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INTRODUCTION
Who can say at what distant point in
the gulf of time will the tribes of man lay down their arms and
join hands in peace? That the time will not come easily or soon,
this we know. The tyrant chieftans will continue their ravages,
sinning against the earth as they do against each other and each
new generation will be required to bear brave men to check their
tyranny. Yet when the last tyrant falls into his mouldy grave, a
warrior from the Cherokee nation will step forth from the
resting place of his ancestors and stand alone on a mountain
somewhere in northern Georgia. His cry will ring clear and true
and the chambers of our souls will echo; CURRAHEE.
PREFACE
The year 1970 was not a good year for
the "Best of the Currahees." Any soldier will tell you that a
year of war is never good. But it was a proud year. You could
see it in the faces of the officers and enlisted men, pride?
Pride in themselves, pride in each other, pride in their unit.
1970 was a year when the Currahees of the 2d Battalion
(Airmobile) 506th Infantry stood alone as never before, It was
the year of the battle of Fire Base Ripcord. If ever in the
Vietnam conflict there was a forward edge of the battle area,
Fire Base Ripcord in the year 1970 was that forward edge.
Situated deep in the jungled mountains twenty miles northwest of
Hue, the Imperial City, Fire Base Ripcord practically overlooked
the frightening A Shau Valley. For the better part of the year
the 2d Battalion (Airmobile) 506th Infantry operated on and in
the vicinity of Ripcord. It was here that we met our enemy, the
NVA. And here also was where we experienced most of our
heartaches and frustrations, our successes and comradeship.
True, there were other places and actions. We began the year at
Fire Base Jack and during the year we knew others; Shepard,
Davis, Granite, Gladiator, O'Reilly, Katheryn, Rakkasan, and
Maureen. New places and old, we came to know them all but
Ripcord we knew best. It seems only fitting then, that the
thrust of this history be dedicated to the men of the 2d
Battalion (Airmobile) 506th Infantry who fought and died by
Ripcord and throughout the year of 1970.
HISTORY OF THE
2/506th INFANTRY FOR 1970
The dank chill of the northeast
monsoon brought a feeling of excitement to LTC Howard G. Crowell
Jr. as he watched the last lift of slicks drop his men on
Currahee Fad at Camp Evans. This would be an ambitious month, an
ambitious year. He quickly went over in his mind the operations
that were planned for the near future. Yes, they were going to
be aggressive operations and his Currahees would be taxed
heavily. The present stand-down would be a good time to review
techniques of operation and go over details with his company
commanders.
As Operation Jefferson Glen
carried over into the new year and rest and stand-down drew to
an end, the excitement mounted. Delta Company under Cpt Dwight
Walhood would go far and wide searching for the enemy. Two
artillery raids were planned for January and Delta Company would
make aggressive thrusts to Fire Base Shepard and Fire Base
Davis. The remainder of the battalion would operate in the
coastal plains region near Fire Base Jack. Cpt Vincent
Felletter, soon to turn Alpha Company over to Cpt Albert
Burkhart, would be responsible for the security of Fire Base
Jack. Bravo Company and Charlie Company were given search and
clear missions that would take them to the threshold of NVA
territory in the mountains south of Camp Evans. Cpt Glynn Hale
had turned his command of Charlie Company over to Cpt Isabellino
Vasquez-Rodriguez, a hardened campaigner who would undertake
some of the most successful operations of the new year. Cpt
Carmelito Arkangel Jr. commanding Bravo Company would lead his
Currahees through difficult times as the Battalion drove into
enemy territory.
The stage was set, the players
cast and the machinery of war awoke, ready to strike. And strike
the 2/506th did. The raid to Fire Base Shephard yielded little
in the way of action but the raid to Davis was a different
story. Delta company located and destroyed enemy caches, booby
traps and mine fields. As the 3rd Plt hovered into Davis to join
the remainder of Delta Company, enemy small arms fire met the
aircraft. Intense suppressive fire quickly discouraged the
enemy and he fled the area. Delta Company had found the enemy,
they would all live to find him again. Bravo Company in the
meantime was having a more difficult time. The VC and the NVA
seemed to avoid contact and instead employed booby traps to
harass and cause casualties to the men of Bravo. But Cpt
Arkangel's men were not to be denied their success. They had
found the enemy, they would kill him if they could. On 4
February the first platoon lay in wait along a freshly used
enemy trail. If the monsoon rains had dulled the senses of the
VC it had done just the opposite to the men laying in ambush.
