Anti-Communist Ally: An ROK Veteran Shares His War Story

INTERVIEW
Ann-Margret on
Supporting Vets

OPERATION THU NDER HEAD / 19 7 2

THE LAST POW RESCUE MISSION OF THE WAR

gers
Shadows & Stsin
h ips that
n
Two u n li kely g uthe enemy
ra ined fi re on
ountr y
Duty, Honor,ibCute to a
A sold ier’s tr de the
mentor who maif ice
u ltimate sacr

WINTER 2024
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 ON THE COVER
The last POW rescue
mission of the war sent
Navy SEAL divers on a
perilous underwater
journey to the coastline
of North Vietnam.
COVER: MATT PORTEOUS/GETTY
IMAGES, PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY
WINTER 2024 BRIAN WALKER; INSET: SCREEN
ARCHIVES/GETTY IMAGES

20 OPERATION
THUNDERHEAD
When a group of American POWs vowed
to escape from the Hanoi Hilton in 1972,
the U.S. Navy SEALs were sent on a
daring mission to bring them home.
By Carl O. Schuster

U.S. Navy divers are shown submerged

off the coast of Vietnam. Operation
Thunderhead called for SEAL and UDT
personnel to get to their mission site
via submarine and submersibles.

2 VIETNAM
 6 Intel  :MÆMK\QWV[ “My father was
Ann-Margret Interview,
VVA Award for Miss America,
I Remember Willie: A Tribute to a
Fallen Comrade, Wrong Call Signs: taken North...
Medal of Honor for Vietnam Vet Different Rules for Generals? and we never
12 Tactics 56 Media Digest saw him again.”
Land Mine Warfare 64 Hall of Valor —See story, page 50
14 Arsenal How Brice H. Barnes rescued more
Mark VII Swimmer Delivery Vehicle than 50 civilians during a battle

SHADOWS AND STINGERS

These bulky cargo planes were transformed into
PIZJQVOMZ[WNLMILTaÅZMXW_MZZIQVQVOPMTTWV
the enemy from the skies over Vietnam.
By Barry Levine

36

28
“DUTY, HONOR, COUNTRY”
After graduating from the U.S. Military Academy
at West Point, Chuck Butler served in Korea and
Vietnam, caring for and inspiring his comrades.
By John D. Howard

A VIETNAM WAR PERSPECTIVE

FROM SOUTH KOREA
ROKAF Col. Han Jin-Hwan volunteered to go to
>QM\VIU\WIQL\PM=;IVLÅOP\KWUU]VQ[U
He shares his story with us in an interview.
By M.G. Haynes

44
THE ART OF PERSUASION
Both North Vietnam and South Vietnam used
elaborate propaganda posters in attempts to
sway the hearts of local people. By Larry Porges 50
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WINTER 2024 VOL. 36, NO. 3
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 HONORING YOUR SERVICE — VETERANS COMMEMORATIVES™ INTRODUCES OUR MULTI-FUNCTIONAL

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VVA AWARD
FOR MISS
AMERICA,1972
R
eaders of Vietnam magazine will recall our Spring 2023 “Reflec-
tions” story featuring the recollections of Laurel Lea Schaefer-Bo-
zoukoff, Miss America 1972, of her wartime tour of Vietnam and
Thailand to entertain troops with the USO. In the story, “The Last
Miss America in Vietnam,” Laurel described the three-week tour, the joys
she found among the soldiers and sailors, even amid the perils of an active
war zone, and the powerful effect it had on her.
Laurel’s story caught the eye of the Vietnam Veterans of America. On
Aug. 12, 2023, the VVA awarded Laurel their prestigious “President’s Award
for Supporting the Troops in Vietnam” at their national convention in Or-
lando, Fla., in recognition of Laurel’s continuing efforts on behalf of the men
and women of the military.
Laurel’s appreciation for the U.S. military began when she was a child,
when her father, a World War II veteran, encouraged her to be patriotic and
always thank veterans for their service. As a student at Ohio University in the
late 1960s, she served as a cadet Lt. Col. with Angel Flight, a women’s support
group for the Air Force ROTC program. At that time, wearing a uniform on
campus meant being mocked or jeered at, yet she remained steadfast in her
military support. Becoming Miss America in 1972, she jumped at the chance
to headline the USO tour of Vietnam and Thailand. After her reign as Miss
America, she enjoyed more than 40 years in the entertainment industry and
appeared on many television shows, including a recurring role on Falcon
Crest. But her commitment to our troops never dimmed.
She told Vietnam magazine, “My career years ended by accepting a posi-
tion with the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center at Camp Lejeune,
N.C., where I helped Marines and sailors diagnosed with traumatic brain in-
6 VIETNAM
Laurel Schaefer-Bozoukoff recently received
an award at the VVA National Convention in
Orlando, Fla. for her actions in support of
troops serving in the Vietnam War.
juries with lifestyle coping skills. I also became a
certified brain injury specialist. In 2015, it all came
full circle when I married a fellow Ohio University
alum, former ROTC AF cadet, and retired major,
Michael J. Bozoukoff.”
At the VVA convention, Laurel spent more
than 12 hours signing autographs and taking pho-
tos with VVA members—many of whom waited
in line for several hours for the opportunity. At
the awards banquet, Laurel said, “The VVA Presi-
dent’s Award is more than a beautiful plaque
proudly displayed in my home. For me, it rep-
resents a lifetime achievement of paying respect
and honoring all those who have served our
COURTESY OF LAUREL SCHAEFER-BOZOUKOFF; INSET COURTESY OF VVA
country or who made the supreme sacrifice so
that we could enjoy America’s liberties and free-
doms.” She added, “I now have a new mission: to
use this remarkable recognition as an educational
opportunity to encourage others to learn more
about the Vietnam War era and the legacy left by
the men and women who were ‘boots on the
ground.’ Vietnam War veterans deserve their
rightful place in our American history, to be pro-
vided optimal considerations for their health and
welfare, and to be ‘welcomed home’ with heartfelt
respect by all generations.”—Larry Porges
 HOMEFRONT
Medal of Honor
for Vietnam Vet
Military service is in Larry Taylor’s blood. The
Tennessee resident comes from a family of veter-
ans who served in the Civil War, World War I,
and World War II. When America needed him,
Taylor joined up as well, enlisting in the U.S.
Army in 1966. On Sept. 5, 2023, Capt. Taylor
received the Medal of Honor from President
Joseph Biden at a White House ceremony for his
heroism in 1968 as a helicopter pilot.
On June 18, 1968, then-Lt. Taylor, an AH1-G
Cobra attack helicopter pilot, received word that
four Army Rangers on a recon mission were sur-
rounded by North Vietnamese hostiles in a rice
paddy near the village of Ap Go Cong, northeast

of Saigon. Taylor, of the 1st Squadron, 4th
Cavalry, 1st Infantry Division, and another
Cobra pilot took off from Phu Loi base. Locating
the men in the dark, Taylor hovered for 45
minutes, pummeling the enemy with thousands
of rounds while taking constant fire. As Presi-
dent Biden related at the ceremony, Taylor “tried
to find an escape route for the unit, his Cobra
taking more rounds as he did. He kept trying to
radio for a rescue, knowing that he and his men
below were almost out of time and ammunition.
He learned that any attempt to save the men had
been called off. The rescue helicopter was not
coming. Instead, Lieutenant Taylor received a
direct order: ‘Return to base.’ His response was
just as direct: ‘I’m getting my men out.’ When
duty called, Larry did everything to answer.”
Taylor directed the Rangers through the
weakest point of the enemy cordon and, still
under fire, landed in a clearing. There wasn’t
FROM TOP: ALLSTAR PICTURE LIBRARY LIMITED/ALAMY; POPPERFOTO VIA GETTY IMAGES; HISTORYNET ARCHIVES
WINTER ’66
“The great appeal of Batman, the new television series, is that the acting
and the plot and dialogue are all terrible,” snipes Dick Schaap in the Miami
Herald. The highly-entertaining series runs three seasons, with scripts
centered around a deep and colorful roster of villians, including The Riddler
(Frank Gorshin), The Catwoman (Julie Newmar, Eartha Kitt), The Penguin
(Burgess Meredith), and—Holy Hypothermia!—Mr. Freeze (Eli Wallach).
Awarded the Grammy for “Best New Artist,”
Tom Jones bursts on the scene with
“It’s Not Unusual” and the Burt Bacharach-
penned “What’s New Pussycat?”—
launching a decades-long career which
will include a string of chart-topping hits,
two popular television variety shows
bearing his name, and several Las Vegas
residencies. Among his numerous film
roles and cameos, often playing himself,
he appeared in Tim Burton’s 1996 feature

film “Mars Attacks!”—where he avoids

time or room inside the Cobra for the men to
board—the gunship wasn’t designed for
passengers—so the four men clung to the
helicopter’s skids and rocket pods as Taylor
ferried them to safety. Taylor flew more than
2,000 combat missions in Vietnam and earned
the Silver Star, 43 Air Medals, a Bronze Star, and
two Distinguished Flying Crosses. One of the
four men Taylor saved that June day, Sgt. Dave
Hill, led the seven-and-a-half-year effort to have
Taylor’s Silver Star upgraded to the Medal of
Honor. Taylor’s hometown of Chattanooga,
Tenn., hosted a parade for the new MOH
recipient on Monday, Sept. 11. Taylor remem-
bered, “You realize that those people on the
ground are your brothers, and if the shoe had
been on the other foot, they would stop for you.”
—Larry Porges
marauding aliens as they assault his Las
Vegas stage show armed with laser guns.
Jacqueline Susann’s Valley of the Dolls hits #1 on the New York Times
bestseller list. Acting on a tip from a friend, Susann purchased—with her
own money—large quantities of the book at stores whose sales figures the
Times used to calculate their bestseller list.
The decadent, kitschy tale of Hollywood excess
would go on to rank among the bestselling novels
of all time, appear in 30 different languages,
and become a cult classic as a feature-length
Hollywood film.... After enjoying regional
success in Southern California, Doritos
becomes available nationwide, in just one flavor,
“toasted corn.” The product name is derived
from the Spanish word doradito which
translates as “little fried and golden thing.”
Today, annual worldwide sales of the thin, tangy
wedges of fried tortilla with cheese powder tally
$3 billion. —Brian Walker

WINTER 2024 7
 WORDS FROM
THE WAR
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6I\QWVIT;MK]ZQ\a)L^Q[WZ5K-
/MWZOM¹5IKº*]VLaQV!1V
\PMLWK]UMV\5]ZZW_IZZQ^MLI\
\PMKWVKT][QWV\PI\UIRWZUMLQI
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\PM_WZTLLQ[XTIaML^QZ\]ITTaVW
[]XXWZ\WZ[aUXI\PaNWZ\PM
OW^MZVUMV\WN6OW,QVP,QMU
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TaIV\Q̆KWUU]VQ[\;W]\P3WZMI
\PM8PQTQXXQVM[IVL\WITM[[MZ
M`\MV\<PIQTIVL*]VLa[MZ^MLI[
IXZM[QLMV\QITIL^Q[WZ]V\QT
ZM\QZQVONZWU\PMZWTMQV!

RELIC SPOTLIGHT
FROM TOP: NATIONAL ARCHIVES; AP PHOTO; NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY
Over 4,000 dogs served in Vietnam, saving the lives of
over 10,000 military service members. Trained to
scout, detect mines and tunnels, and track the
enemy, dogs alerted humans to unseen
dangers. Sadly, the U.S. government
refused to bring service dogs who
served in Vietnam home. Only about
200 made it back. Although this
post-Vietnam collar was worn by a
working dog of the 947th Military
Police Detachment, it is one of the
many reminders of working dogs’
service at the National Museum of the
U.S. Army in Fort Belvoir, Va. The museum
is currently holding an exhibit to honor the
service of working dogs. Read more at https://www.
historynet.com/army-museum-exhibit-working-dogs/

8 >1-<6)5
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 Ann-Margret shared insights into her wartime experi-
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JMVMÅ\QVO\PM>QM\VIU>M\MZIV[5MUWZQIT.]VL
available at www.ann-margretperfume.com.

You received a petition from troops in Vietnam in

1966 asking you to come perform. The war was
unpopular and Vietnam was dangerous. What
motivated you to go there despite those obstacles?
Honestly, I didn’t think about my safety at all at the time. I
was very flattered by those signatures. Nothing would have
stopped me from going.
What did your family members think about
you going to Vietnam?
Well, they knew how much I wanted to go, and they of course
INTERVIEW WITH were worried but I said to them, “There’s no way anyone can

Ann- get to me because...my guys are there!”

What songs did you most enjoy performing there?

Margret
Ann-Margret is donating 100%
of the proceeds from her new
limited-edition perfume to
benefit the Vietnam Veterans
Memorial Fund.
servicemen. She focused on bringing them joy from
home. She returned to the war zone two years later
with Bob Hope’s Christmas USO show. She continues to
Award-winning actress and
singer Ann-Margret is known
for her commitment to
entertaining U.S. troops
L]ZQVO\PM>QM\VIU?IZ1V
1966, she responded to a
request signed by over 3,000
troops to perform for them
IVL\ZI^MTML\W>QM\VIU_Q\P
three bandmates on a USO
tour, traveling to Saigon, the
USS Yorktown, and the
LIVOMZW][¹1ZWV<ZQIVOTMº
Despite the danger, she said
she was determined to do the
best job she could and was not
worried for her safety because
she felt protected by American
I loved doing “Dancing in the Streets.”
You toured with Bob Hope on the USO Christmas
Show in 1968. What was it like to work with him?
I loved working with Bob and did many times over the years. He
was a gentlemen and always, always funny on stage and off. He
was devoted to the soldiers. He shared many stories with us
about traveling during World War II and all the marvelous and
touching letters he received from them and their families. He
was great at writing back, too. When Bob and I were rehearsing
our dancing for a duet for the tour he came out in a minidress
and asked, “Who looks better, me or Ann-Margret?” I won,
but he did get a couple of votes from the crew. We knew that
we would be safe. When I did Vietnam with Johnny Rivers
there were just four of us, and when we went with Bob Hope
there were 80 of us. We weren’t afraid at all, never. We all just
wanted to bring a piece of home to those men.
What do you think young people should know
about the Vietnam War today?
Our guys went through so much—and when they came back,
some people were not very nice to them. They had to go
through a lot, and to come back and have people be bad to
you...We need to show respect and admiration for all the men
and women who served, always. Never forget.
You are donating 100% of the proceeds from your
new limited-edition perfume to the Vietnam Veter-
ans Memorial Fund. Can you tell us more about this?
Yes, thank you for asking. My dear friend Justin Chambers of
Grey’s Anatomy has wanted to make a fragrance for me for a
long while since we worked together. So it’s a project that’s been
on the drawing board. When he suggested it benefit the veter-
ans, that was a slam dunk for me. I absolutely adore the fra-
grance. We worked on the actual fragrance for a year before we
selected this special scent. It has notes of gardenia and jasmine
and ylang ylang. You can visit my website for all the details at
ann-margretperfume.com and I’ll be wearing it. You can count
COURTESY OF ANN-MARGRET

support military service members and was honored by on that!

the USO in 2003 with the Spirit of Hope award, named You are a strong supporter of Vietnam veterans.
IN\MZPMZNZQMVL*WJ0WXM¹1IU^MZaXZW]L\WJMIV Is there anything in particular you would like
)UMZQKIV)T_Ia[_QTTJMº[PM\WTL>QM\VIU magazine to say to Vietnam veterans reading this?
-LQ\WZBQ\I*ITTQVOMZ.TM\KPMZQVIVM`KT][Q^MQV\MZ^QM_ I love you all and I am proud to have been there with you. V

