Chuck Hagel on the Lies and Lessons of the War
HOMEFRONT
Elizabeth Taylor shines on Oscar Night 1967
Point-Blank Combat Barry McCaffrey’s 1st Air Cav Days
Chaotic Cam Khe Marine marksmen vs. NVA snipers
The U.S. South Goes to War
The central role of Southern soldiers
1st Air Cavalry troops jump into battle in 1967.
APRIL 2017
HistoryNet.com
YOU MADE SURE THE WORLD WOULDN’T FORGET HIS NAME. MAKE SURE THEY WON’T FORGET HIS FACE.
Arnold W Barden, Jr. - San Diego, CA
Help us find a photo for every name on The Wall Isn't seeing the face of your buddy more powerful than just the mention of their name? VVMF wants to see the face and know the story behind every name etched on The Wall. Help us find the remaining 8,000 photos of your comrades to ensure future generations never forget our heroes of the past.
Visit www.VVMF.org/Faces to learn how you can get involved. 35TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE WALL
) 2 8 1 ' ( 5 6 2 ) 7 + ( :$ / /
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APRIL 2017
On the cover <:Z[(PY*H]HSY`[YVVWLYZ SLHWMYVTHOLSPJVW[LY[V KLMLUK[OLIHZLH[+HR ;VPU[OL:V\[O=PL[UHT OPNOSHUKZ5V] .,;;@04(.,:7/6;6033<:;9(;065! )90(5>(32,9"05:,;!.,;;@04(.,:
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VIETNAM
ASSAULT COMPANY COMMANDER (YL[PYLKMV\YZ[HYNLULYHSYLÅLJ[ZVU [OLIHJRIYLHRPUN^VYRHUKZ[YVUN brotherhood of his 7th Cavalry infantry JVTWHU`K\YPUN[OLOLPNO[VM[OL^HY )`)HYY`94J*HɈYL`
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Feedback Today In the News Voices Chuck Hagel Homefront March-April 1967
21 22 58 64
Battlefront 50 Years Ago in the War Arsenal Soviet Light Machine Gun Media Digest Hall of Valor Bernie FIsher
40
TRANSFORMATION OF DON LUCE A small town boy traveled to Vietnam to help impoverished farmers and ended up an anti-war activist who helped expose abuses at a South Vietnamese prison. By Ted Lieverman
32
RAINY SKY, BLOODY GROUND Marines battled poor weather and the North Vietnamese Army in the Battle of Cam Khe to clear the Que Son Valley in August 1966 as part of Operation Colorado. By Arnold Blumberg
46
CRITICAL CARE Medical advancements, helicopter evacuations HUKZVWOPZ[PJH[LKÄLSK hospitals greatly improved the odds that wounded soldiers would make it home from Vietnam. By Deborah Stadtler
52 SOUTHERN SOLDIERS
Most Dixie troops sent to Vietnam were proud to ÄNO[PUH^HY^OLYL[OL`ZOV^JHZLK[OLPYWH[YPV[PZT sense of duty and religious faith. By Joseph A. Fry APRIL 2017
3
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JOIN THE DISCUSSION AT VIETNAM MAG.COM
MICHAEL A. REINSTEIN CHAIRMAN & PUBLISHER DAVID STEINHAFEL ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER ALEX NEILL EDITOR IN CHIEF
APRIL 2017 VOL. 29, NO. 6
CHUCK SPRINGSTON EDITOR DEBORAH STADTLER SENIOR EDITOR JERRY MORELOCK SENIOR EDITOR JON GUTTMAN RESEARCH DIRECTOR DAVID T. ZABECKI EDITOR EMERITUS HARRY SUMMERS JR. FOUNDING EDITOR STEPHEN KAMIFUJI CREATIVE DIRECTOR BRIAN WALKER GROUP ART DIRECTOR PAUL FISHER ART DIRECTOR GUY ACETO PHOTO EDITOR ADVISORY BOARD JOE GALLOWAY, ROBERT H. LARSON, BARRY McCAFFREY, JAMES R. RECKNER, CARL O. SCHUSTER, EARL H. TILFORD JR., SPENCER C. TUCKER, ERIK VILLARD, JAMES H. WILLBANKS CORPORATE ROB WILKINS DIRECTOR OF PARTNERSHIP MARKETING ROXANNA SASSANIAN FINANCE TOM GRIFFITHS CORPORATE DEVELOPMENT GRAYDON SHEINBERG CORPORATE DEVELOPMENT
During the Vietnam War, the cavalry rode in on Bell UH-1 Huey helicopters, not on horses. In this Q[[]MZM\QZML/MV*IZZa5K+IЄZMa ZMÆMK\[WVPQ[\W]ZI[KIX\IQVWNI 7th Cavalry company. To read more about Vietnam cavalry units, visit HistoryNet.com and search: “1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile)”
VIETNAM
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THE HUEY CAVALRY
AMERICA REMEMBERS PRESENTS
I
t was January, 1968. Over Christmas, Bob Hope, Raquel Welch and other entertainers were in Vietnam performing for the Christmas holiday — and a group of lucky troops were able to see the show live. Back at home, Americans were able to see highlights of the shows on television in January, ever mindful of all those who were serving in Vietnam. With the start of the New Year, American troops were preparing for another year in Vietnam. Many longed to return home, and they counted down the days before their expected date to return home. The days were long and tedious and filled with uncertainty and danger. In this faraway country, a major Vietnamese holiday was also approaching: Tet, the Vietnamese New Year. The Tet holiday was the most celebrated time in Vietnam, and a time when the fighting in Vietnam usually ceased for a short period. Many South Vietnamese soldiers were granted leave and joined family and friends for this special celebration. Meanwhile, the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong had been planning for months a surprise attack on South Vietnam. The Communist forces would unleash a wave of attacks on South Vietnam while the South Vietnamese were celebrating their lunar New Year. With little warning, shortly after midnight, the sounds of combat exploded in Saigon and other locations. The assault had started. The Tet Offensive was well-organized and conducted countrywide, eventually including more than 100 towns and cities. The Tet Offensive was by far the largest military operation conducted up to that point in the war, and it proved to be a pivotal turning point in the war.
Honoring All Those Who Served The 50 th Anniversary of the Tet Offensive In honor of the upcoming 50th anniversary of the Tet Offensive, and in salute to all who served during the Vietnam War, America Remembers proudly announces the Tet 50th Anniversary Tribute Pistol. For this historic Tribute, we selected a working Colt® Government Model® pistol in caliber .45 ACP, a classic military firearm, and a trusted sidearm during the Vietnam War. Only 1,000 Tributes will be issued in this exclusive edition. The artwork on the Tribute features banners and artwork highlighting important battles and scenes from the Tet Offensive. Craftsmen commissioned specifically for this project by America Remembers decorate each pistol in sparkling 24-karat gold and gleaming nickel, with blackened patinaed highlights to accentuate the details of the artwork. On the slide, you’ll find six important battles of the Tet Offensive – Hue, Khe Sanh, Saigon, Da Nang, Quang Tri and Bien Hoa. Saigon was the capital of South Vietnam and the surprise attacks on Saigon during the first night included an attempt to overrun the US Embassy and to capture the National Radio Station. A Marine Corps Combat Base was located at Khe Sanh. The NVA had built up significant forces around Khe Sanh, far outnumbering Americans and South Vietnamese forces. During Tet, the NVA subjected the base
to day and night bombardment, and cut off the overland supply route to the base. The base would remain under siege for more than two months. Hue was a cultural center in South Vietnam. The fighting in Hue was intense, and lasted for four weeks. The Marines and South Vietnamese forces had to fight building to building, street by street, to reclaim the city. Much of the city was destroyed and losses on both sides were high. Quang Tri City was in the north of Vietnam and an important government headquarters. It was an important target for the NVA. Bien Hoa and Da Nang were home to major military air bases for the United States. They were both attacked at the start of the Tet Offensive, but attacks were turned back by the allied forces.
EXCLUSIVE 50th ANNIVERSARY TRIBUTE Order today and we will arrange delivery of your working Tribute through the licensed firearms dealer of your choice. You will receive your Tribute with our 30-day guarantee of satisfaction. If you are not completely satisfied, return your Tribute to us in original, unfired condition for a complete refund. Our nation’s involvement in Vietnam spanned three decades. It’s estimated that more than 2,500,000 Americans served in Vietnam. More than 58,000 lost their lives and another 350,000 were wounded. When the Tet attack started, America had over 400,000 soldiers and Marine servicemen in Vietnam. This historic 50th anniversary Tribute honors the generation who served during the Vietnam War. They didn’t hesitate to put their lives on the line and sacrifice when our country called. All of them deserve our gratitude. If you’re a veteran who served, or you want to honor a family member or friend who served, this handsome Tribute pistol will be a lasting tribute to all who honorably served in Vietnam. Order yours today to secure your place in this edition honoring all those who proudly served in Vietnam.
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The artwork on the Tribute features battles scenes from urban settings, like Saigon and Hue. You’ll also see an image of the flag raising over the Thuong Tu Gate at the Citadel in Hue. When Hue was overrun by the Communist forces, they quickly replaced the South Vietnamese flag which flew at the Citadel with a huge Viet Cong banner. This banner could be seen throughout the city and was a daily reminder of the overthrow and occupation of this treasured Vietnamese city by the Viet Cong and the NVA. This scene shows a South Vietnam banner once again flying over the citadel after the city was reclaimed on February 24, 1968.
The artwork on the right side includes an M48 tank. The M48 “Patton tanks” helped provide cover and firepower in the urban setting, as our troops reclaimed the cities, street by street. Both sides of the slide also feature a banner that reads Tet Offensive January 1968, commemorating this pivotal period in the war. On both sides of the slide, you’ll find crisscrossed M16 and M14 weapons used during
the Tet Offensive, with the date 1968 and Tet Offensive and Lest We Forget at the bottom. I wish to reserve ___ of the “Tet 50th Anniversary Tribute Pistol”, a working Colt .45 pistol, at the current issue price of $1,995.* My deposit of $195 per pistol is enclosed. I wish to pay the balance at the rate of $100 per month, no interest or carrying charges. Certificate of Authenticity included. Thirty day return privilege. TCheck enclosed for $___________ .
*All orders are subject to acceptance and credit verification prior to shipment. Shipping and handling will be added to each order. Virginia residents to: please add sales tax.
TCharge payment of $ ___________ T VISA T MasterCard T AMEX T Discover
Name __________________________________________________ Address ________________________________________________ City/State/Zip ___________________________________________ Daytime Telephone No. ( ________ ) ________________________________
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No. _________________________________ Exp. ___________ 10226 Timber Ridge Drive + Ashland, Virginia 23005 TDisplay Case: I wish to reserve the optional, luxuriously lined, www.americaremembers.com custom-made display case with locking glass lid. My payment To place your reservation toll-free call 1-800-682-2291 of $149* is enclosed or add to credit card.
Display Case Available An optional custom-built, wooden display case is available for purchase.
It’s complicated I enjoyed your article on the Medal of Honor (“Honor Roll of Heroes,” by James H. Willbanks, February 2017). I saw no mention of Jacob Parrott. Being from Ohio, we were taught PM_I[\PMÅZ[\ZMKQXQMV\WN\PM5MLITWN0WVWZI[KZMI\ML L]ZQVO\PM+Q^QT?IZ+W]TLaW]XTMI[MKTIZQNa' Tim Gibson Fort Wayne, Ind.
Troubled troops In the review of McNamara’s .WTTa"
VIETNAM
about his hometown and education. ,QLPQ[XIZMV\[SVW__PMZMPM _I['0M\WTLUM\PI\PMLQLVW\ know where he was. He said he had not talked to his mother in a long time, so he was sure she did not know where he was. I asked how he contacted his UW\PMZ0MX]TTMLW]\I[UITT [PMM\WNXIXMZ_Q\PPMZVIUM ILLZM[[IVLXPWVMV]UJMZWVQ\ In just that short amount of time I knew he did not belong in the )ZUa1_ZW\MITM\\MZ\WPQ[ mother to let her know where he was and that he was safe. I asked QN[PMPILIXZWJTMU_Q\PUM trying to send him home, and she answered, “Go for it.” It took a while going through channels, and I got orders for Vietnam. I never knew what PIXXMVML\W\PMaW]VOUIV1 know that he was cleared \PZW]OP\PMKPIVVMT[WN\PM \P 1VNIV\Za,Q^Q[QWV)N\MZ\PI\1 have no knowledge. Being a commander is hard
The first (in a way) Pvt. Jacob Parrott was the first person to wear the Medal of Honor.
enough, but when we have such TW_̆19\ZWWX[M^MZaWVMWN\PMU has to have someone next to him \WSMMXPQUNZWU[KZM_QVO]X ?M_MZM\MKPVQKITTaI\XMIKMQV Germany, but we had to be KWUJI\̆ZMILaQVKI[M:][[QI decided to cross the line. Too UIVa\ZWWX[TQSM\PM[MaW]VO men would mean that we would be in trouble if trouble started. My thanks to Hamilton Gregory for his book and to Vietnam for Jerry Morelock’s review. William S. “Bill” Corn Cookeville, Tenn. Correction: In the article on the 6WZ\P>QM\VIUM[M)ZUa¼[OMVMZIT X]ZXW[MUIKPQVMO]V)Z[MVIT ,MKMUJMZ \PM[QbMWN\PM gun’s rounds was misstated because WNI\aXWOZIXPQKITMZZWZ
HISTORYNET
?QTTJIVS[M`XTIQV["
TO RECOGNIZE VIETNAM VETERANS & HONOR RECIPIENTS
★★
Featuring the Vietnam Medal & Ribbon, the Vietnam Memorial Wall, Gleaming Black Onyx Capstone -PLUS 10 Brilliant White Zircon Stones
o Mark the 50th Anniversary of The Vietnam War we present our unique commemorative ring to honor your Service to Country.
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INTEREST-FREE PAYMENT PLAN “Thank you” priced at a remarkably low $199*, an affordable payment plan is also available. See order form for details. Your 100% satisfaction is guaranteed or you may return your ring within 30 days for replacement or refund – no questions asked. So, order yours today!
• Your Vietnam Medal & Ribbon, hand-enameled in its Official Colors are richly displayed on one shank. • The opposite shank is a bold sculpture of an emotional Veteran visiting the Vietnam Memorial Wall and the words "YOU ARE NOT FORGOTTEN.” • Honor recipients may choose to have their Purple Heart, Silver Star or Bronze Star Medal & Ribbon in place of the Memorial Wall shank. HONOR RECIPIENTS May choose to have their Medal/Ribbon in place of the “Memorial Wall” shank.
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AS A PROUD VIETNAM VETERAN YOU HAVE EARNED THE RIGHT TO WEAR THIS SPECIAL RING! A Perfect Gift to Honor a Loved One or Fellow Vietnam Veteran!
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FOR FASTEST SERVICE CALL TOLL FREE TO ORDER: Monday - Friday from 9am - 5pm EST. Have Credit card and ring size ready when ordering.
Or, Mail to: Veterans Commemoratives™ 50th Anniversary Vietnam Rings • Two Radnor Corporate Center, Suite 120, Radnor, PA 19087-4599
❑ YES. I wish to order my Vietnam Veteran Ring, personalized with my initials, Service Rank and the years I served. INITIALS DESIRED (3): ________
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I NEED SEND NO MONEY NOW. Bill me in four monthly installments of $ 49.75* each, with the first payment due prior to shipment.
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SHIPPING ADDRESS (We CANNOT ship to P.O. Boxes) Allow 6-8 weeks for delivery.
SERVICE RANK: __________________________________
Name ______________________________________________________
SERVICE YRS: ______ to ______ RING SIZE: _____ Use sizer below or consult jeweler.
Address______________________________________________________
❑ I am a Honor Medal Recipient - Put my Medal/Ribbon in place of the “Wall.” ❑ Purple Heart ❑ Silver Star ❑ Bronze Star NOTE: A copy of your DD214 or other authorizing document must be sent with your order. Thank you.
3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
City_________________________________ State____ Zip ____________ Signature ____________________________________________________ Phone # ______________________ Email__________________________ *Plus $19.95 for engraving, shipping & handling. PA residents add 6% sales tax. ($13.14) © ICM 2017
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TODAY
By Deborah Stadtler
Homage to service A $75 million museum to honor veterans of all wars is being built on 7 acres along the Scioto River in downtown Columbus, Ohio. Exhibits will tell the stories of those who served in the military.
The most important part of any military is not the tanks, helicopters, artillery or other machines of war. It’s the people who serve, and that’s the emphasis of the National Veterans Memorial and Museum being built in Columbus, Ohio. The museum will feature the experiences of ^M\MZIV[NZWUITTMZI[KWVÆQK\[IVLJZIVKPM[WN\PM military. The project started as a place to honor Ohio’s veterans, but its organizers quickly expanded the museum’s coverage to include veterans from across the country. The museum has received congressional support to be designated a national facility. “Nothing like this has been done,” said retired Air .WZKM+WT
VIETNAM
Tallahassee to Anchorage,” Moe said in a Stars and Stripes article. The museum is estimated to cost $75 million and is seeking federal funding to supplement $60 million in private donations already secured. The organizers are reaching out to the 22 million veterans across the U.S. for stories and items that can be showcased in the museum. Groups such as the American Legion have also been contacted. Exhibits are being organized into four main areas with the themes Honor, Connect, Inspire and Educate. Expected to open in 2018, the 50,000-square-foot facility will have a remembrance room and an outdoor memorial grove. The building has been designed to feature a striking concrete arch structure with a spiral processional to a rooftop sanctuary. Learn more at nationalvmm.org.