They were fully alert as two VC crept silently down the trail.
When the last crack of the rifles echoed, two VC lay dead in the
kill zone.
Meanwhile, slipping silently
into terrain where few had ever been, the Battalion Recon
Platoon, working in six to eight men teams, accomplished
missions with heralded success. On 25 January and again on 27
January ambushes sprung by the platoon on unsuspecting NVA
resulted in two NVA dead. Again and again the Recon platoon
displayed their superior ability and by the end of March they
had accounted for another two NVA dead and numerous captured
weapons and documents. 1LT Gary Watrous had honed his men to a
keen fighting edge. It was an edge they would need in the very
near future.
Alpha and Charlie Companies had
a relatively quiet time during the month of January, but as the
cool rains introduced February, both units found themselves
heavily engaged with the enemy. Working ever deeper into the
mountains Charlie Company found the enemy. Death is an
unpleasant surprise to the unsuspecting. Exactly how many enemy
were unpleasantly surprised by Charlie Company is unknown but
from 7 February to 10 February the 2d Platoon of Charlie Company
ran roughshod over an estimated NVA platoon. Alpha ran into
stiff resistance on several occasions and sustained several
casualties due to NVA ambushes, mortar attacks and booby traps.
On 1 March Alpha started a short and fierce firefight that
yielded one NVA dead. The second of March found Charlie Company
again in contact resulting in one enemy dead. We had found the
enemy. Our insistent pounding on his front door had broken it
open. Soon, very soon, we would walk through.
Death is the handmaiden of the
Infantry soldier. We must all go to her sooner or later but the
Infantryman walks with her constantly. How well we tread with
her and how well we meet her certain destiny becomes the final
measure of a man.
The delta model huey settled
smoothly on Currahee Pad. A giant caricature of Snoopy, his dog
house riddled with mock bullet holes, sat daringly on top of the
control tower as LTC Andre C. Lucas walked from his helicopter
to the tactical operations center. On 4 March he had assumed
command of the 2d Battalion (Ambl) 506th Infantry from LTC
Howard G. Crowell. The Battalion was still working the coastal
plains region, occasionally breaking out of the piedmont into
the tropical rain forest that covered the first ridge lines of
the towering mountains southeast of Camp Evans. Very soon, LTC
Lucas knew, the Battalion would push deeply into those densely
vegetated peaks. Deeper than anyone had been in a long time. His
Currahees had found the enemy and they would now make an effort
to meet him in pitched battle before he could gain access to the
populated lowlands.
As Operation Randolph Glen drew
to a close, all companies in the Battalion experienced contact
with the enemy during their counter-insurgency operations. Alpha
on an exploratory insertion into Fire Base Ripcord on 12 March
received RPG, mortar and small arms fire. They withdrew after
taking moderate casualties. During the next five days Charlie
Company, acting as a blocking force along the Dong Ke Me ridge
line, engaged an estimated enemy company in a running fire
fight. Though the company received moderate casualties, the
enemy lost five confirmed dead, three of them sappers from the
dreaded K-12 Sapper Battalion. On Easter Sunday, 31 March,
Operation Randolph Glen ended.
Operation Texas Star began on 1
April. Texas Star, it was hoped, would take the fighting into
enemy territory causing him to make a stand before he could move
in strength to the lowlands. Delta Company now under the able
command of Cpt Rembert Rollison was on temporary loan to the
1/506 and were securing Fire Base Granite as Charlie Company
conducted a combat assault into what would shortly become Fire
Base Gladiator.
Fire Bases Granite and Gladiator
were the first step in the operation designed to enable our
forces to move deep into the mountains. On 1 April we again
combat assaulted by helicopter onto Ripcord. Bravo Company met
with even stiffer resistance than Alpha Company had two weeks
prior.
As RPG, mortar, recoilless
rifle, and small arms fire raked the cratered hilltop Bravo dug
in and prepared to hold. All the efforts of the Battalion were
directed toward the Ripcord area with the exception of Charlie
company still on Gladiator. Alpha company combat assaulted into
an LZ next to Ripcord and the Recon platoon under the command of
1LT John Wilson was inserted onto the hill with Bravo company.
