| | | Besides gunfights, one of my most vivid memories of war are the 50 or more B52 strikes, aka Arclights, beginning in mid March 69, West of Ben Het, in the mountains, beginning with Hill 990 and all the way over to the Cambodian, Laotion and Vietnamese tri-border. There were many more than 50, but approx 50 occurred before I was medi-vaced out.
The powers thought we had trapped an NVA Division in about 8+ clicks of valley and they poured it on.
Each flight was 3-9 birds and it seemed like each aircraft dropped a 100 or more 2,000 lb. bombs.
We never talked to the pilots. Through secure means (one-time pads) we were given 4 sets of coordinates several hours before the strike, and were told to get out of that particular area and stay out until further notice.
When real close to us, the ground shake and the constant explosions could momentarily overwhelm my senses and emotions. I knew I was experiencing a wave of death. I recall once sitting down quickly so I wouldn't fall off the earth. That notion seems silly now, but it wasn't at the moment.
I went to church in Greensboro yesterday with several of the Montagnard tribesmen from that battle. |
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