Team 70 ARVN 5th Infantry Division

MACV Team 70 – Lai Khe-Phu Loi-Binh Duong.

This Page is intended for the discussion of the Military Assistance Command Vietnam Team 70 located in Lai Khe-Phu Loi-Binh Duong.  To post a new comment on this Team page please scroll all the way to the bottom of the page to “Leave a Reply”.

979 thoughts on “Team 70 ARVN 5th Infantry Division”

  1. Veterans Day, 11Nov2023, is almost here! When people I meet around our town thank me “For Your Service!” I graciously thank them for acknowledging the service of us Veterans! I’m extremely proud to be a Veteran that served in Advisory Team 70! I salute all of you for your service in Advisory Team 70 which certainly made you a Veteran! Best to all of you!

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  2. Team 70, Jun 69-May 70. ASA 1/7, XO HQ Det Tm 70, ASA 2/7. Phu Loi, Lam Son, Phu Hua Dong, Cu Chi, Iron Triangle, Song Be and Nui Ba Ra mnt.. Roughly (if memory serves me) area around where T10 broke off from Saigon River north to Song Be. Anyone from those ARVN units online?

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    • Hi Jim, Larry Gale here. I joined Team 70 in Jan 70 at Lam Son. I was the new guy in G-2. Then we all packed up and headed up Hwy 13 to Lai Khe, which was a definite step down in living quarters and of course, the monthly rocket attacks. I was there until Jan 71 when I went home for a 30 day leave and a transfer to Team 91. I don’t remember if we ever met. It was quite a time. Have you been back since? Hwy 13 is a toll road now and you can actually get a speeding ticket if you are not careful. Ben Cat is a pretty good size town now that has spread out. Lai Khe is a research center for rubber now and is much larger than when we were there. Nothing to see from our time.

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      • No, have not been back. Sort of like home – You can never go home again. Everything changes – I’d walk 1/4 mile wearing the same equipment as back then, and on a greenway – and drop over dead. 🙂 Have thought about it but that’s all.
        I was HQ XO for a bit around that time. Came back from R&R and was informed the Captain Paul Jackson was KIA. He and I were both HQ Lam Son. Was under a Col Couch. As HQ staff only, did not know anyone from other departments. I was tired of worrying about making sure gravel paths were racked and all stones painted white and not dirty. I begged to go back out to the field, could not handle the pressures of the job !!!!!! We must have crossed paths somewhere somehow – I was there until May 70 but was back in the field then. As ASA, I spent most of my time in the field than back at base camp.

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        • Col Couch greeted me when I flew in from TSN to Lam Son on my first day on the Team. I was sad to hear about his tragic accident later on. From Google Earth it looks like the buildings at Gosney Compound survived until the early 2000’s. It’s all gone now. For anyone thinking of going now, it’s a great place to visit. The people are very friendly towards us and since it’s a young population now they have no memory of the war. Our tour guide in Saigon (yes, it’s still called Saigon since that was an old name) is a practicing Catholic and her mother was only a child during our time there. The people in the south still don’t really like the northerners. The south is really where the business people are. Lots of neat things to see and the currency exchange rate is really good for the USD.

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          • There are some places I would not mind seeing again, most not…….too many suppressed memories. If LTC Couch greeted you in January, I was probably on R&R in Hawaii. Heard about Cpt Jackson when I returned. Would like to visit Iron Triangle again – my 3rd day in country went in to our first LZ and it was hot – quick baptism. Also Song Be – Nu Ba Ra. They had a radio/weather station on top of the mountain gave a gorgeous view. Dropped in on top for op and slid all the way down the side until reached the bottom.

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            • The way Ben Cat and that whole area has expanded, there is probably not much left of the notorious Iron Triangle. When I went in 2019, I visited the Cu Chi tunnels and Nui Ba Den over in Tay Ninh. Pretty impressive. With the 25th Division base camp right there, I don’t know how those tunnels were not discovered. Now it’s just a tourist attraction. With our tour guide there were no political overtones. They actually don’t pay much attention to the current government.

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              • Larry,

                I don’t remember if I told you I got back to Vietnam in February. I am hoping to go back again early next year. Had a fantastic journey – Hanoi, Danang, Hoi An, Hue, Dalat, Saigon, Cu Chi, Tay Ninh. Did not get over to Lai Khe. The country and people are great and very welcoming. On another topic, LTC Couch gave me my first assignments. Sadly, I was the junior officer on the team when he was killed, and I had to do all of the LOD reports. I also had to do those for LT Burke and SSG Montague after they hit the road mine. I considered LTC Couch my mentor and will never forget him

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                • Hi Mike,
                  It sounds like you had a great trip. So much to see. I am trying to put one together this winter in the northern areas. I’ve never been north of Hue. Was the Lt Burke you were talking about the one I worked for in G-2 late in 1970? I sort of remember hearing he was returning to duty after an injury. He had received a Silver Star for something. He replaced Lt. Rennie. When we were in RVN I always remember hearing about the Plain of Jars in Laos. That is one that is still on my list of things to see.

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                  • Larry,

                    That would have been 1LT George Burke who was wounded on an operation and was taken out of the field. 1LT Thomas Burke was on the team when I got there in January 1970. His brother, a Major, (whose name I cannot recall) was also on the team when Tom was KIA. The brother left with the body and never came back to the team.

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              • There were tunnels everywhere no matter if I was south or north in III Corp.; surprised the whole country did not sink.

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          • Hello,
            I went to Vietnam with my wife in 2014.
            My Father was Capt. I. F. PADRON (Team 70/3Bn/9Regt). He died in a Chinook helicopter crash at the Song Be airstrip on May 6, 1969.
            I was 13 at the time and living outside Fort Benning with my mom and two siblings.
            My wife and I stayed a few nights in Song Be. I was able to place flowers at the actual crash site. It was a healing experience and it gave me the peace I so badly needed.
            Song Be is now a vibrant little village. The people are very friendly and hospitable.The runway is a boulevard with shops and even a hotel.
            The young children followed us everywhere around town. Ironically they yelled “the french are back”, according to our guide.
            My father sent home many pictures of his patrols/missions with fellow US soldiers, MACV counterparts, and beutifull landscapes.
            He also included pictures of the children. He was deeply saddened over their condition and gloomy future.
            I think he would of been happy to see me walking with them around the same streets.

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            • I am glad it gave you some peace. I have wanted to go back but afraid it might bring back a lot of bad memories. Working with the ARVN was very unique; understanding their way of life and personalities – believe it made a better human being out of me in that regard. I didn’t get in country until Jun 69 so would not have heard about your dad. It is always bad when we all lose a “brother” even when you were not there. One day we will all get to meet again.

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              • I wish I had learned more about Vietnam before I went, but I did not know where I was going. What the heck was an Advisory Team? It certainly made a better person out of me too. Straight out of school, it was a truly life changing experience.

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                • Hi lgale097922,
                  I can’t imagine what you young boys went thru. I hope life has been good to you. I’m truely proud of you.

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                  • Thank you. It was a win-win for me and the Army. I joined right out of school so I could pick my specialty. One of the smartest decisions I ever made. It was scary at times at Lai Khe with rocket and mortar attacks. Our division, the 5th ARVN was about halfway between Saigon and Cambodia. After my first year I transferred down the road to a provincial team. There I got to interact with civilians and learn some culture. The Captain I worked for in S-2 gave me a good recommendation for grad school where I met my wife later on. As I told my kids, if I hadn’t joined the Army they wouldn’t be here. A truly life-changing experience.

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                • I gave up nothing. I had a job, they told me to go, and I went. The ones that are the heroes and deserve all the credit are those that gave up more than just their youth. The rest of us just have to survive with our memories and loses. But thank you.

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    • Hi Jim…. I served in Team 70 field teams from the start of 68Tet (31Jan68) until 2May69. I was on teams assigned to the 8th Regiment of the ARVN 5th Division which AO was basically about Ben Cat City. Although, we were moved south to bolster defenses above the Capital Region on 2Feb68 and start the 68Tet Counteroffensive.

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    • Hi Gary! .. Good to hear from you! I am very interested in your Tour within Team 70 in the early days! I served in Team 70 from Oct67-May69 and was on field Teams assigned to the ARVN 1st Battalion and 8th Regiment of the 5th Inf Div. Mostly around Ben Cat. Please reply with ARVN units you advised and where. I have been having trouble posting, so more later.

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    • Gary – I should know you but I don’t recall your name. I was Team 70 Late September 1965 to late September 1966. 1/7; 2/9; 4/9. Arrived E-6 and left E-7. This morning, December 16th, I placed a wreath at Captain McClure’s grave site at the Camp Lewis Cemetery, Fort Lewis, WA. as part of the “Wreaths Across America” program.

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  4. Mark Smith….I am about to release a book Battle for AnLoc. it is a historical fiction piece and I used your after action report, read and spoke to Willbanks as well as researched Mike McDermott’s book, True Faith and Allegiance and Lam Quang Thi’s book Hell in An Loc. In 1969-1970 I flew this area every day for 18 months. Your story is truly amazing and I hope that I have presented it properly and accurately. Thank you for the soldier that your were.

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    • Thank you Matt I hope you get this as I cannot see but the top of the letters on the site. I will look for the book when I return to the USA this month.

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        • Matt, I am so snowed preparing for our POW 50th reunion I can’t remember if I answered.

          I am back in the USA and just received a copy of Carl’s book today.
          Do you have my stateside address?

          Mark

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          • I do not have a stateside address….I can send you a pdf copy of the book. The first ten chapters are about Loc Ninh and the fight up there then it moves on to the Battle of A Loc. If you would read those chapters on Loc Ninh and provide back cover comments that would be great. Once in print I will send you a hardback copy of the book. I just need your email address. mine is mattjacksonbooks@gmail.com

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              • Matt, I’m truly sorry as I have been running back and forth between my inherited place in California and my real home and wife in Thailand.
                I am back here in the USA for my RPW physical in Pensacola Florida in mid-September and then 28th Infantry reunion in Las Vegas in mid-October. So I will be here for awhile. I hope to finish the other Team 70 book while here also.
                I am not always responsive but I appreciate you and others for trying to keep a true history alive.
                GETTING OLD TRULY DOES SUCK!!
                MY STATESIDE ADDRESS;
                2723 WEST 179TH STREET
                TORRANCE ,
                CALIFORNIA 90504

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          • Mark .. Are you connected to this Webpage at home? I believe you have my new email address that starts with Advisor ….. @gmail.com

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    • Did the AnnLoc book get released, where can I get a copy?

      Richard Gotch, ASA/SA 2/9 & 4/9 – 5,68 thur 5,69 (AnnLoc & SongBe).

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        • I’m confused, I see a book”The Battle of An Loc” published 2015? What’s the exact title and publish date?

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            • My book is titled, Battle for An Loc, 1972 by Matt Jackson. It is the 5th Volume in the Undaunted Valor Series and was published in 2023. It is available through Amazon or directly from me autographed in paperback or hardback and in e book through Amazon.

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          • The book I just published is Battle for An Loc, 1972, Volume 5 Undaunted Valor Series published in 2023 by Matt Jackson. Matt Jackson is my pen nam. It is available on Amazon in Paperback, Hardback or Kindle reader.

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        • Hey Maj Smith. SSG Alvin Dyer here. Went on a couple of ops with you. I left about a week before you all were overran and captured. I think about the team often. I retired as a 1SG IN 83..

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          • Alvin it certainly makes me proud to know you went on to a full professional career in the Army. I retired in 1985. I hope this comes out OK because it is not allowing me to see what I am typing.

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            • Being a soldier was the only thing I ever wanted to be and the only thing I was ever really good at. Turned 81 on 5 May and still hanging in. Hope your in good health and life is treating you well. 1SG AL DYER, RETIRED.

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          • Al – How soon we forget. I took you and Frank Beavers to Saigon on 6 April 1972 in my Commo keep for your DEROS. We learned of the assault on Loc Ninh that same morning, talked about our old friend Howie Lull, and of Zippo holding out in the command bunker while calling in air support on tanks. The three of us caroused in Saigon for the night and I returned to Lai Khe where I met Mike McDermott. We talked for several hours near the northern gate of the HHC inner compound. He was anxious and concerned, but ready to move out with his ARVN. Their vehicles were lined up QL-13 near the Lai Khe airstrip. I think that was 8 April 1972. I flew out of Saigon on 12 April 1972.

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            • All during my time in an underground bunker cell and later a cage alone memories of Saigon and comrades such as yourselves sustained me. Ken Wallingford and I will be joining with the other three from our seven man POW camp( Two have died) later this month at the Nixon Library in Loma Linda CA.
              FRIEND FOR LIFE, ZIPPO

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        • Zippo Sir … Salute! I have read your Loc Ninh border camp 1972 battle After Action Report and the book “The Battle of An Loc” by James H. Willbanks. Some hellacious battles! I served on Advisory Team 70 field Teams assigned to the ARVN 5th Inf Div 8th Regiment and its Battalions during the 68Tet and 69Tet Counteroffensives. “The Battle of An Loc” has a photo of a Russian tank destroyed in An Loc City by a unit of my 8th Regiment. My Vietnam Memoir has a brief history of Upper III Corps just prior to my arrival on 2Oct67. This brief history includes the VC 9th Division and other supporting unit’s 29Oct67 attack on the Special Forces border camp Loc Ninh. Of course my Memoir covers my participation on field Teams. In general, I describe how the U.S Advisors supported their ARVN units in Upper III Corps during the 68Tet and 69Tet. I believe their service is of historical importance!

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          • Carl few realize how good the 9th Division and separate Phu Loi Battalion were. They operated for years as VC only units until being put upfront by the NVA resulted in their becoming virtually another NVA unit. Casualties were very high and they never quite got away from those full battalion assaults until about 1970-71. By then they had tanks and tube artillery assigned /attached and it was a brand new ballgame.
            Much,as with US units, depended upon an ARVN unit having good or bad commanders. Political affiliation was very important for ARVN units within shouting distance of Saigon and played a role in selecting commanders of/in the 5th Division.

            Zippo

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            • I read the Willbanks book also. Incredible. I was with Tm 70 G-2 for most of 1970 when it was quiet. A few rockets lobbed into Lai Kai each month and one mortar attack on the TOC, but no big action by the 5th ARVN. I was at the Tm 91 Binh Duong province team S-2 for most of 1971 when it was quiet also. I understand there were signs of more VC activity towards the end of 1971, probably prepping for the big show in 1972. We had the Air America boys fly in to Gosney’s little air strip several times, but they headed straight downtown. Mark, did you ever publish your book. We would all like to know more about that critical point in time. Thanks.

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          • Carl few realize how good the 9th Division and separate Phu Loi Battalion were. They operated for years as VC only units until being put upfront by the NVA resulted in their becoming virtually another NVA unit. Casualties were very high and they never quite got away from those full battalion assaults until about 1970-71. By then they had tanks and tube artillery assigned /attached and it was a brand new ballgame.
            Much,as with US units, depended upon an ARVN unit having good or bad commanders. Political affiliation was very important for ARVN units within shouting distance of Saigon and played a role in selecting commanders of/in the 5th Division.

            Zippo

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            • Mark … I can not imagine being a prisoner of war to the enemy we fought! Salute! I joined the ARVN 8th Regiment’s three-man Advisory Team on 1Feb68 replacing the RTO that had been wounded when the Ben Cat Compound was mostly overrun the night before (31Jan68 start of 68Tet). The Staff Advisor, Captain Samuel Stewart, was severely wounded while he heroically defended the TOC. Captain Stewart died of his wounds a few days later and was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross (Posthumously). The wounded RTO stayed with Major Van Amburgh until I arrived to comply with MACV’s policy of a minimum of two U.S. Advisors with ARVN field unit. The ARVN 8th Regiment’s Commanding Officer was then LTC Le Nguyen Vy. As you may know, BG Vy was the ARVN 5th Division’s Commanding Officer when RVN fell in 1975. After he surrendered the Division he committed suicide. Seems he was left “holding the bag”. He is mentioned several times in my Memoir.

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      • i was there in ben cat when we got over ran, pryor to that i was an rto for 1st 16inf for 8 months, the experience from that time with infantry, help keep me alive, i was with 1st div arty Laison tm in ( oct 67 till dec 68) bencat I still shake my head how i stayed alive that night. I still have nightmares. it was bad .

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        • A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you and all the guys that served on Team 70 through the years.
          You would not recognize Ben Cat today. A thriving, growing town that now extends beyond Hwy 13. I always remember zooming past that area as quickly as possible in 1970. It was that little village off in the distance from the highway. These days Vietnam is very friendly to us and is a great place to visit.

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    • Hi Carl, Just finished your memoir today. I was an RTO in Team 70 from June,67 to June 68.They called me “SKI” for obvious reasons. First 6 months spent with various units, most often 5th ARVN recon. The best officer by far was Lt Bolin, RIP. What a man and what a leader.!Tough after all these years to remember names and places, but I do remember Christmas,67, and New Year,68 in Song Be.Thanks for the hot meal. My last 5 months spent in TOC in LamSon. My best buddy back then was Ed Novak, also an RTO who was wounded in the Chong Tanh sub sector. The call sign for TOC back then was Helper Chaser Zulu, and 5th Recon wasCurly Tappet.

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      • Hello,
        My name is Chuck LaMons, I was an rto. Your name is very familiar.
        I arrived 6/66, was rto for Major Pruitt 4/7, Paris Ton Quy. I knew Major Pruitt from 6th Army Honor Guard two years earlier. By chance met him at the orderly room where he was processing in. He remembered me ask ask me to be his rto, I was 11B mos. Then Went to TOC Phu Loi about December.
        Extended about April. Went home on leave 6/67.
        My mom had arrangements for me to change my name to my stepdads name, Zollinger. A semi long story. I did so and regretted that. The Army in all their wisdom messed it. I remained with TOC upon my return. I was promoted to Sgt. I racked with Mike LaLonde, Arnie Moore that is all I can remember now. I departed Nam 2/28/68.
        As I type I am remember you and can put a face with your name for some reason. Did you have blonde hair?

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        • Hi Chuck, you and Mike La Londe were the first two RTO’s I met. I remember you both, I believe you were from California and Mike I believe from Indianapolis. I also remember the name change when you went in leave . I turned out to be RTO Garcia’s replacement when he was wounded…worked with 5th Recon until Garcia returned from Japan. Then worked with various units until just before Tet! Then last 5 months in LamSon in TOC. You can contact me at r2labs@hot mail.com if you like. By the way I did have blond hair back then.
          Stay well!

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          • Very cool Ski,
            chucklamons@gmail.com
            828-514-3657
            I live in Hickory NC.
            Love it, moved here from the CA desert in 2006.
            I changed my name back to LaMons when I remarried in😷1994. I never did like Zollinger nor did my new wife.😁
            Where do you live?
            Give me a call, we can catch up the old fashioned way.😁
            I stay up late.
            Good hearing from Rich, Ski,
            Chuck

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        • Chuck … Yes, I had blonde hair then. Always been thin. Do you remember playing touch football at Gosney Compound in Nov and Dec67? After going to the field on 1Feb68 (68Tet), I do not think I was back in Gosney Compound for a least three months and you said you departed 2/28/68. Do you remember First Sergeant Casey and his Clerk, PFC Kurtz? First Sergeant Casey was a real nice guy.

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            • Hello Carl,
              I hope you are well and have had a good life.
              I don’t remember playing football, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t 😳. I have forgotten many of the details and unfortunately too many of the fine men that I had the pleasure of serving with.
              By chance do you happen to remember an AF Staff Sgt, Roman Rodrigues. He was the crew chief for the Bird dog. I was able to get a ride in it on a mission one time, that was very cool. I chummed around with Rod.
              I have been in touch with Ski and Mike LaLonde. Has been a while though. I see Larry Eagan RTO in the 9th periodically, as he passes through. I live in Hickory, NC since 2006. Moved from So Cal. I have been blessed with 4 children, 9 grandchildren and one great grandson.

              We’re you in the hooch with Mike and Ski?
              Until next time, Chuck LaMons
              That time in my life now seems surreal.

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      • SKI, Good to hear from you! You probably heard me radio calling the TOC between 1Feb68 and before your Tour ended in Jun68. I remember one of the TOC’s call sign as Bent Kingdom Zulu. I remember Captain Bolin, Captain Parrish when they were Senior Advisors to the ARVN Recon Company/Recondos. Also, remember 1LT Callan and SFC Glen Septer with the Recon Company and Recondos. Glad you enjoyed the hot 1967 Christmas meal at Song Be! I have a pic of me by the Huey on that day in Song Be. The ARVN 8th Rgt.Team RTO that was wounded when Ben Cat was mostly overrun on night of 31Jan68 was SP4 John Adams. He was reassigned to the TOC until he finished his Tour. Maybe you recall him. Hope you found my Memoir interesting. If you are on Facebook, Friend me and I will share more. Hope you and your family are well!

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      • Hi Rich … The name Ed Novak sounds familiar. I remember having a picture of some of the guys in the Club at Lam Son Gosney Compound. I’ll try to find it. Hope you found my Memoir interesting. I wrote it for my family and close friends. If you or any of the others on this Page can Friend me on Facebook’s Messaging, so we can exchange email addresses I’ll share photos and other items with you.

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      • Hi, I was researching my cousin Sargent William J. Thornhill from Brooklyn NY. He was KIA in February 1968 during the Tet offensive. Did you happen to know him? I have him proudly displayed on my family tree on Ancestry and would like to add additional info to honor him….especially this weekend….if you knew him, could you share a memory? Thanks. Bill

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        • Sorry Bill, never had the pleasure of meeting him. I’ll be sure to have a good thought for him on Memorial Day as well as all those that made the ultimate sacrifice.

          RIP Brothers

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          • Thank you for getting back to me. He died 2/28/68 in Phuoc Long Province. I think he was Company A, 1st Cav….Special Advisory 70….they first listed him MIA…then 3 days later KIA…would you have a contact for his Group? Thanks

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    • And a healthy happy Viet Vet day to you Carl. Just started reading your book for a second time. Me and Vern Greunke were two of the Radio Direction Finders serving under the wing of Adv Team 70 at Ben Cat and Thoi Hoa from 1966 to August 1967 Captain Thomason and SSG Henry Garcia were the advisors at Thoi Hoa when we left to leave Viet Nam. WE didn’t realize all that happened in the following year and RIP SSG Henry Garcia he was a good man.

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      • Thanks for remembering my dad and I appreciate all the items that you have sent me over the years to me. I know my dad is still watching over me and my children. Especially my son who is getting Promoted to Captain in the USAF
        Sincerely
        Henry R. Garcia Jr

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        • Hi Henry…. I mentioned your Dad in my Memoir! From what I heard and know he was a very good man! Still sorry for your loss! I am glad your family recovered from such a great loss! Great, you have a son that is being promoted to Captain! If you would like, Friend me on Facebook and Message me with your home address so I can send you a copy of my Memoir.

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      • Mike.. As you know from my Memoir, I arrived at Advisory Team 70 Headquarter in Lam Son on 2Oct67. Just missed you. I do not recall meeting SSG Garcia but from what I heard, he was a real good man! You were attached to one of the ARVN 8th Regiment Teams at Ben Cat and Thoi Hoa before I went to the field on 1Feb68, start of 68Tet.

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        • Yes Carl Vern Greunke and me (Mike) were at Thoi Hoa in spring and summer of 1967 we were not part of the Adv 70 we were Army Security Agency (aka Radio Research company) as Radio Direction Finders. We were part of a net of 5 monitoring sites ringing around part of the Iron Triangle to keep tabs on VC transmitter locations. We were two man teams so we needed the security of ARVN camps in the area. At Thoi Hoa we set up every day on the other side of the helipad where there was less metal interference. We had a bunker and a sand bag wall between us and the Thi Tihn river maybe you saw it out there.

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  6. Carl Farren …. Served with Team 70 from 2Oct67 to about 2May69. Field Team assignments were 8th Rgt Team RTO from start of 68Tet (1Feb68) to Sep68, in Jan69 2Bn/8th Rgt Light Weapons SGT Advisor, and then 1Bn/8th Rgt Light Weapons SGT Advisor until ago home 1-2May69.
    Spent Christmas 1967 and 1968 in Advisory Team 70! Two Vietnam casualty facts: The most casualty deaths for a single day was January 31, 1968 – 245 deaths …. The most casualty deaths for a single month was May 1968 – 2,415 deaths. We beat the NVA/VC badly when we caught them running for the Cambodian Border!
    Hope all of you have a Merry Christmas with family and friends!!

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  7. My name is Jim Cagnard, I was at Gosney compound advisory team 70, 232nd signal Co. between 1966/67. I would like to get in touch with anyone who remembers me or Bob Zullo, or Ed McConnon, or Larry Skotnik, I was a Sp4 and was the one who built the nativity scene on the compound at the end of 66, I had a small dog called Sam. God Bless and stay safe.

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    • Would love to help but you were gone by the time I got there, early Aug ’68 to early Aug ’69 was my tour. Wanted to reply and let you know someone is reading the posts.

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      • Hi John, Larry Gale here. We haven’t heard from you in quite a while. As more people sign into this website, we make more connections.

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          • Sure, I remember. You and Andy and Lieb in G-2. Did you ever go back to Vietnam? What was Lai Khe is now a major research center and the plantation has gotten much bigger. Hard to recognize anything. Stay safe. Larry

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    • Hello Jim,
      I can’t help you with the fellas you listed.
      I arrived in country 6/66 to Gosney, Team 70. Was assigned RTO to 4/7 of the 5th, a little place called Paris Ton Quy, on the way to CuChi.
      Came back To Phu Loi in the spring of 67. RTO at TOC. I inherited a medium sized dog female mutt, white with a little black. I don’t know if she had a name when I adopted her, so I called her Princess, real original eh, haha. She gave birth to a littler under my bunk in a modified ammo box of sorts.
      The Div Sgt. Major raised Cain about that. The post surgeon that it was pretty cool and gave his approval for the new family to remain. S/maj not happy.I have a picture somewhere of the proud mother and father conceiving the pups to be on top of a bunker with the sun setting in the background. Might have been your Sam who was the proud father. Haha
      I extended in June, took a 30 leave and returned to Phu Loi until 28 Feb. 68. I was discharged as an E5.
      With all that said I don’t remember many of the fellas from Gosney. We probably saw each other in the mess hall or at the club. Not many other places to go as I remember.
      I hope you are well and happy in these senior years. My youth and time in Nam is like some kind of weird dream now, a dream that never leaves me.
      Sincerely, Chuck LaMons aka Zollinger.(that is another boring story)

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      • I’d like to add…..my Dad was with the Team 69-70 and talked about the Team mascot, a dog (white/with dark spots) named Lucky. He used to have a picture of the dog, but I can’t find anymore. Later, as Advisory Team 70 was pulling out of forward positions, I distinctly remember watching film on the withdrawal on the evening news with my Dad. The news clip showed a soldier leaving with a dog and the commentary was – even taking out their dog, Lucky.

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  8. I found this site and wanting to better understand a specific engagement in the Fall of 1969, and really glad to see the comments from the veterans. My father was with Advisory Team 70 from July 1969 – July 1970. I’m still very lucky to have him with us and proud of his service in Korea with 3rd ID and Vietnam with Team 70. He worked with the 7th Regiment and then with COL Hayes while with Advisory Team 70.

    I am interested to know if anyone remembers anything (exact dates) on a brief engagement in the Fall of 1969 between 1st and 4th Battalions, 7th Infantry Regiment, 5th Infantry Division (ARVN) and C Company, 2nd Battalion, “Quyet Tang – Resolve to Win” Regiment, Viet Cong, vicinity of Phu Hoa Dong, South Vietnam.

    Also, I remember pictures of the Team mascot, a dog named Lucky. I still remember watching the nightly news later as an 13 year old and the final NVA assaults and the newscaster actually filmed the Team coming out and highlighting the dog Lucky…..wondering too if anyone remembers the dog.

    Thanks in advance for any comments….

    Reply

    • I knew and worked for LTC Bob Lott. I worked in G-4 and G-3. I got there in January 1970 and he took over ASA after LTC Couch was killed. He was the endorser on my OER. Please give him my best and let him know that some of us remember him.

      Reply

      • Thank you Sir….appreciate your comment….I’ll pass it along. He’s still walking this earth at 93, we’re very blessed. I followed his footsteps…sort of….much to his chagrin, I was branched Field Artillery but enjoyed my career in the Army.

        Reply

        • Glad to learn he is still with us. I wonder if he would recall an incident that happened at Lai Khe. It was probably about 10:30 or 11:00 PM and I was the compound duty officer. I was in the orderly room and had just finished walking the perimeter and checking on the guards. I was trying to get a few winks when all of sudden there was a nearby explosion. We were used to taking incoming (mortars or rockets). SOP was to call the TOC and report incoming and then to report to the next senior duty officer, in this case, LTC Lott. I rang his hootch field phone again and again but there was no answer. My worst thoughts were that his hootch had been hit or he had been fragged. I sent the QC to his hootch. It turned out he was in someone else’s hootch playing cards. What a relief. We had a signal detachment living on the compound and a drunk soldier threw a grenade. Fortunately, it landed a safe distance from one of the sentry bunkers and no one was hurt.

          Reply

          • Yes, he remembers the incident and remembers the Signal detachment to have provided some interesting times.

            Reply

      • I was with 1/7 and later 2/7 from Jun69 to May70. I remember LTC Couch and worked a few weeks with him before going back out the field again. Was around Song Be, Phu Hoa Dong and several other areas.

        Reply

    • My name is Michael Scott and I was wondering if anyone knows a SFC Billy R. Mcrae from ADV TM 70 in LAM SON Vietnam? I have recently found a possesion of his I would like to give back or give to his family. Thank you

      Reply

      • Hi Michael,

        SFC Billy R. McRae was my Operations Sergeant from Nov 67 – Jun 68 as part of our Advisory team to the ARVN 1/9 Bn located in Tan Hung near Quan Loi. SFC McRae met me at the 1/9 helipad when I arrived to assume the SA position. Previous to that I was the ASA to the 3/9 Bn at Phuoc Qua/Loc and we had just concluded a “dust-up” with the 88th NVA Regt. I will never forget his greeting to me…”LT, you look like you’ve been dragged through hell…..how would you like a hot shower and a fried chicken dinner with a cold beer?”
        Many years ago, I tried in vain to locate him in his home area of Arlington, TX. Some years later I found that he had passed. Subsequent to that, a relative, nephew(?) contacted me via email. I will search my files to find that email and pass it to you.
        Your note has triggered many great memories of my time with SFC McRae and will be a valued asset as I am compiling a family memory for my children/grandchildren.

        Reply

  9. I would like to share my Advisory Team 70 Field Team Memoir covering the 68 Tet & 69 Tet Counteroffensives with those interested. Some late 67 battle history in upper III Corps, accounts of ARVN unit ops and combined ARVN and U.S. units ops, and accounts of advisors calling in U.S. fire support (tactical liaison) for the units they were assigned. See Amazon Kindle author Carl A. Farren

    Reply

      • Mike…. I replaced the RTO (Trung An PF Outpost 1Feb68) that was wounded at Ben Cat the night of 31Jan68 (start of 68Tet). I had not met 1LT Arthur R. Timboe prior to him being KIA on 1Feb68. I’m pretty sure he was ASA on 1/7 Field Team operating near Phu Cuong City. Brian Timboe has a copy of my RVN Memoir, Combat Advisor to Army of Republic Vietnam .. 68 Tet & 69 Tet Counteroffensives.

        Reply

        • I just finished reading your book. Very interesting and accurate. I got to RVN on 24 DEC 1967. I was a new MI 2LT, was assigned to Advisory Team 91 and ended up running the DIOCC/Phoenix Program in Lai Thieu from JAN until JUN 1968 and was transferred to Team 70 and was the Intel/Recon Company Advisor for about a month and then was the G-2 Air Advisor until DEC 1968. I recognized a lot of the names, call signs, operations and locations mentioned in your book. I have some photos that might be of interest to you if would like me to share them with you. I am sure we associated with a lot of the same people both at Lai Thieu and Lam Son. ( PFC Kurtz, MAJ Van Amburgh & others) I am on Facebook so you can message me with your contact info if you would.
          Thanks for writing about your experiences.

          Wallace “Scott” Broome
          COL(Ret) MI

          Reply

          • Scott my name is Lawrence Eagen I was with tm 70 1966 with Capt Don Gardner , Sarg Sam Wise Sarg King light : heavy weapons tm I was rto and Arvin’s were a great bunch we lose our Lt to a booby trap we with 2/7/5 Div out of phu hoa dong any pictures I would love to get my address is 411 LaSalle blvd Port Huron Michigan 48060” or larryeagen @att.net / 8104343891 thanks

            Reply

            • Larry,
              Most of the photos I have are around Lai Thieu, which is on Hwy 13 just a little north of Saigon. Nothing that are of the area you were in unfortunately.
              Thanks for your input.
              Scott Broome

              Reply

          • COL(Ret) Wallace “Scott” Broome, Just saw your Post! Glad you found my Memoir book interesting. As I stated, I believe the service of the MACV Field Advisors is of Historical importance. Were you stationed at the Lai Thieu Hotel with the “Company” agents on the second floor in early 1968? My Memo notebook has Major Van Amburgh and I moving with our ARVN 8th Regiment from Tan Thanh Dong Camp (Southwest of Phu Cuong City) to the Lai Thieu City near Hotel on 19Mar68. Then on 10Apr68 back up Highway 13 to Phu Van. We also participated in some operations at or near Lai Thieu in May68. I have a photo of the Lai Thieu District’s Team senior Advisor (LTC or MAJ, carried a CAR-15) that had a prior service U.S. 1st ID Unit patch on right shoulder. I’m sure you would recognize him. I would be happy to share photos with you. I’ll try to contact you on FB message so we can exchange email addresses. You also must remember then Team 70 Major R. Clark and Specialist Marshall. I have their email addresses.

            Reply

          • Well another one pops up. Former Spec5 Rod McCoy, G2 Team 70, here. I knew PFC Kurz and you. My tour was early Aug ’68 to early Aug ’69.

            Reply

            • Rodney…. Friend me on Facebook if you can. I’ll be happy to share some of my photos, etc. Did you ever pull perimeter guard duty for me and SGT Tate? When asked, I went back out to a Field Team (2/8th) battalion. All in my Memoir.

              Reply

              • Carl I have never done the Facebook thing. If you want to call me at 214-732-7351. I’m in north Texas if that helps.

                Sent from Mail for Windows 10

                Reply

    • I was ASA and AS with 4/9 and 2/9 5th Arvin around Song Be – An loc – Chan Taun May 68 – May 69. I recently read the following information concerning the Tomb of the Unknown.

      Does anyone have information on the recovery operation at An loc, approximately Oct 1972 of a C-37 Dragonfly crash site by South Vietnamese and American advisors. It was flying napalm runs in support of South Vietnamese army units 5/11/72 during battle of An Loc. The recovery came back with among other things a wallet with family pictures and an I’D of 1st IT Blassie, Michael Joseph. The items were handed off to Captain Parnell who packaged them off to Saigon Mortuary. Note: this is the KIA that landed in the Tomb of the Unknown.

      This info came from an article by Pete Mecca.

      Anybody know anything, my guess is that the 5Div had to have been involved.

      Reply

    • How do I go about securing you memoirs?
      Thank you,
      Chuck LaMons (RTO)
      4/7 5th Paris Ton Quy and TOC Phu Loi

      Reply

  10. Rod I followed Larry as RTO for 2/7. I was proud to have served with Capt. Gardner, 1st Lt. Ferkins and Sgt Albert Joseph Clements. Sgt King was there but just for a short time.
    We were stationed at the Michelin rubber compound at Paris Tan Qui. I still think the world of Capt Gardner. I know he was promoted but for me he will always be a Capt.
    Sgt Clement was a vet of WWII. Korea and Vietnam. The only military I met with CIB two stars and Jump Wings with two stars. He was a real throw back to another time and I was proud to have served with him.

    Reply

    • Michael I was glad to see your report on the 2/7 sargents Clements/King were great guys Major Garder was one best officer I worked with I’m going to visit him in about two weeks I was with Clements when Clements was put in for silver star . I wish I could connect them if you would like text me at larryeagen@att.net or 8104343891 thanks larry eagen

      Reply

      • My dad just recently passed, Sgt Boyce King, he served in the MACV but I don’t know which team, he didn’t talk much about it. Would this be the same Sgt King?

