Preserving The Oral HistorIES of Combat Veterans

COMBAT STORIES FROM Vietnam

A Kim | 5th Marine Regiment

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Showing : Vietnam Videos

Terry Sater - Navy +9 Total Videos

River Assault Squadron 13

After completing Mobile Riverine Force Training in California, Terry Sater is sent to Vietnam and assigned to the River Assault Squadron 13, River Division 131. As a 20mm gun operator, Terry describes being ambushed while serving aboard an armored Troop Carrier in the Mekong Delta.
Bruce D'Agostino - Air Force +7 Total Videos

1876th Communications Squadron

Mentioning that he served in Vietnam would clear the area around him in a bar, remembers Bruce D'Agostino. The World War II vets weren't much better, and told him that Vietnam wasn't a real war. Korean War vets were more understanding, but no one, not even his father, wanted to talk about Vietnam.
Gery Benedetti - Navy +1 Video

Navy Seabees

Gery Benedetti shares the story behind a cross which has served as a lucky charm for him and his family members. Provided by Bob Stevens, the Veterans' Forum.
John Walker - Army +4 Total Videos

170th Assault Helicopter Company, 1st Aviation Brigade

John E. Walker enlisted during the Vietnam era and got the specialty he wanted, aviation mechanic. The dreary weather on the day he departed should have been a clue. His first test in the war zone, monsoons. Next, the task of cleaning the aircraft after medical evacuations.
Mark Kramer - Marines +7 Total Videos

C Company, 1st Battalion, 26th Marines

Kramer recalls his mentor at Khe Sanh, and his first experience with racism - in the shadow of Martin Luther King Jr's assassination.
MG Wallace Arnold - Army +7 Total Videos

Headquarters, XXIV Corps

As a child, Wallace Arnold would watch Wold War II military convoys rumble by and he was eager to be a part of it. Commissioned out of ROTC, his air defense specialty was unneeded in Vietnam so he became a Psychological Operations officer in the newly organized XXIV Corps.
Armand Chapeau - Coast Guard +7 Total Videos

USCGC Point Ellis (WPB-82330)

If it had not been for a police line, wounded veteran Armand Chapeau would have been showered with blood and worse by protestors when he disembarked in California. Undeterred by them or his injury, he returned to active duty.
Bill Crossley - Army +15 Total Videos

6th Artillery Battalion, 27th Field Artillery Regiment

Bill Crossley was more mature than most soldiers arriving in Vietnam, having already been an artillery officer for seven years. In charge of three batteries, he interacted with many other troops and never saw any evidence of the widespread notion that they were lacking in some way. The popular image of the indifferent Vietnam soldier is a total myth, he says.
Tracy Sheils - Marines +5 Total Videos

1st Marine Regiment

Tracy Sheils joined the Marine Corps because he thought it was the right thing to do. He had friends going off to Vietnam and he could think of no reason he shouldn't too.
MG Wallace Arnold - Army +7 Total Videos

Headquarters, XXIV Corps

Wallace Arnold credits Gen. Melvin Zais with teaching him the single best leadership lesson he ever learned. Back home from Vietnam, Arnold experienced none of the negative experiences that many had, but he does feel powerful emotions when he observes other veterans at The Wall.
Paul Van Riper - Marines +9 Total Videos

M Company, 3rd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division

Marine Paul Van Riper explains some of the problems associated with the M-16 rifle and how they were addressed in Vietnam. His issued weapon was a .45 pistol, but he always carried an M-16 and advocated for all officers to do so. His advocacy of daily ice cream in the mess hall got him into a bit of trouble with his battalion commander.
Michael Richey - Army +6 Total Videos

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

While clearing post for a man in Japan, Richey entered the medical ward to give the man his records. He describes what he saw next as the worst thing he'd ever seen.
Clebe McClary - Marines +10 Total Videos

1st Reconnaissance Battalion

Lt. Clebe McClary told his dad that running Recon patrols was a lot like hunting back home. It could be deadly, though, especially if you were the point man. He describes two of his men, one of whom he's still close to and one who was destined to save his life.
Terry Sater - Navy +9 Total Videos

River Assault Squadron 13

The Mobile Riverine Force faced many challenges along the Mekong Delta. Every beach could be the start of an ambush, there could be mines lurking around every turn, and the sampans that kept the local economy moving could also help the Viet Cong traffic supplies across the region. Terry Sater describes a few of these instances during his time aboard the Tango boats and the things he witnessed between 1968 and 1969.
Bill Pearson - Army +11 Total Videos

3rd Squadron, 17th Cavalry Regiment

He had been an infantry officer during his first tour, but now Bill Pearson was back as a Cobra gunship pilot. He literally climbed into a Cobra the moment he arrived and was immediately in a huge firefight. Thankfully, this pace did not continue.
Frank Cox - Marines +23 Total Videos

