Company 4, 2nd Battalion
in Duc Co Battle, 9-8-1965
2nd Lieutenant Ly Van Dam
In August 1965, Marine Task Force A, composing of two Battalions and one Marine Artillery Battery, was performing operations in MRII, when it received an order to reinforce the Duc Co special force camp which had been encircled by a NVA Division.
Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Thanh Yen was the Commander of Task Force A. The orders of movements were as follows: Battalion 2, Task Force headquarters and Artillery Battery, then Battalion 5. This was a combined operation with Tank Regiment 16 of Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Trong Luat.
Tank Regiment 16 had M113 APC's and M41 Tanks, and was accompanied by Ranger Battalion 21. Truthfully, this was the most disordered operation at the time, because the Armour unit did not apply the principle of operation of the JGS. It dictated that Infantry would command Armour in a combined operation. However, in this operation, Commanders of both Services branches were Lieutenant Colonel, i.e. at same level of rank, and each performed independently and to his own accord.
At 8:00 am on 9-8-1965, a GMC convoy of II corps arrived and picked up the Marine Task Force.
At battlefield, it was a warm sunny-day, without cloud in the sky. At T-junction Le Thanh, Task Force A alighted. In our rucksacks there were two portions of ammunition and seven days of dried cooked rice. Marines walked under the highland sun and in the red-dusted winds.
Company 4, of Battalion 2 received orders to open the road.
Officers of the company were:
- 1st Lieutenant Nguyen Xuan Phuc: Commander
- 1st Lieutenant Tran Van Hop: Executive Officer. He was also the Platoon Leader of Platoon 41
- 2nd Lieutenant Ly Van Dam, Platoon 42
- 2nd Lieutenant Khoi, Platoon 43
- 2nd Lieutenant Lan, Platoon 44
- Sergent Major Le Van Lo, Heavy Weapon Platoon.
The orders of movements were as follows:
Platoon 41, 42, 43, the Company Headquarters, heavy weapon Platoon and Platoon 44 were protecting the rear.
At noon, we arrived at Le Trung agricultural area. We stopped for lunch. There were dilapidated straw houses with mud walls. After my Platoon had deployed in a defensive line, I walked around and saw a number of foxholes and trenches which had been dug. Residents told me that they were dug by the RF who had just withdrawn and had no time to fill them with dirt. Being too tired after having walked a number of kilometres and too gullible, we believed the locals' words and were succinctly reported to the executive officer of the company, 1st Lieutenant Tran Van Hop. This was a big mistake which was too easily overlooked, because it made no sense that the RF could dig foxholes and trenches while the VC had encircled Duc Co.
After an hour, we had received orders to move. At 2:00 pm, Tank Regiment 16 and Ranger Battalion 21 over took us.
At 3:00pm, the Tank Regiment and the accompanying Ranger Battalion 21 fell into an ambush of a VC regiment. After a first barrage of bullets, VC charged and fought close combat with the rangers.
Supporting fire of the tanks was not able to be used for fear of hitting the rangers.
Company 4 of Marine Battalion 2 was ordered to open the road and attack the enemy ambush unit from the back.
One hour earlier, when the Rangers had been overtaking us, they waved their hands at us. They never thought that in just the few kilometres in front of them, the NVA had been waiting for their arrival, ready to pull their triggers. A friend of mine in Tran Hung Dao high school and of the same Class 19 of Dalat military Academy with Tran Van Hop, 2nd Lieutenant Tac was engaged in the close combat battle. At 5:00pm, a number of the NVA, in regular troops khaki uniforms (made in Nam Dinh) appeared and were supporting a charging unit of theirs. Sounds of AKs, machine guns, anti aircraft artillery guns and grenades mixed in with their shouts of "charge." They never knew that we had been 30m from their flank. We fired at them. Sounds of our Garand M1s, Carbine M2s and M79s exploded loudly. Being suddenly attacked, they ran in disorder.
