Death Valley (53 page)

Twelve NVA bodies were found; of the 200 GIs on Mary Ann, 33 were killed and 79 wounded. The battle was an indication of the state of demoralization of the U.S. Army in Vietnam, and resulted in the removal of the Americal Division commanding general.

The war was getting very old.

The Marines were also still in the area, conducting patrols which successfully dug out many of the enemy’s mountain hideouts. On 31 August 1970, 2/7 conducted Operation Imperial Lake in the Que Sons. It was the 7th Marine Regiment’s last operation; they were withdrawn in September. The 5th Marines CP then moved to LZ Baldy with 2/5 and 3/5 (1/5 was still in the Arizona, reinforced by the 1st Marines and the Vietnamized ARVN). In February 1971, the 5th Marine Regiment was withdrawn to Da Nang for further redeployment to the United States, and the 1st Marine Regiment became the last USMC infantrymen in South Vietnam. They held the Que Sons until the ARVN were ready, and on 12 April the last battalion, 2/1, terminated Operation Catawba Falls. Four NVA were killed in six days.

On 7 May 1971, 2d Battalion, 1st Marines stood down (they left Da Nang nineteen days later) and two companies of the 196th Infantry Brigade assumed the bunkers on Hill 327 and the rest of Division Ridge. At that time, the ARVN assumed completely the Que Son-Hiep Duc-Song Chang AO, and the 196th, Americal, joined the 101st Airborne Division in patrolling around Da Nang and the An Hoa Basin (in the new defensive terminology, “areas of responsibility” were now “areas of interest”).

In the fall of 1971, journalists again caught up with the 4th of the 31st Infantry. One correspondent tagged along on patrol with Bravo Company and reported that, although unenthusiastic, the men had a good captain and did a good job. It was also noted that Bravo had not made contact in six months. The morale was entirely different at 4–31 Rear, Da Nang. The story there centered on the battalion exec, a perceptive and strong man, and his war on drug abuse among the support personnel. By then, the GIs had graduated from marijuana to heroin and they did
not limit themselves to private bitchings about the lifers. Fragging threats had been made against the exec; the major commented, unbluffed, “It’s like war, you take chances.”

It was a bad time for the Americal Division.

Fraggings. Drug abuse. Combat refusals. They seemed to be epidemic, and the trials for My Lai never seemed to end. “The press at times seemed eager to publicize only the most negative stories about the Americal,” commented Captain Downey of the 196th, who finished his second Vietnam tour in November 1971, “but remember this. In the midst of Nixon’s great Vietnamization program it wasn’t the 1st Cav, the Big Red One, 101st Airborne, nor the 1st Marine Division that was holding the NVA at bay. It was the Americal Division and not much more. My own very subjective opinion is that the Americal Division, after My Lai, was unofficially but purposefully designated as the sacrificial lamb to a war everyone knew would end in tragedy.”

The troops felt the same way. In April 1972, Alpha and Charlie 2–1 were airlifted to Phu Bai, north of Da Nang, to protect U.S. installations in the face of the 1972 Easter Invasion. Of the 142 troopers in Charlie Company, 50 temporarily refused orders to move outside the Phu Bai perimeter. It wasn’t even big news anymore, just a couple of paragraphs:

The colors of the Americal Division were folded in November 1971 (taking with it the 11th and 198th Brigades), and the 196th Brigade followed in June 1972. In four years in South Vietnam, about 100,000 men had served in the division; more than 3,400 had been killed and
22,500 wounded. They won eleven Medals of Honor. The last battalion of the last brigade, 3d of the 21st Infantry, remained on the Da Nang perimeter. Six years after its first operation in Vietnam, the Gimlets conducted the last U.S. infantry operation of the war. Two men were wounded by booby traps during the four-day patrol; then Hueys landed ARVN in their place in the bush and flew the GIs out. Thirteen days later, on 23 August 1972, the battalion deactivated as Increment IX of the U.S. Army withdrawal from the Republic of Vietnam. It was noted that the last ground combat units, 3d Battalion, 21st Infantry, and G Battery (Provisional), 29th Field Artillery, “… departed from Da Nang without ceremony.”