Delta company was tasked to sweep south toward Ripcord and pass
eastward searching for enemy mortar and recoilless rifle
positions. As the day wore on it became apparent from the
mounting casualties that our position on Ripcord would become
vulnerable and extraction would be necessary. Elements from
Alpha moved by foot to the hill and aided in carrying off the
dead and evacuating the wounded. For the entire day Bravo
company, the Recon platoon and elements of Alpha company
remained in contact. Cobra gunships were continuously on station
providing suppressive fire as everything from log birds, command
and control ships and medevacs evacuated the wounded. Finally,
on 3 April all elements were extracted from Ripcord. Friendly
losses stood at six US killed and 21 US wounded. Ripcord was
still in enemy hands.
LTC Lucas, determined to take
Ripcord, intensified his efforts to clear out the enemy mortar
tubes and recoilless rifle positions surrounding the Fire Base.
On 4 April, Charlie company under the temporary command of 1LT
Charles Hawkins combat assaulted to an LZ neighboring Ripcord
secured by CPT Burkhart's men from Alpha. As Charlie company
jumped off the choppers they saw for themselves the damage that
the NVA had wrought. Men from the pathfinders, engineers and
other elements who were with the B company assault into Ripcord
crawled on the lift birds as the men from Charlie company got
off. Alpha continued southeast toward hill 805 as Charlie
company had been reinserted north of the Fire Base and Delta was
paralleling Charlie company to the south.
The operation now began to show
signs of success. Delta, Charlie and Alpha began uncovering
enemy bunkers and mortar positions. Contact was scattered and
brief; the enemy was withdrawing. On 10 April LTC Lucas decided
it was time to try and take Ripcord again. In the pre-dawn
darkness Charlie company crept forward to squad release points
and as the first pink streaks of the new day flashed across the
sky the hill top shuddered with the thud-boom of supporting
artillery and mortar fire. Charlie company assaulted, in squad
column first and then on line. They met no resistance as they
swept over the hill; as the first helicopters carrying supplies
moved onto the hill, the expected enemy mortar rounds were not
fired. The NVA had vanished, and Ripcord was won.
Charlie company dug in on the
hill the first month and Bravo company worked even harder on the
defense the second month. The Fire Base received incoming mortar
rounds on several occasions but casualties were light and
progress was not hampered. The timely arrival of cobra gunships
resulted in the destruction of several enemy mortar tubes and
crews. Throughout the remainder of April the Battalion worked
aggressively around Ripcord. Alpha and Delta companies engaged
the enemy in scattered contacts south of the Fire Base,
resulting in four NVA dead. Bravo company commanded now by Cpt
Bill Williams assumed control of Ripcord on 12 May and Charlie
Company combat assaulted into an LZ east of the Fire Base. The
successes in May initially went to Cpt Rollison's men in Delta.
From the 7th until the 11th
Delta company engaged the enemy who were in heavily fortified
positions along the Ko Va La Dut ridge line south of Ripcord.
The enemy fell back as Delta advanced. On 11 May intense enemy
mortar fire forced Delta company to withdraw. Skillfully
employing air strikes on known enemy locations Cpt Rollison and
the FAC pilots from Camp Evans pinpointed and destroyed many
enemy fortifications and an untold number of the enemy.
The Recon platoon, now led by
1LT Michael Doyle, was not to be denied their success either. On
26 May and again on 28 May their stealth and alertness paid off.
Four NVA fell from M-16 fire and one NVA was taken prisoner.
During the month numerous bunker
complexes and cache sites were located and destroyed. Captured
enemy material, documents and equipment increased as the "Best
of the Currahees" continued their operations in formerly NVA
controlled territory.
During the month of June the
Battalion operations continued unopposed. Alpha company, now
commanded by Cpt Charles Hawkins, engaged the enemy of two
occasions west and southwest of Ripcord. After brief contact the
enemy fled. On 16 June Alpha company assumed control of Fire
Base O'Rielly from the ARVN, and Delta replaced Bravo company on
Ripcord. Charlie company, now led by Cpt Thomas Hewitt, achieved
the most success during June accounting for three NVA dead.
Alpha company received one Chieu Hoi on Fire Base O'Rielly on 21
June.
During the latter part of June
it became apparent that the NVA were preparing for a large
offensive in the Ripcord area. Intercepted enemy radio
transmissions, captured documents, and agent reports all
indicated that Ripcord was due to come under attack soon. We all
felt destiny pushing at our backs, there was little we could do
except prepare to meet it bravely.
On 30 June 3d Brigade received
an intelligence report that indicated that Ripcord would come
under attack by 1 July. The information was quickly forwarded to
LTC Lucas on the Fire Base. If it were true the Fire Base didn't
have much to worry about; it was the best in I Corps, wasn't it?