- 40! This is 41 (40 was the radio code name of 2nd Lieutenant Phuc; 41 was the radio code name of Hop)
- 40 is online.
- I ask your permission to let 41, 42 pursue the enemy
- No, be careful. The 5th Battalion was encircled and cut in pieces.
Suddenly an USAF jet fighter F105 which had been supporting this operation with air strikes was hit by an NVA AAA. It burst into flames. The pilot jumped out with a red parachute. The aircraft fell to ground.
We tried by all means to rescue that pilot but to no avail, because of the intense NVA fires, and because the valley between the two hills was so bare without any shelter. We could not pass this open space. All the NVA fire power was concentrated on us so that a number of them could run towards the pilot and captured him.
Nightfall arrived and covered the battlefield. We were ordered to position overnight. It was the 14th day of the 7th month of Lunar Year. The moon was full and bright. We were ordered to deploy and protect tank regiment 16. That tank Regiment requested us to position like an outpost for them, rather than an alternate mutual assistant. How could such a request be fulfilled? Company 4 deployed right on the place where we had been stopping. We dug foxholes for temporary protection overnight.
At 1:00am 10-8-65, the enemy started shelling again and then charged towards our position. Artillery guns, machine guns and AK rifles sound and the VC shouts of "charge" reverberated. Some artillery rounds fell on a petrol tanker which burst into flames and became opportune for the NVA to adjust their artillery. Tanks opened fire to stop the NVA charges.
Company 4 delayed the NVA and ARVN tanks. Marines tried to defend; impeding the NVA intrusion into the battlefield, however it ended in a tumultuous ordeal. The 1st Lieutenant Hop and I tried to find a place to stand and direct marines in battle. Suddenly I was thrown backward to the ground. I tried to stand up, but I fell down again. Only then I knew that I had been wounded. A bullet had transfixed the upper part of my right thigh. My femur was broken. Had the bullet hit a centimetre higher, my bladder would have been burst; a centimetre further to the left, I would have become a eunuch; a centimetre further to the right, my femoral artery would have been pierced through and I would have been killed.
I looked at my watch. It was 5:00am 10-8-1965. The enemy shelling had reduced in rhythm and then ceased. The doctor and medics of the 2nd Marine Battalion bandaged my wound and gave me injections. At that moment, I realised that the bullet had pierced right through my buttock, and created a hole on it. 1st Lieutenant Phuc, 1st Lieutenant Hop, Sergeant Major Tho and Private 1st Class Duc arrived to visit me. I was so thirsty.
The 1st Lieutenant Hop told me that 2nd Lieutenant Khoi, 3rd Lieutenant Sinh and 29 others were killed, and 27 wounded.
At 8.00 am helicopters arrived to medevac. I was the first person to be transported to Pleiku Military Hospital.
That night, I was in a coma. My systolic blood pressure had come down to 50mmHg.
When I recovered my consciousness, the first thing I did, was to touch and discover whether my right lower limb had been saved or had been lost. Luckily, it had been still there and was tied onto an iron gutter. There were pains. Looking up from my pillow, I saw a silver star and a wounded medal which had been fixed there.
Nurses in the ward told me that I had been in a coma for a week. They had to pour milk in my mouth daily to keep me alive. After having successfully raised the siege of Duc Co, 1st lieutenants Phuc and Hop visited me at Pleiku Military Hospital. They told us that after the battle, the NVA had left 400 soldiers killed on the battlefield. The ARVN corps of engineers had to use bulldozers to bury all of them.
Before leaving, 1st Lieutenant Phuc said to me one sentence which I still remember to this day:
"From now on, you will not be able to go onto operations with us anymore. Try to recover and then do light duties." and then 1st lieutenant Hop smiled and asked me: "Do you want me to tell your girlfriend anything?" I shook my head, knowing that from this one minute, I would lose her. And I really did.
Captain Ly Van Dam
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