Major General Simpson (CG, 1st MarDiv) won his third star before retiring in 1973; he recently retired from a university administrative position and lives with his wife in Bryan, Texas. Lieutenant Pidgeon (C/11th MTB) is a reserve lieutenant colonel; he is married, with two children, and is general manager of a wine and beer distributorship in Kent, Washington. Corporal Dill (B/1st Tanks) served eighteen months in Vietnam and lives in Baltimore, Maryland. Corporal LaRue (D/1st Recon) is a police detective in Olathe, Kansas.

Colonel Codispoti (CO, 7th Marines) retired to Los Gatos, California. Lieutenant Colonel Dowd (CO, 1/7) won the Silver Star for his first Arizona operation, and a posthumous Navy Cross, Legion of Merit, and Purple Heart for his second. Major Alexander (S-3, 1/7) won his second Silver Star for the Arizona; in 1984 while a colonel on active duty he died of a heart ailment. Captain Clark (CO, A/1/7) owns a hardware store in Ellicott City, Maryland. Lieutenant Weh (CO, B/1/7) won the Bronze Star in the Arizona, then his second Purple Heart from a mortar round in the Que Sons; he also held five Air Medals from his NAO service, and rotated in November 1969. He is now a reserve lieutenant colonel, and president of an airline contracting company in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Lieutenant Hord (CO, C/1/7) received the Silver Star; he has since married and is a lieutenant colonel commanding an infantry battalion. Captain Fagan (CO, D/1/7) earned the Navy Commendation Medal his first tour, two Bronze Stars for his two Arizona operations and a third for his assignment as S-3, 1/7. He also picked up a Purple Heart during the LZ Ross sapper attack; moving towards the command
bunker, he ran into a sapper with the same idea and was downed with AK47 rounds through the cheek and neck, and across the shoulder. He is now a colonel. Captain Beeler (CO, I/3/5) won the Silver Star and finished his tour as Battalion S-4 because of his wounds; he is also a colonel now. Lieutenant Peters (D/1/7) was the S-1A during the LZ Ross attack and rotated soon after with a Bronze Star. He was divorced in 1984, shares custody of his two children, and is a major. Sergeant Major Awkerman (BSM, 1/7) earned the Bronze Star and Navy Commendation Medals for his two Vietnam tours; he is retired and lives with his wife in Mount Holly Springs, Pennsylvania. Gunnery Sergeant Richards (D/1/7) had his face reconstructed after being shot in November 1969; he retired in 1974 as a first sergeant to Rawlins, Wyoming. Sergeant Lowery (C/1/7) won the Silver Star and his third and fourth Purple Hearts in the Arizona; the bumpy road of his present life has included a divorce after three children, and employment at the post office in Clarkstown, Washington. Corporal Brundage (D/1/7) is a gunnery sergeant. Corporal Cominos (D/1/7) made sergeant before rotating; he also came home with a Purple Heart earned during an ambush sprung on a party of NVA. He shot an NVA to death as the man threw a grenade at his feet. He is married, with two daughters, and owns an independent insurance agency in Schererville, Indiana. Corporal Valley (I/3/5) is a political consultant in Mass. Lance Corporal Bradley (C/1/7) was mede-vacked from the Que Sons in November 1969 when, as a squad leader, he took an AK47 round across his back in an ambush. He stayed in the Corps, usually serving embassy duty (thus winning a Navy Achievement Medal in Afghanistan during the 1979 Soviet Invasion), and is presently a master sergeant. Lance Corporal Nelson (D/1/7) earned a commission and is now a major. Lance Corporal Zotter (H&S/1/7) rotated in March 1970 after eighteen months in-country. After two divorces, he is engaged again, and he is a sergeant on active duty with the Army National Guard in Charleston, Arkansas. Lance Corporal Wells (H&S/1/7) was medevacked with malaria from the Que Sons in November 1969, but was back in time for the January 1970 sapper attack. He then returned to his hometown, Middletown, New York; put away his campaign ribbons with pride; married and had two children; and drives a truck for the city.