        Reply

  11. I met Cpt. Bolin when I was a Pathfinder.
    Was so impacted that I signed up for 3rd tour for 5th Arvin Recon / Recondo.
    Does anyone know anything about;
    Cpt. Bolin
    Sgt. Septer
    Sgt. Blanco
    Specialist Tate

    Reply

    • Hey Ricky, this is the first time I have heard anything from anyone ever associated with Song Be. I was ASA and AS with the 2/9 and 4/9 5th Div outside of Song Be May 68 through May 69. I don’t remember any of the listed names you have inquired about. I never spent time in Lan Son (Div).

      Reply

      • PRD-1 team? I was located at Phu Hoa Dong, Thoi Hoa, Ben Cat and Trung Lap. All in this area of operations and a couple along Hiway 13 “thunder road” ASA LIVES! – vern

        Reply

        • I was with the 2/7 5 div team 70 nov 65 Thur nov 66 our co was capt Don Gardner ,ssgt,s Wise, King and I was sp4 larry eagen rto we where at Phu Hoa Dong does any one have pictures of the compond at phu hoa dong .I would like one thanks

          Reply

          • Hey Larry – Looks like we were there pretty much the same time period. It was my first tour of duty, Oct 65 to Oct 66. Light Weapons Infantry Advisor to 1/7th, 2/9th, 4/9th. I remember SSG Sammy Wise as well as King but your name doesn’t ring a bell. Arrived an E-6 and promoted to E-7 a few months later. Ben Cat, Phu Hoa Dong, Thoi Hoa, Song Be, Phu Loi.

            Reply

      • 20 May 1968 2/9 was defending the Song Be Phuoc Bin District compound against a stronger than usual attack. We had been dealing with heavy fighting since fall of 67, defending Loc Nin SF camp, and the Doc San NVA flame thrower attack that got a lot of news. We were down to two advisors, me a 1st LT suddenly in command, and one Staff Sergeant, Len Bessling. Our SA Captain Haley had lived through one too many advisor KIA and was long overdue for replacement. Our ARVIN 2/9 battalion commander unwisely but understandably sent out a company to extract his recon platoon that got caught outside the wire coming in from a patrol. W really got beat up, and I was medevacked by B34 SF on 20 May. Did you take over the 2/9? Len Bessling took an AK47 round a month later. He and I returned to Team 70 HQ, and I was a TOC duty officer for the rest of my few months.

        Reply

        • I do remember your name, but I thought it was Murphy and that you were dusted off and didn’t make it. There was a SAS rifle laying around with your name. It has been a lot of years. I arrived late May 68 (and reman confused of actual sequence of events). I processed through LamSon and Chon Thanh arriving in Phuoc Long (2/9) all in one morning. The 2/9 was out running an operation – I kicked out of the chopper and met them in the field.

          I have a you tube describing the results of the operation (Richard Gotch Vietnam memories). I have a lot of questions, don’t get lost.

          Reply

        • my name is vernon bessling ,i was at song be in phuoc long team 70 i was wounded on may 22 1968 after getting out of the hospital i was sent to work in a very small px on base ,i cant rember the name of the base ,outside of siagon ,we had a 2nd lt who was wounder in the foot who was later replaced by a cpt

          Reply

          • Hi Vern! Glad you and I are still in this world. Ya, it’s your old teammate Monty Murty from 2/9. I was wounded on May 20, and we both got back to the division advisory base from the hospital. I remember when you got back you still had your arm in a serious sling.

            I still remember you and I air assaulted a company into Song Be to take back the town. One night during the fighting you and I caught a few hours of sleep on the steps of the Catholic church where we had setup a parameter. We had herded Vietnamese and Montagnard civilians into the church. I was using my flack jacket as a pillow and when I woke up it had soaked up the you-know-what that was running under the church door because the church didn’t have an inside latrine. You laughed, and I just left my flack jacket on the steps and kind of snuck away hoping nobody would say, hey, you forgot your flack jacket.

            Stay in touch. Are you still in the Baltimore area?

            MM

            Reply

            • my god after all these years , it was so good to hear from you i’m glad you made it back home i rember the church oh to well if you rember something caught on fire inside and you sent me in to put it out it was a candle on a casket ,the trouble was after i put out the small fire i coundn’t
              see to make my way back to the steps and i was falling all over everyone the place was packed. i live in north carolina now i moved here about 15 years ago i have 3 daughters and a whole lot of grand kids and (no hair) you take care old buddie and my god keep you in his will

              call me sometime 336-416-7404

              vern

              Reply

        • Monty Murty … The ARVN 8th Rgt Hq. at Ben Cat was over-run on the night of 31Jan68- Major Van Amburgh (SA), Captain Samuel Stewart (Staff Advisor, KIA Posthumous Distinguished Service Cross), and SP-4 John Adams (RTO WIA) heldout in their TOC. Next day, 1Feb68, I replaced wounded RTO Sp-4 Adams. As a TOC duty officer you may have heard me (Palm Station (etc) NINER) calling for MedEvacs and US artillery and gunship support. I have a picture of myself supporting the 9th Rgt’s Team on 25Dec67. I’m currently writing my RVN Memoir. If you contact me, I would be happy to try to answer any questions you may have.

          Reply

          • Are you going to publish your RVN memoirs? I would really like to read it. I’m very interested in what my Team 70 predecessors went through. I was there in 1970.

            Reply

            • Hi Larry … My two Tour (Oct67 to May69) RVN Memoir Word document was originally for family and close friends but now I’m just starting the second field Tour and at over 40 thousand words with many camp and field photos. Do not think it would be profitable to publish now with little interest, but maybe not too expensive. I do plan to submit a copy to Texas S&M Vietnam Archives. I may get some price quotations. Where were you in Vietnam and what years?

              Reply

              • Hi Carl,
                I was on Team 70 from Jan 1970 (started at Lamson and was in the move to Lai Khe) to Dec 1970 in G2. I then transferred to Team 91 (Binh Duong province team) from Feb 1971 to Dec 1971 when I got a drop and went home. Team 91 had moved into Gosney Compound when Team 70 left. It was nice to be back to finish out my tour. I just missed out on the 1972 offensive at An Loc. That would have been scary.

                Reply

                • I purchased “Battle of An Loc maybe two years ago. Still haven’t read it all because of to little time. It is a good book. I post sections of my Memoir on my FB page. You could friend me and yhrough messenger exchange email addresses. Then I could send you Word files. You could unfriend me and we would be in email contact.

                  Reply

                  • I will give it a try. I will be using my wife’s FB account. Look forward to reading it. I was in RVN during a relatively quiet time. We did go into Cambodia in early ‘70, but otherwise just the monthly rocket attacks at Lai Khe.

                    Reply

                    • Hi Larry! We did not connect on FB. I’ll try tonight. You were asking about my Memoir and I am self-publishing them soon (less than a month) on Kindle. Not looking to make any money. Think the service of MACV Field Advisors is of historical importance. I’ll try to Friend you.

            • Larry… Been having trouble posting on this site. Think I’m good now with a new password. Some years ago I found on-line an After-Action Report (about 14 Pages) by Major Smith on Battle of Loc Ninh 4-7April 1972. Very interesting. My recently published Memoir includes a brief history of Upper III Corps battles just prior to my arrival on 2Oct67. This history includes the 28-31Oct1967 attack on the SF Loc Ninh camp. You and several other have asked about reading my RVN Memoir and now my paperback is available and with in a week it will be available on Kindle. I’m just trying to share so search Amazon by author Carl A. Farren. I’m also going to get a new email address and post it here so I can be contacted directly for photos, etc.

              Reply

              • Which Carl Farren are you on FB? There are several. How many ‘friends’. Yes, I saw your book on Amazon. A great cover photo. Hope your book sells well. We former Advisors still have a story to tell and we aren’t getting any younger.

                Reply

        • Hi Monty,

          As I was re-reading comments on this site, I noted your mention of “flame throwers”. I was the ASA to 3/9 at Phuoc Loc/Qua when the 88th NVA Regt. attacked our compound on 10/27/67 (part of the Battle of Song Be). This was part of the PAVN strategy then to draw out U.S. forces from their bases to these outlying areas. Fortunately for us, they were not successful that night and days that followed. During our walk around
          after the attack, our team and ARVN counterparts were stunned to see two NVA soldiers (KIA), with flame throwers about 30yds from our TOC
          entrance.

          Reply

    • Ricky Todd…. I remember CPT Bolin, SFC Septer, and SGT Tate. CPT Bolin and SFC Septer advised the ARVN 5th Infantry Division’s RECON Company. CPT Robert Parrish replaced CPT Bolin when he rotated home. SGT Tate was a Sergeant of the Compound Guard at Advisory Team 70’s Lam Son Headquarters. I did two field Tours as a RTO (SP5) 1Feb68-1Oct68 and Light Weapons Sergeant (SGT) 17Jan69-30Sep69. What was your rank and team assignment?

      Reply

      • Carl I was sad to hear of Cpt. Bolin’s passing. Heaven now has one mighty warrior.
        I will never forget the day I met him. He was litterly bigger than life even though he was not tall.
        As a Pathfinder I accompanied the 5th Recon into an Arvin artillery base already overrun by NVA.
        They ousted the NVA and I saw Cpt. Bolin standing on top of a bunker waving his arms with his big cigar in his mouth.
        I thought this guy is the craziest dude I’ve ever seen, and how do I sign up.
        What a warrior and he should have got the Metal of Honor!
        Ringtail Rick Todd Lt.

        Reply

    • I am the grandson of Richard Simpson Schott ( Big Zippo ) Looking for any stories or memories anyone would like to share.
      V/R,
      Nathan Schott

      Reply

    • Was RTO for Capt Bolin on a few ops with 5th Recon Co. Iwas a punk kid from Jersey City,NJ, and he squared me away. A great man and great soldier… the Best!

      Reply

  12. Hello! Just wanted to add myself. I was an SPC with MACV Advisory Team 70, Lai Khe, from November 71 to April 1972. I worked a daily intel Summary. I’ve forgotten the name of the camp we were at, but as you drove in the gate there was a tall communications tower on the right. We used to climb it at night, really not authorized, and look out over the country side. I served with a great bunch of guys from, of course, all over the USA. I was supposed to be there a year but got a “Drop”, due to the Drawdown. Got notified to pack and leave, all in the same day, to go to Saigon and out process to Oakland. So, I’ll read all the posts, but if you were there when I there I’d love to hear from you. Wishing you a great time over the coming Christmas!

    Reply

    • I was communications chief for the team 12 May 1971 – 12 April 1972. Al Dyer is on this site and was there with me. Also, Frank Beavers who is in Killeen, Texas now. If I had a photo of you at that time, I might recognize you.

      The red & white tower stood between the underground bunker and the HQS of the 5th Infantry Division ARVN. It was past our wired-in area, which was on the immediate right after you turned onto the road that went past Division HQS. The last briefing Frank and I went to was on March 20, 1972 in the G-2 briefing room in the underground bunker. The topic was an update on COSCOM near Snuol Cambodia and the deployment of its units. LTC Schott, MAJ Carlson, CPT Smith (Zippo), SFC Lull and SGT Wallingford of the 9th RCAT were all there. The next day was Saturday and they all stayed for a scheduled floor show. On Sunday they went back to Loc Ninh by road, and that is the last time Frank, Al and I saw them. We were very close to Howie Lull. Frank and I were on R&R with him in Taiwan in January 1972. We stayed stone-blind drunk the whole time.

      Press on! There ain’t many of us left!

      Reply

        • Unless the site changed, posting photos is not allowed. However, I recall the creator of the site listed somewhere on the site a way to exchange photos behind the scene via email. Figure it out. I’ll be happy to send you some photos.

          Reply

          • Hey, Thomas. I got an email via this site but it did not show your Email, or maybe I just missed it. From your own email account, just send a short note to “Jack64mail@gmail.com”. By the way, the 64 is my age when I signed up for gmail. All the best.

            Reply

    • Were you in the Team 70 G-2 writing the daily intel report? I did that from Jan 70 to Dec 70 at Lai Khe. I imagine the team was getting smaller when you were there. I had moved down the road to Team 91 S-2 and left in Dec. 71 with a sudden drop also. Quite a surprise. Great to hear from you. Larry Gale Spc 5 96-b (Ret)

      Reply

      • Hi, Larry and Happy 2021 New Year!!! Yes, the team was small. I remember that where I lived, in my own private part of the hooch (or whatever MACV call them), that most of the rooms, as I remember where empty. I did not thing about that. It was quiet inside. I think I wrote that I was in the last building on the right side of the base and I could come out of my room and out the door to the right was a fence, road, and the village which was off limits. As for the Intsum, I did it M-F from Nov 71 to Apr 72. I typed it, gave it to a SSG Atkinson. I am sure I had other duties but I can’t remember them. There was a MAJ in-charge, he was cool, but I don’t remember his name. I remember walking to work and passing ARVN Barracks, they were friendly but there was not interaction, just curious stares. I had a hooch-mamma-San that ironed my uniform and polished my boots. She was old and might have helped to engineer a break-in. I came back after work and the lock was broke. The only thing missing was a my Yashica 35MM camera which was a wonder in those days. Darn camera could take a picture in the dark with just candle light. All the best Larry, also good to hear from you. Take care and God Bless you.

        Reply

        • Sounds like you might have inhabited my old hootch. My email is covan2@verizon.net Send me yours and I will send some photos. I was on the team from January 1970 to January 1971. We moved to Lai Khe in February 1970. Take care.

          Reply

  13. Hello was curious if anyone served with my father? Charles (Chip) Thorne. Advisory Team 70 8th RCAT 5th ARVN division out of Lai Khe. His team was the one Capt Smith relieved before he was captured.

    Reply

    • I served with Zippo Smith , Ed Carlson , Howard Lull and Dave Patton . Dave Patton was my senior advisor at one point and he and I put out a fire on some JP -4 one night. Ed Carlson was an advisor and a field artillery officer . Lull was a team sgt. who was killed near Loc Ninh and Zippo was an 0-3 warrior who held off the NVA at Loc Ninh and stopped them cold before they tried to overrun An Loc . Zippo refused to surrender and fought until captured as he was trying to E&E . Returned to the states inn1973 , retired as an0-4 . George Wanat was captured with Zippo and both earned the DSC for their bravery.

      Reply

      • Tom … I served in Team 70 2Oct67 to 2May69 as 8th Rgt Team RTO and in 69 as 2/8 and last 1/8 Lt. Weapons Sergeant during 68 Tet & 69 Tet. I found on-line an After Action Report by then Captain Smith covering the Loc Ninh (old SF) Camp battle, about 14 pages. He mentions these team members. You might find it interesting.

        Reply

      • Tom Howes , for those interested I spent my first two months in country in Quan Loi and the remaining 10 months in Loc Ninh . Dave Patton was the senior advisor there but moved on after a disagreement with his ARVN counterpart ( who wasn’t much to start with ). In March of 72 I told Col. Miller I would extend if he needed but he said to go home ( I’m sure he knew what was coming ) so I departed Vietnam about 20 March 72 .

        Reply

        • CPT Howes – I arrived to the Team in May 1971 as a young SGT E-5. Although I flew the admin route of Lai Khe-An Loc-Loc Ninh and back a number of times, with stopovers in Quan Loi when there was a reason, I do not remember many names and faces from my first months with the Team. Zippo did not arrive to the Team until November of 1971 and, due to his insistence, advisors started going out to have look-sees with the ARVN patrols again. The Intel got better, the briefings in the underground bunker at Lai Khe got better, and Colonel Miller became convinced An Loc was to be the objective in the next TET. It took a while for MG Hollingsworth to become convinced. Zippo was a main source for that Intel. I remember LTC Schott, MAJ Carlson, CPT (Zippo) Smith, our close friend SFC Lull, and Wallingford as being the Members of the 9th RCAT at Loc Ninh. Alvin Dyer was a former member of the 9th RCAT who left that team early on in 1972. SFC Frank Beavers, SFC Alvin Dyer and I where a tight trio when we were in Lai Khe. The three of us flew out of country on 10 and 12 April 1972. Frank and I spent most of our time with the radios in the forward CP in An Loc. I do not remember your name or Dave Patton. Were you a member of the 9th RCAT and was Dave Patton replaced by LTC Schott?

          Best regards,
          Thomas E. Murphy
          Master Sergeant, US Army, Retired

          Reply

          • You’re right , Patton left and Ltc. Schott replaced him . I knew Col. Miller believed that QL 13 was the route the NVA would take . In July ( early on ) I went down in a VNAF slick in Cambodia doing a recon where there was a giant pol dump so I think we knew then there was going to be a push . Glenn Taylor and some SF king bees got me out .

            Reply

            • You must have been with the Division when it fought(?) in The Battle of Snuol, as part of Operation Toàn Thắng TT02 (5 January to 30 May 1971). I call it Lam Son 720. On 1 June 1971, I stood at the small Marsden Matting landing strip at the main entrance to our part of the base camp at Lai Khê, and watched CH-47 Chinooks and UH-1H Hueys bringing in the wounded Vietnamese soldiers from the battle. Before the helicopters touched down, many of the ‘wounded’ tore off their bandages and ran down the road towards Bến Cát, never entering the base camp.

              Reply

            • Hi guys, I was hacked some years back and my new email is; theziphmself@gmail.com.
              I have spent years feeding the machine chapters of my book and they take their sweet time doing a line by line clearing. Three years of fighting before I realized they had never told Dick Schott’s family how he really died. Having some additional problems about 17 October 1967 and who did what along with the death of a fellow company commander in the 101st Airborne Division in 1970. Be glad to hear from any of you(email above). Trying to play by the rules can be hard sometimes. They new biography of my enemy Ho Chi Minh came out and a lot on me in there; Ho Chi Minh’s Blueprint for Revolution by Virginia Morris with Clive A. Hills. McFarland and Company 2018.
              ZIPPO

              Reply

          • Do you know if Zippo ever got his book published? I would like to read it. I was with Team 70 G-2 when we moved to Lai Khe in 1970 and left in Jan 71. I moved down the road to Team 91 and left RVN in Dec 71, but followed the action in 1972 with tremendous interest. The stand at An Loc was heroic.

            Reply

              • You probably knew Andy Andrews in G-2. He was there when I arrived in Jan ‘70. Maybe I was your replacement. Lou Leib was already there also. Lt. Rennie and Major Muenter (sp) . Sure enjoyed Lamson those first few months before the Team moved.

                Reply

                • Like so many I was just @#$%^ glad to get out of there. I remember my replacement arrived a few days before I was scheduled to go home in the first part of August ’69. Don’t remember his name as it was a short acquaintance. Now at the age of 74 and sooner than I want 75 I have forgotten some of the bad, some of the good and many of the names. A box of pictures helps with faces and one with names on the back of the G-2 section at some point in the year. It was the best of times and the worst of times. As a late WW-2 uncle said of his time, “ I wouldn’t take a million dollars for the experience but I wouldn’t give a nickel for another one.”

                  I received a draft notice in the mail. My wife opened it and was crying when I got home from work that evening. I knew how the system worked so I volunteered and choose MI. Up to that point in my life that was the best decision I had made. It came back to me many fold over the years and now with the kind folks at the VA even more so. I must say though that the MOS description in the recruiting sargeants book left a lot out!

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                  Reply

                  • Were you a 96b? Trained at Holabird? Let me know some of the G-2 names on the back of your photos. I did the same as you. Joined up before I got drafted in ‘69. Best decision I ever made.

                    Reply

                    • Did basic at Fort Polk, AIT at Fort Holabird for 96B, year at Adv Team 70, finished my three years active at Fort Hood. Fort Hood was my choice as I am native Texan and it was about as close to home as I could get and had a cousin living nearby. Lets hope the picture front and rear comes thru.

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              • Sam Sullivan here. We had to know each other. I’m trying to remember you. Are you a big guy? I was at Lam Son from June, 68 to June 69 and knew all the guys in G-2. I worked in the admin office with Rickey Pearson and Harry Krueger. Do you remember Sgt Schultz? He, Harry and I went to on R&R to Vung Tau together. My job was running the message center which meant visiting each office twice a day to deliver the Intsums and retsums and other classified material. I’d love to see any pictures you have.

                Reply

                • Does this help? I’m third from right, bottom row. Schultz rings a bell. I’m not a big guy. Heavier now than then. Then I was doing good to hit 150lbs. When I got home I had dropped some. Joined the wife in Japan for R&R in February 1969 and she was not sure it was me. Tanned and lighter. I had just pulled this pic up from my Ziploc bags for a Larry Gale so your timing is superb.

                  Sent from Mail for Windows 10

                  Reply

                  • I don’t think you can post pictures on this website. My email is LVMRG@hotmail.com if you could send me a copy. I would really like to see them. I think I was in one of the last classes at Holabird before it moved to Huachuca. Another advisory team member I met later was the first one at the new site. It was a mess. I liked Holabird because at least on the weekends I could travel on the E coast. Got to see Joe Namath play at Shea Stadium in 1970 for free courtesy of the USO. It was sooo cold there in November. I had basic at Ft. Bliss TX. Over 100 deg for 30 days in a row. Hot, cold, hot (Vietnam). I also lost a lot of weight. When I went to HK for my first R&R my civie pants were so loose I had to get a belt to hold them up.. Great to hear from you guys.

                    Reply

                  • Hi Rod, Pictures don’t come through on this website. My email is LVMRG@hotmail.com if you could send me some copies. I think I was one of the last classes at Holabird. A later team mate of mine was the first at Huachuca. What a mess there. Nothing was ready. At least at Holabird we could go tour the East Coast on the weekends. It sure was cold there in November. Then off to nice warm Vietnam in Jan. I had basic at Ft. Bliss, TX. Over 100 for 30 straight days. I lost a lot of weight also. My first R&R in HK I had lost so much weight I had to buy a belt to hold up my civies. Lots of good food in HK of course. Great to hear from all you guys.

                    Reply

                • I’m going to be up to my eyeballs in club, social activities and recuperation for the next three days. After that I can scan in some pictures for forwarding. I think Schulz may be the Sgt. Who received a medal/commendation at a ceremony with me. On that subject I found out last year and it was added to my DD-214 that many of us were authorized to wear the RVN Gallantry Cross w/ Palm. That came about because I applied to have my DD-214 updated with Good Conduct Medal that was never entered onto DD-214. During that process involving the Army Review Boards Agency somebody discovered and added on the Gallantry Cross. That and $5 will get you a Starbucks Grande but I’ll take it.

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                  Reply

                    • Born in Texas. Left Texas only to do my military service and did half of that at Fort Hood. Hopefully they’ll never change its name. Lived in Houston for about a year back around 1990. Retired about eleven years ago , built a house on our small acreage here in Delta county. Somehow or another got involved in American Legion activities . Hopefully will be Houston this spring for NRA convention. Planned on it last year but it was cancelled at the last minute.

                      What you been up to during this interlude?

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                    • If you get here, let’s meet for a drink. I came to Houston in 1976 after a stint in the Washington, DC area as a reporter. Decided I wanted to do something more lucrative, so I went back to college and became a CPA. Had my own tax practice for about twenty years until health problems forced a retirement. Got over the health problems just before Covid hit but now have restarted my practice on a parttime basis to supplement my income. Never married.

                    • Please forward direct email address and contact info, phone number. Send to 214-732-7351 via text. Thanks

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                    • I sent my info just now. Look forward to seeing your G-2 pictures. Lam Son was such a nice compound. Built early on by an US engineering company I became acquainted with after my service.

        • I was a Capt . In Loc Ninh along with LTC . Dave Patton prior to the 72 offensive ( left end of March 72 ) . Lull and I were in Loc Ninh and Carlson was in Lai Khe . Zippo replaced me .

          Reply

      • Although they may have been on the team. I don’t remember their names either. Frank Beavers and I remember you, LTC Schott, MAJ Carlson, Zippo, and that loser Wallingford. Frank said to kiss his whatchmacallit.

        Reply

      • Alvin – Just wanted to check to see if you’re the Alvin Dyer who served in C Company 2/12th Infantry, Fort Lewis, WA? Ron Soden. PS – I also served on Team 70, Oct 65 to Oct 66.

        Reply

  16. It is with great sadness that I just learned of Lt. COL. Gene Bolins passing, he was a great guy. He taught me a couple tricks that Green Berets used all the time, he was a great soldier. A big shout out “HI” to Dick Clark , Pat Nieman and Tom Boyle . I wished we all could get together and reminisce about Vietnam.

    Reply

      • Hi Pat,
        Yes perhaps someday we could meet. I’m pretty limited as to where I can go. I have dialysis every other day. My kidneys failed a year and half ago so I’m limited as to what I can do.
        Craig

        Reply

        • Craig, sorry to hear about your kidney failure. I still have your hotmail address and will stay in touch. Take care. Pat

          Reply

    • Craig, I am sorry to here about your kidney failure. I too would like to get together with other members of G-2 from Team 70. I am located in the north central part of Pennsylvania. I can be reached at majortom@micro-link.net. take care and be safe

      Tom

      Reply

  18. Having served in the G-2 section of Adv Tm 70 from October 67 to Oct 68 it was my honor to know LTC Gene Brolin. He was an outstanding officer and a fantastic role model. I wish to extend my condolences to his family. They can be assured that he set the example for all to follow.

    Reply

    • Thomas, great to hear from you. You arrived as I was departing in the latter part of Oct 67. Hope all is well.
      Best regards, Pat

      Reply

      • Rick…. I’ll contact you using this email. You must have known CPT Robert Parrish and 1LT Anthony Callan. I have a pic that someone sent me of Major Clark (G2) and 1LT Callan receiving ARVN medals in June 1968. Starting on 1Feb68 by replacing 5th Div 8th Regiment Team’s RTO, I was Major Van Amburgh’s RTO until LTC Matthews replaced him in June68. I have collected a lot of info about Advisory Team 70 67-69.

        Reply

    • Tom Boyle …. I think I’m still in contact with SP4-5? Fred Marshall who also served in ARVN 5th Div. G-2 . Friend me on FB. I think we may have been in contact many years back.

      Reply

    • I knew then Captain Bolin. He was a great soldier! I arrived in country 2Oct67 and when to the MACV in-country training. I replaced SP4 John Adams the 8th Rgt. Team’s RTO that was wounded on night of 31Jan1968 at Ben Cat the start of 68Tet. You must have known Fred Marshall. Last year, I was in E-mail contact with Fred but not sure now. I Extended and came back for a second Tour and volunteered to return to field as a Light Weapons Sergeant with initially 2/8 and then mobile Bn 1/8.

      Reply

      • I joined the 5th Arvin Div. Recon and Recondos in 68. At the time the entire team was made up of Sgt. Septer, Sgt. Blanco, and at that time spec. E-4 Tate.
        Their was no officers.
        Even though I was on my third tour, I was not accepted by the recon until I had proven myself under fire.
        Even the team grilled me. Sgt. Septer took me out alone and grilled me one on one.
        We had a battle where Sgt. Blanco was shot in leg in the morning then in afternoon he was shot again in same leg. It was pretty funny because the Recon top Sgt. Hung picked up Blanco and carried him to chopper and Blanco fought him all the way.
        I am in clear on this part but I think Septer had already rotated back to Ranger Comittee when Blanco got hit.
        Anyway the team ended up with just me leading team as Corporal and Tate as Specialist with me.
        Have team photos but don’t know how to download.
        Ringtail Rick Todd Lt.
        rangerrick.todd@gmail.com

        Reply

  19. Sorry to report the loss of a warrior in that LTC Gene Bolin passed away yesterday. His son and daughter contacted me. Then CPT Bolin was the SA to the 5th Recon Co, Jan 67 -Jan 68. He was nominated for the Medal of Honor for actions at Bu Dop in Oct 67 but it was downgraded to the DSC. I was the advisor to the 5th Recondo and hooch mate with Gene. He had a follow-on tour with MACSOG. His ashes will be placed at Arlington.

    Reply

    • I am proud to say I served with Gene while he was with Adv Tm 70. I can attest to the fact that he was a true warrior. My condolences to his family. They should be very proud of the example their father set for all those who know him.

      Reply

      • Dick, great to hear from you. Hope all is well with you. Hard to imagine that it has been 53 years since we served on Team 70. Best regards, Pat

        Reply

        • Pat please contact me at your convenience. All is well on this end. I hope the same for you. I know so well that it has been 53 years since I dropped you off to cover when we picked up Bob Boyd who had been KIA. This was as you were already processing out. Many memories.

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          • I remember the day in October ’67 when Lt. BOYD was killed. As I was loading him on to the chopper Lt. Nieman jumped off the chopper and took his place. I remember thinking Lt. Nieman was “short” and what was he getting himself into, luckily it worked out and there was no more trouble.

            Reply

            • We had enough reinforcements with the 1st Div and 5th ARVN Cav Regt responding. I think that I left for CONUS two days later.

              Reply

    • Hi Pat,

      I was the ASA to 3/9 outside of Song Be from Jun – Nov 67 and then SA to 1/9 Tan Hung near Quan Loi, Nov 67 – Jun 68. I met CPT Bolin
      briefly on the one occasion I came in from the field to Phu Loi/Lamson. He was a truly impressive soldier who gladly shared his experiences
      as I returned to the field. My deepest condolences to his family.

      Reply

      • Hi Bill,
        Your name is familiar and I may have met you in either Song Be or Phu Loi. I know that I met several of the Radio Research folks. The Division staff had us go out based on some of your reporting. I will pass on condolences from all to Gene’s family. Thanks.

        Reply

        • Hi Pat, I believe I met your Dad briefly in a coordination meeting between the 8th and 9th Regt. staffs, however, as so much time has passed, it’s more difficult to recall.  I’m just now beginning to look through notebooks I tried to keep while there, letters from my wife, etc.Everything I have seen on this site tells me he was an outstanding Advisor. Stay well and safe, Bill

          Sent from the all new AOL app for iOS

          Reply

    • Need more info on Sgt William to possibly ID him. Richard Gotch SA 2/9 & 4/9 May 68 – 69 Song Be area 5th Arvin Team 70.

      Reply

    • I replaced RTO SP4 Adams who was wounded when the 8th Rgt and Team was mostly over-run at Ben Cat on 31Jan69, the start of 68Tet. Major Gordon Van Amburgh was the SA and ASA Samuel Stewart was KIA (died later in hospital). I think I remember you being with a Bn Team.

      Reply

  23. Does anyone know my uncle SGT Michael J. Ramberg? He was killed in the war before I was born. Just looking for any stories or memories. Thank you.

    Reply

    • Jeremiah, I knew your uncle Sgt Michael Ramberg, but not well. I think we last spoke on the 29th or 30th of Jan68 just before the 1968 Tet holiday truce was to start. I believe he was a light weapons field advisor on a four-man team assigned to one of the ARVN 5th infantry division, 7th Regiment’s Battalions. The 7th Regiments Battalions were located about Hwy-13 south of Phu Coung City. I was then assigned to Advisory Team 70’s Headquarters Detachment at Lam Son Compound which was located a few miles east of Phu Coung City. Therefore, he was assigned a relatively short jeep drive from our Headquarters Detachment compound within the ARVN 5th Division’s Base at Phu Loi. I had requested a field team assignment so when I saw him at Lam Son, I would ask him questions about our field teams to learn about what would be like and what would be expected of me. When I last spoke with him, he was excited about taking some leave/time-off in the Saigon area during the Tet Holiday. He was known to take a ,45 Cal. 1911 pistol and ride a Lambretta (taxi) where he wanted to go. As you probably know, he was on his second or third Tour and knew his way around. I assume he left for the better US facilities in the Saigon area before our field Advisors were ordered back to their Teams on 31Jan68. As I’m sure you know, the enemy attacked US facilities in Saigon during the 68Tet. I know from the Vietnam Memorial Wall data that he was KIA in Gia Dinh near Saigon. I assume he joined the US and ARVN forces to defend some facilities in the Saigon area.

      He was a nice experienced soldier that always took the time to answer my questions. I didn’t learn of John being KIA for a few months because I replaced the wounded 8th Regiment Advisory Team’s RTO on 1Feb68. He had been wounded when the Ben Cat compound was mostly overran 31Jan68.

      Reply

      • I was with team 70 2/8 rto and light weapons advisor out of Lam Son 68 69. Our team leader was Cpt. Ramond. Our inteligence officer was 1st Lt. Holzer. KIA 69

        Reply

        • I checked in at Lai The the day after 1LT Holzer was killed. They moved a lieutenant from 1/8 to 2/8 to replace him, and I was sent to 1/8 after receiving s Pattonesque speech from LTC Price and instructions not to carry a .45 auto in combat. I learned later from the sergeant who was with him when they were ambushed, 1LT Holzer was carrying a .45 auto in a flap holster. They were pinned down, and he tried to retrieve it and raised up a little trying to open the holster and was shot through his head and shoulder.

          Reply

          • Pretty close to being close. I was also there. Lt. Holzer always liked wearing his bush hat too. He was a good man. I dont remember him being replaced that fast and who it was. Sgt. Corrington and Cpt. Raymond and i were on the same team. I believe we were working out of FSB Mahone at the time!

            Reply

  24. My son-in-law Gerald McAllister Father Roger McAllister Sgt was KIA while with Team 70 in 1965 if anyone remembers him or has any pictures of him I would like to hear from you I know its been a long time.Please e-mail me at eaglecox@hotmail.com—-Thank you. CSM (R) David W Cox 145 Lexington dr Clarksville Tn 37042.

    Reply

  25. THE DEDICATION AT THE TOP OF THE GOSNEY AND COUCH COMPOUND MEMORIAL PLAQUE
    “DTA” means Divisional Tactical Area.

    “IN RESPECTFUL DEDICATION, WE PAY TRIBUTE TO
    THESE HONORED MEMBERS OF THE 5TH INFAN-
    TRY DIVISION, 32ND DTA ADVISORY TEAM WHO
    WERE SO FILLED WITH PURPOSE, SO WILLING
    TO BEND THEIR WILL AND YIELD THEIR RIGHTS
    FOR THE SAKE OF OTHERS, SO POSSESSED WITH ALL THE IDENTIFYING
    MARKS OF GREATNESS, THAT THEY MADE THE ULTIMATE SACRIFICE. THEY
    GAVE THEIR LIVES IN DEFENSE OF FREEDOM.
    MAY WE BE INSPIRED BY THEIR COURAGE.”

    Deciphered from several photos supplied by Mike McMunn

    Reply

    • Fred,

      Thanks for your efforts in deciphering those photos and remembering those from our Team who gave the supreme sacrifice.

      Reply

  26. Does anyone have any reasonably legible photos of the original Memorial Plaque at Gosney Compound or its larger replacement that was moved to Lai Khe? (Even better, did anyone ever copy down any of the names?) Some of us are trying to identify the names on it, but the photos we have are rather fuzzy thanks to the plexiglass cover and reflections. I have only been able to decipher about a dozen names even with Photoshop adjustments. There were 45 names on it in late ’68, 59 on the larger replacement in May ’69, and 68 names in mid-1971, and two or three more were added after that, I think. Names on the memorial apparently were mostly from Team 70, but the earliest ones were from MAAGV and MACV SD-5891 Advisors. There is at least one name from Advisory Team 91 and there may be others from them. I have a list of Team 91’s KIAs but don’t know if they worked with elements of the 5th Division. I have a list of 57 names that are or should be on the memorial. Many of the missing ones seem to be on the first few lines. Hope someone can help so all these brave and honorable men can all get the recognition they deserve and we can preserve awareness of their sacrifice. If anyone wants the names I have so far, email me at kudzu44@comcast.net for a PDF list. I submitted a post with this info three days ago, but no joy.

    Reply

  27. Hello all.
    I am trying to find out more about my grandfather. I found his military license and this was the base listed on there. Im not even sure if this is the right place to ask, or if he was there long. The dates on the ID are 71-73. He was in Vietnam for many years though. His name is Hilton Oliver Brown. I’m not sure his rank during his there, but at the time of his death he was a 1st Sergeant, and a double bronze star recipient. Thank you in advance for your time and service.

    Reply

  28. Hi,

    I am trying to make contact with anyone who might have known and/or served with my second cousin, Army Captain John Carl Vaughn who was assigned to the MACV Team 70 and was KIA in the Bin Duong Province on 6/10/1970. I am hoping to find out a little more about how he died and the mission he was on (providing it isn’t classified). I enlisted as an Army Infantry Soldier and he was the reason I did so and also the reason I went Airborne and served with the 82nd Abn Div. I would love to hear from anyone who knew him/served with him.

    Reply

    • Gregory,
      He was on the team when I got there in January 70. I met him a few times if I flew out to meet with his team or if he came back to Lai Khe to brief the command staff. I do not recall any details of the incident but I remember it being reported and remember having a memorial service at Lai Khe. Sorry I cannot help you more.
      Mike

      Reply

  29. In 1970 – 71 I served as an advisor to the 3rd battalion, 9th Regiment, 5th Division ARVN in and around An Loc. I am trying to reconstruct the fatigue shirt I wore which included a 9th Regiment patch on the right pocket. Does anyone know where I might find a 9th Regiment patch? It’s an elephant head on a yellow diamond shaped background.

