Preserving The Oral HistorIES of Combat Veterans

COMBAT STORIES FROM Vietnam

A Kim | 5th Marine Regiment

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Showing : Vietnam Videos

Rody Conway - Army +14 Total Videos

Military Assistance Command Vietnam

Captain Rody Conway had the best asset any advisor to a South Vietnamese unit could have, an experienced and knowledgeable sergeant, Harold Cook. At first it was relatively quiet and the most action was in keeping the road open.
Jim McCurry - Navy +8 Total Videos

U.S. Navy, USS Newport

Mr. McCurry discusses coming into contact with three torpedo boats in Haiphong Harbor and describes the tactics his ship used to destroy them.
LTG Larry Jordan - Army +11 Total Videos

Multiple Units

What lessons from Vietnam do you have to pass on to future generations? Larry Jordan answers this in the context of today's conflicts. Then he reflects on the experience of visiting the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
Michael Richey - Army +6 Total Videos

3rd Battalion, 47th Infantry, 9th Infantry Division

While Richey's company was in reserve, another infantry unit got ambushed. Richey's unit came out to try to take the heat off of them, but they soon found themselves in trouble as well. Thomas Gordon and Chuck Cataldo were hit, and Richey suffered an injury as well.
Ed Callison - Army +8 Total Videos

493rd M.I. Detachment, 3rd Brigade, 9th Infantry Division

It was dangerous enough to patrol South Vietnam, between the ambushes and the risk of malaria, but that was compounded with the chance of being hit by one of your own. Ed Callison recalls one instance of friendly fire that could have ended his life.
Myron Harrington - Marines +7 Total Videos

D Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, 1st Marine Division

Myron Harrington recalls day-to-day living experiences while at war in Vietnam. Some of which include involvement with mail from back home, food rations, and radio communication.
Galen Foster - Army +11 Total Videos

196th Light Infantry Brigade

They found a lot of tunnels, says Galen Foster, who was glad it wasn't his job to go down in them. He felt sorry for the Vietnamese people, who were caught between the Americans and the Viet Cong. The search and destroy missions were continuous and when one of them went bad, a relief force hurried to help their brothers. They were in too much of a hurry, as it turned out.
Ernest Banasau - Army +17 Total Videos

A Company, 4th Infantry Division

Ernest Banasau returns to Vietnam only to face an obstacle course of paperwork and bureaucracy. Making the best of things, he takes time to reconnect with his Air Force brat roots.
Jim McCurry - Navy +8 Total Videos

U.S. Navy, USS Newport

Mr. McCurry describes what it feels like to be shot at on a daily basis and the toll that war takes on an individual.
Ron Rutowski - Army +9 Total Videos

2nd Battalion, 60th Infantry, 9th Division

Ron Rutowski remembers the circumstances that led to his enlistment and how quickly the transition was for them once they landed in Vietnam.
Sam Pyle - Air Force +7 Total Videos

632 Security Police Squadron

During his time in Vietnam, Sam Pyle had the occasion to laugh, like the time the tyrannical sergeant forgot to clear his gun. He also had the occasion to feel queasy when the ARVN interrogator started breaking fingers.
Tom Blake - Army +8 Total Videos

11th Infantry Brigade, 23rd Infantry Division

Tom Blake recommends two excellent books on the Vietnam War that he thinks give a good feel for what it was like there. He nearly returned to visit the former battlefield, but doesn't regret his decision to stay home. He has a healthy respect for his former enemies in that difficult war.
Thomas Gipson - Army +10 Total Videos

4th Aviation Battalion, 4th Infantry Division

Once he made aircraft commander, Huey pilot Thomas Gipson had to mentor other pilots fresh from flight training. He remembers one cocky pilot who couldn't be bothered to follow common sense rules.
Bill Camper - Army +13 Total Videos

Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV)

The artillery fire was so intense at Camp Carroll that Bill Camper could not get a fix for counter battery fire. The rounds were coming from four directions. After four days of intense North Vietnamese attacks and with his ARVN counterpart ready to surrender, Camper escaped with a few others, but they were cut off and had to fight their way back into the camp. Then came a fateful radio call.
Rody Conway - Army +14 Total Videos