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A Marine mine sweep team
checks a road west of Ca Lu for
enemy mines in 1968, a duty
performed every morning.
LAND MINE
WARFARE
By David T. Zabecki
Land mines were used by all sides during the Vietnam War and caused
significant casualties. In 1965 alone, more than one-third of U.S. Marine
Corps casualties were caused by mines and explosive booby traps. A mod-
ern land mine is a concealed explosive device emplaced under, on, or even
above the ground to kill or wound enemy troops, or destroy or disable ve-
hicles. The land mines of the Vietnam era were triggered by direct contact
or command-detonated by wire. The most common con-
TACTICS tact triggers were pressure or pull (tripwire). Anti-person-
nel mines used a combination of blast and fragmentation
effects. Most anti-vehicular mines used blast effect. Land mines are most
effectively used in fixed defenses or for “area denial.” Rather than serving as
a barrier to enemy movement, the purpose of a defensive minefield is to
disrupt and slow an enemy’s advance and channelize him into pre-planned
fields of fire and kill-zones.
Land mines were used by both sides in contested and remote areas. The
U.S. deployed millions of air-dropped small anti-personnel “button mines”
as part of the McNamara Line strategy to deter NVA infiltration into South
Vietnam from North Vietnam and Laos. The explosive charge in the button
mines decomposed quickly. Only slightly more effective were the BLU-
43/B and BLU-44/B “Dragontooth” mines. The VC made extensive use of
anti-personnel mines and booby traps in likely American/ARVN assembly
areas, high ground, hedgerows, tree lines, shady areas, trail junctions, and
fence lines and gates. The VC normally did not have enough material to
mine an entire fence line. U.S. troops quickly learned to bypass the gates
and batter down the fence at some distance from the gate. Yet all too often
a later patrol would assume that an already battered-down section of the
fence was clear. The VC, however, were highly disciplined about keeping
their mines under surveillance. As soon as one patrol passed through a
cleared area, the VC would move in and mine the gap. The VC were me-
thodical about marking their mines so that their troops or local villagers
would not walk into them. The markers were cleverly concealed, but known
12 VIETNAM
to locals. American and South Vietnamese pa-
trols generally tried to secure cooperation of one
or more locals before initiating an area sweep.
That was not easy. Villagers might be VC sympa-
thizers or intimidated by other sympathizers who
would hold them accountable later.
Command-detonated anti-personnel direc-
tional mines were widely used. The U.S. M-18
“Claymore” mine blasted 700 steel balls in a 60-de-
gree arc, 6-feet high, out to a range of about 150
feet. The Claymore was triggered by an electrical
blasting cap via a wire with a hand generator. The
VC used any Claymore they captured. The VC and
NVA were also supplied with the Chinese-made
DH-10 Directional Mine, known as the “ChiCom
Claymore.” Crudely made but larger and more
powerful than the U.S. M-18, it was devastatingly
effective when emplaced in a tree, pointed down a
jungle trail. The VC also used the DH-10 to mine
anticipated helicopter landing zones.
The standard U.S. anti-personnel mines were
the M-14 and M-16. Called the “Toe Popper,” the
M-14 was a pressure-triggered blast mine with a
relatively small charge. The M-16 was a fragmen-
tation mine designed after the World War II Ger-
man S-mine, called a “Bouncing Betty.” When
triggered, either by stepping on one of the ex-
posed pressure prongs or pulling a tripwire, a
short delay fuze detonated a secondary charge
which blew the main body of the mine 5 to 6 feet
into the air. A second, slightly longer-delayed
fuze then detonated the main charge, spraying
fragmentation out to 25 meters.
Anti-vehicular mines were used to destroy or
disable trucks, armored personnel carriers, and
sometimes tanks. They were either pressure- or
command-detonated by wire. Road-clearing be-
came an almost daily ritual, especially around
major bases. Sweep teams of combat engineers
with mine detectors worked the roads each
morning, while flank security teams screened
both sides of the roads looking for evidence of
digging, detonating wires, and even ambushes. It
was slow and tedious.
Although North Vietnam manufactured
mines and some were supplied by China, the ma-
jority of mines used by communist forces in Viet-
nam were improvised. Enemy forces in Vietnam
were exceptionally innovative at turning any-
thing into a mine—including captured or unex-
ploded ordnance such as hand grenades and
mortar and artillery shells; ammunition cans; oil
drums; beer and soda cans; and even bicycle
NATIONAL ARCHIVES
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 Internal Air Tank Crew
Freed divers from using Two underwater demolition Deadly Delivery
Two SEALs sat back-to-back
their own tanks until team divers sitting back-to-
until they disembarked
they disembarked. back piloted the SDV.
for the mission.

Silent Propulsion
Spacious Hull Battery-powered motor
Increased mission gave a top speed of 5kts.
equipment capacity.

MARK VII SWIMMER

DELIVERY VEHICLE By Carl O. Schuster

Shortly after 2:00 a.m. local time on June 4, 1972, just a few miles off the North Vietnamese coast, U.S. Designation: Mark
Navy Lt. Melvin S. Dry and three naval special warfare personnel departed the USS Grayback (LPSS- VII Mod 2 SDV
574) aboard a Mark VII Swimmer Delivery Vehicle (SDV). Dry intended to reconnoiter the beach Crew: 4 UDT &
area where his team was to rendezvous with a group of escaped American prisoners-of-war (POWs). SEALs
But a combination of stronger than expected offshore currents and the Mark VII’s limited battery Length: 5.7m/17ft
capacity forced him to abandon the mission 1,000 feet from shore. A Navy helicopter ultimately sunk 8 inches
Beam: 1.6m/5ft
the SDV with miniguns to prevent it falling into enemy hands [see our story on p.
6 inches
ARSENAL 20], before delivering Dry and the rest of the operations team to USS Long Beach Surface
(CGN-9), the command ship for Operation Thunderhead, America’s last POW res-
Displacement:
cue attempt of the Vietnam War. The Mark VII SDV lacked the power and endurance to overcome the 2,200lbs
currents and sea condition. Operation Thunderhead was aborted. Propulsion: Electric
The U.S. Navy’s first production model Swimmer Delivery Vehicle, the Mark VII derived from a Motor Driving
post-World War II review of Underwater Demolition Team (UDT) operations. The study called for a 1x Propeller
covert underwater delivery means for UDTs when water conditions, depth, and distance made it Max Speed: 5kts
unwise or impractical for the teams to reach the target by swimming directly from a submarine. UDT Max Range: 40nm
made do with the Italian-developed World II-era Mark 6 Sea Horse until 1967, when the U.S. Naval Operating Depth:
Coastal Systems Center modified the General Dynamics Convair 14 midget submarine. 50–60ft
The resulting Mark VII Mod 0 was a free-flooding design with a reinforced fiberglass hull. Nonfer-
rous metals and sound dampening insulation were used throughout to minimize the SDV’s magnetic
and acoustic signatures, respectively. A gyroscope constituted its only navigation aid. It had a single
rudder and propeller, the latter driven by a small electric motor powered by a single bay of silver-zinc
batteries. It had a 40nm range under ideal conditions but considerably less against powerful currents
ILLUSTRATION BY GREG PROCH

and seas.
The Mark VII underwent several improvements after 1972. The Mod 6 variant of 1975 featured a
larger hull, greater payload capacity, and a high frequency sonar for precision navigation underwater.
It also incorporated an emergency surfacing capability. Still, it remained underpowered and in 1983
gave way to the Mark VIII SEAL Delivery Vehicle that remained in service until 2023. V

14 VIETNAM
 TO HONOR VIETNAM VETERANS WITH THANKS FOR YOUR SERVICE TO COUNTRY

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I REMEMBER
WILLIE
By John Magnarelli
Willie Johnson was a 35-year-old African American from South Carolina
with a wife and six kids. What did I, a 20-year-old single white kid from
Quincy, Mass., have in common with him, other than being stationed in
Vietnam with the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment? Well, living with
someone in an Armored Cavalry Assault Vehicle (ACAV) for five months
will make for close relationships. Willie was a career soldier, our first ser-
geant, a leader, advisor, confessor, and friend. He was firm but fair and full
of life. He taught me to play pinochle, a card game I never played before and
have never played since. I never called him Willie, but always “Top.” He was
killed by a rocket propelled grenade (RPG) a few feet from me.
On March 5, 1970, we moved from a location
REFLECTIONS near the Cambodian border to a place just four or
five miles away. The rolling terrain was a challenge
for our 12-ton armored vehicles. We arrived at our night defensive position
just before dusk and deployed our 20 ACAVs similar to how covered wag-
ons would circle in Western movies. The track commander was Capt. Max
Bailey, who sat on top of our vehicle behind a .50-caliber machine gun. The
driver was Don, whose last name I forget. Top and I were the rear gunners
behind M60 machine guns. I dismounted our track, set up trip flares cover-
ing our part of the perimeter, and positioned Claymore mines in front of
our vehicle. We had been in constant contact with the enemy for months
and were always prepared for battle. Our enemy was not the Viet Cong but
the North Vietnamese Army (NVA), and we never knew where or when
they would hit us. I was still awake at probably around 10:00 p.m. when I
heard the distinctive thump of a mortar tube being fired. Seconds later the
first rounds hit in and around our perimeter. This was followed immediately
by a barrage of enemy AK-47 and RPG fire. We responded with volleys of
machine gun and tank cannon fire. With 20 vehicles firing at once, the sound
16 VIETNAM
John Magnarelli, pictured here in Vietnam,
formed a close bond with 1st Sgt. Willie Johnson,
who was tragically killed by an RPG in 1970.
was deafening and the smell of cordite filled the
air. Ground and aerial flares lit the night sky. Clay-
more mines exploded all around as the enemy
closed in. The enemy attack died down after about
20 or 30 minutes. Bailey dismounted our vehicle
and walked the perimeter to check on damage
and wounded. Top, Don, and I pulled up more
ammunition for our weapons. Top received a call
from Bailey that some enemy wounded had been
spotted in a bomb crater a few ACAVs down
from us. We had a directive from our headquar-
ters’ G-2 Intelligence that if possible we should
take prisoners for interrogation. Top would never
order someone to do something he wouldn’t do
himself. So he jumped off our vehicle and told
Don and me to follow him to get more informa-
tion. Bailey confirmed there were two or three
NVA wounded about 20-40 meters from our pe-
rimeter. Without blinking, Top said: “Let’s go get
them.” So Top, Don, Bailey, and I lined up about
five meters apart and headed for the bomb crater.
We made it about halfway to the crater when a
figure jumped up with an RPG and fired at us.
The rocket landed between Top and Don who
were at the end of our line. We received more
mortar and RPG rounds, followed by small-arms
fire. I hit the dirt and returned fire at the shadowy
figure. I lost sight of the other three as bullets
whistled above me. I was caught about 20 meters
outside our perimeter. Just as concerned about
friendly fire from behind as enemy fire in front, I
crawled back to our perimeter. I looked for Top,
Don, and Bailey but couldn’t find them. As the
battle raged, I returned to my ACAV, took my po-
sition and continued to return fire. When the
other three hadn’t returned, I assumed they
jumped on other ACAVs to continue the battle.
Eventually things quieted down. This time we
were sure the enemy had retreated.
Some time later, Bailey returned to our vehicle
and told me that Top was killed by the RPG round
and Don was wounded. Bailey was also wounded
but continued to lead the battle and was awarded
the Silver Star for his efforts. I was stunned. I had
been in country for 10 months and through a lot.
Although other men in my unit had paid the ulti-
mate sacrifice, this was different. Because I was so
close to Top, it hit me hard. What made it worse
COURTESY OF JOHN MAGNARELLI
was having to stay alert and man my vehicle in
case of another attack. There was nothing I could
do except live with the thoughts going through
my head. You don’t plan for someone to get killed
so you don’t know how to react. At first light I
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 went over to the medical area and saw Top’s body on the ground covered with a
rubber poncho. I can’t remember if I cried, but I was in a state of disbelief. Here
was a person I truly respected, confided in, told stories with, and a few short
hours earlier had been laughing and joking with, and now he was gone.
At my computer about 33 years later, I went to the 11th Armored Cavalry
website and scrolled to Top’s name on a list of 700 troopers killed in Vietnam.
Over the years I’ve thought about him many times and wondered about the
family he left behind. I saw a message that made me freeze. It was signed by a
Ricky Johnson who wanted to hear from anyone who had served with his dad.
I summoned the courage to give Ricky a call. It was extremely emotional.
Ricky was 11 years old when his father was killed, and the Army never told
Wrong Call Signs
*a2IUM[>I]OPV
In autumn 1969, I was stationed in a bunker on
the radio. I was to communicate with the pe-
rimeter guards and helicopters if in trouble. If
we were attacked, I was the one that blew the
sirens. The infantry would scream on the ra-
dio, “Rockets in the air!” That was my cue to
blow sirens. This particular month we changed
our radio call sign from Roadrunner to False
Minder. The operating manual was sent to all stations on my network. Our
orders were not to answer someone using the wrong call signs.
Evidently generals do not have to read these manuals each month. One
day the commanding general of the 1st Aviation Brigade was flying to my
base. He was known as Hawk 6 on the radio. So he called on the radio,
“Roadrunner, Roadrunner. Hawk 6.” He was not using the right call sign, so
I did not answer. Radio operators’ standing orders are to obey proper radio
procedures, one of which is to only answer proper call signs. That is a secu-
rity standard. It prevents the enemy who could be monitoring our network
from identifying all the units calling on a network. The general must have
thought he was out of range, so a few minutes later I heard, “Roadrunner,
Roadrunner! This is Hawk 6.” This is when I did the bravest thing I did in
Vietnam. I did not answer. Despite the orders not to answer someone using
the wrong call signs, I was scared. I knew I would pay a price for this. I
heard the anger in his voice when he came back with, “Anyone on this net
know where Roadrunner is?” The response came in, “I don’t know, sir.” In
two sentences all sorts of security violations occurred. One, by a general.
The other referring to him as “sir.” He was only calling for a ride. Let him
walk like everyone else, I thought. I can only imagine what the door gun-
ners and crew chiefs thought when they saw a general walking.
The next person I saw was my captain. He came running into the bunker.
His face was as red as Santa Claus’s suit. He was screaming, “Did you hear
Hawk 6 on that radio?” I said, “Yes, sir.” That shocked him. There were only
two ways I would not hear him: I was not there (AWOL) or asleep (derelic-
tion of duty). Both were court-martial events. “Why didn’t you answer
him?” demanded the captain. I replied, “He was using the wrong call signs.”
For a moment he did not know what to say. Then he said, “I don’t care if he
calls you ‘Asshole’! You answer Hawk 6!” If I were truly brave, I would have
asked for that order in writing, but I was a 20-year-old kid and he was as
angry as any man I ever saw and had a .45 on his hip. I thought he might
18 VIETNAM
the family how he died. It was difficult for me to
recount the events, but it was a step closer to the
closure that neither of us will probably ever
achieve. Memories fade with time but for the rest
of my life I will remember my friend Willie and
all that he taught me. To all the Willie Johnsons
who never came home, may you always be re-
membered.
Adapted from the author’s book, 11B10: Memories
of a Light Weapons Infantryman in Vietnam.
shoot me. And I had June 15, 1970 [the day I
would leave Vietnam] on my mind.
I was sure there was a court-martial in my fu-
ture, but if my defense was going to be that the
general was using the wrong call signs, no one
was going to embarrass a three-star general. I
wondered where the list was of orders that you
are not supposed to follow. I also wondered if my
captain, when he reported back to the general,
had the moxie to tell him that he was using the
wrong call signs.
In November we changed our call sign to
Roadrunner. When I left Vietnam in June, we
were still Roadrunner. Apparently not troubling a
general was more important than radio security.
I Googled the general years later because I
wanted to see who he was. It was Allen Burdett Jr.
When I read about him, it said he loved to be
known at Hawk 6, so I knew I had the right guy.
The other thing I read about him [from the Army
Aviation Association of America] was that “in a
subsequent Vietnam tour, he commanded the 1st
Aviation Brigade during 1968-1970, tough and
demanding years in the Vietnam War, where, as
Hawk 6, he was known throughout Vietnam for
his astute planning and tactical acumen.” Acu-
men means the ability to make good judgments
and quick decisions. To me making good judg-
ments means reading your operating manuals
and using the correct call signs. Compare this
story to Adm. McCraven’s writings on duty. V
After leaving Vietnam in 1970, James Vaughn
COURTESY OF JAMES VAUGHN
became a CPA and ran his own tax practice.
,WaW]PI^MZMÆMK\QWV[WV\PM_IZaW]
_W]TLTQSM\W[PIZM'Email your idea or article to
Vietnam@historynet.com, subject line: Reflections

