13th Valley (90 page)

Brooks began by re-debriefing De Barti on RT Joan's success. The commander pumped De Barti for every detail. How and where had they set up? Who first spotted the NVA? What were the enemy soldiers doing? How long had the rovers been in position? The questions and answers were informative and the procedure instructive to anyone who might find himself someday in charge. As usual the better soldiers listened carefully. The poorer had no idea why the L-T bothered. Caldwell was lost in his own thoughts a thousand miles away. The question period gave Brooks time to ponder. Should he or should he not throw open the tactical discussion to this group. He decided he must.

“Hey,” Brooks said. “Let's hear it. We've got an objective that we've skirted. We've got to hit it. How do you guys think we ought to work it?”

“We got any options?” Lt. Caldwell asked.

“Let's get the fuck outa here,” Molino said.

“We've got seventy-five men times four directions of options,” Brooks said.

“Couldn't we run for a ridgeline and call in air strikes?” Molino asked quietly.

“Sounds good to me,” Caldwell pressed.

“Okay,” Brooks snarled. “Option one. I don't think the GreenMan'll agree but we can get fast movers here ourselves. Option two? Anybody?”

“Perhaps,” Minh suggested, “if we call in enough artillery tonight, the enemy will leave this valley by tomorrow.”

“No way, José,” El Paso chuckled.

“We're going after the knoll, aren't we, L-T?” FO asked.

“That's right.”

Molino injected, “Maybe you could get the artillery to level it, huh, Sir?”

“We'll have artillery support,” FO assured them.

“We're goina resupply tomorrow, aren't we?” De Barti asked.

“Major Hellman wants us to resupply up by Delta,” Brooks threw the information out.

“En let evera gook in the valley know where we is?” a voice said from behind the circle. “Are you kiddin? Rover Team Ellen reports, Sir.” It was Pop. No one had heard him arrive.

“When we hittin that knoll?” Calhoun asked very quietly.

“They one giant clusterfuck ovah theah, Sir,” Woods added. “We seen em. In an outa the fog. Couldn't get no bead on em most a the time cause a the fog, Sir.”

Brooks was overjoyed. “Welcome back,” he said. Before the group Brooks briefed and debriefed Rover Team Ellen. Pop was tight-lipped about their actions though talkative about his observations of the enemy. Woods wanted to talk. It had been three days since he had been able to speak more than a whisper and telling this group about their contacts made him a hero. Calhoun was much the same except he was quieter and more technical.

“How much extra food do your men have, Pop?” Brooks asked leaving the RT actions.

“We all carry a four-day resupply, Sir,” Pop said.

“What about 3d, Larry?”

“The same, L-T,” Caldwell answered stiffly.

“And 1st?”

“They always got a four-day,” El Paso said.

“Then we're okay through tomorrow?” Brooks asked rhetorically. They all agreed or remained quiet. “I know we're okay through tomorrow,” Brooks said peevishly. “I want to know how much
extra
food your men have. If we resupply tomorrow we give our position away. If we don't …” He did not finish.

“L-T,” Calhoun said after a pause, “most everybody carries a extra day's food.”

“Okay,” Brooks said.

“My platoon'll be okay too,” Caldwell volunteered.

“What about ammo?” Brooks asked. “And batteries?”

“Batteries better be okay through tomorrow and the next day,” El Paso said.

“Fuck,” Calhoun said. “We've had the radios on near continuous for the past two days. Four batteries per set. That's only eighty hours. You talkin another maybe forty, fifty hours. Aint no way.”

“Can we conserve them if we get everybody in?” Brooks asked.

“L-T,” Calhoun continued, “you got every set out with the rovers or with the LPs. Hell, you even got Brown's out with somebody. We're just about out of time now.”

“We're low on claymores, Sir,” Pop said. “But, hell, we got a mission. That's what we come here for.”

“We won't need claymores to assault that knoll,” Brooks said. “We're going to recon it tomorrow, hit it before dawn the next day. Delta and Recon will be on call. They'll be our reaction force. They'll be moving all around up there tomorrow. El Paso, get the rest of the rovers in. Have them turn their radios off. Fuck resupply.”

The GreenMan's maneuvering and guidance of the 7th of the 402d was paying off not just for Alpha but for all his line companies. On the morning of 22 August Bravo swept back over the ridge and through the hospital complex where they had previously engaged the enemy three times. This time they were led by the NVA honcho POW they had captured. The POW led a platoon of Bravo into a second bunker complex that was concealed by the first. The boonierats of Bravo engaged a small element of enemy troops. The NVA could hardly believe that an American unit would hit them there again. The Bravos killed seven NVA and captured over three tons of rice which was destroyed in place by saturating it with gasoline and herbicides. Bravo sustained no casualties. At 1415 hours the NVA POW attempted to escape and was killed by organic weapons fire. Bravo rested and resupplied on the 23d. On the 24th they would move down to seal off the northeast corner of the Khe Ta Laou.

