Facing The Enemy Tanks
First Lieutenant Van Tan Thach
The atmosphere at the My Chanh defensive line in May was hot and humid. The enemy had initiated a large probing attack on our positions. On the afternoon of the 22nd, I remember seeing enemy tanks coming and going from the villages north of the My Chanh River. Their numbers increased as the afternoon progressed. Tactical aircrafts and the Marine Artillery were kept busy providing fire support. But as the enemy were attacking all over Quang Tri province, fire support was limited. Immediately after the sun went down, enemy T.54 tanks pushed through the defensive line of Bravo Command Group of the 3rd Marine Battalion. The 3rd Company of the 3rd Marine Battalion disintegrated. A number of Marines ran along the river bank to Pha Tam Giang. Others swam across the river hoping to join Alpha Command Group. The Group's headquarters was stationed at Co Luy Village, about 1 km from the river. A path led to the village. Here the main force of the Command & Services Company was the 81mm mortar platoon, which was led by myself. I armed each Marine in my platoon with two M72 anti-tank weapons. Personally, I carried a 202 gun with four bullets, a habit I had acquired ever since we came back from Laos. My platoon evolved in two directions - to the north and to the east. The other parts were composed of the medical platoon, the communications platoon, security, S1, S2, and the Battalion Commander's special bodyguard squad.
From 9.00pm, I was inseparable from my radio. I gave continuous co-ordinates to the Artillery and to the Reconnaissance airplanes. The noise of enemy tanks came closer and closer. I requested Lieutenant Colonel Le Ba Binh, the Battalion Commander, to allow the Marine Artillery to continue pounding along the path leading to the village. It was my guess that the enemy would use it to advance. But the enemy were smart. They would advance a little, then stop, turning off their engines. Everytime I heard the engines running again, I requested artillery. But then, they would stop. The game of cat and mouse continued. At 4.00am, the enemy tanks began to pierce my defensive line... one, two, three, four, five...
I opened fire, and my first round hit the third T54 tank's turret. It stopped, and burst into flames. The rest of my platoon followed suit. A few found their targets. I happily fired two other rounds. Three tanks were destroyed. Our morale rose - but immediately deflated. Each of us had only two M72's, and we were out of ammunition. The two remaining enemy tank changed directions, and ten other tanks which followed them likewise moved into formation, and advanced in a phalanx towards us. Our grenades and flares tried to fend off the machine guns on top of the turrets. A number of inexperienced Marines were petrified. Two tanks hurtled towards the Battalion Headquarters, smashing foxholes and bunkers. Everybody ran for their lives. My platoon was still lying in our bunkers. Over ten enemy tanks had crossed our defensive line. At the site, my unit ran in disarray. I lost control of them, as they ran here and there. Holding the hand set of the radio tightly against my ears, I listened to the Battalion Commander (radio code Bac Giang).
“Thach Thao, Bac Giang is calling, do you hear me?...Tell your men to stand firm.”
“Great Eagle, I am still here, trying.”
“Tell me what you need.”
“Please T.O.T right on our position.”
I was requesting the Artillery to use us as the target.
“No way! You will all die!”
“There is no other choice. They are overruning us.”
I heard the crackle of the radio, and then silence. A T54 was approaching me. It was only ten metres away. I slowly raised my 202 gun with the last round in it. I pondered whether to pull the trigger or not.
My life flashed before my eyes. In an instant, where would my soul be? What would it do? Ah, the life of a Marine! I realized that the blast of my own antitank round would probably rebound and kill me, even if the tank didn't return fire. The bullets flying from the machine gun helped me to decide. I ducked and hid behind a wall. It was too dark for them to see me on the ground. I could hear them swearing from the turret.
“Stop firing! Fuck ! He's gone !”
The T-54 passed a mere 2m from my hiding spot. When it had disappeared, I put down my 202 gun, and walked to the back of the house, where I found Staff Sergeant Hanh, who had nowhere else to run. I ordered him to follow me. We groped our way along the bamboo hedge, and finally reached the edge of the village. I squatted, and carefully surveyed the area. Suddenly, I saw a long column of people marching along. They turned out to be the 3rd Marine Battalion. We quickly ran to join them, and I eventually caught up with the Battalion Staff. The Battalion Commander, the american advisor, and the G-3 Officer were there. The American Advisor was busy with his radio, calling for help.