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 OPERATION
THUNDERHEAD
THE NAVY SEALS ATTEMPTED TO AID POWS ESCAPING
THE HANOI HILTON. IT WOULD BE AMERICA’S LAST
RESCUE MISSION IN THE VIETNAM WAR
By Carl O. Schuster

PHOTO CREDITS

20 VIETNAM
 In 1972, the U.S. Navy SEALS mounted
an ambitious operation to rescue POWs
planning to escape from the infamous
Hanoi Hilton, where conditions were
grim and inmates suffered from
sustained torture and starvation.
PHOTO CREDITS

WINTER 2024 21
 On May 2, 1972, two SR-71 Blackbirds flew over Hanoi
and let off two sonic booms within 15 seconds of one
another–a signal to American POWs held captive in the
Hanoi Hilton to initiate their daring plan to escape.
t around noon on May 2, 1972, two SR-71 Blackbirds
dropped to 75,000 feet and flew separate Mach 2.5
passes over Hanoi, delivering two sonic booms within
15 seconds of each other. Their mission was vital and
their timing critical. A third SR-71 had orbited offshore
as a spare in case something forced one of the others to
abort. The planes’ pilots and crew didn’t know the mission’s purpose, but
executed it perfectly. The mission was repeated two days later.
The SR-71s had flown through the world’s most densely defended air
space to deliver a message from America’s National Command Authority to
a group of U.S. prisoners-of-war (POWs) held inside North Vietnam’s Hoa
Lo Prison, better known as the “Hanoi Hilton.” The message consisted of
two dots for the letter “I” in Morse code, telling them to “initiate” their es-
cape plan. Thus began the final stages of Operations Diamond and Thun-
derhead, the Vietnam War’s last POW escape and rescue plan.
The United States had attempted POW rescues before, with the Son Tay
Raid of Nov. 21, 1970, being the best known. But Operation Thunderhead
was different. This time the plan originated within the POW camp itself. The
primary authors of the plan were Captains John Dramesi and George C.
McKnight of the U.S. Air Force and then-Lt.
j.g. George T. Coker of the U.S. Navy. The men Undaunted,
called their escape plan Operation Diamond. Dramesi
All three had attempted to escape before,
only to be recaptured within 36 hours. Coker refused to
and McKnight had escaped from a POW com- give up on
pound northwest of Hanoi in 1967, while escape. One
challenge he
Dramesi had made two previous attempts, the
second one from the Hanoi Hilton. He had been faced was
moved there following his first escape attempt
from a camp farther up the Red River. The men
opposition
suffered weeks of torture as punishment for from most
their actions. In fact, Dramesi’s partner in his fellow POWs.
second breakout, USAF Capt. Edwin L. Atter-
berry, died on May 18, 1969, ostensibly from an infection while under torture
just eight days after their recapture.
Undaunted, Dramesi refused to give up on escape. One challenge he faced
was opposition from the majority of his fellow POWs. The prisoners had
heard Dramesi’s and Atterberry’s screams as the guards beat them, and they
knew that their comrades had managed to gain only a few hours of freedom.
22 VIETNAM
The POWs would not betray Dramesi but a stand-
ing order from the Senior Ranking Officer (SRO)
in the Hilton’s “Unity” compound, Lt. Col. Robin-
son “Robbie” Risner of the U.S. Air Force, required
that no escape would be attempted without out-
side assistance. However, Risner approved the for-
mation of a six-man escape planning committee
led by Lt. Col. Hervey Stockman. Coker, Dramesi,
and McKnight were joined by Maj. James H.
Kasler and Capt. “Bud” Day, both USAF.
T
he POWs started work on their escape plan
immediately, gathering all the information
they could about guard patterns, the prison
layout, and the surrounding community. One of
the many things Dramesi had learned from his
last attempt was that their “camp” was located a
few miles east of the Red River, not north of it as
they had believed when they went over the wall
on May 8, 1969. Gathering food supplies was a
challenge since the Vietnamese provided little to
the prisoners, leaving little to spare.
The greatest impediment to progress was the
constant shuffling of the prisoners and senior of-
ficers. Day, Stockman, and Risner were trans-
ferred out of Unity by December 1970. Risner’s
PREVIOUS PAGES: AP PHOTO/HORST FAAS; TOP: LOCKHEED MARTIN ARCHIVES
replacement as SRO came in from the “Zoo,” an-
other section of the Hanoi Hilton, where he had
vehemently opposed any attempt to escape. He
and several others had been tortured and beaten
after Dramesi’s last escape attempt. Although
Risner had allowed the planning to go forward,
the new SRO kept changing conditions and re-
quirements for his approval. Despite his skeptical
response, the team continued planning with Au-
gust 1971 as the “launch date.”
To stand out less after their escape, the three
prisoners developed a dye to darken their skin
and made civilian-looking clothing by knitting
 and hand-sewing threads from the blankets and sweaters
the guards provided, and by scrounging rags and other
discarded materials from around the compound. They
also made a map of the compound and surrounding area,
along with a compass and simple time piece. All the ma-
terials except a tactical radio were ready by June.
However, the SRO rejected their plan, stating the
escape had to have a 90% probability of success as well
as approval from higher up in the chain of command.
Communicating their plan to higher U.S. authorities
seemed impossible. Letters were allowed out on an al-
most random basis and the prison authorities reviewed
them closely. Prisoners were punished severely if the
“censors” found anything suspicious in the letters.
Nonetheless, one of the committee members took
the chance and incorporated a carefully worded mes-
sage in a letter home. The League of Wives of Vietnam
Prisoners of War delivered it to Secretary of Defense
Melvin Laird in late February/early March 1972. The details were slim by The League of Wives of Vietnam Prisoners of War worked
necessity but the letter stated a group of POWs were going to escape from tirelessly to advocate for their husbands held captive in
the Hanoi Hilton in June 1972 by stealing a boat and making their way to Vietnam. One POW managed to leak information about
the upcoming escape plan in a letter home, which was
the Gulf of Tonkin via the Red River. It sought official U.S. approval and delivered by the League of Wives to Defense Secretary
support of their plan. The number of POWs was not mentioned and the Melvin Laird. An operation to rescue the escaping POWs
tentative dates were the first two weeks of June. It also wasn’t made clear if was afterward undertaken by the U.S. government.

T
the stolen craft would signal with a yellow or red flag. It wasn’t much infor-
mation to go on and little is known about whom Laird contacted first. he forces Towers was given included the
However, it is clear that he had either delegated the authorization decision nuclear-powered cruiser USS Long Beach
to Adm. Thomas Moorer, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, by March 31, 1972, (CGN-9), the Frigate USS Harold E. Holt
or ordered him to launch the rescue. (FF-1074), and Det 110 HC-7, a Combat Search
TOP: NATIONAL ARCHIVES; BELOW: AP PHOTO/RICHARD DREW

Moorer wanted to move the planning outside of Washington, D.C. He
was very concerned about leaks, which had become a major problem over
the previous two years. He directed that all early communications were by
courier or face-to-face meetings. Neither known nor suspected leakers were
informed. Moorer sent an intelligence officer, Lt. Cdr. Earle Smith, to inform
Commander-in-Chief of the Pacific Fleet Adm. Bernard Clarey at his head-
quarters in Pearl Harbor and Vice Adm. James Holloway, Commander of
the 7th Fleet, aboard his flagship the USS Oklahoma City (CLG 5) in Yoko-
suka, Japan. Lt. Cdr. Edwin L. Towers was appointed officer-in-charge of
Operation Thunderhead and given 48 hours to develop the plan.
and Rescue Detachment from the USS Midway
(CVA-41). Its SH-3 helicopters had infrared sen-
sors, precision navigation systems, and carried a
7.62mm minigun and two M-60 machine guns.
Towers knew he needed Special Forces and a
means of delivering them. Operations security re-
mained paramount.
The cover story given to the ships’ captains and
helicopter detachment commander was that they
would be recovering North Vietnamese defec-

WINTER 2024 23
 Top: This detailed map shows the location of the Hanoi Hilton within North Vietnam.
The POWs gathered materials to help disguise themselves as locals after the planned
escape from the prison. Top right: A U.S. Navy SEAL surfaces from a dive. SEALs and
UDT divers were tasked with getting ashore and guiding the POWs to safety.
tors. Seventh Fleet planned to launch air strikes and naval gunfire attacks
on coastal radar stations and sites to draw Hanoi’s attention. Moorer classi-
fied the operation as “top secret” and all communications had the added
“special category” caveat to further restrict distribution. Only those directly
involved in Operation Thunderhead were given access to the reports.
Towers had little to go on but was aware of SEAL Team 1’s Alpha platoon
stationed at White Beach, Okinawa, and the USS Grayback’s (APSS/LPSS-
574) involvement in special operations. The Gray-
back picked up a squad from Alpha platoon on
April 10 and transported them to Subic Bay in the
Philippines by the 13th. Towers flew there to brief
the submarine’s skipper, Cdr. John Chamberlain,
USN, and then the SEALs and Underwater Demo-
lition Team (UDT) led by Lt. Melvin Spencer
SEAL Trident “Spence” Dry and Lt. jg. John Lutz, respectively.
The U.S. Navy SEALS evolved Towers told the skipper, UDT, and SEAL leaders
from UDTs first organized in that the coming mission was to attack the North
1942. The first SEAL teams
were formed in January 1962 Vietnamese radar site that had directed coastal
and honed their approach to artillery fire against the guided missile destroyer
warfare in Vietnam. They USS Buchanan (DDG-14) earlier that month. The
boast the most demanding SEALs were to go ashore in Z-birds (high speed
training in existence. inflatable boats powered by an outboard engine).
Read more online at
UDT Detachment 11 (UDT 11) was not includ-
www.historynet.com/navy-
seals-vietnam ed in the early briefings, being told only they
“might be needed.” The UDT trained on the “new”
Mark VII Mod 6 Swimmer Delivery Vehicles (SDVs), or “Six Boats,” while
the SEALs conducted night infiltration, demolition, and small unit tactics.
The 2-ton SDVs required two UDT operators and carried two fully
equipped SEALs or UDT personnel for delivery. The submersibles were
roomier than the earlier models and had an onboard air supply the crew
and passengers would use while in transit to their release area.
Pleased with the progress, Towers notified 7th Fleet they would be ready in
24 VIETNAM
time and departed for Yokosuka. There he briefed
Holloway. Towers was to embark on the Long
Beach and take station 50 nautical miles off the
North Vietnamese coast by May 19. He was or-
dered to transmit a daily top secret SPECAT situa-
tion report to the Commander Seventh Fleet,
Commander-in-Chief Pacific Fleet, and the Chair-
man of the Joint Chiefs. HC-7’s Det 110 began its
surveillance patrols off the Red River Delta on
May 19, and would continue them until June 19.
The Grayback departed Subic 18 days after the
SR-71s delivered their first “midnight message.”
Once at sea, the SEALs and UDT personnel were
told the direct-action mission was a ruse. Their
“real mission” was to rendezvous with North
Vietnamese defectors and protect them until
they could be picked up by helicopter. The SDVs
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: NATIONAL ARCHIVES; NAVAL HISTORY AND HERITAGE COMMAND; JASON MEYER/ALAMY
were to deliver two SEALs to an island in the Red
River mouth to monitor for small craft carrying a
red or yellow flag. A second team was to be in-
serted two days later and the first team with-
drawn back to the Grayback. The SEALs were to
use their best judgment in identifying the defec-
tors’ craft. Once they had the “defectors in hand”
they were to signal Towers for helicopter pick up.
They were not told the real mission even though
they were at sea with no outside contact. The em-
barked intelligence officer had been told that if a
SEAL was captured, there was a risk any un-res-
cued POWs would be executed or “worse.”
T
he SEALs adjusted accordingly. Dry walked
his people and the UDT personnel through
the plan as the submarine made its way to
station. They worked daily and watched a lot of
movies but Dry was not certain about the intelli-
 gence material. The SEALs had operated in the

NORTH
area and were familiar with the tide and currents
at and near the surface. This would be their first
AM
VIETN
time using SDVs and other than a brief walk-
through in Subic, his people had never used
them. He trusted the UDT operators but he
HANOI
would have liked to have trained with them be-
fore the submarine got underway. Haiphong
Meanwhile, POWs Dramesi, Coker, and Mc-
Knight finalized plans for their escape. They ex- USS Long Beach
pected heavy rains in June and noticed power Nam Dinh SEAL
outages often accompanied the storms. They Op
would wait for power failure and then move to
the river and either swim or steal a boat as the USS Grayback
situation required. The Red River in that area F
consisted of a complex series of tributaries, Helicopter GULF O
streams, and dikes. The three men intended to Search TONKIN
follow the right branch of any fork in the river Area
that they encountered to reduce the SEALs’ MILES

search area. They found little enthusiasm among 0 25

their fellow prisoners, but no direct opposition.

Whatever the other POWs thought about the es-
cape, they would do nothing to impede it. Com- Top: This map shows the area where
Operation Thunderhead took place along
municating was a challenge with the North Viet- with key locations relating to events that
namese watching almost their every move. Also, unfolded. Center: The crew of the USS Harold
the Vietnamese often moved the senior officers E. Holt mistook the USS Grayback for an
around to complicate communication efforts. unidentified enemy vessel and briefly
engaged it as it approached Subic Bay.
The guards hoped they were inhibiting the Amer-
ican leaders’ ability to command their subordi-
nates in the camp. The SRO in Dramesi’s cell
block rejected the plan in late May but offered to
take it to the next most senior SRO. That meeting
took several days to arrange.
As the escape team awaited a final decision,
the Grayback stalked silently beneath the Seventh
Fleet and arrived on station about four nautical
miles from the Red River mouth late in the eve-
ning on June 3. The sub settled on the bottom of
the Gulf in approximately 80 feet of water. Later
that evening, Dry decided to conduct a recon-
naissance of the island. Departing the Grayback
at 2 a.m., he and newly promoted Warrant Offi-
cer Philip L. “Moki” Martin boarded the “Six
FROM TOP: MAP BY HISTORYNET; NAVAL HISTORY AND HERITAGE COMMAND (2)

Boat” piloted by Lt. jg. John Lutz and Petty Offi-

cer 1st Class Thomas Edwards. The USS Grayback was used
They had launched at “slack tide,” the period to transport the SEAL and UDT
personnel to the area of the
between the end of waters receding from low tide rescue operation.
and the beginning of high tide. The intention was
to have the incoming tide negate the river cur-
rent. However, North Vietnam’s heavy rains and
the minus tide—a low tide much lower than nor-
mal—had combined to create a nearly 4 knot
current. The SDVs maximum speed was five
knots. Making less than 50 yards a minute, the
SDV’s batteries burned out more than 1,000
yards from shore.

