The Blackhorse in Vietnam by Donald Snedeker

Author:Donald Snedeker [Snedeker, Donald]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: History, Military, Vietnam War, Strategy, Vehicles
ISBN: 9781504063517
Google: sVjbDwAAQBAJ
Publisher: Open Road Media
Published: 2020-04-14T00:59:02+00:00

SP4s Danny Bock and William Fergerstrom now joined the others with two prisoners of their own. Recognizing that they were greatly outnumbered and there was no immediately available reaction force, Rich led his seven fellow ARPs and six prisoners back to the three waiting LOHs. Somehow, even in their over-max weight condition, in close jungle and hot, humid air, the pilots were able to take off and fly to another LZ—three captives and one ARP aboard each OH-6A. There the ARPs and NVA prisoners were loaded aboard Lift Platoon Hueys for the trip to Quan Loi.

LT Rich told a Stars & Stripes reporter: “We would have been in bad shape if the enemy had known what was going on … They were so dazed by a heavy bombing attack by Air Force jets that they just milled around in a daze and couldn’t organize a counterattack against us.”

The assistant division commander of the 1st Cav was there to greet the returning ARPs and scouts when they landed at Quan Loi. BG George Casey told them that what they had just done was “probably the most gallant action that I have heard of during the entire war.” High praise from a soldier with three Silver Stars, a Bronze Star for valor, and a Distinguished Flying Cross himself.

A day after the daring prisoner snatch, Thunderhorse aero scouts spotted a column of porters carrying 120 mm mortar rounds northwest of An Loc, not far from Fire Support Base (FSB) Eagle I. Eight more NVA soldiers were captured. Stephen Moushegian captured one of the enemy soldiers by hovering his LOH over him and using hand-and-arm signals to coax him to surrender. Two more prisoners were talked into throwing down their weapons and surrendering by the ARP platoon sergeant, SSG Homer Hungerford.

The prisoners confirmed that the objective was to take An Loc and establish the Provisional Revolutionary Government there—at any cost. For Hanoi, the appearance of a battlefield victory was a precursor for making progress at the Paris peace talks. As the official NVA history of the war states: “We could only win at the conference table what we had already won on the battlefield.” A Military Assistance Command Vietnam briefing officer told members of the media: “Their targets now are An Loc, Loc Ninh and Song Be. If they could take them over for 24 or 48 hours and establish de facto control and a provisional government, it would be a psychological victory for them.”

By the end of the day on 10 August, the picture was as good as it was ever going to get. Nguyen Van An’s improbable story was proving to be, for the most part, on target. The 271st and 272nd Regiments (9th (VC) Division), supported by the D368 (VC) Battalion, were positively identified in forward assembly areas to the west of Highway 13, poised to assault bases in and around Quan Loi and An Loc. Battalions of the 101D and 209th Regiments (1st (NVA) and 7th (NVA) Divisions respectively) were

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