“You had better find a way to react, otherwise we'll all be captured. They're coming soon.” I said to Lieutenant Colonel Binh.
Captain Bang, the G-3 officer quickly ordered:
“Thach Thao, you open up the road.”
“Everyone behind me.” I yelled loudly.
The column advanced again. Behind me were: Captain Bang, the S3 officer, First Lieutenant Chanh of S5, and 1st Lieutenant Hao from S2.
The remainder marched with the Battalion Commander. Among them were Second lieutenant Cac, a very close friend of mine who was the signal platoon leader. After a while, we approached a bamboo thicket. I sneaked inside it to consult my map, and three or four Marines surrounded me to cover the light of the torch. I decided to march northwards through an empty field. It was imperative to choose the right route for withdrawal. In addition to their tanks, the enemy had deployed their infantry. Groups of enemy infantry men were hiding in clusters of bamboo around the villages.
Behind me, I heard the crackle of AK 47s. The enemy had cut the column in half. More than fifty people managed to proceed with me in the withdrawal, but the remainder of the column was forced to one side by the enemy. I lost communication with the rear.
My best friend, Cac, was killed when the enemy started firing. Cac had originally been an under officer of the VNN, but he had had permission to do a special course in the Thu Duc Reserve Officer Training School to become an officer. Afterwards, he had gone on to study a Signal course at the Military Signal School in Vung Tau. He was like a brother to me. We had had so much fun at base camp in Thu Duc. I was later told that he had received an entire clip of AK bullets. He only had time to cry out “Oh my!” before collapsing and sending everyone scattering. We deeply regretted that we could not retrieve his body for an honourable burial, be-fitting a Marine. His body was gone when we returned to the site the next morning. Later, whenever I visited his family, his wife would beg me for the truth. She wanted to know whether he had been killed instantly, or whether there was a possibility that he was still alive. All I could do was pat the head of his small daughter, while tears threatened to spill forth. Looking at the child, I was overcome by such innocence in the midst of a war.
After the column was breached, I continued to lead the fifty or so on. Among them were Captain Bang, First Lieutenant Chanh, First Lieutenant Hao, and all other groups of the Command and Services Company. At dawn, we saw clearly that the enemy tanks had surrounded the village, and enemy infantry men were fanning out everywhere. I reviewed our situation. There were fifty two of us - and more than half were without weapons or ammunition. I divided them into groups, so that the ones with weapons could protect those without. We then changed direction towards Pha Tam Giang. Along the way, we destroyed several enemy outposts.
By three in the afternoon, everyone was tired from battling the muddy fields and the rough terrain. Those at the front suddenly reported that a group of people, around a hundred strong were heading our way. Some optimistically hoped that they would be friendly forces, but I wasn't so sure, and warned everyone to be cautious. The distance between the two groups shortened. We no longer had a radio, because after numerous unsuccessful attempts to make contact with the Battalion Staff, the signalmen had asked permission to dump it to lighten the load. The group were only 100m away, now, and we could see that they belonged to the NVA.
We shouted: “NVA, Stop! Drop your weapons and surrender, or you'll be killed!”
They opened fire. But their B40 and B41 rockets were ineffective in such conditions, and the rounds fell harmlessly into the muddy water. In revenge, I sent some M79s that exploded intimidatingly. They rushed to the river bank and formed a defensive line. Captain Bang led a group of unarmed men forwards, screeching “Charge! Charge!” at the top of his voice. Both sides resorted to throwing verbal abuse, as neither were effectively armed. Eventually the two parties went their separate way. The incident was one of those rare, ridiculous and amusing events that sometimes in war.
At about 7.00pm. we reached Huong Dien, and rejoined our battalion. Only then did they break the sad news of my friend Cac to me.
First Lieutenant Van Tan Thach
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