The bunkers with connecting fighting positions were well
fortified and everything was deeply under the ground. If the
enemy wanted a fight, the Currahees would certainly give it to
them.
The companies in the field were
of greater concern since they existed in a more exposed
environment. Yet they were all confident, wary but confident.
Wasn't this the reason that the Battalion had driven deep into
the mountains to meet the enemy, to take the fight to his
backyard and defeat him? Certainly; and they were going to do
just that.
Alpha company was still of Fire
Base O'Reilly, Delta company was securing Ripcord, Bravo company
was operating southwest of the Fire Base and Charlie company was
securing Hill 805, to the south-west. The Battalion Recon
platoon was operating on a wide front northeast, east, and
southeast of the Fire Base. The Echo company mortars had six
tubes on Ripcord and three on 0'Reilly. The mortar crews worked
around the clock firing defensive targets during the night and
"movement" preparations during the day. The 2/506 had invested
two and a half months of labor on Ripcord, and an estimated
fifty thousand dollars worth of defensive wire had been laid.
On several occasions the enemy
sappers had attempted to infiltrate the perimeter at Ripcord
only to fail. One captured document stated that twenty-two
members of sapper recon teams had died while attempting to
breach the wire during reconnaissance missions. A ground attack
against Ripcord would be suicidal, or would it?
Shortly after 0600 hours on 1
July. the sun rose slowly in the east sending yellow hot shafts
of light lancing into the cloudless heavens. Fog hung low in the
valley scudding around mountain islands as it moved before the
strong morning breezes. It premised to be another beautiful day.
Elsewhere in the Ripcord area
the beauties of the morning were lost on certain individuals.
NVA recoilless rifle crews were too busy consulting their
watches and checking their firing data. Perhaps occasionally one
of the North Vietnamese soldiers would glance east-ward and
think about his own particular god but the work at hand claimed
most of his attention. At 0702 hours enemy gunners to the
southeast of Ripcord chambered their deadly missies into the
breach of their weapons and scuttled for their bunkers. They
would have less than a minute to get under cover. At 0730 Fire
Base Ripcord erupted as the enemy recoilless scattered debris
and sending shrapnel singing through the air. The siege of
Ripcord had begun.
Miraculously no one was injured
in the initial barrage but after eight successive heavy weapons
and indirect fire attacks throughout the day six US personnel
were evacuated for wounds. The enemy were employing 75mm
recoilless rifles, 60mm and 82mm mortars, as well as RPG's and
small arms fire against the Fire Base and late in the day two
Chinook helicopters had been shot down.
Throughout the day Charlie
company, from its vantage point on hill 902, was able to listen
to the pop of enemy mortar tubes and direct accurate artillery
and gunship fire on these locations. Charlie company was proving
to be a definite thorn in the enemy's side. That thorn, however,
was shortly to be removed.
No one can really accurately
record all that happens at various command levels during battle.
No matter how good the system or the organization, there is
always the matter of human frailty and error. Reports are often
missent, or forwarded and never received and some are neglected.
The error may be due to a wrong letter used in code or be the
result of a tired or overwrought commander and sometimes it may
even be the fault of a negligent radio operator or supervisor.
At any rate, an intelligence report concerning the strong
probability of an enemy sapper attack against Charlie company
was never mentioned to LTC Lucas and certainly did not reach Cpt
Hewitt in his field location. Such is the "fog of war" as
Napoleon once said and from such errors are battles won or lost.
In the pre-dawn hours, when the
night is darkest, man's body and soul are at their lowest ebb.
Superstition and fears make men more susceptible at this time
than at any other. At 0345 hours, early in the morning of 2
July, exactly three hours prior to day-break, the NVA launched a
company size sapper attack against Charlie company's defensive
position on top of hill 902.
It is possible that no one in
Charlie company knew what was happening even when it did
happen. The sappers came silently at first, dressed only in
shorts and carrying small satchel charges, their bodies painted
black against the night. With the sudden violence of exploding
satchel charges it was impossible to tell whether the company
was under mortar attack or whether sappers had actually breached
the perimeter. Many men died before they fully realized what was
happening, others fearing a mortar barrage clambered into their
foxholes where they too died from the accurately thrown charges.