ALLIED WORKS ARCHITECTURE; INSET: RALPH APPLEBAUM ASSOCIATES
NATIONAL VETERANS MUSEUM UNDER CONSTRUCTION
An All-American Salute with Star Spangled Style It’s time to stand up and stand out as proud Americans. And now you can in dramatic fashion, with our custom-crafted “Home of the Brave” Men’s Hoodie, exclusively available from The Bradford Exchange. Crafted in easycare black cotton blend knit, with brushed fleece on the inside, it showcases a stirring eagle patch accented with our flag’s stars and stripes on the back along with the boldly printed motto: LAND OF THE FREE and HOME OF THE BRAVE. An American flag is embroidered on the front chest. You’ll notice plenty of design detail throughout this apparel exclusive, like contrasting gray lining in the hood, front pockets, knit cuffs and hem, a full front zipper, and even chrome-look metal tippets on the hood drawstrings. Imported. RESERVATION APPLICATION
An Outstanding Value... And Your Satisfaction Guaranteed This custom hoodie is available, in sizes Medium to XXL, only from The Bradford Exchange, and only for a limited time. So don’t miss out—order yours as soon as possible! A remarkable value at $89.95*, you can pay for it in four convenient monthly installments of $22.49 each. To order yours, backed by our 30-day guarantee, send no money now; just fill out and send in your Reservation Application today!
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TODAY
Wall Designer Lin Receives Medal of Freedom Maya Lin, an artist and designer whose most famous work is the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, has received the nation’s highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom. President Barack Obama pre[MV\ML\PMI_IZL\W4QVIVL other Medal of Freedom recipients during a White House ceremony WV6W^
VIETNAM
Even though he was a soldier Sam Martin and Jocelyn Howard in the library in Vietnam during a 1969-70 tour, Sam Martin felt he didn’t have a good overall understanding “The whole project was created of the war. He began buying books by veterans for the community,” and gathering other information Jocelyn Howard, the vet center’s IJW]\\PMKWVÆQK\5IZ\QV\PW]OP\ team leader, told the The Barnstathe various Vietnam War resources ble Patriot. She described it as “a he had accumulated could be use- way of healing.” ful to others and decided to donate Combat veterans are more than them. Those items became the core PITNWN\PM[\IЄI\\PMKMV\MZ_PQKP collection of a Vietnam War library works with clients who have surat the Cape Cod Vet Center in vived combat trauma or lost a famHyannis, Massachusetts. ily member in active service. The library has donations from The public can visit the library around the country. Its holdings during operating hours of the Cape include books, movies, music CDs, Cod center. For information about letters and newspapers and maga- donations to the library, contact zines from the era. )LIU,WMZÆMZI\ ̆ ̆
VIETNAM PATROL BOAT RESTORED TO GIVE TOURS Army Sgt. Robert Bowyer served two tours in Afghanistan, but it was the poor treatment of many returning Vietnam War veterans that inspired him to restore one of the war’s river patrol boats, a version designated the Mark II PBR (Patrol Boat, River). Bowyer started Operation Black Sheep, IVWVXZWÅ\QV5][SMOWV5QKPQOIV\WZMturn the patrol boat to its condition in the Vietnam War, when it was part of the Mobile Riverine Force, nicknamed the Brown Water Navy. The resorted patrol boat will be one of 33 in existence in the U.S. and one of four that can take to the open water, making it a rare piece of history. *W_aMZ¼[_WZSQ[M`XMK\ML\WJMÅVQ[PML QV[XZQVO IVL_QTTJMWVLQ[XTIaI\5IZ\ Dock near Muskegon Lake, reported Michigan Live, a website for several newspapers in the state. The restoration has become a community project, with local businesses and individuals donating their time and money. The patrol boat restoration is part of Operation Black Sheep’s broader goal of fostering a better understanding of the Vietnam War in general.
Readied for a new role A boat that patrolled the rivers of wartime Vietnam is being put back into shipshape at a dock in Michigan, thanks to the efforts of an Afghanistan War veteran.
TOP: ALAN BELANICH; RIGHT: AP PHOTO/ANDREW HARNIK; BOTTOM: ROBERT BOWYER (2)
Cape Cod Vet Center Establishes War Library
POW/MIA: HONORING AMERICA’S HEROES ZIPPO® LIGHTER COLLECTION
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LIVING ON IN OUR HEARTS FOREVER
Distinctive bottom stamp authenticates each lighter as a genuine Zippo® windproof lighter
This stirring tribute collection presents nine gleaming, chrome-finished Zippo® lighters with powerful POW/MIA imagery and patriotic messages—a potent reminder of those who have made the greatest sacrifice, all in the name of our freedoms. It includes an illuminated display case with a raised-relief, sculptural metal POW/MIA centerpiece and hinged glass cover. A $100 value, the display is yours for the cost of a single lighter.
,“ZIPPO”, , and are registered trademarks in the United States and in many countries. The listed Trademarks are used in the United States under license of ZippMark, Inc. All Zippo lighter decorations are protected by copyright. Zippo Manufacturing Company. All Rights Reserved. 2017 PLEASE RESPOND PROMPTLY
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STRICTLY LIMITED TO 9,000 COMPLETE COLLECTIONS Order the 10 limited editions (9 lighters plus display) at the issue price of $39.99* each, payable in two installments of $19.99. Your purchase is backed by our unconditional, 365-day money-back guarantee. You’ll receive one edition about every other month; cancel at any time by notifying us. Send no money now. Just return the coupon today.
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A portion of the proceeds from each sale will be donated to help the families of POWs and those missing in action
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*Plus $8.99 shipping and service per edition. Display will be shipped after your second lighter. Limited-edition presentation restricted to 9,000 complete collections. Please allow 4-6 weeks for shipment. Sales subject to product availability and order acceptance.
TODAY
‘Rogue One’ Director Inspired by Vietnam War
Gareth Edwards The director studied movies about the war.
Hollywood types draw inspiration for movie details from almost anywhere. Gareth Edwards, director of Rogue OnMQ[VWLQЄMZMV\-L_IZL[PI[[IQLQVQV\MZviews that one of his inspirations for the Star Wars movie is the Vietnam War. Edwards had the Vietnam War in mind when he created a movie that is set in ¹IUWZITTaOZMa]VQ^MZ[M_PMZMITT[QLM[_QTT[]ЄMZNZWU\PMJ]ZLMVWN_IZºIKKWZLQVO\W_MJ[Q\MMovie Pilot. Rogue One, a stand-alone movie in the Star Wars [IOIZM^WT^M[IZW]VL\PMMЄWZ\[WN\PMZMJMT[\W[\MIT\PMXTIV[NWZ\PM,MI\P;\IZ -L_IZL[\]ZVML\W>QM\VIU?IZ̆MZIUW^QM[[XMKQÅKITTaApocalypse Now, for O]QLIVKMQVUISQVOPQ[ÅTUZMXWZ\ML1VY]QZMZVM\
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Belding, Michigan, wanted to honor those from the community who perished in the Vietnam War and is now nearing comple\QWVWNIUMUWZQIT\PI\ZMKWOVQbM[\PMQZ[IKZQÅKM -IKPTWKIT[MZ^QKMUMUJMZSQTTMLQV>QM\VIUPI[JMMVUMUWZQITQbML_Q\PIXQTTIZXTIKMLQV\PM\W_VXIZSM\MZIV[,Ia
VIETNAM
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Michigan Town Builds Memorial
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TODAY
ICONIC HELICOPTER SERVES AS ART, THERAPY TOOL ,]ZQVO\PM>QM\VIU?IZVQKSVIUML¹
Steve Maloney with his “Take Me Home Huey”
5ITWVMa¸_PW_WZSML_Q\P^M\MZIV[]XXWZ\WZOIVQbI\QWV[WV\PMXZWRMK\¸[Ia[\PMM`PQJQ\MVKW]ZIOM[^M\MZans to talk about the war and makes them feel ZMKWOVQbML_PQKPQ[QUXWZ\IV\NWZXMWXTM[]ЄMZQVO from PTSD. .WZUWZMQVNWZUI\QWV^Q[Q\\ISMUMPWUMP]MaWZO
Melvin Laird, defense secretary for President Richard Nixon as the Vietnam War wound down, died Nov. 16, 2016, in Florida. He was 94. Laird, secretary from 1969 to 1973, _I[\PMÅZ[\XMZ[WV\W][M\PM_WZL Vietnamization to describe the 6Q`WVXZWOZIU\W\ZIV[NMZZM[XWV[QJQTQ\aNWZUQTQ\IZaWXMZI\QWV[NZWU =;\ZWWX[\W;W]\P>QM\VIUM[M forces. Laird oversaw the end of the draft and the creation of an allvolunteer Army. He served in the Navy in World War II and succeeded his father as a Wisconsin state senI\WZI\IOM1V! 4IQZL_I[ MTMK\ML\W\PM=;0W][MWN:MXZMsentatives from Wisconsin’s 7th ,Q[\ZQK\0M_I[\PMÅZ[\LMNMV[M [MKZM\IZa_PW[MZ^MLQV+WVOZM[[ 14
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Nguyen Ngoc LuongIXPW\WOZIXPMZIVLQV\MZXZM\MZNWZThe New York TimesL]ZQVO\PM>QM\VIU ?IZLQML7K\ I\\PMIOMWN !4]WVO_I[\PMTI[\\WTMI^M\PM ;IQOWVJ]ZMI]WN\PM TimesQV! JMNWZM;IQOWVNMTT\W+WUU]VQ[\ forces, but he declined to relocate \W\PM=VQ\ML;\I\M[XZMNMZZQVO\W remain in his beloved Vietnam. 4]WVO_I[JWZVQVI[]J]ZJWN0IVWQ contracted tuberculosis as a teen, served as a social worker and wrote for
Lawrence Colburn, a member of IPMTQKWX\MZKZM_\PI\[\WXXML\PM SQTTQVOWN;W]\P>QM\VIUM[MKQ^QTQIV[ Ja=;)ZUa\ZWWX[L]ZQVO\PM5a Lai massacre, died Dec. 13, 2016, at QV/MWZOQI8QTW\0]OP
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CHUCK HAGEL
The one unforgivable is the lying and the deceit. That is never, ever defensible.
16
VIETNAM
Why did you and Tom want to serve together? If we were going to be over there in that war, we preferred to be together. We did not tell our mother about it [their father died in 1962], and she later recounted that she had mixed feelings because if something happened maybe it would happen to both of us. At the same time she understood why we wanted to do it together. Tom went north with the 11th Armored Cavalry to the Demilitarized Zone. I was down in the Mekong Delta with the 9th Division. We put transfers in to be with each other, thinking that was unlikely, but maybe one of them would work. Five or six weeks later, I was on an ambush patrol for three or four days, and radio operators said they wanted me to come back to base camp. They didn’t say why. First thing on my mind was that something happened to my brother. The helicopter picked me up, and I reported in. They told me to go to my tent. That evening I’m in my bunk and my brother walked in. Describe the incident when Tom saved your life. In March 1968, we were out on an ambush patrol in the delta. We were crossing a large stream in the jungle. The
DAN WILLIAMS
Chuck Hagel was the only secretary of defense who saw combat as an enlisted man and the only Vietnam veteran to serve in that post, which he held from February 2013 to February 2015 after two terms as U.S. senator from Nebraska. Hagel, at age 20, volunteered to join the Army after being told in early 1967 that he _I[TQSMTa\WJMLZIN\ML,ZIN\JWIZLWЅcials said they would Born: Oct. 4, 1946, North allow him six months Platte, Nebraska Education: Brown Institute to enroll in college for Radio and Television, and escape the draft. Minneapolis, 1966; University of Nebraska at Omaha, bachelor But Hagel replied, of general studies degree, 1971 ¹?PI\¼[\PMÅZ[\ In Vietnam: December 1967-December 1968, squad opportunity to leader, B Company, 2nd leave?” In DecemBattalion (Mechanized), 47th Infantry Regiment, 9th Infantry ber, he was on a Division; highest rank: sergeant plane to Vietnam. Business/civic Hagel’s brother activities: Include government affairs manager, Tom graduated Firestone Tire & Rubber Co., from high school in 1977-80; co-founder president of telecommunications company 1967 and learned that he Collins, Hagel and Clark Inc., 1982-1985; co-founder, executive probably would be drafted. vice president and board He too volunteered and member, Vanguard Cellular asked to be sent to VietSystems Inc., 1984-87; CEO of the USO, 1987-90; CEO of Private nam. The two brothers Sector Council of Washington, arranged to serve toD.C., 1990-92; president of investment banking firm gether. Each saved the McCarthy & Co., 1992-96. other’s life in combat. Government: Administrative Back home, Tom felt assistant, U.S. Rep. John McCollister, R-Neb., 1971-77; the war was a needless deputy administrator, Veterans loss of lives, while his Administration, 1981-82; CEO, Economic Summit of older brother thought the Industrialized Nations in _IZ_I[R][\QÅMLAMIZ[ Houston, 1990; Republican U.S. senator from Nebraska, later Chuck would come 1997-2009; co-chairman, to agree with Tom. President’s Intelligence Advisory Board, 2009-12; Hagel talked with secretary of defense, 2013-15 Editor Chuck Springston Today: Distinguished Executive in Residence, about that change in his Georgetown University; member views and the lessons he of boards, including Rand Corp.; drew from Vietnam. special adviser, Gallup Inc.
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And the incident when you saved his? About a month later, our company was sent to a small village where intelligence showed the Viet Cong were hiding and storing ammunition at night. My brother and I were on the same armored personnel carrier. It was about midnight. ?MLQLV¼\ÅVLIVa>+J]\_MLQLÅVLIUU]VQ\QWVIVL IZUIUMV\[?M_MZM\PMZMIJW]\IVPW]ZIVLIPITN two hours, and then we circled around and out. I was on the last track going out. It hit a large mine. People on the track were wounded, and my brother was knocked unconscious. Blood was coming out of his ears and his nose. The blast burned my face very bad and the left side of my body. The track was going to blow up because it was full of ammunition. So I was throwing everyJWLaWЄ)[_MOW\WЄ>+QV\PM_WWLTQVM[WXMVML]X_Q\P machine guns. I got my brother to a little indentation in the land and was able to keep him from being hit. The VC started moving around to take prisoners. By this time, the lead tracks had heard the explosion. They were circling back and opened up with their .50-caliber machine guns. How do two brothers who served together leave Vietnam with diametrically opposed views??MTT1LWV¼\ think it’s unusual at all. That was the story of Vietnam. I LWV¼\\PQVS\PMLQЄMZMVKM[UaJZW\PMZIVL1PILNWZUIVa aMIZ[_MZMIVaLQЄMZMV\NZWUUW[\>QM\VIU^M\MZIV[1\ might be unusual in the sense that we were two brothers who went through the exact same experience, the exact same time, two years apart [in age], raised the same way IVLaM\[I_Q\[WLQЄMZMV\Ta*]\\PI\¼[R][\NIUQTQM[ Brothers and sisters don’t always see the world the same way, even though they love each other, will defend each other and were brought up the same way. But over the years my opinion melted away far more \PIVPQ[LQL?PI\ZMITTa\]ZVMLUMIZW]VL_I[TQ[\MVQVO to the LBJ tapes [of phone conversations and meetings recorded by President Lyndon B. Johnson and made public beginning in the 1990s] and hearing how senior military and civilians leaders lied to our soldiers and lied to America. Once you hear that from the president of the United States and secretary of defense and others, I don’t know how you can come out with any other opinion. It was my view that the United States, initially, was 18
VIETNAM
In-country Above: The Hagel brothers, Tom at left, are on top of an armored personnel carrier. Right: Chuck Hagel in Vietnam, 1968.
trying to assist a government trying to stay independent from communism. In the ’50s and ’60s, communism was a real threat and a real menace. I think we have to be careful when we judge past decisions by our leaders, based on current situations. The one unforgivable is the lying and the deceit. That is never, ever defensible. From the perspective of a former defense secretary, what are your thoughts on Robert McNamara, defense secretary for much of the war and a key participants in the deceits? I got to know McNamara in his last years as he gave seminars and speeches. He tried to atone for a lot of those mistakes, acknowledge them, but that LWM[V¼\KPIVOM_PI\PIXXMVML?PMVaW]PI^M\PMXW_MZ to direct men and women into combat, knowing some will not come back, some will be maimed for life, that’s a heavy burden and responsibility of leadership. You cannot allow it to paralyze you with indecision, but it has to be tempered with a sense of right and wrong IVL_PI\¼[LWIJTMQM\VIU?M¼LVM^MZJMMVQVI_IZTQSM\PI\ Before it was a win or lose, or in Korea it was an armistice, a draw, and you just divided the country up. That’s what the Vietnam peace accord [after the end of French KWTWVQITZ]TMQV! E_I[UWLMTMLWV?MTTQ\LQLV¼\ work because no country, no culture is the same. There are similarities, but you cannot project similar situations on any other country or any other time. What do you see, 50 years later, as the legacy of the Vietnam War? QM\VIU?IZ¼[KWV[MY]MVKM[_MZM immense for this country. There was not an institution or an aspect of our society that was not touched by Vietnam: culture, art, education, organized religion, every component of our military, journalism, politics, respect NWZLQ[KQXTQVM1\[\QTTPI[ITQVOMZQVOMЄMK\ 4QSMIVaLMÅVQVOM^MV\QVIVI\QWV¼[PQ[\WZaaW]TMIZV TM[[WV[NZWUQ\IVL\PMZMQ[I[QOVQÅKIV\OMWXWTQ\QKITTM[son here. Never get a nation committed to a war in a part of the world that you don’t understand, that you do not have a historic relationship with, that is foreign culturally in every way and that militarily you cannot win. V
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS (2)
guys in front hit trip wires in the water that denoted large mines positioned over the trees. Shrapnel sprayed down, and I think W]ZÅZ[\\PZMMO]a[_MZMSQTTML?MPILITW\ of guys hit and in bad shape. I was ahead of Tom and took a blast in my chest. I’ve still got shrapnel in my chest. The blast really stunned me. The concussion was astounding. It blew everybody down. I was just pumping blood out. Tom got hit in his arms and shoulder, but he crawled to me. I was disoriented to the point where I couldn’t really help myself to put a compact or anything on my chest. Tom was able to get—I don’t know where he got it—a cloth or something and compress it, and he stopped the bleeding in my chest.
