Category Archives: Vietnam

Military Reunion in San Antonio

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Thirty one graduates from  the U.S. Army Infantry Officers Candidate School (OCC) who were commissioned Second Lieutenants on March 9, 1967 gathered in San Antonio to remember those who did not survive Vietnam and those who have passed since. I was assigned to the third platoon under the command of Tactical (TAC) Lt. Paul R. Longgrear.

A small but dedicated group of the former candidates had located or learned the fate of most of our fellow graduates and organized the first reunion in Washington, D.C. That reunion included a visit to the Vietnam Memorial where the names of our fallen comrades are included among the 58,272 total (as of 2010).

I resisted participating in the reunions, because the overall OCS experience was unpleasant (proving my command for understatement). The physical requirements were intense and demanding, and I struggled to keep up with those who physically were dominantly like football halfbacks and were agile and could run fast while I was the lumbering lineman.

My wife finally convinced me we should attend a reunion at Fort Benning to take part in the dedication of a plaque with the names of those from our company who were Killed in Action (KIA). She was right; I felt better after we attended the reunion and renewed acquaintances.

We also attended a wonderful reunion in Southwest Colorado in 2011, and I wrote a posting about that gathering. To remind us that we are all approaching the end of our lives, the man who hosted the gathering died of a heart attack a couple of weeks later.

That brings me back to San Antonio and the 45th anniversary of our commissioning. We didn’t arrive until after the visit with Wounded Warriors at the Brooke Army Medical Center. Those who did make that visit were still emotional about what they had seen as they talked to us. They were especially grateful to those who provide the private funds to the Center.

The first event my wife and I were able to attend after a social gathering was one of our comrades reading the letter written by William Barrett Travis pledging that the Alamo would be defended to the last man. The names of our comrades who were killed in combat and those who have passed were then read.

The same gentleman seemed to more enjoy playing the guitar and singing a song of remembrance and a song of faith. That was followed by several of us going on a several mile drive in what I think was a giant circle, parking, and going on a two mile hike along the River Walk. Someone mentioned it reminded them of a forced march with the Rangers during our OCS training. We finally found a restaurant we later learned was about three blocks from the El Tropicana Hotel where we started. Map reading to find a destination is apparently a skill that doesn’t last. (Several of us promised to hardly ever mention the hike.)

The next rainy and chilly day we went on another hike that was advertised as “a few blocks” that turned into several. We walked past the Korean Memorial, the Vietnam Memorial, and the Confederate Memorial on the way to Alamo. The Vietnam Memorial is a very large sculpture of a radio man kneeling beside a man who was probably his mortally wounded company commander. We then toured the Alamo and read the names of the volunteers who died there to give the other Texans the time to organize and prepare to defeat Santa Anna.

We had a wonderful sit down dinner at the hotel that evening, and one of our friends arrived at the table sniffing and wiping his eyes. “What’s wrong?” “Allergies.” But he then broke down and began to sob. He had gone to thank Major Graham White for his service, and was called “Sir.” He said, “I wouldn’t even be able to lift his jacket with all those medals, and he called me Sir!”

Major White (the son of one of our comrades) was in dress blues and jump boots, and he gave the keynote speech for the evening. His resume includes multiple deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, and he has a long list of commendations including two Purple Hearts and two Bronze Stars. He talked about his Army comrades who had suffered injuries that would have devastated average people, but returned to service after lengthy and intensive rehabilitation. The theme was “Army Strong,” and “This is your Army!” George Orwell wrote something to the effect, “People sleep peacefully in their beds because there are rough men willing to do violence for them.” I would substitute “tough and brave” for “rough,” but Orwell had it mostly right.

There was instruction on how to do a “Texas line dance.” There were some willing to participate and many others of us willing to watch.

I’ll end this by briefly mentioning a speech by Paul Longgrear. He was at Lang Vei, where the North Vietnamese used tanks with devastating effects that caused extensive casualties. I will refer to a review of the book “Night of the Silver Stars” that recounts details of the battle.

Night of the Silver Stars: The Battle of Lang Vei

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This book by William R. Phillips is an account of battle which began February 6, 1968 at a U.S. Special Forces Camp in Vietnam. This “review” is a departure from what is usually posted, because it is based partly on the book, partly on historical information, and partly on information presented at a recent military reunion by one of the men who was in the battle.

The battle was part of the Khe Sahn campaign by the North Vietnamese. That campaign began with an attack on a Laotian outpost called Ban Huoei Sane manned by 700 Laotian soldiers. Tanks were used in that attack, and the surprised Laotians retreated toward Lang Vei after three hours of battle. The North Vietnamese soldiers and tanks followed to attack Lang Vei where there was a small contingent of U.S. Special Forces and a large number of Laotian and South Vietnamese soldiers. Reinforcements were requested from the Marines at nearby Khe Sahn, but that base refused to believe the reports and send reinforcements. They were skeptical that the report was some sort of ploy to set up an ambush for reinforcements. They did provide artillery support and there was air support.

Three of the North Vietnamese tanks attacking Lang Vei were destroyed by the camp’s one 106mm recoilless rifle operated by Sergeant First Class James W. Holt. However, other tanks quickly penetrated the camp and destroyed several bunkers with their guns. Light anti-tank weapons (LAWs) either malfunctioned or failed to knock out the tanks. One of my favorite comments in the book was by a soldier who observed that the tanks must be “medium tanks,” because the “light anti-tank weapons” (which refers to the portability and not the strength of the weapon) were ineffective.