    Reply

    • Hi Robert;

      Welcome home Brother!

      I was an Advisor with the 3/9 from 6/67 – 6/68 in Phuoc Loc and Phuoc Qua. I recall the patch, but mine
      was in a lost duffle bag when I got medevaced in 6/68 to Walter Reed. I would like to share our experiences
      with 3/9 in emails if you want to.

      Bill

      Reply

  30. Does anyone remember, Major Tony Lopez, an Air force FAC pilot who flew OV-10s out of Ben Hoa from April 1969 to May 1970? On May 6th, 1969, he ended up receiving the distinguished flying cross for a single mission providing FAC support at Lai khe. I’ve always wondered exactly what happened that 1 day out of 364 other days and 380 missions flown? His medal certificate provides some details (coordinated heavy airstrike & took lots of fire), but there were many, many other crazy missions during that year. Any info from anyone else who was there & remembers would be appreciated. thanks,
    Mike

    Reply

    • Hello Mike, At that time period the Big Red 1 was at Lai Khe. Team 70 and the 5th ARVN Division moved to Lai Khe in April 1970. He would have been supporting the US division, not Team 70. I was with Team 70 when we moved in. Sorry we can’t be more help.

      Reply

  31. I often wonder about SGM Potratz. Coal Bin or Col Wilson was in IV Corps with John Pul Van so I remember him or at least some of the orders that came down. I was the Operations/Intelligence Advisor with Duc Long District, Chuong Thien Province. I took many a step with on LT Carlile. Unfortunately he was seriously wounded just ten days after I received a direct appointment to Warrant Officer so I never saw him again until a Reunion in St. Louis many years. He lived thank goodness.

    Reply

    • Does anybody happen to remember a Sgt Horn. I don’t know if he was ever assigned to team 70. I was informed he had taken part in the battle of the AShau 3/66. I met him July or so of 66 while assigned to 4/7 5th Div, Paris Ton Quy. He was visiting our team leader. It looks like the SF/ARVN unit was part of Team 3 out Hue. Thank you, Chuck LaMons Team 70 6/66 – 3/68.

      Reply

  32. Hello,
    Any veterans remember an engagement that took place 19 March 1967 ..village of Thanh-(——?)
    I am trying to identify an advisor that was on that operation. The only information I have is he served
    on Team 70 and then Team 91 and was at
    Paris Tan Quy
    He also was a RTO

    Reply

    • Hello Eric, the fellow you are looking for might Larry Eagan, RTO. He was on a neighboring team, we chummed around together a bit. I was RTO on the team with 4th of the 7th at Paris Ton Quy, PTQ, with Major James W. F. Pruitt, 6/66 to early 67. Larry spoke of going to PTQ at some point. It seems Larry was on Team 90 as well if my memory serves. Our team left the comforts of PTQ for Operation Cedar Falls I believe. When we got back to PTQ it was in shambles. Half it’s original size, unkept. At one time point our call sign was Sampson Scooper 4. Larry might be your man. Welcome home.

      Reply

    • Eric, the village might be Thanh wa, spelling? When Major Pruitt and I arrived at PTQ, the ARVN we’re on a limited vacation, staying in the compound at night. Story had it that they had suffered heavy casualties recently, and we’re a bit shell shocked. Major Pruitt got them rolling, and we were on for night operations. It seemed like The ARVNs we’re liking that. Got some payback. Major Pruitt did an excellent job of motivating.

      Reply

      • Eric, Another vill just so of PTQ was Trung Ni. Charlie had free reign. Must have been his in country r&r spot. Soooo, Maj Pruitt got his counterpart to assemble a trust worthy team to pay a visit to the village at night. Had a good team of ARVN, Maj. Pruitt and I accompanied them. Chalie got caught completely by surprise, pants down and plenty chilled out. Was a huge success. Those ARVN soldiers showed their metal. I find it a shame that the U S government sold the South Vietnamese out. I had the pleasure of getting to know a lot of terrific soldiers and some civilians. I have SVN neighbors now that are from that neck of the woods, Bin Hoa. They love America. That’s it, Thanh Hoa. Hope this helps.

        Reply

  33. My husband James P Simmons was a forward air controller at phi loi from sept 1965 to Sept 1966. He was a staff sergeant at the time in the USAF.

    Reply

  34. My father, Major Antonio Lopez, was an Air force FAC pilot in Viet Nam from April 1969 to May 1970 and flew OV-10s. On May 6th, 1969, he ended up receiving the distinguished flying cross for a single mission providing FAC support at Lai khe. I’ve always wondered exactly what happened that 1 day out of 364 other days and 380 missions flown? His medal certificate provides some details (coordinated heavy airstrike & took lots of fire), but there were many, many other crazy missions during that year. Any info from anyone else who was there & remembers would be appreciated. thanks,
    Mike

    Reply

  35. Hi Gentlemen, trying to find info about my late father’s (Stephen Winters) experience in VN. All I have from his records are Feb ’70 – Trp Adv III CTZ (CI) US Mil Asst Comd / MACV III Bien Hoa and Jun ’70 Team 70 III CTZ ARMAV Lai Kai. He was ARMD Cav. Looked young and boyish. I have some pictures can share. Can anyone help?

    Reply

    • Sorry I might remember faces I was at team 95 and team 70 during that time but with time in have lost the memory of names. I remember the compound of both.

      Reply

  36. Time has taken almost all of the names from me. SGM Potratz and I left Vietnam on the same day which was 19 December 1964 as I recall. I think he was a danged fine soldier.

    Reply

  37. I served in Ben Cat for about six months between late 1964 and early 1965 as Armor adviser to some 13 ARVN APCs. They wouldn’t stay off the dirt road (labeled Route 1) and so we lost two more along with ARVN troops thrown out the open hatches and then crushed. Don’t remember the unit designation but the Dai-uy was named Sun (sp?). He had to have four antennas on his (my) track and I could never talk him out of them. I replaced CPT Dave R. Palmer who left for grad school at Duke. He retired to Texas with three stars. One of my NCOs (there were only two) was named Tedrick (a good ole boy). We had an Infantry advisory unit in the compound as well. It was headed by a MAJ Roy Young who was very proud of his mini AR15, the first one I ever saw. COL Young (ret.) was killed in an Eastern Airlines accident when the craft slammed into the ground at Newark. One of the advisers was a Black captain who had served in Korea (like me) but had to be lifted out because of a bleeding ulcer. There was also a MAJ Leon Sugg who had something to do with civil affairs functions. I retired on 1 Mar 76 with 25 years.

    Reply

    • Do you remember the III core operation Nov 1964? I was with 3/9 5th div 64 -65 Was SSG Beard with you at the time? I went to work in May 65 S-3 Maj Young was the 3 at that time Ed Warneld Army Ret ewarneld@hotmail.com

      Reply

      • Ed, I don’t remember much about the names and/or objectives of so-called operations. My team of three had no radios or maps so we depended on our counterparts for any and all info. And food. C-rats impossible to get, but they were for sale on the street in Saigon. We would often go out on short notice and stay anywhere from a day to a week or more. The jaunts were mostly into the Michelin rubber. Sometimes we would go up Route 1 to Bau Bang or Ben Dong So but we didn’t linger long. Even though I rode in the Dai-uy’s track he guarded his one map like a miser hoarding his stash. Our interpreter would sometimes wander across the road in the late morning hour to our hooch and say something like, “Dai-uy say go out today. Beaucoup VC. Cross river. Practice first.” How about “practicing” for an assault across a river? When we finally got around to it about 1600 (naturally we had to stop for rice and a siesta) we lost a few more PCs, one or two with no shrouds, a few others with only one. They just seemed to fade/float away downriver. The “VC” on the opposite bank of the river suddenly appeared and laughed hysterically at our predicament. Never met an SSG Beard although my first boss was a MAJ Niven Beard. Don’t know if your S3 Young was later our camp leader. We had a medic (SSG “Doc” Cooley I think) who often went out with the Infantry team. I later learned that he was killed on his third or fourth tour. He was a good soldier and a great medic. He would often go into the nearby village alone to try to help a suffering native. Regards,

        Reply

      • I believe you served with my dad, Captain Robert Alhouse. He was the Infantry advisor to 3BN/9Reg in late 1964, replacing Captain Church. He was at Tay Ninh and then Dau Tieng before moving in January of 1965 to 2/8 in Phu Hoa Dong. I have just finished transcribing a journal he kept during his tour and he mentions Gibson, Warneld and Straty as the other members of the battalions advisory team when he came on board. SSgt Gutherie joining the team about the time my dad did. I have transcribed the journal he kept from that tour and am more than willing to share it with anyone interested. If you are in fact the same Sgt. Warneld you are mentioned multiple times in the journal. I am also in the process of digitizing over 750 slides he took during that tour and have multiple pictures of where you guys lived in Tay Ninh and Dau Tieng.

        Reply

    • The AR-15’s that people had in the 1964 era were a part of an Air Force survival kit carried on aircraft. At least that is what I have been told. It didn’t have the charging handle.

      Reply

      • The first ’15 I ever saw was carried by a 1st Lt USAF fac assigned to the team back in the last months of 1962. I actually met Coal Bin Willie at Bien Hoa. Nguyen Van Thieu too, when he commanded the 5th Division. Often said good morning to him in the hallway.

        Reply

  38. Has anyone ever heard of a gentleman by the name of Doug or Larry Hines that served in the MACV … he said 4ID but cannot find that unit ?

    Reply

      • I’m glad to hear he is doing well. We haven’t heard from him in awhile. Do you know if he ever got his book out? Several vets I know including myself would be anxious to read it. I am reading a book right now about the battle of An Loc. It is very intense reading.

        Reply

    • John Paul Vann is legendary. Walt Rostow, a hawkish advisor to President Johnson, once asked Vann is he thought the US would be past the worst of it in 6 months. “Oh hell no, Mr. Rostow,” Vann replied. “I think the US can hold out longer than that.”

      But I never heard of Zippo nor know anything about him. I’d be interested in learning why he is so well known. Thanks.

      Reply

      • Al – not only are your looks gone with old age but your memory is shot to hell too. I dropped you and Frank off in Saigon on 6 April 1972 where we spent the night saving souls from hell down on Tudo Street. I returned to Lai Khe on 7 April for two nights, returning to Saigon on the 9th. You and Frank flew out on the 10th and I flew out on the 12th. At the north edge of Lai Khe on the 8th, the VN Airborne was lined up on QL-13 getting ready to help relieve An Loc. I met author Mike McDermott (Airborne Advisor) in Lai Khe on the 8th, while he was talking to a group of Team 70 people. When I met you and Frank on the 9th I gave you two all of the news I had about Zippo and the air assets killing tanks at Loc Ninh, ending with the death of LTC Schott, SFC Lull missing, and Carlson, Wallingford, and Zippo captured. I went to 2nd Brigade 101st at Fort Campbell where Colonel Miller was my brigade commander. The brigade CSM and XO did not like it when he would call me (SGT E-5) into his office and kick them out, relating to me time and again everything that happened after we left. Later at Fort Stewart, CSM Berry told me he took Colonel Miller to Saigon twice to PCS, and Colonel Miller beat him back to Lai Khe both times. The third time General Hollingsworth gave CSM Berry a nose-to-nose direct order to put him on the plane and wait until it took off. There is a lot more to that story, but we who worked closely with Colonel Miller knew him as a soldier’s soldier and a man to be with when the shit started.

        On the way to Saigon I passed through the security point south of Ben Cat manned by ARVNs. They had seven bodies lined up at the edge of the road under ponchos. I tried to get my ARVN interpreter/driver to stop for some pictures, and he ignored me. He was scared to death and I doubt that he ever went back to Lai Khe.

        We who have been there salute you!

        Reply

            • Wallingford was on my team along with Cpt Mark (zippo) Smith, SFC Howard Lull, LTC Shott and a Artillery Maj whose first name was Albert.

              Reply

              • That was Albert ‘Ed’ Carlsom who was promoted to 0-5 and 0-6 before retirement. He was held with Ken and I in the jungle. He bought his waterside dream house in Washington State and unexpectedly passed away shortly thereafter.
                ZIP

                Reply

                • Good evening SIR. Thank you for the info on Maj. Carlson. The years have put a strain on my memory. So glad to know you are still on the green side of the grass. I retired as a 1ST Sargent in 1983. Best regards

                  Reply

                • Did you get your book about An Loc published? I would really like to read it. I was with Team 70 in 1970 and Team 91 in 1971. I went home just before the offensive started and am really interested in what happened.
                  Happy New Year!

                  Larry Gale

                  Reply

    • Just ran across this website. Hope you are still checking this site. Art and I were 1LTs together in the 101st and went over together on the same plane from Travis. We were assigned to TM70. He went to the 7th Regt. I got the 9th. We should talk. Regards,

      Reply

      • Hello Mike… I didn’t know your father, but probably saw him at Lam Son when I was also in from the field (field advisors were obvious wearing their berets or jungle bush hats). During my two tours, I was an Advisory Team 70 field team advisor embedded in 8th Regiment Teams. I’m now in contact with Fred, and he has shared with me some great information about your father (68 Tet Posthumous Silver Star). I know you are very proud of your Father! I believe your father was the Assistant Senior Advisor on one of the 7th Regiment’s Battalion advisory team. On Feb 1st, 1968, I replaced under fire the 8th Regiment Team RTO that had been wounded at Ben Cat when it was overrun (except for the TOC) in the AM early hours. Captain Samuel Stewart III (Posthumous Distinguished Service Cross), 8th Regiment Team Staff Advisor, died of wounds received when Ben Cat was overrun in the early AM hours of Feb 1st, 1968. You are welcome to Friend me on Facebook and view my Vietnam photo album. I have a few photos of the ARVN Phu Van compound that was then the home base of the 7th Regiment Team and one of the 7th Regiment’s Battalions. MAYBE your father’s battalion.

        Reply

        • Carl, thank you for this new information. I am old school only 54 but I am not a face book guy. Would like to hear more, especially from comrades that were with him during that time on this weekend of remembrance. Mtimboe@gmail.com.

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        • I was in ben cat sept 67 to dec 69, was there during tet a night ill never for get , with 1st div arty liason team

          Reply

      • Ron, your name sounds familiar. I served as Senior Advisor Major Van Amburgh’s RTO From 1Feb68 to about the first week in Jun68. Major Van Amburgh was replaced by LTC Matthews and I served as his RTO until the end of Sep68 when I left for a 30 day leave. Did you replace me and become LTC Matthews RTO around the beginning of Oct68?

        Reply

        • Carl, I remember you. I got to the 8th Regt 2 weeks before Tet of 68 and was assigned as asst Bn adv with the 1st Bn. Cpt Eliades was senior adv and SFC Jerry Carter and SSG Wagner we’re on the team. I met Cpt Stewart when I arrived and remember the night he was killed. Some time later I became the senior adv with the 4th Bn and worked with SFC Razor and SSG Colbert. I later moved up to regt as staff adv working for Maj Matthews. Where are you now?

          Reply

      • John, Just saw your comment! Don’t understand, “no you didn’t Carl” What are you referring too? After so many years our memories have faded. Here is the first part of Captain Stewart DSC that clearly states that he was the Advisory Team 70 8th Rgt Team Staff Advisor. The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 9, 1918 (amended by act of July 25, 1963), takes pride in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross (Posthumously) to Captain (Infantry) Samuel R. Stewart, III (ASN: 0-5220757), United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations involving conflict with an armed hostile force in the Republic of Vietnam, while serving with Advisory Team 70, 5th Infantry Division Advisory Detachment, United States Military Assistance Command, Vietnam. Captain Stewart distinguished himself by exceptionally valorous actions on 31 January 1968 as staff advisor to a Vietnamese regiment during an enemy attack on its headquarters compound at Ben Cat. During the early morning hours, a large Viet Cong force, armed with rockets, mortars, automatic weapons and flamethrowers, unleashed a furious assault on the installation and overran its perimeter bunker line. I jointed Senior Advisor Major Van Amburgh and replaced his RTO, SP-4 John Adams, on 1Feb68 at the Trung An RF/PF outpost south of Ben Cat. Email me and I’ll answer any question you have.

        Reply

  43. Was at Ben Cat Christmas of 66. There was a red headed Lt from Omaha but dont remember his name. I think he worked with a local orphanage or resettlement camp near BC.

    Reply

  44. MACV Advisory Team 70 field team RTO and Light Weapon Sergeant (E5) from Oct 67 to May 69. Found this Page while doing memoir research. Replaced 8th Regimental Team RTO (John A.) that was wounded when Ben Cat was practically completely overrun at the start of 68 Tet. While serving as 1/8 Battalion Team Light Weapon Sergeant also participated in 5th Recondo Company Ops (Recon and B52 Bomb Damage Assessments) in War Zone D. Was the only Advisor (SGT E5) for 1st/8th Bn 2nd Company attached (combined Op) to 1st Cav in early 1969 Ho Bo Wood Op. Knew and remember most of the field Advisors mentioned in Robert Parrish’s book- ‘COMBAT RECON My Year With The ARVN’. Knew 8th RGT CO LTC Vy and 1st Bn CO CPT Kin.

    Reply

    • I was rto for 1st div liason tm in ben cat from sept 67 to dec 68, was there an overran in feb 1st 68. the name doesn’t ring a bell

      Reply

      • Hello John Vessello…. My name probably “doesn’t ring a bell” because we never met. I understand you were the RTO for the 1st Div artillery at Ben Cat when it was mostly overrun on 31Jan 1968. The morning of 1Feb1968, I was told I was being assigned to replace the wounded RTO at Ben Cat. That was about all I was told. I was told to be at the Lam Son pad for a Huey ride (I think around 2:00pm) to replace the wounded RTO. Obviously as instructed, the Huey Pilot gave me a ride north up Hwy 13 past the big 1st ID’s battle at An My and landed out side the old French PF/RF triangular sharped Trung An outpost. I jumped out dragging a short duffel bag with me. I new it wasn’t Ben Cat, but had no idea where I was. Heard rifle fire and saw ARVN troops running behind a village house on the dirt road that ran in front of the Trung An outpost. Left my duffel bag and ran to the back of the village house. Came up behind Major Van Aburgh (Senior Advisor) and wounded SP4 John Adams. The Nung security were attacking the enemy within the houses across the dirt road. The enemy shot through the small stick and mud house making pieces of mud and sticks fly off the back wall. We grouped behind the ends of the house for the thicker end wall protection. Cobra gunships were called and shot right over us and an air strike was put in to the north before we could risk the open dirt road into the outpost. That night SP4 Adams told me about what happened at Ben Cat. RTO SP4 Adams although wounded stayed with Major Van Amburgh until the next morning to comply with MACV policy requiring a minimum of two Americans operating with a Vietnamese unit. If SP4 Adams had been MedEvac’d as you thought, Major Van Amburgh would have had pulled-out leaving the ARVN 8th Regiment with U.S. artillery and air support. Uring all the crap that was happening at the start of 68Tet, a Huey was sent to take my warm body to replace SP4 Adams and keep Major Van Amburgh providing U.S. fire support for the ARVN 8th Regiment. The rest of my two Tours is history. Oh, qualified for the CIB on my first day in the field!

        Reply

  46. My brother, Captain John Vaughn, was a member of Team 70. He was KIA near Binh Duong on June 09, 1970, during his second tour of duty in Vietnam. I would love to hear from anyone who knew him.

    Reply

    • Dixie,
      I knew your brother through OCS. We both completed Infantry OCS at Ft.Benning in January, 1967. We were in different platoons and I didn’t know him well but he was a good guy. I was sorry to learn of his death.

      Reply

  47. I have just found this website and would be so greatfull if anyone could share anything you might know about my Dad – Captain Paul Jackson. He was killed in action January 24, 1970. Some information was provided to us but being so young it was hard to comprehend what life was like there and the circumstances of his death. It was very painful thing for our Mom to talk about very much. Thank you to everyone that served. You are heros.

    Reply

  48. I served with Team 70 at Lai Khe from Sept “70 to Feb. “71. Just discovered this site yesterday and have been reading the postings to see many familiar names of brothers I served with during my short time in country. Seems like a lifetime ago. Hope all of you are well and enjoying the “Golden Years”

    Reply

    • Was in Team 70 at Lai Khe from about Apr-71 to Oct-71, came from TM 95. Did like the ride from Saigon. Do not remember who was there when I was but have slept since than. I did like the group of vets I worked with while there. God Bless

      Reply

          • I was with Team 70 Jan 70 to Jan 71 in G2. Do you happen to remember the name of the LTC in charge of G2? I think it was O’Connel or something like that. I wonder if I was the last SPC (96b) in G2. I didn’t have a replacement that I knew of. Welcome to the website.

            Reply

            • Thank you the only one I remember by name was SGT Wallingford who came in as I was leaving. I worked with a CPT from MT do not remember his name. He kept wanting me to go on missions when I only had three weeks left. I liked him just was to short

              Reply

                  • I have forgotten names that I was with the only one I remember is Ken because I saw him get off the plane when he was released. Got promoted in Sept only had two moths left at that time. Ken was shotgun sometimes on trips to Saigon.

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  50. Does anyone remember Infantry CPT Robert J. Voss. He was KIA on 07/08/1965 in Tay Ninh Province and his unit was listed as ADV Team 70. He started his tour 03/17/65. He was in the Maintenance Directorate, HQ 1st Log Cmd when I arrived in country in May of 65, I believe he was on his second Vietnam tour. He wanted out of 1st Log and he made a trade with an Ordnance officer coming into MACV. The story that ran through 1st Log when he was killed was that he had been ambushed with an ARVN Infantry battalion and everyone on the foray were killed. I think that is probably a myth. I can find nothing to substantiate that event which would have been very big deal in 1965.

    Reply

    • My Name is Ed Warneld I served with Cpt Voss LT Moodey,SGG Smith and SGT Bruno who were KIA that day. I was transferred Back to Phu_Loi in Apr of 65. I remember as they recovered the bodies Americans and ARVN Officers.I have talked to SGT Bruno’s brother over the years

      Ed Warneld ewarneld@hotmail.com

      Reply

      • SGT Paul Bruno, my oldest son is name for him. He and I were good friends. Great individual and a very good friend. I still have photos of him some where in the boxes I carried around during my time in the service. He was killed the day before I left Saigon for home and it was quit a shock to me, I had loss another friend. Does and one remember Jerry Binger?

        Reply

          • July 1964 to July 1965, started out as the S/A clerk typist, lasted all of four hours, and when they found out I couldn’t type, but had a security clearance. They put me in the S1 and the S2. When we moved to Phu Loi I also served as the noon time relief in the TOC on the radio. Most the time I was just a fill-in for anybody that needed help couldn’t stand sitting in one place very long.I was a Nike Hercules missile crewman but had a clerk typist MOS because I worked on a simulator out of the G3 and they put me in a clerk typist position to keep me.

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      • I am Richard Erwin and came to cosney compound.as a private. I was a radio operator and attached to 5th Arvin. 8th regiment Advisory team 70. I can’t remember the Captains name or any of the other guys I was with but thought maybe you might know of them. It would be of help to me as I was supposed to be put in for a bronze star but the Captain was transferred and I never knew whether he did or not. I was also supposed to be put in for a medal for over 100 hours in a helicopter too. If you know any thing about the men in that unit I would appreciate knowing. My records got burned up in St. Louis Missouri fire at the records facility.

        Reply

    • I believe Capt Robert J Voss was in the 2nd Battalion, 9th Regiment, 5th ARVN Infantry Division. Other Americans KIA July 8, 1965 were 1lt Larry G Moody, SSG Herbert Smith & Sgt Paul Bruno. All were AT-70. I have no idea about the casualties of the 2/9th. I was not there.

      Reply

  51. On behalf of a friend, Jeff Davis, son of Sidney (Sid) Davis trying to locate a Csptain Robert Douglas with whom Sid served in Vietnam Nam 1965/66. MAC V Advisory team 70.
    Any information would be appreciated.
    Thanks

    Reply

    • Barb, I can’t help Jeff find Captain Douglas but I have great memory or two I would like share with Syd if he is still with us or if not with his son.

      My name is Mike La Londe and if this is the same Syd from Phu Loi I would like to get in touch. Thanks

      Reply

      • Hi Michael,

        Im Jeff Davis, Sid’s son. Please feel free to contact me directly at my email address attached to this email. Once I receive your email, We can have a phone conversation just to be sure we are connecting you to the right person. Thanks for the reply and I hope to hear from you soon.

        Jeff Davis

        Reply

  52. As I posted earlier, I was with the ASA (Radio Research) cover name, with a small 2 and 2 man Radio Direction Finding team at Phu Hau Dong late Aug. 66 – early Sept. 66. We lived in the old French mansion as guests of the MACV team there. There was an E-4 Radio Op there who had somehow managed to get then Sen. Robert Kennedy to deliver flowers to a girl back home in New York. Does anyone know who I am talking about? I have a couple pictures of him manning his radio. Not sure he would remember me or “us” though?

    Reply

  53. Vern Greunke here former “Radio Research” guy. (ARMY Security Agency) we operated a PRD-1 Portable? radio direction finding unit out on the helipad at Ben Cat. Aug. 66-July 67 (more or less) would love to hear from anyone in that area from MACV team. I was also at Phu Hoa Dong, Thoi Hoa (just south of BC, and Trung Lap. Went on “runs” up to Lai Khe at times also. Have DVD with 330 pictures of the area at the time. Would send to anyone who was there or remembers me (or not) I do recall a red headed Lt. or Cpt. from Omaha area working with an orphanage or something. Wondering if he is still in area. I live close to Omaha.
    Vern Greunke

    Reply

    • Robert Bell here,…I served w/ tm70, 69 to71 @ Lai Khe. and points north within the AO of
      the 9th Regt. 4th Batallion . I would sincerely like to have a copy of your DVD w/ 330 pictures
      of the area. My memory is real bad and the pictures help jog my memory. Great to hear from you

      Reply

    • Hi Vern, would you have any pictures of Phu Hoa Dong ARVN compound? I was there as a tower guard in 1969 for the 1st of the 8th Artillery 25th Infantry Division.
      Bob

      Reply

        • Not sure I’m understanding the interface here? I got a notice from a Bob Sandusky about pictures from Phu Hoa Dong but I can’t see how I can contact him or post them anywhere. Can someone clue me in? thanks! vern heyvern@asalives.com send directly to my email

          Reply

        • My dad was at Phu Hoa Dong in late 1964 and early 1965 as an infantry advisor. Captain Robert Alhouse. I have recently finished transcribing a journal he kept during that tour. I also am in the process of digitizing over 800 slides from that tour. A large number of those pictures are from Phu Hoa Dong including many shots of the compound. If you are SP/4 Peterson, who was a Medic you are mentioned many times in his journal. I would be happy to share his journal with anyone interested and will have the slides ready to share in a week or so.

          Reply

          • Hi Bob, Iwas at PhuHoaDong in 1969 so that was after your dad was there but would appreciate any pictures or info concerning the ARVN compound. Bob

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            • Hey Bob (Nice Name),

              I have a folder in the cloud with over 700 slides from my Dad’s first tour (64-5). Over 200 of those pictures are from Phu Hoa Dong. Send me your e-mail address and I’ll send you an invite to view the folder. There is also a journal my Dad kept during that tour that has info on the day to day goings on in Phu Hoa Dong in early 1965. I’ll send you an invite to view that also if you are interested.

              Bob Alhouse
              balhouse@comcast.net

              Reply

      • Bob can you contact me directly at: heyvern@asalives.com and I’ll send any and all pictures of Phu Hoa Dong I have. I was only there a couple weeks at best. We later left that compound but returned in late spring/summer of 67. I wasn’t on that particular team though.

        Reply

      • I was a radio operator with advisory team 70 5th Arvin 8th fromOct 65 to oct 66 and went out on field operations I remember a guy named Eagan don’t know if it was you or not Forgot a lot of names from that time. Would like to know some names of other guys from that era. Send me an email.

        Reply

  54. Thanks lm larry Eagen was with 2/7/5div nov 65 until middle 1966 then was wounded June 10 at phu hoa after a week at phi loi i returned to P H Dong later l was switch to tm 91 left Vietnam nov 66 would like info on arvn Lt Hai arty fo for 2/7/5div 1966 thanks

    Reply

  55. Hello Gentleman,
    I think I have a picture of the plaque you are referring to. The picture was taken at Lam Son on 10 May, 1969 and has 59 names on it.

    It is part of a memorial service booklet prepared for my family after the death of my father, Cpt. I. F. Padron, MACV Senior Advisor Team 70 (ARVN/ 3 BTN/ 9 REGT/ 5 DIV) who died at Song-Be, RVN on 6 May,1969

    The booklet was forwarded to our family by Brigadier General Carlton Preer, Jr., MACV III CORPS. It includes several excellent pictures of the service including; “THE CALL TO ATTENTION” which shows a very clear picture of over 50 very solemn US soldiers, the “MEMORIAL ADRESS” by Chaplain (CPT) Robert H. VOGT, “THE EULOGY” by Col. James H. Leach. As well as pictures of many soldiers “IN PRAYER”. The faces of the US Soldiers are very clear but unfortunately unknown to me.

    If any of any of you would like a copy of these pictures please send your email to the address listed below and I will forward them to you. The faces of these very young men are for the most part very clear and distinguishable. I have no doubt you will recognize many of them.

    Thank you for your service

    Regards,
    Roberto Padron, AIA
    RPadron99@aol.com

    PS: My father also sent home 100’s of great pictures of him with his fellow US Advisors, Counterparts and ARVN soldiers. Many pictures were taken in the field/bush while others are of tired men at rest. I wish I had names to go with the faces!

    Reply

  56. I have a photo of the Memorial Plaque we had in mid-1970 at Lai Khe. It has 68 names on it. Unfortunately the individual names are not legible but the dedication plaque is. I have often wondered to what became of that plaque.

    Reply

    • Mike, I also have a photo of the plaque. Mine was taken by Carl A. Farren of Team 70 in 1968, and he posted it on Flickr, I think. He stated that the plaque was dedicated in Oct. 68, and it had 45 names on it at the time. That was 45 killed out of 177 who had served with Team 70 in the preceding four years, Carl said. I guess it made the move to Lai Khe. I’ve often wondered about its fate, too. I have the names of 57 Team 70 KIAs, so obviously there are–sadly–more than that. I only have names for three who gave their lives in ’71 and ’72, and there were at least five who died in 1970. If you want this pic, my email is further down the thread.

      Reply

      • Fed, Carl Farren here. Friend me on Face Book where I currently have my Vietnam photos in an album (Vietnam). I can’t remember now, but I either took the pic of the Memorial Plaque in Oct68 or May69. Probably Oct68. I’ll send you my email via FB messaging.

        Reply

    • Does anyone know when the team was disbanded? I suppose in 1973 sometime. It must have been quite small by then. By late ’71 they were sending people like me home early. I wasn’t supposed to leave Team 91 until Jan 72 and they cut a month off my time. Some others on Team 91 were asked in early ’72 if they wanted to leave early also. I hope the last guy out the door took the plaque with him. We haven’t heard from anyone later than ’72.

      Reply

      • I don’t know anything about teams or disbanded, but I did read once that after the NVA overtook Saigon they had to return north to take out pockets of resistance and the article ended with something like this. “The last South Vietnamese flag came down at Lai Khe …. and the war was over”

        Reply

        • Wow, that would be something. Thanks for the info. I wonder what publication that was in. I heard somewhere that the 5th ARVN commanding general committed suicide rather than be captured.

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          • Check with Zippo Smith ( this website ) he was captured at Loc Ninh and has the complete story on the general

            Reply

        • Brigadier General Le, Nguyen Vy committed suicide at 11:00 AM on April 30th, 1975 at the 5th Division Headquarters in Lai Khe

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          • That’s really too bad. Can’t say I blame him. It would have been really bad for him when captured. There was no hope.

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            • I would guess Lai Khe was completely isolated and cut off by that time. No way out. Being captured was simply not an option that I completely understand for a person in that position.

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            • This is well known to the Vietnamese Community. In fact, there were 5 generals committed suicide at the fall of Saigon (April 30th, 1975).

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          • To answer my own question, an internet search under Brig. Gen. Le Nguyen Vy comes up with several interesting web sites regarding him and other generals, especially in those last days. A real tragedy to lose top people like that. They were loyal to their country to the end.

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          • I served with LTC Vy when he commanded the 8th Regiment of the 5th Division in 1968. I was in the Adv. Tm 70 8th Rgt Team from 68Tet to Oct 68.

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          • I knew LTC Vy in 68-69 when he commanded the 5th Division’s 8th Regiment. A tough Commander! He executed two of three CIA VC in the Ben Cat TOC while the compound was being overrun. The third VC talked!!

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            • not durning the fighting but the next day, is when the VC where killed and I believe he did all 3 , I watched the 1st one go , then turned away

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            • he shot all 3 of them ,( which is murder) you shouldn’t write any thing that isn’t true .If you were captured , would you welcome that output?

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    • Hi Mike. Just found this Page. My photo of the Adv Tm 70 Memorial Plaque was taken at Lam Son before I left in 1969. Captain Durward Dean Gosney, i.e., Gosney Compound, was KIA on 7 Oct 1964 when his Huey was shot down. Don’t remember the number of names on the Plaque I photoed. I’ll count and get back.

      Reply

      • Hi Carl,

        Glad you found this site. There are quite a few folks from Team 70 from all eras and some family members too.

        Keep posting.

        Mike

        Reply

        • To Mike and everyone else that served on Team 70: Here’s wishing you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy and Prosperous New Year. It’s really been interesting to hear from everyone on this website.
          Larry Gale G-2 1970

          Reply

          • Larry and others,

            Thanks, Larry.

            Hope everyone is enjoying a very Merry Christmas. Larry Gale: I don’t know if you remember CPT Mike Rush, the liaison officer from the 1st Air Cav. He bunked in our hootch when he was at Lai Khe. I’m sure he was a regular visitor to G-2.

            He wrote a parody on ‘T’was the Night Before Christmas’ that I want to share but I lost your email address when my computer took a crap last year. He read it at the Christmas Day briefing 1970.

            My email is covan2@verizon.net I will be happy to send to anyone else who wants a copy, too. Just send me your email address.

            Mike

            Reply

            • Merry Christmas Mike and ALL! I spent June 67 to May 68 with Team 70, initially with the 3/9th near Song Be and finished up that tour at the 5th ARVN Division Training Center on Hwy 13. I would love to have a copy of the referenced Christmas poem. Grant Rosensteel (new e-mail: rosensteelgrant@gmail.com)

              Reply

            • My name is Bob Bell, I served w/ team 70 @ Lam Son. Lai Khe, & the 4/9 An Loc & North 11/69 – 1/71
              Thanks for the holiday salutation and the same to you and all. As I read these lines, all of them, I am
              saddened at how many names I do not remember. Every day of my life I have thoughts of my time
              in country with all of the wonderful, intelligent men I was privileged to serve with.
              Again, Happy holidays to all. my email is zx1144@aol.com

              Reply

    • IN early 65 the Coumpound at Phu-Loi construction was started with about four people with PAand E It was just about finished when I PCS in Oct 65. At that time the Compound had no name just Arvn 5th HQ. I do remember a memorial Board that Hung in the Co-OP mess with names of KIA Advisors

      Ed 3/9 9th Reg 5th Div Sept 1964-Oct 1965

      Reply

      • Thanks for the info Ed. It was probably a quite different place in those ‘early’ days. For those of us that spent considerable time there that compound at least made life more bearable. Compared to Lai Khe that compound was heaven.

        Reply

      • I have a photo of Gosney Compound in 1966, when it was the home of Advisory Team 91 (says so on the sign over the entrance). Email me, and I’ll send it to you. Also have aerials of the compound and the 5th Div. base.

        Reply

        • Hi Fred, I would really like to see those photos also. Let us know what your email is. Team 91 moved back in to the compound when we moved to Lai Khe in 1970. I was with Team 91 in 1971 after I left Team 70 so I got to spend another 11 months there.

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        • Hi Fred I was with Adv. Team 70 Fifth Arvn Div. from May 66 to May 67 in Gosney Compound most of he time. I don’t remember Team 91 being there while i was there.I would love to have pictures of the compound aerial or otherwise. My email address is littledogerb@gmail.com. Thanks

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          • Hello fellas, I was assigned to team 70. I arrived 6/66. I rember it being team 70. ?? Gosney Compound. I think I will check my photos. Chuck LaMons.