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March 25 The Who performs in the United States for the ÅZ[\\QUM
MARCH-APRIL March 17 A San Francisco counterculture band, with lead guitarist and vocalist Jerry /IZKQIZMTMI[M[Q\[ÅZ[\ITJ]U Grateful Dead7\PMZITJ]U[IVL concerts spawned a passionate NWTTW_QVOWN¹LMILPMIL[º
March 28 NBC broadcasts A Man Called Ironside, a TV movie starring Raymond Burr of Perry Mason fame as Robert T. Ironside, who solves crimes from his wheelchair after a bullet ended his career as a detective. The series premiered Sept. 14, 1967. 20
VIETNAM
1967
April 45IZ\QV4]\PMZ3QVO2ZLMTQ^MZ[WVMWN his strongest, most controversial statements against the Vietnam War in a speech at Riverside +P]ZKPQV6M_AWZS+Q\a¹
April 10 )\\PM!\PIVV]IT Academy Awards )5IVNWZ All Seasons wins best picture, IVL8I]T;KWÅMTL_PWXTIa[;QZ QZOQVQI?WWTN?
March 7 South Korean troops start Operation Oh Kak Kyo, their largest operation to date against the North Vietnamese Army, in Phu Yen province on South Vietnam’s central coast. Over the next 42 days, the 9th and +IXQ\ITLQ^Q[QWV[QVÆQK\MLPMI^aTW[[M[ WV\PM6>)_PQKP[]ЄMZML LMIL _PQTM3WZMIV[_MZMSQTTML March 18 Master Sgt. Barbara J. ,]TQV[Sa\PMÅZ[\NMUITM5IZQVMQV Vietnam, arrives in Saigon. She was assigned to the combat operations KMV\MZWN=;5QTQ\IZa)[[Q[\IVKM Command, Vietnam. March 26 Gen. William C. WestmoreTIVLKWUUIVLMZWN=;KWUJI\ NWZKM[WZLMZ[\PM5IZQVM[\WKWVstruct and man a 47-mile obstacle [a[\MU[W]\PWN\PM,MUQTQ\IZQbML BWVM\WXZM^MV\6>)QVÅT\ZI\QWVQV\W ;W]\P>QM\VIU7ЅKQITTaVIUML Project Dye Marker, it was popularly KITTML¹5K6IUIZI¼[?ITTºIN\MZ ,MNMV[M;MKZM\IZa:WJMZ\5K6IUIZI
March 12 Rosemary’s Baby is published. Ira Levin’s novel, about a young woman who gives birth to the devil’s son, became a horror-story classic.
April 24 Led by future Hall of Famers Wilt Chamberlain, Billy Cunningham, Hal Greer and Chet Walker, members of what some call the greatest NBA team, the Philadelphia 76ers win the NBA championship, beating the San Francisco Warriors 125-122 QV/IUM WN\PMÅVIT[
April 28 )N\MZJMQVOLZIN\ML world heavyweight champion 5]PIUUIL)TQZMN][M[\W\ISM the induction oath at an armed NWZKM[KMV\MZQV0W][\WVPQ[ home then, and in June is KWV^QK\MLWN^QWTI\QVOLZIN\ laws. The Supreme Court over\]ZVML\PMKWV^QK\QWVQV!
April 10QM\VIU¼[VWZ\PMZVUW[\XZW^QVKM[I\+P]4IQ
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Handle with care Source of stability A bipod stabilized the gun when firing and could be folded for travel.
Unlike the American M60 machine gun, the Soviet gun lacked a quick-change barrel, requiring measured bursts to avoid overheating—no problem for the Viet Cong, for whom economic use of ammunition was a necessity.
Shoulder friendly The gun’s butt included a recoil buffer and a cleaning rod.
Drum loaded Cartridges were fed into the gun from a 100-round belt in the ammo drum. The rounds were the same as those used for the AK-47, a big benefit.
THE NVA’S SOVIET LIGHT MACHINE GUN *a+IZT7;KP][\MZ
22
VIETNAM
Rounds: `! mm rimless Weight: XW]VL[# pounds with full ammo load Overall length: QVKPM[ Barrel length: inches :I\MWNÅZM"̆ ZW]VL[XMZ minute in combat Muzzle velocity: UM\MZ[ NMM\XMZ[MKWVL Maximum range: UM\MZ[ aIZL[ -ЄMK\Q^MZIVOM" ̆UM\MZ[ ̆aIZL[ GREGORY PROCH
A popular automatic weapon with North Vietnamese infantry squads, the Ruchnoy Pulemyot Degtyaryov, or Degtyaryov light machine gun, was designed in the late 1940s Ja>I[QTa,MO\aIZaW^\WZMXTIKM\PM,85TQOP\UIKPQVMO]VQV;W^QM\ZQÆMXTI\WWV[ QM\VIUZMKMQ^ML\PW][IVL[WN\PMÅVIT;W^QM\XZWL]K\QWV^IZQIV\NZWU! \W! ;\IZ\QVOQV! +PQVIXZWL]KMLQ\[W_VTQKMV[M̆J]QT\^MZ[QWVWN\PMNW]Z\PXZWL]K\QWV UWLMTLM[QOVI\ML\PMQM\VIUM[M)ZUaNW]VL\PMTQOP\ZWJ][\:8,MI[a\W][MIVLUIQV\IQV1\ÅZML \PM[IUMZW]VLI[\PM]JQY]Q\W][)3̆ [QUXTQNaQVO[UITT]VQ\TWOQ[\QK[-^MZa6>)QVNIV̆ \Za[Y]ILPILWVM )\ZWWX[LQLV¼\KWV[QLMZ\PW[MQ[[]M[ \WJM[MZQW][[PWZ\KWUQVO[.QZMLQ[KQXTQVM[WT^ML\PMÅZ[\\_WXZWJTMU[IVLJMKI][MNM_ ÅZMÅOP\[_MZMKWVL]K\MLJMaWVL UM\MZ[aIZL[>QM\VIU¼[\IK\QKITMV^QZWVUMV\ ZMVLMZML\PM\PQZLXZWJTMUUWW\ QM\VIUM[M)ZUa_MTTQV\W\PM! [ IT\PW]OPQ\_I[[TW_Ta[]XMZKMLMLJaIVW\PMZ;W^QM\̆UILMUIKPQVMO]V\PM Ruchnoy 8]TMUaW\3ITI[PVQSW^IWZ:83IN\MZ! V
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Relief force To assist besieged Marines at Khe Sanh, Huey helicopters bring in soldiers of the 1st Cavalry Division on April 5, 1968, during Operation Pegasus.
24
VIETNAM
Assault Company Commander A retired four-star general recounts his experiences as a captain leading a company of 7th Cavalry troops at the height of the war
AP PHOTO/DANG VAN PHUOC
*a*IZZa:5K+IЄZMa
APRIL 2017
25
Commander McCaffrey Capt. Barry McCaffrey took charge of B Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry, in November 1968.
26
VIETNAM
PHOTO CREDIT COURTESY BARRY MCCAFFREY
Cavalry troops remember the utter exhaustion and backbreaking physical misery of a combat unit, a tough and brutish way to exist.
I
PIL\PMPWVWZ\WKWUUIVL*+WUXIVaVL*I\\ITQWV \P+I^ITZa:MOQUMV\L]ZQVO\PMQV\MV[MIVL JTWWLaÅOP\QVOWN>QM\VIUL]ZQVO! ̆ !?PMV1IZZQ^MLQV̆KW]V\Za^M\MZIV[WN\PMJI\\ITQWVPIL ITZMILa[]Z^Q^ML\PM\MZZQJTM! ̆ JI\\TM[QV;W]\P>QM\VIU¼[VWZ\PMZVUW[\XZW^QVKM[QM\VIUM[M)ZUa\ZWWX[IVLIUI[[Q^MMVMUaIZ\QTTMZaJWUJIZLUMV\NWZ LIa[
The years 1968 and 1969 were the turning point years of the war. Beginning with the Communists’ 1968 )WЄMV[Q^MWN! !IJW]\ =;\ZWWX[_MZM MVOIOMLQVIVQV\MV[MIQZ̆TIVL̆[MIKIUXIQOVIOIQV[\\PM LM\MZUQVMLIVL_MTT̆IZUMLUIQVJI\\TMNWZKMLQ^Q[QWV[ WN\PM6>)IVL\PMQZ[W]\PMZV>QM\+WVOO]MZZQTTI]VQ\[ 7]Z\ZWWX[XIQLIPMI^aXZQKM,]ZQVO\PQ[TWVO[\Z]OOTM \PM[\+I^ITZa,Q^Q[QWV[]ЄMZML\PMPQOPM[\KI[]IT\QM[ WNIVa)ZUaLQ^Q[QWV¸ SQTTMLIVL !_W]VLML *a! W]ZUQTQ\IZaIVLXWTQ\QKITTMILMZ[PILTW[\ \PMQZ_Ia
KWTLZIQVWN\PMUW]V\IQV[QV1+WZX[\PMUQTQ\IZaLM[̆ QOVI\QWVNWZ\PMVWZ\PMZVZMOQWVWN;W]\P>QM\VIU ,]ZQVO7XMZI\QWV2MJ;\]IZ\VWZ\PWN0]MQVMIZTa ! *+WUXIVa_I[I\+IUX-^IV[JMNWZM)QZ.WZKM +̆IQZKZIN\ÆM_Q\P]VLZML[WNUQTM[[W]\P\W111 +WZX[ \PM ZMOQWV IZW]VL ;IQOWV QV IV MUMZOMVKa LMXTWaUMV\\WKWVNZWV\IVIV\QKQXI\MLI[[I]T\L]ZQVO \PM! !)IVL \PIVL!\P>+
AP PHOTO/DANG TO VAN PHUOC
Awaiting their next move A group from the 1st Cavalry Division gets some down time after landing about three miles from Khe Sanh in April 1968.
) A8 P: R 1I 4 L 2 0 1 7
27
1st Sgt. Emerson Trainer The Korean War veteran was a “superb combat leader,” McCaffrey says. 28
VIETNAM
PHOTO CREDIT
)WЄMV[Q^MQVW]ZJZQOILM¼[IZMI_I[KPIVVMTMLLW_V\PM ¹;MZOM[2]VOTM0QOP_IaºI[WXPQ[\QKI\MLPQOP̆[XMML[a[\MUWNKWZL]ZWaTWOZWIL[_Q\PW^MZ̆ PMIL_W^MV̆JIUJWWKIUW]ÆIOMVM\\QVO,MMXJ]VSMZ[TQVML\PMVM\_WZSWN\ZIQT[\WXZW^QLM KW^MZNZWU\PM=;)QZ.WZKM¼[7XMZI\QWV)ZK4QOP\*̆ JWUJMZ[\ZQSM[0]OM6>)JI[MIZMI[ LMXW\[IVL]VLMZOZW]VLPW[XQ\IT[_MZM[XZMILW]\QV\PMLMV[MR]VOTM6>)IV\Q̆IQZKZIN\ _MIXWV[XZW^QLMLXZW\MK\QWVNWZ\PMVQOP\UW^MUMV\WNMVMUaKWUJI\]VQ\[)[WTLQMZ[ PILKTMIVI]\WUI\QK_MIXWV[ZWKSM\̆XZWXMTTMLOZMVILM[UWZ\IZ[NZM[PPIQZK]\[IVL [PIZX̆TWWSQVO]VQNWZU[QM\VIU?IZIVL_MZM_W]VLMLQVKT]LQVO [M^MZMTaUIQUML7\PMZ[JWZM\PMQV^Q[QJTM_W]VL[WN KWUJI\)I[ _MWXMZI\MLITWVMWV\PMJI\\TMÅMTLUW[\WN\PM\QUM8MZ̆ PIX[̆XT][[WTLQMZ[_MZMQVIVMV^QZWVUMV\WNKWV[\IV\ LIVOMZLIaIN\MZLIa
PHOTO HELICOPTER: CREDIT GETTY IMAGES; OTHERS, COURTESY BARRY MCCAFFREY
Dropping in Troopers from the 1st Cavalry Division leave a Huey to begin a reconnaissance mission in northern South Vietnam during April 1967.
Staff Sgt. Edd Holtz Holtz, next to a dead NVA body, was “the bravest combat soldier in our company,” McCaffrey says. APRIL 2017
29
labor and mind-numbing boredom—punctuated by sheer mayhem and the battle roar of intense violence. But we never abused enemy prisoners or Vietnamese civilians. We were grateful for the support of our 1st Cavalry attack helicopters and the Air Force. Air power gave us a huge decisive edge. However, we knew that the 1st Cavalry’s 105 mm artillery was our ultimate hammer. We could not be overrun by any enemy unit of any strength if 105 mm artillery could mass and respond immediately. The 1st Cav artillery never failed us...ever. At the company level our infantry soldiers were nearly 100 percent draftees, and this was in a period when only 25 percent of the total U.S. armed forces in Vietnam were draftees. During most of the time I commanded B Company, 1st Sgt. Emerson Trainer and I were the only two Regular Army soldiers over 25 years old. Trainer was a superb combat leader and Korean War veteran. Both of us were on our third combat tour and would be wounded for the third time while commanding B Company. Trainer had been severely wounded in Korea while serving as an infantry private in the same B Company, 2nd Battalion, \P+I^ITZa1V\PMÅMTLPMKIZZQMLI\_W̆PMILMLI`IVL a .45-caliber pistol. At night when there was heavy rain, he slept in a green rubber “body bag” to the delight of our soldiers. Trainer was a leader of absolute competence who was trusted and loved by our soldiers. The company leaders were normally draftee lieutenIV\[LZIN\MLKWTTMOM[\]LMV\[MTQOQJTMNWZIVWЅKMZKWUmission), who served a three-year obligation, and “instant NCOs” (enlisted soldiers rapidly promoted as combat TW[[M[LMKQUI\ML\PMZIVS[WNVWVKWUUQ[[QWVMLWЅKMZ[ who served two years. The NCOs were selected by a Dar_QVQIVXZWKM[[\PI\IL^IVKML\PW[M_PWKW]TLTMILÅOP\ and keep the trust of their soldiers. The NCOs promoted QV\PMÅMTL_MZM[QUXTaUIOVQÅKMV\
Our air assault company was a small, insular and violent band of brothers. We lived outdoors, together, PW]Z[ILIaNWZM^MZ
PHOTO CREDIT
Khe Sanh during Operation Pegasus.
they trusted you and the orders made sense. Most were teenagers or in their early 20s, much younger than comJI\[WTLQMZ[WNMIZTQMZ_IZ[QM\VIU_I[\WUIQV\IQVI[\]LMV\M`MUX\QWVWZÅVL a friendly doctor who would document a real or imagined physical limitation. The young men who showed up for infantry combat in Vietnam did so for a grab bag of reasons. Personal pride. A dad or uncle who said, “Do your duty.” A feeling of curiosity and risk-taking built into the DNA of aggressive aW]VOUMV7Z[QUXTaJILT]KSINIUQTa_Q\PVWQVÆ]MVKM and a draft board that ruled your college career had too many bad grades and too much partying. Even so, most our B Company combat troopers could have volunteered in advance of the draft, which would have enabled them to join some other branch of the military and not face the perilous life of an infantry soldier QV>QM\VIU*]\\PMaKPW[M\WÅOP\
30
V V II E ET TN NA AM M
TOP: PAUL STEPHANUS; BOTTOM: COURTESY BARRY MCCAFFREY; OPPOSITE: AP PHOTO/DANG VAN PHUOC
then to their real family in an infantry squad. When the sun came up, the reality of their new existence was stunning. These soldiers were now potentially UQV]\M[NZWUJMQVOSQTTMLWZUIQUML))\ZWWX[QV\W their bunkers. The enemy would then be destroyed with PIVLOZMVILM[XQ[\WT[IVL+ XTI[\QKM`XTW[Q^MKPIZOM[ at close range. Kill or be killed. *a! VWWVMQV\PM>QM\VIUKWUJI\]VQ\[\PW]OP\ _M_MZMÅOP\QVO\W_QVI_IZ?M_MZMÅOP\QVONWZMIKP W\PMZ?M_MZMÅOP\QVO\W[\IaITQ^M
Enemy losses )PMILWN][Q[I[Q[\MZKWUA 1st Cavalry Division patrol XIVaQVIÅZMÅOP\IVL\MZZQpasses dead NVA soldiers ble trouble. The sharp crackle WN I]\WUI\QK _MIXWV[ ÅZM during Operation Jeb Stuart. IPMIL)ZWKSM\̆XZWXMTTMLOZMVILM[QM\VIU We are proud we carried out our duty as the country orLMZML][\WLW?M_IV\)UMZQKI¼[N]\]ZMXWTQ\QKITTMILMZ[ to know the reality of the 2.5 million of us who served in >QM\VIU?M_IV\\PMU\WVM^MZKWUUQ\W]ZOZIVLKPQTdren to combat without pledging to completely achieve a vital national security purpose. Finally, we want our national leaders to order us into battle only if they have OIQVML\PM[]XXWZ\WN\PM)UMZQKIVXMWXTMQM\VIUI[IVIL^Q[MZ\W\PM >QM\VIUM[M)QZJWZVM,Q^Q[QWV! ̆ IVLKWUUIVLMZWNIKWUXIVaQV\PM[\+I^ITZa,Q^Q[QWV)QZUWJQTM! ̆ !#IVLQV1ZIYI[KWUUIVLMZWN\PM \P 1VNIV\Za,Q^Q[QWV5MKPIVQbMLL]ZQVO7XMZI\QWV,M[ert Storm, 1991. He received three Purple Hearts, was \_QKMI_IZLML\PM)ZUa,Q[\QVO]Q[PML;MZ^QKM+ZW[[ IVL\_QKMZMKMQ^ML\PM;QT^MZ;\IZ¸ITTQV>QM\VIU
There were no parades_PMV_MKIUMPWUM7^MZ\PM aMIZ[[QVKM>QM\VIU\PM[WTLQMZ[WN*+WUXIVaPI^M [\IaML\WOM\PMZQM\VIU >M\MZIV[5MUWZQITQV?I[PQVO\WV\WZMUMUJMZ\PW[M_M TW[\¸IVLITT\PW[M_PW[]ЄMZML5W[\QUXWZ\IV\_M[\QTT remember how we looked out for Decorated officer each other. Sometimes in the dim reGen. Creighton Abrams cesses of my memories, I fade back in time and remember leading a col- presents McCaffrey with umn of heavily armed and camou- his first Distinguished ÆIOML[WTLQMZ[UW^QVO\WKWV\IK\ Service Cross in 1967.