WINTER 2024 25

Top: A U.S. Navy Sikorsky
HH-3A “Sea King” helicopter
approaches the USS Long
Beach in the Tonkin Gulf. Center:
Spence Dry (top center, holding
paper) briefs his SEAL Alpha
platoon on the deck of the
USS Grayback in April 1972.
Recognizing that the currents rendered the
plan impractical, Dry decided to contact Towers
for helicopter pick up. He transmitted “Briar-
patch Tango,” the code words for Thunderhead
personnel in trouble. Towers immediately sent an
SH-3. Dry needed to return to the Grayback and
inform the skipper and his team of the current.
Dry and Martin helped the UDT swim the SDV
farther out to scuttle it in deeper water but they
lacked the means to do. Towers dispatched a heli-
copter from the Long Beach that sank the SDV
with a minigun and returned the four men to the
cruiser. They had no way to contact the Grayback
until the scheduled broadcast time later that eve-
ning. Dry briefed Towers and the captain of the
Long Beach on what he had discovered. Towers
agreed that they needed to get word to the Gray-
back right away. Unfortunately, communications
technology of the time limited their options. It
would take nearly a day.
That day passed with Grayback being unaware
of Dry’s difficulties. Dry’s Deputy Lt. Robert
Conger went ahead with the plan, embarking on
an SDV for the island. After he departed, the
Grayback received a signal that Dry needed to re-
turn to the submarine. Chamberlain moved away
from the launch point and agreed to rendezvous
the helicopter using an infrared spotlight mount-
ed on the submarine’s periscope.
Dry and Martin briefed the helicopter crew on
the “casting procedure” by which they would
land in the water and descend onto the subma-
rine operating at periscope depth. Martin em-
phasized to them that they had to descend be-
low 20 feet and that the combined helicopter and
wind speed had to be 20 knots or less. The pilots
had never done anything like it before. The wind
and seas were higher than normal as well and the
sky was overcast. Visibility was almost nil.

S
The Mark VII SDVs’
shortcomings were hortly after the helicopter departed Long
addressed by the Beach, Grayback sent an emergency mes-
Mark VIII SEAL
Delivery Vehicle, sage reporting that a North Vietnamese
shown here, which patrol boat had departed base and was en route to
was introduced in the rendezvous area. Chamberlain ordered the
1982.
cruiser to abort the delivery. It wasn’t received in
FROM TOP: U.S. NAVY; NATIONAL NAVY UDT-SEAL MUSEUM (2)

time. The helicopter reached the rendezvous area

and all onboard struggled to find the Grayback’s
beacon. Night-vision equipment was bulky and
proved nearly useless but the cockpit crew tried
their best.
Twice, the helicopter dipped its tail into the
sea, nearly swamping. Neither pilot could spot
the infrared beacon. Martin couldn’t see the
prop wash that would signal they were low
enough to drop. Twice the helicopter approached

26 VIETNAM
 a red light, only to discover it was a Vietnamese fish-
ing boat. The pilots were getting antsy. They were fly-
ing less than six nautical miles offshore, well within
North Vietnamese waters. Fuel was running low. The
pilot was running out of options. If he didn’t find the
sub beacon within the next few minutes, he would
have to abort and return to Long Beach.
Then, spotting what they thought was the Gray-
back’s infrared light, the helicopter crew turned to-
wards it and lowered to drop the four men. Unfortu-
nately, the pilot gave the drop signal when the
helicopter was above 20 feet and being pushed by a
20-knot tailwind. Dry was killed on impact with the
water. Edwards and Lutz were seriously injured. Mar-
tin was uninjured but shaken.
A nautical mile away, the second SDV had malfunc-
tioned. It wouldn’t go forward and wouldn’t surface.
So Lt. jgs. Conger and Tom McGrath, Petty Officer Sam Birky, and Seaman
Steve McConnell had to abandon it submerged and swim to the surface. It
was their infrared distress light that the helicopter had spotted, placing
Dry and the others close by. Conger, McGrath, and McConnell encoun-
tered Martin and Lutz at about 4 a.m. They were less than 2,000 yards from
shore and could hear what they believed were North Vietnamese patrol
boats in the distance. Dry’s body floated by at around 5 a.m. but Birky was
still missing.
Conger was able to contact the Long Beach shortly before sunrise and a
helicopter arrived shortly after 7 a.m. It found and picked up Birky along
the way. The crews of both SDVs were returned to Long Beach. Dry, Ed-
wards, and Lutz were evacuated to the USS Kitty Hawk (CVA-63), which
had a morgue and better medical facilities.
The Grayback’s crew knew something had gone wrong with the SDVs
but had no information on what or why. The intelligence officer called the
senior remaining SEAL, Petty Officer First Class Rick Hetzell, to the ward-
room (the officer eating and meeting area). He ordered him to gather a
team and prepare for surface insertion using the submarine’s Z-bird. He
also wanted him to use the silenced outboard to ensure a covert insertion
and tried to put one of the submarine’s Chief Petty Officers in charge of the
mission. The “discussion” went back and forth but the chief finally realized
he was not value added and opted out.
Upon learning the rescue team survivors were aboard Long Beach,
Chamberlain offered to transfer them by Z-bird. He and the SEALs hoped
to continue the mission but Typhoon Ora intervened. The Grayback re-
turned to Subic transiting on the surface to save time, only to be engaged
briefly by USS Harold E. Holt, whose crew mistook her for an unidentified
hostile contact. The helicopters continued their searches until June 19 with-
out ever spotting any POWs in stolen boats.
The Thunderhead team didn’t know it, but the SRO had ordered Drame-
si and his mates to stand down. He felt the war was coming to an end and
he didn’t want the POWs to suffer the physical abuse and potential fatalities
that might follow an escape attempt, even if it succeeded. Operation Home-
coming finally started bringing the POWs home on February 13, 1973.
Lt. Melvin S. Dry was the last American SEAL to die in the Vietnam War.
HISTORYNET ARCHIVES
Because of its highly classified and compartmentalized nature, Operation
Thunderhead remained all but unknown and its participants unrecognized
until 2008. Dry was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star with a V for
Valor while Moki Martin received the Navy-Marine Corps Medal with a V
U.S. Air Force captain John Dramesi was one of the
leaders of the 1972 plan to escape the Hanoi Hilton.
He is shown here after his eventual March 1973 release
with the handcrafted American flag he made in captivity.
for Valor. It was America’s last POW rescue at-
tempt and it would have failed even if the SEALs
had made it ashore successfully, since the POWs
never escaped from the Hanoi Hilton. Despite
that, the mission reflected America’s national
commitment to bringing “everyone home.”
A thorough investigation followed and most of
its lessons learned resonate to this day. Towers
did an outstanding job in the planning and exe-
cution of Operation Thunderhead but excessive
secrecy, the justification for which ended when
the Grayback left port, reduced if not eliminated
his ability to modify plans in the face of equip-
ment and operational setbacks. The transport de-
livering Special Operations Forces (SOF) needed
to be integral to the SOF unit to ensure mutual
familiarity and commitment. The helicopter pi-
lots did their best but were conducting a sensitive
and dangerous evolution for the first time in their
careers and under very difficult circumstances in
enemy territorial waters.
Also, hopefully leaders now recognize that
prisoners in remote undeveloped countries have
little capability to escape on their own. It is best to
go to them once they are located. And there were
the equipment failures as well. The Mark VII
SDVs shortcomings were addressed by the intro-
duction of the Mark VIII SEAL Delivery Vehicles
in 1982. V
Capt. Carl O. Schuster, U.S. Navy (Ret.), is a
career naval officer who served on many U.S.
and allied warships before serving at U.S. Pacific
Command’s Joint Intelligence Center. He serves
on the advisory board of Vietnam magazine.
WINTER 2024 27
“DUTY,
HONOR,
COUNTRY”
FROM THE BATTLEFIELDS
OF KOREA TO VIETNAM,
CHUCK BUTLER WAS AN
INSPIRATION TO ALL
WHO KNEW HIM
By John D. Howard
Charles Lewis Butler graduated
from the U.S. Military Academy at
West Point on June 6, 1950. He
was commissioned in the infantry
along with 197 of his classmates
and served in Korea and Vietnam.

WINTER 2024 29

n March 30, 1972, the aging revolutionaries in Hanoi’s
Politburo abandoned the strategy of protracted strug-
gle and launched an all-out conventional invasion of
the Republic of Vietnam (RVN). By mid-April, the
North Vietnamese Army (NVA) had committed its
entire combat capability—14 divisions, 26 separate in-
fantry regiments, and 1,200 tanks, plus all its artillery regiments and engi-
neer battalions. The NVA also introduced weapons heretofore not seen
in Vietnam: large formations of T-54 tanks; AT-3 Sagger anti-tank mis-
siles; and SA-7 shoulder-fired, heat-seeking anti-aircraft missiles. Fighting
raged in Quang Tri province near the DMZ, in An Loc 60 miles from Sai-
gon, and in the Central Highlands, threaten-
ing Kontum City. The U.S. press named it the He was a
Easter Offensive since it began on Holy Thurs- true font of
day, the first day of Easter celebrations for knowledge.…
South Vietnam’s Catholic population.
As in the early 1960s, the only Americans
Because
fighting on the ground were a handful of U.S. Chuck was a
advisers with the Army of the Republic of modest man,
Vietnam (ARVN). One of them was Lt. Col. I didn’t learn
Charles L. “Chuck” Butler, an adviser with the of his heroism
31st ARVN Regiment, 21st ARVN Division,
who I met the first week of May ’72.
in Korea until
I was a major, just assigned as the adviser years later.
30 VIETNAM
In Korea, Butler helped cover the evacuation
of the 1st Marine Division and 7th Infantry
Division from the Chosin Reservoir. Despite
being shot twice, he provided covering fire
for his task force from a tank’s mounted
machine gun and was awarded the
Distinguished Service Cross.
with the 6th Airborne Battalion, Vietnamese
Airborne Division. The battalion was co-located
with the 31st Regiment and was reconstituting
after being decimated near An Loc, Binh Long’s
provincial capital, 15 miles north. Although I
had served a previous tour in Vietnam with the
PREVIOUS PAGES: BETTMANN/GETTY IMAGES; INSET: COURTESY OF THE AUTHOR; TOP: THE EVERETT COLLECTION
101st Airborne Division, I had no advisory
training. When I received my orders in January
1972 to return to Vietnam in late April, I re-
quested attendance at an abbreviated Vietnam-
ese language course and adviser training school
at Fort Bragg. My assignment officer in Wash-
ington, D.C., denied both requests, stating I
would be assigned to the MACV staff in Saigon.
Little did he know!
Chuck Butler was a seasoned combat veteran.
He had been an adviser in Vietnam from 1963-
64 and an infantry platoon leader during the Ko-
rean War. He was a true font of knowledge and
had a great perspective on the war. His counsel
proved to be invaluable to me as I was getting my
feet on the ground. Because Chuck was a modest
man, I didn’t learn of his heroism in Korea until
years later.
 CHARLES LEWIS BUTLER was a member of
the U.S. Military Academy’s class of 1950—670
men who graduated on June 6 that year. He and
197 of his classmates were commissioned in the
infantry. Nineteen days later, North Korea invad-
ed South Korea, drawing the United States into a
war for which it was ill-prepared. The American
defense establishment was gutted in the after-
math of World War II. Rapid demobilization,
draconian budget cuts, and an inept manage-
ment produced a hollow force. To stop the North
Korean onslaught and fill the ranks, many mem-
bers of the USMA class of 1950 were immediately
sent to Korea, including Chuck Butler.
Chuck said goodbye to his new bride, Joan,
and on Aug. 20, 1950, was aboard a troop trans-
port sailing under the Golden Gate Bridge. He
was assigned to F Company, 7th Infantry Regi-
ment, 3rd Infantry Division. The division was
needed in Korea but was woefully understrength.
Due to the severe shortage of infantry lieuten-
ants, recent West Point graduates were sent into
battle without any training other than what they
received at the Military Academy.
Chinese communist forces swarmed into
North Korea in November 1950. Gen. Douglas
MacArthur had discounted the possibility of
Chinese intervention, but their appearance in
large numbers prompted him to order the with-
drawal of United Nations troops north of the
38th parallel. The 3rd Infantry Division was
tasked to cover the evacuation of 1st Marine Di-
vision and the 7th Infantry Division as they left
the Chosin Reservoir and moved to the port of
Hungnam on North Korea’s east coast.
On Dec. 15, Chuck’s platoon was given five
tanks and the mission to assist a beleaguered U.S.
unit. Then-Lt. Butler described what happened as
he led his small force. “We suddenly came around
an S-curve in the road and on both sides of us the
hills crawled with Chinese. I was hit in the arm…
then I was hit in the groin.”
TOP: UNIVERSAL HISTORY ARCHIVE/GETTY IMAGES; BELOW: BETTMANN/GETTY IMAGES
Unable to walk, he ordered his wounded men
placed on the tanks, while he was lifted onto
the lead tank. Although gravely injured, Chuck
manned a turret-mounted machine gun and pro-
vided covering fire, allowing his task force to dis-
engage from hundreds of Chinese and return to
friendly lines. Butler was evacuated to Japan and
hospitalized for three months. Upon returning to
duty in Korea, he was awarded the Distinguished
Service Cross—the Army’s second highest deco-
ration for valor.
Twelve years later, in the fall of 1963, Maj.
Chuck Butler was in Vietnam, assigned as an ad-
visor with the 9th ARVN Division, operating in
the Mekong Delta. The delta region was the
agricultural heartland of the RVN; its prov-
inces contained two-thirds of the nation’s
population and produced the bulk of its
rice crop.
1963 WAS A PERIOD of great turmoil.
President Ngo Dinh Diem failed to stem
the growing communist insurgency or in-
crease popular support for his govern-
ment. Restrictions on religious freedoms
ignited a crisis, resulting in Buddhist riots
and self-immolations by monks. Diem’s
refusal to initiate any liberal reforms in
the face of mounting opposition caused
President John F. Kennedy to lose all faith
in him. It was the last straw for the Kennedy Ad- Butler was deployed to
ministration and word was quietly relayed to Sai- Vietnam in the fall of
gon that JFK was amenable to a regime change. 1963 as an adviser to the
9th ARVN Division. He
The ARVN generals spent more time plotting witnessed turmoil within
coups and jockeying for positions than opposing the government of South
the communists. The ARVN stayed in their can- Vietnam’s President
Ngo Dinh Diem as well
tonment areas while VC cadres took advantage of as the aftermath of the
their apparent paralysis. Frustration mounted assassinations of Diem and
among advisers like Maj. Chuck Butler, who U.S. President John F.
Kennedy that November.
wanted to challenge the enemy. However, no Butler’s experiences gave
amount of prodding could energize the ARVN. him great insights into the
Meanwhile Diem’s government continued to ac- conflict. Rather than retire,
he opted to return to
cept U.S. economic and military aid at the rate of Vietnam in 1971.
$1.5 million dollars per day ($14 million per day
in today’s dollars).
On Nov. 1, 1963, ARVN troops commanded
by Gen. Duong Van Minh attacked the presiden-
tial residence in Saigon. Diem and his brother,
WINTER 2024 31