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            • I was at Phu Huo Dong tm 91 in the end of my year1966 .it was across the Saigon river Fr Ben Cat I have a picture Fr the air larry eagen Chuck Lemons and i were thru there a few times when we were on tm 70 I was with 2/7 of the 5th div

              Reply

                • Hello Robert, this Chuck LaMons. I just saw Larry Eagan and his wife Barb a couple of days back. They travel from Michigan to Florida every year. I live in NC. Always good to see them. It is hard to believe we were hangin out in the Nam when we were in our very early twenties. When I arrived in country I still wasn’t old enough to vote.🤔 Like so many other men. Can you send me a pic that you are describing? Take care. Chuck 828-514-3657

                  Reply

                  • Hello Chuck, I have not received the pic from Larry yet. He said it was a pic of PhuHoaDong from the air. I’m not sure of the year it was taken but i’m interested too. Bob

                    Reply

                    • Hi Chuck, I was assigned to the ARVN Compound at PhuHoaDong in 1969 from 1st of the 8th Artillery unit of the 25th Infantry Division out of CuChi. We manned the 110′ tower (Tower #1) and kept an eye primarily on the village below, the Saigon river, the Iron Triangle and the Filhol Plantation calling in artillery / mortar as necessary. There were 8 Americans on the compound 4 of us took shifts in the tower. The other 4 were MACV advisors. I don’t remember their names. We didn’t really interact much. We all just went about our business. I was on the night shift (dusk to dawn) and rested most of the day until it was time to go back up. Bob

        • Fred I was just curious in December 67 was there a nativity scene put up at Christmas because I painted and erected one in 1966 for the compound and I had heard it was used after that, I was stationed there on January 21st 1966 to January 20 1967 with 232 signal AT70, also if you could send me those photos you have i would appreciate it, Thank You Sincerely Jim Cagnard

          Reply

      • Ed, Thanks! Been trying to find when Gosney Compound was built. Was a 8th Rgt RTO Sept 68-Oct68 then Battalion Team’s Sergeant Jan69-May69. Prior to 69Tet did some ARVN Recondo Insert Ops, Recon and B52 Bomb Damage Assessments.

        Reply

      • my late husband SSGT James Jim Simmons served as a USAF advisor to the ARVN 5TH HQ from Sept 1965 toSept 1966. he communicate air strike information. as a radio operstor. Despite that horribly long year we remained in the Air Force until his retirement.

        Reply

    • Probably sometime around 65. He was killed in 64. He was my senior counterpart and FRIEND. I remember him daily.

      Reply

      • According to information I think I read somewhere on this site, perhaps on Team 91’s thread, Gosney Compound was built in 1965 by Pacific Architects and Engineers of Los Angeles. Team 91 moved in in 1966, and Team 70 moved in either later in ’66 or in early ’67.

        Reply

      • Gosney Compound was almost finished in Oct. 65 when one of the other vets on this website was there and getting ready to leave. To confirm what Fred said earlier, it was built by PA & E. Team 70 moved out to Lai Khe and Team 91 moved back in to Gosney in March/April 1970. Team 91 was still there at least until June 72 according to one of the Team 91 members. It looks like parts of it were still around until 2010 or so according to the pictures on Google Earth. It would be interesting to know how it was used all those years.

        Reply

    • Don;t know the year it was built. Capt Gosney was on 1 of 2 gun ships and I was 0n 2 of 2 returning from Tay Ninh. Both of our AC were shot ddown and the one Gosney was in exploded and all perished in the fire. This was in Oct 1964. I came home in Jan 1965 on that tour and were still at Thi Dau Mot Binh Doung providence. It had not been built then.

      Reply

      • Thanks for the history. The compound was a welcome oasis from the daily routine. I was there in ‘70 and ‘71 with two different teams (70 and 91). It looks like the compound lasted until the early 2000’s. I wonder who lived there after 1973? Lots of good memories of nice hot showers.

        Reply

        • Gosney Compound was built by PA & E (Pacific Architects & Engineers), a Los Angeles engineering company. I was fortunate enough to audit them in my post-Army career. I was at their offices when Saigon fell. Everyone was very sad. Many of them had friends in Vietnam. It looks like it was built in 1965.

          Reply

        • Chuck did you ever meet anyone from 232 signal co. Do you remember the nativity scene at Christmas? My name is Jim Cagnard and I´m trying to get in touch with any of the guys I was stationed there with, my email is jimcag@telia.com thanks

          Reply

          • Hello Jim, I don’t remember the guys from 232. I hung out with the RTOs from TOC mostly. That doesn’t mean I didn’t meet any of you fellows. Gosney coumpound was a fairly small place, if my memory serves me right. Was your building near the mess hall? I remember some tall antennas there. I was at Paris Ton Quy in 12/66. I may have a pic of the Nativity scene you put together. Do you remember Larry Eagan, RTO? I see him now and then. He is a snow bird passes through NC where I live on his journeys. It would very cool to have a reunion for Team 70 before we all die off.
            My email is chucklamons@gmail.com.

            Reply

        • Hello Dave, Thanks for the info. Do you know if his book ever came out? I would like to read it. I just finished the Willbanks book on the Battle of An Loc. What a story.
          Larry Gale G-2 1970-71

          Reply

          • Larry, I was just at the Las Vegas Reunion for 28th Inf Regt in October and someone visiting the CP one day said he saw a copy of Zippo’s book and bought it at Amazon and had Zippo sign it. I personally did not see the book and when I asked Mark about it via email I got no response. Will have to check out the book on An Loc you mentioned. Thanks, Brother. Dave

            Reply

  59. I tried to post a reply last week and it took a couple of days before it showed up. That’s why two of my replies seem the same. I sent a second post after I never saw the first one show up. Maybe just a glitch.

    Reply

  60. Mark, I arrived in Song Be in April 66 to join the 31BDQ. All those you mentioned were still there, although Jim Hughes, SA was soon medevaced to Japan with a serious infection from tripping on the stairs to our new hooch in the BDQ compound. He qas not back from Japan long before he derosed. Heard that he was then killed in a motorcycle accident. New SA was John Oliver (?). Ski (Cezarski) and I got our CIB’s on the same ambush patrol. VC mortar squad tripped the ambush as we were setting up in broad daylight. One VC KIA was a young boy, maybe 13 with a claymore strapped around his waist and the clicker in his pocket.
    Song Be was a good base. When I went back in 69 to the 2nd Brigade, 1st Cav our firebase was just outside town. I was the S5, so got to work with all the locals that I knew from my tome with 31BDQ.
    I can’t use the acronym, BDQ, where I live,(College Station, TX, home of Texas A&M). Here BDQ stands for “band queer”. Long story, but being a “band queer”, member of the Fightin’ Texas Aggie Band is a prestigious thing.

    Reply

    • Is Zippo still on line ? There are lots of Team 70 folks wanting to hear what input and history he has to tell ( since he was the LAST guy out of country) but somehow he’s not getting responses……problem ? He contacted me via e- mail

      Reply

      • I am here in Bangkok but have not seen the answers to questions I posted. Yet,one cannot expect 24 hour service and I am posting from overseas.

        Zippo

        Reply

        • Zippo… Friend me on Facebook and I’ll try to answer your questions. I was in Team 70 from Oct 1967 to May 1969, and have done a lot of reading about upper III Corps Tactical Zone. Past President (2003-2004) of Special Forces Association SoCal Chapter XII.

          Reply

      • Last post i got (via email) was yesterday when he said “We are here Glen” in repsonse to Glen Kemp. however i haven’t heard anything since. nore can i find it scrolling through the website. :/

        /john

        Reply

  61. From the time I came back from Vietnam through the end of the war I was always glued to the news searching for people I knew . I have often wondered what happened to the aide of the 5 th Division CG a young Lt. named Phuc(?) . He was a good troop and I liked him a great deal.

    Reply

    • I also was glued to the TV in early ’72 since I was only back home for a couple of months. A CBS reporter named Richard Wagner did a broadcast from our area so I wrote him a letter. He answered back right away and said that things had gotten markedly worse in just a few months. In 1975 I was auditing the contractor that built Gosney Compound (PA & E). It was a sad day for all of us when Saigon fell. They had a lot of friends in Vietnam also having worked there for so many years.

      Reply

  62. Zippo,
    I consider you comment high praise and am pleased to know that you think I performed well enough to deserve it.

    Reply

  63. Gentleman let’s keep the criticism of this website down, read the guidelines. Don’t get this forum shut down by blasting the administrator as I’ve been enjoying it for years and look forward to continuing to connect with other Vets.

    Reply

    • my apologies if what i said was ‘blasting the administrator’. i too enjoy this site. I just asked for clarification on the comment or that was my intent
      /john

      Reply

  65. I agree with John and others . This site was established for vets of Vietnam to communicate with each other and I intend to continue to do just that . Zippo was one of the last in country and spent time as a POW and has more in country time and knowledge than most . I served with Zippo and am thankful that is still abound to communicate with the rest of us.

    Reply

    • I was SA with the 4/9 and DEROS May 69. I am still trying to put the pieces together and particularly what happened after I left. These current comments are extremely helpful. Thanks for your remarks, please keep the conversation going.

      Reply

  66. I went back because NVA LTG Tran Van Tra,who saved my life when I was captured, asked to walk the battlefield at Loc Ninh with me for Canadian Sixty Minutes. Like Hal Moore had done. I met with he and his aides and it seemed he had fallen into disfavor because as the head of veterans affairs he wanted to treat NVA, VC and ARVN the same. Anyway we spent about six hours in his garden and agreed to walk the battlefield together but when I returned to do it a couple months later his senior aide came to see me and said the general had been poisoned.

    They sent an impersonator for the shoot and then had my name on a picture of Sergeant W. ,Mick Dumond and Ed Carlson with their hands in the air at their museum. I told the female political officer to get my name off of it and started a tad of a ruckus. The next morning they came to the little hotel to arrest me at six and I told them to come back at eight and chased them into the street. The people smiled behind their hands and loved it.

    Anyway I spent six hours at the police station until Hanoi sent a colonel to apologize and send me back to Saigon. He was young and he asked where General Tra was and I told him Tra was dead. He cried. Here was an intelligence colonel and an American had to tell him their hero was dead.

    In the end the Canadian Sixty Minutes piece was not bad.

    Communists, what are you going to do with them?

    The people in general were just happy to see us again.

    Zip

    Reply

      • given that email or web access is generally an individual, i once again fail to understand what your comment means. This conversation is relevant to all who served with team 70, as it’s the history of our time in vietnam. Zippo has more history for us, and i, for one, would like to hear it. there are quite a few here that would say the same. That he is discussing his time in vietnam and subsequent to his capture is quite important to all of us.

        suggesting that he is only speaking to one other person fails to take in the content of which he speaks.

        please explain why he should take this conversation to all of us, offline to an email venue.

        /john

        Reply

      • Well I have been raining reality onto many preconceived parades for most of my life.

        We are former Team 70 MACV advisors speaking to those from the same team for the first time in over forty years. That I suppose is about as significant a purpose for any group to gather and discuss. Since I served in Vietnam at least a part of every year from 1965(December) to 12 February 1973 excuse me if my experiences at times seem to cross-fertilize. Team 70 was not my first MACV assignment and if someone brings up the 3rd Ranger Group which supported us at An Loc\Loc Ninh in 1972 that should be of interest to most of those assigned to our team at any time.

        Since nothing that happened to me in Vietnam bothers me I welcome any questions from anyone and excuse me if what time the chopper brought the mail was not one of the high points of my long service in our war. But Glenn Kemp thanks for making sure I got it.

        To quote Colonel Bill Miller; Do you get up in the morning just to pies people off?

        Zippo

        Reply

    • During my visit last year I found everyone friendly and happy to see me. Of course most of the ordinary people are younger and have no memory of the war. As you say, the officials are a different animal all together. Let’s hope for a positive change over time and maybe in the long run, some of our effort will have not been lost. I agree with John and others who greatly enjoy your postings. We all experienced different things while we were there, some more intensely than others, but we all have our Team 70 experiences in common. Thanks.

      Reply

    • Mark This is Jim Wymer. I Served With You In An Loc and you told me if you ever got shot again that would be it. Ken Wallingford took my place at An Loc and both of you got captured at Loc Nihn.

      Reply

  68. I would like to read your book also. Is it out yet? I just finished Dereliction of Duty by General McMaster that explains why we were all there. It covers ’63-’65 and all the lies and deceptions that Johnson and McNamara used. It’s an intense read, but for all of us that were there it explains a lot. Look forward to your book.

    Reply

    • Been writing for years and got an advance and then publishing house violated the agreement by going by the due date because of their desire to have the last coup here included. My lawyer handled everything and I hope to finally have in again by end of year. Let a lawyer handle all dealing with publishers.

      It is titled ALONE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE RIVER.

      Reply

      • I look forward to it. Since I left RVN late in ’71 I have always wanted to hear more about what happened in ’72. it was all so fresh to me when I heard about An Loc, etc. just a few months later. Keep us all updated. It’s great to hear from someone that was actually there. I was glad I had a chance to go back to Lai Khe last year and see how it’s all changed, but of course the memories will always be there.

        Reply

  69. Yep , Dave Patton , distant relative . Got relieved about mid tour but in my opinion he didn’t deserve it . He and I wrestled with a JP -4 fire one night during a sapper attack . Got canned because he told his counterpart what he was doing was wrong and I thoughtPatton was right.

    Reply

    • That is the way I heard it and the Regiment DCO and the SGM,who I threatened to shoot dead for stealing my gasoline , thought they could do the same with LTC Schott and I.

      Colonel Bill Miller flew up and we all had lunch and Miller said to Colonel Vinh;

      ” Problem, Generals Minh and Hollingsworth love Captain Smith and if he said he would shoot your Sergeant Major he should be very afraid.”

      That was that.

      Few realize how few of us were left in Vietnam by late 1971 and early 72.

      Our counterparts felt they were being deserted and officers who had avoided Vietnam suddeny found they needed it on their record. You’d ask what some new officer’s last assignment was and be told, ‘ Harvard getting my MBA.’

      Even NCOS who had been in Vietnam for a long time were moving back to infantry assignments for promotion purposes. SFC Lull had been at the PRU training center at Long Hai as early as late 1968 before coming to 9th RCAT. I knew him well which led to him saying he did not recall. The RIF was on and suddenly fearful folks were vying for dwindling field assignments. Our club officer got his RIF notice at Laike. Getting that job was no career enhancer.

      Heck, Ed Carlson had been at Stanford before coming back to Vietnam but at least he had been there before.

      I started to think I was the only one there because he liked the operational end of things.

      Zip

      Reply

      • My last assignment before Vietnam and Team 70 was as a civilian , I’d been off active duty for several years. I volunteered to come back on active duty and go to Vietnam because I wanted to know if I could measure up. I hope I did.

        Reply

        • And measure up you certainly did. Now run out there and kick that smoking satchel charge off that blivet of av-gas.

          Zip

          Reply

  70. Zip you are one of a rare breed and I always thought of you as Patton in an 0-3 uniform . Different war but the same mindset.

    Reply

  71. I was proud to serve beside you as you were a true warrior . I was a professional back then but I don’t believe in all my years of service l ever met another soldier who had your grasp of combat. I am anxious to read your book .

    Reply

    • What a kind thing to say. The thoughts of those beside you are far more important than anything a superior will ever utter.

      Reply

  72. Knew some of that history but did not know about Lull ( I never thought he was very reliable ) . You of course know that what you did saved the entire South from folding up by holding up the whole offensive . I never understood why you were. It awarded the CMH for your actions

    Reply

    • Never sue your President(my favorite President) over those still missing,like Lull et al. Recommendation had fourteen eye witness statements including four generals. I,of course,never saw it until a few years ago and a general in the Pentagon quietly sent me the entire packet. The book I am writing is a cause for concern among some but I have no sour grapes about the award. I leave that to others.

      Joined the army as a 17 year old high school dropout and retired as a major,I have never considered that a failure.

      Reply

  73. Ken Wallingford lives somewhere near Austin and I think George is somewhere in Vermont . Bill Miller passed a few years ago but I’m in fairly good shape except for a bad back from that helicopter crash in Cambodia and falling down stairs and breaking an ankle ( sober even )…….happy to know others are doing well after 40 + years

    Reply

    • Saw both of them at BG,USAF, Dave Baker’s funeral Arlington a couple years ago. Dave had been shot down as a FAC in summer 1972 over Snoul Cambodia. Our camp was in the jungle near Kratie(Kracheh). Ed Carlson retired as a Colonel and after buying his dream home on Puget Sound died. Dick Schott shot himself at Loc Ninh to try and let me get away and SFC Lull deserted with the Regiment S-3 just after we had a fight just south of the camp during E&E on 7 April. Only rumors about Lull but communist general Tran Van Tra told me they had Lull but he was afraid to go to jail with me. Official records have him dying ‘heroically’ south of the camp by Cam Vay bridge but the doctor they quote was captured and released with me.

      WANT TO HEAR WHAT WAR STORY A POW TOLD ON HIS RETURN?

      ATTEND HIS FUNERAL!

      ZIP

      Reply

  74. Things have turned out well for both of us , seems you’re the right guy in the right part of the world with the right woman…..can’t get much better at our age ! Happy to know all is well and has ended well .Stay healthy and happy

    Reply

    • As I used as my mantra in the POW camp, JUST HAPPY TO STILL BE HERE.

      Glenn Kemp has just showed up on here also and he worked at Laike. He drove all night to visit me for my annual physical in Pensacola a few years ago.

      We stacked them in the wire at Loc Ninh until we ran out of soldiers in April 1972.

      Colonel Vinh ran out the front gate in his underwear and surrendered but we fought on for a few hours after I shot his fellow officer trying to lower the flag.
      The soldiers fought and fought well for three days.

      T-54 tanks,whatcha gonna do but try to make em burn.

      George Wanat from district fought his butt off and E&Ed for 31 days before they got him.

      Great to be in contact.

      Reply

  75. Yep, retired from Thai gig three years ago after 27 years.

    Still here, wife still looks good so I’ll stay awhile longer.

    Reply

    • I left Team 70 in Jan ’71 so we probably didn’t meet. Do you remember who the G-2 was when you were there. I was in G-2, but I can’t remember his name. O’Connell or O’Donnell or something like that.

      Reply

  79. Larry: Thanks for your response. I did another tour in RVN with MACJ J-3 in 70-71. When Saigon fell I was at the Command & General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, KS. We had a number of Vietnamese officers and some of the wives in our class. One was the XO of the 3/9th when I served with them. Most had family members in RVN and a number of them remained here in the states inasmuch as they had no where else to go.

    Reply

    • Grant & Jay: Yes, they were lucky. Some of my current Vietnamese friends had to go through quite an ordeal (camps, etc.) to get out. Some have relatives that had to go through “re-education”. It’s encouraging to see the country moving forward now. Everyone was very friendly and helpful to me while I was there last year. A large portion of the population has no memory of the war so we are the ‘good guys’ now helping them against the Chinese. What a turn since ’70-71.

      Reply

  80. I was in Song Be in ’66 as an advisor with the 31st Ranger Bn. Tm sgt was Beal, SA Jim Hughes, an RTO called “ski”. Anybody out there from ’66??

    Reply

    • I was also with 31st BDQ in 1969 but was in 1st Infantry Division at Laike 1966-68. Got to 5th ARVN Division in October 1971. Loved my time with BDQ.

      Mark Smith

      Reply

    • Lou, I think you were a 96-b and so was John Clarke so when I arrived we had 3 96-b’s in G-2. That’s kind of odd now that I think of it.

      Reply

    • Ron Allgood was a hell of a soldier. He, in a sense, was my mentor… his favorite was, “if a man steps on your toe, cut this leg off at the thigh and tomorrow he will walk around you. I seem to remember that Ron left the service before retirement to take custody of his kids after he found his wife treating his children horribly. If you have info on Ron please let me know.

      Reply

      • Do you know when Allgood left Team 70? I started in G-2 in late January 70 when we were still at Lamson. There was no NCO at that time in G-2. Just Rennie, Maj. Meunter (sp?) and us Specs.

        Reply

  82. Hi Richard,
    I was in Song Be a couple of years ago with my wife. I even stayed overnight. It was surreal. The locals were very friendly and fascinated by us. The town is now a small town, complete with shops, restarants and hotel(s). The runway is there main road with shops on both sides. I was able take new pictures and match them up with my dads. I was even able to locate the approximate crash site and lay flowers.
    It was a very emotional journey buy it brought me much closure.
    Regards,
    Robert Padron

    Reply

    • I’m trying to find information on 1LT Richard Holzer, who died on 01AUG69 with Team 70. Anyone able to guide me?

      Reply

      • 1LT Holzer was on an 8th Infantry team. I think 1/8. He and a sergeant were with a company that was ambushed. They hit the ground, and he rolled on his side to get his 1911 out of its holster and was hit by an AK round.

        I arrived about. then, and the job I’d been sent there for wasn’t open yet, so I was sent to replace him. LTC Price was SA. He was upset about LT Holzer’s death when I checked in. The sergeant who was with him told me the story some years later. Sorry, can’t remember his name.

        Reply

        • I joined the 8th Bn about the second week of September as a 1Lt. They were still talking about Holzer but I had forgotten his name. Preparing for a trip last summer to the Wall in D.C, I checked the Wall of Valor and figured out that it was Richard Holzer’s position that I was entering. I took a picture of him name on the Wall — carry it with me on my phone. — Feel like he was a brother I never met. They told me following his death the order went out that all officer would carry M-16’s rather than just a holstered pistol. I still miss my M-16 today.

          Reply

        • Curtis Rich… Carl Farren here. I served on Tm 70’s 5th Div 8th Regiment Teams starting on 68Tet through 2 May 1969. My last assignment was 8th Regiment’s 1 Battalion Team Weapons Sergeant (E-5). LT Holzer sounds familiar but just can’t remember. I do know that the ARVN CO, Captain Kin(?), was also KIA in that ambush. Several years ago, I read an On-line article about Captain Kin. He was the best Battalion CO in the 8th Regiment and was posthumously promoted to Major. Under his command the 1st Battalion of the 8th Regiment was the ‘Go-To’ Battalion. He often wore two VN Cross of Gallantry on his fatigues. While serving with the 1st Battalion, I was in several fire-fights, and Captain Kin(?) would charge forward to direct his men from the front. I remember following him by running forward a short distant then down then up again and down to the front. Moving forward while all the firing and explosions were happening, but had to be there to call U.S. support (FAC, Arty, Gunships, etc) if needed. The Article also mentioned that the Battalion really lost its effectiveness after loosing him. An ARVN traitor probably set them up for ambush like the April 2, 1968 ambush that decimated the 3rd(?) Battalion 8th Regiment and SA Captain Elliotis WIA and SFC Edwards was KIA. I was with the reaction force and had two U.S. MedEvac Hueys shot down (RPGs) trying to pickup wounded. Crews had no serious wounds but getting them and Hueys secured during the battle (Cobra and F-4s runs) was difficult.

          Reply

          • Correction- The ARVN 1st Battalion CO Major Chau Minh Kien was KIA on September 14, 1960. Not in August 1st, 1969 ambush where LT Holzer was KIA. After Major Kien was KIA he was Posthumously promoted to LTC.

            Reply

            • Typo– Major Kien was KIA on Sept. 14, 1969. I served with Captain Kien in 1968 and 1969 with his 1st Battalion 2nd Company attached to U.S. Cav in Trapezoid, March 1969.

              Reply

              • i served with b 2/28 first infantry division working out of fire base mahone when he was killed. they named the firebase after him

                Reply

          • Carl,

            SFC Edwards was my grandfather. My father and aunt have not heard a lot about this story and I was wondering if you could let me know more about what happened on that day or if you knew anyone that served with him that my family could contact.

            Reply

  83. Hi Richard,
    Thanks for the response.
    Sorry, I did receive your previuos response. I had forgotten your last name and thought it was a different Richard.
    The exact date of the crash was May 6, 1969 not “68.
    Thank you for your service.
    Robert

    Reply

    • Roberto
      Your reply made me realize that my timeline and sequence of events, as I remember, is away off base. I am trying to now ‘re-establish the sequence of my events. I had to have worked with your father – I left for stateside 11 May 69.

      My timeline based on dated “letters home”.

      10 June 68 I was in Song Be area (Phu Qua – Phuc Bing) and 17 June 68 was in Song Be City with joint operations with your father’s BN for a period of time. My BM (I think 1/9) was essentially overrun and rotated to Chon Thon ( 9th Rev Hdq) 30 July 68. I remained in Song Be area (Phuc Bing) with 4/9 until March 69. I rotated with the 4/9 to Chon Thon and essentially remaining there until 11 May 69. I, specifically remember having a face to face conversation with the ASA in the trailing CH as I reiterated previously. I thought I had this conversation in Song Be; however, they may have been rotated to Chin Thon? My memory is still trying to reconstruct these events.

      Regards
      Richard

      Reply

  84. Hello Richard,
    My father was Capt. I. F. Padron. He was at Song Be 68-69.
    He was killed in the Chinook crash at the ARVN runway in June 1969.
    Did you know him?
    Regards,
    Robery

    Reply

    • Roberto,

      I replied to you in April 2016 (see previous messages), I got to Song Be about 1 month after that chopper went down. I was actually in Phouic Loc (by the airstrip and fuel storage area – Where as your father was stationed actually inside the town of Song Be – a couple of miles down the road. Note, I believe where the camp the 4/9 built is now a 18 hole golf course in the shadow of Nui Ba Ra. You can reach me directly Richardcg105@gmail.com.

      Regards

      Richard

      Reply

      • Hello Dave,
        Thanks for the response. I have seen aerial pictures of the crash site and read the accident report. I was even able to talk (via email) to one of the surviving crew members and get his account from inside the Chinook. It was a very horrific sight.
        It brings me closer to my father when I speak to those who were with him in Vietnam. Especially those who were with him in his last days on earth.
        Thank you again and thank you for your service and sacrifice,
        Regards,
        Robert Padron

        Reply

      • Richard,
        Jerry Barrett here. Team 70 68-69. One of four man FDC team assigned from 1st Infantry Division. Other members were Maj. McGowan, SSG Statler and Pfc. Cluen. I believe I know you. Did you go to Hawaii for R&R? I met my wife and we saw you on the beach, I introduced you to her. Let me know about this reunion in Louisville.
        Thanks,
        Jerry

        Reply

        • Jerry,
          I spent my R/R in Hong Kong – Dec 68. Initially, I was with the 1/9 in Song Be when it was essentially overrun 6/68. Then stayed in Song Be with the 4/9 thru 6/69. A Captain Cejka (prior tour with US 1Div) spent time with me in Song Be, then rotated to some assignment at the 5th Div TOC in Lam Son. I had actually zero contact with any individuals outside of Song Be (Sgt Bangi was on my team).

          My regiment Hdq was based in Chon Thon with a couple of Majors – their names escape me. I am still trying to replace my memory.

          I am strongly considering a road trip to Louisville from Pittsburgh, PA – if others will be going. E mail me direct.

          Richardcg105@gmail.com

          Reply

        • jerry I was at ben cat all of 68, to enclude being overrun TET 68 but don’t remember your team at all, I was 1 of 3 men with artillery liason team from 2 bn 33rd arty sgtv68@aol.com

          Reply

  88. Hi Chuck,

    All is well here in PA. Has been very cold and we are getting some sleet and freezing rain at the moment.

    Still unsure if I am going to get to the Louisville Reunion. Would sure like to.

    Good hearing from everyone who served with Team 70.

    Regards,

    Mike

    Reply

  89. Hello Mike, Chuck LaMons here. Hope you are well and happy. Will you be going to Counterparts reunion in April. Beautiful day in Hickory, NC. About 8″ of snow crisp and bright today. Loving’ it. Call when you can 828-514-3657. Larry Eagan is going to the Counterparts reunion. Should be interesting with all branches represented. Chuck
    .

    Reply

  90. That’s kinda the way Col Hayes’ command worked. Very personal, almost family like. You were either in or you were out. In was good and out was out. Col Hayes brought several guys with him from his previous command. They were a “band of brothers.” So it fits that he would pull the strings required to get Major Burke’s brother assigned to the team.

    Reply

  91. Always wondered what happened to MAJ Burke, too. I was relatively new on the team and I was detailed to do the line-of-duty investigations on the deaths of LT Burke, SSG Montague, and LTC Couch. A very stark awakening for me as I got to the team mid-January and they all died in mid-February. That was very strange to me that the two Burke’s were assigned to the same team.

    Reply

    • My daughter, Diana, is in Vietnam., as I write this. She wanted to see where her father, 1Lt Thomas Burke died. My sister in law is back in VN at this time, Bob Burke’s wife, but Diana wants to make sure she is in the right spot. She was 22 months old when he died and my other daughter was 3 months old. If you could email her it would be great.
      Thank you. Her email:
      Diana Burke dlburke2@gmail.com

      Reply

  92. Yes I remember him being distinctly different. Well I hope boy went somewhere where he has lots of chickens and ducks to eat. 😀

    Reply

  93. Jay,

    I don’t know what ever happened to Boy. I would guess that COL Kampe got rid of him as soon as he took command. Kampe was a tough SA.

    Mike McMunn

    Reply

  94. Hi Jay,

    Mike McMunn here. Good to hear from you! It is certainly good to hear from so many of the old Team 70 crew. Bill and I have been here for a while and others have found the site. Great to reminisce about the old times and to know many of us are still around. Have not heard from Brooks or Munhall. Did have contact with Pete Privas, Engineer Advisor, a couple of years ago. Would like to hear from Don Rennie, Don Estes, Tom Ellison and others who were there in ’69, ’70.

    Mike McMunn

    Reply

  96. My understanding was that Col Hayes owned that hotel. If you had a 5th ARVN patch you didn’t pay for anything. It then my memory is distorted probably.

    Reply

  97. Jay,
    Friend request sent. Hope to see you in Louisville, KY at reunion in April. All we need to do now is locate Carl Brooks and find a six pack of “33”.

    Reply

  99. At the Star hotel with Carl Brooks at least once. Have located you on Facebook but not sure if I have the right person. Tell me the first name of your wife as you list on Facebook.

    Reply

  100. Wow miracles never cease. Amazing my feeble mind can remember that did you ever visit the Star Hill hotel in Saigon?

    Reply

  102. Jay, I am in Arlington, TX. Had I known you were that close I would have looked you up. Had two more careers after retiring from army. Life is good. Check me out on Facebook.

    Reply

  103. Jay, so good to hear from you. Where are you living and what are you doing these days? Have you heard from Carl Brooks? Hope you can make the reunion this year in Louisville.

    Reply

    • Retired of course. Too darned old to work much. I trade the futures markets and play golf. When is the reunion and is there a site selected yet?

      Reply

    • I see I didn’t answer all your questions. Currently live in Austin Texas. Haven’t ever heard anything about Brooks. I also worked with a Cpt Munhall in lai khe who I haven’t heard anything from. I pretty much lost track of everyone. Anyway, it’s nice to talk with you. I have to look up that reunion date etc.

      Reply

    • Anyone know what happened to Major Burke? He was the G3 advisor in 69/70. He escorted his brothers body back to the states when he was killed. There was some problem when he came back to Lai khe as I recall. I left in July 1970 and never heard the outcome. Major Burke had a beautiful wife who was a professional singer. She sang at the rooftop restaurant/club at the old French hotel in Saigon. Seems like it was called the Contental or something.

      Reply

      • Hi Jay, The old classic French hotel is the Continental right in the middle of downtown Saigon. It was elegant then and still is now after some extensive remodeling over the last 45 years. It’s a 4 star now.

        Reply

  104. Larry,

    Glad you had a worthwhile trip. I would love to go back. The whole expansion of the Saigon metropolitan area must seem unreal as would Highway 13. I did a Google Earth search of the Lai Khe area a year or so ago and saw the roadway. Going south out of Lai Khe toward Ben Cat was always chancy. There was a wood line several hundred meters right in front of that turn as you slowed down and we were always told to be aware of snipers.

    Mike

    Reply

  105. Yep , I remember Ben Cat as a place to avoid when traveling although after 45 years I don’t remember why except the idea was there were vc in there but I can picture the curve

    Reply

    • The famous Iron Triangle was nearby and Ben Cat had a fierce reputation from before. It was that low cluster of huts in the distance. We never slowed down around there either. We all seem to have those same memories. It’s very different now and better for us Americans. It’s a young population now looking forward despite the current regime. That too will pass one of these days.

      Reply

  106. WOW ! I drove hwy 13 more times than I can count up and down Lai Khe to Loc Ninh . Can’t imagine four lanes and lots of businesses. Back then it was simply village to village .

    Reply

    • Hi Tom, It used to be so empty north of Phu Cuong and Ben Cat was off in the distance where the highway curves. Not any more. It’s quite a good road. Traffic in Saigon is bad at rush hour, but it’s all motor bikes and Toyota vans. No deuce and 1/2 trucks like the old days.

      Larry

      Reply

  107. Hello Everyone, I just came back from a trip to Vietnam. Quite a change after 45 years. Saigon (the locals still call it that) is a huge metropolis of 10 million that extends all the way up past what we knew at Phu Cuong. Ben Cat is a big town that now goes way past Hwy 13 on the east. Hwy 13 is a 4 lane toll road that extends to the North past Lai Khe. The Lai Khe area has been extensively covered with plantations of a tall skinny tree that looks like they were planted 10 or 15 years ago. The roads are lined with homes and businesses. The Lai Khe of long ago is now just in my mind and my photo albums. It was a complete mental reset for me. Today’s Vietnam is a go, go, motor bike society with pretty girls taking selfies on their cell phones. It was a good trip and I plan on going back again sometime.

    Larry Gale G-2 1970

    Reply

  108. Looking for any information and also a photo of SSGT Eddie Louis Smith-Team 70 kia 10/4/1964 as an advisor to an ARVN unit. His photo is needed for Education Center at Vietnam Veterans Memorial in DC and for National Archives Records Admin. Any background would also help.

    Reply

  109. Loved your book Curtis. Have read it three times. My son is reading it now and likes it also. Best assignment I ever had was team 70.
    All the men were great and sorry that I did get to meet you. God bless you and all the men of MACV teams. They were all warriors in the true meaning of war.

    Reply

    • William, Your thoughts echo mine exactly. There are many I may have met while I was in G-2 and never really knew the name at the time. Christmas of 1970 at Team 70 was quite a memory.

      Larry Gale

      Reply

    • Thanks. Glad to hear you enjoyed it. Having Team 70 vets like it really makes me feel good. Always amazed how many people have read it since it’s been out of print since 1987 or so. My second novel set in Vietnam, Common Valor is on Amazon, hardbound, soft cover, Kindle.

      Reply

  110. I did not work in the MARS station. I was assigned to G4 and worked with Captains West and Brooks. I have never heard from either of those men. I have made contact with Cpt Munn and exchanged information but he is the only one that I had contact with that I have heard from.

    Reply

    • Was that Captain John West? I really liked him. Whenever I was at HQ I looked him up. We had many an intellectual discussion while sipping adult beverages. He was the driver in the infamous “Pizza Hut” run in “The Advisors.” Oh, wait, that was fiction. Or was it a war story? I left my (off the books) XM177E2 Colt Commando with him looking for an appreciative home.

      Reply

    • Hi this is Jay West. I was in Landon and lai khe in 2969/70. I was surprised to see your post. Was just reminiscing and found it. Good to see some team 70 guys are still around.

      Reply

  111. I think I have a couple of pictures of Sam, the rocket dog, around here somewhere. Glad you made it back OK. I think you guys were in the hootch next to ours by the road facing the village.

    Mike

    Reply

    • Mike just saw your post, The dog Sam, what did she look like, because I had a dog which I named Sam and when I left in Jan67 some of the guys I knew at AT 70 looked after her for me, if you have a photo of her I´d appreciate it jimcag@telia.com Thanks

      Reply

      • My memory is getting old does anyone remember the officer that was from Montana I was at team 70 from May to October 71. The next question does if Ken Wallingford is still alive.

        Reply

            • Hwy 13 is now a toll road with speed limits all the way to Lai Khe. My driver had to watch out for police so he wouldn’t get a ticket. Ben Cat is a pretty good size town now.

              Reply

              • Have not been back since 71 merry son wants to go to see the areas I was in. Was in Bien Hoa from March of 70 to May 71 Tm 95 was up to Tan ninh. An Loc, Loc Ninh. And Lia Kai I can still remember Hey 13 lost all my pictures of both compounds

                Reply

                • There is nothing left of Lam Son (Gosney Compound). It looks like it lasted until early 2000’s. Very little to see at Lai Khe anymore either. Hard to find anything. Still it was interesting to see the area. There is a video on You Tube. I will go back to that area one more time with more information next time. There is so much else to see in Vietnam.