APRIL 2017
31
Taking aim at the enemy A unit from the 5th Marines fires at North Vietnamese troops in northern South Vietnam during 1966. One Marine is using an M79 grenade launcher. 32
VIETNAM
Rainy Sky, Bloody Ground
T
U.S. Marines battle well-trained and equipped NVA forces at the Battle of Cam Khe By Arnold Blumberg
1V\PM9]M;WV>ITTMaKIUXIQOVWЅKQITTa7XMZI\QWV +WTWZILW+WT+PIZTM[.?QLLMKSM¼[ \P5IZQVM:MOQUMV\[\5IZQVM,Q^Q[QWVIVL;W]\P>QM\VIUM[M\ZWWX[ NZWU\PMVL,Q^Q[QWV)ZUaWN\PM:MX]JTQKWN>QM\VIU [M\W]\\WMTQUQVI\M\PM6>)VL,Q^Q[QWV
AP PHOTO
he Marine Corps launched multiple search-and-destroy missions on Aug. 6, 1966, in the Que Son Valley, a populous, rice-rich area that was one of the key locations in the ÅOP\NWZKWV\ZWTWN;W]\P>QM\VIU¼[VWZ\PMZVUW[\XZW^QVKM[QM\VIUM[M)ZUa¼[VL,Q^Q[QWVIÅZ[\̆ ZI\MKWUJI\NWZUI\QWVIT[WSVW_VI[\PM \P,Q^Q[QWV\I[SML_Q\PUIQV\IQVQVOKWV\ZWTW^MZ\PQ[^Q\IT strategic area.
APRIL 2017
33
ENLARGED AREA
SOUTH CHINA SEA
Quang Nam Province
SOUTH VIETNAM
Thang Binh
1
Que Son
534
Thon Hai Quang Tin Province Cam Khe Hiep Duc
Dai Dong
Pineapple Forest
Tam Ky
Ky Phu
8 miles south of the valley. Both battalions were to employ the same tactics: search an area, engage the enemy if possible, and if not, move on to another objective. ,]ZQVO\PMÅZ[\\PZMMLIa[WN7XMZI\QWV+WTWZILW\PM 5th Marines encountered little resistance. By Aug. 10, Moore’s 2nd Battalion, after meeting no sizable enemy force, was airlifted to Tam Ky on the coast of the South China Sea, about 15 miles northwest of Chu Lai. +WЄUIV¼[ ̆UIV[\*I\\ITQWVWXMZI\QVOMI[\WN\PM town of Que Son and west of coastal Route 1, also had little success tracking down the enemy after running missions throughout the area. The days were spent walking LQZ\\ZIQT[JWZLMZMLJa\ZMMTQVM[IVLMUX\aZQKMÅMTL[ The villages were ominously deserted; the few civilians in the area were hiding in caves. On the morning of Aug. +WЄUIVKWV[WTQLI\MLPQ[KWUUIVLVMIZ,IQ,WVO village, south of the Nha Ngu River and 12 miles southeast of Que Son. His objective that day was the large hamlet of Thon Hai on the river’s south bank 5 miles east of Dai Dong.
Ready to go Groups from the 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines, here and at right, hop into H-34D helicopters during Operation Colorado in August 1966.
VIETNAM
)\ "IU[\*I\\ITQWV¼[)*IVL+KWUXIVQM[ moved out in column. Immediately they encountered opXW[Q\QWV)\ÅZ[\\PMMVMUaPQ\\PMU_Q\PWVTaTWVO· ZIVOMZQÆMÅZM)TW[[M[+WЄUIV gathered his company commanders and instructed them \WKPIVOM\IK\QK[0M_IV\ML\PM5IZQVM[\WÅZMWVTaQN they saw enemy troops or suspected they were in a certain area. Around that time regimental commander Widdecke \WWSIPMTQKWX\MZ\W3a8P]IVLUM\JZQMÆa_Q\P+WЄUIV He directed him to continue the advance to the village of
NATIONAL ARCHIVES (2); MAP: PAUL FISHER
Chu Lai
lieutenant colonel pieced together the XQK\]ZMWV\PMJI\\TMÅMTL)[VQXMZÅZMXM\MZMLW]\QV\PM through a rice paddy that their initial response was sporadic heavy rain. in August 1966. and uncoordinated. But he did know that Shortly after 3 p.m., the battalion the deluge of rain hampered his Marine reached Cam Khe, 1,000 yards northeast marksmen and prevented U.S. air power of Ky Phu. As A Company pushed through from intervening on their behalf. the outskirts of the small hamlet the Ma+WЄUIVZMITQbML\PI\\PMJI\\TMÅMTL_I[U]KP\WW rines spotted 30 NVA soldiers running in front of them from left to right across a rice paddy. In seconds, the only TIZOMNWZPQU\WMЄMK\Q^MTaKWV\ZWTM^MV\[0MTMN\PQ[R][QOVQÅKIV\JI\\TM\PM)UMZQKIV[XIZ\QKQXI\MLQVL]ZQVO VQWZWЅKMZ[\WKWVL]K\\PMÅOP\[QV\PMQZ[MK\WZ[IVL dedicated his time to forming a secure perimeter and Operation Colorado began. )Y]QKSJ]Z[\WNÅZMJa\PM5IZQVM[K]\LW_V\PM coordinating the actions of the three companies. =VLMZIK]Z\IQVWNÅZM.]ZTMQOPWZLMZML)+WUXIVa¼[ MVMUaNWZKMQV\PMWXMVÅMTL)[WTLQMZ[ enveloped in blinding rainfall and loud peals of thunder, 1st Platoon, on the left, and 2nd Platoon, on the right, to had not seen or heard the Marines until it was too late. crawl toward an enemy-held hedgerow. He also called for Reacting to the sudden death of their comrades, other artillery blasts on the NVA position. However, because of 6WZ\P>QM\VIUM[MZQÆMUMV[]XXWZ\MLJaIPMI^aUI- all the thunder and lightning in the area, the artillery KPQVMO]VX]UXMLW]\QV\MV[MÅZMNZWUIPQLLMVPMLOM- spotters in A Company couldn’t tell where the rounds row. The Marines hit the mud, and in seconds all three of _MZMTIVLQVO.]ZTMQOPNMIZN]T\PI\\PM)UMZQKIV̆ÅZML the battalion’s companies became heavily engaged in shells would strike his men, canceled the bombardment UQV]\M[IN\MZQ\[\IZ\ML)\ZWWX[_MZMPWXXQVO or thought to be dead. Watching his Marines being cut from spot to spot seeking better shooting positions and down one after another, a frantic Capt. Jim Furleigh, the exposing themselves as a result. QM\VIUM[MIV[_MZML\PMZQÆMÅZM_Q\P leader of A Company, shouted for some men to move the wounded farther back and told the rest to stay low and 60-mm mortar rounds lobbed at the Marines. However, the sodden earth absorbed the shells so much that only TIaLW_VÅZMWV\PMMVMUa +WЄUIVVW\NIZJMPQVL\PM)UMZQKIVNZWV\TQVM[M\]X a little shrapnel made it into the air. The mortar was a makeshift battalion command post to receive reports soon taken out by a rocket launched from an M72 light on the rapidly developing situation. Slowly, as he received IV\Q̆\IVS _MIXWV WZ 4)? ÅZML Ja I UMUJMZ WN information from couriers and radio transmissions, the Furleigh’s company.
NATIONAL ARCHIVES (3)
Thon Hai, 3 miles northeast of Ky Phu. Widdecke then departed in the chopper.
On patrol A 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines, team moves across a rice paddy as Operation Colorado starts.
On fire Marines in Operation Colorado burn huts in a village. APRIL 2017
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Three North Vietnamese tried to escape across the rice paddy, but “deadeye” Walter McDonald and Christoper Cushman shot them down. The remaining North Vietnamese fought it out but were quickly overwhelmed. At that pointQV\PMÅOP\\PM[SaKTMIZMLMVW]OP\W ITTW_\_WPMTQKWX\MZO]V[PQX[\WbMZWQVWV\PMMVMUa PMLOMZW_)[6>)[WTLQMZ[\WWSKW^MZNZWU\PMJTIbQVO 5 UIKPQVMO]V[WN\PM=0̆1ZWY]WQ[KPWXXMZ[)+WŬ XIVaKTMIZML\PMÅMTLWNQ\[_W]VLMLIVLLMIL)\ZWWX[ [\IZ\ML\WMLOM\W_IZL)+WUXIVa¼[TMN\QV\MVLQVO\WW]\̆ ÆIVS\PMKWUXIVaIVLW^MZZ]V\PMJI\\ITQWVKWUUIVL XW[\.]ZTMQOP[XW\\ML\PM\PZMI\IVLWZLMZML;O\)TJMZ\ 2-TTQ[\W\ISMPQ[ZL8TI\WWV\WO]IZL[\8TI\WWV¼[TMN\ -TTQ[IVLPQ[UMVLI[PML\W\PMVWZ\PMVLWN\PMPMLOM̆ ZW_IVLQUUMLQI\MTaZIVQV\W6WZ\P>QM\VIUM[MZIKQVO \W\PMQZZQOP\aIZL[QVNZWV\WN\PMU)[\PMMVMUa \ZWWX[[XZQV\MLI\WXIVLITWVOILQSM\PM5IZQVM[ÅZML \PMQZ5 [SQTTQVOLWbMV[ )UĬ KPQVMO]V\PI\WXMVML]XWV-TTQ[¼ZQOP\NZWV\8NK/MWZOM .]LOM_MV\W]\\WÅVL\PMWЄMVLQVO_MIXWVIVL_I[ [\]VVML\W[MMÅ^MJIVIVI\ZMM[_ITSQVOI_IaNZWUPQ[ TWKI\QWV0MSQTTMLNW]ZWN\PMKW[\]UML6WZ\P>QM\VIŬ M[M_Q\PR][\NW]ZZW]VL[\W\IT
?PQTM.]LOM_I[WЄWVPQ[IL^MV\]ZM-TTQ[IVL\PM W\PMZUMVWNZL8TI\WWVKWV\QV]ML\PMQZÅOP\SVWKSQVO W]\\_WUWZMUIKPQVMO]V[_Q\P4)?ZW]VL[ÅZMLJa 4IVKM+XT:WJMZ\/WWLVMZ*]\\PM)+WUXIVaXTI\WWV _I[W]\V]UJMZML ̆\W̆IVLQ\[IUU]VQ\QWV_I[Z]V̆ VQVOTW_-TTQ[[MV\IZ]VVMZ\W*+WUXIVaNWZPMTX 2][\IN\MZ\PMJI\\TMJMOIV*+WUXIVaKWUUIVLMLJa +IX\2WPV;]TTQ^IVPILKPI[MLIOZW]XWN 6>)\ZWWX[ J]\[WWVXIZ\WNPQ[[\8TI\WWV_I[XQVVMLLW_VJaUĬ KPQVMO]VÅZM?PMV\PMKIX\IQVZMKMQ^ML\PM[]UUWV[ NWZPMTXNZWU)+WUXIVaPQ[KWUUIVL_I[ITZMILa [\ZM\KPML\PQV¸[\8TI\WWV_I\KPQVOPQ[TMN\ÆIVSZL 8TI\WWVO]IZLQVOPQ[ZMIZIVLVL8TI\WWV\PMWVTa]VQ\ VW\MVOIOML-^MV[W;]TTQ^IV[MV\\_W[Y]IL[NZWUVL 8TI\WWV\WIV[_MZ)+WUXIVa¼[XTMINWZIQL
TIM PAGE/CORBIS VIA GETTY IMAGES
Looking ahead Marines sweep through a valley in Operation Colorado.
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AP PHOTO
On the lookout Marines watch for North Vietnamese who hit them during a patrol in August 1966. held hedgerow, but the men had to hit the ground just [PWZ\WNQ\I[PMI^aMVMUaÅZMMZ]X\MLNZWUI\ZMVKP behind the hedge. )\\PI\UWUMV\,IZTQVOZMKMQ^ML_WZLNZWU\PMJI\\ITQWV\PI\++WUXIVa_I[VMMLML\W\ISM\PMXZM[[]ZMWЄ )+WUXIVaJMKI][M*+WUXIVa_I[XQVVMLLW_VIVL KW]TLV¼\PMTX)N\MZIXMZ[WVITZMKWVVIQ[[IVKMWN\PM\MZZIQV\PI\_W]TLJM][MLNWZPQ[IL^IVKMPM[MV\PQ[VL 8TI\WWV\W\ISM]XIXW[Q\QWVITWVO\PMKI][M_IaW^MZ\PM ZQKMXILLa ,IZTQVO[M\]X\_WUIKPQVMO]V[JM\_MMVPQ[VLIVL ZLXTI\WWV[0Q[JI\\TMTQVM¸_Q\PVL8TI\WWVWV\PM TMN\ZL8TI\WWVWV\PMZQOP\IVL[\8TI\WWVQVZM[MZ^M¸ _I[aIZL[TWVOJZQ[\TQVO_Q\PO]V[\WÅZMWV the NVA hedgerow. ,IZTQVO\PMVLQZMK\ML\PM[\8TI\WWVTMILMZ[\4\ )Z\P]Z*TILM[\WI\\IKS\PMPMLOMZW_*TILM[NWZUMLPQ[ TQVM_Q\P[\;Y]ILWV\PMTMN\VLQV\PMKMV\MZIVLZL WV\PMZQOP\)*]\_PMVZL;Y]IL MV\MZMLI[UITTKTMIZQVOMVMUaÅZMSVWKSMLLW_VNW]Z WNQ\[[Q`UMUJMZ[SQTTQVO\PZMMWN\PMU *TILM[KITTML,IZTQVONWZZMQVNWZKMUMV\[)ÅZM[TW_Ta LMKZMI[MLI[)UMZQKIVJ]TTM\[IVLPIVLOZMVILM[[\Z]KS \PM\ZMVKPTQVM)NM_WN\PMMVMUaPW_M^MZ[\QTT[XI\W]\ AK-47 rounds. *TILM[XZMXIZML\W[MVLPQ[[\;Y]IL\W_IZL\PM PMLOMZW_J]\JMNWZM\PM]VQ\TMIXMLNWZ_IZLPM_IV\ML \WOM\WVMWN\PMMVMUa[VQXMZ[[\QTTÅZQVONZWU\PM\ZMVKP 1VIZMKSTM[[[KPMUM[\;Y]ILTMILMZ+XT+PZQ[\WXPMZ +][PUIV[\MXXMLQV\W\PMWXMVTQ\MZITTaQV^Q\QVO\PM MVMUa\W[PWW\PQU*MPQVL+][PUIV+XT?IT\MZ5K,WVITLPILPQ[ZQÆMI\\PMZMILa?PMV\PM[VQXMZOW\]X
\W[PWW\+][PUIV\PM)UMZQKIVPQ\\PMLMKSIVL5K,WVITLSQTTML\PM6>)[PWW\MZ)NM_UQV]\M[TI\MZ5K,WVITL[PW_MLWЄIKTI[[QKJI[MJITTXTIaMZ¼[IZU_PMV he tossed a grenade onto a North Vietnamese who was IJW]\\WSQTTI_W]VLML5IZQVM )[\PMUWUMV\]U[PQN\ML\W\PM)UMZQKIV[\PZMM5IZQVMMVOQVMMZ[¸8NK?QTTQIU2Wa4IVKM+XT?QTTQIU 5QTTMZIVL4IVKM+XT+TQЄWZL*]\\[¸MV\MZML\PMTMN\MVL WN\PM\ZMVKPIVLJMOIV\WKTMIZQ\)\\PM[IUM\QUM *TILM[[Y]MMbML\PMPMLOMZW_NZWU\PMTMN\IVL,IZTQVO¼[ W\PMZ\_WXTI\WWV[IL^IVKMLWV\PMZQOP\)IJIVLWVML\PMQZXW[\[IVLKT][\MZMLJMPQVLIPIa[\IKSVM`\\W\PM\ZMVKP) I[\PMa_MV\QM\VIUM[M\ZQML\WM[KIXM IKZW[[\PMMUX\aZQKMXILLaJ]\¹LMIL̆MaMº5K,WVITL and Cushman shot them down. The remaining North VietVIUM[MKTW[MLZIVS[IVLNW]OP\Q\W]\J]\_MZMY]QKSTa overwhelmed. )N\MZ\PMOZ]MTQVOKWV\M[\*TILM[ZILQWML,IZTQVO" ¹?M¼^M\ISMV\PMWJRMK\Q^M º)[\PMTI[\WXXW[Q\QWVQV\PM hedgerow was being eliminated, the rainstorm ended, ITTW_QVOIÆQOP\WNRM\[\WJZMIS]X\PMMVMUaI\\IKSWV *+WUXIVa On the morningWN)]O\PM5IZQVM[\ITTQML]X\PM KW[\WN\PMJI\\TM\PMaPILR][\NW]OP\
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In custody Marines with an M14 and pistol stand over a Viet Cong captured during Operation Colorado.