Lieutenant Colonel Lugger (CO, 2/7) retired in 1972, his only personal award a Navy Commendation Medal for the DomRep. He lives with his wife in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he has a successful career
in consulting and computers. Lieutenant Colonel Hopkins (CO, 2/7) retired as a brigadier general. Major Steele (S-3, 2/7) retired as a lieutenant colonel with three Navy Commendation Medals and a Purple Heart; he is a security consultant in El Toro, California. Lieutenant Pickett (G/2/7) was KIA after Hiep Duc. Lieutenant Schuler (E/2/7) rejoined his platoon in October 1969 and rotated in February 1970 with the Bronze Star and Purple Heart. He is married, with two children, and is administrator of the Portsmouth Hospital in New Hampshire. Gunnery Sergeant Yohe (E/2/7) won the Bronze Star and his second Purple Heart at Hiep Duc. He retired in 1973 as a first sergeant, is married, and works for the post office in Longview, Texas. Lance Corporal Parr (F/2/7) won the Bronze Star, two Purple Hearts, and a 100 percent disability after reconstructive plastic surgery. He has since married; has three children; and, after graduating with a degree in design engineering, was hired by a gas and electric company in Georgetown, Indiana. Lance Corporal Russell (H&S/2/7), divorced three times and a college graduate, is a crane operator and a lieutenant in the Air National Guard in Anchorage, Alaska. Lance Corporal Sirianni (H/2/7) rotated in June 1970 as a squad leader with sergeant stripes and a Navy Commendation Medal. He was discharged in 1972, has since married, has three sons, and works in a VA hospital in Buffalo, New York. He earned a B.A. in art from the University of Buffalo (his speciality is drawing) and is involved in art shows dealing with Vietnam veterans. Lance Corporal Stickman (F/2/7) is a superintendent with a construction company, and lives in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. Private First Class Collinson (F/2/7) rotated in February 1970; he is married, has two sons, and is an assistant vice president of a bank in Federal Way, Washington. Private First Class Norton (F/2/7) got out from Hiep Duc with a Navy Commendation Medal and Purple Heart, plus an 80 percent disability for wounds and posttraumatic stress disorder. He is in his second marriage and works for the post office in Morgan, Vermont.

Lieutenant Colonel Kummerow (CO, 3/7) was medevacked from the Que Sons in September 1969, but returned in October 1969, and earned a Legion of Merit and Purple Heart. He retired as a colonel and lives with his wife on Bainbridge Island, Washington. Captain Stanat (CO, M/3/7) resigned his commission in 1970 and reportedly moved into the mechanical engineering field. Captain Rider (CO, L/3/7) commanded a recon battalion before being promoted to colonel. Lieutenant Ramage (CO, I/3/7) entered the business world after the service. Lieuten
ant Orefice (M/3/7) was released from the hospital with two Purple Hearts in October 1969, and completed his tour with B/1st Shore Party Battalion, An Hoa. He was released in 1971 with a 30 percent disability for his arm and leg; he has married, has three sons, and is manager of a golf country club in Simsbury, Connecticut. Sergeant Major Gledich (BSM, 3/7) is a convenience store manager in Casselberry, Florida. Corporal Jones (K/3/7) is a captain and counsellor in the U.S. Army Medical Service. Private First Class Besardi (L/3/7) was medevacked in January 1970 when he injured his knee running to a bunker on LZ Baldy during a rocket attack. In seventeen years, he’s worked seventeen different jobs for a total of four years. He receives a 30 percent disability for his knee and another 30 percent for post-traumatic stress disorder. He lives alone in Milbury, Mass. Private First Class Hammonds (L/3/7) was returned to the bush in November 1969 when his wounds healed, and was KIA in January 1970. Private First Class Smith (L/3/7) was mustered out with three Purple Hearts and is now working in Schwenksville, Pennsylvania. Private First Class Turner (L/3/7) lives in Alexandria, Virginia.

Major General Ramsey (CG, Americal Division) retired with almost four years of WWII duty and an extended Vietnam tour, earning three Silver Stars and five Purple Hearts; he gave up command of the division in March 1970 after being injured in a helicopter crash. He is a bank executive in McLean, Virginia. Colonel Tackaberry (CO, 196th InfBde) won his third Distinguished Service Cross during the September 1969 attack on LZ Siberia. As a company commander in Korea and a two-tour man in Vietnam, he also netted five Silver Stars and a Purple Heart, and retired with three stars. He is now a businessman in Fayetteville, North Carolina. Captain Downey (196th InfBde) is a business executive in Los Angeles, California. Specialist 4 Keefer (A/1–1 ArmCav) won a CIB and ARCOM,
^*
then a BSM and his fifth Purple Heart during a 1970–71 tour with his old cavalry troop. It has been a rough mental road since his discharge as a sergeant platoon leader, and he is now a laborer in Ridgely, Maryland.