                  Reply

  112. Hey Flash, how the hell are you? I’ve thought of you often and wondered what you were up to. Give me a shout and let me know.

    Reply

    • Currently residing in PUERTO RICO BUT PLANNING TO MOVE BACK TO THE MAIN LAND. MAYBE ALBANY. SO DID YOU PEOPLE TOOK GOOD CARE OF SAM.
      HOW ARE YOU DOING AND WHERE YOU LIVE.
      HOPE YOU KEEP IN TOUCH. A LOT TO TALK ABOUT IT. I ‘MY ON FACEBOOK.

      Reply

  114. I served 1969 to 1970. Part of 69 at LAMSON, WE MOVED TO LAI KHE TO REPLACE REPLACE THE BIG RED ONE .I WAS A SECURITY SQUAD LEADER. CALL, SERGEANT FLASH HAD DOG NAMED SAM. BEST BUDDY SERGEANT MORRIS. REMEMBER LEIB, SNIDER….

    Reply

    • do you remember Mike Mcort or Paluch when we first came back 1/71, I stayed with them both in
      Chicago for a few days. I was rto @ Div. HQ in Lam Son, then Lai Khe, and finally with the 4/9.
      As I read these wonderful words of memory from all I am stunned at how really bad my memory is
      of those days of long ago. Maybe next year we could all do Wash. DC. Maybe we could nominate a
      secretary / treasurer to co-ordinate a place for us all to get together and share pictures and memories.
      Once we are gone that’s it !!! HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO ALL AND my friend , John Dutton

      Reply

      • Hello Robert, I certainly remember McCort. He was next to my space in our hooch. I went to Saigon a couple of time with Paluch. Lots of fun.
        A Happy New Year and Tet (Jan 28) to all the guys that served on Team 70 and in Vietnam generally.
        I met with another vet the other day that I served with on Team 91 the next year. It is so different talking to someone that was there and has common experiences. Lots of things come flooding back.

        Best Wishes to All,
        Larry Gale

        Reply

  115. I am the same Tom Howes . Now retired and living in Austin. Never heard back from Zippo but have heard from Glen Taylor in the last month. Hope all is well . Ken Wallingford lives near Austin but I have lost track of others.

    Reply

  116. Ed pike and Chuck Lamons

    Ed the first time I found this MACV site you were trying to find Bill Fessler. My name is Mike LaLonde and I served with you, Chuck and Bill during the time frame of June 66 until August 67.
    If my memory doesn’t fail me you were Colonel Walker’s typist and worked in his office.
    I visited Bill several times at his parents house shortly after we returned from Nam.
    In summer of 69 Bill, myself, Don Bennett
    And Irl Brooks all meet in Louisville for two days.
    I believe Irl has passed. Don is at last I knew still in Acworth Georgia.
    Hempstead ….was our postmaster in the end of the company office. I’m never sure these text messages arrive so answer if u can.
    Chuck in my time there I also served during Cedar Falls. By then I was out of field duty but RTO at headquarters when Norman Plante was KIA. I took his place as RTO for 5th ARVN Recon. Can’t remember the captain’s name but he was Asian. Norm sure loved those Vietnamese in recon.

    Reply

    • High Mike. I just found this sight and was overjoyed to see your post. I was with you at team 70 in 66 to 67. Bennett, Brooks and i shared a hooch together with Ernie Hemstock , at least for a while. I have a picture of you wearing my ranger beret outside my hooch before i went out in the field to relieve Davis after he got hit.I think of the team a lot. Brooks had a parity on the 12 days of Christmas of which i can only remember up to 6 choppers chopping and then i got nothing. Sure wish i could remember the rest. Sorry to hear brooks may be gone.He was a funny guy. Lots of laughs.

      I was also there in ceder falls and saw the remains of Norm. He was a good friend of mine, a funny guy always laughing and clowning around. It”s hard to believe he had less then a week left in country when he got it. I saw his name on the wall and with all the great memories and fun we had together i lost it.
      Do you remember a Capt. Hartnett? He was a medic and a great guy.The last i heard he made Maj.aftter nam.

      Reply

      • Hello Mike, Chuck LaMons here. Good to see you are still with us. I hope you are well. Larry Eagan, RTO, 2/7 and I have been communicating. Might be travelling to FL next week to see him. I hope you and your family are well and happy. Take care, Chuck

        Reply

      • Robert I just found this site and was wondering since I was also there from Jan 66 to Jan 67 if we ever met, AT 70 232 signal, I had a dog named Sam, and I was the guy who built the nativity scene for the guys at Christmas 1966, This is the first time I saw anything about AT 70, Martha Raye and George Jessel among others came there to entertain if you get this you can email me at jimcag@telia.com thanks

        Reply

        • Jim, I knew Hemstock and Brooks very well. At that time6-66 to8-67 I was not in their hootch but at that time Bauer and Fessler and Bennett were. We had good times then but I may have been gone by your time. They were all some form of Admin. And I was RTO. It is so good to hear from someone that knew people I knew at that time.

          Reply

          • The only USO show I remember was a group and the lead singer was a lovely young blonde lady from Van Nuys, (LA) Ca, very near from where I grew up. She asked if anybody was having a birthday, just happened to be mine, 10/19, so I was asked to go on stage with her, I was pursued to go, and she sang Boy From Eponema, I think that was the highlight of my Nam days. Still have the pic of standing with her on the stage. I have a pic of all the guys from our hooch. We were so young. Take care and safe travels to you all. Chuck

            Reply

        • I remember both, Martha Ray very well as when she came into EM club I and Davis spent at least an hour talking with her as everyone else just watched. Later she made a run to all Team 70 bunkers when VC hit us and 1st Division with first 122 ml penetrating mortars or rockets.

          Reply

          • Hello men,
            I was at TM 70 6/66 to 3/68. I was at PTQ 4/7, 6/66 to about May of 67. RTO. Worked TOC after the field assignment. The dog , Sam, was it a female, white with some black spots. I inherited a dog like that after I came back to Phu Lou. She had a litter under my rack. Really upset the Sgt Maj. The CO had no problem with it. I think Fessler was in our hooch along with Mike LaLonde. There was also Arnie Moore early on. Do any of you remember Mike Rodriquez, Recon RTO, I believe.
            I hope all of you have had good lives. Does anybody know why the name change from Phu Loi to LamSon?
            Chuck LaMons, Sampson Scooper 4.

            Reply

          • Hello Mike,
            How are you? It has been quite awhile since last postings. Hope you are well and happy.
            All is good here, mightily blessed by our Lord as always.
            Chuck LaMons/Zollinger,🤪🤔😁

            Reply

  117. I am interested in locating Oliver H. Crittenden, a former I Troop 2d ACR officer in Amberg Germany. I ran across his name in a set of orders awarding him a CIB in October 1967. Crittenden was one of the good Lieutenant’s in Amberg.

    Reply

  118. Mrs. Taylor, one other thing ….without your husband I probably would never have made it home , no one else was going to come and get me .

    Reply

  119. I am and your husband is the person who came in with the king bees and pulled us out of Cambodia . He was always calm and if I recall as I jumped on the helicopter and asked why it took so long to get us ( it probably didn’t ) he laughed and said that traffic was bad…..it broke the tension . Hope all is well .

    Reply

  120. OMG I can hardly believe I heard from you. I have thought about you often over the years, I moved to Naples in 1999 and somehow I knew you lived here in Naples. I moved to Denver after I got out of the Army in 1970, managed a Chevrolet Dealership for 30 years, retired in 1999 and moved to Naples. My email addess is craigrmcgee@hotmail.com, my phone number is 239-896-8359. I just moved into a brand new house along I-75 in Estero, a new development called Tidewater by Del Webb. By all means contact me when you get to Florida would love to see you, I’ll buy lunch or dinner.

    Reply

  121. Hello Craig McGee Dick Clark here. I am retired in Dallas Texas. Good to hear from you. It was surely a bad day when we lost Bob Boyd. I am glad you got your well deserved Bronze Star. I spent several years in Naples. We lived in WindStar. I plan to be down in Florida early next year. Please send me your contact information so we can get together. Richard W. Clark, Jr. 7012 Leameadow Drive, Dallas, TX 75248 214 226 7388.

    Reply

  122. Craig, If you look back in the archives I think you name came up from some colleagues. Check it out if you haven’t done it already.
    I still think you should tell the story of your Zippo.
    Mike

    Reply

  123. Craig,
    Do you remember a few years ago when I helped to reunite you with your Vietnam lighter? Maybe you want to share that story.

    Glad you are here.

    Mike

    Reply

  126. Hello Karen Stith, Are you still using the same email that Larry was using? I would like to send you a picture in case you haven’t seen it. Larry and I spent quite a bit of time together on Team 70.

    Larry Gale Team 70 Jan-Dec 1970.

    Reply

  127. My husband Larry Stith was on Advisory team 70 from 1970 – 71. Anyone who has any memories of him it would be greatly appreciated as he recently passed away. Does anyone remember Vinnie DePaulo ( not sure about the spelling ). Thank you.

    Reply

    • Hi Karen. This is Vinny DePaola. Just found this site yesterday. So Sorry to hear about Larry’s passing. We spent some good times together during my short time in country (Sept. ’70 to Feb. ’71). Wish I had discovered the site sooner so we could have reconnected. I also sent you an email at Lwstith but not sure you’re still using that email address. Hope you are well.

      Vinny

      Reply

  128. Ken, our paths must’ve crossed. I was at the team HQ, Sr. Advisor’s Office, Sept. 1962-Sept. 1963, first when it was known then as BIF Compound after the Bureau of Industrial Forestry which owned the property during the French colonial days, and later after it was dedicated to Lt. Train. When I first found this site I wondered why nobody from my time with the team was showing up and then it struck me, I was the youngest MAAG guy on the team at the time, 22, and all the NCOs and officers were veterans of Korea and WWII, so these days they’d all be in their 80s or long gone from this world. In my day Coal Bin Willie (AKA Col. Wilson) was Sr. Adv. to III Corps. I knew his SGT. Maj. who told me Col. Wilson advised an officer going home on emergency leave to attend to a sick wife, “Major, if the army wanted you to have a wife it would have issued you one.”

    Reply

    • Dan, I don’t remember you, but that’s not to say we didn’t see each other as I was the enlisted Psywar/Civic Action Advisor and My boss was Captain Bodine. We too were At the 5th Div Hqs just across the street from the Sr. Advisors office. I left in Early December. I was there when President Kennedy was assinated and when the Vietnames President Diem and his brother was overthrown. When I left I came back and went to flight school at Fort Walters Tex. I did not finishe flight school and assigned to Then CONARC, DCSIntell, Operations Division. I was promoted to Staff Sgt and later to SFC and in 1966 I went to OCS and was commissioned a 2d Lt. I went back to the same office at CONARC and was the G-2 Air Officer from March to Dec of 1967 and was then assigned to Germany until 1969 when I was assigned to Vietnam where I assigned as a Company Commander of the 446 Med Truck Co in Quang Tri and later moved that Company down to Long Binh to the 48th Trans Gp, 6th Trans Bn and after six months I was transferred over to the 48th Gp proper and took command of the 261st Lt Trk Company directly under the 48th. After my year in Vienam as a commander I came home to attend the Transportation Career Course and then taught Convoy Operations and Convoy Counter ambush operations for a year and in 1972 I returned to Vietnam and to MACV where I served as a Sr Adv to the 306th Floating Caft Maintenance Group (they provided maintenance and overhaul to the entire south vietnams Army flotilla). I did that for six months and by then the US had moved out of Long Binh and the Vietnamese military was moving and I was assigned as Sr Adv to the ARVN 5th Transportation Group. I was transferred to Fort Buchanan Puerto Rico where I served as a Advisor to the US Army Reserves there and then moved over to the post proper and served as Director of Maintenance and later as Director of Transportation and when that position was civilianized I took command of the Garrison Hq & Hq Company until I returned to Fort Eustis and the Transportation School in 1976. I served there as a Team Leader in the Educational Development program until I retired in 1978.
      Hope to hear from you soon. I’m sorry I took so long to respond .

      Reply

  129. Hello Ken,
    I don’t think we are related to the medic you are referring to. But, I will check with my family.
    My dad’s brother (my uncle) was also in Vietnam but he was an officer and I think he did his first tour in ’64-65.
    Thank you for your service.
    Robert

    Reply

  130. I am a high school class mate of Capt.Samuel R. Stewart III who was killed in Binh Duong Province on Feb 11, 1968. He was with Advisory Team 70, 5th Infantry Division and was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross posthumously. He was from Miami, Fl but I cannot find his burial place. The info provided on one page said he was interred at Miami Memorial Park but there’s no record of him there. I have visited several other cemeteries in Miami but am unable to locate his grave site. I also have not found a military picture of him. I have pictures of Sammy from our high school. Can anyone give me advise how I might find his grave site or locate pictures of him in service? I maybe reached at altownsel@altownselinc.com Thank You.

    Reply

    • Hello Alphonso,My father was also in Team 70. He died in 1969 and is also buried at Miami Memorial Park.I have heen to Miami Memorial Park many times over the last 48 years. I do not remember ever seeing the gravesite of Capt. Stewart.I will double check at their office next time I am there.Good luck in your search.Roberto Padron

      Sent from my T-Mobile 4G LTE Device

      Reply

      • Roberto I was in Adv Tm 70 in 1963 I was a SP5 and there was a Specialist Padron on the Team with us and he was a Medic. We were both at the Team Headquarters in Bien Hoa. Is there any chance he was related to your family?

        Ken Strickland
        Maj US Army Ret
        klams1@cox.net

        Reply

      • Thank you for your response. You are correct Capt. Stewart was not buried at Miami Memorial Park and I confirmed this with Miami Memorial. I have recent information as to his burial place and can soon confirm. Again thank you for you response.

        Reply

    • I was there that night when Sammy got killed , it was feb 1st 1968 about 4 am or so. I was with the artillery liaison. It was TET and we were overran , I still shake my head how I survived it .Sgt Gregory Gray was also killed and 3 others wounded. A us tank save my life by a mere second .sgtv68@aol.com

      Reply

  131. I received the following information from Larry Stith’s wife Karen regarding the funeral :

    Hi Lou- i know you won’t be able to come, but the service for Larry will be on Friday, July 15th from 5-8pm at Dobies Funeral Home in Hudson. He will be buried at the Florida National Cemetary ar Bushnell on Monday at 1pm.

    The funeral home has a website with the obituary.
    Lou

    Reply

  135. Hello Jesus,
    My father was Capt. Irenardo Felix Padron, US Army Senior Advisor Team 70, 3 Bn. 9 Regt, 5 ARVN Div. He died on a CH-47A Chinook that crashed at Phouc long, Song Be on 6 May, 1969.
    He was born on 30 April, 1931 in Matanzas, Cuba. He was an officer in the Cuban Army prior to joining the US Army. He fled Cuba on 19, April, 1959 after the communist takeover.
    He returned to Cuba as a 2nd Lt. in the 17, April, 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion. His ship the HOUSTON was sunk during the invasion but he still managed to join the fight. He was one of only a few to elude capture in the swamps and make it to the Colombian Embassy in Havana.
    He did two (2) tours of Vietnam, ’66-67 and ’68-69
    He received the: Combat Infantryman Badge, Bronze Star (Posthumously), Army Commendation Medal, Air Medal, National Defense Medal, RVN Campaign Medal and Vietnam Service Medal (My father never spoke of his experiences or awards, but I do.)
    BTW: My father was good friends with another Cuban-American soldier, Cpt. Felix Sosa-Camejo who died on 12 February, 1968 defending the MACV compound in Hue during the Tet Offensive. Our families are still very close.
    God bless America and good luck on your book.
    Robert Padron

    Reply

    • I wonder if your father was a Captain leading 2 companies of Mike Force in Binh Long province in 1967? I met a captain of Cuban descent who had been in the Bay of Pigs mess. I thought his name was Pina`. They provided security around our air strip during a high threat time and also were inserted in the jungle to find a NVA hospital which turned out to be a regiment. I FACed the extraction and all but 3 were wounded or dead but all were extractred.

      Reply

  136. Henry R. Garcia is my dad , he was kia 12-10-67 , he was from Rockport Texas, he was a ssgt and was a MACV Advisor with the 70 advisory team ,

    Reply

  138. Hello Lou, I am really sorry to hear about Larry Stith. We had just started corresponding since he found this web site. I have a terrific picture of him working at his desk at Lai Khe. Condolences and best wishes to his family from all of us that knew him and worked with him during that sometimes dangerous time.

    Larry Gale

    Reply

  139. It is with a heavy heart that will tell you that my friend and our brother Larry Stith, Team 70, 1970, has died. He past away 7/8/2016 at 8:00 pm from a heart attack. Funeral arrangements will follow. He will be sorely missed by all who knew him.

    Reply

    • I share your heavy heart and do mourn for a comrade in arms of all of us at Team 70 5th ARVN Infantry Division.
      my condolences to his family. Robert Bell

      Reply

    • Larry and I were talking in his hooch when a rocket hit close to the 1st Sgt’s hooch nearby. We both hit the floor very quickly. Some shrapnel actually went through my hootch so I might have been at the right place at the right time. When we communicated a few months ago we both remembered that day. Later we were both in Saigon to leave for R&R’s so we decided to go over to a nice French restaurant in the Caravelle Hotel and have a good lobster dinner. We both really enjoyed it. Those are the type of things you always remember. Larry was a good friend and a terrific guy and will really be missed. I hope his family is aware of this website.

      Reply

  140. Hello,
    I was wondering if anyone served with my father Sgt Steven Zeller, he was an RTO with the 9th regional combat assistance team, advisory team 70 5th division combat assistance team. He was for sure there august 1970 to October 1970 but probably longer. anyone with some information can contact me directly. Thanks

    Reply

    • Do you mean 9th “Regimental” assistance team and not 9th “regional” combat team, because I was an RTO at the
      9th Regimental combat team for a large part of the latter part of 1970. The last name of Zeller sounds familiar.
      If he is the man I am thinking of, him and I swapped RTO assignments from An Loc and he came in to Lai Khe
      Division Headquaters ..

      Reply

      • Hi Bob,
        thanks for the reply it gives me a place to start anyway. I’m having problems tracking down anything related to my father’s time in Vietnam, he was like a ghost. I’m starting to wonder what exactly he did since there seems to be no record of him, or maybe I’m just looking in the wrong place. when you swapped assignments do you think he stayed at Lai Khe or just get another assignment?

        Reply

  142. Ken Strickland here, I was a SP5 in 1963 assigned to Team 70 as asst Psywar Civic Action advisor located in Bien Hoa (Train Compound). Later I received a commission and returned to Vietnam as a Captain in Command of a truck Company assigned to the 48th Trans Gp in 1969/70 and once again in 1972/73 as a Senior Advisor to the Vietnamese 306 Floating Craft Maintenance Group at Tu Duc for six months and then when all the Americans moved out of Long Binh I was sent oveer to be the Senior Advisor to the Vietnamese 5th Transportation Command. I remember some exciting experiences while a member of Team 70, But age and memory has caused me to forget the names of most of my friends and acquaintences from 1963. May God bless all of you who served.

    Ken Strickland, Major, USA Retired. klams1@cox.net

    Reply

    • Ken, hope you are well. Just scanning the Team 70 site this morning & re-read your posts. Boy, talk about “age and memory” fogging our minds! Are you in Virginia? I moved in with my son and his family in Prince George’s County, MD after my wife died. Should get together for a lunch one day. Yes, I can still eat, age hasn’t taken that from me!

      Reply

  143. I did not work at the MARS station. I was the advisor to the 5th logistical BN. I left in December of 1970 and have since connected with Mike McMunn. Hope to make it in November but not sure at this time. Team 70 was the best assignment that I had in my 21 year military career and I was glad to have been part of the team.

    Reply

    • Hello Bill – You and I left the team just about the same time. Did you ever come into the G-2 office at Lai Khe for maps or to register a war trophy? We might have met. I remembered your name from somewhere and then I saw that you and I were on the same awards order dated 5 December 1970. Did you move on to another assignment or finally done with the Army? I still had a year to go and moved further south back to Lam Son.

      Larry Gale

      Reply

      • Larry,
        I did ship a war trophy home and that must have been when I met you. I would remain in the army for another 8 years and I retired in 1978 with 21 years active military service. I have always considered my time with team 70 as the best assignment I ever had. I hope to attend the reunion but not sure at this point. The team members always worked well together and I considered the people in team 70 to be some of the best I have ever served with. Please stay in touch and we may get to meet at the reunion.

        Bill Staton

        Reply

  145. Hi Zippo, It’s great to have you on this site. I’d like to hear more about the battle around An Loc and your captivity. How long did it last? I was just back in the US in early ’72 from my time at Team 70 and 91 and was watching with great interest and was encouraged at the time as the attack finally failed.

    Larry Gale

    Reply

    • This is to Larry Gale and Zippo / my name is Sp4 Robert Bell I served with the 9th for about 8 or 9
      months in 1970 at Chon Than, An Loc, FSB/hill 368, Loc Ninh, Bo Duc & Bo Dup and went on
      field ops with a company from 4/9. Do either of you know me or remember a Major from 4/9 or a capt
      from 1970, names are starting to fail me. I really hope we can pull off a reunion in Nov. For everyone
      reading this I had a reunion in New Jersey with one man and we asked a local VFW if we could use their facility
      and they let us.

      Reply

      • To Bob Bell, I left the 4/9 in Chon Than June 69. A captain replaced me as senior advisor and a Lt who jumped of the chopper that flew me out to Lam Son on my way state side. I can’t remember the Cpt’s name and never did know the Lt. By chance do you know their names and if they made it out?

        Thanks
        Richard Gotch

        Reply

  146. I was advisor to 3rd Bn 7th Regt
    1968 – 1969. Also was in TOC at Lam Son (Phu Loi) A reunion would be good.
    Can do

    Reply

      • I too worked in the TOC at Lam Son. I was with the 1st div. (Big Red One) on assignment to clear artillery targets through my ARVN counterparts.

        Reply

        • Tom,
          I was also Big Red One assigned to team 70 from Feb 68 to 69. My other 1st Infantry team members were Maj. McGowan, SSG Statler and Pfc Cluen. I was Sp4 Jerry Barrett. I saw Maj. McGowan once at Ft. Sill in 1970, but had no contact with anyone from Tm 70 until I found this site in late 2015. They are planning a reunion in DC in November. I hope plans for this is posted on line. I was wondering if you were my replacement after I left in Feb 1969 and also if you remember my team member brothers? Any info on them? I would surely love to see and talk with them. I will be 70 yrs old in November and feel like I am living on borrowed time. I live in Georgia. Want to talk (404) 404-4373. Email: jmbarrett1946@gmail.com Good luck and peace to all Team 70 brothers who served in Vietnam. Hope to meet new and old friends in November.

          Jerry

          Reply

    • Jim,
      SP4 Jerry Barrett here, I was also in the TOC at Lam Son from 68-69. I was part of a 4 man team(FDC) from 1st Infantry Div.( Big Red One) attached to Tm 70. The other members were CPT. McGowan, SSG Statler and PFC Cluen. Did you know any of these guys? I have lost contact since leaving Nam. It would me great to be able to talk with them. Good to see you on this site. Have a great Christmas and New Year.
      Jerry Barrett

      Reply

    • Jim, I just found this Site today while researching for my VN Memoir. From 68 Tet to Oct 68 I was the 8th Regiment Team RTO (Palm Station 9’er, Bent Kingdom 9’er). When the SA was away, I had to call Arty and Gunship support. Do you remember my SA Major Gordon Van Am…..? You may have known SP4 J Adams, the RTO I replaced that was wounded at Ben Cat when it was overrun at the start of 68 Tet. I joined the Team under fire while moving into Trung An outpost.

      Reply

  147. The basic purpose of the site is for Team Vets to find each other. Many of the follow ups with former colleagues are done off the site and directly between individuals.In the tab Website Guidelines on the site home page is a recommendation to coordinate any reunion details directly among participants and not through the site. This keeps the site free of any references to commercial activities including airlines, hotels and travel agencies.

    Reply

  148. Count me in also. I may be of some help setting it up since my children live in the D.C. area. I live in the Pittsburgh, PA area. Note that time period in D.C. is crowded with vets, but there’s always room for a few more.

    Richard Gotch

    Reply

    • Dudbridge any chance we crossed paths at Gosney? I remember an individual who had a bronze star with either one or two oak leaf clusters. My name is La Londe I was an RTO for the 2nd of the 7th and 8 think we may have shared a brief period in the RTO hootch.

      Reply

  150. Advisory Team 70 Veterans,

    Just found this website and felt compelled to send a note. My father, Robert Lott, was assigned to the Team from Jul 69 to Jul 70, first with the 7th Regiment and then later with the 5th Division HQs. After I found this website, I read off some of the comments to him. He initially worked for COL Hayes and remembers him well, he laughed at the snake and duck story. He remembered the another story about the snake getting out one night and loose in the area…..that got him really laughing.

    I am wondering if anyone may have any memories of a fire fight in the Fall of 1969 between 1st and 4th Battalions, 7th Infantry Regiment, and C Co, 2nd Battalion, “Quyet Tang – Resolve to Win” Regiment, Viet Cong vicinity of Phu Hoa Dong. Wondering if anyone remembers the dates or has any pictures to share.

    “I now know why men who have been to war yearn to reunite. Not to tell stories or look at old pictures. Not to laugh or weep. Comrades gather because they long to be with the men who once acted at their best; men who suffered and sacrificed, who were stripped of their humanity. I did not pick these men. They were delivered by fate and the military. But I know them in a way I know no other men. I have never given anyone such trust. They were willing to guard something more precious than my life. They would have carried my reputation, the memory of me for the rest of their lives. It was part of the bargain we all made, the reason we were so willing to die for one another. As long as I have memory, I will think of them all, every day. I am sure that when I leave this world, my last thought will be of my family and my comrades… Such good men.” –Author Unknown—

    Good Luck and God Speed

    Bob Lott Jr.

    Reply

    • Bob,

      I remember your father very well. He became Deputy Senior Advisor after LTC Couch was killed. He then managed our move from Lam Son to Lai Khe. Not many like him. Pass on my regards.

      I did not get to the team until January 70 so I do not recall that firefight.

      Regards,

      Mike McMunn

      Reply

    • I was an enlisted man / RTO, and if my memory serves me well / call signs got
      used incorrectly and the chopper pilots identified an inbound General as a 4 star /
      Hayes not being available @ Lai Khe, Lt. Col. Lott was dispatched to greet the 4 star general—
      At the chopper Lt. Col. Lott was only greeted by another Lt. Col. the pilots accepted
      responsibility for the mistake. I believe he was friends with Capt Parlow, I had contact with him
      about 6 years ago. He lives in Minnesota and when I find his address I am going to tell him about this
      website. I liked your post about your feelings of those you served with. I also think of Viet Nam every day
      of my life.
      The days, weeks, and the months are ticking by—for all reading this, where are we going to meet?

      Reply

      • Thanks both Mike and Bob. I really appreciate the anecdotes. It seems, a generation or two later, those kinds of funny things still happen in the Army and I guess always will. I wouldn’t trade my own experiences or hearing stories of my father from both Korea and Vietnam for any amount of money.

        Reply

        • Bob,

          A couple of other anecdotes: as I mentioned above, Colonel Lott was largely in charge of the move into Lai Khe. We took over about a 2 square block area within the ARVN perimeter, an area previously inhabited by units of the 1st Infantry Div. In the early days, we would spend half of our days performing advisory duties and the rest of the day improving the advisor compound by erecting B-40 wire, filling sandbags for machinegun emplacements, and painting sun-dried wood that soaked up paint like a sponge.

          One of the buildings had been an EM or NCO club if I remember but Col. Lott wanted to make it into the compound chapel and, of course a chapel must be white. We painted that building everyday for a week before it even gave an appearance of looking white. We must have gone through 50 gallons of paint. In the end I remember him saying that the paint job looked like hell but that the cross at the top sure looked great!

          Another story if I may: one night I was the compound duty officer. At about 2300 hrs there was an explosion on or very close to the compound. Per SOP my orders were: 1) to report to the TOC we were taking incoming and 2) to get the DSA on the field phone and inform him of what was going on. I rang and rang the field phone to his hootch with no answer. At that point I was worried he had been injured by the explosion or if he had been fragged. I sent a runner to his hootch and then we learned he was playing cards in someone else’s hootch and he was fine.

          It turned out a drunk soldier from a Signal unit housed on the compound pulled the pin on a grenade and tossed it near one of the guard posts. Fortunately, no one was harmed but it made for an interesting night.

          Reply

          • Thanks Mike…..passed on the stories and my Dad remembers the signal platoon well. Thanks for the post.

            And for anyone who may know – back the the question on the engagement some time in the Fall of 69….hoping someone may know the dates, mostly because my Dad can’t recall and its bugging him (as a result, me). I’m understanding it was a two day fight, 1/7 made initial contact in daylight and was reinforced by 4/7 as nightfall approached. As 4/7 was moving to engage and make contact in the darkness, there were apparently more than several instances of fratricide between the 2 Battalions. Daybreak brought CAS and helicopter gunships which broke up the enemy. All the details I know, other than my father said ARVN soldiers fought bravely in the engagement and through the night….many times standing in the waist to chest deep rice paddies to return fire.

            …….Thank you MACV Teams.

            Reply

    • Hey bob I was with Col Hayes and your dad at Lamson and lai khe. I was present when “boy” the constrictor got loose from the cage during a poker game one night at Lamson. He was Col Hayes’ “equalizer”. When boy was loose the other players were decidedly nervous and their focus was shattered. Col Hayes made up hid losses while Boy slithered around the room. Those Thursday night poker games were legendary. There was a navy Lt. jg who cleaned the Col’s out a few times. One of the players who would fly in for the game was s Ltc named Beckwith. Google him. You will orobably be impressed.

      I think my assignment to advisory team 70 was one of the highlights of my career. I remember Ltc Lott well. He was one of the good guys.

      All the best to you. Jay

      Reply

  151. Hello Richard,
    My father was Capt. I. F. Padron. S.A. for the 3 Bn, 9 Rgmt, 5 Div. He died on the CH47 that crashed at Song Be on 6 May 1969. I would appreciate any information you may have regarding my father and/or the crash. My email is rpadron99@aol.com.
    Thank you for your service.
    Regards,
    Robert Padron

    Reply

    • Robert
      I never met your father. I did meet and at times worked with his replacement, as well as his actual team members (actual names still escape me). I do remember that he was held in high regard especially for his prior military exploits.

      I was not there during the actual downing of that CH. However, having participated in numerous flights in and out of Song Be subject to hostile sniper fire, it is my belief that a sniper on Nui Ba Ra got lucky with a small arms round to the tail rotor. Those chopper pilots were highly skilled at knowing exactly what their aircraft was capable of handling.

      Give me some more time to refresh my memory. We’ll talk more.

      Best of luck
      Richard Gotch

      Reply

      • I was in and out of Song Be once a month on the pay chopper. We flew in shortly after it was overrun in 1969 (don’t remember the month). I believe we had two advisors killed. One was a boy I knew as we came into country together. In 1969 Charlie was using SAM 57’s in that area. We had to take evasive action as they locked onto our chopper. According to the pilot, we were lucky to evade the rocket. I didn’t know up till then the manuevers a Huey was capable of. We were under mortar attack that day while on the ground.

        Reply

  152. I just found this web site. I, LT Richard Gotch (captains never seemed to last long) was senior advisor with the 4/9, 5th Div May 68 – May 69 with most of time at Song Be, although the 4/9 rotated through Ann Loc and Chan Thon. I don’t remember names of the guys I served with at the moment. I do remember the CH 47 going down as 4/9’s base was near the air strip and having a discussion with the assistant senior advisor who was in the trailing CH 47.

    My memory of those years should return and would like to hear from anyone, I have several hundred slides stored somewhere in my house and will share them.

    Richardcg105@gmail.com

    Reply

  153. All….I’m just now finding this site while trying to research a specific engagement in the Fall of 1969, and really glad to see the comments from the veterans. My father was with Advisory Team 70 from July 1969 – July 1970. I’m still very lucky to have him with us and proud of his service in Korea and Vietnam. We showed him some of the comments left by you guys last night and on the comment about COL Hayes’ 9′ boa eating ducks, he laughed and said that was nothing compared to the time the snake got loose and everyone was trying to catch it.

    I am interested to know if anyone remembers or has any specific information on a brief engagement in the Fall of 1969 between 1st and 4th Battalions, 7th Infantry Regiment, 5th Infantry Division (ARVN) and C Company, 2nd Battalion, “Quyet Tang – Resolve to Win” Regiment, Viet Cong, vicinity of Phu Hoa Dong, South Vietnam.

    “I now know why men who have been to war yearn to reunite. Not to tell stories or look at old pictures. Not to laugh or weep. Comrades gather because they long to be with the men who once acted at their best; men who suffered and sacrificed, who were stripped of their humanity. I did not pick these men. They were delivered by fate and the military. But I know them in a way I know no other men. I have never given anyone such trust. They were willing to guard something more precious than my life. They would have carried my reputation, the memory of me for the rest of their lives. It was part of the bargain we all made, the reason we were so willing to die for one another. As long as I have memory, I will think of them all, every day. I am sure that when I leave this world, my last thought will be of my family and my comrades… Such good men.” –Author Unknown—

    Reply

  154. Hi John, Yes, I had a huge memory flood especially reading certain parts. I also am thankful for my place in the organization, but then we all had our part to play. It was truly an interesting book because many parts were real.

    Larry

    Reply

  155. Great idea. I am not much into the organizing. I am a good follower now that I am I’m later years. I do have a good friend, VN era vet, who lives in Manassas, worked in DC many years. He may have some info. Maybe the current occupants of the White House would put us up? (Joke). I love DC, great place. To everyone who reads this I hope God has blessed your lives.
    I was with 4/7, PTQ, and points west 6/66 to 3/68. Worked TOC, Rto at Lam Son, (Phu Loi) for sometime. Oh those were the days. If my math is right that was 50 years ago when I left the Nam, back to the world. Wow 50 years. Hello to Mike LaLonde and Larry Eagan if you are reading.

    Reply

    • Chuck,

      Thanks for stepping forward and be willing to contact your friend for help.

      May I SUGGEST, for planning purposes, hotel arrangements for the night of 11/10 and check out on 11/12. That gives us a half-day/night to meet and organize on the ground, the 11th for the Wall visit and ceremony, the evening of the 11th to get over to Eden Center in Falls Church, and some more time to shoot the bull and tell war stories.

      I welcome all to help setting the agenda and time table but at least this proposal might give Chuck’s friend some idea of what we are up to.

      Obviously, I am just throwing this out to get the conversation started. The other thing is to start getting some idea of how many may attend. With enough preparation we can get the word out through this site, VFW magazine, AL magazine, DAV magazine, etc.

      Reply

      • Hello,
        As I have mentioned on previous post, my father was with Team 70 during ’68/’69. I would be honored to attend.
        Thank you for your service.

        Reply

      • Hello Larry, glad to hear you had a good trip. I am hoping to hook up in Nov in DC. Would be very cool. How are you doing? Well I hope. Was nice to meet you and your wife on your trip south. See you, Chuck-
        (Sampson Scooper 4), over, the only call sign I can remember that we used.

        Reply

    • Chuck, sorry for not checking in sooner. Things are great no complaints at this point. Was there a meeting in San Diego? Chuck I saw your picture on Facebook. I’m lousy with all the electronics but I enjoyed seeing your picture.
      If there is a reunion we should all bring pictures.

      Reply

      • Hello Mike, no problem, good to see your post. I can not make it to San Diego. I presume it is still on for 28 &29 April. Larry Eagon must have posted the picture. I may have if it was on Facebook. Can’t remember. Nov would be terrific for s reunion. Glad to hear you are doing well. Same here, very blessed. Hope to see you before the days slip away. Take care. Chuck

        Reply

      • Hello Larry, glad to hear you had a good trip. I am hoping to hook up in Nov in DC. Would be very cool. How are you doing? Well I hope. Was nice to meet you and your wife on your trip south. See you, Chuck-
        (Sampson Scooper 4), over, the only call sign I can remember that we used.

        Reply

  156. Bob,

    I think your suggestion about anyone who is familiar with facilities in the DC, Arlington, Alexandria area might be able to make some contacts and see what might be available. It would be nice if we could get a general idea of how many folks might be interested. I know Tom Boyle and myself are interested.