The euphoria Nhu, escaped and hid in the Chinese quarter of
the city. The brothers surrendered the following
dissipated day, assuming they would be sent into a comfort-
when the able exile. Gen. Minh had other ideas and ordered
South’s new their execution.
rulers showed Diem’s death was followed three weeks later by
little aptitude President Kennedy’s assassination on Nov. 22. It
for governing, created uncertainty in Vietnam over what the
new U.S. policy might be. Immediately, Kennedy’s
squabbling successor, Lyndon B. Johnson, issued a directive
over every emphatically stating that he would stay the course
issue. in Southeast Asia. LBJ saw the political fallout in
1949 when Mao gained power in China and was
determined not to be the president who “lost Vietnam.” ARVN military
leaders breathed a sigh of relief.
In the coup’s aftermath, Minh and his Military Revolutionary Council
enjoyed widespread acclaim. The euphoria dissipated when the new rulers
showed little aptitude for governing, squabbling over every issue. No prog-
ress was made against recent VC inroads or instituting needed reforms.
Political instability was perpetuated when a bloodless coup on Jan. 30,
1964, ousted the Military Revolutionary Council.
32 VIETNAM
A South Vietnamese soldier dangles
precariously from a helicopter taking
off from a landing zone south of An Loc
in June 1972. The helicopter was
swarmed by walking wounded men
seeking to escape incoming rocket fire.
As the situation in Vietnam that year
deteriorated, Butler volunteered to be
a senior adviser to an ARVN regiment.
Chuck Butler noticed the turbulence created
by the revolving door in Saigon. Political loyalties
and family ties trumped military professional-
ism, so generals who were closely allied with the
new leadership received choice assignments.
They, in turn, brought their loyal subordinates
with them to fill jobs throughout the ranks. But-
ler observed two rounds of leader changes, both
of which degraded military effectiveness. When
his tour concluded in September 1964, the down-
ward spiral continued, resulting in the commit-
ment of U.S. combat troops in the spring and
summer of 1965.
Opting for a second Vietnam tour rather than
retirement, Lt. Col. Butler returned in September
1971. Again he was assigned as an adviser in the
Mekong Delta, but this time with the 21st ARVN
Division. The unit was responsible for the south-
ernmost portion of the Delta, which contained
AP PHOTO
the famous VC sanctuary, the U Minh Forest.
The ARVN had been relatively successful subdu-

ing the insurgency throughout the region and
pacifying the countryside. Butler was pleased to
see the improvement.
THE SENIOR ADVISER to the 21st ARVN Di-
vision was Col. J. Ross Franklin, a legendary war-
rior-scholar with multiple Vietnam tours and a
doctorate in international relations from Ameri-
can University. He also spoke fluent French.
Franklin and Butler were West Point classmates
and held each other in high esteem. Both had
been awarded the Distinguished Service Cross
during the Korean War and served together at
Fort Benning’s Infantry School after the conflict.
Franklin assigned Chuck as his deputy with a pri-
mary focus advising the division’s two principal
COURTESY OF THE AUTHOR (2)
staff officers, the G2 (Intelligence) and the G3
(Operations).
Within the 21st ARVN Division combat assis-
tance team, Butler gained a reputation for mento-
ring junior officers. Capt. Ed DeVos, on his first
assignment in Vietnam as an assistant adviser
with the 33rd ARVN Regiment, was a beneficiary
of Butler’s insights. Arriving in December 1971,
the captain sought out Chuck Butler and asked
him many questions about the role
of a junior officer “advising” men
who had been fighting their entire
adult lives. A recipient of two Silver
Stars during the Easter Offensive,
DeVos cited his admiration for But-
ler in his 2020 book, The Last 100
Yards.
The 21st ARVN Division’s mis-
sion abruptly changed on April 7,
1972. President Nguyen Van Thieu
convened a meeting of key officials
to assess the military situation. The
border town of Loc Ninh had just
fallen to the communist jugger-
naut and Binh Long’s provincial
seat, An Loc, was the NVA’s next
objective. If An Loc fell, there
were no forces to stop an enemy
advance on Saigon, 60 miles away.
Thieu made the unprecedented decision to move Butler, shown on the left
the 21st ARVN Division from the Delta to rein- as a major in 1963 during
force the defenders of Binh Long Province. his time as an adviser to
the 9th ARVN Division in
Even in the face of the largest North Vietnam- the Mekong Delta, was
ese offensive of the war, U.S. withdrawals man- always willing to lend his
dated by the Vietnamization program continued. experience to junior
officers and gained a
Personnel shortages in division and regimental reputation for being a good
assistance teams were the norm. Regimental mentor. One of the junior
teams were authorized a lieutenant colonel, three officers he shared his
captains, and two sergeants but it was not unusu- wisdom with in Vietnam
was the author of this
al for only one or two Americans to be with an article, John Howard,
ARVN regiment; the U.S. Army replacement sys- pictured above as a major
tem simply could not keep pace with battle casu- assigned as an adviser to
the 6th Airborne Battalion,
alties, medical evacuations for sickness, and end- Vietnamese Airborne
of-tour rotations. Division in Quang Tri City
Rather than allow a key vacancy to remain un- in July 1972.
filled, Butler volunteered to be the senior adviser
with the 31st ARVN Regiment. Chuck Butler al-
ways went to “the sound of the guns.” Still, he re-
mained Franklin’s “go-to” guy for most problems
and was in charge of the division assistance team
in the senior adviser’s absence.
By April 12, the division was assembled in Lai
Khe, the former base of the U.S. 1st Infantry Divi-
sion, and told to open QL (National Route) 13 to
An Loc. The 7th NVA Division had cut the road,
further isolating An Loc, now surrounded by two
NVA divisions, the 5th and 9th. The 21st ARVN
had never operated in the field as a combat divi-
sion. In its former area, commanders only super-
vised regimental and battalion operations. Bat-
tle-tested SOPs were nonexistent and staff work
WINTER 2024 33
 Turning to an increasingly conventional approach in the war’s final stages, North
Vietnam deployed armor en masse on the battlefield. This photo shows North
Vietnamese T-54 tanks advancing during the 1972 Easter Offensive. In addition to
increasing communist firepower, Butler and other U.S. advisers faced fraying
relations with ARVN counterparts.
was shoddy, often lacking clarity. Attacks often failed due to a lack of proper
coordination. Commanders at all levels became overly reliant on U.S. air-
power, especially B-52 strikes, and were hesitant to move without them.
Nor had the 21st ARVN previously encountered large formations of hard-
core NVA forces that stood their ground and employed heavy artillery in
quantities not previously seen. Indirect fire from 130mm and 152mm guns
became the major killer of friendly troops. Conse-
quently, ARVN soldiers developed a bunker men-
tality and literally “went to ground.” Such behavior
was particularly prevalent among the leaders. In a
letter to his family, Butler said his ARVN counter-
part, Lt. Col. Xuan, only left the regimental com-
mand bunker to answer the call of nature. By con-
trast, Butler regularly checked the troops, usually
under fire. Butler’s bravery resulted in the award of
the Silver Star, but his example had little effect. No
amount of cajoling altered Xuan’s behavior. The
The 21st ARVN commander’s abrogation of leadership responsibili-
This patch shows the
ties lowered morale and contributed to inaction.
emblem of the 21st ARVN
Division, which was beset
by difficulties facing a WHILE THE 21ST DIVISION struggled along
communist onslaught in April highway QL 13, I was experiencing a problem es-
1972. While commanders tablishing a modicum of rapport with the 6th Air-
were overly reliant on borne Battalion commander, Lt. Col. Dinh. He
U.S. firepower, troops
viewed me as useful when we were in a fight be-
developed a bunker
mentality that Butler cause I was the link to U.S. airpower, yet at other
attempted to change by times, I was just excess baggage. He was vocal about
leading by example. not needing any tactical input from Americans.
34 VIETNAM
Butler attributed this attitude to the impact of
Vietnamization. Many Vietnamese, including
Dinh, believed they would ultimately be left high
and dry by the United States. They were more
perceptive than most Americans then serving in
Vietnam.
Butler said the specter of our imminent depar-
ture and the reduction of our robust logistical
system fostered anti-American attitudes. Howev-
er, he was not overly critical of men who har-
bored those beliefs. If the intellectual elite in our
country and students at Ivy League universities
were unable to differentiate between U.S. policy-
makers and those responsible for implementa-
tion of those policies, we shouldn’t be surprised
such viewpoints existed here. His observation
gave me a new empathy for my Vietnamese
counterpart.
During a moment of levity, Chuck shared his
opinion on advisers’ “can-do” attitude. He said it
was part of our makeup—but was a blessing and
a curse. We tried hard to make improvements,
and then felt guilty when our efforts fell short. He
TOP: NATIONAL ARCHIVES; BOTTOM: HISTORYNET ARCHIVES
left me with the following thought: “Regardless of
how hard you try, sometimes you simply can’t
make chicken salad out of chicken shit!”
The 6th Airborne Battalion completed re-
building and retraining at the end of May and
was committed back into the Binh Long battle. It
fought through the 7th NVA Division’s defenses
and linked up with defenders manning the
southern portion of An Loc’s perimeter on June
8, 1972. The 6th was the first unit to break the
 siege and was cited in the U.S. Joint Chiefs of
Staff history of the Vietnam conflict. My rela-
tionship with Dinh had vastly improved, thanks
to Butler’s sage counsel and my ability to put U.S.
bombs on target.
On June 18, government officials declared the
siege of An Loc broken and released the 1st Air-
borne Brigade (three ARVN airborne battalions,
including the 6th) so the unit could join the fight-
ing near the DMZ. Although the siege was offi-
cially lifted, the battle was not over. It took from
June 18 to June 21 for the paratroopers to fight
their way to Tan Khai, six miles south of An Loc.
Tan Khai firebase was defended by the 31st
ARVN Regiment and provided artillery support
for An Loc. It was the furthest advance of the 21st
Division and a thorn in the side of the NVA.
U.S. helicopters were ordered to lift the 1st
Airborne Brigade from Tan Khai to Lai Khe so
preparations could begin for its air movement
north. QL 13 was the designated pickup zone, al-
though airmobile landings near the firebase
would attract more NVA incoming artillery fire.
During the lull preceding the arrival of helicop-
ters, I made my way to the regimental command
post to see Chuck Butler. Our short reunion was
dampened by the news that Lt. Col. Burr Willey,
adviser with the 32nd Regiment, had been killed
by NVA fire on June 19. Chuck believed helicop-
ters would energize NVA gunners who had for-
ward observers seeded throughout the area.
Ever concerned about others, Chuck told me
to be careful and jokingly said: “The good Lord
will look out for you but you have to help Him
by not wandering around in artillery fire!” Our his commitment to the profession of arms began The author was the last
meeting was cut short when a radio call in- years before. Chuck Butler joined the legion of American to see Butler alive.
Less than 30 minutes after
formed me the choppers were inbound. We USMA graduates who made the ultimate sacri-
having a conversation with
shook hands. I wished him luck and said I hoped fice for our country. He was one of 333 West the author, Butler was killed
to see him again. Pointers who lost their lives in the Vietnam War. by NVA artillery fire at the
Their service personified the academy’s motto: age of 44, leaving behind a
wife and three children. The
IT WAS A 15-MINUTE FLIGHT from Tan “Duty, Honor, Country.” author has never forgotten
Khai to Lai Khe, the 21st ARVN Division com- Although five decades have passed since Lt. Butler. Here he is pictured
mand post. When I arrived, Col. Ross Franklin Col. Butler was killed on June 21, 1972, it seems standing beside Butler’s final
resting place at West Point
met our flight. He was visibly shaken, with tears like yesterday to me. Memories of him and those in late 2023.
in his eyes. He told me that Chuck Butler had times are never far from my thoughts. He was
been killed when the bunker he was occupying very helpful during my initial days as an adviser
took a direct hit, probably from a 130mm artil- and I meant to tell him so when we were together,
lery round. I was in a state of disbelief. I told him but I missed the chance. It is a lifelong regret. I
I had just been with Lt. Col. Butler less than 30 continue to mourn the passing of an outstanding
minutes earlier. Ross Franklin said that I was the soldier, a genuine war hero, and a friend. V
last American to see him.
Charles Lewis Butler was 44 years old when he During the 1972 Easter Offensive, John Howard
COURTESY OF THE AUTHOR

died. He had recently completed 22 years of was an adviser with the Vietnamese Airborne
Army service. He left behind his wife, Joan, and Division, serving with the 6th Airborne Battalion
three children, a son and two daughters. He was and the 11th Airborne Battalion. He serves on the
laid to rest at West Point on July 5, 1972, where advisory board of Vietnam magazine.

WINTER 2024 35
 A Fairchild AC-119K Stinger stands ready
for action in Vietnam. The high-powered
guns of the AC-119K and AC-119G Shadow,
both modified Fairchild C-119 “Flying
Boxcar” cargo airplanes, provided potent
ground support for U.S. troops in war zones.

PHOTO CREDITS

36 VIETNAM
 SHADOWS
AND STINGERS
CONVERTED INTO GUNSHIPS, AC-119
CARGO HAULERS RAINED DOWN
MASSIVE FIREPOWER IN VIETNAM
By Barry Levine
PHOTO CREDITS

WINTER 2024 37
 A haunting illustration by Jack Fellows
shows an AC-119G Shadow on a
nighttime mission over the highlands
of the Vietnam/Laos border—an area
through which portions of the Ho Chi
Minh Trail snaked.
n the words of one gunship navigator, Fairchild AC-119s “resem-
bled a black and green Hostess Twinkie with wings.” Some nick-
named the aircraft the “Dollar 19.” The Air Force called them fixed-
wing gunships. Enemy forces in the war feared these “dragon ships”
with their tremendous firepower. However referenced, AC-119G
“Shadows” and AC-119K “Stingers” were C-119 cargo aircraft con-
verted to gunships in the late 1960s. Flown by skilled airmen and supported
by exceptionally dedicated ground crew, these aircraft were highly effective
during the war.
The roots of the Shadow and Stinger gunships go back to Sherman Fair-
child, an entrepreneur from the Golden Age of Aviation who founded
many companies, including Fairchild Avia-
tion. Fairchild produced aircraft such as the Enemy NVA
C-82 Packet, designed to replace early World
War II transport aircraft such as the Douglas
and VC forces
C-47 (the military version of the DC-3). often would
Packets were redesigned with bigger engines VW\ÅZMWV
and the cockpit moved towards the nose, be- the AC-119
coming known as the C-119 “Flying Boxcar.” gunships,
First flown in 1947, over 1,100 were built as they knew
with production ending in 1955. Boxcars had
a 109-foot wingspan, two Wright R-3350-85 \PMÅZM_W]TL
Duplex Cyclone engines (similar to those be returned.
38 VIETNAM
used in B-29 Superfortresses), a cruising speed
of 180 knots, and a range of 1,600 miles. C-119s
saw action in numerous unique missions, such
as dropping prefabricated bridge components
to U.S. Marines fighting their way out of North
Korea’s Chosin Reservoir in 1950. Boxcars air-
dropped French paratroopers at Dien Bien Phu
in 1954 and completed midair retrievals of cap-
sules containing spy satellite film of the Soviet
PREVIOUS PAGES: SAN DIEGO AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM; TOP: ©JACK FELLOWS/ASAA
Union in the early 1960s. As newer cargo aircraft
such as the Lockheed C-130 became available,
the C-119’s days appeared to be numbered—but
one more mission, not foreseen by Fairchild’s en-
gineers, remained.
Independent of C-119 development, the mili-
tary considered using fixed-wing gunships. Lt.
Fred Nelson unsuccessfully promoted side-firing
machine guns from an aircraft in the 1920s. In
1942, Lt. Col. Gilmour MacDonald revived the
idea and promoted gunships for years, but the
military remained unconvinced. Finally, Capt.
Ronald Terry (often referred to as “the father of
the gunship”) was given permission to test the
 concept in August 1964. The successful results led to Terry and Lt. Edwin
Sasaki briefing Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Curtis LeMay. LeMay approved
further tests in Vietnam although most of his staff was opposed to the idea.
Other aircraft converted to gunships in Vietnam were the Douglas C-47
and Lockheed C-130. Secretary of the Air Force Harold Brown wanted to
use the older and slower C-119 for this purpose, as he needed C-130s for
transport duty. Seventh Air Force Commander Gen. William Momyer was
opposed, as introducing AC-119s to Vietnam would require additional
logistical support. Also, C-119s had a reputation for mechanical problems
such as landing gear and engine mount failures, with some describing Box-
cars as “thousands of rivets flying in loose formation.” Nevertheless, Brown
contracted with Fairchild Hiller to modify 26 Boxcars to AC-119G Shad-
ows by adding four 7.62mm Gatling guns. Fairchild modified another 26
Boxcars as AC-119K Stingers that added two multibarrel 20mm M61 can-
non, a fire control system using an analog computer, night observation de-
vices, and infrared equipment to search out targets.