The command bunker was the only position that held until the morning of February 7. South Vietnamese soldiers in the bunker responded to an order to surrender and were killed when they exited via the stairway. Wikipedia lists that there were a total of 316 camp defenders killed, 75 wounded, and 253 captured.

The title of the book reflects the extraordinary number of Silver Stars awarded for valor in combat. There were twenty-four Americans at the battle, and there was one posthumous Medal of Honor awarded to Sgt. Eugene Ashley, Jr., one Distinguished Service Cross, nineteen Silver Stars, and three Bronze Stars awarded. One reference lists that all of the Americans were either killed (3), wounded (11), or listed as missing or captured (10). Wikipedia gives different numbers, but I am inclined to believe this reference.

The book is full of details about weapons, vehicles, and tactics. Phillips gives an engaging account of the battle, what went well, and what went wrong. Despite all that went wrong a few U.S. Special Forces personnel were eventually able to fight their way out and escape from the camp to be evacuated by Marine helicopters.

I will briefly summarize the personal experience of Paul Longgrear who was an American officer at the battle, although I know I won’t do his account justice. He was one of the men trapped in the command bunker. The NVA attempted unsuccessfully to collapse the bunker with the weight of their tanks and began dropping fragmentation and tear gas (CS) grenades into vents. The tear gas caused the occupants to press their faces into corners of the bunker in a desperate attempt to find some kind of fresh air. They finally decided to make a break, obviously knowing what had happened to the South Vietnamese who had attempted to surrender. Lt. Longgrear ordered that no one was to stop for anyone else if they went down. They had practically no ammunition, but charged up the stairwell and into the open while firing what few rounds they had remaining.

Lt. Longgrear fired his weapon until it jammed, and then began running. His ankle gave out, and he did a complete flip. He was left by the other escaping soldiers as he had ordered. He said he was challenged by God as he lay in a heap “What are you going to do NOW?” He ran to the top of a rise where he was seen by the other soldiers who had thought the reason he went down so dramatically was that he had been hit. He made it out of the compound and was evacuated. He was awarded a Silver Star for his actions in the battle.

The Nightingale’s Song

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This review was written by Steve Ray, and it is the first posting by a guest reviewer. I provide reviews of almost exclusively non-fiction books to help people decide whether they want to add them to their planned reading list. I’m hoping others will be interested in submitting reviews. I tend to fucus on history books with human interest. That said, the following is Steve’s review.

Robert Timberg, an award-winning Washington journalist, a 1964 Naval Academy graduate, and Marine veteran of Vietnam served as the Baltimore Sun’s White House correspondent during the Reagan years. He also held the position of Deputy Chief of the Baltimore Sun’s Washington bureau.

In “The Nightingale’s Song,” Timberg attempts to show how America is still haunted by the Vietnam War. Years have passed and administrations have changed, yet many actions and events have been affected by the experiences of those who served.

The book focuses on the lives of Annapolis graduates John McCain, James Webb, Oliver North, Robert McFarlane and John Poindexter, all who went on to individual notoriety in government service and public life. McCain to the United States Senate, Webb as a best-selling author and Secretary of the Navy, North best known for his involvement in the Iran-Contra affair, McFarlane as National Security Advisor and Poindexter from a “Whiz Kid” on Robert McNamara’s staff to his time as National Security Advisor. From early childhood days, experiences at Annapolis, personal experiences in Vietnam (be it as Marine platoon leaders or the excruciating agony of years in solitary confinement in a North Vietnamese prisoner of war camp), to careers in politics and government up through the Reagan White House years and Iran-Contra. The five major characters display vast differences in personality and style, but some remarkable similarities as well.

While the reader may be familiar, at least in a passing way, with much of the material presented, the book contains a wealth of information presented in a highly informative and entertaining way. Timberg writes, not in a dry historical research manner, but in the “tell it like it is, no nonsense” manner of a Marine combat lieutenant. As one reviewer commented, “Timberg writes like the former Marine he is. That’s not to say, he doesn’t write well; only that he can be brutally frank, wielding his pen like a combat knife.”

Timberg writes from a position of personal experience. As a graduate of the US Naval Academy and a Marine veteran of Vietnam, he is able to instill a strong sense of believability.

His research included personal interviews with more than 250 people, all of which he names in the book’s appendix. These interviews provide extensive insight into the book’s main characters…the growing-up years of childhood and family, the high school and pre-Annapolis years, Vietnam and the challenges, heartache and personal growth they experienced, and their eventual careers. He also lists an extensive bibliography and notes of sources used in each chapter.

The Nightingale’s Song reads as a novel. It includes such stories as while a midshipman, Oliver North defeated his classmate James Webb in an emotionally charged championship boxing match that is still talked about at Annapolis today. Two decades after that bout, North sat at the center of the Iran-Contra affair at the same time Jim Webb was named Secretary of the Navy. “Anything that happens to Ollie comes to my desk,” Webb sourly told acquaintances. The coolness existed on both sides. Memories of that boxing match apparently had not faded.

As the reader journeys through the lives of these men, he or she can’t help but wonder how these experiences influenced and shaped events in our nation’s history. From Iran-Contra to the building of the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington. Did Oliver North’s tendency to do anything to make himself look better in the eyes of others, or his willingness to say anything whether true or not to put himself in the best possible light play a role in the Iran-Contra scandal?

Readers who enjoy politics, history and current events will find “The Nightingale’s Song” satisfying all those interests, and in a very entertaining and informative way. While the outcome of Vietnam and the Iran-Contra episode along with the public lives of these men are known to most Americans, this book provides a lot of other “I didn’t know that” moments. And those moments will make this book resonate with readers.