survivors of ia drang valley

Terms of Use | The bulk of the fighting was centered around two vital helicopter landing zones: LZ X-Ray and Albany. RIDDLE, Bill, fifty-two, artillery forward observer with Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry, completed his Army service in the summer of 1966. Importantly, the battle of the Ia Drang Valley was interpreted in different ways by various groups and individuals: Army generals saw it differently from their civilian leaders; American soldiers had their own take on the combat; the news media saw the battle in yet another way. Becoming a Find a Grave member is fast, easy and FREE. 'The torture stopped': 1969 brought temporary changes to infamous Hanoi Hilton, Patriotism or protest? His last project on active duty was researching and writing a history of the all-black 24th Infantry Regiment during the Korean War. This account has been disabled. Combat operations at Ia Drang Valley, Vietnam, November 1965. This operation responded to the NVA attack on an American . He personally shook the hands of at least fifty thousand returning soldiers. Surprisingly, Adams, Beck's buddy who was shot in the head, was among the. Today he is vice president for group security at a major stock-brokerage house in New York City. He is now a financial officer with the U.S. "I realized it when Sgt. TANNER, Ray, forty-nine, radio operator, Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry, returned home to South Carolina in April 1966 and went to work for a utility company in Charleston. The British-born Rescorla earned a masters degree and a law degree at universities in Oklahoma and went into corporate-security work. He served another Indochina tour in 1975, planning and helping run the final American air evacuation of Vietnam from a base in Thailand. Please enter your email and password to sign in. Assigned to intelligence duty in Europe in the late 1940s and early 1950s, Adams earned a bachelors degree from the University of Austria in Vienna, a masters degree in history at the University in Innsbruck, and a doctorate of psychology from Munich Universityall under an assumed name. The Battle of Ia Drang Still Matters - War Is Boring. Bob Edwards saying that these were the stripes Paolone earned at LZ X-Ray but never got. They resupplied ammunition, water, and supplies, while evacuating the wounded. The battle of LZ Albany began after the battle of LZ X-ray made famous in the Mel Gibson movie "We Were Soldiers." Major Bruce Crandalls UH-1D helicopter climbs skyward after discharging a load of infantrymen on a search and destroy mission in Ia Drang. A month before the Ia Drang operation, North Vietnamese regulars attacked a U.S. Special Forces base at Plei Me, hoping to lure the ineffectual South Vietnamese army out of its base at the provincial capital, Pleiku, and destroy it. Baker, who was less than a foot away from me, was screaming that I was in charge and that I had to do something," he said. Despite their efforts, the North Vietnamese retake the position soon after. He won a National Magazine Award for his October 29, 1990, cover article on the Ia Drang battles. Freeman reconstituted the unit and led it back up Pork Chop. That headquarters type turned up and he returned my old helmet, bullet hole and all. They and their buddies fought off hundreds of North Vietnamese with the help of artillery. Then after a moment I realized I was still alive and needed to do something.". He lives in Falls, Pennsylvania. It was his positive decision to do something that reinforced my own will to go on.". He had just turned thirty-six years old. It was much bigger than what we had seen before against a much more tenacious enemy, Wiest said of the battle. Photo extracted from U.S. Army motion picture footage from November 1965. (Black Bart), Charlie Battery aerial rocket artillery commander in the Ia Drang, returned to Vietnam for a second tour in 1968. I attended every one of those funerals., LEFEBVRE, L. R. (Ray), fifty-nine, commander of Delta Company, 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry, spent eighteen months at Martin Army Hospital, Fort Benning, recovering from the wounds he suffered at X-Ray. MICELI, Carmen, forty-eight, rifleman, Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry at LZ X-Ray, completed a full tour in Vietnam and left the Army in September 1966. He accepted, I won, but he only recently began paying offone bottle at a time. Plumley says, Scott is so tight with a dollar youd think he came out of West Point.. He is a captain and the commander of Engine Company Number One. Don Cornett had a wife and a son, a mother and a father and two sisters. SETELIN, John, forty-eight, squad leader, Bravo Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry, left Vietnam with three Purple Hearts and left the Army a sergeant. Both later were awarded the Medal of Honor, our nations highest award for heroism in combat. 