T
wo jet engines were added to supplement the propeller engines on
AC-119Ks, increasing the Stinger’s chances of returning home if a
propeller engine was lost. The added thrust also allowed for higher
maximum takeoff weight (thus more ammunition) as well as enabling the
flight engineer to reduce the power setting and the fuel mixture richness for
the piston engines, curtailing the exhaust plumes and making optical track-
ing difficult for enemy gunners.
Training for the AC-119 aircrews included gunship equipment, attack
techniques, and basic understanding of the Vietnamese and Thai civilian
populations. A “Shoot Down Board” at jungle survival school contained the
names of Air Force personnel who were shot down or forced to abandon
their aircraft over Southeast Asia. Instructors found that the board helped
students focus on the matter at hand—especially as there were two blank
panels on the wall to list additional names. Once in country, AC-119Gs were
based at locations such as Phu Cat, Phan Rang, Da Nang, and Tan Son Nhut.
Missions included providing close air support for troops in contact with the
enemy, and attacks against the enemy and supplies on the Ho Chi Minh Trail
and Cambodia. American and South Vietnamese convoys would be protect-
ed by AC-119 gunships, while Forward Air Control aircraft would look for
enemy troops preparing ambushes. Enemy forces often would not fire on the
AC-119s as they knew the fire would be returned. Forces on the ground ap-
preciated the work of the Shadows and Stingers. In one instance, a Special
Forces commander on the ground, when advised of Phantoms coming to
assist, shouted into his radio: “Screw the F-4s, get me a Shadow!”
Flight altitudes varied based on many factors; firing at enemy personnel
would often occur from about 2,500 feet Above Ground Level (AGL) using
TOP AND MIDDLE: U.S. AIR FORCE; BELOW: SAN DIEGO AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM

their miniguns and at about 5,000 feet AGL with 20mm cannon against
vehicles. The AC-119s were busy. In 1969 alone they saw 3,700 sorties,
14,000 combat hours, and 35 million rounds of ammunition expended.
Anti-aircraft fire was a constant risk—gallows humor on board referred to
enemy fire going between the tail booms and horizontal stabilizer as “field
goals.” While focused on the target, pilots used aircraft intercom to direct
the gunship crew and the radio with ground forces. Extensive monitoring
of all radio and intercom traffic was required and all on the gunship looked
Both the AC-119G Shadow and AC-119K Stinger featured
for anti-aircraft fire. four 7.62mm rotary miniguns (top)—though the later
AC-119Gs typically had six crew on board for day missions or eight for Stinger also boasted two 20mm M61 cannons. Middle:
night missions. AC-119Ks often flew with 10 airmen—a pilot, copilot, flight A gunner loads one of the miniguns, which were fired by
the pilot. Above: William Dawson of the 71st Special
engineer, table navigator, Night Observations Sight (NOS) operator (who Operations Squadron trains his AC-119’s night
would amplify any available light and send coordinates to the fire control observation scope during a mission in April 1969.

WINTER 2024 39
 AC-119G ‘SHADOW’

Night Observation AVQ-8 Xenon

Sight 7.62mm Miniguns (4) Searchlight

AC-119K ‘STINGER’

AVQ-8 Xenon
Searchlight
AN/ADD-4 Night 7.62mm
FLIR Turret Observation Miniguns (4)
(Forward Sight
Looking AN/APQ-133 Side Looking
20mm Rotary 20mm Rotary Becon Tracking Radar
Infrared) Cannon Cannon

Left: A period illustration notes some of the differences between the AC-119G and standing Unit Award, which mentioned the Re-
AC-119K. Both derived from testing done in August 1964 by Capt. Ronald Terry, servists firing a relatively “sophisticated weapons
nicknamed the “father of the gunship.” Use of the aircraft grew quickly: in 1969 alone,
AC-119s saw 14,000 combat hours in 3,900 sorties. Right: The Super Sow was an system being battle tested for the first time, work-
AC-119K Stinger of the 14th Special Operations Wing—hence the “SOW” moniker. ing often under intense ground fire, in periods of
inclement weather, and almost totally during
computer) and Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR) operator (both manned hours of darkness.” When the 71st returned
by navigators), gunners that loaded and maintained (but did not fire) the home, about 65% of the personnel transferred to
weapons, and an Illuminator Operator (IO). The IO operated the flare the active-duty 17th SOS, which flew AC-119Gs.
launcher and the 1.5-million-candle power light (white light and infrared) The third unit seeing extensive action was the
at the rear of the aircraft and served as a jumpmaster if the crew needed to 18th SOS, operating with AC-119Ks.
bail out. All guns were mounted on the left side of the aircraft, requiring the Numerous firsthand accounts are available
crew to fly in a continuous left bank orbit around the target; crews often that add perspective to crew life, both in the air
preferred the term “orbit” to “circle.” Vertigo and target fixation were seri- and on the ground. Virtually all accounts men-
ous dangers for pilots while flying the firing circle. The FLIR sensor was tioned how teamwork, technical know-how, and
used to search for intense spots of infrared ener- communication were essential in successfully
gy—which could be enemy soldiers or large ani- completing the missions. In one example, Flight
mals. When the gunners weren’t loading or repair- Engineer Jay Collars recalled when his AC-119
ing guns, they supplemented the IO to spot “took a .50 caliber hit through the right propeller
anti-aircraft fire as “scanners.” oil line, severing the line and causing a runaway

T
propeller. The aircraft immediately rolled and
he first AC-119 unit in country was the 71st yawed left and began losing altitude.…While the

Locally Made
Handcrafted patches, called
“morale patches,” were often
made up for American troops
by local businesses that set
up shop near U.S. bases. The
one above shows the Stinger
of an Air Force serviceman
whose tour from 1971-72 on
the “Highway Patrol” helped
clear the Ho Chi Minh Trail
that wound through
Cambodia, Laos, and
Vietnam.
Special Operations Squadron (SOS), com-
posed of Air Force reservists who were sta-
tioned at Indiana’s Bakalar AFB. Gunship training
for these airmen was completed at Ohio’s Lock-
bourne AFB. In December 1968, the 71st began de-
ploying to Southeast Asia. This deployment repre-
sented the first time since the Korean War that Air
Force Reserve personnel conducted flights inside a
combat zone; missions began in early 1969. Some of
the AC-119s, given their somewhat limited fuel ca-
pacity, took almost a month to make the flight from
Lockbourne to South Vietnam.
During its six-month deployment in the theater,
the 71st completed over 6,200 combat flying hours
on over 1,500 sorties. Members of the 71st earned
numerous awards, including an Air Force Out-
TOP LEFT: ILLUSTRATION BY JON BOCK; RIGHT: U.S. AIR FORCE; BOTTOM: HISTORYNET ARCHIVES
pilots struggled to gain control, I (as flight engi-
neer) began running the emergency checklist.
Needless to say, for a few minutes there was a lot
of scrambling on the flight deck.” Nevertheless,
Collars’ crew managed to safely land the aircraft.
Copilot Wayne Laessig described attacking
ground targets. After completing the “Strike
Checklist,” a pilot would say, “Copilot, you have
the pitch.” The pilot controlled firing the weap-
ons, using a pylon turn flying technique (a con-
stant 30-degree turn), resulting in concentrated
fire at ground targets. The aircraft commander/
pilot flew rudder and ailerons, the copilot flew
pitch, and the flight engineer worked the throt-
tles and monitored the gauges—a three-man ef-
fort requiring extensive coordination. Laessig

40 VIETNAM
 noted, “There wasn’t a single crew member on the airplane
you didn’t need (for) the whole mission. Learning that was
the best thing in my whole career.”
The often-undermanned maintenance crews routinely
worked 12-hour shifts and may have taken shortcuts to get
the job done, given the high mission tempo. Crew Chief
Jesse Lau wrote that occasionally the crew would “clean our
engine up the ‘extremely unsafe’ way…the POL truck would
pull up and we would fill up the tanks on both wings. After
I’d get done fueling on the left wing, I would shoot the fuel
from the hose into the engine and clean the engine that way.
That’s extremely unsafe, dangerous, and guaranteed to get
you a court-martial and jail time if you ever got caught do-
ing that stateside. But…we ran into time constraints (as) there was a war Top: Bombed-out enemy trucks speak to the gunships’
going on.” effectiveness. Both airships provided critical close air
support; the AC-119K in particular gained a reputation
Gunners had a very challenging role. Everett Sprous, a gunner on AC- as an excellent truck killer. Above: Armored personnel
119Ks, loaded and repaired the 20mm Vulcan cannon (firing 2,500 rounds carriers were also fruitful targets.
per minute) and 7.62mm miniguns (6,000 rounds per minute). Sprous re-
called the noise: “The gunship was shaking so hard that you believed at any was talking to a FAC who claimed he was about
second the aircraft would come apart. The noise and smoke were so intense 10 miles away. “Suddenly an OV-10 filled our
that it would take a couple hours after a mission to clear your brain. Gun windscreen,” he later described. “He crossed di-
barrels would turn red, then white, from bullets being fired at such high rectly in front of us from left to right, and at our
rates.” Reloading the 20mms required using a drill-like device weighing same altitude. He was flying with his exterior
between 30 and 40 pounds while the aircraft might be in a steep banking light off and was so close I could actually read his
maneuver. Scanners were always alert for incoming AAA and their calls for instrument panel.…To this day, I don’t know
U.S. AIR FORCE (2)

evasive action saved many aircraft and crew. how we didn’t hit him with our right propeller.…
Midair collisions were another risk, especially as numerous night mis- This clown drove right across our nose at our al-
sions were flown. On station over Cambodia, pilot John Windsor’s crew titude.” That FAC was ultimately shipped out.

WINTER 2024 41
 Clockwise from top left: Minigun mounts on an AC-119K Stinger; as one crewman
reported, when the gunships fired, the “noise and smoke were so intense that it would
take a couple hours after a mission to clear your brain”; in May 1970, Capt. Alan
Milacek was able to land his Stinger even though chunks of his wing had been shot off;
Capt. Terence Courtney was awarded the Air Force Cross for sacrificing his life during
1972’s Stinger 41 mission. Opposite: A Shadow flies over South Vietnam in 1971.
Two of the best-known missions were Stinger 41 and Stinger 21 (repre-
senting the aircrafts’ call signs). Both were representative of the challenges
faced on any AC-119 flight—including enemy action, mechanical mal-
function on the aircraft, and/or bad weather. On May 12, 1972, an AC-
119K mission over South Vietnam (“Stinger 41”) was flown by Capt. Ter-
ence Courtney. This was a high-risk daylight mission near An Loc. Stinger
41 was heavily damaged by AAA fire, causing the loss of both right engines
and a fire in part of the right wing. Courtney and copilot Lt. Jim Barkalow
kept the heavily damaged aircraft aloft, allowing seven crew to bail out
(and later be rescued), but the aircraft crashed. Courtney was posthu-
mously awarded an Air Force Cross for sacrificing himself and allowing
most of the crew to survive. In addition to Courtney, Capt. David Slagle
and Staff Sgt. Kenneth Brown could not get off the aircraft in time and died
in the incident. The Air Force Cross award stated in part: “Control of the
aircraft had become so difficult that Captain Courtney had to use all his
42 VIETNAM
strength to maintain control. [Courtney]
wrapped his arms around the yoke to keep the
TOP: U.S. AIR FORCE (2); BOTTOM LEFT: AC-119 ASSOCIATION; BOTTOM RIGHT: SAN DIEGO AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM
aircraft’s nose from pitching down. When he
could no longer control the aircraft, he ordered
his crew to bail out…. His courage, gallantry, in-
trepidity, and sense of responsibility towards his
fellow men overrode any desire…for his own
self-preservation.”
Stinger 21 involved a May 1970 mission com-
manded by Capt. Alan Milacek, who along with
his crew were awarded the Mackay Trophy for
the most meritorious flight of 1970 when their
heavily damaged AC-119 was flown safely back
to base. Hit by ground fire, the aircraft was about
90 minutes from Udorn, Thailand, with a series
of mountain ranges to cross, including a 9,300-
foot peak, on the return. Milacek ordered the
crew to toss out everything they could to reduce
weight. Milacek and copilot Capt. Brent O’Brien
nursed the plane back to Udorn. Inspection of
the damaged aircraft revealed that more than 14
 feet on the leading edge and more than 17 feet on
the trailing edge of the right wing were missing,
with damage to the right outboard aileron and to
a fuel tank at the end of the wing. Milacek was
heard over the intercom as the aircraft went onto
the taxiway at the end of the runway: “Thank you,
Lord, thank you.”
While the AC-119s and their crews were com-
piling a distinguished combat record, the war it-
self was changing. As American participation in
the war wound down, President Nixon’s Viet-
namization program began turning the war over
to South Vietnam. Part of that effort included
AC-119 personnel training their Vietnamese
counterparts, such as Air Force Capt. Hoa Ngoc
Bach. He later fled from the South after the com-
munist takeover and came to the U.S. as a refugee
at Camp Pendleton, California. With the assis-
tance of navigator William Gericke, Bach secured
housing, learned to drive, and became an Ameri-
can citizen. Changing his name to Harold Hoa
Bach, he sponsored 21 family members in com-
ing to America, and had a 28-year career in the
auto industry.
U.S. AIR FORCE
As the war concluded, AC-119 crews returned
to the U.S. while the aircraft remained behind.
The military record of the AC-119 was assessed in While the
a Contemporary Historical Examination of Cur-
rent Operations report, which concluded that the
AC-119
AC-119G was an extremely useful weapon system, gunships and
performing a variety of missions above and be- their crews
yond its primary mission of close air support. The were compiling
AC-119K was an excellent truck killer and proved a distinguished
equally useful in providing close air support for
troops in contact. AC-119 crews “performed as-
combat record,
signed tasks with resourcefulness, overcoming the Vietnam
equipment limitations through operator skill.” War itself was
What the air crews and ground support person- changing.
nel accomplished was remarkable. Seventeen air-
men that were part of the Shadow and Stinger missions were killed in ac-
tion. These personnel all demonstrated a high level of courage, skill, and
dedication to duty while completing these missions, flying aircraft original-
ly designed as cargo haulers.
While popular and political support for the war was dwindling, the
crews, whatever their rank, maintained a high level of camaraderie, team-
work, and desire to successfully complete the missions, while saving count-
less lives of those on the ground. V
Barry Levine works at the Henry Ford museum in Dearborn, Michigan, vol-
unteers at the Yankee Air Museum in Belleville, Michigan, and writes on a
variety of aviation and history topics. His most recent book is Michigan
Aviation: People and Places that Changed History.
WINTER 2024 43
 THE ART OF
PERSUASION
WARTIME POSTERS FROM BOTH NORTH AND SOUTH
VIETNAM USED IMAGERY TO INFLUENCE THE HEARTS
AND MINDS OF THE VIETNAMESE PEOPLE
By Larry Porges

he word “propaganda” evokes many images,

few of them positive. We often think of propa-
ganda as sinister attempts to brainwash a popu-
lation into embracing authoritarian political
systems, with posters typically part of the ef-
fort. History has shown that it’s indeed easy for propaganda
to turn ugly—governments have long utilized it to indoc-
trinate a population to act in ways that it normally would
not, and to demonize people and views. Nazi Germany’s
vilification of Jews is an obvious example.
But propaganda is often more subtle and can often be
attempts to simply inspire and promote the shared values
and objectives of the community. Take

