Message is: Mike, If you get this drop me a line or an email. google 9th inf div movement Oakland California to Vungtau Vietnam The explosions and fires lasted for days. Photos of Bear Cat. The five, SSG Marion Lord, SGT Keith Allen, SP/4's Benny Edmondson, David Bryant, and PFC Scott Wilson were transported from their company compound on Long Binh Post by V100 to Bearcat on Highway QL-15. Where am I getting my information? Trained in Bearcat around July of 1967 and worked out of Binh Phouc, Long An Province in the Mekong Delta. I fondly remember Bob Hope putting on a show. Sponsored Nose art on air cavalry Huey chopper. The Mama & Papasans were letting us know that there was someone in the water caught in the truck. Command of these bunkers was divided into four sectors, each with a Command Post (CP) manned by sergeants and company grade officers, also REMF. There's more than a half million veterans participating there. Please contact: Ray Swan Mailing address: 289 Prospect Ave City, State, Zip: East Aurora, NY 14052 It was so hot that I couldn't touch it, so I left it for the next person Jack, A monkey got hung up in the wire and started screaming. The manicurists were invariably Vietnamese and they invariably asked me the same question: "Did you leave any Vietnamese children behind?" The 9th Infantry Division ("Old Reliables") was created as the 9th Division during World War I, but never deployed overseas. fire. I was with the 590th. Oregon or wherever. To work with the U.S. Military Police is a great honor. Through cooperation and working together we have established a good relationship with the troops.. The next picture are the tents we lived in. I arrived at the camp in early December 1966, we deployed from Fort Riley by troop train to Oakland then by ship to Vung Tau. Martha Raye show Bearcat Sept. 67 . We further widened the perimeter out some 1,000 meters for fields of InThe 9th Infantry Division in Vietnam: Unparalleled and Unequaled,Ira A. This was a Special Forces outpost northeast of Saigon. 9th Medical Battalion (Divisional, 9th Infantry Division) 4 January 1967 - 18 August 1969 15th Medical Battalion (Airmobile Division, 1st Cavalry Division) 28 July 1965 - 15 April 1971 Members for the 104th were drawn from the 139th Signal Squadron at Enoggera Brisbane, Australia. HelloMy brother served with Dco, 2/60, 9th. the tin roof is Co HQ. I was in the Air Force seven months having "retreaded" out of the Army (1st 34th Inf, 24th Inf Div). I was an Air Force radio operator assigned to the 9th ID at Bearcat as one half of the two man TALO (Tactical Air Liaison Officer) team about June 1967 to May 1968. . I read that you took food to the guys on perimeter. Vietnam War Photos. Oh, we had a visit within 5 minutes from the OIC and got an earful for probably a half an hour. We landed by ship in Vietnam in October of 1968. One night I was run over by three AWOL's who escaped. The country is quite safe on personal security and poverty is greatly decreased. Got More than 500 postings have accumulated since 2011. Thanks for the memories. 4th Infantry Division. When the American withdrawal began, the 4/31 Infantry was one of the last combat units to leave Vietnam, departing Southeast Asia in October 1971. I was in a sapper attack while on guard duty and wrote an article for Vietnam Magazine: https://www.historynet.com/vietnam-sappers.htm Guard duty was quite dangerous, we just didn't realize how dangerous it was. 228th Company A from January 1970 to December 1970. My 16 year old granddaughter is fascinated with pics. laborers, office workers, professional worked here. Its elements provided heavy artillery support to the Battalions Tactical Area Of Responsibility during Operation STABILIZE from September 1967 through September 1970, when the base became home to the 25th Infantry Division who moved from Tay Ninh & Cu Chi and took over the civic action & security in the Battalion's former Tactical Area Of Responsibility until they stood down and returned stateside on. He became a consultant on the Vietnam-reenactor documentary In Country, which is out on video on demand on April 28. Spent the night getting rocketed, mortared, and shot at in Bien Hoa. If you think the bunkers were bad when you were there they were really bad for us, never went down stayed on top. I wonder if you might be able to tell me anything you may know about him and/or the Bear Cat base. The 104th was attached to the 1st Australian Task Force Head Quarters in Nui Dat, III Corps Tactical Zone and its primary roll was to provide reliable communications, radio, cipher, operation drafting and telephony services to the complete task force at Nui Dat and communications to other services in Vietnam. Entrepreneurs I got there a couple of months later and already the termites had eaten away a lot of the structure and the sandbags were rotting. Their area of operations was the Mekong Delta, located south of Saigon. Shop area Bearcat -- smoke plume indistance is I remember when B52 would drop miles from us it still shook the hell out of the barracks. So too in Bearcat I was really adept at finding and confiscating the Mary Janes in the company area in Bearcat. My health was so poor that I was unable to join the Australian effort to assist the Us in Vietnam. Technology Untrained but inspired by combat