Taking to the water Troops from the 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, advance during Operation Colorado. In the bush After Operation Colorado, the 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, participate in Operation Junction II, 8 miles south of Da Nang, in December 1967.
PHOTO CREDITFROM UPPER LEFT: U.S. MARINE CORPS; AP PHOTO(2); U.S. MARINE CORPS CLOCKWISE
After the battle Viet Cong prisoners are being monitored on Aug. 12, 1966, by members of the 1st Battalion, 5th Marines.
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side, more than 100 North Vietnamese had been killed, including a company commander. The Americans discovered their antagonists had been two battalions of the NVA 3rd Regiment. The 1st Battalion continued to pa\ZWT\PMJI\\TMÅMTLJ]\WVTaUM\WKKI[QWVIT[VQXMZÅZM Later that day the battalion got a surprise visit from Gen. Wallace M. Greene Jr., commandant of the Marine Corps, and Lt. Gen. Lewis W. Walt, who commanded all Marine forces in South Vietnam. They had been in the area on an inspection tour. Greene asked a dirty, thoroughly exhausted Darling about the Aug. 10 action, and the young C Company lieutenant replied, “Well, General, _MOW\QV\WIÅOP\_Q\P\PMMVMUaº
lets. The battalion came across a large rice cache, but MVKW]V\MZMLWVTaÆMM\QVOWXXW[Q\QWVNZWUTWKIT>QM\ Cong guerrillas. Before completing their mission there, the Marines moved the civilian population to more secure areas. By Aug. 18, all units of the 5th Marines had returned to Chu Lai. 7XMZI\QWV+WTWZILWWЅKQITTaMVLML)]OIVLPIL succeeded in driving out the NVA 2nd Division from the Que Son Valley, at least temporarily. But it failed in its other objective: to bring the entire Hiep Duc-Que Son zone under American and South Vietnamese control. Because of an increasing commitment of Marine forces to engagements near the Demilitarized Zone separating North and South Vietnam, the 1st Marine Division’s plans to pacify the Colorado area were pre-empted. It was not until April 1967 that the Marines once more entered the region in force. V
Arnold Blumberg, an attorney in Baltimore, served in the Army Reserve, 1968-74, ending his term as a [\IЄ[MZOMIV\QVIUIQV\MVIVKMKWUXIVa0M_ZQ\M[ on military topics for history publications.
LIVEAUCTION.COM
5 "=;5IZQVM[¼*I\\TM:QÆM
ated controversy. The 1952 Pentagoncommissioned Hitchman Report, based on a study of the requirements for infantry ZQÆM[I\\PI\\QUM questioned the concept of the M14, de[QOVMLNWZÅZQVO distances of 500 yards. The report pointed out that the UW[\MЄMK\Q^MZIVOM NWZUWLMZVZQÆM[_I[ 300 yards and most kills were at 100 yards or less. The report also favored a smaller caliber bullet, with its lower recoil, improved dispersion control and greater hit probability, rather than higher recoil 7.62 mm rounds
\PI\\PM5 ÅZML )LLQ\QWVITTaZQÆMUMVMVOIOMLQVÅOP\[ requiring sustained ÅZMXW_MZVMMLML\W carry large amounts of ammunition, which was another argument for smaller, lighter rounds. Because Marine training emphasized individual marksmanship, however, the accuracy and hitting power of the robust M14 round was of great value and more important than the ZI\MWNÅZM In Vietnam the Marine Corps guidelines stated that a squad should contain three ZQÆMUMVIZUML_Q\P M14s that had select-
ÅZMKIXIJQTQ\aIJTM to switch between automatic and semiautomatic mode). Reconnaissance squads, which needed ILLQ\QWVITÅZMXW_MZ since they would be the ones most likely to encounter enemy ambushes, were entirely armed with M14s. Nonetheles, the heaviness of the M14 was a drawback. The tropical weather of Vietnam’s jungles UILMITQOP\MZZQÆM appealing to troops trying to lessen their load. And during Vietnam combat, Americans _MZMÅOP\QVO\PM enemy at closer distances than they did
in Western Europe or 3WZMIQM\VIU Although the M14 was phased out of regular service decades ago, various branches of the U.S. armed forces still use variants of the weapon, such as the Marine Corps M39 EMR [VQXMZZQÆM —Arnold Blumberg APRIL 2017
39
The Transformation of Don Luce A Vermont farm boy went to Vietnam as an aid worker and came home, in the eyes of the government, as one of the reasons the U.S. lost the war
A
By Ted Lieverman
longside members of the U.S. military, many aid workers, civilian government employees and contractors braved the risks of the Vietnam War and had their lives remade by the experience. One of those was Don Luce, who lived and worked in Vietnam from 1958 until his expulsion in 1971. 4]KM_I[ÅZ[\IKQ^QTQIVIQL_WZSMZ\PMVIRW]ZVITQ[\#ÅZ[\I[]XXWZ\MZWN\PM)UMZQKIV_IZ MЄWZ\\PMVIXIKQÅ[\IVL_IZWXXWVMV\1V! PMI[[Q[\MLIKWVOZM[[QWVITLMTMOI\QWV\PI\ investigated a South Vietnamese prison where captured Communist troops and others were kept in tiny cells, “tiger cages,” and often abused, even tortured. Luce’s sincerity and intimate SVW_TMLOMWN>QM\VIUM[MTQNM¸PMQ[[\QTTÆ]MV\QV>QM\VIUM[MIVW\WZQW][TaLQЅK]T\TIVO]IOM\W UI[\MZ¸UILMPQ[_ZQ\QVO[IVL[XMMKPM[IJW]\>QM\VIU[WMЄMK\Q^M\PI\\PMTI[\=;IUJI[[Idor to South Vietnam, Graham Martin, said Luce was one of the principal reasons the U.S. lost the war. Luce wound up spending much of his life focused on the people of Indochina.
The aid worker
Luce grew up on a 220-acre farm in East Calais, Vermont, a small village of some 200 people. He studied agriculture and received a master’s degree from Cornell University in 1958. After_IZL4]KMRWQVML1V\MZVI\QWVIT>WT]V\IZa;MZ^QKM[IVWVOW^MZVUMV\ITWZOIVQbI\QWV\PI\_I[ \PMUWLMTNWZ\PM8MIKM+WZX[1>;¼JQOOM[\XZWRMK\I\\PI\\QUM_I[QV;W]\P>QM\VIUQM\VIU .WZ\PMÅZ[\UWV\PPM[\]LQML>QM\VIUM[MTIVO]IOM_Q\PI ̆aMIZ̆WTLJWaU]KPWN\PMQVstruction transmitted by playing the Vietnamese dice game called Horse. By Christmas Eve, Luce was able to appear at the local church and give a simple speech, which he describes as, ¹0MTTWUaVIUMQ[,WV1IUÅVM1IUOTIL\WJMQV>QM\VIU;QV! IVLUW^ML\W\PMWZOIVQbI\QWV¼[KWUpound near Tan Son Nhut Airport in Saigon. In 1961 he was promoted to IVS country director for Vietnam. During his time as director, the IVS team expanded its mission, adding teaching and
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BILL PETERS/THE DENVER POST VIA GETTY IMAGES
The turning point Don Luce, shown in 1969, first went to Vietnam in 1958 to help with agricultural programs but became disillusioned about U.S. involvement after he saw the effects of the war on Vietnamese villages.
APRIL 2017
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The letter to Johnson, released in September 1967, caused a minor uproar: Young, idealistic and brave volunteers in Vietnam were turning against the war. Vice President Hubert Humphrey later called the IVS resignations ¹WVMWN\PMOZMI\M[\LQ[[MZ^QKM[\W\PM)UMZQKIVMЄWZ\QV>QM\VIUº community development to its original agriculture services. It also started accepting female volunteers. By 1967 the organization had 120 volunteers in Vietnam. 4]KMIVL[WUMW\PMZ1>;[\IЄMZ[_MZMIUWVO\PM)UMZQKIV[UW[\Æ]MV\QV>QM\VIUM[MOQ^QVO\PMUIVQV\QUI\M SVW_TMLOM\PI\MT]LMLUW[\=;XWTQKaUISMZ[IVLILUQVQ[\ZI\WZ[KWVKMZVML_Q\P>QM\VIU0MVZa+IJW\ 4WLOMINWZUMZ=;IUJI[[ILWZ\W>QM\VIUKITTML\PM _WZSWN1>;¹WVMWN\PM[]KKM[[[\WZQM[WN)UMZQKIVI[[Q[tance in Vietnam.” 4]KM_I[SVW_VNWZJMQVO[WN\̆[XWSMVIVLZMTaQVOWV ITW_̆SMa]VLMZ[\I\ML[\aTMWNTMILMZ[PQX0M_WZSML KWV[\IV\Ta_I[^MZaLM\MZUQVMLIVL_I[¹KWV[]UML _Q\P\PM>QM\VIUM[MKI][MºQV\PM_WZL[WNWVMNWZUMZ ^WT]V\MMZ-^MV\PW[M_PWLQ[IOZMML_Q\PPQ[TI\MZIV\Q̆ _IZ\]ZV\PW]OP\PQUIVMЄMK\Q^MTMILMZ /TWZQI-UMZ[WV;\W=;)1,TI\MZ LM[KZQJMLPQU\PQ[_Ia"¹QM\VIU_PQKP4]KMIKY]QZMLIVL PQ[KWUXM\MVKMQVLMITQVO_Q\POW^MZVUMV\WЅKQIT[ OI^M\PQ[CLQZMK\WZEXZM[\QOM_PQKP_I[ZM[XMK\MLIVL IKSVW_TMLOMLJa\PM^WT]V\MMZ[_PW_WZSML]VLMZPQ[ authority.” ?PMVKWVÆQK\IZW[M4]KMOMVMZITTaI^WQLMLXMZ[WVIT attacks to focus on institutional or policy failures and XMZ[]ILQVOXMWXTM\WUISMKPIVOM[)[SMLIJW]\PQ[ KITUIXXZWIKP4]KMY]W\M[ITQVMNZWU\PMXWM\ZaWN\PM >QM\VIUM[M*]LLPQ[\UWVS;^WT]V\MMZ[QV>QM\VIU_MZMQLMITQ[\QKJ]\ _WZSQVO_Q\PXMI[IV\[QV\PM^QTTIOM[\PMa[I_ÅZ[\PIVL\PMLMJQTQ\I\QVOMЄMK\[WNJ]ZMI]KZI\QKQVMZ\QI KWZZ]X\QWVLQ[KZQUQVI\QWVIOIQV[\M\PVQKUQVWZQ\QM[IVL \PMKZIKSLW_VWV*]LLPQ[\UWVS[IVLW\PMZLQ[[QLMV\[ )*]LLPQ[\UWVS_PWPILJMNZQMVLML1>;^WT]V\MMZ[QV Ban Me Thout died in a suspicious accident — just after he refused to teach a propaganda course for the governUMV\7VM1>;^WT]V\MMZVIZZW_TaI^WQLMLQVR]Za_PMV ;W]\P>QM\VIUM[M\IVS[ÅZMLQV\WIKZW_LWNXMIKMN]TTa XZW\M[\QVO*]LLPQ[\[QV0]M)V1>;RMMX_I[[PW\]X 4]KMJMOIVPI^QVOLW]J\[IJW]\\PMMЅKIKaWN\PM )UMZQKIV MЄWZ\ ,MNMV[M ;MKZM\IZa :WJMZ\ ; 5K6IUIZI¼[[XMMKP\WITIZOMKZW_LWN;IQOWVKQ^QT[MZ^IV\[ IVLOW^MZVUMV\[]XXWZ\MZ[QV! [MMUML\W[aUJWTQbM\PMXZWJTMU4]KM_I[\PMZM_Q\P[WUM]VQ^MZ[Q\a [\]LMV\[)\\PMMVLWN5K6IUIZI¼[ZMUIZS[QV-VOTQ[P the defense secretary raised his arms to shout in VietVIUM[M¹>QM\6IUU]WVVIUºQV\MVLQVO\W[Ia¹>QM\VIU _QTT _QVº 0M _I[ IXXIZMV\Ta ]VI_IZM \PI\ >QM\VIUM[MQ[I\WVITTIVO]IOMQV_PQKP_WZL[PI^M^MZa LQЄMZMV\UMIVQVO[LMXMVLQVOWV\PMIKKMV\IVLQVÆMK42
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\QWV?PI\5K6IUIZIPILIK\]ITTa[IQL\W\PMJMU][ML KZW_L¸I[\]\MMVW]OP\WVM^MZ\PMTM[[KPMMZTW]LTa¸_I[" ¹QM\VIUZI\KPM\ML]XQV ! 1>;NW]VLQ\[MTNJMQVOLZIOOMLQV\W\PMKWVÆQK\7VM ^WT]V\MMZ8M\MZ50]V\QVO_I[SQTTMLQV_PI\IXXMIZML \WJMIO]MZZQTTIIUJ][PQVTI\M! 4]KMPILJMMVI OWWLNZQMVLIVL_I[LMMXTaIЄMK\MLJaPQ[LMI\P5I` ;QVSTMZ_I[PQ\JaI3WZMIVUQTQ\IZa\Z]KSIVLLQMLQV ! 7\PMZ1>;^WT]V\MMZ[KIUM]VLMZÅZM_PMV\ZI^MTQVO*aMIZTa! UW[\WN\PMU_MZMTQ^QVOQVXZW^QVcial capitals rather than in the villages. 1V\PMUMIV\QUM)UMZQKIVTMILMZ[_IV\MLKTW[MZKWWZLQVI\QWVJM\_MMV1>;IVL=;OW^MZVUMV\IOMVKQM[ _PQKPPIL\PMMЄMK\WNX]JTQKTa\aQVO\PMWZOIVQbI\QWV\W =;)1,IVL\PM+1)\P][ITQMVI\QVO\PM>QM\VIUM[M\PI\ 1>;_WZSML_Q\P 4]KMIVLW\PMZ1>;[\IЄMZ[[\IZ\ML\WWXMVTaY]M[\QWV \PMUMZQ\[WN\PMQZ_WZS)[\PMa[I_Q\\PMUQTQ\IZa [\ZI\MOaIVL\IK\QK[I[_MTTI[\PMOW^MZVUMV\XZWOZIU[ NWZKQ^QTQIV[_MZMLM[\ZWaQVO\PMNIJZQKWN^QTTIOMTQNM ; could not really help the Vietnamese in the midst of the )UMZQKIV_IZMЄWZ\)\IJQO[\IЄUMM\QVOW^MZ\PM2]Ta _MMSMVLQV! 4]KMIVL\PZMMW\PMZ[MVQWZ1>;[\IЄ UMUJMZ[IVVW]VKML\PMa_MZMZM[QOVQVO )OZW]XWN^WT]V\MMZ[LZIN\MLITM\\MZ\W8ZM[QLMV\4aVLWV*2WPV[WVM`XZM[[QVO\PMQZLQ[UIa_Q\P\PM_IZ# 49 volunteers signed it. They agreed to each chip in $5 \W_IZL\PMKW[\WNX]JTQ[PQVO\PMTM\\MZI[IN]TT̆XIOMIL in ;_WZSMZ[MIKP UISQVO IUWV\PZMITQbML\PMaKW]TLVW\IЄWZLQ\ But a TimesZMXWZ\MZ_ZW\MI[\WZaIJW]\\PMQZIK\QWV[ IVLY]W\ML\PMTM\\MZUISQVOINIZTIZOMZQUXIK\\PIVIV IL_W]TLPI^M QM\VIU_MZM\]ZVQVOIOIQV[\\PM_IZ>QKM 8ZM[QLMV\0]JMZ\0]UXPZMaTI\MZKITTML\PM1>;ZM[QOVI\QWV[¹WVMWN\PMOZMI\M[\LQ[[MZ^QKM[\W\PM)UMZQKIV MЄWZ\QV>QM\VIUºIVLM^MV[WUM1>;[\IЄMZ[QV>QM\VIU_PWPILWXXW[ML\PMTM\\MZKWV\QV]ML\WJIKS=; XWTQKaQV>QM\VIU7V\PMW\PMZPIVLUIVa>QM\VIUM[M _MZM[]XXWZ\Q^MWN\PMTM\\MZ¹?M\PW]OP\aW]_MZM+1) J]\VW__MSVW_LQЄMZMV\TaºWVM>QM\VIUM[MIKY]IQVtance said. )N\MZ\PM+WUU]VQ[\[¼!
