Vietnam: An Epic Tragedy, 1945-1975 by Max Hastings

Vietnam: An Epic Tragedy, 1945-1975 by Max Hastings

Author:Max Hastings [Hastings, Max]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harper
Published: 2018-10-16T06:00:00+00:00


3. Saigon Soldiers

After the war ended, an American general wrote that the great enigma was why “the enemy apparently fought so much better than the South Vietnamese.” Doug Ramsey said, “If you compared the average ARVN officer with his VC counterpart—so much more motivated—you knew the South had little chance.” The Vietcong asserted mockingly that the only beneficiaries of the Saigon regime were monks, whores, Americans, and generals. Yet some South Vietnamese passionately believed in the cause, fought hard, and liked Americans. Pilot Tran Hoi said, “I was awed by their generosity, and especially that of the US Air Force. Whatever we needed they gave us, even down to toys for our children.”

Hoi flew air-cover and ground-attack sorties in a Douglas A-1 Skyraider, a prop-driven workhorse armed with a medley of 2.75-inch rockets and 250-pound bombs, in addition to four 20mm cannon. On sunny days, the cockpit and its metal fittings were painfully hot when he climbed aboard and ran up his engine before takeoff. A delicious coolness prevailed in the air, however. Hoi loved the mere fact of flying, sometimes contour-chasing for miles, as low as fifty feet. He claimed to be untroubled by his daily business of strafing, because he was confident that he served the right side. One day, ordered to attack a cluster of huts, he called base to say that he saw no enemy below, only a man walking his dog. The radio crackled back that intelligence was sure the communists had just moved in. The controller urged him on. “Go for it!” Hoi dropped his napalm without a qualm: “I knew how cunning the communists were.”

Another day he and his wingman were ordered to attack a big junk moving up the Mekong estuary. They quickly identified the target, which was flying a Saigon flag. Ignore that, said the controller—just a ruse. Hoi rolled, dived, and unleashed a pair of rockets that exploded in the boat’s hull. Immediately, black-clad figures emerged and began to leap over the side. Hoi dived again, firing cannon at the survivors struggling and splashing in the brown water. His wingman, however, made only a dry pass, without touching the gun button. It was his first combat mission, and he exclaimed emotionally, “I can’t shoot! It’s too cruel!” Hoi rebuked him over the radio as they turned for home, “This is our job. We’re not doing it for fun. Unless you change your mind, you’d better ask for reassignment.” His young companion never again flinched.

As a VNAF pilot, Tran Hoi was a privileged person. The principal burden of the war, however, was borne by soldiers, most of whom were overwhelmingly preoccupied with survival. Their officers often responded to US advisers’ proposals for aggressive action by saying, “No, cannot do. Much danger.” Sgt. Mike Sutton found himself on a night operation with an RF group whose men carried squawking live chickens and pots that clanked at every step. When he urged them to leave the kitchenware behind, their officer insisted that they must have rations and means to cook them.



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