    Mike

    Reply

  158. Tom,
    I came into the team in June, 68. No problem with remembering me. When you’re new you learn everyone’s name but the old timers don’t learn the new guys.names. I was the same way, I remember you, Lou and the others who were in the hooch when I arrived but I can’t remember who took your places. I’ve also read Fred Marshall’s report in the Texas Tech Oral History Project. He has a picture of you and Lou in his archive.If you haven’t read it, you should. I’ve been thinking of doing the history and giving the perspective of someone who was in base camp the whole time.

    I worked in the admin office first as a typist and later ran the message center. Basically, I was a messenger who delivered classified documents (intsum & stireps (?) and arc light strikes) to the other offices. I visited each office twice a day so I got to know most everyone at Gosney Compound.

    I remember that after the swimming pool was built I almost drowned you horsing around in the pool. You had some lung problem. I thought I had let you breath but you hadn’t gotten enough air and I held you under too long. Scared the hell out of me.

    Sam

    Reply

    • Hi All, By Jan 71 the plastic liner in the swimming pool had become infected with some kind of bacteria. Several people got bad rashes so the whole thing was closed down and the liner was taken out. It sat empty for awhile until some of the engineering guys assigned to Team 91 scrounged rebar and cement and built a really first class pool. Everyone on the team helped out when they were pouring and finishing the concrete. It sure was nice on some of those hot days.

      Larry

      Reply

    • Sam…Jun/68 really and lived in our hooch…I know I was out of touch sometimes but you would think I’d remember a fellow soldier in the same hooch for 4 months!! I didn’t know a lot of the 80 or so guys at Gosney. Too much guard duty and too many drinks at the EM Club. Thanks for remembering me, I didn’t think anyone remembered me outside the G2 guys. I was promoted to E5 in August and was allowed in the NCO Club but rarely went in as my friends were E4 and below and we had more fun. Glad you made it back OK as ADV TM 70 had a 28% loss rate throughout the 5th ARVN AOR.

      Reply

    • My name is Greg Skalany. I was stationed at Lam Son mid 69 until April 70 as an E-3 in the Air Force, with the forward air controllers. Beside doing generator repair on the compound and two other sites, I was tasked with keeping the pool area clean. (I remember painting the surrounding fence.) I also ran the special services photo lab at night, and processed mission photos from our pilots. I don’t remember many of the people stationed there, but remember all the different branches represented. When I left, I received a plaque from my outfit for winning “the Battle of the Pool”.

      Reply

  159. My name is Robert Bell / I served (proudly) with team70 from 11/69 at Lam son and about 2
    months later at Lai Khe and the 9th Reg until 1/71. I went back to Lai Khe in 2000. The first thing I do every morning
    is check this sight for new postings. We all carried on a proud tradition of serving in the
    United States Military. This will be one of only a few opportunities we all have left to get
    together. One of this group should be able to get a place we could all meet on
    Veterans Day Nov. 2016. I thank all of you for making my tour a Honored tradition and
    a memory I think of every day.

    Reply

  160. Team 70,

    If we are serious about a reunion on November 11, 2106 I am definitely in. What do we want to do? A get-together at a DC pub, visit the Wall as a group, dinner at a great restaurant at Eden Center in Falls Church, or all of the above? I am in favor of ‘all of the above.’

    Mike

    Reply

    • We need a thinker like you to organize give the orders and the
      troops will follow. When I was younger and more healthy I would have
      gladly put it together but I cannot do it now. Everyone else reading this
      think about it, maybe someone knows of a hotel that will sponsor us
      a meeting room or a hall where we can gather and meet

      Reply

  162. Tom,

    I was there later (Jan 70 – Jan 71) but saw you mention Tom Boyle. Tom is a very good friend of mine and I have been trying to get him to post here. Maybe this will get him out of the weeds. We live in the same general community and he, his wife and I got together last Thursday evening.

    If he does not respond here let me know and I will give you his email address after I check with him.

    Mike McMunn

    Reply

    • Mike, Tom and I both ended up in Australia at Sydney in Sept 68. We saw each other the last couple days there. I believe he was from New Jersey when we served at Gosney. Tom Bacon, glad you got back OK.

      Reply

  163. Everyone…it was great to read through all the comments and things remembered for us all over 46 to 50 years ago. It was a trip back to a time. I was and still am proud to have served my time with Warriors who jobs were to assist those in the field. I was at Gosney Compound Oct 67 through Oct 68. I served with Fred Marshall, Ron Schultz, Scott Farrant, Craig McGee, Rodney Smith,
    Lou Amici, Tom Boyle, SSG Scannel, SFC Anderson, Lt. Small, LT Petrero, CPT Hausch, CPT Clark at the TOC, MAJ Clark G2, and other Great guys I lived with for a year in Viet Nam. Welcome home to all and prayers for those who have passed.
    Tom Bacon. P.S. The get together on Veteran’s Day in D.C. is a great idea.

    Reply

    • Tom,

      We were in the same hooch along with Lou Amici, Kerry Kurtz, Mike Choinard, Jerry Barrett, Frenchy Boileu (sp?).

      Sam

      Reply

      • Sam…I must have been drunker then I remembered being so close to the EM Club. Who did you work for! I mostly hung out with the guys at G2. Lost my High School ring in the big field outside Gosney…anyone find it? 🙂

        Reply

    • Tom – I will finally tell Mike McMunn that I replied on the site. I’m glad that you remembered a few of the names that time had erased from my gray matter. The fact that Mike and I are in the same town and had served in Team 70, a few years apart, was a great suprise. I am glad that this site is here so us old war horses can get in touch with each other. I remember our time in Sidney and still laugh about the ladies there not liking facial hair. Welcome home to all my brothers from the teams especially Team 70. I agree that the get together is a great idea and would be fantastic.

      Reply

      • Tom…I’m in contact with Scott Farrant all the time, he’s one of the best things to come out of the Viet Nam Conflict. It’s good to hear you’re alive and well. I’m living in Merrillville, IN where are you ( if you care to tell) I remember you being from New Jersey?

        Reply

        • Tom, I was assigned to the 902nd MI Group upon rotation from Nam. I met and married a lady from PA and have lived there since. We are in a township right outside of Williamsport, the home of the Little League Word Series.

          Reply

    • Tom, got the pictures from Scotty today that you and Fred put together. Thanks. I was at Lam Son from June ’68 to July ’69. Some of those I served with were Rodney Smith, Fred Marshall, Scott Farrant, Curly Moore, Kerry Kurtz, Harry Krueger, Doug Zimmerman, and Rick Pearson. I would also be interested in a reunion later this year.

      Reply

    • Hi Tom,
      Craig McGee here, I just found this website tonight. It’s so much fun reading all the comments and remembering all the people we were stationed with.( You did a good job remembering everybody’s names!) Hope your doing well, I’m retired now and living in Naples, Florida. I have had a great ride, have some health issues now but the VA has taken very good care of me.

      Reply

  164. Larry, I would also like to read the book! Do you know, or anybody know where to find it? Anybody remember SP4 Pete WaacK (not sure of spelling) Or remember new years eve 68/69 when CS grenade thrown through basketball hoop at Lam Son and gassed the Vietnamese officer’s club.. They thought smoke grenade cause they took off my jeep. Viet. officers and wives gagging and throwing up in parking lot…!! Wow Jim C.

    Reply

    • Jim, I got it on Amazon. A penny for the book and $3.99 for shipping. I checked libraries all around my area, but no one had it. Maybe some other used book sites might have it, but I had a credit at Amazon. They sent it very quickly.

      Larry

      Reply

      • April 16, 2018

        I just finished reading “the Advisors”, by Curt Rich.
        Unbelievable, what some went through. Luckily I was a REMF, spent most of my time in the TOC and at Harry’s apartment in Saigon.
        I will say, it got my emotions going.
        From anger to hate, and laughter.
        Not that it was funny, it was just so ridiculous, what Jerry Harris had to go through.
        I don’t want to spoil it , if anyone else wants to read it.

        Reply

  165. Larry,

    I had forgotten the Pizza Hut reference. Alas, there was no Pizza Hut at Lai Khe that I ever knew about. I guess that is artistic license. I did go through Oakland when I returned. I did not get a uniform issue there as I left RVN in khakis. The book was interesting to me since back when it was written there were few books, fiction or non-fiction, written about advisors and it hit home being somewhat based on Team 70 itself.

    Mike

    Reply

    • Mike, Many parts of it hit home with me also. It had a real authentic atmosphere. It is a novel so I’m sure he used a little creativity. I suspect he created a composite to tell stories he heard about plus his own experience. I left RVN in khakis also. For me a trip to MACV HQ at TSN to have a hamburger and a milk shake in that nice air conditioned building was a mini-vacation. Plus the MP’s couldn’t hassle us. The real Curtis Rich got a Bronze Star, a Purple Heart, and an Air Medal and apparently left RVN sometime in Sept. 70. Thanks for telling us about the book.

      Larry

      Reply

    • Thanks for telling me about this group.I just started reading the posts and saw this one. There’s a lot of fiction in The Advisors, but the real Pizza hut run did occur. We went outside the advisors compound gate and got a pizza at a hut, or at least I thing we did. It was a long time ago. Captain West drove. Neither of us were sober.

      Reply

  166. Yeah Larry, I worked out of G2, but spent almost no time on the MACV compound. To say the least I was not a happy camper!! I was up in Da Nang at a SF compound working as a debriefer for MACV SOG attached to 1st special Forces group on Okinawa (I was not SF, just attached). Compound got over run 26 SF dead (CCN), and then 2 days later I had to go back to Oki to clear to go PCS to Nam. Remember now SA was Col. Leach… He threw that big heavy “Daring Advisors’ (Book) thing he had at me because he didn’t like an interrogation report I sent out ..Hit me in the side and it really hurt (was plywood or something similar) from then on HE didn’t give ME anymore trouble :).Scared us both, Ha, Ha. Spent all my time with the ARVN and picking up prisoners. Was at Nui Ba Den (Black virgin Mountain??) when that big CH46 went down. Probably wrong, but I was told they where way over loaded. Anybody hear anything like that. Anybody hear from, or remember CPT Richard Kelly?

    Reply

    • Hello Jim, Mike McMunn recommended a book called “The Advisors” by Curt Rich. It’s about Team 70 during this time. On page 85 it says a Chinook was made to hold 33 and they had 50 on board when it crashed at Song Be. I haven’t finished the book yet, but it’s very good so far.

      Larry

      Reply

      • Larry,

        An interesting coincidence, at least for me, from the book. In the first few pages he recounts being at the auto race in Germany when driver Jimmy Clark was killed. I was there also.

        Mike

        Reply

        • Hello Mike, I finished “The Advisors”. A good read and certainly moves along quickly. He mentions many things about the general atmosphere there that I certainly remember like the phrase “Don’t mean nothin'”. We certainly used that one a lot. One point that struck me was that he did not seem to go through Oakland Army Terminal. Did officers have a different routine? I went through there every time I went back and forth to RVN (2 round trips). We got our dress green uniforms there, not at Lai Khe. Was there really a Pizza Hut at Lai Khe? I remember the 11th ACR, but I sure don’t remember a Pizza Hut. Thanks for recommending the book.

          Larry

          Reply

          • l don’t believe there was a Pizza Hut at Lai Khe but I sure do remember “Shakey’s Pizza” signs all over the compound when I was there.

            Larry Stith

            Reply

    • Hello Jim,

      I read your comments about the Chinook that crashed near Nui Ba Ra mountain.

      My father was Capt. I.F. Padron, US Army Senior Advisor Team 70, 3 Bn. 9 Regt, 5 ARVN Div. He died on a CH-47A Chinook that crashed at Song Be on 6 May, 1969. Song Be is located at the footsteps of Nui Ba Ra.

      On 6 May, 1969 my father and a contingent of US Advisors and ARVN were loaded on to two (2) Ch-47A,s at the MACV resupply pad west of the Song Be airstrip on their way to an airmobile assertion near the Cambodian border.

      My understanding of the events leading up to the crash are based on the Collateral Investigation Report that was done immediately after the accident.

      The report states that while the CH-47A that crashed was at the upper limits of its gross weight capabilities, it was not the cause of the accident. The report concludes that: “A mechanical malfunction resulting in the loss of power on the number 2 engine was the direct cause of this accident.”. The testimony of the survivors is that shortly after take-off engine #2 malfunctioned forcing the CH-47A to loose altitude. The pilot attempted to continue and land in the valley outside the Song Be airstrip. As it flew at low altitude the landing gear hit wires at the edge of the compound. The CH-47A rolled over and crashed on the steep slope at the end of the compound.

      The crash took the life of my father, crewman SP5 Wayne A. Allums and 37 ARVN soldiers.

      My wife and I visited Song Be in 2014. With the help of the maps and crash site photographs provided in the report I was able to locate the crash site. I laid flowers and said a prayer. We spent the night at Song Be. Visiting the last place on earth my father was at gave me some closure and has had a very positive effect on my life.

      I hope this answers your questions concerning the crash.

      Thank you for your service.

      Sincerely,
      Roberto Padron

      Reply

  167. SA was Jimmy Leach. He later took over the 11th ACR. In WW2, he also served under Creighton Abrams and was wounded the day before Abram’s battalion broke through to Bastogne. Leach appeared in a couple History Channel documentaries on tank battles in WWII. One title I remember is Patton 360. He has a Wikipedia page.

    I was there while you were but don’t remember you. I worked in the Admin Office. One of my jobs was to take classified mail from office to office so I visited G2 twice a day as well as all the other offices. I knew the EM’s who worked in G2 but the only name I think I remember is Jim Arnoldt. There was also a SP4 who was bald so everyone called him Curly.

    I also remember a major later LTC Matthews who was G2 advisor. He later went to a regiment. While standing outside his hooch, he was accidentally shot by the division commander, Thanh I think his name was.

    Reply

  168. Hello Jim, Welcome on line. Were you in G-2? It appears you were about 9 months ahead of most of us that have been communicating lately. We were mostly there from late ’69 for some, all the way through ’70 like me.

    Larry

    Reply

  169. I’m reading all these replies and wondering where the hell I was??!. I’m SP6 Jim Chambers, and I relieved Fred Marshall early Sept 68, in Lam Son and was Med evaced(?) out in late April 69, with internal bleeding from some “bug” or something.(Could not stop bleeding from something ??) 2 months at Camp Oji, in Japan, bleeding stopped for no apparent reason, and then on to Korea for 16 more months. Remember Fred, and tall Major named Taylor. (showed up with a big FRO and had to help him with his brass.. Lots of years undercover CI in Detroit), Hell of a guy!! He was asst. G2, and I thought G2 was LTC. “Dan” something. Cpt. Kelly is another I remember….One of the best officers I have ever had the honor to work with! I was older than most there I guess, 26, and. Can’t remember the Senior Advisors name, but he was a LT. under George Patton in WWII. Made all the officers change into dress uniforms for lunch…. The KHAKIS for lunch Bunch they called it..
    Like Fred, worked mostly with ARVN intel. in the corner of the ARVN compound. Stayed in the Army and retired out of Defense language Institute in June 1983.

    Reply

  170. I guess Allgood had left by then. They gave him a section 8. I went to see him in the hospital. He had 17 yrs in. They really screwed him over. That disaster with the sensors really messed me up. I remember the Cambodia op also. Renee and I hated each other. Why he chose to take me on that sensor op made no sense to me. They required someone with a security clearance so I was it. By that time I was out of G2 and never went back. Anyway. .. VN has been the focus of so much of my adult life, good and bad.

    I’ve gotten reconnected with Larry Stith in the last couple of years and it has been good for me. He is a great guy and friend. Where are you located? Maybe we can get together?

    Take care,
    Lou

    Reply

    • Hi Lou, I live in the LA area. Like Larry Stith remembered, I was from Oregon in our RVN days, but when I came back to the US, Oregon was too cold and wet for me. I went to school in California and just stayed for good. If any of you are out here let me know and maybe we can get together. It would be a blast.

      Take care,
      Larry

      Reply

      • How about Wash., DC Veterans Day Nov. 2016 / All that can come
        again, suggestions comments where and how — not many more times we could pull this off collectively
        Robert Bell

        Reply

        • Bob,

          My wife and I would like to attend the Advisory Team 70 reunion in DC in November. I was part of a four man team assigned from Lai Kae to the 5th ARVN from Feb. 68 to Feb. 69. I have attended a 101st reunion the past two years with a friend who was 101st in Nam. I was telling him that Team 70 held no reunions as far as I knew. My team, from the 1st Infantry Division, consisted of Major McGowan, SSG Statler, PFC Cluen and a SP4 me. I have a hard time remembering after 48 years. Sam Sullivan knew me from the first time I responded to a post after finding this site. It would be great to see guys I served with in 68-69. Maybe my memory will be jogged back to life a little bit. Somebody please keep me informed about ongoing info on the reunion. I’m setting aside Nov. 10-14 for this.

          Thanks,

          Jerry Barrett

          Reply

  171. was on tm#70 67-68outside phu coung amor unit hello col towle capt egan sgt sellars sgt cook sgtpapov hope you fellows are doi ng well i think of you’ll often but cant remember all names take care barry

    Reply

  172. Larry go on line to Bangkok travel agent you can book a good flight through them. I did so in 2002, I think 140. is what I spent round trip

    Ed Warneld Team///70 and 90 1964 – 1965

    Reply

  173. Airfares from LAX to Bangkok have been really cheap lately. I only paid $695 last Dec. I hope the oil prices will stay down for awhile. I haven’t checked on airfares from Bangkok to VN, but there are lots of flights and several airlines so it’s competitive. If anyone goes, let us all know.

    Larry

    Reply

  175. Larry I have often thought of going back to nam , but allways manage to talk my self out of it .I would like to see it in peace instead of threw the eyes of war. I was there durning the war twice, 2 1/4 yrs with 1st Inf nov 66 to apr 69 and again with 101st airborne jun 71 mar 72 . Because I stayed so long my head isn’t right , saw , did too much. God bless all who served

    Reply

    • Amen to that. Sounds like you just missed the Battle of An Loc by about a month. I go to Bangkok every once in awhile. i might pop over to VN next time I go. Bob Bell’s trip sounded really interesting.

      Larry

      Reply

    • Phil, Bob Bell here – I know you saw a lot of BAD stuff. The place is different now and the local VN love Americans. I can tell you, for me
      going back was the most important thing in my life to me.Whatever you decide, be at peace with it, you have a right to be here and
      no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should for you.

      Reply

      • Hi Bob, Phil, Mike, John, Many of the SE Asia countries like Vietnam and Cambodia have young populations now that have little or no memory of the war time. I recently went to Cambodia and Laos and was greeted with friendliness and a desire to talk. They don’t like their current governments, but life goes on and their life is definitely getting better. From my Vietnamese friends here in So Cal. I hear the same thing when they go back for visits. The corrupt communist government is one thing, but they focus on their local surroundings. I have heard the old Saigon is very busy. The Southerners were always more entreprenurial than the north and once the northern dominance eased off, the economy is booming. I hope to go and see for myself in the next couple of years or so.

        Larry

        Reply

        • I have not dislike to the Asian people, in fact my son in law is Vietnamese and my grand daughter and I love them both. It would be an extremely large mountain to climb to see Nam again. Not every day , but quite often I have quick thoughts of things pertaining to Nam, like snapshots of some negative things and heaven forbid , I see a war movie on TV, for i get hooked on watching it .I think as a man the most monumental thing for him to do during his life is to be a warrior. My father and uncle were in WW2 and were so proud of there service as well as the rest of America. The negativity we came home to is imbedded in my brain. I do want to see a peaceful Vietnam, but at 68 its a long journey and not so sure it would be worth it , just not sure of its value,.Larry thank you for your input

          Reply

          • Well said, Phil. Each of us has to decide how they feel about it deep down. It was one of the most significant events in our lives, certainly mine.

            Larry

            Reply

    • Hi Phil, Team 91 was the Binh Duong Province Advisory Team so that makes sense since Ben Cat is in that province. Did you hear from someone that was on Team 91? I was with Team 91 in Lam Son from Feb 71 to Dec 71. They moved in to Lam Son when Team 70 moved north to Lai Khe. I wonder if the old Gosney Compound buildings are still there.

      Reply

      • I don’t think anything is left of Gosney Compound. Wikipedia has a page for Phu Loi Base which gives coordinates on Google maps. The runway is still viewable. Using that as a reference, I’ve looked for some remnants of the 5th ARVN base but can’t see anything. I think it is now part of the industrial park. I also find it ironic that about a mile away is an exclusive golf club, Twin Dove Golf Club.

        Regarding Team 70 at Ben Cat, in 68-69 one the 5th ARVN’s regiments was headquartered there so a regimental advisory team and some battalion teams were there, probably about 5 to 10 men.

        Reply

        • Hello Sam, I think you are probably right about Gosney. We were already right at the edge of town in those days and with development now it’s most likely gone. I went over to some of the homes of the Vietnamese that worked for us and ate in nearby shops so it was already developed. They love golf in SE Asia so a golf course nearby wouldn’t surprise me either. I never did go into Ben Cat with either team I was with at the time. The place still had a reputation.
          The other night TCM had “The Quiet American” on. It was actually filmed in Saigon in 1958. It was interesting to see it with all of the emails we have all been exchanging over the last few weeks. The Continental Hotel in downtown Saigon looked about the same as it did in 1971. I guess it’s been spiffed up now and is more of a luxury hotel, but it has survived. It would be interesting to see Saigon again.

          Larry

          Reply

      • Of the Gosney compound, in 2001 I, (Bob Bell) went back and took pics but I can’t find them. The Colonels house/hooch, and the mess hall
        were still there. The bldgs, where the Colonel had his office by the TOC are there and being used. The TOC is a 15 foot high mound of
        dirt that the locals told me (in 2001) the NVA blew up in 1975. More of the Gosney compound, it is fenced off and surrounded by a rubber
        plantation. I spent 2 months at Lam Son (how sweet it was), at Lai Khe/Gosney I spent maybe 6 mos and the balance of my 14 mos out in the
        field with the 4th Bn 9th Regt. 5th Div. When I went back I could not find the little outposts where we had 2x105s on a FSB with a Battalion
        of VN on hill368,FSB @ Bo dup, and FSB@ Bo duc on the border with Cambodia where we watched arc light drop their tonnage. The place is unrecognizable from 1969/1970 it is built up so much.The road that goes north from Saigon Hwy1(?) Hwy13(?) I forget but my hired driver got a
        speeding ticket and it is a toll road now. The 2001 trip was, I do not know the words to use how it affected me but it was quite
        provoking to the senses.

        Reply

        • Bob,

          A couple of clarifications: the advisor compound at Lam Son was known as Gosney Compound, named after MAJ Durwood Dean Gosney, an advisor with the 5th ARVN, who was KIA on 7 Oct 1964. The Lai Khe was known as Couch Compound, named after DSA COL Raymond Couch, killed in a helicopter accident, on 7 Feb 1970 right after wee moved to Lai Khe.

          Mike

          Reply

      • this is larry eagen tm 70 nov 65 -66 the last 3 months or so i was with tm 91 at phu hoa dong also 2bn 7th reg 5th div was out of phu hoa dong after the big shot out with the 7th reg at thri tam at late nov 66

        Reply

  177. Thank goodness for the drops. If you got your DEROS to within 150 days of separation, that was it. I eventually got mine also with Tm 91. I got home Dec 24, 1971. It was a good Christmas that year.
    I want to give a shout out to whomever was on Team 70 in April 1972 during the Battle of An Loc. It sounds like our guys were critical in helping the 5th ARVN to stop the NVA attack at that time. It sounds like it was one hell of a battle.

    Larry

    Reply

    • I am Major(Retired) Mark A. Smith AKA Zippo, I was in the Spring Offensive of 1972 and was captured after the 3 day battle at Loc Ninh with 9th ARVN Regiment. The Division Commander,MG Hung, and the SRA Colonel Bill Miller deployed to An Loc during the An Loc\Loc Ninh battles.

      I am now in Bangkok and have been here since retirement from USA in 1985. I retired from the little position I had assisting the Thais eighteen months ago. Be happy to answer any questions about the Spring Offensive or captivity. I was commissioned by General Westmoreland after serving as a platoon sergeant with the 28th Infantry at Laike from 1966-68.

      For those who don’t know brave MG Hung chose suicide rather than surrender as the 21st Division CG in 1975.

      Zippo

      Reply

      • This is to Mark Smith – I served with the 9th Regt 4th bn in 1970 Chon Than, Quan Loi, Hill368/ , Bo Duc, & Bo Dup on the border. I dont remember names now but my ARVN counterparts in the 9th were great soldiers. I am sorry to hear about MG Hung. If he had went into capitivity they would have tortured him terribly. I lived in Hawaii 2000 to 2003 and talked to dozens of ARVN troops who had endured 15 – 20 years of brutality and upon release when able, moved to Hawaii. I would love to meet you and talk. Robert Bell

        Reply

        • Thank you Robert,I posted on here early on but I suspect my time in 71-72 with 5th Division was after most of the fellows. I return to the USA often now for RPW physicals,attend reunions and visit family in CA. I go to DC often because my daughter owns a home across from the Marine Barracks. Be more than happy to sit down with you,where do you reside?

          Mark

          Reply

          • Mark, thanks for your reply- I live in New Jersey.
            We will stay in touch and keep each other posted. I would be very interested in your capture and
            I have topographical maps from then. At the risk of offending or doing wrong my email is
            ZX1144@AOL.COM

            Reply

      • Zippo,
        Just found this site and am happy to hear you are alive and well in Bangkok. Ken Wallingford lives in Austin and George W. is in the Northeast ( Mass. or Vt. ) I retired from T.I. in 99 after 22 years making missiles for the Navy and now live in Texas. Hope all is well.
        Tom Howes , Loc Ninh ,’72

        Reply

        • Tom:
          My husband, Glenn L. Taylor, a retired Army Major, is searching for a fellow VIet Nam veteran named “Tom Howes”.that served with him. Just curious if you are the right one. The individual we are searching for was involved in a rescue when my husband was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. Please let me know.
          Regards,
          KTaylor
          kathytaylor2007@aol.com

          Reply

  178. Feb or Mar 1970- Jan 1971
    I moved to MACV team 70 in Lai Khe, right after the move, as a radio operator.
    We had enough RTOs , so I became Col Hayes personal RTO.
    Good job for me.
    Most of the time, I spent in the The Colonel’s outer office with the Sgt Major, and the COl’s Vietnamese secretary.
    I don’t remember the Sgt Major’s name , or his replacement.
    On ocassion I drove the Col’s jeep around the base, while Col Hayes ran behind me.
    After some RTOs got laid off, I moved into the TOC.
    Most of the time I worked at night.
    The last few months I was permanent CQ in the First Sgt office at night.
    I don’t remember the First Sgt or the CO names, either.

    Reply

    • It sounds like a bunch of us arrived at about the same time in early 1970. I came in Jan when the G-2 was still at Lam Son. G-2 was Maj. Muenter (sp), Lt. Rennie, Lieb, Clarke, and Andrews. I don’t know if I was being added or replacing someone. After our move to Lai Khe for awhile we worked in the office 1/2 days, dug foxholes and filled sandbags for 1/2 days and pulled guard duty at night. We were all exhausted. Over the summer Clarke, Lieb, and Andy left. I don’t remember any replacements at our rank coming in. Lt. Rennie left and was replaced by Lt. Burke. The Lt. at Tm 91 in Lam Son had tried to recruit me down there and I requested a transfer and was turned down. Maj Muenter left and was replaced by LTC Connell (not sure about the name). Andy had told be before he left that if you extended six months a time you could get another R & R out of it. I still had another year and 1/2 to go and stateside duty was the pits (“painting rocks white” was one phrase). Towards the end of my year I extended for six months and was granted a transfer to Team 91. It was a little more peaceful at the Provincial level. There was a Polish Staff Sergeant with a big long name that came in to G-2 late in my time there, but I don’t remember any other replacements. Maybe the troop draw down had started by then. If any of you can fill in anything else I would appreciate it. After so many years a lot of memories have come flooding back, but some of the details are missing. It’s great hearing again about what we were all doing. At the time we were all so busy.

      Thanks,
      Larry

      Reply

      • some how I lost the page I was writing on. In finishing, the war was a terrible blight on man/humanity. when I came back I was angry for
        10 years that I had not done more killing. Now, if I kill a spider by reflex I wish I had not. All life is sacred to me. thanks for writing me
        Bob Bell

        Reply

        • Now I see where you’re coming from Bob.
          I had a similar problem, about even killing an insect.
          What finally happened.
          I was in bed sleeping, when I felt something.
          I jumped out of bed, to see what was there.
          A mother Roach and 6 infants.
          I still respect life, But I know where to draw the line.

          Reply

              • I got to the team mid-January 1970. I was assigned to G-4, Maintenance Bn and met with LTC Couch. He was a superb officer and I regret that he was killed about 3 weeks later. In the short time I knew him I considered him a mentor.

                He told me that he wanted me to get familiar with the 5th’s AO so he dispatched me to the various regimental bases to learn what was going on. On my first visit to an outpost I was welcomed by the regimental advisory staff and given a place to sleep and shown where the latrine was. It was an enclosed outhouse. The first evening I had to visit the latrine and went out with a flashlight in the middle of the night. I was shocked to shine the light on the interior walls of the outhouse and see 4 – 5 inch roaches covering the walls. To my knowledge I never sleep in a roach nest, than heaven.

                Reply

      • I also extended 3 months ,2 weeks, and 3 days, to get the early out.I used to know that by heart, but I looked it up this time.
        Things were getting tense at the end , and I don’t know if I could handle it for 9 more months in the states.
        In answer to my own question . I think Sgt Seizmore was the First Sgt.

        Reply

      • Hey Larry, you forgot MSG Allgood. He was G2 NCO. Lt Renee and he had a big problem with each other. Secret safes were left open on more than 1 occasion and Allgood after 2nd time reported it directly to III Corp. Col Hayes wan not happy about that and the good Sargent was sent packing. Since I was the one who found the safes unlocked and reported it to the Sargent Lt Renee made my life miserable. I wound up going to Lai Khe to set up the compound before the team moved in.

        Take care,
        Lou

        Reply

        • Hi Lou, Wow, I do not remember Allgood at all. He must have been sent packing right around when I arrived. My orders say I reported to the team Jan 15, 1970. Was there another NCO that came to G-2? I only remember the Polish Sgt. that came late in ’70. You and Lt. Rennie went out on that sensor recon mission in early Feb. i remember that. Do you remember the choppers coming back in to Lam Son late at night when the ARVN’s went in to Cambodia? That didn’t turn out too well. It was quite a time.

          Best Wishes,
          Larry

          Reply

        • Louis, was this Ron Allgood? If so he took me under his wing years August 1969 – August 1970. The Allgood I knew ETS’d before retirement to get his kids from a very nasty divorce. Also, during this time a team medic , Scottie a good friend.

          Reply

  179. Larry,

    Speaking of Sgt. Dailey, yes he not only spoke fluent Vietnamese but Russian and Chinese as well. I use to tease him by saying how did a Staff Sgt. learn all those languages unless trained by the NSA. He would never reply. Yes I visited his home also after his child was born and met his wife. He really was a great guy. He had asked me to meet him and his family in California when they returned to the States so his wife would see a familiar face when arriving. I gave him my home address, but never heard from him. I often wondered if he made it back. He was at least 10 years older than me so I don’t know if he’s still around.

    Larry Stith

    Reply

    • I remember Sgt Dailey also.
      It took a bit.
      I think he was there 5 yrs.
      His first name Ron. it just came back to me today.
      I’m pretty sure, He lived in Ben Cat with his wife.
      He had electric in the village, no one else did.

      Reply

  180. I also remembered that one VC was placed near the road as I headed to Saigon With My Counterpart. He was starting to smell.

    Reply

    • Hi All, When the Ruff Puffs would get one over night they would let it lay next to the road for awhile. i remember seeing that also. The part of the highway was always so quiet and a little creepy. Ben Cat is one of the towns the has NOT been renamed since the war ended, unlike Phu Cuong.

      Larry

      Reply

      • Does anyone remember what happened to Captains Brooks or West? They were my drinking pals. Lots of good memories with those guys.

        Reply

        • Bill,

          Did I ever send you photos I have of Johnnie West and Carl Brooks?

          If not, I will send.

          Good to hear you are still hanging around. Do you still meet with Dan Tran?

          Mike

          Reply

          • Mike,
            Any photos would be appreciated. I have been having lunch with Dan Tran every month but lost contact and I have not heard from him. Stay in touch as our counterparts lines are getting thin. I cherish my time serving in team 70 and getting to know you and others I had the pleasure of serving with.

            Reply

          • Dan Tran and I was having lunch once a month but I lost contact and I have not heard from him since. He has my email and phone but have not heard from him. I lost his info or I would contact him.

            Reply

  181. Hi Lou, Glad you could join the conversation. It’s been great to renew some old acquaintances. I still remember the sensor recon mission you went out on with Lt. Rennie where an artillery shell booby trap got exploded. I was new in country at the time so I didn’t go. Maybe lucky for me.

    Larry Gale

    Reply

  182. I was with Team 70, Nov 69 – Nov 70, 96B in G2. Sent to Lai Khe in early 70 to prep compound. It’s nice to see some of the names of old friends on this site. Welcome home Brothers!

    Louis Leib SP4

    Reply

  183. Hello Phil, When i arrived in Jan ’70 the Headquarters of the 5th ARVN Division was at Lam Son which was located just outside Phu Cuong City on HWY 13. It had been there for quite some time. Nearby was the US helicopter base at Phu Loi. Team 70 was at Lam Son with our own compound called Gosney Compound. All the G departments (G-1, G-2, etc) were located there. In early 1970 the US 1st Div. pulled out of Lai Khe and went home. Lai Khe was an old rubber plantation located about 12 miles up Hwy 13 towards Cambodia. Ben Cat was a couple miles south of Lai Khe. The 5th ARVN HQ then moved to Lai Khe and Team 70 along with them, which is where many of us served in ’70-’71. There may have been advisors from time to time at Ben Cat, but the team and the HQ were not there. Other guys on this site would know better about operations in the field at that time. I hope this helps answer your question.

    Regards,
    Larry

    Reply

    • Larry I was in Ben Cat from aug 67 to dec 69 and the team that was there was 70 . If you look up Capt Samuel Stewart 3rd on the net you will see he received a silver star and it clearly says tm 70 this was for TET 68 , the worse best day of my life I was also with 1st bn 16th inf out of Lai Khe prior to Ben Cat. Went to nam nov 66 went home april 69 . Was home a year , trouble with the law, back in army for another 3 , this time June 71 to march 72 , with the 101st air I never should have stayed so long , pay for it big time today. Did you know Americans trained ho chi minh and he was our ally durning ww2. I became engrossed in the history of viet nam,, it was about France and rubber. Not communism

      Reply

      • Hi Phil, I’ve been interested in Viet Nam history also. Why the US backed the French going back in after WW II I don’t understand. And then the French were so stupid at Dien Bien Phu. What a mess. General, later President Thieu was the commanding General of the 5th ARVN. That’s one reason why it was stationed close to Saigon. Originally at Bien Hoa and involved in all the coups, etc. of the early ’60’s. Have you gone back since then? I was looking on a map last night and realized they have changed the names of many of the towns, not just Saigon. What was Phu Cuong is now Thu Dau Mot. I would like to go back for a visit sometime.

        Larry

        Reply

        • Larry – My name is Bob Bell I worked the TOC in Lam Son and Lai Khe 69 to 71. I went to
          Lai Khe in 2001. All our hoochs and almost everything is gone. The compound is there, it
          is fenced off but the mess hall is there and being used for something. The Colonels French style
          hooch/house is still there. The Toc is a 15 foot high mound of dirt which some of the locals told me
          was blown up by the NVA on thier advancement to Saigon. It was an extraordinary experience.
          Do you know or remember me? I had some pictures from 1970 and 2001 but I can’t find them.
          This web site in—– yes?

          Reply

          • Hi Bob, Is the old Lai Khe site still out in the middle of no where? From what I see on Google maps it doesn’t look like there is much around the area. Did you have a chance to see if the buildings in Lam Son were still there? Since they were actual concrete construction I would think maybe they were put to some other use. In my working career I audited the engineering firm (PA & E) that actually built Lam Son. What an irony to find that out 3 years later. Everyone at PA & E was very sad in 1975 on that day when Saigon fell. They had done a lot of work in RVN and had friends there.