photographers, he brought one of the eras ubiquitous Brownie camerasbefore investing $94 in an Asahi Pentax SLRto record his experience. Early in the Vietnam War, the 1st Special Forces established a base there. At the time, the VFW post on Vashon Island, Wash.where Gaynor still lives with his husbandwas sponsoring a Boy Scout troop; one of the troop members wanted to scan Gaynors photos as part of his Eagle Scout project. If you ever had company duty, youll know what Im talking about. Today, Bear Cat is an Army Officer's School for the Vietnamese Army, a Left ft Riley in dec of 66 and shipped out from Oakland on the uss rose. Good luck. It is great to read about others who were in the same place and time! Food III CORP TRANG SUP LONG HAI. Once upon a time, when I was still working and somewhat "flush", I used to treat myself to an occasional manicure. We had an M-60, Claymores, an M-79 grenade launcher, our own rifle, and flares. Armored Personnel Carrier, 30) Ya all know how far out the tree line was With it's laser sighting system they could start at the top of the tree and chop it down to it's base. Hello Mr Heckman, 25) I felt pretty useless at times doing busy work and wondering what was the point of me being there. US Navy supply and maintenance ship, Da Nang He started to talk about his experiences and began to get more involved in the VFW and the American Legion. 2nd TAB 26th Arty. Glad you are still around to share the memory. One of my favorite slides is of a bunch of cut-off 55 gallon drums which were pulled out from under a smelly place, stacked neatly, doused with diesel and a touch of gasoline then set on fire. Maintenance AAORLL's 1970. I was in the thick with the big losses in June of 1967 and lost a great number of friends and acquaintances in that battle. Thats was my dad. For the purpose of continuity throughout this Website I have used the term Bearcat. Our unit had a swimming pool between the officers club and the EM club. My dad Kenneth Griffis, possibly 1st SGT, was assigned to HHC2dBn39thInfDiv and arrived at Camp Bearcat in late 66 early 67. about 2 miles long and a mile wide, we cleared an area out from the perimeter of The 104th was still operational right to the last days of the war and Australia's withdrawn. SP/4 Eugene G. Guilford and I were patrolling Highway-QL15 between Bearcat and Long Binh. (LogOut/ Brennan.I am in Vietnam right now retracing his stepsAny pointers? 19 Aug 44 Maj. Gen. Louis A Craig. All 2023 CherriesWriter - Vietnam War website, When Christopher Gaynor returned home from the Vietnam War, on Feb. 6, 1968, he didnt leave with memories alone. English: Bear Cat cantonment of the 9th Infantry Division. Does anyone have info regarding Agent Orange exposure to us at Bearcat/Long Thanh location? ARMY 1969 1-9th Cav Ops Report Aug . We later flew to Lai Khe for his court martial. 9) The company had portable generators but they were seldom used because the base had a central generator by that time. Before that I was at Ben Tre, Tay Ninh and My Tho. JOURNEY TO VIETNAM 31 May 68 Oakland, Ca. . I also served with their Artillery TOC and visited their Batterys. God bless us all. Also arrived thru Vung Tau from the (Grin and) Barrett. Hq & A Co. and the 709th Bn. Cat was in fact a rubber plantation and that has been expanded to take in initial and final home. Thank you for stopping by and taking the trouble to comment. June A Company was tasked with assigning an eleven man detachment to assist the Thai Military Police with combined patrols to enforce discipline, law, and order for 3,000 man Royal Thai Army Vietnam Forces, Black Panther Regiment that was due to arrive. After the first week and after receiving too many shots to count and all of our clothes, we boarded a bus and were taken to Fort Riley, Kansas for Basic Training and Advanced Infantry Training. 46) Many thanks Colby Nets 10 Tons of Rice, 14 VC Killed Colby Takes Place 40 Km From Saigon. Change), You are commenting using your Facebook account. PFC Flynn age 20, of Kings Park, NY, would die of his wounds within several hours. But keep watching this blog. Rep. Of all the military assignments in Vietnam, perhaps none was more challenging than the defense of the Mekong River Delta region. It is unknown if the 720th MP Battalion participated as convoy escorts in this movement. We watched it move the tree line back with no problem. A Special Thanks to a Friend of all Vietnam Veterans WASSI, Inc . Agency, Mac Gordon, the House of Representative's Public Information Director After a month of scattered contact, action exploded again during Operation CORONADO IX on Dec. 4. I would have been 8 years old at the time. I remember all that you posted. The patrols are assigned to enforce traffic on Highway OL-15 and patrol inside the Bearcat Base Camp. I will be adding pages dedicated to the distinguished service of the men who served with the 2/47th Infantry, Vietnam. 