I got here into nation at Cam Ranh Bay. I had been in nation for just a few days and had been via Cherry College. On the ninth day of September 1969, my title was known as out as being assigned to E, 2/8, 1st Cav Div. We left for Tay Ninh. Once we bought to Tay Ninh we have been advised the place our firm headquarters was. Once we bought there I assumed this isn’t so dangerous. I noticed a lot of sand baggage and loads of locations to take cowl. In regards to the time I made a decision on what seemed just like the place I’d wish to be throughout an connect, we have been advised to return decide up our gear. We have been proven the availability room the place they gave us a pack, 10 empty M16 magazines, a poncho, a poncho liner, a tender canteen, and a few bug juice. I packed the stuff into the again pack in the identical order that it was given to me. We have been then advised {that a} Chinook would decide up in a couple of minutes. By then it was most likely 4:00 pm. We loaded on the chopper.

After the chopper had been within the air for fairly some time, it began to circle. I seemed out a aspect window. There have been individuals working round in what seemed like a area of mud surrounded by a mud berm. It seemed like a creek ran via the center of the mud area. The chopper began an honest. Huggins requested the rear doorman what was down there. He mentioned, “Your own home.” Huggins turned and checked out me as he mentioned, “No, Man!” Nicely certain sufficient, they made us get off the chopper and wade via mud into the LZ. We have been met by Sgt Brown. He was an actual jolly man who began out by displaying us a Chinese language hand grenade. He do not be just like the dumb ass we despatched residence yesterday. He pulled the string and blew his balls off. Brown by no means smiled. He mentioned, “Now that is severe so that you at all times hearken to what I inform you.” We have been all ears. I had been educated in mortars in AIT and in NCO College. Huggins had by no means been in mortars. Brown advised Huggins that he can be in FDC and that I’d be going out with the Recon Platoon the following day. I mentioned, “However all my coaching was in mortars.” Brown responded, “I do not want any mortar males. You are going with Recon.” I requested, “What number of of those males have had mortar coaching?” Brown snapped again, “None of them, however that do not matter trigger I spent a variety of time in artillery.” I used to be reminded of the time period “army intelligence”. Tried to return to sleep, however I simply laid there listening to the sounds on the LZ. A while later, I do not know what time, explosions began going off strategy to near us. We sat up and checked out one another. We determined it needed to be incoming. We began digging in our again packs to get the empty magazines that had been issued to us. About that point shrapnel got here via the poncho and lower a big gap in my air mattress. I plopped down on the pallet. Somebody yelled from exterior, “Is someone in that hooch?” We reluctantly answered within the affirmative. He mentioned get out on the berm and begin firing. I advised him we did not have any 17 hornet ammo for sale in our magazines. He advised us there was loads of ammo on the berm. I crawled out and briefly met Sgt Kilgore.

I crawled towards the berm. On my method, I crawled proper into what had seemed like a creek from the air. I assumed I used to be going to drown. I held on to my M16 and scrambled out on the opposite aspect. I crawled as much as the berm and requested for ammo. Any individual threw a number of magazines to me. I loaded my rifle and seemed over the berm. Proper there in entrance of me was a gook about thirty toes from my location. On the journey to Vietnam, I frightened that I’d not be capable to kill somebody when confronted with the necessity to take action. It had actually bothered me, however I didn’t inform anybody about my concern. As my eyes fell on the gook I unloaded a twenty spherical clip into him. Oh properly, some a lot for concern of killing. When the brown fecal matter hits the rotating wedge, coaching takes over and also you do what you could have been educated to do. Thanks God.