Charlie Company had been in the western end of the valley trudging back and forth for seven days. On the eve of 21 August, feeling secure that they had discovered every path, trail and road leading into the Khe Ta Laou, they began mining, booby-trapping and ambushing the routes. That night three of their traps caught NVA supply teams. Charlie policed up 700 pounds of ammunition and rice and three carts and they found a series of blood trails. The night of the 22d produced three more clashes. This time Charlie got bodies. Six. And a truck. The 23d was their most successful day. NVA supply teams detonated four widow-makers making eight new widows.

Echo's recon platoon was separated from Delta on the 22d and CAed back to Hill 848. That night they were probed by an NVA company coming into the Khe Ta Laou. Six Americans were wounded in the ensuing battle. All were medevacked. Two died. One was evacuated to Da Nang and then to Japan and three were returned to duty. Fourteen enemy were killed, thirteen new AK-47 rifles were captured along with one 9mm pistol and numerous documents. An analysis of the documents revealed that the enemy force was one of five newly arrived replacement units for the NVA 5th Infantry Battalion. The replacements had orders to reinforce the NVA 7th Front Headquarters situated in the Khe Ta Laou.

Delta company, under its new commander, Captain Ernie Masgary, managed to kill three enemy soldiers on the 22d. The Delta troops decapitated the enemy bodies and displayed the heads on poles. On the 23d they found two of their troops who had been on an LP fifty meters from the perimeter. These men also were decapitated. Their heads were found placed on poles where they had been killed. Their bodies had been removed and were never recovered.

SIGNIFICANT ACTIVITIES

THE FOLLOWING RESULTS FOR OPERATIONS IN THE O'REILLY/ BARNETT/JEROME AREA WERE REPORTED FOR THE THREE-DAY PERIOD ENDING 2359 23 AUGUST 1970:

THIS THREE-DAY PERIOD WAS CHARACTERIZED BY A WELL COORDINATED SERIES OF RAIDS AND AMBUSHES BY THE 7TH BATTALION, 402D INFANTRY AGAINST THE 7TH NVA FRONT IN THE KHE TA LAOU RIVER VALLEY.

A SQUAD OF 3D PLT, CO A, 7/402 SPOTTED AN NVA SQUAD IN THE VICINITY OF YD 150320 AT ABOUT NOON ON THE 21ST. ARTILLERY WAS EMPLOYED RESULTING IN FOUR NVA KILLED. AN HOUR LATER A RECON TEAM FROM 1ST PLT, CO A WAS ENGAGED BY TWO ENEMY SOLDIERS VICINITY YD 147322. THE TEAM RETURNED ORGANIC WEAPONS FIRE KILLING BOTH ENEMY. COMPANY A CONTINUED MAKING CONTACT WITH SMALL ELEMENTS OF THE ENEMY UNIT ALL DURING THE NIGHT OF THE 21ST. RESULTS WERE AS FOLLOWS: VICINITY YD 147320, ONE NVA KILLED BY CO A SNIPER AT 2045 HOURS. AT 0200 HOURS ON THE 22D AN ELEMENT OF 1ST PLT, CO A DISCOVERED AN NVA MORTAR SQUAD AT YD 155323. THE ENEMY HAD JUST FIRED TWO 82MM ROUNDS WHICH IMPACTED OUTSIDE THE PERIMETER AT FIREBASE BARNETT. THE ELEMENT ENGAGED THE ENEMY WITH FRAGMENTATION GRENADES KILLING THREE NVA AND DAMAGING THE MORTAR TUBE. AN NVA SQUAD TRIPPED A CO A MECHANICAL AMBUSH VICINITY YD 151325 DURING THE NIGHT. A FIRST LIGHT CHECK REVEALED FIVE NVA KIA. FOUR AK-47 RIFLES AND ONE RPG LAUNCHER WERE CAPTURED.

CO C, 7/402 CAUGHT THREE ELEMENTS OF NVA IN AMBUSHES. NO ENEMY CASUALTIES WERE REPORTED THOUGH THE UNIT CAPTURED 700 POUNDS OF RICE AND THREE CARTS. THE CARTS AND RICE WERE DESTROYED.

ON 22 AUGUST CO A CONTINUED TO MAKE SPORADIC CONTACT WITH ENEMY SQUADS. IN FIVE SEPARATE ACTIONS NORTH OF THE KHE TA LAOU RIVER CO A KILLED 14 NVA SOLDIERS AND CAPTURED NINE AK-47S, ONE SKS CARBINE, AN INFRARED SCOPE, 16 82MM MORTAR ROUNDS, SIX RUCKSACKS (AMERICAN), ONE PERSONAL RADIO COMBAT (AMERICAN) AND VARIOUS LETTERS AND DOCUMENTS. THE EQUIPMENT WAS DESTROYED ON THE 24TH.

