Since the headquarters building stood out on the hill like a large bulls eye, I proceeded outside and took up a defensive position behind a corner of our building, on the safe side. As Ole-Luk-Oie, the pen name for British officer Ernest Swinton, wrote in the 1915 book. I am interested in corresponding with any Black Scarf soldiers who . Large images may take a few minutes to appear. Metacafe, HistoryNet.com contains daily features, photo galleries and over 25,000 articles originally published in our nine magazines. He flew two more AC-47 combat missions and showed up at the flight line for a third when the squadron commander told him he was grounded. The nomination package included statements from Carpenter and most of the crew. With no friendly troops visible between me and the battle, into my M16 went the magazine of tracers in preparation for a confrontation with anyone who might break through that wall of gunfire, something at which the Viet Cong were quite adept. The last major battle occurred along the berm of the rifle range on Highway 317 in the early morning just after daylight. . To Love Ru Tp 22 - Vit Sub. The soldiers with old (MPC) currency notes takes the receipt and proceeds towards the next officer. Bruce Stern at his desk in Long Binh, circa 1968-69. . 44th Medical Brigade Headquarters Long Binh 1969.jpeg 2,079 1,716; 209 KB. (Vietnam War period). We had a perfect view of the VC hill, and it slowly began to dawn on me that for the past seven months, as each evenings shift began with my casually scanning the quiet hills to the south and southeast of Long Binh, there was a fair probability I was being scanned right backlikely by some VC ammo counter busily inventorying his AK-47 bullets, 122 mm rockets, 82 mm mortars and B-40 rocket-propelled grenade rounds, while I counted M16 bullets, Claymore mines and howitzer shells. (I was a big-shot first lieutenant and chauffeured to work.) The prisoners revealed that their mission had been to attack Bien Hoa city and the Bien Hoa Air Base. nhc nn - Nguyn Quc Hng - cng ty Hng Long Phc. 20 July 1969 circa - Mortar attack on base camp A-414 Thanh Tri. I crawled to the location of the flare. Vehicles drive past on roads between the Long Binh Post area. Published in the October 2017 issue ofVietnammagazine. 11 November SP/4s Jared Kelley and John R. Klemm, tend to their gear during a recon mission in the Tactical Area Of Responsibility. A soldier counts his notes at the typist's desk. Then there was a blinding flash and the aircraft was rocked from nose to tail by a violent explosion. In early 1969, the 277th was re-assigned from Long Binh to Tay Ninh West Base Camp, where it became the superior command of the 228th. I spent nine years working for Congressional Liaison between the Veterans Administration and members of the Congress, he said. It was another hot February day in 1969 at the sprawling Long Binh logistics base about 20 miles northeast of Saigon. The pilot fired the guns, using a sight at the left side of the cockpit. Bucks County Pennsylvania United States USA, Del Rio Texas Laughlin Air Force Base USA, Roxborough Pennsylvania United States USA, U-Tapao Royal Thai Air Force Base Thailand. Even in the navigation compartment the flash lit up the inside of the aircraft like daylight. 1969 Amphitheatre - Long Binh - by Dave Ondrey by manhhai 6 1 BOB HOPE Show - Long Binh - Largest Audience Show by manhhai 5 1 1969 Amphitheatre - Long Binh - by Dave Ondrey by manhhai 5 1 LONG BNH 1967 by manhhai 5 2 1 2. Many features may not work properly without it. It was an unlucky hit. Spooky 71 flew with a crew of eight. A South . 1971 serving with the 95th Military Police Battalion. Photos (51) by Lou Mengoli, 1967. independent documentary Letters from Long Binh. This was a bit disconcerting. Airman Levitow was setting [the ejection and ignition dials] and handing me the flares, Owen said. 23 July 1969 - SFC Eddie Hamby escorts Sgt McIntosh to Moc Hoa by boat on first leg of stops heading stateside. David L. Hamel, director of the institute. The gunship carried about 150,000 rounds of ammunition on each flight, Levitow said. Terms & Conditions | For reasons unknown, it had not been emptied when the AC-47 went to Vietnam. To the Air Forces embarrassment, a hero was not eligible to re-enlist. Later I enrolled as an ROTC student at South Dakota State University, became an Army officer and was assigned to Long Binh in August 1968. Beyond that was an open area where tanks were patrolling back and forth, apparently looking for VC who had squirreled themselves down into rat holes trying to avoid the tanks. It would be relieved by another gunship for the midnight-to-dawn shift. These units made occasional contact, often with PAVN or VC who fought stubbornly from trenches and spider holes. The base was host to US Army Headquarters. An injured North Vietnamese soldier fighting with the Viet Cong, Pvt. The attack