9. Information on the North Vietnamese battalion facing Herren is from an intelligence analysis cited in the March 1966 division after-action report. Also, General Phuong’s statement that the air assault into X-Ray landed right in the 9thBattalion, 66th People’s Army Regiment assembly area. Bill Beck, the Alpha Company machine gunner, says: “We landed right on top of ’em!”
10. All quotations and information from Medical Platoon Sergeant Keeton in this and subsequent chapters are from a recorded interview, Moore/Keeton, May 5, 1984; interview at Ia Drang reunion, August 1990; telephone interviews, June 8, 1991; January 1992; February 1992.
11. A declassified cable dated 11/28/65 from 2nd Air Div Tansonnhut, RVN, to Chief of Staff, U.S. Air Force, states: “From 1315 H [1:15 P.M.] on 14 Nov to 0600 H [6 A.M.] 15 Nov, 67 strike sorties expended GP [General Purpose bombs], Napalm, WP [white phosphorus bombs], Frag [bombs], .50 caliber ma chine gun and 20mm [cannon]. 28 F4B, 12 F-100, 10 A-1E, Six F4C, Six B-57, 4 A-4 and one FC-47 [Puff the Magic Dragon] saturated areas of reported con centrations.” Note that the B-57 Canberra carried a typical load of 6,000 pounds of bombs in the bomb bay plus 2,000 pounds in wing racks. For details on the Canberra, see Chris Ellis, A History of Combat Aircraft, p. 234.
12. All quotations and comments from Sgt. George Nye in this and subsequent chapters are from: his completed questionnaire; a detailed early May 1983 telephone discussion with Galloway and a tape-recorded statement from Nye, transcribed on May 15, 1983; telephone interview, Moore/Nye, spring 1991. Also notes of literally dozens of telephone conversations between Nye and both authors, plus personal discussions at five different Ia Drang reunion gatherings over the years.
7. Closing with the Enemy
1. Account of Taft’s death: recorded interview with Master Sgt. Robert Hazen (ret.) at the 1988 Orlando reunion, plus telephone interviews, Moore/Hazen, March 7 and 8, 1992.
2. All quotations and information from Colonel Ramon A. (Tony) Nadal in this and subsequent chapters are from the following sources: letter, Nadal to Major John Cash, October 2, 1967; undated (summer 1983) Nadal response to authors’ questionnaire; Nadal letter to his wife and son, November 17, 19, 22, and 23, 1965; undated (summer 1983) letter, Nadal to Galloway; Nadal, taped statement to Galloway, late 1983; letter, Nadal to Moore, April 10, 1984; discussions, Moore/Nadal/Herren, at Nadal’s home, May 1985; letter, Nadal to Moore, answering specific questions, July 13, 1988; discussions with Moore at July 1988 reunion; letter to Moore, July 31, 1988, with map sketches, annotated aerial photos; telephone interview, Moore/Nadal, August 1991; letter to Moore, comments on chapter drafts, December 1991.
3. Deal: Seen. 5, ch. 6.
4. Nadal was a combat veteran of an earlier tour with the Special Forces and had fought the Viet Cong. Those within hearing, and those monitoring the battalion radio net, will never forget him yelling, as he first saw the khaki-clad North Vietnamese regulars swarming down the dry creekbed: “They’re PAVN! They’re PAVN!”
5. Quotations from Carmen Miceli are from the recorded discussion of X-Ray at the first Ia Drang reunion in 1988, plus a separate Moore/Miceli recorded interview at that same gathering.
6. Steven Hansen’s statements in this and subsequent chapters: from recorded interview at the August 1988 reunion; letters, Hansen to Moore, June 22, 1988, and fall 1988.
7. On Taft’s death: See n. 1 above.
8. On Hazen being shot: See n. 1 above.
9. Platoon Sgt. Troy Miller’s statements on the enemy attack on 3rd Platoon: from telephone interview notes, Miller/Cash, December 26, 1967.
10. The remarkable saga of Specialist Bill Beck detailed in this and subsequent chapters draws on a thick file of letters from Beck to Moore, beginning with the first, dated November 10, 1969, and including others dated April 11, 1983; May 16, 1983; June 14, 1985; September 3, 1986; February 24, 1988; and two from August 1989. The Beck story emerges from those letters and scores of telephone conversations and personal interviews with both authors. Beck is a trained professional graphic artist—which has much to do with the clarity and detail of his statements, his maps, and his sketches, and with his vivid memory. It was Beck who drew the map sketches for Moore’s original December 9, 1965, after-action report. Notes from an April 6, 1989, telephone conversation, Beck/Moore, are important. Also extremely valuable are Beck’s comments recorded during the 1988 Ia Drang reunion discussions. Also, Beck shipped home every scrap of official paper the Army handed him—and his mother preserved it all. He was thus able to provide the authors original company rosters, movement orders, and awards lists, with names and serial numbers, that were priceless.