LEFT: U.S. INFORMATION AGENCY; RIGHT: COURTESY OF JOEL MONTAGUE AND NORA TAYLOR, PHOTOGRAPHED BY MOUNCY FERGUSON
Uncle Sam “wanting you” to defend Left: A 1954 poster created
for South Vietnam by the
America during World War I, Britain’s U.S. Information Agency
“Keep Calm” posters of the Second warns that: “Anywhere
World War, and the strength behind there is communism, there
is terrorism and assass-
the let’s-all-pitch-in message of Rosie ination.” Right: A North
the Riveter. Vietnamese poster from
The ongoing conflicts in Southeast 1968 shows VC fighters
“determined to beat the
Asia—from the French Indochina wars beginning in the late 1940s American enemy.” A
through the U.S. withdrawal in 1975—was a classic case where win- shot-down U.S. pilot lies
ning over the population was half the battle. At its heart, the Viet- in the foreground while
nam War was a civil war. On the following pages are a series of post- an American jet crashes in
the distance.
ers, many quite rare, extolling the virtues of both the communist
North and the democratic South—all efforts to win the hearts and minds of the people
of Vietnam. Poster art had a long tradition in Vietnam. Because 80% of the population
was still illiterate as of 1945, the power of imagery was critical in promoting viewpoints,
conveying ideas, and inspiring people to action. For the North, the artists’ message of-
ten tried appealing to the population’s sense of community and country, while also at-
tempting to recruit solders for the fight. Meanwhile, the South tended to focus on rally-
ing the population to fend off the wider specter of communist aggression—a focus
encouraged by the United States. By 1969, the U.S. had produced more than 23 million
propaganda posters and pamphlets for South Vietnam. V

44 VIETNAM
A
 Art of Persuasion

E
F
LEFT: U.S. INFORMATION AGENCY; RIGHT: COURTESY OF JOEL MONTAGUE AND NORA TAYLOR, PHOTOGRAPHED BY MOUNCY FERGUSON (5)

A A 1964 South Vietnamese recruitment poster—with text proclaiming that “The Army is Your Future”—advertises
the skills soldiers could learn in the ARVN. B Ho Chi Minh’s legacy lived on long after his 1969 death. This 1980
poster celebrates the man revered as the father of the country’s communist revolution. The poster reads, “Nobody
loves Uncle Ho as children do, nobody loves children as Uncle Ho does.” C A 1975 North Vietnamese poster features
an ethnic-minority woman with a machine gun over her shoulder. The North tried to emphasize that all of
>QM\VIU¼[UIVaM\PVQKOZW]X[_MZMQVKT]LMLQV\PMQZ^I]V\MLVI\QWVITÅOP\IOIQV[\QUXMZQITQ[UD In 1953, a
20-year-old peasant girl named Tran Thi Tam led a guerrilla team of seven women on a mission against the French.
0MZ[XQZQ\Q[[PW_VPMZMÆWI\QVOIJW^MINMUITM[WTQLMZMVKW]ZIOQVOPMZIVLW\PMZ_WUMV\WÅOP\E Women were
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ZMLIVLJT]MKWTWZ[WN\PM>+ÆIOZMXZM[MV\\PMLQ^Q[QWV_Q\PQV>QM\VIUF ! ¼[<M\7ЄMV[Q^MQV[XQZML\PQ[6WZ\P
Vietnamese battle poster. One of the captions reads, “Sweep clean the American enemy aggressors.”

WINTER 2024 47
 Art of Persuasion

LEFT: U.S. INFORMATION AGENCY (5): RIGHT: COURTESY OF JOEL MONTAGUE AND NORA TAYLOR, PHOTOGRAPHED BY MOUNCY FERGUSON
I J

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48 VIETNAM
L
 Refugees flee Seoul, heading south as
Communist forces advance from the north during
the Korean War in January 1951. ROK Air Force
Col. Han Jin-Hwan’s family lost their possessions
during the North Korean occupation of Seoul.
He believed his country owed a debt to the
U.S. for its assistance during the war.

PHOTO CREDITS

50 VIETNAM
 A VIETNAM WAR
PERSPECTIVE FROM
SOUTH KOREA
INTERVIEW WITH RETIRED REPUBLIC OF KOREA
AIR FORCE COL. HAN JIN-HWAN
By M. G. Haynes
PHOTO CREDITS
 An ROK Marine (right) takes
two Viet Cong insurgents
prisoner as they emerge from
an underground hiding place.
The Republic of Korea had
the second largest troop
presence in Vietnam after
the U.S., with 320,000 troops
passing through the war zone.
n 1964, the Republic of Korea (ROK) dispatched soldiers
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52 VIETNAM
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+PQVO+P]IV3IVO)QZ*I[MQV<IQ_IV
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.WZKM*I[MQV<M`I[NZWU!̆<PMVPM
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PREVIOUS SPREAD AND TOP: NATIONAL ARCHIVES
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 Right: U.S. Marines pass through a village during the
Korean War. During the war, Col. Han’s father Han
Sang-Jik was taken prisoner by communist forces.
Han Jin-Hwan joined the ROK Air Force in 1959 and
volunteered to go to Vietnam in 1972.

Col. Han, where are you from in Korea?

I was born and raised in Seoul, the capital of the
Republic of Korea.

What did your parents do and what was

it like growing up?
My father [Han Sang-Jik] was a high-ranking of-
ficial in the Ministry of Public Affairs. In 1950,
when North Korea invaded, we couldn’t evacuate
to the south and so were forced into hiding. A
friend of my father’s talked him into coming out
into the open where he was then captured by the
North Koreans. That “friend” turned out to be a
communist sympathizer.
My father was taken North with many other
public officials and we never saw him again. I was
12 years old at the time.
I always remembered three things my father
taught me: “If you start something, never give up
until the very end,” “Always be diligent,” and, “Al-
ways be a good person.”

Were you drafted or did you volunteer

to go to Vietnam?
I volunteered, though not in the way you Ameri-
cans did. I’d joined the ROK Air Force in 1959, Col. Han
and so in 1972 I was a major working directly for Han Jin-Hwan
the Chief of Staff of the ROK Air Force. He asked Sang-Jik
me at the time where I wanted to serve next and I
told him Vietnam.
It was hard for Air Force officers to go there at
the time as there were few of our personnel in I received took place at the Ministry of National Defense in Seoul.
Vietnam, so competition for the few slots was
high. Since I asked the Chief of Staff directly, he What unit did you serve in?
agreed and made the arrangements. I served in the Air Force Support Group, with its headquarters located at Tan
Son Nhut Air Base near Saigon. As it turned out, I only stayed there for three
What inspired you to volunteer? months before being dispatched to Clark Field in the Philippines as ROK
I felt strongly ever since 1950, when the United Liaison Officer.
States came to our aid and helped our country
TOP: NATIONAL ARCHIVES; BOTTOM: COURTESY OF COL. HAN JIN-HWAN (2)

beat back the communist North, that Korea owed ?PMVLQLaW]ÅZ[\IZZQ^MQVKW]V\ZaIVL_PI\_I[Q\TQSM'

a debt to the U.S. We were poor then with few
modern weapons and little ammunition.
A lot of equipment was shared with us and
many U.S. soldiers died on our behalf. President
Park decided the ROK would dispatch troops to
Vietnam and I wanted to do my part to help re-
pay that national debt.
Did you receive any special training before
deploying to Vietnam?
Due to the nature of my mission the only training
Late May 1972, on a ROKAF C-54. Saigon wasn’t exactly the frontier. We
stayed at a small hotel. The soldiers and airmen stationed at Tan Son Nhut
didn’t really feel the war like the men did out in the jungle. Our infantry
were at the front and fighting, but would come back to Saigon for rest and
recovery. My wartime duty station was a recovery site for others!
What was your mission there?
I handled all coordination for ROK personnel—military and civilian—
moving between Korea and Vietnam. I managed a small village full of trail-
ers for our people to overnight in when necessary. My NCO and I also
provided escort duty to the medevac flights taking our wounded and dead

WINTER 2024 53

This decorative plate was one of a set
of 10 pieces that then Maj. Han
purchased in Saigon and sent back
home to his family in South Korea.
Col. Han’s wife, daughter, and son are shown in a photo
taken circa 1974. Han’s daughter—born in 1973, halfway
through his Vietnam deployment—could well be wearing
baby clothes that Han bought for his family at Clark Field.
from Vietnam back to Korea.
These missions were all-day flights for us, on
ROKAF C-54 and C-9 aircraft specially adapted
to transport litter and ambulatory patients. The
medevac flights routed from Vietnam to Taiwan
and then on to Daegu, Gimpo, or Gwangju Air
Bases in Korea.
During the layover in Taiwan I arranged for
meals—regular or soft food—and handled all fi-
nancial transactions required as well as making
whatever arrangements were necessary with the
nursing staff. After landing in Korea and unload-
ing both our wounded and deceased members,
we had four hours before the return flight to
Clark. Those missions took all day starting with a
3 a.m. briefing at Clark and not returning till late
at night.
My duties required me to have dealings with
the U.S. military hospital at Clark. That facility
was very large and a lot of wounded and deceased
54 VIETNAM
U.S. soldiers came through there. I remember seeing so many coffins.
Did anything surprise you about Vietnam?
You couldn’t tell friend from foe. You couldn’t look at someone and see
whether or not they were communists. Because of this, the Support Group
commander, Lt. Gen. Lee, instituted a curfew and so we weren’t allowed
into the city at night.
Did you interact with local Vietnamese and, if so, what did you
think about them?
We used to visit “Chollum” [sic] market. At the time I bought a set of 10
ceramic plates decorated in a French style for my wife. I still have three or
four. People in the market smiled at us and treated us nicely but we always
wondered if they weren’t really communist at heart. That said, unit regula-
tions prevented us from any significant interaction with the locals.
How hard was it to do your mission, and how long did it last?
At times it was very difficult—especially the medevac flights—but I felt then
that it was a job worth doing and I was honored to do it. I was very patriotic
at that age and since I couldn’t go to the forward areas and fight, I really want-
ed to help those who’d been wounded doing so. There was a lot of job satisfac-
tion for me there. Still, it was very hard for me to see our soldiers that way.
It was a one-year tour for me, 1972 to 1973. Three months at Tan Son
Nhut and then nine more at Clark.
Do you recall any particularly memorable experiences
while performing that mission?
So many. Some of our wounded had been blinded or lost limbs. It was piti-
ful to see them so badly injured. They were all so young, so full of life, but
dedicated to the mission there and ready to sacrifice. I felt…it was just very
pitiful to see them that way.
Did you work with American troops in Vietnam? If so, what
was your experience with them?
I didn’t really work with Americans in Vietnam, but of course I worked
with so many stationed at Clark Field. I thought they were generally very
good soldiers and very patriotic.
How many trips did you make to Vietnam?
The medevac flights took place roughly once every three weeks or so. My
NCO and I took turns escorting the medevac flights and so I made three or
four trips back into Vietnam. He was a medical Technical Sergeant.
Besides soldiers, what kind of people passed through Clark
from Korea?
Lots of entertainers, assemblymen, even Miss Korea, but not many so late
in the war.
Was your family concerned for your welfare?
They were concerned, but I received combat pay while deployed to Viet-
COURTESY OF COL. HAN JIN-HWAN (2)
nam and so that was good news. It was a lot of money for us back then and
my wife saved up the excess pay to buy an apartment in Seoul.
I remember my daughter was born halfway through my tour of duty,
in 1973. Because I had access to the U.S. Air Force Base Exchange on
Clark, I bought a bunch of baby clothes and sent them home to my wife.
These things helped them and took their minds off the fact that I might
 ROK Marines travel to the combat zone on a
U.S. resupply transport in late 1967. South
Korea sustained over 5,000 dead and
11,000 wounded during the Vietnam War.
Col. Han escorted medevac flights
transporting wounded and deceased ROK
soldiers from Vietnam back to Korea.
be in a dangerous situation.
How did you feel when the U.S. withdrew from Vietnam?
It all kind of felt like a waste of time, and I hated the thought that the com-
munists had won after all. It made me think that no matter how much help
might be given, we could never change peoples’ ideology. It was the same
with North Korea. The experience left me, if anything, even more anti-
communist, more dedicated to protecting our freedoms than before.
When you returned to Korea from your deployment, did you
face any negativity because of your experience in Vietnam?
No, none at all. The government thanked us for our service in Vietnam and
gifted us our first color television and a new refrigerator. You laugh, but
there weren’t many color TVs in Korea in 1973, so we felt special. The mil-
itary handed us coupons upon our return and we just went into a store and
walked away with the new appliances. Our going to the war really wasn’t a
political or social issue back then, though you must remember we had a
military government at the time so protests were difficult.
Still, our participation in the Vietnam War didn’t become an issue at all
until later, when left-leaning politicians used it for political gain. At the
time, we were welcomed back home and those who returned with me just
felt lucky to be alive.
Have you been back to Vietnam since the war ended?
No…and don’t really have any desire to do so. That was a long time ago.
NATIONAL ARCHIVES
Is there anything you would like to say to Vietnam
veterans in the U.S. reading this story?
The U.S. veterans of that war were heroes for standing up to the spread of
communism overseas. I think it was a very diffi-
cult experience for them and I appreciate it so
much.
What would you like young people to
know about the Vietnam War?
War is a very cruel and difficult thing. My gener-
ation knew war and poverty, precisely because of
communist aggression from North Korea and
later North Vietnam. Our young must be thank-
ful to their elders for all our sacrifices, but they
know nothing of war or difficulty.
They can’t understand enduring poverty, death,
and destruction because of the communists up
north. It’s all ancient history to them—almost like
a fairy tale. This is why they lean toward leftist
ideas. They just don’t understand what happened
the last time those ideas marched south.
Is there anything you would like to add?
It seems rich countries always feel the need to
help poorer countries.
And yet the ROK was quite a poor country
when it decided to help South Vietnam.
Yes, and in a strange way, it ended up being our
nation’s pathway to material success and the
prosperity you see in Korea today. Our sacrifice
served our nation well. V
WINTER 2024 55
 A SNIPER’S
STORY
Chuck Mawhinney is the highest
scoring sniper in the U.S. Marine
Corps. A new book explores his
Vietnam War experiences.
Fans of sniper stories will likely be excited to read
this account of the life of Chuck Mawhinney, the
top scoring U.S. Marine sniper to date. Mawhin-
ney joined the U.S. Marines at age 18 and served
in Vietnam from 1967-69, where he made 103
confirmed kills over a period of 16 months, kill-
ing four enemies a week on average.
The book, penned by writer Jim Lindsay based
on in-depth interviews with Mawhinney, is writ-
ten in a down-to-earth style that is easy to read.
Readers will feel like they are getting to know
Mawhinney as they progress through the book,
The Sniper: which recounts the famed sniper’s early life and
The Untold Story his postwar experiences in addition to his time in
of the Marine
Vietnam. Readers who enjoy lis-
Corps’ Greatest
Marksman of MEDIA tening to soldiers telling their war
All Time DIGEST stories over a few drinks or in a
By Jim Lindsay, casual setting (like this reviewer)
foreword by Chuck will likely enjoy the style in which the book is
Mawhinney. written, because it is very much as if you are lis-
St. Martin’s Press, tening firsthand to Mawhinney’s stories.
2023, $38.82 Readers looking for an in-depth account of
Mawhinney’s war in Vietnam may be somewhat
56 VIETNAM
disappointed because the narrative is not a com-
plete account of his experiences. The Vietnam
War portion of the book consists of several Viet-
nam War stories from Mawhinney rather than a
complete chronicle of his time in country. There
are probably many more stories that will forever
remain untold. Mawhinney himself was satisfied
with the book. “This is the whole story. I think
Jim did a good job,” he told Oregonian newspa-
per The Baker City Herald. Some readers, howev-
er, may be left wanting more.
Obviously one of the qualities of a good sniper
is a certain degree of ruthlessness. This is evident
in Mawhinney’s actions described throughout
CHUCK MAWHINNEY COURTESY OF ST. MARTIN’S PRESS
the book, from shooting animals in his youth,
ambushing enemies throughout the Vietnam
War, and in his postwar life exterminating coy-
otes. The passages dealing with these matters are
not gory but matter-of-fact. Some readers may
admire Mawhinney’s proficiency at killing while
others may find it disturbing. Readers who are
sniper fans or familiar with snipers’ memoirs will
likely not be bothered by these anecdotes.
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 Mawhinney has a sense of humor which is re-
flected in many of the stories he chose to tell. One
passage that stood out for its ironic humor relat-
ed how Mawhinney struggled to adjust after be-
ing sent to assist an ROK Marine unit. He went
on daily patrols with the South Koreans, with
whom he could not communicate due to the lan-
guage barrier. He remembered the Koreans as
“ornery” fellows who at first surreptitiously swat-
ted him with sticks to annoy him while he was
walking. He had difficulty adjusting to patrol
duty since the ROK men did not set up a perime-
ter when resting. “Instead of creating a perimeter,
they dropped wherever—maybe in the hut of an
abandoned village or they’d just curl up along a
trail, leaving Chuck wide-eyed and sleepless,” author Lindsay writes. “If a
sound woke the Koreans, they’d grab their weapons and run out into the
dark to investigate. If an enemy was caught alive they just beat him to death
and went back to bed.” While the Koreans eventually gained respect for
Mawhinney due to his sniper skills, he also “considered the ROK some bad-
ass dudes and was glad they were on his side.”
All in all, Mawhinney is a rather reserved character which is reflected by
the material included in book; the Vietnam War takes up a significantly
smaller portion of the book than one might expect. The narrative is engag-
ing and reflective. Readers hoping for a sensational shooting saga or a blow-
by-blow account of a sniper’s lethal achievements in Vietnam will feel let
down. Readers eager to read and appreciate the memories and experiences
of a humble Vietnam War veteran and Marine who happens to have been a
sniper will be more than satisfied.
—Zita Ballinger Fletcher