A sapper attack is always supported by infantry, either to cover
the withdrawal or to press the advantage to final victory. When
the small arms and RPG fire began Charlie company reacted. Men
fought like demons. Cpt Hewitt was mortally wounded and in his
place stepped the CP medic, SP4 Cafferty and a CP radio
operator, SGT Jack Dreher. The perimeter had been breached and
the dangerous task of clearing the enemy from inside
as well as fighting them from out,
fell to these and a few other daring individuals. One by one the
enemy died or fell back as the men from Charlie company fought
back. 1LT Vancleve, the company forward observer, came out of
shock caused by the same RPG round that had killed Cpt Hewitt
and directed cobra gunships and artillery.
***[ correction to this statement
made by Steve Manthei, Don Holthausen, Bob Tarbuck on 3/22/2010
***
"Radio transmissions
from Hill 902 were made by Donald Holthausen, and Steve Manthei.
Steve Manthei directed air support.]
SP4 Muller, a team
leader in second platoon fought alone in his fighting position,
reporting his situation occasionally over the only radio his
platoon had left. When the fire fight was finally over Muller,
exhausted and weak from multiple wounds, had seven enemy dead in
front of his foxhole. In all, the battle on hill 902 had lasted
over an hour. Eight members of Charlie company had died and
scores were wounded but the enemy casualties too had been heavy,
20 enemy dead dotted the slopes of hill 902, and countless blood
trails led off through the jungle.
Even as Cpt Jeff Wilcox took
over the reins of Charlie company and they were combat assaulted
to another location, Ripcord continued to receive incoming
mortar and recoilless rifle rounds. During the day another
Chinook helicopter was shot down on the Fire base but only one
U3 soldier was wounded. The well constructed bunkers and
fighting positions were seeing maximum use. There was, as yet no
sign of a ground attack.
Bravo company, still working
southeast of Ripcord and now commanded by Cpt Benjamin Peters
saw limited action on several occasions killing three enemy and
capturing a 12.7mm machine gun on hill 805. 1LT Romig, now in
charge of the recon platoon, continued successful ambush
operations killing several NVA. The siege continued for the next
several days with no significant changes in the tactical
situation. Then on 6 July, as one of 1LT Romig's recon teams
approached hill 1000 to the west of Ripcord they heard the
sounds of enemy mortar tubes firing and the NVA talking.
Bravo company assumed control of
Ripcord early on the 6th and Delta company went to the west,
toward hill 1000 and the recon team. The recon team had been
ordered forward to gather more information on the enemy
locations and strength. As the recon team drew closer to the
enemy, they were spotted and engaged with small arms fire and
RPG's. With several wounded the team, now ineffective, drew back
to a secure location as Delta company moved forward. Cpt
Rollison sent a two squad attack force forward to attempt to
recover some of the equipment left by the recon team. Then Cpt
Rollison, deciding that there was more on hill 1000 than met the
eye. ordered the two squads to return and requested a heavy
artillery preparation on top of the hill. The artillery was not
long in coming; and for one hour 105mm, 155nun, and 8 inch
rounds impacted on the enemy locations.
With gunships on station Cpt
Rollison led his entire company forward in a determined assault
on hill 1000. After roughly an hour of contact Delta company had
managed to flank what they thought to be the enemy's major
element. Small Light Observation Helicopters equipped with the
dreaded mini guns flew low over the contact area providing
suppressive fire and observation of the battle area. As Delta
company systematically engaged the enemy in his bunkers the
LOH's noted that an increasing amount of enemy fire was coming
from the west and southwest of Delta's location. Cpt Rollison
now realized that the bulk of the enemy's forces were not where
he was presently heavily engaged. Delta company had managed to
surround five heavily fortified bunkers that were only part of a
much larger bunker complex. The men of Delta had little choice
but to withdraw. The withdrawal, however, was not an easy one.
Cpt Rollison had several men wounded and two killed, his unit
had been in contact now for the better part of two hours and
they were running low on fragmentation grenades and smoke
grenades. In a daring maneuver LTC Lucas loaded cases of smoke
and fragmentation grenades on his C&C ship and returned to the
scene of the contact. Flying at an extremely low altitude and
drawing enemy automatic weapons fire all the way, he hovered
over Cpt Rollison's location and dropped the necessary ordinance
to him. LTC Lucas and the pilot got away unscathed, the
helicopter received seven hits and Delta company with the aid of
the smoke grenades, frags and air strikes withdrew to a secure
area. The attack was not without it's successes, however. Delta
company had killed seven enemy.