Military Assistance Command Vietnam

As if the horrific battle he experienced during the Tet Offensive wasn’t enough, Rody Conway was nearly flattened by friendly fire in the form of artillery strikes. Back at his base, he relived the battle in his sleep, alarming his roommate.
Les Carter - Army +6 Total Videos

1st Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division

Working closely with local forces was the key to Les Carter’s success in stabilizing his District in Vietnam. He received a Silver Star for one action, but he wonders why that particular one.
LtGen Mac Armstrong - Air Force +6 Total Videos

8th Tactical Fighter Wing, 433rd Fighter Squadron

While managing equipment in the Air Force, there are a multitude of things that can go wrong with the various aircrafts. Learning from these mistakes was essential for them in going forward.
Barry McAlpine - Army +6 Total Videos

1st Cavalry Division

After getting accepted to go to war, McAlpine was sent to An Khe, Vietnam. It was here that he did RECON for the 1st and the 9th Cavalry Divisions before getting sent on missions of his own.
Rob Doll - Army +5 Total Videos

U.S. Army, 1st Cavalry

Rob describes civilian attacks on ROTC trainee's during the beginning of his military career.
Bob Atkinson - Marines +17 Total Videos

K Company, 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment

A SWAT team wound up at his house before Bob Atkinson finally reached out for help with his demons from the Vietnam War. He had back pain, but it was Post Traumatic Stress Disorder that was making his life fall apart. Part 2 of 3.
Bob Averill - Marines +12 Total Videos

3rd Combined Action Group

Bob Averill remembers one his fellow soldiers, Crash Crattick, who was known as the joker within the division. During one particular drill, Crash had a near-incident that brought them some punishment, but they managed to laugh it off.
John Harms - Marines +6 Total Videos

1st Armored Company, 11th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

After enlisting and going to basic at Quantico, John Harms left the States to go to Okinawa. From there, he served as a captain in Taiwan for almost 3 years. Serving there, he made great friends that lasted for many years after.
Galen Foster - Army +11 Total Videos

196th Light Infantry Brigade

Nobody liked night ambush patrol. You were out in pitch black in the enemy's own backyard. Galen Foster was on one of these patrols when they spotted a light in the distance where no light should be. They crept closer and he fired a dozen rounds from his grenade launcher at the area.
Gary Campbell - Army +5 Total Videos

196th Light Infantry Brigade, Americal Div.

Gary Campbell discusses his M79 and how he directs fire support on an enemy position, preventing an NVA (North Vietnamese Army) ambush.
Bill Patterson - Army +7 Total Videos

319th Transportation Company, 6th Transportation Battalion, 48th Transportation Group

Bill Patterson's transportation unit was housed near the perimeter of the huge base at Long Binh. When they were under attack from the Viet Cong, the truck drivers had to grab their weapons and man the bunkers.
Bill Camper - Army +13 Total Videos

Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV)

It had to be a mistake. Bill Camper was not a headquarters man but when he arrived in Vietnam for his second tour, he was assigned to Military Assistance Command (MACV) Headquarters. He managed to get a field assignment and was sent up near the DMZ to advise an ARVN regiment. Unfortunately, the Vietnamese commander was hard to get along with.
David Andrews - Army +9 Total Videos

17th Cavalry, 101st Airborne Division

David Andrews stayed at Camp Eagle most of his time in Vietnam, but about 5 months in, he did get an unexpected opportunity for some R & R in Hong Kong. He explains the odd situation he was in when he departed and upon his return.
Bill Galvan - Air Force +4 Total Videos

Air Defense Command

Bill Galvan remembers joining the service and intending to become a medic so that he could continue his medical education, but the military had a different plan for him. While deployed to Germany, he had the chance to meet a Libyan military leader named Muammar Gaddafi.
Charles White, Jr. - Air Force +10 Total Videos

1st Special Operations Squadron

A-1 Skyraider pilot Charles White, Jr. worked several search and rescue operations, and in most, the pilot was confirmed dead and he couldn't help. However, his friend LLoyd Duncan survived when he was shot down over Laos. He was dragged to safety by his Laotian crew mate and nearly lost a leg, but he made it home.
David Andrews - Army +9 Total Videos

17th Cavalry, 101st Airborne Division

David Andrews explains why he enlisted in the Army in the first place. He then explains the rigorous basic training in Fort Bliss, Texas and the arguably more challenging jump school in Fort Benning, Georgia.