11. Staley’s quote is from the Cash research file at the OCMH, Army.
12. Miller: See n. 9 above.
13. Nadal: See n. 2 above.
14. Beck: See n. 10 above.
15. Russell Adams’s statement, “Nobody told me to stop …”: from a conversation with Moore at the 1990 Ia Drang reunion.
16. Description of the A-IE aircraft and their capabilities and support at X-Ray, and then—Captain Bruce Wallace’s quotes and remarks: from a letter to Moore, dated August 8, 1983.
17. Dillon on calling ARA on the crash site: n. 1, ch. 5.
18. McClellan’s death in the November 14 crash is reported in Wallace’s letter; by the A-1 Skyraider Association; and the Vietnam Memorial Directory of Names. McClellan’s body was recovered. The 2nd Air Div cable to Chief of Staff, USAF of 28 Nov 25 (n. 11, ch. 6) states: “One A1E was hit by ground fire at 1404 H [2:04 P.M.], Acft caught fire, exploded and crashed. No chute was observed and pilot’s body was recovered 1720 H [5:20 P.M.].”
19. The identity of the enemy POW’s parent regiment, and other nearby North Vietnamese units: from a 1967 undated letter to Major Cash from then-Captain John S. Prichard, former assistant intelligence officer, 3rd Brigade; and also letter, Prichard to Cash, April 4, 1968. Also, notes of a Cash telephone interview with Prichard, August 22, 1967: Prichard told Cash that the 66th Regiment prisoners pointed out on a map the location of the regimental supply point. A later napalm strike on that location resulted in five secondary explosions and an estimated 80 enemy killed.
20. Brig. Gen. Knowles’s tense moments at the briefing for Maj. Gen. Kinnard at 1st Cav Div forward command post: described in letter, Knowles to Moore, June 20, 1983.
21. Information on Sgt. Hurdle’s machine guns: from Sgt. Ernie Savage (n. 8, ch. 6). For the progress of the battle of Herrick’s 2nd Platoon, including the actions of Hill, Hurdle, Anderson, and Zallen: Sgt. Zallen’s interview at July 1989 Ia Drang reunion and Galen Bungum’s submissions, n. 3, ch. 6.
22. Details of those wounded and types of wounds suffered by personnel of 2nd Platoon B/l/7: from a letter from then–Specialist 5 Charles Lose, the platoon medic, to Major John Cash, February 11, 1968.
23. Bungum’s remarks: n. 3, ch. 6.
24. Dorman’s statement was made to Galloway on November 16, 1965, on the battlefield.
25. All quotations and information provided by then-Specialist 4 Vincent Cantu in this chapter and subsequent ones: from Cantu’s detailed recollections of X-Ray contained in a 10-page letter delivered to Galloway at the August 1990 Ia Drang reunion at Fort Benning.
26. Information on redistribution of ammunition, collecting maps and signal data: from Savage (n. 8, ch. 6).
8. The Storm of Battle
1. All quotations and information from Lt. Col. L. R. (Ray) Lefebvre (ret.) in this and subsequent chapters are from: taped discussion May 21, 1983, Moore with Edwards and Lefebvre; letter, then-Major Lefebvre to Major Cash, January 12, 1968; undated (summer 1984) questionnaire and written submission to authors; taped discussion at the 1988 Orlando Ia Drang reunion; multiple telephone discussions with Moore and Galloway, 1989-1992.
2. Quotations and personal accounts from Army Aviators Lombardo and Jekel derive from their written submissions and letters and completed questionnaires received in the summer of 1983; telephone interviews, Galloway/Jekel, Oct
ober 1990; telephone interview, Moore/Lombardo, March 6, 1992.
3. Letter from then-Brig. Gen. Roger Bean to Moore, July 7, 1989, described his experiences in the Ia Drang. Pilot Jon Mills’s written account, provided in the summer of 1983, corroborates.
4. For General An’s comment: n. 5, ch. 1.
5. For Edwards: n. 1, ch. 1.
6. For Herren: n. 2, ch. 6.
7. For Hansen: n. 6, ch. 7.
8. Beck’s recollections: n. 10, ch. 7.
9. McDonald: from questionnaire and statement enclosed with letter to Moore, December 18, 1989.
10. Information on Edwards’s platoon leaders and NCOs: from battalion records; Edwards material, n. 1, ch. 1; Vietnam Memorial Directory of Names; personal recollections.
11. Wallace material: n. 16, ch. 7.
12. Washburn account: his written notes, December 3, 1991, provided by Paul P. Winkel.
13. Barker comment about “five straight hours”: from a personal conversation with Moore at An Khe base camp after the battle.