was expected to come on the ground, as opposed to those . The 199th later became known as the "Redcatchers" for its mission objectiveto seek out and destroy Communist cadres in Vietnam. In 1964 an Ohio woman took up the challenge that had led to Amelia Earharts disappearance. Duration: 2 min 9 sec. Soldiers give forms to the soldier with type-writer. New York Times, January 8, 1969, p. 12. It was situated between Bien Hoa, the location of a large American airbase, and Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam. While I was in training, my motivation was to get these wings and I wear them today proudly, the airman recalled in 2015. A 70-strong VC force attacked the 2/1 Marines command post 6km south of Marble Mountain losing 17 dead. But a battle was waiting instead. Viet Cong attack on Tan Son Nhut Air Base (1966) From Wikipedia the free encyclopedia. Day scenes show soldiers defending positions and firing at the enemy. Smoke rises from surrounding area. [4]:97 Later that day rockets hit the An Hoa Combat Base destroying 15,000 rounds of artillery ammunition and igniting 40,000 gallons of aviation fuel and 50 rockets were fired at Naval Support Activity Da Nang with more than half going into the sea and the remainder causing minor damage. At most, there would be 20 seconds before it exploded. more Some speculate that the attacks . It was Feb. 24, 1969, and the second day of the Tet counteroffensive. He will look for photos. On 18 February a Company F, 2nd Battalion, 1st Marines called in artillery fire on a group of PAVN/VC 5km south of Marble Mountain resulting in 21 secondary explosions believed to be from detonating rockets. at the 24th Evacuation Hospital in Long Binh, South Vietnam, both patient and unit members, to find each other and join in the. Since my finger was through the safety pin ring the safety pin was pulled.. They fought to the last because (1) they were told that they would be tortured mercilessly by US soldiers should they be captured, and (2) being Buddhists, they did not want to die on foreign soil, but hoped to escape so they could go home to North Vietnam to die. 83 Lt thch,23 Bnh lun.Video TikTok t Nguyn Huy Cng 1969 (@userz65oz3pvgr1969). Aerial view of Long Binh Post in Vietnam. [4]:99, Meanwhile to the west 3/7 Marines continued to engage PAVN forces, forcing them into 3 pockets along the Song Tuy Loan river. Those satellites will join the already-planned 28 satellites in the Tranche 1 Tracking Layer of SDAs Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture. The clouds hung low, making flying helicopters . I couldnt walk. Unlike our headquarters, theirs was built under a hill rather than on top of one. Tet 1969 refers to the attacks mounted by the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) and Viet Cong (VC) in February 1969 in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War, one year after the original Tet Offensive. Apparently, it was impossible for an Iowa corn farmer to get his mind around the idea of hundreds of men actually trying to kill each other. hightForP2 = 330 Few areas of the world have been as hotly contested as the India-Pakistan border. At that time, the air base security forces reported that they had lost contact with the enemy reconnaissance element which withdrew east toward Thai Hiep. The paperwork for advancement in skill level (from three to five) in his original specialty had been lost. History is not a fixed set of facts. The retired Green Beret, who was a trailblazer as one of the first Black officers to join the Special Forces, told Military.com on Thursday that he . The three guns were mounted in window ports, just forward of the open cargo door. It took considerable effort to get Spooky 71 back to base. Spooky was flying at about 3,500 feet. I was not in this Regiment, but I believe I may have observed some of the Regiment's activities the day of the attack. South Vietnamese woman 1969 Sep 15, 2017. . Viet Cong attack on Tan Son Nhut Air Base (1966) Part of the Vietnam War: Date: 4-5 December 1966: Location: Tan Son Nhut Air Base, South Vietnam. Another typist gives MPC currency notes to the soldiers. (Jim Van Eldik), It was another hot February day in 1969 at the sprawling, Behind the driver, strewn about the passenger seat and floor, was his personal combat gear, including his, The enemy would occasionally probe us, rocket us, mortar us and more than likely sometimes even shop at our PXs, but a ground attack? My class had graduated the month before from our 35-week "Fixed Ciphony Repair" course at Ft. Monmouth, NJ. The resultant damage was a hole two feet in diameter through the wing and over 3,500 shrapnel holes riddling the fuselage, said Lt. Col. Robert A. Davidson, commander of the AC-47 forward operating location at Bien Hoa. Nov. Dec. Trans primary motivations seem quite similar to our own: eating and getting home. It isnt every day one peaceably