Throughout that night and during
the next morning, hill 1000 was pounded again and again with air
strikes and artillery. Charlie company moved from a location
northwest of the fire Base where they had been experiencing
light contact to assist Delta company in a second assault on the
hill. The second assault was as ferocious as the first. Delta
and Charlie company managed to advance only slightly farther
than the day before. The enemy had dug in so well that only a
direct hit from a 500 lb or 250 lb bomb would destroy their
bunkers. As friendly casualties increased it became apparent
that hill 1000 was not going to be taken that day or any other.
Delta and Charlie company withdrew under cover of air strikes
and cobra gunships. Late in the afternoon, after the contact,
LTC Lucas landed and discussed operations with Cpt Rollison and
Cpt Wilcox. He determined at that time that the efforts against
hill 1000 would be too costly to justify further assaults. Delta
company was combat assaulted on the morning of the 9th to the
O'Reilly area and Charlie company was moved back east of
Ripcord. That night and the next day time on target artillery
preparations were called on hill 1000 but American forces no
longer ventured up its scarred slopes. Ripcord continued to take
incoming mortar and recoilless rifle rounds.
Alpha company had been on Fire
Base 0'Reilly for three weeks and had not yet been involved in
any of the contact around Ripcord since the siege had begun.
Ever since the battle of hill 1000 had started, however, they
had been standing by with their rucksacks ready, waiting for the
word to go. On 10 July Cpt Hawkins got the word and Alpha
company combat assaulted to an LZ secured by Charlie company.
Charlie company then assumed control of Fire Base O'Reilly.
Working just east of Ripcord, Alpha company was tasked to
conduct a two company assault against hill 805 to the southeast
of Ripcord. Delta company, 2d Bn 501st would join Alpha in the
assault. On the 12th hill 805 was secured. Delta 2/501 secured
the hilltop itself and Alpha dug in on an LZ some 200 meters
west. Light contact had been experienced during the assault and
numerous bunkers had been destroyed.
Perhaps the enemy did not
realize that two companies had dug in on hill 805. Hill 805
offered excellent observation of Ripcord and much of the
surrounding area. The commanders knew that the enemy occupied
the area, but just how many no one was sure. That night at
approximately 2030 hours, mechanical ambushes that Cpt Straub's
men of Delta 2/501 had placed out began to detonate. At 2045
Delta 2/501's perimeter on the top of the hill erupted with the
crash of enemy mortar and RPG rounds. Small arms fire exchanged
back and forth between the opposing forces. Strangely enough,
Alpha company did not initially come under attack, though they
were only 200 meters from the scene of the contact. As Alpha
company observed the muzzle flashes of enemy rifles and the fire
trails left by the RPG's, Cpt Hawkins realized that his men were
in a perfect position to provide supporting fire against two of
the three avenues of approach that the enemy was using in his
assault against Delta 2/501. As Alpha company poured heavy fire
into the ranks of the attacking enemy, they too began to receive
small arms and RPG fire. The enemy, however, not knowing Alpha's
exact location, was ineffective. The contact heavy mortar, small
arms, RPG and heavy machine gun fire. Cpt Don Workman managed to
move his company some six hundred meters off the LZ into a
defensive perimeter. His position, due to mounting casualties
soon would be vulnerable. Cpt Workman, with several men killed
and more than half the company wounded called for assistance.
Cpt Rollison and Delta company were alerted and thirty minutes
later they were combat assaulted into another LZ near Delta
1/506. Charlie company, now commanded by Cpt Kenneth Lamb combat
assaulted right behind Delta company and secured the LZ in
preparation for the extraction. As Delta company's lead elements
tumbled from the lift birds they ran into a hale of small arms
fire. Quickly returning fire they drove the enemy off but not
before several had been killed and a 51 cal. heavy machine gun
had been captured. The next few hours of the afternoon were
hellish as Cpt Rollison and his men pushed toward Cpt Workman's
beleaguered Infantrymen. Just as darkness closed on the LZ the
final lift helicopters had extracted all three units. Casualties
in Delta 1/506 were heavy but our own Delta and Charlie
companies experienced light casualties.
Alpha company, in the meantime,
had been sliding silently deeper and deeper into enemy
territory. They destroyed numerous bunkers and as they
progressed farther to the southeast the size of the enemy
bunkers increased. By midmorning on the 20th the men of Alpha
company had moved to the base of hill 805. Cpt Hawkins had moved
part of his company across a river that ran south by the base of
hill 805 and set the remainder of his men in ambush posture on
the bank above the stream. At approximately 1200 one of the
forward elements found a high speed trail that showed signs of
recent use and running next to the trail a string of commo wire.