            Larry

            Reply

            • Just found this site and found your comment about PA&E interesting. I was with Team 70 in 67-68. I was initially assigned as the SA, 3/9th near Song Be. Got caught in an ambush as we were trying to break an attack on one of the companies and earned my CIB and PH at the same time. Mail Huey picked me up from the bush and took me to Song Be (B-34 SF Camp) where they patched me up and loaded me on an evac bird. Got sent back to CONUS on Emergency Leave -( my wife was at Wright-Patterson AFB Hospital having a kidney removed). Flew back to RVN and ultimately reported to COL Sonstelli (Div SA) who refused to let me return to 3/9th (I was still on crutches). Ended up at the 5th ARVN Tng Center. Bunked a bunch of PA&E guys from Phu Loi on numerous occasions. ARVN guards would stop them on Hwy 13 about dark as they were heading to Saigon and refuse to let them pass. We developed a good relationship and they brought us used conex containers, dug them in and made bunkers out of them for my team as well as the ARVN. Also showed up one day with a 100KW generator on a lowboy. Told us it was found on post! We built a place for it, and provided electricity to the 7th Regt Hq (directly behind us) and an ARVN Cav unit across Hwy 13 and, of course, the Training Center. during Tet 68 all of us got hit pretty bad but the generator continued to run and not a bullet hole anywhere near it!

              Reply

              • Hi Grant;

                First and foremost, a big “thank you” for the veterans support you do.

                I was a member of Tm 70 from June 67 – June 68; specifically, the ASA for the 3/9th in Phuoc Qua/Loc. Upon my arrival at the compound, I was met by CPT Gerald Wrazen (later KIA in 69 w/101st Abn). He took the M-1 carbine(still wrapped in cozmaline(sp?)
                and gave me an M-16, steel pot, flak jacket and an operational map. He introduced me to my counterpart, and further advised that
                we were headed out for a 10-day op. The counterpart, a CPT took me to a cage nearby which contained a large boa constrictor, and he said that if we had a good operation we would be celebrating with boa steaks after. The boa steaks indeed were very good. We trucked to a debark point, and after standing around in a group for too long of a time, I said we should get a move on or a round or two would get us all. About 20 minutes into a tree plantation, the lead element ran smack into an L-ambush, and of course all hell broke out everywhere. Suffice it to say there were very minor casualtiesl on our side, but there were more on the VC side. The remainder of the operation over the next several days was rather uneventful, but in retrospective, I was glad to get “baptized” early in my tour. CPT Wrazen transferred out and MAJ Jay D. Menger became the new SA
                On October 27th, the compound was hit by the 88th NVA Bde……newly equipped/trained and specifically directed to our compound.
                Following the dust-up and follow-on ops clean up, I was transferred to become SA for 1/9th in Tan Hung/Quan Loi. The SA, MAJ Don Romano moved up to G3 at Lam Son. About two months before my DEROS, 1/9th was relocated to Phu Loi/Lam Son as the ready reaction battalion for the 5th ARVN Div. Just as we got settled in our new location, I was medevaced thru the 93rd and on to Walter Reed Hosp and seven months to get well from amoebic hepatitis. Apparently the source was a feces loaded pungi trap I had stepped in about a month before. During the chaos of moving a battalion I never paid any attention to the 39 pound weight loss, until I could not get out of bed one morning on my own.

                I like your experience with the Conex containers and generator. I had similar experiences in getting critical items for our counterparts and our team. Thank God for friends and contacts in the “logistics alley” of the Big Red One in Quan Loi.

                All the best,

                P. S.

                Do you know whatever happend to Maj Romano?

                Reply

              • Hello Grant, Great story about the PA&E guys. They were a great group at the HQ here in LA. I was actually there doing an audit the day Saigon fell. A very sad day for all of us. I wonder when the Lam Son compound was built. That area is very different now. A big wide road and industrial parks. I drove by there last December on my ‘memory’ tour.

                Reply

          • Hello Bob,
            If you ever find your old photos or the ones from 2001 I would like to see them. I think even since 2001 that the Lai Khe area has changed a great deal based on my trip there Dec. 2016. Ben Cat has expanded across and up Hwy 13. You mentioned getting a speeding ticket in 2001. My driver would slow way down at certain spots also. He knew what to look for. Hwy 13 has different hazards now, traffic!

            Larry Gale

            Reply

      • Phil, you are right.
        If we supported Ho chi minh, instead of backing the French. There would have been no war.
        What if?
        I should know better.

        Reply

      • Larry, I was on a PRD-1 team Short Range DF. We sat in the corner of the “heliport” at Ben Cat with a jeep mounted radio with diamond shaped rotating antenna. Next to us was a graveyard, with large monuments, and small ones too. I can’t find that using Google-earth, or the area where the BC compound was. I was there for Operation Cedar Falls Jan 5, 1967. Later down the road at the Thoi Hoa “Triangle” on Hiway 13. It appears they re-routed Hiway 13 through BC as the main intersection seems to be on a side road now. When I was the the VC had just blown up the bridge over the river to the west, and a portable span was in place. We also had a 2 man unit at Lai Khe at times, Pho Hoa Dong, Trung Lap and at our base camp at Cu Chi. We triangulated the enemy and tried …. to get fixes on their positions as support for anyone who would take our data. heyvern@asalives.com We were ASA but operated under the RR (Radio Research) name as there was “no ASA in Vietnam”

        Reply

  185. I was at ben cat august 67 to dec 69 with 2/33 rd artillery liason tm 24, I was with macv tm 70 that was there but I’m confused or is it me ? Everyone seems to talk of tm 70 elsewhere not ben cat , can anyone explain this to me sgtv68@aol.com

    Reply

    • I remember Ben Cat being the village below Lai Khe.
      We had 3 districts, Tay Ninh, Loch Ninh,
      Not sure if Ben Cat was the third

      Reply

      • Hey Dutton, Ben Cat was right outside Lai Khe, I remember being sent there to get a duce an half tire fixed it was very strange. I also remember you. Hope you are well.
        Lou

        Reply

          • Hi John, This is for you or John Clarke or Lou in regard to the post from Phil regarding Ben Cat. Did we (Team 70) have anything at Ben Cat while we were there? I always remember it was a town we zoomed by on Hwy 13 when we went from Lai Khe to Saigon. It still had that Iron Triangle stigma attached to it.

            Larry

            Reply

            • I always remember a big sweeping left curve on Hwy 13 just before you got to the village. There was a wood line about 500 meters directly in front of you as you slowed down and you were always warned about snipers from the wood line.

              I also remember going into Ben Cat village early one morning (I have no idea why I was there) and the VC had entered the village overnight. 3 or 4 VC were KIA and their bodies placed in the village square under the flag pole.

              Reply

              • I also remember one dead VC was also place by the road as I was headed to Saigon with my counterpart.

                Sent from my T-Mobile 4G LTE Device

                Reply

  186. For those of you who were assigned to Team 70 between mid-1969 to mid-1970 you may be interested in a book I came across about 20 years ago. The title of the book is “The Advisors” and the author is Curt Rich. It is a novel thinly based on Team 70 of which 1LT Rich was a member. If you have a chance to read it you may be able to identify events, team members and maybe even yourself (I’m not in it but I can identify several others). I think you can still locate it on used book sites like Alibris or Abebooks.

    Reply

  187. Robert, How did you arrange to see Lai Khe again? A private tour or just hire someone for a few days?

    Larry

    Reply

    • Larry, In 1999 I moved to Hawaii. After I was there about a year I sent my passport to the Vietnamese embassy for a visa, when I got that
      for a 90 day stay I flew to Ho Chi Minh city caught a cab and went any where I wanted. I saved thousands of dollars doing it that way and
      was not hampered by tour guides. For Lai Khe I bartered with a english speaking cab, paid him well and he took care of me.

      Reply

      • Robert, Thanks for the info on traveling back to VN. I would like to do that myself one of these days. I have a picture of Flagg and the motorcycle if you would like it. It’s great to hear from all of you guys.

        Larry

        Reply

        • LARRY Thanks for writing I am lucky enough to have the pictures. This website feeds a burning desire in me to make contact with all of team 70 Lam Son Lai Khe and the 4/9 (4th bn, 9th Regiment, 5th ARVN Div) the 4/9 I went into Cambodia with during the invasion. It took me 20 years to find John Dutton and when I did I broke down. I would like to find either John or Mike is first name and last name is Paluch. when I first got out I saw him at his mothers in Chicago and also saw Mike McCort in Chicago. It would be great for us to get together

          Reply

  188. Hello Robert, I remember your name, but can’t quite picture your face (from 46 years ago). Vietnam to me seems like it was just a little while ago. So many memories. It’s nice to hear from all you guys on this website especially to fill in details I am a little fuzzy about. So you went back to Lai Khe? Wow. I would really like to do that also and to see if anything was left of the Lam Son compound. After I left Team 70 I transferred to Team 91 at Lam Son for another year until Nixon sent me home Dec 71. It was a different time.

    Regards,
    Larry

    Reply

  189. I served there in all of 1970. If anyone has pics they would like to send please do so at
    zx1144@aol.com . Anyone knowing SFC Sochan, I would like to hear from him. we were at
    FSB hill368 we used to get unfriendlys in the wire and I was young and scared when we were hit
    and he took good care of me and taught me a lot. thanks for reading

    Reply

  190. Hi John, It seemed like things could go from sleepy and boring to over the top tension in a flash. Thanks for the detail. My burn barrels were full of holes the next morning. Scary. Do you remember the name of the LTC that succeeded Maj. Meunter as the head of G-2? I think it was O’Connell or O’Donnell, something like that.

    Reply

      • Sorry, but I cannot recall the name. LT Rennie lived in my hootch along with 1LT Tom Ellison (Asst Signal), 1LT Don Estes (Asst Arty), 1LT Don Rennie (Asst G-2), 1LT Seymour Berack, and CPT Mike Rush (Liaison from the 1st Cav).

        Reply

  191. Hi John, I have some not so fond memories of walking from our living area up to the TOC at night in the pouring rain to get messages. Do you remember the night the VC walked the mortars over the top of the TOC? That was pretty scary counting them as they came in. We were in our bunker next to our living area. It always seemed like they would lob some rockets at us after the 15th of each month. Strange. Lai Khe was really the middle of nowhere.

    Larry

    Reply

    • yes Larry , it’s very clear to me.
      I was supposed to be at the TOC at 7 pm every night.
      I always got there at 7:10.
      The night it happened , I got there at 7:00, and the mortars walked the path at 7:10.
      I think my mother with the help of God was watching over me.
      I think a guy named Leib, helped medivac a woman who got hit that night.And I think an old man died.

      Reply

      • 2 young girls were blown up in that attack by company Hq.s I carried one of the girls to a jeep and called a medivac with
        my PRC25 and we took the 2 girls to the airstrip / the girl I carried kept moaning ” mama, mama”. I hear it like it was yesterday. I remember
        a lot of attacks on Lai Khe . my memory is not so good with names anymore but I remember a lot of people
        I would love to see again. I have been very lucky to find one such person in 46 years

        Reply

      • Your right about the MEDI-VAC, she lived 2 weeks after we got her to Saigon. I wound up going on the chopper because she had an arterial injury and I was the clamp. Sad day. Dr. DeBardenis(sp) went as well and saved an infants life on the way.

        CO thought I went AWOL and as soon as I got back read me my rights under Article 31. I was still covered in her blood. I don’t want to tell you what I told him.

        Reply

          • I’m Larry Stith (G1 & Security Guard / Couch Compound). I was there with Lou Leib when our Mama a san who cleaned our hooch got hit with shrapnel. I was talking with Larry Gale when we had the incoming. I went and got a medic and returned to find Lou with his fist in her arm socket so she would not bleed out. The medic told Lou not to remove his fist and to get on the medivac with her. It saved her life at least for the a time. I heard what happened when he got back and could not believe they thought he went AWOL. Lou should have got a medal for what he did.

            I was with Adv. Team70 from March 1970-71. I have been looking for Staff Sgt. Ron Dailey who I believe was in G-2 and SP4 Vinnie DePaulo also of Team 70 when I was there. If anyone knows of them or their whereabouts, I would like to know.

            Larry Stith Sgt. E-5

            Reply

            • Hi Larry, I sure remember that one. The rocket hit so close to where we were sitting. Was Sgt Dailey the guy that spoke fluent Vietnamese? He had a wife in town. I went to his house a couple of times. Great guy. I hope he was able to get his family out before ’75.

              Larry Gale

              Reply

  192. I worked for MAJ Shouse (sp) in G3. A great guy. At that time I was Asst G-3 Plans and Training. Then went back to G-4. Can’t recall all of the guys in the TOC. They changed so often. Went to Lai Khe about a month after I got to the team at Lam Son in Jan 70.

    Kampe was Hayes replacement. After Kampe it was COL Rhotenberry.

    Reply

    • This is like a flash back.
      I’m sitting here chuckling.
      Major Shouse was a great guy, alot of respect for him.
      On of my highlights was the day Col Hayes left,
      I was on duty facing the radio, when I heard my name called.
      It was Col Hayes behind me, standing at attention, with his hand extended to shake my hand.
      You might remember me as the guy that got in a little to much trouble.
      I ended up being the night CQ in the first sgt office.

      Reply

        • I remember COL Hayes’ snake very well. His name was “Boy” and we used to send the ARVN’s to the ARVN farm about once a week to bring back a few ducks. The snake would toy with them for awhile and then gobble them up.

          Mike

          Reply

          • Hey Mike. Good to see you are still around. I remember one chicken that papa son put in Boy’s cage who took one look at boy and dropped dead. The old man that Col Hayes had taking care of boy was mortified. He was afraid to ask the Col for more money to buy another chicken. I told Col Hayes what happened and he laughed really hard. He told me to give the guy some more money and later went by and told him what a great job he was doing. What ever happened to boy?

            Reply

        • yeah I remember him.I remember the birds sitting in the cage shaking, waiting for their turn.
          I think one of the workers left the cage opened , letting the Boa out.

          Reply

  193. John,

    I’m sure I knew you. Was in the TOC every morning and evening for briefings. COL Hayes and COL Kampe were SA’s.

    Reply

    • I was the radio operator. I remember Col Hayes. Was Col Kempe his replacement?
      I remember Major Shauss(probably spelled wrong)

      Not sure when I arrived, but it was soon after the move to Lai Khe.

      Reply

  194. john Dutton,

    Was there from 1/70 to 1/71. Where did you work? Glad to have some more Team 70 folks on here.

    Mike McMunn
    G3, G4, Maintenance Bn.

    Reply

    • I worked in the TOC.
      7 at night to 7 in the morning, 7 days a week.
      It took me 3 years, when I came home to stop saying I just got back from Viet Nam.
      Now I seem to have forgotten a lot.

      Reply

      • Hi John,
        I remember you. This is Larry Gale. I worked in G-2 from Jan 70 to Dec 70 with Andy Andrews. I think several of us went to Saigon one day. Someone had an apartment there and we all went up to see the view of Saigon. I spent some nights in the TOC also waiting for messages. One night they called in an Arc Light strike in the jungle further north. It was quite a time. Good to hear from you.

        Reply

          • Hi John, The trips to Saigon were always a pleasant break from the isolation of Lai Khe. It was so empty up there. Do you remember the guy who got hold of a motorcycle there for awhile? I rode it around the empty part of the plantation for a bit one day. At least something different to do. The R & R’s were the best. A chance to see the world on the Army’s dime.

            Reply

            • He was a medic named Blue. As I told the first Sgt. All of a sudden the motor cycle was by the dispensory, then it turned up by my hutch.
              I took that trip around the perimiter of the camp, a few times myself.

              Reply

    • Hi All, The Master Sergeant that I had a picture of and asked some of you about was Mstr. Sgt. Waggoner. It came back to me. I sure appreciated his frank opinion about not re-upping, not that I was going to anyway.

      Larry

      Reply

  195. I was assigned to 2/33rd arty in Lai Khe but attached to the arvn in Ben Cat from august 67 to dec 68. I have always thought that the MACV tm there in Ben Cat was team 70. I was there for the TET battle Was any one in ben cat and remember me , sp4/ sgt vessello sgtv68@aol.com

    Reply

    • John, My name is Carl Farren. I replaced the wounded Team 70, 8th Rgt, RTO John Adams on Feb 1st, after Ben Cat was overrun during 68TET. Do you remember the name of the 8th Rgt Team Staff Advisor Captain that was KIA during the battle.

      Reply

  196. My dad , Henry R. Garcia , was part of Advisory Team 70 , he was kia in Binh Duong on December 10 , 1967. I would like to hear from anyone that knew my dad.

    Reply

  197. Hello, everyone. My name is Terry Nau. I am a Vietnam veteran, 2/32 artillery, 1967-68 around Tay Ninh and Cu Chi, currently writing a book about the 21 KIA from my adopted hometown of Pawtucket, RI. One of those 21 is from Fifth Recon, Normand Plante, who died on April 28, 1967. If anyone out there would like to tell me what kind of soldier, and person, Normand was, it would relaly help with his chapter in the book, which is due out in May 2016. I just spoke to Normand’s two sisters yesterday. My email is: tnau3@cox.net … (the book is not for profit, its mission is to honor these soldiers one more time in their hometowns),

    Reply

    • Mike LaLonde got in touch with me today. Thanks for everything and good luck to all of you in life. — Terry Nau, A Battery, 2/32 artillery, 25th INF DIV, 1067-68

      Reply

  198. Hello again to Michael LaLonde, Just read a couple of postings from G2/recondo fellas. Do you remember a tall slim Sfc from recon, I remember him to be a bit of a country gentleman, nice fellow. G2 guys listed his name as Anderson, maybe the same? I may have a picture of him. While I am picking your brain, do you remember an Rto named Mike Garcia, kind of a short fellow. At some point he had been wounded, took a round in the jaw,but still came back to duty. For some reason I think Mike was a Recondo. I hope to hear from you and that you are doing well. Chuck LaMons.

    Reply

    • chuck larry eagen I read some of comments about michael lalonde knowing don gardner and ssgt clemnts .I worked with them in nov 65 thru jun 66 .If any knows how contact please let me know . also chuck are we on jan 2016 thanks larry

      Reply

      • Hello Larry, I hope you had a merry CHRISTmas with your family and friends. Those fellows you mentioned I do not remember. Did you ever know a SSGT. Al Wiltsie, or SSGT. Bobby L. Jones. Bobby was an arti advisor. Transfered to Amercal Div. about Dec 67. Was KIA at Tet. Good friend of mine, an alabama boy. Wiltsie and I split a dollar bill with our names on it and said if we were to meeet back in the world we would buy a beer with it. Never saw him after Nam. I am waiting for Miachael Lalonde to respond. You will have to excuse me for not remembering what we said about January 2016. Please call me at 828-514-3657. I have lost your number from my phone. Don’t know how. Easy for me I guess. Thank you and take care, Chuck LaMons. my email is chucklamons@gmail.com.

        Reply

    • chuck I did not know terry Nau but I wouid like to hear from michael Lalonde because I beleave he toke my place with the 2/7/5 div also .I tried to contact people from counterparts no luck. so i have not made plans for reuion in san diego ca thank larry eagen email is larryeagen@att.net

      Reply

  199. Hello Mike, I just finished writing a lenghty reply and some how lost it. Was really good to read your posting. Thank you for remembering. Your memory is keen. Would be terrific to speak with you, and catch up on our times and lives.My number is 828-514-3657. Call anytime. I had included a lot in the lost post. I apologize for the brevity of this post. I hope you are doing well and life has been good for you. Looking forward to speaking with you. Chuck LaMons/Zollinger.

    Reply

  200. Good to hear from you Larry. Yes, I do remember the french restaurant in Saigon before we left for R& R. I found that this restaurant was in the Hotel Carville (not sure of spelling) and that this hotel was featured in a major motion picture made in the 1950’s starring Alan Ladd and was aboout trouble in Vietnam and Indochina of all things.

    If you don’t mind I will tell Lou Leib about hearing from you. He might want to reply on this site. He is a traveling man with his wife in an RV but their home base is Vero Beach, Florida on the east Florida coast. My wife and I live in Hudson, Florida on the Florida west coast about a mile from the Gulf of Mexico. Hudson is about 25 miles north of Clearwater, Florida. For your info my email address is lwstith@msn.com . Feel free to email me anytime. its always good to hear from buddies from Vietnam.

    Larry Stith

    Reply

  201. Hello Larry Stith,
    Sure I remember you. After that rocket attack I remember looking at the shrapnel holes in the First Sgts. uniform hanging in his hooch. Lucky no one was injured. Do you remember counting the mortars landing when they walked them across the TOC? My burn barrels were shredded when I looked the next day. I think you and I had a nice dinner in a French restaurant in Saigon while we were waiting to go on R & R. You were going to Australia and I was going back to Hong Kong.
    I worked with Lou in G-2 while we were still in Lamson. I think he got a Purple Heart when he went out on a recon mission with Lt. Rennie and an ARVN tripped a booby trap. I was new in country at the time. I was quite a time. Great to hear from you.

    Best Wishes,
    Larry Gale

    Reply

  202. Hello,
    Thanks for taking the time to respond.
    A few others have also reached out to me, including a survivor from the crash.
    It gives me great peace to hear from those who knew my Dad, especially those from his years in Vietnam.
    I went to Song Be a couple of years ago with my wife. With the help of crash scene photos and map I was able to say a prayer and lay flowers on the exact spot his helocopter went down. It has really made a difference in my life.
    My dad sent home many pictures and I was able to locate many of the landmarks at the base. The small runway and the circle where the flag was is now a road with buildings/shops on both sides. The base is now a small town and from the expression of the locals, not to many Americans have been there since. They were all very nice and sympathetic to me.
    Thanks again and thank you for your service. I pray life has been good to you since then.
    Regards,
    Robert

    Reply

  203. Hello to all Advisory Team 70. I was part of a 4 man 1st Infantry Div. team (Feb 68-Feb 69) from Lai Khe attached to the 5th ARVN at Lam Son. We were with FDC. Maj. McGowen, SSG Statler, PFC Cluen and myself. I have been wanting to locate some of the guys from our Gosney Compound days. I found this web site a few weeks ago and spoke with a couple of men by email or phone. I was wondering if anyone knows Mike Choinard or “Frenchy” Boilieu and knows how to get in touch with them? I believe they were both from MA. Any pictures or info about Team 70 from 68 and 69 will be greatly appreciated. I live the northeast mountains of Georgia. Would love to here from any Team 70 members. There is not one day that goes by that I don’t think of Viet Nam. I was just there last night. Welcome Home! jmbarrett1949@gmail.com

    Reply

    • Hello, my name is Chuck LaMons. I arrived in country 6/66. I was shipped out LamSon, Gosney compound. I was on security detail for a few weeks when I discovered a former CO of mine from 6thArmy Honor Guard, Presidio, San Francisco, (63-65), had arrived at Team 70. I immediately found him, James W.F. Pruitt Major, he asked me to be his rto. We were assigned to 4/7, 5th Div. Our base camp was Paris Ton Any, a former french outpost triangular, and somewhat small. What a culture shock. We had some many good and some not so good experiences. The Arvnsn needed to be motivated Major Pruitt did a good job of that. Night recon, ambushes, assaults on the VC as the partied in Trung Nhe and other hamlets. Major Pruitt did a good job of getting the Arvns out of the compound, He always went along and took me naturally. I liked working with him and the hand picked Arvns we could trust. I stayed with Team 70 for 20 months, depsrtef 28 Feb ,68.I would like to contact Maj Pruitt, if he is still alive. Hope to hear from you. This is a good site. MACV info hard to find. Chuck

      Reply

      • Chuck,
        I havn’t been on this site in awhile. What a pleasant surprise to see your postings including the one where you remembered me. Michael La Londe. Of course I remember you. Let’s see if I have this right. You were originally when we first met named “Zollinger”. You went home on leave and came back having taken the name LaMons. Your Stepfather’s name?????
        When you came back from leave there was you LaMons, me LaLonde, and the little guy with glasses was LaRusso all in the same hootch. Now that is a coincidence.
        The African American you mentioned was Caldwell. He was a nice guy but so were you. These postings never disappear so I can’t write some memories but I have several more.
        We’re you there when Martha Raye worked the bunkers the night 1st Division was hit with I think 122 ml rockets. We all scrambled to our bunkers. A couple hit our runway but she ran to all bunkers in her night gown, helmet and flack jacket. Carrying a first aid kit. She was a nurse in WWII and a Lt. colonel in the reserves. She was all Army that night.
        Sorry to go on so long. It was good to hear from you.

        Reply

  204. Come to think of it three of us went on a mini R&R to Vung Tau not very long before SGM Potrataz left the team for home. We left on the same day. The Vung Tao trip was Col Lawson, SGM Potratz and myself, Bill Covey. The years have deprived me of the names of many people I knew in both Train Compound and after the move to Phu Loi. bill-covey@att.net

    Reply

    • I think I have a pic of you in my collection. I’ll dig it out when I get some time. I was a PFC and clerked for Col. Lawson at his office at the airbase (HQ 5th ARVN). If I recall Col Wilbur Wilson was at III Corps (I know he accompanied Gen. Westmoreland on his first visit to Train Compound). I took a picture of him at a ceremony at the airbase, and it matches the stuff on-line about “Coal Bin Willie”. Glad you are well. Memories are slowly getting dimmer about those days.

      Reply

    • Bill, Col. Lawson, I remember him now, he replaced slave-driver Miller. SGM Potratz must’ve replaced my SGM whose name I forget now which is shameful because he was a good man. Shocking how time dims memory of things I should remember better. Well, most of those guys were good Old Army soldiers. I remember Coal Bin Willie, Col. Wilber (I think) Wilson, who was III Corps Sr. Adv. when I was there first time. I knew his SGM Yeager in ’62 when I was in Saigon and when I came back for my second tour in ’65 & Yeager was retired and working for Air America, he told me one day an officer came to see Col Wilson to announce he was going home on emergency leave. His wife was sick or something, and Coal Bin said, “Major, if the army wanted you to have a wife it’d have issued you one.” I presume you know how Coal Bin got that name. He visited us one day at 5th Div. and when he met one of the province Sr. Advisors he relieved him on the spot because he didn’t have a name tag on his uniform. Col. Miller talked him out of it. Col. Wilson was a skinny little guy as I remember him and he looked ridiculous in those old Bermuda shorts w/sand socks that used to be standard issue.

      Dan

      Reply

      • I remember driving the road, Route 13 or Thunder Road, from Bien How to Ben Cat on a regular basis. AK’s snapped from time to time but I was never hurt. My second tour was in Advisory Team 73 where I served as the Operations Intelligence NCO for Duc Long District down south in the delta. Wouldn’t you know it, Col Wilson was a civilian by then and was the deputy commander of IV Corps. I couldn’t seem to get away from that guy.

        Reply

  205. Hi John,
    Wow, thanks for filling in the details. A very intense time. I had only heard that an artillery shell booby trap had blown up. I remember watching a Cobra work our perimeter one night when we thought there was a sapper attack. It was a real fireworks show with rockets and mini’s buzzing.
    Hope all is well with you.

    Best Wishes,
    Larry

    Reply

  206. Help with finding info. out about my Dad. I just discovered this group with help from virtualwall.org where I learned that my Dad was (I believe) a member of ADV TEAM 70, HQ, MACV ADVISORS, MACV. He died July 8, 1965.

    By way of this message, I am hoping I may locate someone that served with him.

    My Dad’s name: Cpt Robert J. Voss and he was originally from Davenport. I was about 6 yrs old when he died. At that time we were at Fort Ord.

    Any information would be appreciated by myself and my family.

    Thanks in advance.

    Jon R. Voss

    Reply

    • I was with team 70 at that time my name is bill phelps and also john owens good friend was there at that time, let me look at something in my records not sure don’t get hopes up. phelpswilliam99@yahoo.com if you write off this site let know what where talking about thanks bill. p.s. I have to go to my daughters to get internet might be a couple of days

      Reply

    • Jon I was with the 3RD BN 9th Reg 5TH ARVN DIV.CPT Voss was S/A to the 2BN 9Reg.CPT Voss along with LT Moody,SGT Bruno and SSG Eddie Smith were KIA in a ambush just inside Tay-Ninh Providence. The brother of SGT Bruno lives in Calif he has also visited the ambush site.
      Here is Joes Email jfbruno@att.net I know he would like to hear from you. Ed Warneld ewarneld@hotmail.com

      Reply

  207. Larry,

    When I got to Lam Son I thought ‘this will not be a bad tour.’ That feeling lasted about 2 weeks. CPT Paul Jackson was killed in an ambush at Bu Noi Junction; LTC Couch was killed in a helicopter accident; and then LT Tom Burke and SSG Montague were killed by a road mine, all within about two weeks. I was assigned to do the line of duty investigations on all of them.

    Lai Khe was the pits but over the year we did manage to ‘dress it up’ a little. Moving in was no fun as you and Larry well know. Here’s a link to a video of the transfer:

    I sure missed the hot showers at Lam Son.

    Stay well. Keep in touch.

    Best regards,

    Mike

    Reply

    • Hi Mike, Yes, I remember LTC Couch. He interviewed me when I first arrived. It was sad to hear about the accident. Lt. Rennie and some G-2 staff almost got themselves blown up one day while out examining sensors in the field. I always remember the phrase they told us when we first arrived, “Don’t do anything stupid”. Do you know when the team was disbanded? Thanks for the YouTube. Very interesting.

      Best Wishes,
      Larry

      Reply

      • this i remember. i was called up to go to the helipad to ‘relieve’ some folks in the recon company who were ‘in contact’. that’s all i knew. grabbed my gear, hoofed it to the pad. first helicopter in was stacked with bodies. pilot said a second was on the way for me.

        got on the second, thinking this is going to be shit. the team was in the Iron Triangle (a free fire zone) picking up dead sensors for the museum – first ones they had used, or something like that. when we came in, i looked for the whip anntenna and made a beline for it. someone (won’t say who because i don’t remember) literally knocked me down on his way to the helicopter. at this point, i’m still thinking we are in contact.

        get to the radio and a major (dunno who it was, but he didn’t do much of anything) and found out that the team had tripped a 105 booby trap – what i recall is 12 or 14 dead and wounded.

        we moved out to a relatively large area (though there wasn’t any cover to speak of) and prepared the team in groups for the pickup. while we waited, a pair of cobras started to circle us. knowing it’s a free fire zone i called in requesting that they contact pipesmoke at phu loi and tell them we were friendlies. I know i pissed the sargent off on the TOC end, because i started to yell a bit. see, what he did’nt see was one of them pop smoke on us and the second go up to start a combat run. well, i finally just yanked my hat off, and tried to point out my dayglo orange hair…my guess is that the radio contact was made, as the guy pulled up in mid run and sidled over to us and waved.

        needless to say, looking down the wrong end of a minigun was Not Fun.

        yep, i remember that one.

        /john

        Reply

        • Hey John,
          I remember it very well as it was me and 1Lt Renee who you and the Major relieved. The chopper that you came in on was right over a 155mm extension fuse and I was trying to get the pilot to move it. That was a very strange day. Renee and I both were wounded that’s why they invited you to the party. It was messy bloodbath for ARVN. Not a good memory. Hope you are well. Send me a email if you get a chance, louleib@gmail.com.
          Take care,
          Lou

          Reply

    • Mike,

      Just found this website. I was assigned to Advisory Team 70 Gosney Compound, Phu Loi, from Feb. 1968 to Feb. 1969. I was one, of a four man team, from the 1st infantry division located at Lai Kae. My commanding officer was Major McGowan, with Sgt. S. ?(sometimes I can recall his name} and Pfc Cluen. We all were assigned to FDC. I was not trained for FDC. I was at Bien Hoa when my I was called to the CO,s office. There was 1st Infantry captain with the CO. He asked if I wanted to volunteer for a job. I said yes and he brought me to Gosney Compound, 5th ARVN and I received on the job training. I have a hard time with my memory and also I have a hard time sleeping as you can see by the time of this email. I have been up since before two. I was wondering about some of the guys that I served with but can not remember names. One was Mike S. (he was from MA. and had an uncle that ran for VP of the US with Humphries) and another was a guy from Boston, who was crazy about the Boston Bruins(he was black headed, mustache and wore glasses. I never knew what any of the guys MOS’s were, just that we were different teams. I remember the basketball area and the swimming pool and the hot showers. I have a zippo lighter w/5th ARVN on the side. If you have any info it would be great. I could recall the names from a list from this period if I had one. This is the first time I had seen anything on Advisory Team 70. Thank you very much.

      I live in the town of Baldwin, Georgia which is in the N. Georgia mountains about 80 miles north of Atlanta. Ever want to talk: (706)404-4373

      Welcome home,

      Jerry Barrett

      Reply

      • Jerry,

        I remember you. We were in the same hooch and shared my fan. I think you had the upper bunk and I the lower but I’m not sure.

        Also in the hooch were Kerry Kurtz, Mike Choinard whose uncle was Senator Ed Muskie and the Democratic Party’s nominee for VP, Frenchy Boilieu (sp?) who was the Bruins fan, Tom Bacon and Lou Amici who worked in G@

        Sam Sullivan

        Reply

  208. Hi Mike, it’s great to hear from someone who went through the same ordeal of the move. Lai Khe seemed like the end of the world when we moved in. I left the team in Dec 70 and moved to Team 91 in Jan 71 so I ended up back at Lam Son for another 11 months with hot showers again. What a wild time. How about you?

    Best Wishes,
    Larry

    Reply

    • my name is Robert Bell / I also made the move from Lam son to Lai Khe in 1970 . I went back to Lai Khe in 2001
      it is fenced off and the Col.’s house/hooch and the mess hall are all that is left. do you remember me or does anyone
      remember me ? thanks for this site, welcome home everyone. anyone wishing to email me please feel free to do so
      @ zx1144@aol.com I think of my tour over there EVERY day of my life. I was also a RTO with the 4/9 @FSB369,
      and did field operations with the ARVN throughout Binh Long Provence

      Reply

  209. Hi guys,

    Lucky me I got to the team the 2nd week of Jan. just in time for the move. Rennie lived in my hootch and Burke was a good friend too.

    Mike McMunn

    Reply

  211. Ken. Good to hear from you. Not too many contacts left from those days. Our trip to Dalat was to a CMA missionary school if I remember. I remember to our old tennis buddy (have a picture of him too). Send me an email address where I can send you the stuff I have directly.

    Reply

  212. Just found this site. I served between 6-66 & 6-67 I was a radio operator for the 2nd BN 7th Regt 5th ARVN Div. I served With Capt Don Gardner, Lt. Ferkins, SSgt Albert Joseph Clement (a real character if the Army had any). My Name is Michael LaLonde. My e-mail is mlalonde45@gmail.com. Drop an e-mail if u like.
    I answered a request from Edward Pike about Wlilliam Fessler. hope I got that Right.

    Reply

      • Don Garder i am l larry eagen I was with you nov 65 to I believe june 66 I was sp4 rto we had ssgt wise and ssgt king my e-mail is larryeagen@att.net my ph is 8104343891 hope to hear from you .also heard from chuck Lamons he was 4/7 5th div june 66 thanks guys larry eagen port huron mi

        Reply

        • My dad was Ssgt Boyce King, he recently passed.. he did not talk much about his service. He served in the MACV but I am not sure what team? Is this the same SSGT King you are referring to?

          Reply

  213. Hi, Just found this site. I was Interrogation Advisor at 5th ID HQ.. from Sept 68 until April 69, when I was then evacuated to Japan with internal bleeding. SFC Mai Cao Vo, was my very good friend, and have often wondered what happened to him. I think I must have replaced Fred Marshall. I remember he spoke excellent Vietnamese, and my language was Chinese Cantonese?? Vo spoke both, plus French, and English!! Col Leach was there as well as Major Taylor when I left. Jim 520-227-2751

    Reply

  214. Hello Dave,
    Thanks for the reply. It must have been a very horrific scene for you to see.
    I visited the crash site last year. The slope is in deed extremely steep. The aerial photos I have of crash site are deceiving. I had to slide down, hanging on to rubber trees as I went down. The trees were not there during the war.
    It was a very painful but memorable pilgrimage for me.
    Thanks again for sharing your memories with me. They bring my father closer to me.,
    Robert

    Reply

  215. Started in Team 95 came to Team 70 somewhere between 70-71 left Team 70 to come home Oct 71. Worked Security

    Charles Wilson, MSG Retired

    Reply

  216. Hi Sam,

    Welcome to the site. Seems like Team 70 has a growing fraternity. Some of those names ring a bell were probably still on the team when I got there in January 1970.

