Destroying Enemy Tanks
at Ben Da Bridge
Narrated by Thai Cong Luu
Written by Nguyen Ngoc Minh
When the 3rd Infantry Division abandoned Quang Tri at the end of April 1972, our unit was ordered to move from the mountainous area in the West (from Ong Do Cave and Truong Phuoc Cave) [check if the latter is a cave?] and to head to National Highway One, specifically the stretch of the Highway between the T-junction of Hai Lang and the Ben Da Bridge.
On this stretch of the highway we witnessed a tide of civilians who, knowing that the Infantry had retreated leaving them defenceless against the communist, were fleeing along the National Highway. The civilians were panicked and fearful of being left to the communists. They had fled with only the belongings which they could carry; their children clung to their backs and necks and those that could walk were being dragged along by the desperate adults. The fleeing civilians were made up mainly of women, children and the elderly. They limped and ran, and jostled one another and clung to any vehicle that was heading southwards. And the whole time the NVA were shelling this sea of refugees. Their artillery was ruthlessly accurate, and most of the shells fell right on the human tide fleeing along the highway. Whenever a round exploded, the blast would send blood, flesh, skin and bones flying in all directions, terrifying those civilians who had not been blown apart. The screams and moans of the dying and the soon to die filled the air. Cars, motorbikes, trucks, buses, carts all up in flames littered the sides of this section of the highway.
The sea of refugees along the highway was a chaotic terrified mass. They were frightened and did not know what to do; they could stay behind and face the wrath of the communists or they could attempt to flee southwards and face the NVA's shelling. It was no real choice and the civilians chose to face being blown apart by shells along the length of the highway, in the hope of reaching a safer destination further south. The NVA were determined to pursue their flight by pounding them with artillery shelling, with devastating results. The enemy had sent their forward artillery scouts to follow hot on the heals of the civilians so that they could give accurate directions for the shelling. The forward scouts adjusted the coordinates time and again according to where the civilians were, and the result was a massacre of innocents thanks to their accurate artillery. We managed to limit the carnage somewhat when we detected and detained some of the scouts. We then tended to the wounded refugees, bandaging their wounds, and sharing our rations with them. The frightened and in many cases starving civilians were grateful for the water, rice and canned meat. There were many elderly persons, mothers who were still breast-feeding and their infant children among the sea of refugees. They sat wide-eyed and shell-shocked looking at the highway, not quite comprehending how they managed to avoid the road that lead to death.
Trucks came and we mounted them, bound for Quang Tri. After only a short distance the convoy stopped. The 1st and 3rd Companies were ordered to alight and return to Ben Da Bridge to reinforce the 5th Battalion which was already stationed there. We then received the bad news. While we had been waiting for the convoy to proceed to Quang Tri, Group A of our Battalion (the 7th Battalion) had been the subject of intense NVA shelling. Our Commander (Major Vo Tri Hue), the chief of S3 (Captain Dinh Long Thanh), and a number of other Headquarters staff had been wounded. The Battalion Executive Officer, Captain Nguyen Van Kim, was leading Group A (comprising of the 2nd, 4th and Headquarters Companies) to Quang Tri. Captain Ton That Tran was the temporary commander of Group B, comprising of the 1st and 3rd Companies.
On the morning of 2 May 1972, Group B received orders to depart from Ben Da Bridge and to move to Quang Tri to join Group A. The 3rd Company advanced on the left of the National Highway One, and the 1st Company on the right side of the highway. The NVA troops positioned on the sand dunes to the West fired on us with machine guns. We passed by the burnt out vehicles lying on the side of the highway since the day before. After another 200m, the topography of the area changed and was completely bare. We had to move close to the occasion low lying bushes and stick close to the banks of sand on either side of the Highway to avoid being shot. We spread out thinly, still trying to advance along the open sand dunes. Seeing the potential for heavy loss of life for no good reason, Captain Ton That Tran requested that Group B be permitted to return to Ben Da Bridge. At 4.00pm Group B returned safely to Ben Da Bridge. NVA Artillery had prevented us from joining Group A in Quang Tri.
The 9th Battalion was then ordered to replace the 5th Battalion at Ben Da Bridge. Group B of the 7th Battalion was in charge of the area from the bridge extending all the way out to the mountains in the West. Platoon 3 positioned at the Northern end of the bridge served as the outpost for the Company. At about 5.00pm, a group of marine engineers came and dug some holes along the road's surface before laying some anti-tank mines. But barely an hour later they were back and dismantling all the mines. Surprised, I asked 2nd Lieutenant Lai what was going on. He stated that a friendly column of tanks would be withdrawing along National Highway One that night.
That night we ate some dried rice; we did not dare to cook as the open flames would reveal our position to the enemy. In terms of personnel, Platoon 3 had only 24 men left. I paced the defensive line to fix the sentry posts for the that night. There would be two marines at each post, and the sentry period would be for 2 hours duration. After the first sentinel had concluded his guard he was to awaken his replacement. Those of us who slept that night, slept fitfully. We could hear the echoing sounds of the shelling and bombardment in Quang Tri. I managed to steal some rest before awaking to the sounds of tank motars in the northerly direction.
