Wow! Look at that!
TO: Echo Co. 1/5 Cavalry, Delta Co. 1/5, HHC 1/5, and anyone else who served on FSB David.
RE: Current events
Several of us have been contacted by Richard Magner, a Warrant Officer who flew aircraft with the 229th Aviation Battalion as part of the 1st Air Cavalry. He has for- warded several images of the fire base. This is obviously in 1970. He also has some more current images and those are interesting as well. He is in contact with some of the Vietnamese who are working to recover the enemy soldiers’ remains and return them to their families. They were buried in a mass grave following the June 13/14 attack.
There appears to be a road junction there now. Something I didn’t expect to see.
Back to 1970. I was not there during the attack on the fire base. I would have been on LZ Kuhn at that time, the night of June 13/14, 1970.
Can anyone help to locate the grave(s) of the Viet Cong who were killed that night? I heard there was the one large grave. Any help would be appreciated. I have always thought we were fighting NVA troops at that time, but the attacking force was from the 174th Regiment of the VC 5th Division.
Bird-out
Can anyone please let me know if they remember my father his name was Dennis James miller his military records say he was in e company 1/51 airmobile 1970 to 71 also part of the Cambodia campaign would like to talk to someone thank you his son Andrew Miller
I guess he volunteered in November 1970 for e company echo recon and their point team I hope I have that right name was Dennis James miller from Michigan about 19 years old. Also welcome home.
Hi. My father-in-law was there that night. He said when the flare went up, him and an LT were looking around and there was a VC at his feet and he lit him up on full auto with his M16. He was shot in the arm, but LT was went down and was critically wounded. (Unknown if he died. Father-in-law said he was med-evac). He also said there was an issue with the machine gun. Can anyone give me any insight/info? Last name was Sullivan. 1/5 1st Cav. Please email me at dawnsullivan86@gmail.com. We lost my father-in-law this past December. Thanks
Hi
My dad is Tom Pennie (Pennie) he was awarded a bronze star with valor for what I believe was this attack. The dates line up.
Would love to know if anyone remembers him
and put you in touch. He was in touch with Burleson prior to his passing. Burleson’s wife visited with my parents last summer.
I remember hearing nicknames Indian, Cleveland, Worm, Kansas, Diamond lil.
Was he in infantry? Delta company and Echo company were on Firebase David that night. There was also an Artillery company along with other soldiers there.
Gentlemen,
The Vietnamese Army K-51 team is scheduled to return to Cambodia in November. We are hoping they will concentrate on David, that being the LZ we have the greatest degree of confidence in regarding graves sites.
LZ Ranch and David are two others that need revisiting also.
~Richard Magner
Tiger 38, D/229th/1st Cav 68/69
Thanks for the update. Will you be going there then?
My dad was there. He was awarded a medal for the attack that night. His bunker was blown up. He heard the crawling on the radar just before being hit. From what he tells me he crawled out and radioed in for air support.
He says they buried 33 bodies in a mass grave.
Hi Megan, I’m reaching out on behalf of an initiative associated with Texas Tech University researching Vietnamese soldiers who fought during the Vietnam War. We came across your comment about your father, Tom Pennie, and would be very interested in learning more about his experience during this attack. We’re currently trying to identify the Vietnamese unit involved and the location of the engagement. If possible, we would really appreciate the opportunity to get in touch with you and hear any details you may be willing to share. Thank you so much!
Thao, thanks for your comment. We were told it was the 174th Regiment of the 5th VC Division.
There is a photo of Viet Cong dead at FSB David from the attack in Jerome Boyle’s book ‘Apache Sunrise’. He was a Cobra pilot in Apache Troop /1/9 Cavalry.
Hi Tom,
Thanks for the comment and additional info about the attack. It’s Richard Magner that has traveled back to FSB David trying to assist the Viets in recovering the bodies. I will pass that on to him. I will look for that book myself. Thanks again and Welcome Home!
Bird
Bird, on helicopter Photos from LZ David I can see way on North end there ground is dark where bodies were placed, Just next to berm. I Know .
I was not there the night of the attack. B 1/5 was in the bush at the time. I do believe that we were the first on the ground at FB David. I remember the air lift and being on the ground before there was a birm and the bulldozers being dropped in. It was my first vietnam post, so I was an FNG. Later in my tour I volunteered for E 1/5.
Thank you for listening.
I was the acft Maint officer for the HHC 1st Bde. A couple of Col’s and such wanted to go up to David from Tay Ninh the morning after the attack. The weather was really crappy and I was the only pilot available except for a new guy who was grounded. He said he would sit in the left seat so they wouldn’t be nervous. Ceiling was maybe 50 ft. I flew the NDB off Tay Ninh then picked up Loch Ninh(?) and looked for a hole in the overcast. Found a small one and circled down in and out of the hole and came out about 100 feet over the trees. FM homed to David flew under the arty and landed. I flew up there another time when Col Kingston had crashed in one of my acft. Engione failure and the pilot did a perfect autoration to an open area which turned out to be an abandoned Fire Base with bunkers and wire under the “softly waving.” grass.
Wow! Another compelling piece to the story. You were killing me with the part about, “…so they wouldn’t be nervous. Ceiling was maybe 50 ft.” Thanks for the great comment. Welcome Home Tom and God Bless America! Outstanding!
Have heard several stories and believe there were more then one burial site. Doctor Walker and myself walked the perimeter and remember saying ” crazy”, he said, better them than us. Then instructed to put them in closest hole. Pieces too…
Not just day.
Lot stuff to get rid of. Medics take care of those dead gooks.
I know lots of bodies got buried. Couldn’t tell you how to get there today.
Some got shovels.
Hey Doc,
Thanks for commenting and helping fill in some of the missing info. Interesting that the medics got that job! Hardly seems fair, but like they say, life ain’t fair. “Better them than you”.
Mark Schramm, This is Doctor Walker, whom you mention in your story. I was your Battalion Surgeon all those years ago…and I remember you as a tall blondish kid from Minnesota (?). The memories of FSB David are especially vivid today on this 54th anniversary. I have been in touch with (Lt) Joel Chase who was one of the most seriously wounded guys on that day. He survived his injuries and has lived a good life. I ultimately continued my medical training and am happily retired after practicing for over 30 years in Lancaster, PA where I still live.
I wrote about my memories on this blog a few years ago.
Doc Walker, thanks for commenting on this anniversary of that terrible night. Doc Schramm is alive and well in Hutchinson, MN. I will forward your email to him. Bird
Looking at the picture of the Firebase where it’s like a red oval to the left side you see a little dirt area it looks like that’s approximately where the graves are. Because if I remember correctly to the right side that little strip of trees is where they came up to attack
Thanks for posting Lance. I will mention this to Richard. This could be a big help to them.
Wow! Thanks for commenting. Always fascinating to hear another story about that night!
Bird
How many of you remember the 1st of the 9th A troop being there the night before the attack? We parked our choppers between the concertina and the berm.
I was one of the scout pilots that left that evening before the attack.
We climbed out through 2500 feet of clouds from the Firebase to head back to Tay Ninh.
If the crack of daylight we left 10-in headed for Firebase David because there was no radio contact. There was barely any ceiling.
We were coming for y’all. Squeezing between the clouds diving over ridgelines into a valley hoping it wasn’t socked into the Treetops. We got lost on the way had to land do map recon. We found you. The wildest thing was I had parked my Chopper between two bunkers where the attack took place.