The lead element had already rigged a wire tapping device and
had set up a hasty ambush by the time the CP and interpreter
arrived. For five hours the wire tap yielded information to the
interpreter and one of the Kit Carson Scouts. Contact was
initiated twice during the wire tap but they continued gathering
valuable information. In the meantime the remainder of the
company initiated two far ambushes on watering parties as they
approached the stream. The information that had been gathered
from the wire tap indicated that an entire NVA division, and not
just two regiments, as was previously thought, was waiting to
attack Ripcord. Also relayed was the fact that the Division
headquarters was at one end of the commo wire and a regimental
headquarters was at the other. The night was uneventful and
heavy artillery rained in on the suspected enemy base camp
locations. On the 21st reconnaissance elements from Alpha
company returned toward the scene of the previous day
activities. They had gone only a short distance when contact was
initiated with three enemy. Two were killed and the teams
returned. Later in the day an out post for a day defensive
position spotted two NVA. Well aimed fire by SP/4 Journell
killed one of the enemy. A search of his body revealed diagrams
and a plan of attack for the NVA to use against Ripcord.
Journell had killed a courier to the NVA Division Commander.
Alpha company waited until dark and then moved some 200 meters
to a defensive perimeter. Here they would wait until early
morning when Cpt Hawkins planned to move west and cross a river
in an attempt to get out of the NVA infested area. This plan,
unfortunately, was never to materialize.
At higher headquarters radios
and phone lines were alive with traffic. Command and Control
helicopters constantly over flew the Ripcord area. On the
evening of the 21st, General Sidney Berry, the Division
Commander in the absence of Major General John Hennesee, made a
difficult decision. Ripcord would be evacuated. LTC Lucas was
notified and plans for the evacuation were drawn up and the
Battalion prepared to execute the evacuation on the 23d of July.
Charlie and Delta company were already at Camp Evans after
aiding Delta 1/506. This left only the few personnel on Ripcord
and Alpha company to bring in.
At 0900 Cpt Hawkins received a
coded message from LTC Lucas ordering Alpha company to return to
an LZ location just east of Ripcord. At 1245 the lead element
had moved out of the perimeter and to the north. They had moved
about 100 meters when the point man engaged three enemy at 20
meters. As the enemy died the platoon moved forward to exploit
their success. In the next thirty seconds success for Alpha
company came to a screaming, bloody halt.
The lead element had assaulted
into the flank security of an NVA Battalion. At the same time
the main assault force made a human wave attack with supporting
mortar fire against the remainder of Alpha company. Outnumbered
6 to 1 Alpha company battled against these odds for the entire
afternoon. Often without communications and frequently
surrounded the men of Alpha company fought as their brothers had
fought on hill 1000 hill 902 and on Ripcord itself. Continuous
air strikes consisting of 250 lb bombs and napalm plus constant
gunship cover eventually broke the brunt of the enemy attack and
Alpha company slowly pulled back together in a defensive
perimeter.
As darkness fell an attempt to
insert Delta company was aborted due to burning napalm on the
landing zone. Cpt Rollison and his men would try again at first
light to move in and assist Alpha company.
On the 23d of July Delta company
was successful in landing and reached Alpha company in short
order. An LZ was cut and Cpt Rollison and Cpt Hawkins prepared
their men for extraction. The evacuation of Ripcord, meanwhile,
was going smoothly. The artillerymen and their guns were removed
first followed by the remainder of other personnel. A constant
stream of helicopters hovered into Ripcord and back out carrying
their precious cargo to safety even under the nearly continuous
fire of enemy gunners. Miraculously, very few men were injured
during the extraction and only three killed. The enemy, however,
had dealt one final blow to the "Best of the Currahees." LTC
Lucas landed on Ripcord after the extraction had started in
order to help supervise. As he stood discussing the operation
with his S-3 Major Tanner, a 120mm mortar round landed killing
Major Tanner instantly and mortally wounding LTC Lucas. The
battle of Ripcord was over.