2 Ia Drang also served as a test for the U.S. military of its new air mobility tactics. After a second career as a consultant to defense industries on the West Coast, he retired again and lives in Arlington, Virginia, with his wife, Libby. SHUCART, William, M.D., surgeon, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry in the Ia Drang, had nearly completed his tour in Vietnam in the summer of 1966, when he suffered a broken back in the crash of a Chinook helicopter. Ia Drang Valley, Battle of the (1965). Please enter your email address and we will send you an email with a reset password code. But Charlie was back in the air, flying F-4 Phantoms, less than a year later. Battle of Ia Drang American troops in the Ia Drang Valley, November 1965. By Trevor Arendall, July 9 . He single-handedly raised five young children and earned a doctorate, retiring a lieutenant colonel after twenty years service. In 1946, Ho Chi Minh had warned the French, who were trying to restore control over their former protectorate, that you can kill 10 of my men for every one I kill of yours, yet even at those odds, you will lose and I will win.. USA, Mendenhall, Moore, who says he graduated from West Point by the skin of my teeth, was the first Army officer of his class (1945) to achieve one-, two-, and three-star rank. The real life Battle of Ia Drang took place between November 14-19, 1965. (Skip), fifty-three, commander of Charlie Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cav in the Ia Drang, is still on active duty. He and his wife live in St. Charles, a suburb of Chicago. DEAL, Dennis, fifty, platoon leader, Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 7th Cav in the Ia Drang, left the Army as a captain in 1968 and returned to his native Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Hear Walters story. The only question was which side could outlast the other. A fresh unit, the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry, was ordered to march from LZ X-Ray to LZ Albany a few miles away. His helicopter came under intense enemy fire, but they continued to carry out the wounded, even though that wasnt their mission. Val Kilmer Accidentally Landed Matthew Modine the Starring Role in Full Metal Jacket. Your account has been locked for 30 minutes due to too many failed sign in attempts. Her research focused on military, environmental, and Canadian history with a specific focus on the Second World War. He joined IBM as a salesman in Austin, Texas, and spent twenty years with them, rising to the post of Midwestern regional manager. Found more than one record for entered Email, You need to confirm this account before you can sign in. He is a civilian specialist on NATO affairs for the Defense Department; he and his wife, Sally, live in Bethesda, Maryland. POLEY, Clinton, forty-eight, assistant machine gunner, 2nd Platoon, Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry in the Ia Drang, was discharged from Fitzsimmons Army Hospital in Denver, Colorado, early in 1966, and went home to Iowa and the family farm. Privacy Policy The Battle of Ia Drang was the first major battle of Vietnam fought on the dates of November 14-18, 1965. Lawrence's story is one that he has told so often to so many people that it is fluid and impactful without being rehearsed. Orange County, Hear Bruces story. I was standing back there in the column and the column was stopped. He lives in Columbus, Georgia, and is a serious collector of firearms and active in a local shooting club. BARKER, Robert L., fifty-five, artillery-battery commander in LZ Falcon, served a second tour in Vietnam with the 1st Cavalry Division in 1969-1970 and later served a third combat tour. Among the survivors of the ambush was 1st Lt. Rick Rescorla, a platoon leader who died Sept. 11, 2001, rescuing people from the World Trade Centers south tower until it crashed around him. Vince Cantu never went back to his music. Little did Beck and his companions know they were about to make history in America's first large scale battle of the Vietnam War. They are stories that not only serve to maintain our connection with history, but also educate us and force us to confront the good and the bad and learn from it. George Nye was a sparkplug of Operation Welcome Home, which brought veterans groups, brass bands, and Bangor townsfolk to the airport by the hundreds to hug and shake hands with the Desert Storm veterans. The Battle of Ia Drang Valley was a series of engagements between the U.S 1st Cavalry Division and the B-3 front, North Vietnamese Army. OUELLETTE, Robert, fifty, battalion commanders radio operator in LZ X-Ray, left the Army in August 1966. One infantry company began the day of Nov. 14 with 110 men. Scott and Basil Plumley meet most Fridays over breakfast at a local cafe for spirited discussions of the relative merits of their service, their two 7th Cavalry battalions, and other weighty issues. Rescorla kept the battered French Army bugle he captured on the field at Albany; in 1991 he turned it over to the Ia Drang Alumni for use in memorial ceremonies. DIDURYK, Myron F., commander of Bravo Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cav in LZ X-Ray and LZ Albany, completed his tour in Vietnam with Bravo Company in 1966, and later returned to Vietnam and the 1st Air Cavalry Division as a major. Thus died one of the finest officers who fought in the Ia Drang. It was the first major battle between PAVN and US Army units and one of the war's bloodiest encounters. Throughout the day, he changed helicopters after some were so badly damaged to stay in the air. RACKSTRAW, Jim, forty-nine, recon-platoon leader, 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry at X-Ray, served a second tour in Vietnam as a rifle-company commander in the 25th Infantry Division. They have three children, daughters Abigail and Alison and a son, Thomas Alexander. He plays volleyball two nights a week to keep trim and has devoted much of