Plane that took me to Vietnam refueling in Hawaii.
001 My first home (in Quan Loi)
002 Me and Major Weaver at the 3rd Brigade TOC in Quan Loi. Major Weaver was later killed in a helicopter crash.
003 Grunts in Quan Loi. Mud was about 1 foot deep or better.
004 Mess tent in Quan Loi. Colonel's jeep in foreground.
005 Runway at Quan Loi. Look closely at the left hand side and you will see a large truck sliding sideways in the mud.
006 Bar right outside of perimeter at Quan Loi made from used ammo boxes.
007 An Loc city center (I think)
008 An Loc (I think)
009 Me in An Loc
010 Main Gate, Tan Uyen. Full of bullet holes.
011 Vietnamese Headquarters at Tan Uyen
012 Setting up a radio station at Tan Uyen. We relieved a unit from the 9th Infantry. Within one hour or arriving, we were ordered to tear down and the 9th to set back up.
013 POW compund at Tan Uyen.
014 Position overlooking the Mekong River
015 Mekong River with Patrol Boat tied up.
016 Boy working in a shop at Tan Uyen.
017 Me smoking a cigar. I was smoking 3 packs of cigarettes a day at that time.
018 Vietnamese school. Note the concertina around it.
019 Getting map overlays at Chon Thanh
020 Tanker taking a shower along Highway 13. Note water bottle on gun barrel.
021 2/2 Mechanized provided cover for withdrawal of a unit from the field which I co-ordinated.
022 Vietnamese boy watching us work. (I gave him some C-rations)
023 Hay cart on Highway 13 at Lai Khe.
024 Perimeter at Lai Khe
025 Civil Affairs in Lai Khe village.
026 Civil Affairs in Lai Khe village.
027 Civil Affairs in Lai Khe village.
028 Handing out candy.
029 And cool-aid.
030 Catholic church in Phu Cuong.
031 Taxi anyone?
032 Lambretta's at the local Shell station.
033 Marketplace at Phu Cuong (I think)
034 Phu Cuong (I think)
035 Phu Cuong (I think)
036 Sampans. Note the color of the water. I saw people urinate off of one end of the boat, and then draw drinking water from the other end.
037 Wayside temple (found all over the place.)
038 My counterpart on a “Ruff-Puff” (Regional Forces, Popular Forces) operation.
039 Wives and children of the soldiers.
040 They lined up just like we did in OCS.
041 Moving into the tree line.
042 About 10 minutes after this, the shooting started.
043 Searching a village.
044 Vietnamese OCS where the candidates got on the job training.
045 A cow path led to this bridge being built by the American's.
046 Convoy on Highway 13.
047 Highway 13 north out of Lai Khe after the Rome Plows did their job.
048 Field with cemetery along Highway 13.
049 Rice paddy along Highway 13.
050 Water Buffalo along Highway 13.
051 Cow wash along Highway 13.
052 Girl begging for food holding a baby along Highway 13.
053 Hootch along Highway 13.
054 Vietnamese store along Highway 13.
055 Vietnamese store along Highway 13.
057 Bridge in Ben Cat. Note bunker. There was one on each end. They didn't do much good.
058 Payday for Vietnamese workers at Lai Khe.
059 Payday for Vietnamese workers at Lai Khe.
060 Payday for Vietnamese workers at Lai Khe.
061 Barmaid “Ho Chi Lien.”
062 Bob Hope arriving at Lai Khe.
063 Bob Hope convoy to stage area.
064 Men waiting to see Bob Hope.
065 Camera's were set up to film the show and we couldn't see a damn thing.
066 The show was done for the audience in the United States, NOT for us. I NEVER watched Bob Hope again.
067 George Romney arriving at lai Khe.
068 He told the truth. He WAS brainwashed by the military.
069 We were fed turkey and dressing on checkered tableclothes. The food and tableclothes disappeared as soon as he left.
070 Third Brigade Commander's villa at Lai Khe after sapper attack. Seageant Major was sleeping in the bed visable in the second story.
071 The whole corner of the building was destroyed.
072 Note furniture blown off of the porch.
073 RPG (rocket propelled grenade) holes in nearby building.
074 My maintenance shed after a sapper attack.
075 One of my men was on guard duty right outside the door when it blew up.
076 I had to file paperwork for a new 3/4 ton truck.
077 My jeep is in there somewhere. Had to file paperwork for it too.
078 Nighthawk choppers after sapper attack.
079 HHQ First Sergeant and Pilot inspecting the damage.
080 It needs some repair. Paperwork probably had to be filed.
081 Vietnamese villager sleeping here was the only casualty of the attack.
082 Me digging a new bunker. There were rumors of impending attacks.
083 Finished product right outside of my hootch which I rarely got to stay in.
084 New Brigade TOC (Tactical Operations Center) under construction.
085 Nighthawk chopper pilot with captured 122mm Katyusha rocket. He was certifiably insane.
086 MARS (Military Affiliate Radio Station) hit by 122mm rocket.
087 Some of my men making repairs to the antenna on the roof.
088 Repairing phone lines damaged by 81mm mortar at Brigade Headquarters.
089 What schrapnel does. This is why we were digging.
090 Air Force FAC (Forward Air Controller) jeep destroyed by schrapnel. It was FULL of tiny holes.
091 APC (Armored Personnel Carrier) sent to protect Brigade Hqs. during rumored ground assault.
092 They sent a tank too.
093 Tree hit by 122mm rocket.
094 Limbs fell all around the latrine.
095 Me in Easter's hole. SP5 Easter was within a week of leaving Vietnam and said “lightening don't strike twice in the same place” and intended to spend his remaining time in this hole made by a 122mm rocket. It took some coaxing to get him out. (you can see his rifle on the right)
096 Ammo dump at Lai Khe exploding.
097 Shell casings littered the ground and were thrown all over the base camp.
098 Bulldozers were brought in to bury the unexploded ammunition.
099 Crater nearly 20 feet deep made by the explosion.
100 101st Airborne Hqs. at Phu Loi.