14. Winkel’s observations: from an undated letter to Moore, received in late 1991.
9. Brave Aviators
1. Captain Metsker: Sgt. Maj. Plumley witnessed Metsker, down on one knee and firing his M-16 at the enemy on full automatic, when Metsker was struck in the shoulder by a bullet. Plumley said he last saw Metsker being bandaged by First Sergeant Arthur Newton of Alpha Company.
2. Crandall: See n. 5, ch. 3.
3. The detailed and invaluable recollections of Col. Paul Patton Winkel (ret.): from his letters, statements, and studies since 1983 of the helicopter operations and Army Aviator actions during the Ia Drang campaign. Winkel’s completed questionnaire and accompanying written account to Galloway and Moore, May 27, 1983, was the reference most used. Titled “The First Team and Landing Zone X-Ray, November 1965: A Helicopter Pilot’s View,” it is a compelling and forceful account of Winkel’s view of terror, death, and horribly wounded men in a vicious battle. He candidly writes about how he came to grips with and conquered his own fear in his first combat action. Other Winkel references: letters to authors, September 1, 1988; October 9, 1988; March 18, 1991; October 6, 1991; November 3, 1991; November 5, 1991; January 23, 1992; January 30, 1992; February 28, 1992; March 6, 1992; and countless telephone discussions with both authors over the years.
4. Winkel mentions battalion supply officer Rozanski personally bringing ammunition into X-Ray. The other side of this story took place at the ammo-supply point at Camp Holloway and is a good example of how our NCOs and troopers were trained to act on their own, in the absence of orders or instructions. Staff Sgt. James T Godfrey, 30, was battalion ammo sergeant. From a January 20, 1988, letter to Moore: “We had to use our own knowledge of what the units needed because the officers didn’t have time to request it item-by-item. I used my knowledge of what type ammo they needed in a defense, and what they could carry if ordered to attack or move out. Everyone had to think. There was no time to wait for someone to tell [you].”
5. Then–Col. Thomas W. Brown’s August 8, 1967, letter to Major Cash, and an August 25, 1967, letter to Cash from then-Major Henri S. Mallet, Brigade S-3, are very revealing on Brown’s decisions on reinforcement of X-Ray. The letters clearly show that, on the basis of information from Dillon in the chopper over head and 3rd Brigade’s monitoring of our battalion command radio net, Brown was way ahead of the requirement.
6. Quotations and information from Joe Marm in this and subsequent chap ters: from then-Captain Marm’s January 10, 1968, letter to Major Cash and from the authors’ personal and telephone discussions with Colonel Marm.
7. In a February 1992 telephone discussion with Moore, former Medical Platoon Sgt. Keeton said, “There was a hole as big as your fist in Bouknight’s back.”
8. Savage’s terse description of his cheery greeting to the three NVA soldiers he then killed: Time, November 26, 1965, p. 32, headlined THE VALLEYS OF DEATH.
9. Dorman’s remarks were made to Galloway, November 16, 1965.
10. Fix Bayonets!
1. Biographical information on then-Captain Diduryk: from a letter to Moore from Mrs. Delores Diduryk, June 10, 1984.
2. Quotes and information in this and subsequent chapters from Jon Wallenius are from: the 1983 questionnaire; Wallenius letter to Moore, August 29, 1986; 1988 Orlando reunion taped discussions; written statement, October 15, 1988, in which Wallenius recounts his experiences at X-Ray; letter to Moore, September 20, 1988; Wallenius discussion with Galloway at Ia Drang reunion in Washington, D.C., November 1989; recorded speech by Wallenius at My 1991 Ia Drang reunion lunch, Fort Hood, Texas; and numerous telephone discussions with both authors,.
3. Nadal information: n. 2, ch. 7. Miller: n. 9, ch. 7. Deal: n. 5, ch. 6. kreischer and Beck: n. 6, n. 11, ch. 7. Gell’s last words: recounted by Sgt. Sam Hollman, Jr., to Bill Beck, August 1989.
4. Marm’s charge against the machine-gun bunker was recounted by several witnesses. See Gilreath, n. 9, ch. 5, and Deal, n. 5, ch. 6. Also Marm’s letter to Major Cash, January 10, 1968.
5. Wallenius landing: n. 2 above, and Paul Winke’s helicopter support study n. 3, ch. 9. Setelin quotes in this chapter and subsequent ones: from a tape-recorded statement by Setelin, December 1988; Setelin’s completed questionnaire, December 1988; tapes of the Orlando 1988 reunion discussions; a second statement Setelin recorded in 1991; transcript of a recorded interview by Galloway, December 1991.
6. The DASPO film-crew mission was Project No. DCS 200-13B65. “Date shot: 14-15 Nov” is on the caption forms. Also, Galloway interview of Sgt. Jack Yamaguchi (ret.), one of the two Army cameramen present in X-Ray, Septem ber 1990.