AT 1058 HOURS VICINITY YD 171328 CO B, 7/402 DISCOVERED A BUNKER COMPLEX HIDDEN BENEATH A COMPLEX THEY HAD DESTROYED SEVERAL DAYS EARLIER. THE COMPLEX WAS DEFENDED BY AN NVA REINFORCED SQUAD WHICH WAS WELL ENTRENCHED. CO B ENGAGED THE ENEMY WITH ORGANIC WEAPONS FIRE OVERRUNNING THE POSITION AT 1325 HOURS. SEVEN ENEMY WERE KILLED AND THREE TONS OF RICE WERE DESTROYED.

CO C, 7/402 KILLED SIX NVA IN TWO SEPARATE ENGAGEMENTS VICINITY YD 122326. A FIREFIGHT ENSUING ONE OF THE CONTACTS LED CO C TO A SOVIET-BUILT MEDIUM WEIGHT UTILITY VEHICLE (TRUCK).

CO D, 7/402 ENGAGED AN UNKNOWN SIZE ENEMY PATROL VICINITY YD 147332 AT 2025 HOURS KILLING THREE ENEMY WITH SAF.

IN THE FIREBASE O'REILLY AREA ON 22 AUGUST AN ELEMENT OF THE 3D BN, 1ST REGT (ARVN) ENGAGED A LARGE ENEMY FORCE. ARTILLERY, ARA AND TACTICAL AIR STRIKES SUPPORTED THE GROUND FORCES WHICH WERE IN CONTACT FROM 0930 HOURS UNTIL SUNSET. A SEARCH OF THE CONTACT AREA REVEALED 42 NVA KIA, 26 BY ARA FROM THE 4TH BN, 77TH ARTY (AMBL), 101ST. THREE ARVN SOLDIERS WERE KILLED AND NINE WOUNDED.

AT 0240 HOURS ON 23 AUGUST RECON PLT, CO E, 7/402 WAS PROBED IN THEIR NDP. THE UNIT WAS PROBED AGAIN AT 0345 HOURS AND AT 0435 HOURS AN UNKNOWN SIZE ELEMENT OF ENEMY ASSAULTED THE UNIT'S POSITION FROM THE SOUTHEAST WOUNDING SIX AMERICANS. ALL WERE EVACUATED AT FIRST LIGHT. A FIRST LIGHT CHECK OF THE PERIMETER REVEALED 14 ENEMY KILLED, FIVE BY SAF AND NINE BY ARTILLERY. 13 INDIVIDUAL WEAPONS WERE CAPTURED ALONG WITH LETTERS AND DOCUMENTS.

AN LP OF CO D, 7/402 WAS OVERRUN BY AN UNKNOWN SIZE ENEMY FORCE RESULTING IN TWO US SOLDIERS KILLED IN ACTION.

IN FOUR SEPARATE ACTIONS, CO C, 7/402 KILLED EIGHT ENEMY SOLDIERS VICINITY YD 129317. SIX INDIVIDUAL WEAPONS WERE CAPTURED.

28 ENEMY WERE KILLED IN THE FIREBASE O'REILLY AREA BY ELEMENTS OF THE 1ST AND 3D REGTS (ARVN) SUPPORTED BY AREA AND TACTICAL AIR STRIKES IN DAY LONG ACTIONS. ARVN CASUALTIES WERE FIVE WOUNDED AND TWO KILLED.

C
HAPTER
29

24 A
UGUST
1970

They did not see the river until they were in it. The night was black beneath the mist. The entire valley floor was wet swamp. Egan led the small group east from Campobasso then south. No one spoke. They sloshed through the bog. The rain and its camouflaging noise had ceased. They moved slowly though there was little time.

Behind Egan was Cherry and behind him, Pop. Further back were Snell, Nahele and McQueen, then Denhardt, Doc Johnson and Minh and finally Woods and Calhoun. Essentially the patrol consisted of Alpha's best boonierats, best medic and only scout. Their mission would require the best. They moved with the stealth of a lone cat until Egan fell into the river with a noisy, ear-splitting splash.

Rover Teams Claudia and Stephanie had returned to Campobasso shortly past midnight. The others would return between dawn and dusk on the 24th. Brooks, FO and El Paso spent the night debriefing Claudia and Stephanie along with Pop's team, Ellen, and then briefing them all on the next mission. “We need a physical recon of the knoll,” Brooks had said. He asked for volunteers which was his style. When he wanted a man to do something he made the man want to do it. He made his boonierats feel good, feel special. All nine volunteered. They were hungry for more action. It showed in their eyes. Doc too volunteered though he did so because he was afraid for these crazy men, afraid they would need his services. And Minh volunteered because he wished to stay with Doc. Brooks accepted them all.