The cost had been high. Twelve
of Alpha's finest men lay dead and an additional 50 had been
wounded. The enemy too had paid heavily in the contact. Sixty
five NVA soldiers had gone to meet their fate and a large amount
of NVA equipment lay scattered over the battlefield. Alpha
company would be combat effective in a week with new
replacements. The NVA Battalion would wait months for
replacements to filter down the Ho Chi Minh trail before they
would be ready to fight again.
While the evacuation of Ripcord
was in process BG Berry was constantly in the air over the Fire
Base in his C&C helicopter. At one point when things seemed to
go a bit rough for the men on the hill BG Berry radioed the
Tactical Operations Center on Ripcord and asked if there was any
particular assistance they needed. The TOC radio operator with a
casualness that is typical of man in a tight situation answered
back, "No sweat sir, we'll get out of this shit." And they did.
For an entire week after the evacuation heavy concentrations of
artillery and countless air strikes shook the ground around
Ripcord. Ripcord was over and as the enemy scuttled for cover
and areas away from the incessant bombardment, the men of the
2/506th uttered one word common to all. CURRAHEE.
The first six months of the year
had seen the battalion perform successfully against the enemy.
The last half of the year was different. We ran into very few
enemy to perform successfully against. It was a relatively
quite time for all and for some a much needed respite.
LTC John C. Bard assumed command
of the Best of the Currahees after LTC Lucas' death and the
battalion moved to Fire Bases Katheryn and Rakkasan in August
and September. Delta company traded hands as Cpt Rollison became
the Battalion S-4 and Cpt Frank Wilson stepped into his place.
We experienced practically no contact with the enemy until early
in October.
Delta company had one platoon
led by 1LT James Warren sweeping north toward a ridge line just
three kilometers north of Fire Base Rakkasan when the point man
encountered an enemy bunker. In the short but fierce fire fight
that ensued several men were wounded and LT Warren withdrew his
men and called artillery and gunships in on the enemy location.
Later in the month Delta company found NVA graves and booby
traps in the same area.
On 11 October Alpha company left
Rakkasan and moved into an area adjacent to where Delta company
had made contact the week prior. For five days the men of Alpha
company made sporadic contact with the enemy and encountered
several booby traps. Finally, on the l8th several NVA were
spotted just before dark carrying heavy rucksacks only 300
meters from Alpha company's perimeter. The enemy were engaged
with small arms fire and gunships were employed. One NVA was
killed. Again on the 24th Alpha company initiated another
contact with an NVA carrying party.
SP4 Dennis Counts led a six man
ambush into location along a recently used enemy trail two
kilometers north of Fire Base Rakkasan. Just as darkness fell
the ambush was finally set. Throughout the long night the men
waited and when morning came they waited still, not moving or
eating. At 0830 five NVA crept south along the trail, widely
dispersed and cautious. Counts waited until the last three enemy
had entered his kill zone and then initiated the ambush by
detonating a claymore mine. Two of the enemy fell in the
following hale of small arms fire and the other three dropped
their rucksacks and fled south. It was a quiet time but there
were still enemy to be found.
The area of operations remained
quiet and the Battalion combat assaulted into a new area to the
west of Rakkasan just north of the familiar Gladiator. Charlie
company began running into booby traps as did several recon
teams now led by 1LT Robert Seitz. As October stretched into
November Charlie company pushed farther and farther west into
virgin territory.
Soon enemy caves, bunker
complexes and cache sites began to be uncovered. Charlie company
pressed on, engaging the enemy on several occasions. The enemy,
however, appeared to have no desire to make a stand and
continued to flee the area. Cpt Lamb and his men were finally
extracted and the area was subjected to a heavy bombardment of
artillery and air-strikes. During much of Charlie company's
operations. LTC Bard was with them on the ground and once
received minor wounds from an exploding booby trap.
On 13 November Delta company,
while conducting a combat assault, was engaged by enemy small
arms fire and RPG's. Two members of Delta company died and
several were wounded. As cobra gunships rolled in the enemy
fled.
On 19 November the Battalion
returned to Camp Evans for a stand-down; LTC Bard moved up to
fill the Division G-3 slot and LTC Joe F. Bellochi assumed
command. November and December were big months of changing
commands. Cpt Hawkins became the Battalion S-1 and Cpt Samuel H.
Wrightson took over Alpha company. Cpt Wilson left for Division
and Cpt Peter A. Vanderland became the Delta company commander.
Cpt Lamb left for a job at Division G-3. Cpt Frank Lynch assumed
control of Charlie company and Cpt Peters turned over Bravo to
Cpt Carl Jensen.
The year was over. |