At the beginning of 1972 the 7th Marine was stationed from Gio Linh to Con Tien and occupied the firebases A1, A2... C1, C2 and so on. Prior to the lunar new year it had moved to Non Nuoc Base, Dien Ban, to act as the reserve for I Corps. There the Battalion had rested and manpower resupplied. Platoon 3 numbered 40 persons. Happy days fly by and on the afternoon of the 4th day of the New Year the battalion received orders to be transported that evening to Dong Ha. From there we walked to Cua, Mai Loc, to reinforce Brigade 147. There were signs that the NVA had been concentrating in this area.
As predicted, at the end of March 1972 the NVA launched a massive attack across the DMZ on the positions held by the 3rd Infantry Division and Regional Forces. They launched a simultaneous assault on the Marine units. On 29 April the 3rd Infantry Division retreated from the Old Citadel and left Quang Tri. The NVA were now able to concentrate their assault on the Marines. As the battles intensified in ferocity the civilians fled their homes and trailed after the retreating 3rd Infantry Division, where they were hailed upon by showers of the NVA Artillery.
That night I was awakened by the sounds of motors originating from the direction of the T junction in Hai Lang. The young soldier who had been keeping watch turned and asked me "Older brother Luu, are you awake? I can hear the sound of tank engines. Are they ours?" I replied "I don't know. Let me ask 2nd Lieutenant Lai."
The luminous dial on my wristwatch indicated that it was nearly 4am. I was going to walk to the Platoon headquarters to inform the Lieutenant. I could make out flashlights in the direction of the headquarters; like most of the soldiers, he was already awake. I lit a Capstan cigarette and inhaled deeply. My chest groaned and ached. For two whole days we had been engaged in battle with the enemy. We had inhaled nothing but fumes and smoke from the guns and our lungs were still full of carbon dioxide. The most delicious first cigarette of the day was now tasteless in my mouth and I stubbed it out. I walked to each of the sentry posts reminding the soldiers to remain alert, that the NVA usually attacked early in the morning when everyone's senses were overcome by fatigue and slumber.
"Be careful Mai". I warned Nguyen Hong Mai, Private I at one of the sentry posts.
"Elder brother Luu, are they enemy tanks?" he asked.
"At this stage it's still possible that they are ours". I replied.
At 4.30am the noises of the tanks were clearly discernible. Feeling doubtful, I ran to make contact with 2nd Lieutenant Lai. He told me that he had reported to Company Headquarters and had been advised to be cautious as it was possible that it was friendly tanks retreating.
Platoon 3 spread out from the Northern edge of Ben Da Bridge. From the Western end of the bridge it fanned out in an arc toward the railway bridge. We made use of the foxholes and bunkers left behind by the regional forces which had withdrawn some days before. About 100m north-east of the Ben Da Bridge was the outmost squad of the 9th Battalion. At 5am this squad returned to confirm that they too had heard the tank engines coming from the northerly direction. We prepared for an encounter in the event that they were not friendly tanks.
Platoon 3 was arranged as follows. Corporal Son's machine gun squad was stationed on the eastern end of the bridge. The machine guns were mounted on sand bags. Another squad (positioned with the platoon leading group) was stationed at the western side of the bridge. A third squad was spread out from that point out toward the railway bridge. Corporal Duc's squad was the last and they expanded along the iron bridge armed with M72 LAW. The entire platoon was under the command of Second Lieutenant Lai. The remaining M72s belonging to the platoon were gathered up by a group of five marines under my command. This group consisted of myself, three squad leaders and a deputy squad leader, and was positioned in a row in front of the bunker were the Platoon leaders were, some 10m from National Highway One. From our upright positions, we were to shoot at the approaching tanks to prevent them from reaching the bridge. The tanks that managed to evade our 66mm rockets and continue their advance would be dealt with by the squad positioned on the bridge.
From dawn we were completely deployed. The noise of the tanks' engines growled louder and louder as the column approached. I took a deep breath to calm the nerves and still my fluttering heart. "Not just one tank", I thought to myself. "A whole column of tanks". I knew the others in our group of five shared the anxiety. In an attempt to calm them and myself, I called out to them.
"Marines, get ready!"
"Elder brother Luu, when do we shoot?"
"When I give the order".
I replied. At our feet were three to four M72s ready to be fired. I gripped my M72 and looked straight ahead unblinkingly. At the top of a slope some 300m from where we stood a small flag atop an antenna slowly appeared. The sun was rising just at that moment and its brilliant red rays prevented me from squinting through the fog to identify the colours on the flag. The flag was raised higher and higher as the rest of the tank mounted the slope. The big barrel of a gun, a turret, and finally the entire tank emerged. It was now headed down the slope at full speed, its flag jauntily sporting the colours blue and red. The turret was round, similar to the NVA helmet. It was a T54 which was rushing towards us.