AP PHOTO
Key witness Luce tells the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on May 13, 1971, about prisoner abuse by the South Vietnamese.
South Vietnam, IVS decided to scale down its operations in Vietnam for security reasons. Meanwhile, the deeply divided views of the volunteers made IVS’ relationship with both the U.S. and South Vietnamese governments more fractious. In 1971, the Saigon government terminated IVS’ contract, and the volunteers all left. Luce returned to the U.S. in September 1967 and spent several months at Cornell as a research associate. He also gave speeches around the country on his misgivings about the war. Luce and former IVS team leader John Sommer used that year to write a book, Vietnam: The Unheard Voices, which described the destruction that the war was causing. The book, published in 1969 by Cornell University Press, had an impact because it was written by Americans who spoke Vietnamese and knew the country’s culture well after spending long days and weeks with peasants, slum dwellers, students and families who had JMKWUMZMN]OMM[QV[QLM\PMQZW_VKW]V\ZaIN\MZÆMMQVO \PMÅOP\QVOWZJMQVOLQ[XTIKMLJaOW^MZVUMV\LMKZMM[ ¹?M_MZM\ZaQVO\WÅVLI_Ia\WOQ^M\PM>QM\VIUM[MI voice in the debate,” Luce said in an interview. American policy was crafted by leaders who could not communicate with or understand the people they were supposedly helping, Luce and Sommer stated in their book and then explained the consequences. “Because American understanding of the people has been so limited, the tactics devised to assist them have been either
QVMЄMK\Q^MWZKW]V\MZXZWL]K\Q^M
The journalist-advocate
In mid-1968 Luce returned to South Vietnam, this time funded by the World Council of Churches to ostensibly write a report dealing with reconstruction of Vietnam after the war, which some in 1968 apparently thought _W]TLMVL[WWVMZ\PIVQ\LQL5W[\WNPQ[MЄWZ\[PW_M^MZ went into freelance journalism. Luce worked with Vietnamese friends and acquaintances to uncover stories about prisons, poverty, urban slums and camps that housed people left homeless by \PMÅOP\QVO0MIT[WTWWSMLI\_PI\^WT]V\IZaIOMVKQM[ were doing. Luce generally shunned a byline and focused on pro^QLQVO[\WZaQLMI[^MZQÅIJTMQVNWZUI\QWVIVLZMTQIJTM witnesses to established journalists like Emerson of the Times, Morley Safer of CBS News, Carl Robinson of The Associated Press and Beth Pond of The Christian Science Monitor[WQUXWZ\IV\[\WZQM[_W]TLÅVL\PMQZ_IaQV\W credible outlets. 4]KMTQ^MLQVI\WX̆ÆWWZIXIZ\UMV\WNI[M^MV̆ÆWWZ walk-up on Avenue Louis Pasteur in the heart of Saigon.
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tiger-cage cells. In 1970 South Controversial prison Vietnam’s prison on Con Son, the The “tiger cage” cells main island of the Con Dao archi- on Con Son Island are XMTIOWIJW]\ UQTM[WЄWN\PM shown above right in coast, housed almost 10,000 a 1970 photo by Tom prisoners. Some 500 were polit- Harkin, a congressioical prisoners kept in small cages nal staffer at the time, QVI_ITTML̆WЄ[MK\QWV and left in a 1994 Luce had heard about the tiger photo of a postwar cages from former prisoners and display at the site. relayed what he knew to Tom 0IZSQVI[\IЄIQLMNWZILMTMOI\QWVWNKWVOZM[[UMV visiting Vietnam in July 1970. Harkin (an Iowan who later became a member of the U.S. House and then a senator) arranged to have two of the congressmen travel to +WV;WVIVL\Za\WÅVL\PM[MKZM\\QOMZKIOM[¸KIOM[\PM South Vietnamese and U.S. governments said no longer existed. Luce accompanied them as an interpreter. The delegation succeeded in a dramatic fashion, bringQVOW]\IÅZ[\PIVLIKKW]V\IVLXPW\WOZIXP[WN\PMUQ[erable conditions. The tiger-cage story, appearing shortly after the U.S. invasion of Cambodia in April 1970 and campus demonstrations across America in May, received widespread international coverage that frequently included quotes from Luce. The South Vietnamese government soon announced that the tiger-cage unit was being demolished and treatment of prisoners upgraded. The U.S. and South Vietnamese governments took a dim view of Luce’s activities. In October, the Saigon government informed Luce that his press card would be revoked. In January 1971, the U.S. Embassy suspended Luce’s mail privileges and started returning his mail to senders. Luce’s landlady, happy to run a large brothel but nervous about tenants who criticized the government, evicted him. Luce, who took an apartment in Tran Hung Dao Street, was followed while walking around the city. A friend in Saigon military intelligence warned: “Don, you’ve got to be more careful. They’re out to get you.” One evening, 4]KMZM\]ZVML\WPQ[IXIZ\UMV\\WÅVLPQ[NZWV\LWWZ lying on the ground and his possessions scattered on the ÆWWZ0W_M^MZPQ[JML_I[VMI\TaUILMIVL[QVKM4]KM never made his bed, he was suspicious. He carefully X]TTMLJIKS\PMKW^MZ[\WÅVL\QMLQV\PM[PMM\[I[VISM
TOP RIGHT: HEMIS/ALAMY; TOP LEFT: AP PHOTO; MAP: PAUL FISHER
ican soldiers. Luce used to spend time in conversation with the sex workers. He saw LAOS them as similar in many ways to the political prisoners, being degraded and held hostage by the war. Luce’s modest apartCAMBODIA ment had one major convenience: a balcony that would SOUTH provide visiting anti-governVIETNAM ment activists with access to a ÅZMM[KIXM\PI\MVIJTML\PMU\W safely avoid the Saigon police. SOUTH In spring 1969 Sommer CHINA SEA somehow wrangled a meeting with Henry Kissinger, the naCon Son tional security adviser to newly Island inaugurated President Richard 6Q`WV4]KMQV\PM=;JZQMÆa and Sommer met Kissinger in his White House basement WЅKM_PMZM\PMXZM[QLMV\¼[IQLMKWVÅLMV\TaI[[]ZML them that he and Nixon wanted to end the war, the war had to be ended and they had a plan. Luce expressed skepticism, while Sommer was inclined to believe the assurances. “And, of course,” Sommer now says, “Don was right.” Luce helped organize a project to get members of Congress to lobby the American Embassy and U.S. government for release of political prisoners held by Saigon. At the urging of Saigon student leaders opposed to the ;W]\P>QM\VIUM[M_IZMЄWZ\PMJMOIV^Q[Q\QVOIXZQ[WV warden who, after receiving hospitality gifts of Johnny Walker Scotch whisky and cartons of Marlboro cigarettes, became amenable to releasing student dissidents from their cells. In 1970, when three American journalists were captured by either North Vietnamese or Viet Cong forces, 4]KM_I[QV^Q\ML\WKPI\_Q\P]VQLMV\QÅMLUMVI\\PM Brodard ice cream parlor, where he vouched for the honesty and integrity of the reporters. The journalists were shortly released; Luce hopes he had been helpful but was VM^MZY]Q\M[]ZMPW_QUXWZ\IV\PQ[MЄWZ\[PILJMMV Undoubtedly, Luce is principally famous—or infamous, depending on one’s views—for his role in uncovering the
\PI\PMQLMV\QÅMLI[I¹\_W̆[\MXºJMKI][MQ\[XWQ[WVW][ JQ\M_I[_QLMTaJMTQM^ML\WSQTTaW]JMNWZMaW]KW]TL\ISM UWZM\PIV\_W[\MX[ 7V)XZQT ! 4]KMZMKMQ^MLIVWЅKQITTM\\MZM`̆ XMTTQVOPQUNZWU\PMKW]V\ZaIVLZMY]QZQVOPQU\WTMI^M VWTI\MZ\PIV5Ia 7V5Ia PMÆM_PWUM
The activist *IKSQV\PM=;4]KMJMKIUMIN]TT̆\QUMIV\Q̆_IZIK̆ \Q^Q[\0MIVLW\PMZ1>;^M\MZIV[KZMI\ML\PM1VLWKPQVI 5WJQTM-L]KI\QWV8ZWRMK\IЅTQI\ML_Q\P\PM1VLWKPQVI :M[W]ZKM+MV\MZIVL8ZWRMK\)QZ?IZ;^WT]V\MMZ[ 4]KM_I[ZIZMTaQV?I[PQVO\WV0MIVLW\PMZ[\W]ZML \PMKW]V\ZaQVIUQVQ^IV\W\ITSIJW]\\PM_IZIVLQ\[ \MZZQJTMMЄMK\[WVJW\P>QM\VIUIVL)UMZQKIQM\VIUM[MLQVVMZ \PI\,WVIVLPQ[\MIU_W]TLKWWS][]ITTa\PQ\OI[\M_ML KPQKSMV7VMKWTTMIO]MZMUMUJMZ[4]KMI[IXMZ[]I[Q^M [XMISMZY]QM\J]\ÅZU[XMISQVOIJW]\^IT]M[VW\QLMWT̆ WOa4]KM_W]TL[Ia\PI\PM_I[R][\INIZUJWaIVLXZW̆ KMMLNZWU\PMZM QM\VIUM[MOW^MZVUMV\PILVW\PQVO\WLW_Q\P \PMXWTQKQM[WN;IQOWVWZ?I[PQVO\WVJ]\_I[KI][ML¹Ja WVMWN\PMJM[\XZWXIOIVLIIVLXZM[[]ZMWZOIVQbI\QWV[ \PM_WZTLPI[M^MZ[MMVºTIZOMTaWZOIVQbMLJa\PM1VLW̆ KPQVI:M[W]ZKM+MV\MZIVL¹\PMU]T\Q̆NIKM\MLIK\Q^Q\QM[ WN5Z,WV4]KMº
Back to Vietnam Luce stands at the location of the building where he once lived in an apartment above a Saigon brothel.
QM\VIU^M\̆ MZIV[_PW^QOWZW][TaLQ[IOZMM_Q\P4]KM¼[XMZ[XMK\Q^M IJW]\=;XWTQKaQV>QM\VIUIVL_Q\PPQ[IK\Q^Q\QM[ L]ZQVO\PM_IZ*]\4]KMKIUMJaPQ[JMTQMN[PWVM[\Ta \PZW]OPPQ[M`XMZQMVKMQV_WZSQVO_Q\P>QM\VIUM[M XMI[IV\[IVL[\]LMV\[L]ZQVO\PM_IZ0MTQ^MLPQ[JM̆ TQMN[QV\PMNIKMWNOW^MZVUMV\\PZMI\[IVLI\\IKS[WV PQ[QV\MOZQ\a¸IVLPQ[TQNM¸IVLVM^MZTW[\PQ[IЄMK\QWV NWZ\PMXMWXTMWN>QM\VIUV
TED LIEVERMAN (2)
Postwar 4]KM[\IaMLQV^WT^ML_Q\P)[QI_WZSQVONWZIQLWZOĬ VQbI\QWV[TMILQVO[\]LaOZW]X[\W>QM\VIUIVLXZW^QL̆ QVOUWVMaNWZXZWOZIU[[]XXWZ\QVO01>I_IZMVM[[0Q[ IK\Q^Q\QM[QVKT]LMLIZZIVOQVONWZ>QM\VIU8ZQUM5QVQ[\MZ 8PIU>IV,WVO\WJMQV\MZ^QM_MLNWZ8MV\PW][MUIOĬ bQVMIVLQV! !RWQVQVO\PMU]ZLMZW][8WT8W\NWZ KPQKSMVLQVVMZ_PQTMIKKWUXIVaQVOI\MTM^Q[QWVKZM_\W I3PUMZ:W]OMPQLMW]\QVVWZ\P_M[\MZV+IUJWLQI 4]KM_PW\]ZVML \PQ[XI[\;MX\MUJMZK]ZZMV\Ta TQ^M[QV6QIOIZI.ITT[6M_AWZSIVL_WZS[I[IVILUQV̆ Q[\ZI\WZNWZ+WUU]VQ\a5Q[[QWV[I[W]XSQ\KPMVIVL PWUMTM[[[PMT\MZ1VPQ[[IVL [4]KM[Ia[PM\ZQML \WKPIVOMJQOVI\QWVITXWTQKQM[J]\¹VW_1\Za\WKWVKMV̆ \ZI\MWVPMTXQVOINM_XMWXTMPI^MIVMI[QMZTQNMº0M TWWS[I\TQNM¹NZWUI6QIOIZI.ITT[[W]XSQ\KPMVXMZ[XMK̆ \Q^Mº4]KMXQKS[]XNWWLLWVI\QWV[NZWU[]XMZUIZSM\[ NWZ\PM[W]XSQ\KPMVZIQ[M[UWVMa\W[]XXWZ\\PMPWUM̆ TM[[[PMT\MZIVL[XMVL[\QUMI\PWUMTQ[\MVQVO\WU][QK _Q\PPQ[TWVO\QUMXIZ\VMZ,Z5IZS*WVIKKQ
A new mission Luce talks with the kitchen staff of Community Missions, which serves meals to the poor. APRIL 2017
45
Critical Care
FROM THE BATTLEFIELD TO THE FLIGHT HOME, MEDICAL TEAMS SAVED LIFE AND LIMB WITH QUICK RESPONSES By Deborah Stadtler
Carried to safety Groups of men in the 1st Marine Division aid wounded comrades in a 1966 battle near the Demilitarized Zone. 46
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I
mprovements in medical care from World War II and Korea allowed for better outcomes during the Vietnam War. One of the main advances was the use of helicopters NWZM^IK]I\QWVWN_W]VLML\ZWWX[SVW_VI[IL][\WЄ1V! I\\PMPMQOP\WN\PM KWVÆQK\ IQZIUJ]TIVKM[M^IK]I\MLUWZM\PIV\ZWWX[XZWOZIUM.A.S.H., set in Korea. A MASH facility, \aXQKITTa JML[QV\MV\[KW]TLJMM`XIVLML\WJML[][QVOMI[QTaUW^MLQVÆI\IJTM [PMT\MZ[LM[QOVI\MLI[¹UMLQKIT]VQ\[MTN̆KWV\IQV\ML\ZIV[XWZ\IJTMºWZ5=;< Small arms, grenades and booby traps frequently caused multiple wounds, often in dirty and wet conditions. Pioneering methods to reduce infection, transfuse whole blood, and operate on patients reduced the mortality rate in Vietnam. Army Col.Norman Rich originiated vascular repair for military trauma, allowing badly damaged limbs to be saved.
PHOTO CREDIT: LARRY BURROWS/THE LIFE PICTURE COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES
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FIELD TREATMENT
PHOTO CREDIT: CLOCKWISE, AP PHOTO, AP PHOTO/HORST FAAS, POPPERFOTO/GETTY IMAGES
First aid rendered in the field was a crucial step to survival, demonstrated above in 1967 near the Cambodian border. Lt. Col. George Eyster of the 1st Infantry Division, right, is bandaged after being shot by a sniper in 1966 at Trung Lap, near Saigon. He was evacuated to a hospital and later died. Two wounded soldiers near Phu Cat in 1966 were rescued after taking shelter from enemy forces.
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MEDEVAC
PHOTO CREDIT: CLOCKWISE, AP PHOTO, ALFRED BATUNGBACAL/THE LIFE PICTURE COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES, TERRY FINCHER/GETTY IMAGES, DPA/AP IMAGES
Helicopters lifted the wounded from jungle locations using cables, shown above in 1966. At left and below right, members of the 4th Battallion, 173rd Airborne Brigade load wounded on a UH-1D Huey for evacuation. Injured are stabilized and evaluated in a helicopter ambulance, below left.
A APPR RIILL 22001177
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Surgical suites were available on ships, including USS Tripoli anchored off the Vietnam coast, above left, and field hospitals such as the one at Lai Khe, top right. Nurses, like 2nd Lt. Roberta Steele in 1966, at right, were vital caregivers in Vietnam.
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PHOTO CREDIT: TOP, GETTY IMAGES (2), BOTTOM, AP PHOTO/EDDIE ADAMS
MOBILE HOSPITAL
PHOTO CREDIT: U.S. AIR FORCE PHOTOS (2)
FLIGHT HOME
The most gravely injured soldiers were transferred to more sophisticated medical facilities or home to the United States. Patients were flown on litters loaded into transport planes, such as the C-130 Hercules, above, and the C-124, at left, and monitored by medical personnel.