101 POW compound at Phu Loi.
102 Me at Phu Loi. Note radio covered with my shirt...we were trying to keep it from burning up in the heat. I, on the other hand, ended up with a fairly severe sunburn.
103 I don't remember exactly where this was, but it was the hottest place I have ever been in my life.
104 The white sand reflected the heat right back in your face. (some of my men setting up a radio station)
105 We attempted to make a home like the grunts did.
106 This is how the professionals did it.
107 Another view of professional work.
108 Don't know where this was, but the resupply helicopter is dropping a water tank. Note the artillery aiming stakes.
109 Me on a mission to Song Be.
110 Scenery near Song Be. Reminded me of places I had been in Alabama.
111 Montangards filling sandbags outside of Song Be. If you look closely, you will see one in a loincloth and one with a bone in his hair.
112 Perimeter of Artillery compound at Song Be.
113 175mm Self Propelled artillery piece at Song Be. The guns were the only things above ground. I watched them aim down the barrel of this gun to fire on the hillside in the background. It was too close to plot a trajectory for a weapon that would fire a round 30 miles or so.
114 Twin 50's mounted on a truck chassis.
115 Four Deuce (4.2 inch) mortar.
116 105 Howitzers setting up. Note men filling sandbags (I felt sorry for the artillery guys...they were ALWAYS filling or emptying sandbags when not firing the guns) and the ammunition ready for IMMEDIATE use.
117 Chainsaws were not available, so this tree was blown down with C-4 explosives so the VC couldn't use it as an aiming point.
118 Tank that hit a land mine.
119 Cholon after TET. The First Infantry had to run the VC out and pretty much destroyed the place in the process.
120 Cholon. Note the bullet holes in the buildings and the post in the immediate foreground.
121 MASH (Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) set up at Lai Khe.
122 Wards were inflated with huge compressors behind the buildings. When the rockets started landing, they pulled the plug, deflated everything and left Lai Khe.
123 Latrine at Lai Khe. A cut-off 55 gallon drum was put under the seat to catch the feces. Once collected, kerosene was poured on it and set on fire. The smell was pretty bad until you got used to it.
124 Shower at Lai Khe. An immersion heater was put in one barrel to heat the water. The resulting stream was usually luke warm and nasty (barrels were full of leaves and rust). Once again, you got used to it.
125 Back of Brigade Hqs. at Lai Khe.
126 Third Brigade Commo Platoon shack at Lai Khe. Towards the end of my tour, instructions came down to “dress things up” so we had to make it look stateside.The picket fence is made from Ammo Boxes...the ubiquitous building material.
127 Things might be “dressed up” in front, but in back was a cannabalized jeep we turned into a generator for our radios.
128 One of my men at the 121st Signal Battalion Hqs. Note the rubber trees, which Lai Khe was full of.
129 Going away party for the Brigade Signal Officer. His third, and according to him, LAST, assignment to Vietnam.
130 Our mascot. When his ears perked up, it was time to RUN LIKE HELL for a bunker. The rockets would be landing in a matter of seconds.
131 Commo Platoon, 3rd Brigade, 1st Infantry. Far right is Platoon Sergeant Berge' who got a “Dear John” from his wife of many years and went AWOL in Vietnam and was still missing when I left.
132 OCS classmate Greg Hammond returning from R&R. The disgusted look on his face is caused by the bodies being unloaded from a chopper just off screen.
133 Me at the runway in Lai Khe. I just got off of the Caribou aircraft in the background.
134 Loading a C-123 for a mission.
135 Huey Cobra gunship.
136 The workhorse of the air, CH-47. Also known as a “shit hook”.
137 I believe Phu Loi was the home of the CH-47's that we used.
138 LOH (Light Observation Helicopter) at refueling bladder (in immediate foreground) at Lai Khe.
139 Huey Slicks and a CH-47 at the “taxi” station in Di An. If you wanted to go somewhere, you waited until a chopper showed up going in your direction and hopped on.
140 Revetments for slicks (don't remember where)
141 Pilot of an LOH.
142 Resettlement camp from the air.
143 Resettlement camp from the ground. No wonder the Vietnamese hated them.
144 Vietnam from the air.
145 Rice paddies from the air. Note the round area. It is a bomb crater made by an American aircraft. They could be found everywhere.
146 Vietnam from the air.
147 Vietnam from the air.
148 Lai Khe from the air.
149 Slicks coming in to land at Lai Khe.
150 Another view of Lai Khe from the air.
151 Lai Khe.
152 Near Saigon with air strike in the distance. (look for column of smoke)
153 What a B-52 does best.
154 Outskirts of Saigon
155 Saigon
156 Near Tan Son Nhut airport.
157 Right outside the entrance to Tan Son Nhut.
158 Tan Son Nhut terminal.
159 It was time to go home.
160 The last I saw of Vietnam.