At the sight of the T54 we were reminded of the 6th Battalion's successful capture and destruction of enemy tanks at Pedro Base the previous month, and our spirits were momentarily buoyed.
The enemy tanks continued to advance on our position. They were 250m away, then 100m away. Behind the leading T54 was a PT76 some 150m away. Then a second PT76... And then a third. My eyes narrowed and I turned towards the T54. There were so many contradictory thoughts flying through my head in that one instant. Before I saw the tanks I was both anxious and a sense of anticipation. Anxiety because this was the first time that we had faced such an encounter, and there was the associated fear of whether we would be able to aim accurately and destroy them. And the sense of anticipation was because we had heard so much about how to fight and destroy tanks, and now finally, we were going to be given the opportunity to put theory into practice. It was a rare opportunity for a soldier - the chance to have a shot at enemy tanks presented itself infrequently to say the least.
The tanks were approaching the decisive zone. The entire platoon and I waited breathlessly, urging the tanks to approach faster so that we could squeeze the trigger on the M72s and release the tension. At the moment, there was no room for fear. Our one thought was how to destroy the T54 with the first round of rockets, to make it easier for us to pick off the PT76s.
When the T54 was 100m away its machine gun started firing. The tank was leaving a well lit area and entering the darkened side of the slope, and it is possible that the gunner was having difficulty adjusting and seeing clearly. The machine gun fire was clearly meant to intimidate as the bullets whistled by harmlessly on either side of the bridge. The gunner then stopped firing, but the T54 continued to speed along incautiously as if entering a deserted area! The M72 felt hot in my hand. I counted: 80m… 70m… 60m… 50m… 40m… Private 1st class Thanh grabbed his M60 machine gun and aimed for the gunner on the tank, squeezing the trigger. Before he could finish his round he had to leap aside as the T54 tried to crush him. 30m… then 20m… "Fire!" I shouted. Boom! Boom! Boom! The turret of the tank was hit by all the M72s which everyone in our group of five simultaneously fired. Blue and red flames raged and engulfed the top of the tank. There were shouts from our group. "It's burning!" "Burning!"
The burning T54 was slowing but not stopping. While the NVA crew inside might have been wounded, it seemed as if the tank was moving along on its own momentum. The enormous iron monster lumbered past us only about 6 or 7m away, and I could feel the ground shuddering and shaking. The wounded creature was heading towards the middle part of the bridge. I turned and sent another M72 rocket into its steel tracks. Another burst of flames and the shards of the steel tracks rained down on the bridge. At the same time, the squad positioned on the bridge itself had sent down some M72s and this time the entire tank was roaring with flames. It had already exploded before it reached the southern end of the bridge, and lay on its side dead.
The first of the PT76s was hit by some of our M72s and became engulfed in flames. The crewman and infantrymen leapt out of the belly, a number rolling down towards the river below. A number ran to the southern end of the bridge where they were apprehended by marines from the 9th Battalion. When the burning PT76 reached the middle of the bridge, the squad on the bridge fired some more M72 rockets and finished the job. The momentum of the tank pushed it onwards until it bumped against the T54 where both tanks were barely visible from the ball of flames.
Above the noise, I could hear Corporal Son yelling "You're going down!!". Seconds later the sound of M72 rockets hitting the second PT76. The shots had been fired by marines further out, and on bursting into flames the tank had careered into the defensive fence of our platoon. The remaining PT76 panicked , backed around and bolted eastwards along the north bank of the O Lau River to escape.
We were taken aback by the relative ease with which we had secured victory. We had had doubts about whether we had a chance against the NVA tanks. A recount of personnel revealed that 2nd Lieutenant Lai had been wounded by machine gun fire and he was evacuated to Company Headquarters. That day Captain Ton That Tran ordered a resupply of M72s for Platoon 3. I heard his voice over the radio PRC-25. "Platoon 3 has destroyed enemy tanks in a memorable win. Luu, take care of the platoon pending the return to duty of 2nd Lieutenant Lai". "Loud and clear Sir." I replied. Hearing his voice reminded me of when he had offered me words of comfort when I was wounded in Ha Lao - and how much that had helped my morale.
At 10 o'clock that same day, Colonel Pham Van Chung, Brigade Commander of Brigade 369 visited the battlefield. At 13.00 the command group B of the 7th Battalion received orders to move to My Chanh, on the south bank of the O Khe River, to be under the commande of Brigade 369.
At the end of August 1972 the 7th Battalion was moved to Cho Sai, Trieu Phong to block the NVA logistics line (by river) to the Old Citadel and the city of Quang Tri. At the beginning of September I was wounded here, and this second injury sustained in action forced me to leave my unit for ever. To become a disabled war veteran.
Narrated by Thai Cong Luu
Written by Nguyen Ngoc Minh
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