APRIL 2017
51
SOUTHERN SOLDIERS
TROOPS SENT TO VIETNAM FROM THE AMERICAN SOUTH WERE MOTIVATED BY PRIDE, CHRISTIAN FAITH AND TRADITION By Joseph A. Fry
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A VIETNAM
s the American South’s politicians, press and public debated the wisdom of going to war in Vietnam, Southern soldiers served, died and received Medals of Honor in Vietnam in num-
bers substantially exceeding Dixie’s share of the nation’s XWX]TI\QWV
Excerpted from The American South and the Vietnam War: Belligerence, Protest, and Agony in Dixie, by Joseph A. Fry, published by the University Press of Kentucky. Copyright 2015.
GAMMA-KEYSTONE VIA GETTY IMAGES
Targeted message A North Carolinian at Da Nang Air Base in December 1966 proudly chalks the name of his hometown on a bomb attached to an F-4B Phantom.
important decisions and events. For example, Gen. William Westmoreland, a native of South Carolina, commanded U.S. combat forces in Vietnam from 1964 \PZW]OP! IVLPMTXMLLM^Q[M\PMUQTQ\IZa¼[ÆI_ML ground strategies. Lt. Col. Harold G. “Hal” Moore led his air cavalry battalion against North Vietnamese regulars in the epic 1965 battle in the Ia Drang Valley, a confron\I\QWV_Q\P[QOVQÅKIV\TWVŎ\MZUQUXTQKI\QWV[LM[KZQJML in Moore’s book, We Were Soldiers Once…And Young,
KW̆_ZQ\\MV_Q\PRW]ZVITQ[\2WM/ITTW_IaQM\VIUIVL\PMaMVL]ZML\PM_IZ¼[[QVOTMUW[\ costly combat losses for a guard contingent. )VaM`IUQVI\QWVWN;W]\PMZV[MZ^QKMQV\PM_IZbWVM U][\QVKT]LM_WUMV)NZQKIV̆)UMZQKIV[IVL+PQKIVW[ ?WUMV_MV\\W>QM\VIUI[UMUJMZ[WN\PMUQTQ\IZaIVL in nonmilitary capacities, such as the Red Cross. Their APRIL 2017
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and more rural than those elsewhere and more likely to serve in Vietnam. These demographic considerations, when added to the region’s military tradition, exuberant patriotism, sense of duty and honor, and faith-based aversion to communism, explain why Southerners went to Vietnam in numJMZ[\PI\[QOVQÅKIV\TaM`KMMLML,Q`QM¼[XZWXWZ\QWVWN\PM national population. The 11 states of the former Confederacy plus Kentucky XZW^QLMLXMZKMV\ WN! WN\PM[WTdiers who served in Vietnam, even though the South was home to only 22 percent of the nation’s population. AdLQ\QWVITTaIJW]\ XMZKMV\ WN WN\PM military deaths came from among the region’s warriors. Diverse motivations led Southern soldiers to war in Vietnam. Many were simply drafted or enlisted under the threat of the draft. Raymond Wilson, from an area near Birmingham, Alabama, “knew damn well” he was going to be drafted. So he enlisted with the hope of a preferable military assignment, and “the next thing you know you end up in Vietnam.” Poor blacks and Chicanos saw the military as a way to M[KIXMXW^MZ\aIVLZIKQ[UIVLXMZPIX[ÅVLIJM\\MZTQNM Charles Richardson minced no words: “I went to Vietnam \WM[KIXM;MTUIºIV)TIJIUIKQ\aÅTTML_Q\PZIKQIT\MVsion. And a Mexican-American whose family picked cotton in South Texas sought to “get away,” since “it didn’t seem like I’d go anywhere else in my situation.” AW]VO;W]\PMZVMZ[OMVMZITTa[]J[KZQJML\W\PMWЅKQIT Cold War explanation for the war: The United States was ÅOP\QVO\WPIT\6WZ\P>QM\VIUM[MKWUU]VQ[\IOOZM[sion and preserve a “free, democratic...society” in South Vietnam. Those Southerners had also imbibed the nation’s “victory culture,” which prompted young American men to see war and themselves in the romantic, heroic images of Audie Murphy or John Wayne triumphing over evil enemies.
CO RENTMEESTER/THE LIFE PICTURE COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES
motives for going and many aspects of their experiences often resembled those of Southern men. Although Dixie’s black soldiers shared many of those motives and experiences, issues of race—both within the United States and during their tours of duty in Vietnam—produced more divergent involvements and responses. As was true of African-Americans at home, black soldiers confronted race-related challenges and discrimination, ranging from poverty, substandard education and allwhite draft boards in the United States to combat assignments, standards of dress and appearance, and discriminatory military justice and discipline in Vietnam. Southern Chicanos, primarily from Texas and far less numerous than Southern blacks, endured similar discrimination based on race, class and lack of educational opportunity. Eighty percent of the soldiers in the Vietnam War had VWUWZM\PIVIPQOP[KPWWTML]KI\QWV:MÆMK\QVO\PMQZ working-class status, most had neither the inclination nor the means to pursue higher education and with it a deferment from the draft or a more favorable, noncombat assignment in the military. They were also young, averaging 19 years of age versus 26 in World War II. The South was the nation’s poorest and most rural section during the 1960s and early 1970s. Although the South had made great economic strides after 1941, Dixie’s per capita income in 1960 was only two-thirds the national average of $2,216. By 1960, 58 percent of Southerners (an increase of 20 percent since 1940) lived in cities, but the South still lagged behind national VWZU[1V! WVTaÅ^MWN\PMVI\QWV¼[TIZOM[\KQ\QM[ _MZMQV\PM;W]\PIVLITTWN\PMUPIL[QOVQÅKIV\TaTW_MZ population densities than other major urban areas. The South’s young men were comparatively poorer
Southerner in charge The top U.S. combat commander in Vietnam, Gen. William Westmoreland, was called “the perfect image of the Southern warrior.”
LEFT: GAMMA-KEYSYONE VIA GETTY IMAGES; RIGHT: POPPERFOTO/GETTY IMAGES
Southern soldiers, like other IVLTQNM[\aTM[)[W\PMZ Dixie’s military tradi)UMZQKIV[LQL;W]\PMZVtion reinforced all of Americans, confronted a vastly repeatedly comthese motives. Max CleLQЄMZMV\KTQUI\MIVLK]T\]ZM-^MV ers mented on the stench land from Lithonia, Geor\PMaKWUXTIQVMLWN\PMQV\MV[MPMI\ that derived from mixgia, spoke for many. tures of diesel fuel, aniDuring World War II, his father and four uncles from both sides of the family had UITIVLP]UIV_I[\MIVLKWWSQVOWZZW\\MVÅ[P8QVSQM ^WT]V\MMZML\WÅOP\)LWTN0Q\TMZIVL+TMTIVL¹TW^ML\PM 0W][MZ_I[IXXITTML\WÅVL\PI\\PMXW^MZ\ă[\ZQKSMV>QM\QLMIWNJMQVOI[WTLQMZº0MÆW]ZQ[PMLI[IV)ZUa:7<+ namese ate fried roaches, dogs and rats. Some Southerners, while maintaining appropriate vigcadet at Stetson University in Deland, Florida, and ex\MVLMLPQ[)ZUaWJTQOI\QWV\WLWPQ[¹L]\aºQV>QM\VIU QTIVKMM^MVLQ[\Z][\\W_IZL;W]\P>QM\VIUM[MKQ^QTQIV[ +TMTIVLTW[\JW\PTMO[IVLXIZ\WNIVIZUQV>QM\VIUIVL PILU]KPOZMI\MZ[aUXI\PaNWZ\PMQZXTQOP\¹QM\VIU/_QV¹_MV\JMKI][M ][\PM6>)C6WZ\P>QM\VIUM[M)ZUaEIVL\PM>+C>QM\ my father had gone, and his father before him, and before +WVOE[W\PMaKW]TLNIZU\PMQZZQKMº)VW\PMZ;W]\PMZV that, my great grandfather, who’d fought for the Confeder- WЅKMZIOZMML¹QM\VIU¼[IZUa[WUM;W]\Pservice in the ‘Good War.’” Southern devotion to honor, manhood, patriotism and erners agreed with Westmoreland, who believed that military tradition were evident in Dixie’s professional ;W]\P>QM\VIUM[M[WTLQMZ[_MZM¹LWQVO\PMQZJM[\ºIVL soldiers. Westmoreland has been aptly described as com- PIL¹XZWOZM[[ML\WIXWQV\ºQV! \PI\MVIJTML\PM QVO¹KTW[M\WMUJWLaQVO\PMXMZNMK\QUIOMWN\PM;W]\PMZV OMVMZIT\W¹^Q[]ITQbMI=;_Q\PLZI_IT[\ZI\MOaº*]\ warrior.” Westmoreland was superintendent of the U.S. most Dixie troops saw them as noisy, undisciplined, un5QTQ\IZa)KILMUaI\?M[\8WQV\NZWU! \W! IVL \Z][\_WZ\Pa¹TIbaJI[\IZL[º_PW_MZM¹VW\\WWSMMVWV I[\]LMV\WN\PMMV\MZQVOKTI[[WN! WJ[MZ^ML¹\PM KWUJI\ºIVL_W]TLXZWJIJTaZ]VZI\PMZ\PIVÅOP\ Without disagreeing with those scathing indictments, XMWXTMWNZ]ZIT)ZSIV[I[IKKWZLML?M[\8WQV\MZ[[WUMother Southerners acknowledged that the common thing close to demigod status.” =XWV\PMQZIZZQ^ITQV;W]\P>QM\VIU;W]\PMZV[WTLQMZ[ ;W]\P>QM\VIUM[M[WTLQMZ]VLMZ[\WWLWVTa¹\PI\PM_I[ TQSMW\PMZ)UMZQKIV[KWVNZWV\MLI^I[\TaLQЄMZMV\KTQ- separated from his family” and likely to die for no clear mate and culture. Even they complained of the intense cause or reason. 1VKWV\ZI[\;W]\PMZVMZ[ZMKWOVQbML\PI\\PM>QM\+WVO PMI\)VV8W_TI[IV)ZUaV]Z[MZMKITTML\PI\Q\_I[ ¹PW\IVLP]UQLQV6WZ\P+IZWTQVIºJ]\¹VW\PQVOKWU- IVL6>)\ZWWX[KIZMLLMMXTa)N\MZ_I\KPQVOI_W]VLML pared” to what greeted her as she deplaned at Saigon’s >QM\+WVO_WUIV_Q\PIO]V[PW\_W]VL\W\PM[\WUIKP _ITSWЄWNIUW]V\IQVVMIZ,I6IVO?QTTQIUQM\VIUM[MXMWXTMIVLK]T\]ZM_MZMM^MVUWZMNWZ- KT]LML¹1N\PM_WUMVIZM\PQ[\W]OPPW_QV\PMPMTTIZM MQOV\PIV\PM\ZWXQKITKTQUI\M)T\PW]OP;W]\PMZVMZ[PIL we going to beat the men?” 6]UMZW][W\PMZ;W]\PMZV[WTLQMZ[IOZMML4W]Q[QIVI just left some of the poorest parts of the United States, they _MZM[PWKSMLIVLIXXITTMLI\>QM\VIUM[MTQ^QVOKWVLQ\QWV[ 4\:QKPIZL);WVM[KWV[QLMZML\PM6>)NWZKM[PMWXFlag controversy Many blacks were troubled by the sight of the Confederate flag, at left in a Vietnamese-run bar catering to American troops in Da Nang, and on an Army M42 Duster anti-aircraft vehicle in northern South Vietnam.
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King memorial The slain civil rights leader is remembered at Long Binh Army base outside Saigon in 1971 on his birthday, Jan.15. 56
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GETTY IMAGES (2): PHOTO CREDIT
posed in the Plain of Reeds Westmoreland agreed with Dixie’s had for me and our children, and the love that I between Saigon and the troops that American soldiers Cambodian border to have should take “unmitigated pride” SVM_+PZQ[\PILNWZJW\PWN ][º.ZML+PMZZaIÅOP\MZ been “patient....well in their service since “it was not pilot and the senior Afriequipped...well disciplined” they that lost the war.” can-American prisoner of IVL XZMXIZML \W ¹ÅOP\ \W war, said: “No matter how the very end.” He was especially impressed by the enemy soldiers who hid “by lying ZW]OP\PM\WZ\]ZM[_MZMVWUI\\MZPW_[QKS1JMKIUM1 ]VLMZ_I\MZÆI\WV\PMQZJIKS[JZMI\PQVO\PZW]OPI would just pray to the Supreme Being each morning for reed.” If the blast from a U.S. airboat blew them out of the the best mind to get through the interrogations, and then OQ^M\PIVS[MIKPVQOP\NWZUISQV¼Q\\PZW]OP\PMLIaº _I\MZ¹\PMa_W]TLKWUM]XÅOP\QVOº Houston Matthews, whose faith led him to become an Charles Strong, an Army machine gunner, described an equally compelling story of an NVA soldier, “the brav- -XQ[KWXITXZQM[\IN\MZPQ[[MZ^QKMI[I5IZQVMZQÆMUIV est dude I had ever seen,” who held out in a tunnel for IT[WY]M[\QWVML¹\PM_PWTMQLMIWN_IZIVL_Pa/WLKW]TL two hours despite numerous shrapnel wounds. He let these things happen.” Following an injury in which he refused to “give up....This man was willing to die for what lost an eye and a leg, Matthews believed his “spiritual side he believed in.” The Viet Cong, although less well-trained ....allowed the emotional and psychological sides of me to and far less well-equipped than the NVA, were elusive, be healed.” Race and racial attitudes were also integral to Southern [SQTTMLI\KIUW]ÆIOMIVLKWV[\Z]K\QVOJWWJa\ZIX[ M`KMTTMV\UIZS[UMV¹\MZZQJTaLMLQKI\MLºIVLIT[W¹^MZa soldiers’ responses to service in Vietnam. One Tennessee soldier declared “as far as racial discrimination, the only [VMISaLQZ\a\MVIKQW][º -^MV[WSQTTQVOIVW\PMZP]UIVJMQVO_I[I\ZI]UI\QK race that was considered inferior were the Vietnamese,” M`XMZQMVKM,I^QL,Q[VMaI3MV\]KSa[WTLQMZLM[KZQJML but the tensions among Americans were also evident. In PQ[ÅZ[\SQTTI>QM\+WVO_PW_I[KZI_TQVO\W_IZL\PM \PM\PZWM[WNKWUJI\)UMZQKIV_PQ\M[IVLJTIKS[OMVMZ)UMZQKIV¼[J]VSMZ¹/WL1LQLV¼\_IV\\WSQTTPQU1[PW\ ITTaKWWXMZI\MLIVL_WZSMLMЄMK\Q^MTa\WOM\PMZI[\PM the M-60 [machine gun] with a long burst and he fell. I U]\]ITX]Z[]Q\WN[]Z^Q^ITZMVLMZML\PMJI\\TMÅMTLI KZQMLTQSMIJIJaIN\MZQ\_I[ITTW^MZº,Q[VMa[IQLILLQVO ¹XTIKMWNZMTI\Q^MMY]ITQ\aº)_IaNZWU\PMJI\\TMÅMTL\PM \PI\\PM]VQ\¼[KIX\IQV¹[PWWSUaPIVLIVL[IQL1LQLI QV\MZIK\QWV[_MZMWN\MVNIZUWZM\MV[MIVLKWVÆQK\ML especially after 1968, when the Rev. Martin Luther King OZMI\RWJ1[SQTTQVOOZMI\'º Manuel Valdez refused to follow orders to “eliminate was assassinated and many more politically radical the prisoners” his squad was holding in 1967 near the JTIKS[_MZM[MV\\W>QM\VIU )NZQKIV̆)UMZQKIV[JZQLTMLI\;W]\PMZV_PQ\M[ÆaQVO Demilitarized Zone separating North and South Vietnam. Still, “bodies were scattered throughout the village,” he +WVNMLMZI\MÆIO[\PMNZMY]MVKaWNZIKQIT[T]Z[IVLQV\PM said. “Women and children were spared, for the most _ISMWN3QVO¼[LMI\P\PM[XMK\IKTMWN_PQ\M[WTLQMZ[WXpart....Vietnam was a very brutal war that hardened a lot posed to civil rights donning Ku Klux Klan dress at Que >QM\IVLJ]ZVQVOKZW[[M[I\+IU:IVP*Ia7VMJTIKS of people to the value of human life.” soldier declared he should Battlefield equality Religion was a prominent feature in the way many ÅOP\ ]VLMZ \PM )UMZQKIV A 1st Cavalry Division Southern soldiers responded to these experiences. Ben ÆIOZI\PMZ\PIVPI^QVO¹\W soldier helps a wounded 8]ZKMTTIVQVNIV\ZaWЅKMZKIX\]ZMLQV;W]\P>QM\VIU serve under the Confederate comrade in March 1967 IVL\ISMV\W0IVWQ_PMZMPM[]Z^Q^ML UWV\P[WNKIX- ÆIOWZ_Q\PQ\º)VW\PMZJMtivity (including the repercussions of two escape at- lieved “some stupid people during Operation Junction City near Cambodia. \MUX\[MVL]ZMLJMKI][MWN\PM¹TW^M\PI\1SVM_)VVM IZM [\QTT ÅOP\QVO \PM +Q^QT
Brothers in arms A soldier from the U.S. 9th Infantry Division is on patrol with a South Vietnamese soldier in the Mekong Delta. Southerners had mixed views about the effectiveness of their allies.