Norwegian Warrior
In one of the most outstanding memoirs that this
reviewer has had the privilege of reading, retired
U.S. Army Col. Henrik “Hank” Lunde gives a de-
tailed account of his life experiences and strug-
gles during the Vietnam War and beyond. Lunde
served three tours in Vietnam, first commanding
a rifle company with the 1st Brigade, 101st Air-
borne Division before going on to serve as Bri-
gade S-3 and battalion executive officer for the 9th
Division, becoming a deputy operations adviser
to II ARVN Corps and eventually commanding a
Special Forces battalion from 1972-73. He was
Chief of Negotiations for the U.S. delegation to
Immigrant the Four Party Joint Military Team (FPJMT), ne-
Warrior: A gotiating with North Vietnam to account for dead
Challenging Life
and missing. He also went on to serve as Director
in War and Peace
of National and International Security Studies for
By Henrik O. Lunde.
Casemate Publishers, Europe at the U.S. Army War College.
2023, $52.95 Lunde was born in Norway in 1936 and emi-
grated to the U.S. as a teenager. The early part of
his memoir provides a fascinating and poignant
glimpse of his hardscrabble beginnings in Nor-
way and his family’s experiences. Living on the
small island of Risoy in western Norway, he
watched dogfights between British and German
planes overhead and once had a dangerous en-
counter with German officers searching his fam-
ily home during World War II. As a boy he was
enthusiastic about stories involving military his-
tory and leadership, reading the Old Norse Kings
Sagas by Snorre Sturlason, playing military-ori-
ented games, crafting bows and arrows, and even
(without his parents knowing) experimenting
with gunpowder. After moving to the U.S., Lunde
had difficulty adapting to his new home, strug-
gling with English and experiencing bullying. He
overcame these challenges and eventually settled
on pursuing a military career, as he “felt the best
way to repay my new country’s opportunities was
to serve the nation in some capacity.”
Lunde’s memoir has many merits. His writing
is packed with detail. His style is concise but in-
formative, enlightening the reader in crisp but il-
luminating sentences. In addition to possessing
great personal courage, Lunde has great analytical
powers that come across throughout the book. He
demonstrates a far-reaching ability to evaluate all
manner of problems and situations from various
angles. Lunde’s personality comes alive in his
book. He is highly organized, professional, firm,
patient, self-controlled, and also extremely hum-
ble and conscientious. There are plenty of war sto-
ries in the book which will interest readers not
only because of events described but because of
how Lunde analyzes factors within each situation.
Perhaps what stands out most of all in his
autobiography is Lunde’s wisdom about warfare
and human nature. Writing on human emotions
in war, he says: “The emotion of hate has no place
on the battlefield, despite what Hollywood mov-
ies portray. It interferes with a soldier’s logical
reasoning process, leads to loss of self-control,
self-respect and pride in the unit. Hate is ruinous
to discipline and morale.” Lunde acknowledges
that while elements of hate or malice “are practi-
cally impossible to eliminate in an environment
where friends are killed or maimed…I am proud
to say that these elements were kept on a tight
rein by a group of exceptionally fine NCOs and
officers.” He states, “I told my troops to fight like

58 VIETNAM
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tigers but conduct themselves with honor.”
There is much military wisdom to be gleaned from Lunde’s writings and
this makes his autobiography a must-have for any military historian. It is
also a wonderful read for anyone simply seeking to read about and appreci-
ate the life and experiences of a very fine soldier. “If I were ever again to find
myself in a tight and dangerous combat situation, Hank Lunde is the one
The Deadly Dragunov
Although its initials brand it as a sniper rifle, the
Snayperskaya Vintovka sistemy Dragunova that
Evgeni F. Dragunov developed in 1963 falls short
of the chilling precision and range of a current
state-of-the-art, bolt-action weapon for the spe-
cialized sniper in the appraisal of weapons expert
Chris McNab in his latest Osprey offering. Most
rifle aficionados class it as a designated marksman
rifle (DMR), offering talented soldiers within stan-
dard infantry units good intermediary range, du-
rable simplicity, and the ability to get off multiple
shots because of its rare semiautomatic capability.
Since its introduction into the Soviet armed
The SVD forces, the SVD has found its way into fighting
,ZIO]VW^:QÆM
forces around the world and killed untold thou-
By Chris McNab.
sands. That apparently began with a slow trickle
Osprey Publishing,
2023, $23 into the People’s Army of Vietnam around 1972,
and U.S. intelligence agencies allegedly placed a
$25,000 reward for any captured intact. One Sovi-
et-made SVD-63 captured from the PAVN is
60 VIETNAM
Henrik O. Lunde, left,
receives the Legion of Merit
from Brig. Gen. Robert L.
Schweitzer at SHAPE on
June 15, 1979.
man that I would most desire to have at my side,”
wrote the late Lt. Gen. Henry Emerson of his
comrade. Emerson also praised Lunde as an “ef-
fective and brave combat leader” and a “magnifi-
cent soldier.” This reviewer heartily concurs.
—Zita Ballinger Fletcher
shown in the book, but the weapon’s expense
seems to have limited its introduction at a time
when North Vietnam was going to prevail with or
without semiautomatic sniper rifles. There were to
be a lot more sniper duels in 1979, however, when
China launched its invasion of Vietnam with its
infantry units equipped with reverse-engineered
7.62mm Dragunovs, designated Type 79s, joined
in later border incidents by improved Type 85s.
Ironic though it may have seemed back then,
Vietnam was by no means the only occasion in
which marksmen wielding SVDs traded shots
with one another. The author’s comprehensive
rundown of the many conflicts in which the SVD
played vital roles lists many fighters, including Af-
ARMY PHOTO VIA CASEMATE
ghans, Chechens, and Ukrainians, whose targets
were—and are—Russian. The SVD Dragunov Rifle
offers an in-depth look at the technology and his-
tory of a weapon which retains its importance on
the battlefield after 60 years. —Jon Guttman
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 Lt. Jack Terhune ejects from his
F-8 Crusader after it flamed out
over the South China Sea in 1965.
He was rescued uninjured.
Tales of the F-8 Crusader
F-8 Crusader,
Vietnam 1963-1973
By Peter E. Davies,
Osprey Publishing,
2023, $23
62 VIETNAM
Among the many myths and legends to emerge
from the Vietnam War was that the U.S. Navy’s
Vought F-8 Crusader was “the last of the gun-
fighters” and the only air superiority fighter of
its time. Although the Crusader did pack four
Colt-Browning Mark 12 20mm cannons at a time
when other American fighters were relying on
air-to-air missiles, its cannons were unreliable
and virtually all Crusader victories over its
Mikoyan-Gurevich-designed opposition were
achieved using AIM-9 heat-seeking missiles. It is
true, however, that the Crusader established the
highest kill-to-loss ratio over Vietnam, destroy-
ing 14 MiG-17s and four MiG-21s for the loss of
three F-8s—all to the older but agile MiG-17s.
The second of the downed Crusader pilots, Cdr.
Dick Bellinger of fighter squadron VF-162 off
the aircraft carrier USS Oriskany, was credited
to Ngo Duc Mai on July 14, 1966, but the Ameri-
can survived and on Oct. 9 gained a unique re-
venge when he shot down Nguyen Van Minh,
who also ejected just before his plane crashed, the
third MiG-21 downed in Vietnam and the first
credited to a U.S. Navy fighter.
Straddling truth and myth on the other side is
Vietnam’s crediting of an F-8E to Pham Ngoc Lan
as Vietnam’s first air-to-air victory on April 3,
1965. That date is still celebrated as Vietnam Peo-
ple’s Air Force Day, in spite of the documented
fact that Lt. Cmdr. Spence Thomas of USS Han-
cock’s VF-211 managed to get his damaged Cru-
sader to Da Nang, where it was repaired and re-
turned to service.
In the seventh in Osprey’s “Dogfight” series,
F-8 Crusader, Vietnam, Peter E. Davies combines
his extensive research, including interviews and
combat reports, to give the reader an in-cockpit
glimpse of what it was like to fly and fight in the
plane. For all the successes described within its
NAVAL HISTORY AND HERITAGE COMMAND
niche of aerial combat, however, the author does
not shy away from including the wider, deadlier
world in which the plane operated, harboring the
dangers of surface-to-air missiles and ground
fire, which added up to the highest operational
loss rate of any U.S. tactical aircraft.
—Jon Guttman
  A COMMON BOND
AMONG WARRIORS!
sEdŽƵƌƐ Vietnam Was Only the Beginning
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:HZHDWKHUHG&29,'VRQRZJRZLWKWKHRULJLQDWRU A novel based on true events, the psychological
challenges facing a Vietnam Veteran

RIWKHEDWWOHILHOGUHWXUQWR9LHWQDP³RIWHQFRSLHGEXW
QHYHUGXSOLFDWHG0+7KDVEHHQ'LVDEOHG919HW2ZQHG
  
2SHUDWHGVLQFH 
In 1969 a naïve
,1)2#1-703-590-1295
NOTIFY@MILTOURS.COM twenty-two-year-old
READ THE MHT BLOG & draftee arrived in Vietnam.
FACEBOOK @
WWW.MILTOURS.COM He left a year later - a cynical,
drug addicted alcoholic.
This is his story.
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: 10/1/21. 4. Issue frequency:
Quarterly. 5. Number of issues published annually: 4. 6. The annual
subscription price is $39.95. 7. Complete mailing address of known office of
publication: HistoryNet, 901 N Glebe Rd, 5th Floor, Arlington, VA 22203. 8.
Complete mailing address of headquarters or general business office of publisher: HistoryNet, 901 N Glebe Rd, 5th Floor, Arlington,
REMF
Vietnam Was Only the Beginning
VA 22203. 9. Full names and complete mailing addresses of publisher, editor, and managing editor. Publisher, Michael A. Reinstein,
HistoryNet, 901 N Glebe Rd, 5th Floor, Arlington, VA 22203, Editor, Zita Ballinger Fletcher, HistoryNet, 901 N Glebe Rd, 5th Floor,
Arlington, VA 22203 , Editor in Chief, Dana Shoaf, HistoryNet, 901 N Glebe Rd, 5th Floor, Arlington, VA 22203. 10. Owner: HistoryNet;
901 N Glebe Rd, 5th Floor, Arlington, VA 22203. 11. Known bondholders, mortgages, and other security holders owning or holding 1
“...eye opening narration...
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: Autumn 2022. 15. The extent and nature of circulation: hard to put down...great
A. Total number of copies printed (Net press run). Average number of copies each issue during preceding 12 months: 40,713. Actual
number of copies of single issue published nearest to filing date: 36,504. B. Paid circulation. 1. Mailed outside-county paid musical references”
subscriptions. Average number of copies each issue during the preceding 12 months: 27,681. Actual number of copies of single issue
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be subject to criminal sanction and civil actions.

1ST LIEUTENANT
BRICE H. BARNES
THIS SOLDIER RESCUED MORE THAN
50 CIVILIANS DURING A BATTLE
By David T. Zabecki
On Jan. 30, 1968, all U.S. combat units in Vietnam went to alert status when
the Viet Cong violated the Tet Cease-fire by attacking Da Nang and eleven
other cities in the center of the country. The 9th Infantry Division’s 2nd
Battalion, 47th Infantry (Mechanized) deployed to overwatch positions
around the sprawling American logistics base at Long Binh, which was also
the headquarters of U.S. II Field Forces. Early the following morning, Jan.
31, the rest of the coordinated VC/NVA attacks erupted
HALL OF countrywide. The 2-47’s B Company, along with the Bat-
VALOR talion Scout Platoon, led by 1st Lt. Brice Barnes, moved
into the Long Binh base perimeter when it came under
direct attack. Just after they arrived, VC sappers using satchel charges blew
part of the American ammo dump.
Widows’ Village, located directly across Highway 15 from II Field Forces
headquarters, was a motley collection of shacks occupied by the widows
and families of ARVN soldiers. When a company-sized VC unit attacked
through the hamlet on their way to assault the II Field Forces compound, a
platoon of four M-113 armored personnel carriers (APC) from B Company
was sent across the road to block the attack. But the American platoon im-
mediately ran into fierce resistance. The platoon lost two of its APCs and
64 VIETNAM
took heavy casualties, including the platoon lead-
er. Ordered forward by the 2-47th’s battalion
commander, Barnes left two of his APCs to pro-
vide security for the battalion command post and
took his other eight M-113s across the road and
into the village. Assuming command of all the
American troops in Widows’ Village, he orga-
nized and led the counterattack.
According to his Distinguished Service Cross
citation: “Repeatedly disregarding his safety,
[Barnes] braved withering fire to direct civilians
in the battle area to safety. Bullets struck all
around him, but he refused to take cover and led
a house-to-house sweep, personally destroying a
recoilless rifle and an automatic weapon posi-
tion.” In the course of the battle the scouts res-
cued more than 50 civilians and led them to safe-
ty. At one point Barnes himself ran directly into
enemy fire to rescue an old woman and two small
children. As the heavy fighting progressed and
the scouts were starting to run low on ammo,
Barnes was able to attract the attention of two
AH-1 Cobra gunships orbiting low overhead.
Since he did not have the radio frequencies or call
signs for the gunships, he had to stand exposed
on top of one of his APCs and use hand-and-arm
signals to direct the gunship fire against the dug-
in VC positions.
After Widows’ Village was secured and the
Scout Platoon was resupplied with ammo, the
platoon was ordered to proceed two miles west to
Bien Hoa City, where the 2-47th’s C Company
had been heavily engaged all day. But they never
got there. The Scout Platoon ran into a heavy am-
bush while passing through the village of Ho Nai
on Highway 1. The murderous crossfire by heavy
machine guns and RPGs broke Barnes’ column
of eight APCs into three groups. During the
fighting Barnes was hit by fragmentation from an
RPG round that struck close by. Meanwhile, he
was able to call in support from two UH-1B gun-
ships to finally clear the ambush.
For the combined fights at Widows’ Village
and Ho Nai, Brice Barnes was awarded the Dis-
tinguished Service Cross. Later during his first
FROM LEFT: COURTESY OF BRICE H. BARNES; HISTORYNET ARCHIVES
tour in Vietnam Barnes commanded Headquar-
ters Company of the 2-47th. During his second
tour in Vietnam he commanded Company A, 5th
Battalion, 12th Infantry, 199th Infantry Brigade.
After he left active duty, Barnes continued to
serve in the Texas Army National Guard, where
in later years he commanded a mechanized in-
fantry battalion. He finished his military career as
a colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve. From 2010 to
2012 he served as the Honorary Colonel of the
47th Infantry Regiment. V
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