sets off for work knowing someone is intent on ones personal demise. Mr. Cook served with the 1st Infantry Division, 2-16th Infantry, as a 1st Lieutenant in the Long Binh area of Vietnam. It was nothing like what I saw in my imagination or what is shown in movie theaters or on television. I had the lanyard on the flare hooked up and my finger through the safety pin ring. Between the town of Bien Hoa and the base was an old French minefield, never cleared and fenced by barbed wire. Well, not everybody had departed. Mini-Tet 1969 Begins February 23, 1969. He is remembered at the Walk of Fame at Hurlburt Field, Fla. Levitow died Nov. 8, 2000, at his home in Connecticut after a lengthy battle with cancer. The villagers told the ARVN forces how they were driven out of their homes and confined to an area near a creek running alongside the village. Ike originally intended these dominos to represent Chinas neighbors such as North and South Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand and Malaysia, but it was not long before some believed that places like Cuba, Angola, Chile, Peru, Michigan and South Carolina would also be on the list. The miniguns fired four rounds of invisible ball bullets followed by one tracer round, but the bullets came so fast they looked like a continuous red stream. The troops sent to Saigon originally lived in army units dispersed throughout the city. More than 500 airmen attended the funeral, and most of them followed the caisson to the grave site. United States Army soldiers exchanging MPC currency at their headquarters in Long Binh Vietnam. The research for this After Action Report included OPERATIONAL REPORTS, DAILY STAFF JOURNALS and DUTY OFFICER S LOGS at the Battalion, Brigade and Division levels located in the National Archives and Records Administration, 8601 Adelphi Road, College Park, MD 20740-6001. A blistering, 148-page document by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) found that Afghan, SDA Taps Raytheon for Seven More Missile-Tracking Satellites, Photos: F-22s Deploy to Tinian for First Time as Part of ACE Exercise, In Message to Force, Austin Touts Once-in-a-Generation Investments, Heres What USAFs Science Board Is Studying Now, Were Weird: New Commander Details Life Inside Task Force 99, Top Pentagon Official: Chinas Air Actions Are Dangerous and Destabilizing, Entire F-35 Fleet to Get Fix for Engine Vibration Issue, Service Will Remain at Heart of King Aerospace No Matter How Aviation and Technology Change, US Set Up Afghans for Failure, With a Force Too Complex to Maintain, IG Says. Date: 1969, August 11. Back home in Connecticut, he learned that his Medal of Honor had been approved. Carpenter set it down in a full shuddering stall. It was his 180th combat mission, but he had never flown with this crew before. At about 03:00, as reconnaissance elements of the unit were observed and engaged by US Air Force security forces at the perimeter of Bien Hoa Air Base, the villagers began to flee their homes, running down streets and creek beds. My driver arrived at the usual time, a little before sundown, on Feb. 22, for my 12-hour graveyard shift at the 1st Logistics Command headquarters. At that rate, a three-second burst placed a shot every square foot in an area the size of a football field. Later I learned that we were attacked by the 274th Regiment, 5th Viet Cong Division, which was repulsed by the firepower of the 720th Military Police Battalion, the 18th Military Police Brigade and helicopter gunships from the 145th Aviation Battalion, 1st Aviation Brigade. (true?/false? ElyRatner, assistant secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific security affairs, discussed how China continues to prod the U.S. and challenge stability in region, even as, The entire F-35 fleet is slated to get the retrofit engine maker Pratt & Whitney has identified to mitigate the problem that led to suspended deliveries and flight restrictions for some aircraft for nearly two monthsa move that will affect hundreds of fighters globally. Military aviation and technology are ever-changing, from the prevalence of drones to a shift to jets for special mission surveillance, once the province of propeller aircraft. Levitow had joined the Air Force in June 1966, some 20 days ahead of being drafted into the Army. Ellis C. Owen, had been working as a team in dropping the flares. He did not yet have a five-level as a loadmaster, and without a five-level, he could not be promoted, and if not promoted, he could not re-enlist. [4]:98, At dawn PAVN sappers attacked the 1st Marine Division headquarters on Hill 327 and the 2/7 Marines command post to the northwest. I am compiling a history of our Regiment's service in the war. Poor guys; they didn't stand a chance. center, as they run down Route 1 near Trang Bang after an aerial napalm attack on suspected Viet Cong hiding places on June 8, 1972. He reported to the 3rd Special Operations Squadron at Nha Trang in July 1968 and was assigned to the squadrons forward operating location at Bien Hoa. (Vietnam War period). Among the family members present were his son and grandson, John L. Levitow III. The Long Binh Army post, adjacent to Spookys home base at Bien Hoa, was under mortar attack. The AC-47 was the first of the Air Forces side-firing gunships. 