Southerners also had varying reactions to the war IVLQ\[XMZ[WVITQUXIK\4QSMUW[\;W]\PMZV^M\MZIV[WN >QM\VIU2IUM[*][[MaNZWU+PQTLZM[[ITLMb ZMN][ML\W¹OM\QV^WT^MLQV_MQOPQVO\PMOWWLIVLJILWN \PM_IZºJ]\¹_I[XZW]L\PI\1PILNW]OP\NWZUaKW]V\Zaº*IZZa+IUXJMTTI3MV\]KSaQVNIV\Za[WTLQMZ_PW PILOQ^MV¹XMZKMV\\PMMV\QZMUWV\P[IVL[Q` LIa[ºZM\]ZVMLPWUM_Q\P¹VWZMOZM\[I\ITTIVLQN1PIL \WLWQ\IOIQV\WUWZZW_1_W]TLV¼\M^MVPM[Q\I\Mº 6]UMZW][;W]\PMZV[WTLQMZ[RWQVMLUW[\WN\PMQZVMQOPJWZ[QVKWVLMUVQVOIV\Q̆_IZXZW\M[\WZ[IVLUMV_PW I^WQLML\PMÅOP\,MUWV[\ZI\WZ[_PWKIZZQML6>)ÆIO[ WZLM[MKZI\ML\PM)UMZQKIVÆIO¹_MZMIQLQVO\PMMVMUaº IVL¹SQTTQVO)UMZQKIV[º7XXWVMV\[WN\PM_IZ\PMaJMTQM^MLPILXZM[[]ZML\PM=VQ\ML;\I\M[¹\W_ITSW]\IVL PI^MIVW̆_QVXWTQKaº ?M[\UWZMTIVLIOZMML_Q\P,Q`QM¼[\ZWWX[\PI\)UMZQKIV[WTLQMZ[[PW]TL\ISM¹]VUQ\QOI\MLXZQLMºQV\PMQZ[MZ^QKM[QVKM¹Q\_I[VW\\PMa\PI\TW[\\PM_IZº
LEFT: TIM PAGE, GETTY IMAGES; RIGHT: LARRY BURRROWS/THE LIFE PICTURE COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES
War.” Black soldiers also contended with an overwhelmQVOTa_PQ\MWЅKMZKWZX[IUQTQ\IZaR][\QKM[a[\MU\PI\ TML\W)NZQKIV̆)UMZQKIV[JMQVOUWZMNZMY]MV\TaKPIZOML IVLQUXZQ[WVMLIVL\PMZMITQ\aWNJTIKS[[MMQVOKWUJI\ QVV]UJMZ[\PI\M`KMMLML\PMQZXZWXWZ\QWVWN\PM)UMZQKIVXWX]TI\QWV;W]\PMZV_PQ\M[QV\]ZVKWUXTIQVMLWN )NZQKIV)UMZQKIVKTIVVQ[PVM[[\PM][MWNMTIJWZI\M JTIKSXW_MZ[IT]\M[IVLPIVL[PISM[JTIZQVO[W]TU][QK IVLXW[\MZ[LMXQK\QVO5ITKWTU@WZJTIKSÅ[\[ ?Q\PQV\PQ[NZIUM_WZSQV\MZM[\QVOQVLQ^QL]ITZMTI\QWV[PQX[LM^MTWXMLWVJW\P[QLM[WN\PMZIKQITLQ^QLM;WUM WN\PM[MQV\MZIK\QWV[KWVNWZUML\WTWVŎ[\IVLQVOXI\\MZV[ WN;W]\PMZVZIKMZMTI\QWV[
A time for prayer U.S. troops attend a Sunday Mass in 1966.Many Southern soldiers brought a strong religious faith with them to Vietnam.
7\PMZ;W]\PMZV[WTLQMZ[_MZMUWZMKWVÆQK\MLZMOIZLQVO,Q`QM¼[_IZZQWZ\ZILQ\QWV?QTTQIU)*ZQVSTMaI3MV\]KSQIV_PWKWUUIVLMLIVIZUWZKWUXIVaKWVNM[[ML \PI\PM¹OW\VW[I\Q[NIK\QWVW]\WNKWUJI\1\¼[VW\[WUM\PQVO\PI\1_IV\\WLWIOIQVº:I\PMZPQ[¹OZMI\M[\[I\Q[NIK\QWVºKIUMNZWU¹OWQVOQV\WIÅOP\IVLKWUQVOW]\ _Q\PVWJWLa_W]VLMLWZSQTTMLº4MUW[..]TUMZ2ZI NMTTW_IZUWZWЅKMZNZWU;MTUIIOZMMLÅVLQVOOZMI\MZ OZI\QÅKI\QWVQV[I^QVOI¹NMTTW_[WTLQMZ[¼TQNMº\PIVQV¹IVa WNUa\IK\QKIT[]KKM[[M[º ¹1NIVaJWLa\PQVS[Q\¼[OWWL\WOW\W_IZ\PMa¼ZMKZIbaº [IQL/_QV_PW[]Z^Q^ML\PMKIZVIOMWN4IVLQVOBWVM)TJIVaL]ZQVO\PM1I,ZIVO>ITTMaÅOP\QVOWN6W^MUJMZ ! _PQTM[MZ^QVOI[IV)ZUaTQM]\MVIV\IVLMIZVMLI ;QT^MZ;\IZ*ZWVbM;\IZIVL8]ZXTM0MIZ\6WZ[PW]TLXMWXTM¹\ITSIJW]\\PMOTWZaWN_IZJMKI][M\PMZMQ[VWVMºPM [IQL¹?IZ[]KS[)UMZQKI¼[OW\\WTMIZVNZWUQ\[UQ[\ISM[I[_MTTI[Q\[UWUMV\[WNXZQLMIVLQ\PI[OW\\WJM ^MZaKIZMN]T_PMVQ\KPWW[M[\W[MVL)UMZQKIVSQL[\W ÅOP\I_IZ_Q\PW]\ZMITTaSVW_QVOQNQ\¼[_WZ\PQ\º Southern troops were repeatedly at the center of the IK\QWV QV >QM\VIU ?M[\UWZMTIVL PIL I XZWNW]VL QVÆ]MVKMWV\PM_IZ¼[W^MZITTLQZMK\QWVIVL\MVWZ1[[]M[ WNPWVWZXI\ZQW\Q[UIVLUIVPWWL_MZMXIZ\QK]TIZTa XZWUQVMV\ I[ ;W]\PMZV UMV _MV\ \W NW]OP\ QV IVL ZM\]ZVMLNZWU\PM_IZQM\VIUN]ZVQ[PMLIVW\PMZZMOQWVIT^IV\IOMXWQV\NWZI[[M[[QVO\PM_IZ¸WVM \PI\ZIV\PMOIU]\NZWU333OIZJIVL+WVNMLMZI\MÆIO[ \W\PMNWZOQVOWNOZMI\MZZM[XMK\IVLTQNM̆[I^QVO[]XXWZ\ IT\PW]OP \PQ[ ZM[XMK\ PIL TQ\\TM QUXIK\ WV LWUM[\QK ;W]\PMZVZIKMZMTI\QWV[ :M[XWV[M[\W\PM_IZ_MZMY]Q\MLQ^MZ[MZIVOQVONZWU XZQLMQV[MZ^QKM\WJQ\\MZVM[[IVLITQMVI\QWVJ]\\PMLQ[\QVK\UIRWZQ\aWN;W]\PMZV[WTLQMZ[¸TQSM\PMQZVMQOPJWZ[ NIUQTaIVLXWTQ\QKITTMILMZ[¸LMMUML\PM_IZ\WPI^M JMMV_QVVIJTM
2W[MXP).ZaQ[LQ[\QVO]Q[PMLXZWNM[[WZWNPQ[\WZa MUMZQ\][I\\PM=VQ^MZ[Q\aWN6M^ILI4I[>MOI[ APRIL 2017
57
Counterinsurgency: What the United States Learned in Vietnam, Chose to Forget and Needs to Know Today Ja,I^QL,WVW^IV 5K.IZTIVL+W
Lending a hand American Green Berets provide rifle instruction to South Vietnamese troops in December 1964.
58
VIETNAM
After commanding a combat unit for the ÅZ[\[M^MVUWV\P[WNUa>QM\VIU\W]Z \PQ[ZM^QM_MZ_I[ZMI[[QOVML\W5QTQ\IZa )[[Q[\IVKM+WUUIVL>QM\VIUI[IV IL^Q[MZNWZUaTI[\Å^MUWV\P[QV\PM KW]V\Za1ZMKMQ^MLVW\ZIQVQVOQV[\Z]K\QWVIL^QKMWZWZQMV\I\QWVQVXZMXIZI\QWV NWZ\PQ[IJZ]X\[PQN\QVL]\aNZWUTMILQVO I=;)ZUaW]\Å\\WIL^Q[QVO;W]\P>QM\VIUM[M KW]V\MZXIZ\[ 5WZMW^MZ NIZ NZWUJMQVOQVIUMZKQN]TTaY]QM\JIKS_I\MZ\PM]VQ\1IL^Q[ML_I[PW\TaMVOIOML QV\PMPWZZQÅKITTaJTWWLaWXMZI\QWV\W ZMKIX\]ZM9]IVOQM\VIUIN\MZ\PM6WZ\P>QM\VIUM[M )ZUa¼[! -I[\MZ7ЄMV[Q^M1\_I[I [Q\]I\QWVPIZLTaKWVL]KQ^M\WY]QM\ZMÆMK\QWVWZTMQ[]ZMTa[\]La\WPMTXUM ¹MI[MQV\WºIVM_IVL]VNIUQTQIZRWJ
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Join us for 50th Anniversaries 2017 2018 2019
UR Y! YO A K D O TO BO UR TO
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TOGETHER THEN. TOGETHER AGAIN.
III Corps and Central Highlands April 2016 - accepting reservations I Corps: Khe Sanh to Quy Nhon IV Corps: The Mekong Delta Panorama of Vietnam: The Best All-Country Tour
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It has been over 50 years since the 173rd Airborne and the US Marines began combat operations in Vietnam. Return with us to historic battlefields, villages and famous cities where you spent part of your youth. Bring your family, your friends and buddies. Consider a reunion in Vietnam! We have a variety of tour programs to suit your interests. Check them out on our website today!
Let MHT be your Vietnam Combat Tour guide & get you back in-country. MHT gets you to your Base, FSB, Ville, OP, LZ, AO or Foxhole. The originator of the Vietnam return! Vietnam Veteran Owned & Operated since 1987!
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CLASSIFIEDS BOOKS/PUBLICATIONS TITLE: “BLUE WATER RED BLOOD”, AUTHOR: JED MAITLAND-CARTER. Description: Duty, Honor, Courage. Available on Amazon. 99 cent download.
SPECIAL EVENTS 7/13TH ARTILLERY (VIETNAM) REUNION ALL RED DRAGON BATTERIES. Savannah, Georgia. Fall 2017. Dates TBA. Call Robert Adams: (859) 806-5199 or Jon Taylor: (603) 677-6570.
For information on placing a Direct Response or Marketplace ad in Print and Online contact us today: Vietnam 800.649.9800 / Fax: 800.649.6712 / viet@russelljohns. com / www.russelljohns.com
STATEMENT OF OWNERSHIP, MANAGEMENT AND CIRCULATION (required by Act of August 12, 1970: Section 3685, Title 39, United States Code). 1. Vietnam 2. (ISSN: 1046-2902) 3. Filing date: 10/1/16. 4. Issue frequency: Bi Monthly. 5. Number of issues published annually: 6. 6. The annual subscription price is $39.95. 7. Complete mailing address of known office of publication: HistoryNet, 1919 Gallows Rd. Suite 400, Vienna, VA 22182. Contact person: Kolin Rankin. Telephone: 305-441-7155 ext. 225 8. Complete mailing address of headquarters or general business office of publisher: HistoryNet, 1919 Gallows Rd. Suite 400, Vienna, VA 22182. 9. Full names and complete mailing addresses of publisher, editor, and managing editor. Publisher, Michael A. Reinstein, HistoryNet, 1919 Gallows Rd. Suite 400, Vienna, VA 22182, Editor, Chuck Springston, HistoryNet, 1919 Gallows Rd. Suite 400, Vienna, VA 22182 , Editor in Chief, Alex Neill, HistoryNet, 1919 Gallows Rd. Suite 400, Vienna, VA 22182. 10. Owner: HistoryNet; 1919 Gallows Rd. Suite 400, Vienna, VA 22182. 11. Known bondholders, mortgages, and other security holders owning or holding 1 percent of more of total amount of bonds, mortgages or other securities: None. 12. Tax status: Has Not Changed During Preceding 12 Months. 13. Publisher title: Vietnam. 14. Issue date for circulation data below: October 2016. 15. The extent and nature of circulation: A. Total number of copies printed (Net press run). Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 44,164. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 42,442. B. Paid circulation. 1. Mailed outsidecounty paid subscriptions. Average number of copies each issue during the preceding 12 months: 23,774. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 23,201. 2. Mailed in-county paid subscriptions. Average number of copies each issue during the preceding 12 months: 0. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 0. 3. Sales through dealers and carriers, street vendors and counter sales. Average number of copies each issue during the preceding 12 months: 5,184. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 5,523. 4. Paid distribution through other classes mailed through the USPS. Average number of copies each issue during the preceding 12 months: 0. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 0. C. Total paid distribution. Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 28,958. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date; 28,724. D. Free or nominal rate distribution (by mail and outside mail). 1. Free or nominal Outside-County. Average number of copies each issue during the preceding 12 months: 0. Number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 0. 2. Free or nominal rate in-county copies. Average number of copies each issue during the preceding 12 months: 0. Number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 0. 3. Free or nominal rate copies mailed at other Classes through the USPS. Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 0. Number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 0. 4. Free or nominal rate distribution outside the mail. Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 4,761. Number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 505. E. Total free or nominal rate distribution. Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 4,761. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 505. F. Total free distribution (sum of 15c and 15e). Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 33,718. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 29,229. G. Copies not Distributed. Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 10,446. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 13,213. H. Total (sum of 15f and 15g). Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 44,164. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing: 42,442. I. Percent paid. Average percent of copies paid for the preceding 12 months: 85.9% Actual percent of copies paid for the preceding 12 months: 98.3% 16. Electronic Copy Circulation: A. Paid Electronic Copies. Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 0. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 0. B. Total Paid Print Copies (Line 15c) + Paid Electronic Copies (Line 16a). Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 28,958. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 28,724. C. Total Print Distribution (Line 15f) + Paid Electronic Copies (Line 16a). Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 33,718. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 29,229. D. Percent Paid (Both Print & Electronic Copies) (16b divided by 16c x 100). Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 85.9%. Actual number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 98.3%. I certify that 50% of all distributed copies (electronic and print) are paid above nominal price: Yes. Report circulation on PS Form 3526-X worksheet 17. Publication of statement of ownership will be printed in the February 2017 issue of the publication. 18. Signature and title of editor, publisher, business manager, or owner: David Steinhafel, Associate Publisher. I certify that all information furnished on this form is true and complete. I understand that anyone who furnishes false or misleading information on this form or who omits material or information requested on the form may be subject to criminal sanction and civil actions.
First recipient of the Air Force Medal of Honor By Doug Sterner
On March 9, 1966, some 2,000 North Vietnamese attacked the isolated A Shau Special Forces camp, defended by 17 Green Berets, 210 local militiamen and a company of Mobile Strike Force (Mike Force) troops. )QZ.WZKMMЄWZ\[\WLZWX[]XXTQM[M^IK]I\M_W]VLMLIVLMVOIOM\PMMVMUa_MZMUM\_Q\P_Q\PMZQVO OZW]VLÅZM7VM)+̆ O]V[PQX_I[[PW\LW_V\PM PMZWQ[UWN\PMXQTW\IVLKW̆XQTW\ZMÆMK\MLQVXW[\P]UW][)QZ.WZKM+ZW[[I_IZL[.Q^MIQZUMVZMKMQ^ML ;QT^MZ;\IZ[WV\PMJI\\TM¼[ÅZ[\LIa7VM_I[IV)̆- Skyraider pilot, Maj. Bernard Francis “Bernie” Fisher. Fisher, born Jan. 11, 1927, in San Bernardino, +ITQNWZVQI_I[I?WZTL?IZ116I^a^M\MZIV_PWPIL RWQVML\PM1LIPW6I\QWVIT/]IZLMVZWTTMLI\\PM =VQ^MZ[Q\aWN=\IP[QOVML]XNWZ\PM)QZ.WZKM:7<+ XZWOZIUIVLZMKMQ^MLPQ[KWUUQ[[QWVQV! 1V! .Q[PMZIVLPQ[_QNM:MITTIUW^ML\W\PM .TWZQLI8IVPIVLTM_PMZMPMTMIZVML\WÆa\PM ;SaZIQLMZI\0]ZTJ]Z\.QMTL,M[XQ\MJMQVOI[TW_̆ [XMMLXZWXMTTMZ̆LZQ^MVIQZKZIN\QV\PMRM\IOM\PM ;SaZIQLMZLQ[XTIaMLIL]ZIJQTQ\aIVLUIVM]^MZIJQTQ\a QLMITNWZTW_̆TM^MTÆQOP\IVLWJ[MZ^I\QWVQV>QM\VIU IT\PW]OPQ\_I[IVMI[a\IZOM\NWZMVMUaO]VVMZ[ .Q[PMZZMY]M[\MLL]\aQV>QM\VIUIVLQVUQL̆! _I[I[[QOVML\W\PM[\)QZ+WUUIVLW;Y]ILZWV1V 64
VIETNAM
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U.S. AIR FORCE
BERNIE FISHER
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