Echo Battery, 2nd Battalion, 12th Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division

In the officer's basic school at Quantico, every Marine officer is trained to command a rifle platoon, so that, no matter the officer's specialty, there is an ability to fight and win in combat. Frank Cox tells the story of his friend, Barney Barnum, who upon arriving in Vietnam, was immediately thrust into leadership and received the Medal of Honor for his response.
Joe Estores - Army +8 Total Videos

162nd Assault Helicopter Company

Joe Estores recalls his time in Vietnam as a helicopter pilot. From dealing with insurgents to evacuating the wounded, he had many harrowing experiences.
Al Copeland - Army +5 Total Videos

A Company, 3rd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, 199th Light Infantry Brigade

His nickname was "Moose." He was big, and because he was the new guy, he had to carry a lot of extra gear. Al Copeland talks about the constant routine of night ambushes they would set up to catch the Viet Cong. On one of these, they took fire from a village and the result was not good for the villagers.
Bill Cunningham - Marines +24 Total Videos

Multiple Units

Bill Cunningham caught the flying bug in the National Guard, applied for flight training and was accepted. In Pensacola, he found excitement right away when he and his instructor heard a loud banging in the engine during a training flight.
Al Muller - Air Force +9 Total Videos

23rd Tactical Air Support Squadron

Al Muller recalls how his survival training for the steamy Asian jungle was conducted at the top of a mountain in sub-freezing temperatures. At least the pine bough bed was comfortable.
Phil Ovelman - Marines +6 Total Videos

Combined Action Program, Group 2, 1st Unit, 5th Platoon

Phil Ovelman, a descendant of 5 generations of war veterans, joined the Marines in 1969. While training at Parris Island, he learned a valuable lesson about the merits of persistence.
Bob Keller - Army +6 Total Videos

5th Special Forces Group

Bob Keller gets caught in the crossfire between his unit and the enemy.
Owen Ditchfield - Army +13 Total Videos

Multiple Units

After his first Vietnam tour, Owen Ditchfield got command of a company at Fort Benning that played the aggressor in Ranger training exercises. His men were short timers, waiting for discharge, but he rallied them to do well by telling them why their job was so important. Then he was assigned a new executive officer, Buddy Allgood, who had a surprising physical characteristic.
Thomas Owens - Army +6 Total Videos

Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 61st Infantry Regiment, 5th Infantry Division

He was aware of the antiwar movement, but just ignored it. When Thomas Owens returned from Vietnam, all he wanted was a hamburger. He's on speed dial with his fellow vets and he advocates for what he considers right, much to the consternation of his local politicians.
Ken Adams - Navy +6 Total Videos

Capt., U.S. Navy Pilot, VT-23

Ken Adams has to eject from his plane during a stateside training exercise.
Bill Smith - Air Force +3 Total Videos

23rd Tactical Air Support Squadron

Bill Smith always wanted to fly. In fact, when he reported to Air Force pilot training, he already had a private pilot's license. As a Forward Air Controller flying out of Thailand, he patrolled the Ho Chi Minh Trail in Laos, looking for traffic to disrupt. He flew the OV-10, a turboprop which was one of his favorite aircraft.
Al Matheson - Air Force +6 Total Videos

4753rd Reconnaissance Wing

Already a capable engineer and a pilot, Al Matheson moved into classified work when he joined the Air Force and was soon flying huge circles in planes full of electronics. This sophisticated operation led to a grand scheme known in the Kennedy administration as the McNamara Wall.
Ed Callison - Army +8 Total Videos

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

Ed Callison remembers landing in Vietnam and making friends and allies with some of the locals that lived there. For Callison, arriving in III Corps was a big change, and he didn't waste anytime getting up to speed with the men who had been there a while.
Barry Purnell - Army +5 Total Videos

121st Aviation Company, 13th Combat Aviation Battalion, 164th Aviation Group, 1st Aviation Brigade

The base was an old Japanese airfield in South Vietnam's southern delta. It was more comfortable than the field and Barry Purnell even bartered for an air conditioner for his room. The helicopter pilot was first assigned to ferry troops, but then he was bumped up to the Armed Platoon, which flew gunships to protect the insertions.
Charles White, Jr. - Air Force +10 Total Videos

1st Special Operations Squadron

Pilot Charles White, Jr. tells how he got the call sign "Snip," and how he was able to find and support imperiled ground troops, even when his flight leader could not. He enjoyed escorting helicopters but one of those flights gave him big trouble when he rolled in to the target and an aileron on his A-1 Skyraider malfunctioned.