99-08 286 ) DATE ) ) On appeal from the Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in St. Louis, [4]:99, The PAVN/VC attacks on Da Nang were a failure resulting in more than 500 dead. Inbound, Carpenter had called for an ambulance and a medevac helicopter to meet them on the ramp. Levitow and one of the gunners, Sgt. A three-second burst would saturate an area the size of a football field. Furthermore, the flare would be burning at a temperature of 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit. OVER 30 POUNDS IN WEIGHT MUST BE LOWERED BY ROPE. With no clear idea of what to do in combat, I would have to improvise. See Long Binh photos and images from satellite below, explore the aerial photographs of Long Binh in Vietnam. Soldiers lined inside the building waiting for their number. After sundown on the 22nd, elements of the VC 274th Regiment, 5th Division made their final preparations while occupying three hills along Highway 15 approximately three kilometers south of the base. Clip Type: Unedited. Before the night was over, Levitow would perform an act of astounding bravery for which he would ultimately be awarded the Medal of Honor. By Richard E. Killblane - Transportation Branch Historian September 15, 2008. Color: Color. Long Binh Jail was a prison for American soldiers on the outskirts of Saigon with notoriously harsh conditions. John T. Correll was editor in chief of Air Force Magazine for 18 years and is now a contributing editor. Location: Long Binh Vietnam. The right tire was flat, having been cut by shrapnel, and it was all Carpenter could do, standing on the left brake, to keep control until he brought the airplane to a stop. Perhaps a word of explanation is in order on how I and all the others in our mix of volunteers and draftees ended up in this hot, smelly, unsafe corner of the world. The flare posed a deadly danger in several ways. The cavalry troopers also stumbled onto a large tunnel complex not more than a mile from our perimeter. I dont think I was alone in this. Shot up and near stalling, Spooky approached Bien Hoa in the dark. History is a guide to navigation in perilous times. Ambush at Ap Nhi. [4]:101. Dad wanted to be buried standing up. About 85 per cent of the force was estimated to be PAVN soldiers. The rifle was accompanied by a single magazine of tracer roundsbullets treated with a chemical that creates a trail of light when fired. War and peace. All of the enlisted got wounded and the officers did not. For the next six hours, Spooky 71 would fly a combat air patrol circuit over the Saigon/Tan Son Nhut area, ready to respond wherever its fire support was needed. Very seldom did we ever fire fast rounds at 18,000 rounds a minute because it had a tendency to turn the airplane. Soldiers of the United States Army Signal Group have military payment certificates exchanged at their headquarters in Long Binh Vi, U.S. soldiers handling 155mm artilery shells in an ammunition dump at Long Binh, Vietnam. Except for the eruptions from our perimeter bunkers, the entire battlefield seemed devoid of peopleat least people who could be seen. The Tet 1969 offensive was carried out mostly by Viet Cong irregulars. In the interest of security - and to ease communications - the army centralized Saigon's American forces in 1967 by stationing them all at an enormous compound built just outside of the city. The decision to make the fix to. Visitors can also watch a videotape of Carpenter and John Levitow Jr. talking about the Medal of Honor mission. About Us | The other skid remains upright, as it is unfastened from the crane. Despite his wounds, Levitow helped secure the airplane on the way back. On top of that came the domino theory of 1954, invented by then-President Dwight D. Eisenhower. The first explosion, seemingly an earth-shattering blast, occurred perhaps 30 or 40 yards outside our office, spraying the building with gravel and steel fragments, perforating our walls and windows. Excerpt from 1st Aviation Brigade Newsletter: The VC attack at Long Binh was directed at the 12th Combat Aviation Group and II Field Force Vietnam. Quan Loi August 12/13, 1969 by Bill Rubenstein. The two huge U.S. bases dripped firepowerdozens of batteries of field artillery, large calibers and small, rows and rows of helicopter gunships and jet fighters loaded to the gills with the most lethal ordnance the world has ever seen, dozens of M113 armored personnel carriers with powerful .50-caliber machine guns manned by surly military police, and, of course, hundreds of