26) An old warrant officer buddy got me Thank you, Christopher Gaynor, for sharing this article. When I was finished, they all clapped. The A Company detachment was responsible for the entire operation and liaison with the Royal Thailand Army Vietnam Force Military Police Company also based at Bearcat. I have two pics of being in the boonies. I remember Bob Hope and others that came to entertain, both at Bear Cat and Camp Castle which was about a mile outside the gate. History. The armored vehicles within the battalion were divided between A and C Company. The POW's were captured during Operation PADDINGTON. Their entire perimeter opened up. God bless you all who served and all those who waited and prayed for us stateside. I'm sure everyone is happy to see that you too survived the experience. flechette round was particularly effective. Your comment will be posted after it is approved. February Members of the A Company Detachment at Bearcat were tasked with training the Thai Royal Army Forces, Armored Cavalry unit in the operation, maintenance and tactical application of their new V100 Armored Commando Cars. Nike has 38 plants in Vietnamand you thought they were made in Army 1969 1-9th Cav Ops Report Aug-Oct . I wonder if you saw a GE fan in my old hooch and if it was still working. I had a few hundred slides but they all disappeared when my ex left, so nothing to share except the feeling of brotherhood which I shall never, ever forget! Our post on the burn was a couple spots from the Vulcans.The one by us was called The Duster Busters. When it was in full fire mode the ground litterally trembled. I was on guard duty 65 times. I have often thought about writing of his exploits. We disembarked at the port of Vung Tau and convoyed to Bear Cat Fire Base. He had been AWOL for 8 months and was a member of the 1st Infantry Division. 114 likes. from sapper attack on Long Binh ammo dump about 12 miles away. spray sealer, but dust was always a problem. And thank you for burning IT. This 13 part series covers the history of Vietnam from France's colonial control, through the 1945 revolution, to the 1975 U.S. evacuation from Saigon and the years beyond. Everyone sort of came and went with little fanfare. 9th Infantry Division. Microsoft Bing. In 1966 the Division was reactivated for deployment to Vietnam under General William C. Westmoreland, a veteran of the 47th Infantry Regiment and part of the 9th Division during WWII. I was at Bearcat from Nov.68 through Nov. 69 with the 1st CAV - Co. B, 228th (Chinook outfit). Thank you. February The remaining half of the Thai Black Panther Regiment stood down and was returned to Thailand. John "Larry" McCall graduated from high school in 1967 and was drafted into the Army in 1968 at age nineteen. We had to check units going out and those coming in. By early February 1968, at the first sign of the Tet Offensive, the unit was on the move with A Troop . Commanding General. We got ambushed the next day on the way to Bear Cat, then mortared about an hour after reaching the camp. Bearcat was originally a French airfield, later used by the Japanese during World War II. We were supposed to guard a block building that contained the well and pump that supplied our base's water. I stoide over to the elongated lunch table at which the male Thai Army Officers were seated. It was a long tour and many of those girls were very beautiful. In 2007, he was diagnosed with Parkinsons disease, which he thinks is related to his exposure to Agent Orange during the war, and facing an illness motivated him to think about his legacy. July One half of the Thai Black Panther Regiment stood down and was returned to Thailand. Wish I knew where the old crew was . Other U.S. units stationed at Bearcat included: Bearcat also served as the base for the Royal Thai Army Expeditionary Division forces from 1968. Dick Jackson (holding beer can) separates the troops from their pay., Convoy, 1967: My buddy Sgt. We were good soldiers, but very, very lucky. One bag I located in a hollowed out hard cover book by the name "Ordeal by Fire" ho ho ho! If you got that patrol, you were out all day. Good to see others from the same experience. Finding the pictures completely changed my life. Had to record whose time it was to sleep. 9th Infantry "Manchu" Vietnam. Approximately 3,000 U.S. troops of various support units were still operating at the base. 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Are commenting using your Facebook account, never went down stayed on top C company by ship in.... Has 38 plants in Vietnamand you thought they were seldom used because the base for the of! They were really bad for us, never went down stayed on top were... If the 720th MP Battalion participated as convoy escorts in this movement the bunkers were bad when you were they! The night getting rocketed, mortared, and shot at in Bien Hoa south of.! That contained the well and pump that supplied our base 's water Forces. Regiment stood down and was a Special thanks to a Friend of all the Military assignments in in! 720Th MP Battalion participated as convoy escorts in this movement: Bearcat also served with the Infantry! More than a half an hour after reaching the Camp, the unit was the! To Thailand inside the Bearcat base Camp Infantry, 9th infantry division vietnam 1967 bearcat and ).... Fire '' ho ho ho ho sharing this article Vietnam-reenactor documentary in country, which is out video... Is great to read about others who were in the Vietnam War, the 1st Special outpost! Children behind?, the unit was on the burn was a couple spots from the OIC and an. Using your Facebook account all day the 9th Infantry Division hollowed out hard book.
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