history/101st-airborne-division-arrives-in-vietnam stoner, Ill put you in for a medevac, his turn! Whartons position a quick, No thank you reunite with fellow 101st Airborne Division began as companies organized in,. Guns to the companys perimeter battalion and the 90th NVA Regiment defending Hill 376 for them to pull to! 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