trigger-happy clerks and truck drivers, not necessarily eager, but most definitely ready, for action. I then looked back to see a flare that had slid up against the cans of 19,000 rounds of ammunition, Platt said. It was also called Dragonship and Puff the Magic Dragon (after a song, then popular, by Peter, Paul, and Mary) but went mostly by Spooky, the call sign with which it flew its missions. Includes scenes shot in and around the base showing soldiers preparing for the attack. Carpenter waved off taxi instructions from the tower and the crew got out fast. I worked for Pan American Airways and lived with the 99th Replacement Battallion across from USARV Headquarters in Long Binh from October 1969 through December 1969. Although at first overwhelmed by the intensity of the enemy fire the MPs stood their ground, suppressed the enemy fire, eliminated an enemy machine gun emplacement and were able to evacuate their seriously wounded point man, SP/4 Brown. And yet there was nobody, absolutely nobody, visible out there. A change of command at 2nd Field Force Artillery Headquarters at Long Binh, Vietnam. He was filling in for a loadmaster who had taken his place when he was sick. Website Terms & Conditions | "On the second firing pass, the mortars firing on Long Binh were silenced." The attack lifted momentarily, and the gunship began dropping flares to provide illumination . This site uses cookies to improve your experience and to help show content that is more relevant to your interests. If I got stopped drinking and driving, its going to say, Medal of Honor Drunk. I realize that. A regimental commissar had assured the men in Trans company that the attack would be easily successful and after it was over we would be able to go home to North Vietnam. The rationale given for the supposedly easy victory: The VC battalion would face only desk soldiers without field experience (ouch!). Featured Collections | Combat training for ordnance officers at best is rudimentary. I hated it. More to his liking, he went home to Connecticut and became a medical administration officer in the VA hospital system and special assistant to the chief of Medical Administration Service in New England. Soldiers in a line. After the battle came another shock. 28 March Ambush and Recon Team #75, and #76 were on a joint night operation on Hill-15 in the southeastern sector of the TAOR. United States Army soldiers participate in military payment certificates (MPC) exchange at their headquarters in Long Binh Vietnam. They briefly seize control of Binh Gia, a village only 40 miles from Saigon. The battle area was quickly illuminated by large spotlights supplemented with dozens of flares fired by our artillery. Amazingly five or six Viet Cong actually did sneak into the compound, but, luckily or unluckily for my sake, depending on the outcome, not in my area. [4]:99, To the west of Da Nang, shortly after midnight on the 23rd Company M, 3/7 Marines ambushed a PAVN force killing 10 and later that night a larger force was spotted and artillery fire was called in. It could lay down an awesome field of fire, with each of its three 7.62 mm Gatling miniguns shooting up to 6,000 rounds per minute. Once my eight-man crew of ammo counters had assembled, we set aside our usual duties and made the best preparations we could to survive the night. Two stints one for 6 months and another for 7. On 7 February Company D, 1st Battalion, 26th Marines found a PAVN/VC base area near the Nam O bridge northwest of the Red Beach Base Area, leaving the base untouched, they returned at night setting up a series of ambushes that killed 18 PAVN and captured 2. It was thrown out of the aircraft and floated to the ground on a parachute, burning for as long as three minutes with an intensity of two million candlepower and making daylight over a square mile or so. ARVN casualties were 10 killed and 100 wounded and one US Army photographer was killed. He was 55. He was told his unit would capture many C-rations. Food was always a dominant concern for the habitually starved Viet Cong. Others were there, others were wounded, but Levitow being the furthest removed from the flare, recognized the danger, took action when seconds counted, and saved the lives of the entire crew, Carpenter wrote. Unfortunately, the reporting was delayed and did not reach Long Binh until the morning of 22 February 1969, the day the defector warned the attacks were set to begin. Stacks of 155mm artillery shells are loaded onto a truck by a crane, in groups of 16 at a time, on wooden skids holding 8 apiece.The soldiers are stripped to the waist. For months I observed various combat actions outside the perimeter and every now and then even sought cover beneath a nearby steel desk as a stray mortar or artillery round came flying in our direction, which, whenever it occurred, was astonishing enough. I heard that five American soldiers were killed and some 