his spare time over the past two years to a detailed study of the part played in the Ia Drang battles by his fellow aviators of the 229th Assault Helicopter Battalion, our beloved Huey slick drivers. I marked off 65 names and thats when it really hit me what had happened and it just overwhelmed me. "Why did I deserve to live? I thought to myself. About 40 minutes later, North Vietnamese launched their attack, hiding in the tall elephant grass and in stands of trees. Moore and his battalion were evacuated the next day, Nov. 17. The U.S. unit was moving through the jungle in a long column when the 8th battalion of the North Vietnamese 66th Regiment sprang in to a massive ambush. For him, war is something that will always be a necessity as long as there is evil in the world, but it is something that is not to be glorified or desired. The IDV is the valley through which the river (Ia) Drang flows and is drained by the Ia Drang, Ia Puck and an extensive network of small streams flowing west and southwest across the Cambodian border into the Mekong River. Alley is general manager of a box factory in Dayton, Tennessee. One of those soldiers was Army Captain David Moore, 82nd Airborne Division, son of his old battlefield commander in X-Ray, and that homecoming gave George the greatest pleasure of all. "The next morning we were told the B-52s out of Guam were going to bomb the mountains and that we were to move to LZ Albany," Jim said. Read More Landing Zone Xray Lead elements of the under strength 450 man 1st Bn, 7th Cavalry air assault into a small clearing in scrub jungle below the 2300 foot Chu Pong Massif. Moore commanded the 7th Infantry Division in Korea, was commanding general at Fort Ord, California, and then was the Armys deputy Chief of Staff for personnel. USA, Scranton, By the end of the first day, the 1st BN, 7th Cavalry was reduced to approximately 340 men. It was fifty-five years ago on November 14, 1965, the First Cavalry Division commanded by Lt. Col. Hal Moore landed in the Ia (pronounced Eye) Drang Valley, South Vietnam. Postal Service in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. You've got to be in command and as I was on the way up, with my helmet strapped on, a North Vietnamese soldier in a tree put two bullet holes right through my helmet.". He lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and owns and operates a real estate brokerage firm. Crandall continued to fly into and out of the landing zone throughout the day and into the evening. The fighting continued for three hours. The Ia Drang Valley is where the U.S. truly went to war. "I thought I was dying and laid there waiting for death to come. The conflict is divided into two engagements: the Battle at Landing Zone (LZ) X-Ray and. Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency: Ia Drang Valley Incident. 5 cemeteries found within miles of your location will be saved to your photo volunteer list. in history. WHITESIDE, Jerry E., fifty-five, fire-support coordinator in LZ X-Ray, served a second tour in Vietnam as an adviser. Sandpoint, ID 83864 Muscogee County, In January 1991, General H. Norman Schwarzkopf summoned the reporter to his headquarters in Saudi Arabia and said: Im sending you to the commander out here who is most like General Hal Moore, and the division which has the most challenging and dangerous mission in my battle plan. Galloway rode with then-Major General Barry McCaffrey and the 24th Infantry Division (Mechanized) on a hair-raising tank charge through the western Iraq desert to the Euphrates River valley. Difficult. He and his wife, Julie, divide their time between homes in Auburn, Alabama, and Crested Butte, Colorado. Diduryk is buried at the Fort Benning cemetery; his widow, Delores, lives in Jacksonville, Florida. Alpha Company arrived in Vietnam with 146 officers and men. After several routine lifts into the area, https://www.vvmf.org/Wall-of-Faces/857/ELIAS-ALVAREZ-BUZO/, https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLK63b6Cn53unPuhknan6Y4fJwl-F5v14o, https://www.vvmf.org/The-Wall-That-Heals/, https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLK63b6Cn53unMMj-yZYEch0RuYy1YN1zl, https://vvmf.wordpress.com/2015/11/07/he-spent-14-hours-in-the-air-rescuing-wounded-in-the-ia-drang-valley/, https://www.stripes.com/news/special-reports/vietnam-stories/1965/ia-drang-valley-where-the-us-truly-went-to-war-1.376662, https://www.facebook.com/VietnamVeteransMemorialFund/videos/2239219906358006/, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLyBazkpUFQ, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sx1rzDNcFmE, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKtWX9TDFYc, https://www.military.com/video/operations-and-strategy/vietnam-war/the-battle-of-la-drang/2071462322001, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bIAEcZ29aG4, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdDYNI7V0co, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7-U0FBiYUU, https://www.docsteach.org/documents/document/battle-la-drang-valley, https://whut.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/c27a31b7-14fc-4c5f-804e-168fbb24f5ed/plei-mei-and-the-ia-drang-valley-clip-the-vietnam-war/, VVMF Battle of the Ia Drang Valley Interviews , VVMF Daily Virtual Reading of the Names and Information about the In Person Reading of the Names . , hiding in the Ia Drang Still Matters - War is Boring it... 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