    Mike McMunn

    Reply

  217. Hello,

    My name is Sam Sullivan and I served with Team 70 from June, 68 to June 69. I was a Sp/4 and worked in the admin office. My duties included delivering classified mail so I visited each office twice a day. That meant I got to meat most team members, including many officers. The senior advisers were Col Leach and Col Fink. I also remember Col Norrie and Matthews, Majors Harrison, Levine, Clark, Capt Stewart, SFCs Drake, McMinn, McElroy, Sgt Schultz and Harry Krueger, Rickey Pearson, Kerry Kurtz, Jim Arnoldt, and many others.

    I’m semi-retired now and living in Houston. I’d love to hear from any team members

    Sam Sullivan

    Reply

    • Hello Sam.

      I did sleep on the top bunk. When I first got to Gosney Compound a black guy was on the bottom bunk, but I think he went home before I did. I don’t remember if or who might have taken that bunk. The only time I ever went to Lai Kae was to muster out of the 1st Infantry Division so I could go home. Ciuen and one other person(slim and wore glasses) went with me to Lai Kae. We soon encountered a douse and half truck burning. Was told it had hit a mine in the road. We went on anyway. As we went into the front gate, something happened to our truck and had to get maintenance to fix it. Major McGowan was there and was to ride back with us. But, after telling him about the mine, he said he would get a helicopter ride back. On our way back we could not go back down road we came on because of sweeping of mines, The MP’s had us follow a little car on a narrow back road. We stopped and gave an ARVN soldier a ride. Cluen got out to ride in the truck bed. After a while shots rang out, kicking dirt in front of the truck. It was Cluen trying to scare the shit out of me. I got home ok and spent the next 16 months at Ft. Sill.

      I am retired now and every day is like Saturday. I would like to talk with you Sam. I didn’t realize I put the wrong area code on my number earlier. My wife’s number is 706. Mine is (404)403-4373 Or give me your number and I will call you. It was good to hear from someone from my old unit.

      Jerry Barrett

      Reply

    • Sam, My name is Carl Farren and I was LTC Matthews’ RTO while he was SA of the 8th Regiment’s Team, Aug?68-Oct 68. Yes, I remember Kerry Kurtz at Gosney Compound.

      Reply

    • Sam… Carl Farren here… I served in Team 70 from 2Oct1967 to 4May1969. I was the 8th Regiment’s Advisory Team’s RTO when you arrived. My first Senior Advisor was Major Van Amburgh and then LTC Matthews (mentions above) until Oct 1968. I knew Sgt Tate and Kerry Kurtz.

      Reply

  218. Richard, Good luck in your endeavor to find out what happened to your award. Unless you can locate supporting documents that you were recommended for the award it will be hard to get it. I suggest that you consult with the military records center in St. Louis.

    Reply

    • Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE DROID

      MACV Teams wrote:

      a:hover { color: red; } a { text-decoration: none; color: #0088cc; } a.primaryactionlink:link, a.primaryactionlink:visited { background-color: #2585B2; color: #fff; } a.primaryactionlink:hover, a.primaryactionlink:active { background-color: #11729E !important; color: #fff !important; } /* @media only screen and (max-device-width: 480px) { .post { min-width: 700px !important; } } */ WordPress.com Bill Staton commented: “Richard, Good luck in your endeavor to find out what happened to your award. Unless you can locate supporting documents that you were recommended for the award it will be hard to get it. I suggest that you consult with the military records center in St. L”

      Reply

  219. Sam,

    I do not know if I knew where Bill was from. I live in Williamsport.

    I have quite a few pictures of the team, Lai Khe and the AO.

    Best regards,

    Mike

    Reply

  220. I served 69-70. Was advisor to the 53 ARTY Bn. and then to the Div G-5.The only name I recognize posted on this site is Don.Rennie. i often wonder what happened to my counterpart, MAJ Tong., COL (RET)

    Samuel Alitto

    Reply

    • Sam,

      We probably knew one another when I was on the team in 1970. 1LT Don Rennie (Asst. G-2) was one of my hootchmates. CPT William Gaudette was probably your replacement in G-5. 1LT Don Estes (Asst Arty Advisor) was also one of my hootchmates

      Mike McMunn

      Reply

      • Yes, Bill was my replacement. He was kinda from my home town. I am from Harrisburg, PA and he was from Hummelstown or Hershey.

        Reply

  221. I’ll check with counterparts. The reason I inquired here is that Beckleys records show assignment to the 46th Sep Reg. 63-64 and it was operating with the 5th Inf Division during that time. If you are the webmaster, please give me a contact point for me to send you some lists.

    Reply

    • Stephen,

      I am not the webmaster of either this website or of Counterparts. I do not know exactly who you should contact.

      Mike McMunn

      Reply

  222. Stephen,

    There are several advisors on there who knew him personally. As you probably know, LTC Beckley died in November 1995. Stu had been a member of Counterparts Assn. and several past and current members knew him or served with him.

    Good luck,

    Mike McMunn
    Advisory Team 70
    70-71

    Reply

  223. I served with Team 70,9th RCAT in 1971-72 as Senior Battalion Adviser(all units) until I was captured the day after Loc Ninh fell on 7 April 1972 two kilometers south of the camp. Captain George Wanat from the District was captured 31 days after the battle while still trying to E&E to An Loc. LTC Dick Schott died by his own hand beside me in the TOC bunker as the enemy charged in throwing grenades. Major Ed Carlson(now deceased) and Sgt. Ken Wallingford along with French photographer Mick Dumond were captured in the inner perimeter on the morning of the eighth as the communists poured gas into the firing ports of their bunker. Major Davidson escaped from the District compound with Captain Wanat but they became separated and he made it to An Loc. We were held prisoner in the jungle near Krache Cambodia until our release on 12 February 1973 at Loc Ninh. Our brave ARVN soldiers who fell into communist hands were treated far worse than any American POW and I mourn the many who died at the hands of our cruel enemy.

    Thank you for putting this site together.

    Major Mark “Zippo” Smith,USA,Retired

    Reply

    • Zippo,.
      I tried to check on you years ago and was told you had passed away. We were stationed together in An Loc in ’72 Happy to know you’re alive
      Tom Howes

      Reply

      • Cpt. Tom Howes ?? I was in Lai Khe dec70-jan72 MACV tm70..Sgt Sizemore, Cpt McCorkle and Lt Robt Mills are a few names I remember without burning too many brain cells rite this moment. I traveled to An Loc a few times with you… Thxs sp4 Bill Himes

        Reply

        • Was that Sgt Charles Sizemore? If so it was my uncle. he just passed at age 82. I came to this site because we were going through old photo’s and such and I was looking for some info on his units and misions.

          Reply

          • Yep , this is Capt. Tom Howes , team 70 along with Zippo Smith , Ed Carlson , Howard Lull and Dave Patron. Zippo lives in Thailand . Ed and Howard have passed as well as Col. Bill Miller and I don’t know about Ltd. Patton.

            Reply

  225. My Father was Capt. I. F. Padron. He was with Team 70, 3 Bn, 9th Rgt. 5th ARVN in Phouc Long Province in ’68-’69. He was killed in a CH-47 helicopter crash at the Song Be Airstrip on 5/6/69 along with 1 US aircrew and 32 ARVN.

    Reply

    • My condolences. I witnessed that crash. I ran down the strip to the edge of the steep hill and it was a pretty awful sight.

      Reply

    • I was a medic assigned to Team 70. I remember meeting your father a few days before the crash. Their outpost was on top of a very large hill in Song Be.

      Reply

      • my name is Robert Bell I was with TM70 in 1970. I am looking for a medic named Peter Flagg
        do you know of him.

        Reply

  226. Make that February1969 to September August 1970. I received a direct Warrant and was transferred to the 1st Cav in Phuoc Vinn.

    Reply

    • Edward Pike…I was good friends with Bill Fessler Phu Loi Gosney Compound in ’66–’67. Not sure I have this right but is it possible you were Colonel Walker’s typist? You may remember me La Londe Michae

      Reply

      • Hello Michael, Good to see your name and postings. I just discovered this site this morning. I have been wanting to find a familiar name over the years. Not much on MACV around that I could see. We arrived in country about the same time, 6/66. We shared the same hooch for a while. I saw your posting. That was exciting since I have often thought of you and wondered how you have been. The wife, myself and our children moved to Hickory NC from So Cal 9 years ago. It has been a great blessing in our lives. Was Bill Fessler kind of short and wore glasses? Someplace I have a group picture of most of the guys that lived in the hooch. There was a black fellow, really pleasant man, I think his name is Arnie, who shared the hooch? In case you don’t remember me I was about 6’4 or so and quite skinny. Initially I was on security detail and after a couple of weeks went to the 4/7 at Paris Ton Quy as RTO. My first CO from 6th Army Honor Guard, Major James W.F. Pruitt, who just arrived in country, asked me if I wanted the job. Of course I said yes because guard detail at Phu Loi stunk. He asked me if I wanted go to the field and do some good or set around there on guard duty and perform details nobody else wanted to do. I told him I knew very little about radio. He said he would teach me all I need to know. He was great to work with. I think now I will make the effort to look him up. I have thought about the team members many times over the years. Major Pruitt was a go getter and inspired the Bn to get out of the compound and kick some VC butt. He really inspired those ARVNs. He really enjoyed night operations and liked for me to be his RTO, so I got to go. If you are interested in conversing more call me. 828-514-3657

        Take care, welcome home, and God bless you- Chuck LaMons

        Reply

    • Ed pike I knew you and William Fessler, I think we were all in the same hooch I would like to touch base Kim Harter team 70 – 67-68

      Reply

      • My name is Chuck LaMons, Just today found this site, very cool. I know Mike LaLonde. I will be posting him shortly. The name Fessler is very familiar. I think we were in the same hooch as well. My memory is fading of those days events and people. For a period I was a RTO in TOC. was recovering from a VN bacteria that effected my digestive system. Had been RTO on a team with 4/7, 5th Div at Paris Ton Quy, then we moved around. We made Operation Cedar Falls, the Iron Triangle and Nue Ba Din. Team 70- 6/66 to 2/28/68, extended. cell # 828-514-3657

        Reply

  229. SSG Bill Covey – Dec 63 – Dec 64. We were at Train Compound and moved to Phu Loi. That was many years ago. My second tour was with Advisory Team 73 in Chuong Thien Province. I was the District Operations’Intelligence NCO as a SFC. Here received a direct appointment to Warrant Officer and moved on to the 1st Cav. My advisory duty was over.

    Reply

    • Served as staff clerk to Col Joel Lawson counterpart to Cmd 5th ARVN. Was quartered at Train compound 1963 1964. Looking for info on Train Compound. Was it location of first US KIA? Have a pic of memorial that has 2 names – Ovnand and Bouis.

      Reply

      • I am quite sure that LT William Train, son of Gen (Possibly MG Train) was reputed to be the first one killed in Vietnam. I was also at Train Compound before we moved to Phu Loi. At any rate the compound was named for LT Train.

        Reply

      • MSG Chester Ovnand and Major Dale Buis were killed on 8 July 1959. They are the first two names on the Vietnam Memorial Wall. 1LT William F. Train III was KIA on 16 June 1962 along with CPT Walther McCarthy, Jr.

        1LT Train was the son of MG William F. Train, Jr.

        If you want to read lots more about Ovnand and Buis I recommend _First on the Wall_ by MSG Ray Bows, USA, Retd. and also _Vietnam Military Lore_, also by MSG Bows.

        Mike McMunn
        Adv Tm 70, 70-71

        Reply

      • Thanks for the book suggestion. Just ordered it. I hav a letter from Gen Westmoreland confirming origin of the name “Train Compound” was for William F Train. His dad was close friend of Gen W. Met Westmoreland at Train while he was still a 3 star. I also have a pic of the Ovnand-Buis memorial in front of building 7 where the attack occurred. It’s now a military museum, according to my research.

        Reply

      • Seeking info on CPT Stuart Beckley, who served as Bn Advisor to 46th Regiment (Separate), 5th infantry Div 63-64. He built an interesting memorial in Colorado and would like to trace his experiences which led him to do this. My contact info: Sherman1@flash.net

        Reply

      • Bob, I was with Adv. Tm. 70, Sept. ’62-Sept.’63. At that time the team was in Bien Hoa, BIF Compound, an old French compound that belonged to the Industrial Forestry Bureau (I think, thus “BIF”). Lt Train and LTC (?) Buis were killed shortly before I got there. Later a BOQ in Saigon was named after Buis. The Sr. Adv. to the 5th Div. at the time I arrived was a LTC Kurtz J. Miller. I’ll never forget him. He worked my ass to a frazzle. One morning he saw me in the mess and asked if some reports I was working on were done yet and I replied they were almost ready and I’d finish them after breakfast. He shouted in front of everyone, “Cragg, get your head out of your ass and get back to work! You can eat breakfast tomorrow morning!” Kurtz’s quarters were in an old French villa and when it came to his attention one day that someone had gotten his housemaid pregnant, he called the guy in, a sergeant with the signal detachment. I can still remember the conversation, “Sergeant, Blank, did you or did you not have sex with my housemaid in my bed?” The answer was “Mumble, mumble,” and next day the sergeant was gone. Col. Kurtz’s deputy was a LTC Coleman and the exec. was a Major whose name slips me at the moment. I worked for the Major. Aside from some guys assigned from a signal battalion to provide communications, as an E4 I was the lowest-ranking man in the team. Almost everyone else was either a WWII or Korean War vet. One exception was 1LT Humbert (“Rocky”) Versace, advisor to the 5th Div. Recon Bn. You may remember he was awarded the MoH for the time he was a POW of the VC in the Delta where he went when he was transferred from Adv. Tm. 70. I don’t remember the name of the Div. Commander when I arrived but he was replaced by Col. Nguyen Van Thieu, who later became President of the Republic of Vietnam. The 5th Div., under Thieu, played an important role in the coup against President Ngo Dinh Diem in late 1963. While I was with Team 70 I got to go on operations throughout the division’s DTA, from west up near the Cambodian border to east on the S. China Sea. At that time the DTA was just dangerous enough to be exciting, before the NVA moved in, and night road marches with the ARVN were something to write home about.

        Dan

        Reply

    • 1sgt Wedsell Gene Roberts. I was in Adv. Tm 70 from. Jan 64 until Feb 65. We were at Train Compound, and moved to Thu Dau Mot . I was with Capt. Gosney the day he was killed. My partner was Capt Fred Mchaffey, who became a 3 star before his death from cancer.

      Reply

  230. Does any one remember SFC Lewis Twinn? Team 70, KIA 12/31/65. He was my uncle. I served with the 114th Helicopter Company 68 & 69

    Reply

    • Hi, Jerry – My name is Ron Soden and I knew your uncle. We were not only stationed together in Germany, the same company, but were also in Team 70 at the same time. The date12/31/65 was a terrible day for Team 70 in that we lost your uncle and two others on that day. I have never celebrated New Years Eve since that time. Advisory Team 70 Oct 65 – Oct 66.

      Reply

      • Louis Twinn was my grandfather. His loss is still felt by our family daily. Any information you want to share about him would be welcomed.

        Reply

  231. Frank,

    Welcome to this site. It is good.

    I was on Team 70 from early 70 to early 71. I recognize a couple of the names but do not have any contact with them. The camp he mentioned was actually Gosney Compound at Phu Loi. The 5th ARVN and Team 70 moved to Lai Khe in February 70 and our compound was named Couch Compound.

    Good luck with the search.

    Regards,

    Mike McMunn

    Reply

  232. I was a member of Advisory Team 70 stationed at Lam Som from 67 to 68. I was the sole radio teletype operator with a portable van setup. Just before I deros out ,I was given an advisory 70 zippo lighter , a plaque, and a black and white photo of “Old Soldiers never die , they just fade away”.I still have the plaque and photo. But over the years lost my lighter. If anyone knows how to get the lighter , please let me know. If anyone me to email them a copy of the photo , I would be happy to do so. My email address is cushman.milo@gmail.com

    Reply

  233. I was with ADV TM 70 from June 69 to July 70. Everything I had from those days (photos, etc) burned in a fire in 1987. I was an Intel Analyst (96B), but went out with the Strikers a lot.

    to answer a previous question about why a signals man (or anyone non-air) would have an air medal – much of our travel was done by helicopter from Pipesmoke, in Phu Loi. if you kept a record/log (which I started but forgot about) you could easily generate enough hours in the air to qualify for an air medal.

    I would love to see photos.

    welcome home to all my team mates.
    /john

    Reply

    • Hi John,

      Welcome to the Team 70 site. I am sure I knew you at Phu Loi and Lai Khe. Do you remember 1LT Don Rennie? He was assistant G-2 advisor.

      I do have some pictures I would be glad to share. Send me your email address.

      Mine is covan2@verizon.net.

      Best regards,

      Mike

      Reply

      • Hello Mike,
        I worked for Lt. Rennie when I was assigned to Team 70 in January 1970 at Lam Son. Then I worked for Lt. Burke after Lt. Rennie left. The move to Lai Khe was quite an exercise for all of us.

        Best Wishes,
        Larry

        Reply

    • Hello Clarke, Do you remember me? We were both 96B’s when Team 70 moved from Lam Son to Lai Khe in 1970. We put in a lot of long days getting that new perimeter ready.

      Reply

      • Larry,

        I don’t know if you remember me but I was in our hooch the day a rocket blew it half way apart when you and I were talking together. I remember you were from Oregon if I remember correctly and how we enjoyed my large box of goodies for Christmas that actually arrived by boat in February. I am Larry Stith from Indiana and just recently hooked up with another Advisory Team 70 member, Lou Leib who served in Adv. Team 70 in 70-71 also. Hope you are doing well my friend.

        Regards,
        Larry Stith

        Reply

    • Hi John. This is John Dutton. I just found this sight.
      I was real close to a John Clark in Lai Khe.
      I was there most of 1970.
      We used to go to Harry’s in Saigon.

      Reply

    • Hi John, I certainly remember you. I also remember an incident in Pho Lou and a M70 round that scared the crap out of us. Lol. I hope you are well. You can contact me at louleib@gmail.com. Take care.
      Lou Leib

      Reply

      • Lou, my name is Bob Bell. Before I went into the field with the 4th Bn. 9th Regt.
        I worked the Toc at Lai khe from approximately 1/70 to 6/70. Before that sweet
        Lam Son for 2-3 mos. I was and have the good fortune now of being friends with
        John Dutton. Do you remember me? My email is zx1144@aol.com. Welcome home.

        Reply

  234. Correction… My sister work for G3 at Phu Loi and then transferred to Lai Khe (5th Division ARVN) during 69-70

    Reply

  235. Hi Mike
    I am writing this note on behalf of my sister, who had worked with team 70 during 68-70.
    She was a secretary for G3 at HQ of 1st Infantry Division under Maj. James M Mossburg.
    Her name is An TRAN and she is currently living in Canada (Toronto area) and would like to make some contact with her ex-colleagues.
    I am living in Dallas, TX and would very much appreciate all your helps
    You can contact me directly at:
    dant@itwsealants.com
    or 972-342-1086
    Kind regards
    Dan Tran

    Reply

    • Dan Tran, not sure I remember your sister but I also live in the DFW area. Hope we can say hello some day.214 546 0081

      Reply

    • Hello Dan,

      My father was Capt. Irenaldo F. Padron. He was with MACV Team 70 from 1968-1969. He died at the ARVN base in Song Be City in a helicopter crash along with 28 of his ARVN soldiers.
      I will forward you a picture to your email address. Please feel free to forward this information to your sister. I would like to know if she knew of him.

      PS: I just recently returned from Vietnam. I visited the Song Be area. My dad would not recgnize it. The compound has turned into a very busy town.

      Regards,
      Roberto Padron, AIA
      RPadron99@aol.com

      Reply

  237. Hello, My name is Ken Strickland, I was a SP5 assigned to Team 70 back in 1963, I worked with then a Capt Bodine in the Psywar/Civic Action program, left in Dec 1963. Were stationed at Train compound, just down the road from 5th Inf Div Headquarters then Commande by Colonel Theui, who later became the first elected president of South Vietnam.

    Reply

      • Doug, I don’t know how I overlooked your offer all this time. Yes! I would like what ever you can send about AT-70 during that time frame.

        Thank you and I do apologize for such a later response.

        Ken Strickland

        Reply

    • Ken. I think I have a pic of you on R&R at Dalat. I was at Train Compound 63-64. Clerked for Col Lawson and Col Thieu.

      Reply

      • I remember you, not many others on the team though. We did attend a holiday in Dalat, I remember when the plane came in to pick us up blew a tire on landing and we got to stay another day or two.

        You and I used to go over to play Tennis with the old
        Vietnamese gentleman at the BIF (bureau of industrial forestery). He looked like he was twice or three times as old as we were and he would beat the socks off us all the time.

        Ken

        Reply

  238. Welcome home, I served in 1970 as the maintenance advisor to the 5th logistical BN of the 5th ARVN Division at Lai Khe. It was the best assignment that I ever had in my 21 year military career. Have you been to any functions or reunions?

    Reply

  239. Hi–
    My name is Fred Marshall, and I was with Team 70 from Oct67 to Oct68 as an interrogator, translator, interpreter, and intel analyst with the G2 section under Captain Belitz and Major Richard Clark. SFC Andreas Anderson, SSgt. Bob Scannell, Cpt. Lynn Pochert, 1Lt Robert Petrero, and 2Lt Tim Small were also with G2 at that time along with 6-8 more enlisted men like myself. I spent most of my time with my counterpart Sgt. Mai Cao Vo and other ARVN soldiers at the interrogation building in the far NW corner of the decrepit 5th Division Base. Sgt. Vo and I also spent some time doing interrogations at Loc Ninh and Song Be and at Phu Loi Army Airfield, Bien Hoa and at the National Police HQ in Phu Cuong. Tet ’68 was rather intense. I have about 200 lot of color photos of Gosney Compound, the 5th Division base, the surrounding area, Vung Tau, Bien Hoa, and the great guys I worked with, both US and ARVN. I’m still in contact with a few of my enlisted G2 buddies. You can contact me at kudzu44@comcast.net if interested. My photos (scanned slides) and a number of documents are also at the Texas Tech Viet Nam Center Virtual Archive in the “Willis F. Marshall Collection”. Welcome home!

    Reply

    • Hi Fred;

      I just found this website and noted a familiar name in your comment; Cpt Lynn Pochert.
      I was a member of Adv Tm 70 from June 67 to Jun 68; initially with the team advising the
      3dBn/9Rgt outside of Song Be. Following the dust-up we had with the 88th NVA Brigade
      in late Oct 67 (one of many engagements leading up to TET), I became the Senior Advisor to the 1st Bn/9Rgt in Tan Hung (outside of Quan Loi). Later into 68, 1/9th was relocated
      outside of Phu Loi/Lam Son as the ready-reation Bn for the 5th ARVN Div. Unfortunately
      for me, in late May I ended up in the 93rd Evac with amoebic dysentery and was medevaced to Walter Reed Hosp for a subsequent 7 month stay to getting rid of amoebic
      hepatitis.
      Over the remainder of my career, Lynn and I were assigned together in Korea (72-73),
      then in NATO (78-81). We stayed in contact over the years via Xmas cards/email and last
      year my wife and I spent four terrific days with Lynn and his wife in Puyallup, WA. Lynn has taken a revisit trip to Vietnam, however, I’ve not been so inclined…..still too many bad memories.

      Thank you for your service and all the best to you,

      Reply

    • Hi Fred,
      My name is Pat Niemann and I just found this site this evening. Great to have space dedicated to each MACV Team. I was with Team 70 from Oct 66 – Oct 67 and served as the Advisor, G-2 Recondo Company. I remember Major Clark and SFC Anderson. You and I must have just missed each other in Oct 67. My rotation date was extended because my replacement, 1LT Robert Boyd was killed on his first operation when the Recondos hit a hot LZ in the middle of the 572nd NVA Regt. I was in the C&C chopper and I was supposed to leave the next day for Bien Hoa to take the Freedom Bird home. The G3 had the chopper land and picked up Lt. Boyd’s body and dropped me off to be with the Recondos again. It was a hell of a fight. We were reinforced very quickly by the ACR and a 1st Div Bn. I think the 5th Recon Company also assisted.

      Gene Bolin who was the advisor to the 5th Recon Co told me several years ago that Major Clark retired to Florida and passed away.

      I am going to look at your pictures as I had some old slides which are basically faded away.Thanks for that information.

      Someone mentioned that they were having trouble with VA. I received a disability from them for Agent Orange. As many of you Team 70 members know we operated in many areas in Binh Duong and Binh Long Provinces that were sprayed by Agent Orange. it must be documented as I did not have a problem with VA.

      Welcome home!

      Reply

      • Pat–Thanks for your note, Sorry to hear about Major Clark. He was the finest officer I served with in Viet Nam. SFC Anderson passed away in 2002 in Idaho. I vaguely remember a 1Lt Bolin who advised the Recondos. Their adviser for most of my tour was 1Lt. Anthony Callan, who as I recall was one tough, smart soldier. I spent most of my time at the interrogation building in the far NW corner of the 5th Div. base, next to the Recon. building, I spent more time with the ARVN soldiers than our guys. I also made a number of “field trips” to pick up POWs from US and ARVN operations and bring them back to Lam Son or sometimes to Saigon or Bien Hoa. Loc Ninh, Song Be, An Loc, and the Iron Triangle area are fond memories. Sorry to hear of your service disability. One of my G2 buddies, Rodney Smith of Virginia, died last year after struggling with various ailments he said were caused by agent orange. So many good men killed, maimed, and sickened. Welcome Home!

        Reply

      • Pat-The report of my passing was exaggerated. I am still on the right side of the grass. I remember you and Bolin doing a little job on the mine field at Train Compound. I was also on that slick that put you in after we recovered Boyd’s body. Also have a French rifle you and Bolin gave to me. Would like to hear from you.

        Reply

        • Glad to hear you’re still with us, Major Clark (you were a Major when you were Team 70 G2 CO). It was an honor to have served with you. I was the interrogator for G2 as well as a translator, interpreter, and analyst. I have several photos of you including you shaking hands with Gen. Westmoreland and one of you receiving your Gallantry Cross. If you’ll email me at kudzu44@comcast.net, I’ll send them to you. I have a lot of photos of most of the Team at that time, our elegant G2 office, Gosney Compound, the 5th Division Base, and the local area. Hope you’re doing well. I am a retired teacher living in San Jose CA..

          Reply

        • Hello Major Clark! Craig McGee here. I have been looking for you for 49 years, just found this website yesterday. I have always wanted to thank you for recommending me for the Bronze Star. I received it in a ceremony in September 1968 at Fort Hood Texas. That day that 1st Lieutenant Boyd was killed was the worst day of my life, I still remember you giving me a thumbs up as your helicopter was taking off after I had loaded LT. Boyd’s body onto it. I am now retired and living in Naples, Florida, if you are living in Florida please contact me, would love to see you again and reminisce about our days together at Advisory Team 70.

          Reply

        • Hi Dick,
          I need to check this site more often. What a great surprise to hear from you! I am glad that Gene Bolin had bad intel about you. After 30 years of active duty I retired in 1993 and settled down in the Tampa Bay area.

          Brendan Battle is living in NC and lost his wife a couple of years ago. We had a nice visit with Nick Page and his wife several years ago and he unfortunately passed away last year. Gene Bolin and I communicate on a regular basis – he lives in WV and has medical problems.

          My email is niemannpat@gmail.com.

          Pat

          Reply

      • Hello Lt. Niemann,
        I just found this website tonight, Craig McGee here, it has been very interesting reading all the comments. I was the guy on the ground carrying the radio with Lt. Boyd when he was killed, I carried him to the helicopter and you jumped out and walked with me the rest of the day. I still remember Major Clark giving us a thumbs up as the helicopter took off. It was a tough day for us. Hope your doing well, I am retired now and living in Naples, Florida.

        Reply

        • Hi Craig,
          Great to hear from you. As I told Dick Clark, I need to check this site more often as I did not get notification of your posts.

          I don’t think I had the opportunity to thank you for all of your hard work and professionalism. The fact that you volunteered to go on the Recondo missions was truly commendable and much appreciated by me.

          My email is niemannpat@gmail.com. We live close enough for a get together. I live in Odessa.

          Hope you are well. Welcome home.

          Pat

          Reply

  240. Hello,
    This is a long shot, but here I go.
    My father was Capt. Irenardo F. Padron, Advisory Team 70 (MACV). He was the senior US advisor with the South Vietnamese 3rd BN, 9th Regiment, 5th ARVN Division.
    He died on 6 May 1969 in a helicopter crash along with one US air crewman and 31 SVN troops on his way to an air assault operation. The crash occurred at take off from the MACV resupply pad near the Song Be airstrip, Phouc long Province.
    I have been able to locate the exact crash site from photographs and maps included in the accident report/investigation we received in 1970.
    The crash occurred in a village called Cu Xa Cong Choc.
    I am going there in March of next year and to lay a remembrance at the site.
    If anyone out there has any information or knew my father I would like to hear from them before I go.
    Regards,
    Roberto Padron

    Reply

    • Roberto, I resent you the AT-70 list this morning (7 Jan 2014) but your email address bounced back. Doug

      Reply

  242. Bill,

    Mike McMunn, here. We were both part of the G-4/Maintenance Bn advisory staff. I remember 1LT Tom Ellison was the Sig Bn Advisor and I think CWO Arnold was his assistant and ran the MARS station, too.

    Hope that life has treated you well. I may have a few photos of you and some of the other guys.

    Susanne: I would be glad to help fill in some details also as I was with Team 70 1/70 to 1/71. Thank you for your service with the ARC.

    Regards,

    Mike

    Reply

    • Mike,  Great to hear from you and life has been good. I still remember some names. Capt Brooks and West come to mind. Did  you keep a roster? I used the MARS station once to call home.

      Bill

      T-Mobile, America’s First Nationwide 4G Network

      Reply

      • Bill,

        Good to hear from you. Thanks for the reply.

        Some years ago (before CRS) I made a list of as many team members as I could recall. I still have the list of about 30 guys. Have lots of pictures of team members, counterparts, Lai Khe, Lam Son and AO.

        My email is covan2@verizon.net. Remember Carl Brooks and Johnny West, Pete Privas, Major Brown, Major Boone, and lots of others. Send me an email and I will send you my list and I am sure you will remember many.

        Regards,

        Mike

        Reply

    • Mike, it is such a pleasure to meet you. Please accept my gratitude for your service on this Veterans Day!

      And, would that be CWO Marvin Arnold? If so, that would have been my dad. I would love to hear from you and find out anything you care to share about the job, where it took the team and if you have any photos you’d care to share, that would be wonderful too. Dad said he was based out of Duc Hoa, would that be correct?

      My email is sanne57@gmail.com

      Cheers,
      Susanne

      Reply

      • Susanne,

        Thank you. This is a great list.

        I regret I have no photos of your father. I do have some photos of our compound at Lam Son and at Lai Khe including a photo of the MARS station (if you do not know what MARS was I can explain).

        He may have been at Duc Hoa was not in our Area of Operations (AO) so it may have been on his other tour. In 1970 we were headquartered at Lam Son and then at Lai Khe.

        My email is covan2@verizon.net

        Regards,

        Mike

        Reply

  243. Sir, I would appreciate anything that you would care to share with me. Dad never shared much with me until after my first deployment back in 2007. Even then it was always a superficial and benign conversation. Understandably.

    My email is sanne57@gmail.com. Would you be able to talk a bit about your AO, Team 70s mission, and how it could be that Dad, a Signal guy, might have been awarded an Air Medal? I also realize that you all were spread out over a large area so it is even probable that you did not know each other. His name was CW2 Marvin Arnold. I have a photo I could send if you would like.

    Reply

  244. First of all, please allow me to offer my gratitude and support for your service! I just returned from my 3rd deployment to the current AOR, with the Red Cross, and feel privileged to be able to care for and support our troops today.

    Now, to my question. My dad, CW2 Marvin Arnold, passed away a year ago last March. He was a MACV advisor during both of his tours in Vietnam, 67-68 and 70-71. In my search to gather his papers and awards through the VA, I came across his Record of Assignments, which indicated he was assigned to the 25th Division the first time … and with Team 70 the second tour. I did not know this!

    He has an Air Medal – he was Signal; why would he have an AM? – and he wore a red/white vertical striped ribbon that is not listed on his DD214. Where can I go to learn more about Team 70s operations, locations, missions, etc, during the year he was there (70-71)? Would love to find someone who may have known him then!

    Thanks very much!
    Susanne

    Reply

    • I can answer your questions about awards and advisory team 70. I served with team 70 in 1970.

      William Staton
      CW3, USA Ret.

      Reply

      • Larry eagen team 70 nov 65- 66 2bn 7reg 5th div phu hoa dong looking fore capt Gardner first sergents wise and king ,that was our team from nov 65 to about may-66 If anyone can help thank you . I have had melanoma over most of rightside upper cheek in 2012 .VA is giving me a hard time. does any have any info thanks again L Eagen larryeagen@att.net

        Reply

      • I was supposed to be put in for the bronze star but my Captain was transferred before I got it. Radio operator Advisory team 70 Dec. 65 to Nov66 5th. ARVN. 8th. infantry.

        Reply

      • William Staton, did you run the MARS station? I worked the TOC in 1970 and knew you better than you knew me. I
        cannot remember their names but you had an E-6 & a Sp4 who worked from the same building that housed the
        MARS station, do you remember their names or where they lived stateside. I was good friends with both of them-
        the sp4 name may have been Rozell. I hope we can both make the reunion in November

        Reply

        • mr. bell am a disaster on a computer hope this reaches you just found the sight served at tm 70 70,71 as tm medic sfc bob stoltz was my superior remember bill rozell well you bill stoltz and I and others would on occasion cook our own dinners much to the anger of the col. hope you are well sincerely jay doc crumlish

          Reply

          • John j Crumlish / I am thrilled beyond words to hear from you. where are you? I am in Flemington New Jersey.
            Do you remember Peter Flagg ( nickname Blue ) Happy holidays

            Reply

            • Bob Bell, I have a picture of Flagg and his famous motorcycle he had at Lai Khe for awhile. I got to ride it once. Great fun riding around the plantation. I am in Bangkok and going to Vietnam on Monday. I am taking your advice and have hired a driver for the day and will just take a ride up Hwy 13 to see what things look like. It’s been 46 years since I left Lai Khe. I’m interested to see how it’s changed. Happy Holidays to everyone on this website who was there in those days long ago.

              Larry Gale

              Reply

              • LIKE OTHERS HAVE SAID , MY TIME W/ TEAM 70 WAS PROBABLY THE HIGHLIGHT OF MY LIFE
                ( I DO NOT WISH TO GLAMORIZE WAR) ENJOY YOUR TRIP, BE CAREFUL THAT AN EXTRA GUIDE IS NOT PLACED IN YOUR TAXI
                AT THE LAST SECOND. FOR A LARGE FEE TO SHOW YOU THE HIGHLIGHTS. THE VIETNAMESE PEOPLE NOW LOVE US
                AMERICANS. HAPPY TO JUST TAKE A PICTURE WITH YOU. THINGS HAVE REALLY CHANGED. MY TAXI DRIVER GOT A
                SPEEDING TICKET. THANKS FOR THE EMAIL AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!—- BOB BELL

                Reply

        • Hey Bob. This is Vinny DePaola. I was at Lai Khe Sept 70- Feb 71 and you’re right, the Sp4 at the MARS station was named Rozell, Bill Rozell. The E-6 was Bob Hanna. Both great guys. I spoke with them a couple of times right after we got out. But have no idea where they might be today. Hope you are well.

          Reply

      • Do you remember my Dad, Captain Paul N Jackson? He was with Advisory Team 70 from May, 1969 until he was KIA 1/24/70.

        Reply

        • Stephanie, sorry to reply so late but just found this web page. I knew your dad and worked with him for a couple of weeks. Would be happy to give you what I know.

          Reply

          • Stephanie,

            I was only on the Team for about a week when CPT Jackson was KIA. His was the first death that happened to me. I have never forgotten that incident and vividly remember the memorial at Gosney Compound. I get to The Wall a few times a year and always stop and run my fingers over his name. I was there about 3 weeks ago and will be back for Veterans Day. Even though I never met him he had a big impact on my tour of duty, and I will not forget him. I do remember that other advisors knew him and held him in high regard.

            Reply

    • I, was the Supply Sergeant (SSG) for Team 70 from December 1963 to December 1964. The Sergeant Major was SGMJ Potratz. At first our Division Senior Advisor was Col Wilson better known then as Coal Bin Willie. I later served as the Operations NCO (SFC) with Team 73 from September 1960 to September 1970. John Paul Vann was the big boss and his deputy was none other than Mr. Wilson also known as Coal Bin Willie.

      Bill Covey, CWO (Retired)

      Reply

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