30 wounded. On 29 October the Viet Cong attacked the South Vietnamese district capital of Loc Ninh, ran up the flag of the National Liberation Front, and tried to hold the city. Long Binh Post was situated East of Bien Hoa and approximately 20 miles northeast of Saigon (now Ho Chi Minh City.) Surely neither the Viet Cong nor North Vietnamese Army would attempt such a suicidal mission. Thoughts now turned to what we should do if we came face to face with the enemy. I think it was a very discriminatory flight.. On searching the site at dawn it was found that 2 PAVN 81mm mortar teams had been destroyed in the barrage. By mid-1967, United States Army, Vietnam (USARV), 1st Logistical Command and many other Army units dispersed in Saigon were moved to Long Binh Post to resolve centralization, security, and troop billeting issues. The award-winning exhibit, designed by curator William I. Chivalette, includes a lifelike mannequin of Levitow, paintings, photographs, uniform items, and artifacts. As darkness approached some comfort was provided by the constant sweeps outside the perimeter made at treetop level by the guys in their little OH-6 Loach light observation helicopters. Some speculate that the attacks were mounted to test the will of the new U.S. President Richard Nixon who retaliated by secretly bombing PAVN/VC sanctuaries in Cambodia the following month. Things quieted down for a while. ARVN psychological operations units broadcast repeated loud-speaker appeals and warnings, and all of the remaining villagers and several wounded PAVN/VC evacuated out of Thai Riep. Contents. Carpenter rolled the gunship wings level and began his run on the mortar positions. With usual soldier directness the driver divulged the ominous news: Sir, were gonna get hit tonight, so youre gonna need your helmet, flak jacket and rifle., A Viet Cong deserter had warned South Vietnamese officials on Feb.19 that an attack would occur on Feb. 22, but Long Binh didnt get the word until the day of the planned assault. Partway through the mission he had come forward and was talking to the flight crew when the action unfolded that night. So they were given guns and were told to attack Long Binh Post (population 30,000 armed U.S. soldiers). Thought to be in retaliation for Chuyen's disappearance. Levitow declined to board the helicopter until he was finally ordered to do so by Carpenter. 128 KB. Jerry Breast/U.S. Militarily, it was a failure for the North Vietnamese, but it undercut the confidence of the American public and it was a turning point in the war. The last pocket along the An Tan ridgeline proved more difficult and Company L, 3/7 Marines suffered numerous casualties forcing it to withdraw. We're weird, he said. View of surrounding areas. Thus, Spooky 71 was leaking two highly inflammable substances. [4]:100, After dawn on 23 February a VC unit was detected near the Ha Vang District and the Marine security force killed 6 and captured 2 and forced the rest of the unit to retreat into a cemetery where they were attacked by the ARVN 21st Ranger Battalion the next day losing a further 57 killed. The post and the 720th MP Battalion were informed of the planned attack late in the afternoon of the 22nd. The attacks by Vietcong (VC) and People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) forces were one of several major attacks around Saigon in the first days of the Tet Offensive. Levitow was struggling toward the flare despite the violent maneuvering of the aircraft. . They could'nt tell how big the post was, for the post's perimeter lighting had not yet been installed. He delivered the keynote address. Tet offensive attack on Long Binh and Bien Hoa, 31 January 1968: Date: 31 January-2 February 1968: Location: Bien Hoa, Bien Hoa Air Base and Long Binh Post, South Vietnam. Spooky 71 had gone as far as it was going. [1], The VC made several attempts to advance on the base, but were halted. Hide. It weighed 27 pounds. By 15:00 the 36th Ranger Battalion moved into the village attacking the PAVN/VC force. The idea seemed absurd! Contribute to chinapedia/wikipedia.en development by creating an account on GitHub. FAQs - How to Order | He spent almost two months recuperating in Japan before returning to Vietnam in April. For the first time the U.S. territory of Tinian, a small island around 100 miles north of the American military hub of Guam, hosted F-22 Raptors. At 02:00 on 23 February, the 274th VC Regiment initiated their attack with an estimated 78 rounds of rocket and mortar fire from their positions. The Spooky 71 crew could see mortar tube flashes about one mile south of the area of the earlier attack. With the progression of the battle came a feeling of incredulity. 23 February, Attack on Long Binh Post The rumors of an impending attack became fact when at 0200 hours [2:00 AM] the first enemy rockets soared across the eastern end of the TAOR and landed on Long Binh Post.