7. Nadal’s request for permission to fall back and the WP smoke mission: n. 2, ch. 7. Gilreath’s comment to Herren: n. 9, ch. 5.
8. Tanner on the noise and bright light: undated (early 1990) letter to Moore.
9. Edwards: n. 1, ch. 1. Herren: n. 2, ch. 6.
10. Setelin’s anguish over the wounding of Willard: n. 5 above.
11. Tally of the day’s killed and wounded: battalion records; Moore’s personal records and notebooks.
12. Adams and the field antenna: Delta Company was designated the backup battalion CP; thus Adams carried the RC-292.
13. A North Vietnamese map sketch captured in 1966 and studied for this book shows three separate attacks on 1st Battalion, 7th Cav at X-Ray on November 14. That is corroborated by the statements of Generals An and Phuong (n. 5, ch. 1). There was one attack from the northwest by elements of the 33rd Regiment; one from the west-southwest by the 9th Battalion, 66th Regiment; and a third from the south and southeast by the 7th Battalion, 66th Regiment.
11. Night Falls
1. Rescorla’s quotes and information: Col. USAR (ret.) Cyril R. (Rick) Rescorla’s detailed memories of the Ia Drang campaign are drawn from a 26-page written account, with map sketches, September 19, 1991, accompanying his completed questionnaire. Also multiple telephone discussions with Moore and Galloway, beginning in September 1991.
2. Dillon on the lights on the mountain: letter to Major Cash, August 18, 1967.
3. Night landing in X-Ray: Crandall, n. 5, ch. 3.
4. Crandall’s return to the Turkey Farm: n. 5, ch. 3.
5. Medical treatment and evacuation: letter from Lt. Col. George H. Kelling (ret.), November 21, 1983; undated (spring 1984) letter and questionnaire; undated (summer 1984) letter with lengthy description of medical support activities.
6. Edwards on the probes: n. 1, ch. 1.
7. The foxholes: Platoon Sgt. Robert Jemison’s questionnaire and written description, undated (summer 1983); Moore interview at Jemison’s home in 1984; multiple telephone discussions with both authors, most recently August 1991.
8. Setelin’s account of the sniper in the trees: n. 5, ch. 10.
9. Warren Adams’s quotes and information: from two cassettes he recorded in 1988; recorded discussions at the 1988 Orlando reunion and subsequent reunions; numerous telephone discussion
s, the last on January 30, 1992.
10. Cantu on his first-class foxhole: n. 25, ch. 7.
11. Quotations and information from then-Captain Diduryk in this and subsequent chapters: from an undated eight-page Diduryk paper with three sketch maps describing his and his company’s actions at X-Ray provided by Delores Diduryk. Also a November 27, 1965, seven-page letter and sketch maps pro vided by Diduryk to a classmate for use in teaching ROTC students at Diduryk’s alma mater. A copy was sent to the authors in November 1990.
12. Herren in the dry creekbed: n. 2, ch. 6.
13. Nadal on Herren’s left: n. 2, ch. 7.
14. Tanner: n. 8, ch. 10.
15. Beck: n. 10, ch. 7.
16. Dillon to Nadal on the M-79 H&I fires: Moore recollection.
17. Bungum: n. 3, ch. 6.
18. Gilreath: n. 9, ch. 5.
19. Quotes from Lt. Dick Merchant in this and subsequent chapters: from his completed questionnaire and accompanying statement, April 24, 1983.
20. Information from Col. Wirth (ret.) are from his letters to the authors, August and September 1984.
21. Herren on Savage’s report on possible attack: n. 2, ch. 6.
12. A Dawn Attack
1. Edwards on the patrols: n. 1, ch. 1.
2. Jemison’s memory of how he and Lt. Geoghegan shared the last of the water was relayed to Moore by Geoghegan’s parents during a visit in the summer of 1967. They had exchanged letters with Sgt. Jemison. Also see n. 8, ch. 1.
3. Phuong: n. 5, ch. 1.
4. Edwards, Viera, Jemison: n. 1, n. 6, and n. 8, ch. 1.
5. Setelin: n. 5, ch. 10.
6. Hastings uses the “Broken Arrow” code word for an American unit in trouble: n. 10, ch. 5. Hastings/Galloway telephone conversation, April 28, 1992. Also, 2nd Air Div cable to Chief of Staff US AF 28 Nov 65 (n. 11, ch. 6): “From 6 A.M. 15 Nov until 6 A.M. 16 NOV there were 48 fighter-bomber sorties by AlEs, F-lOOs, B-57s, and F4Cs.” Authors’ note: Most of this firepower exploded for ward of Charlie Company.
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