Summary: Log opened at 0001 hours 6 March 1969. Unit locations: At Polei Kleng ZA026937; see the previous day log for locations, as well as the locations for the Tactical CP. The Daily Situation report 6 March 1969 is as follows: At 1340 hours 6 March 69 B Company 2nd platoon made contact with an estimated NVA platoon at grid ZA005935 while OPCON to the 1/69 Armor, the 2nd platoon of B Company was conducting a cordon and search operation with the 2nd platoon of A Company 2/8 Infantry (Mech) when contact was made the enemy employed automatic weapons fire, AK-47 fire and Chinese Communist grenades they attempted to fire B-40 Rockets and the gunner was killed the US units employed 50 caliber machinegun fire and artillery, the contact was broken at 1530 hours, 2 tanks from the 1/69 Armor reinforced the activity, there were 14 enemy KIA, B Company 2nd platoon sustained 3 WIA, captured 3 AK-47 rifles, 12 B-40 Rockets, 4 Chinese Communist grenades and 7.62 ammunition.
Thursday, March 6, 1969 (From Ralph Leebert's journal)
Last night we finally finished the bunker close to eleven o'clock. By the time I settled down it was approaching twelve. Because double guard was required, it appeared as though I just went sleep and 4:15 came.
The day started good. We were to remain on the hill. Then some army personnel carriers (2/A/2/8) arrived and we were told that we were going with them to check out a bunker complex that the 2/8th had discovered. They also had a little trouble with some dinks. We move out toward our objective, which took approximately twenty minutes to reach. The complex started at a wood line at the upper portion of a hill. We got off the carriers and walked on the flanks of the two tracks. The APC's used recon-by-fire with the 50 caliber various times while we moved through the wood line. After going about two hundred meters or so an APC threw a track. Naturally, we sat down to rest and set up security.
We had not stopped too long when a round was fired from a 16. At first everybody did not know just what to make of it. Then a small lull passed before everything started flying. Fifty calibers' from the APC's fired, M-60's fired, M-16's. Yet, surprised as I was, return fire was given. Not just AK's, but dinks had their own automatic weapons.
The firefight started when PFC Stanley Rice shot a dink carrying a B-40 rocket launcher. He thought it was a tube for mortars, but I told him that a dink would not walk in the jungle with a tube knowing GI's were around. Nevertheless, with APC's present, I said that the tube was probably a B-40 rocket launcher.
The firefight lasted at least three hours, possibly four. The APC's with the 50 caliber's definitely put out fire support, plus we had six M-60 machine guns. We put the max on them. We killed seven (1/35th Daily Journals listed 14 enemy KIA and my letter home also indicated 14 enemy KIA) with an unknown number wounded that got away. Also, in this was the dead carried away. We captured 2 AK-47 rifles (Russian), 3 B-40 launchers, 7 B-40 rockets, 6 mortar rounds, AK-47 rounds, hand grenades and machine gun ammo.
During the fight our platoon leader Lieutenant Mayne was wounded and Lamar Bond took shrapnel in his left arm and leg. He was on the other side of the road (made by the APC's) when the fighting broke out. Just as with Lee Ayers when he was hit (ref 2/14/69 contact), Lamar called for me to come and get him. I assured him that we would be there just as soon as possible, but to remain calm and relax, we were getting things under control. The people hurt during the fight totaled seven. A couple were hit bad but did not appear critical at the time. Lieutenant Mayne, as mentioned, was hit three or four times, Lamar Bond and PFC Poss, who took a round in the foot. I cannot identify the others. Leaving the area felt great. But a platoon from Alpha 1/14th (1/A/1-14) came in to go past the point of contact to secure a tank that had hit a mine.
Meanwhile, during this time the rest of the company was CA'd to LZ Mary. It isn't far from the Cambodian border and sits on the mouth of a valley leading from Cambodia. After leaving we almost had to return as Alpha 1/14 came in contact but nothing materialized, so we headed for Polei Kleng. We set up for the night and tried to relax and forget about the day's activivites.
Dave, (Email I received from our platoon leader Joel Mayne regarding 6 March 69, Joel was wounded that day.)
Your memory pretty good. I think one of the APCs threw a tread is why we were stopped on that old road about 1/2 way up the hill. My tail end charlie called me on the radio and said he saw somebody with a rifle near him. I told him if it was not an M-16 to open fire. He fired and the shit hit the fan immediately.
Glad we had those 50s. One of the drivers was wounded. We were up on the track outside the cupola reloading 50 cal and it was scary. Bullets flying by like bees as were really exposed. He got hit in the stomach and it covered me. I had to take my glasses off to clean them as I could not see after that. I know I had bullet holes in my clothes and quite a few in my flak jacket and some in me. My medic, Ponds I think, was so nervous he could not get the needle for the blood expander in my arm after the fight so I did it myself.
One of those guys in the APC was me. I died twice on the dust off and the medic brought me back, out of body experience and the whole works. Pretty weird, I'll tell you, to see your self dead. Guess I am ready for Oprah or Jerry Springer, ha ha. We ran out of morphine so I gave all my wounded a beer if they wanted it but told the guy with stomach wound not to swallow. They had to stick a knife in my chest to drain the blood out of my chest cavity or I was going to suffocate on my own blood. Jeez, lifted up my arm, took a big knife and stuck it in my left side just below the arm pit and carved out a hole. No anesthetic or anything. Boy was that fun. Far as I know, all the wounded made it. I saw some of them at the 71st Evac in Pleiku and they were ok to there.
Yes, I was pretty proud of everyone myself and felt they did a good job. I remember 360 degrees on the incoming and a couple of B-40s went by me while I was up on the tracks loading 50s. I remember directing the tank gunner on the outside phone to blow a sniper out of the tree. I think he hit me once and got my M-60 gunner through the arm. I told Doc Ponds not to move unless I gave the order. I had already lost Doc Thornton and Doc Reiser and my experience was to save the medic to do his work after the fight. I crawled out to patch up the gunner and told Doc Ponds good medics were a hell of a lot harder to get than lieutenants. He wanted to come get me one of the times I got hit but I would not let him. Thats when Aveline came out and worked on me and pulled me in.
I had pulled some intel on that area where we were that day and found the NVA had chewed up a couple of our rifle companies on two occasions by letting them attack. I had decided that morning to use air, arty and the tanks before sending my men forward. I figured Charlie would expect the same old tactics and be in a defensive posture to chew us up on the assault so my plan was to sit and chew them up. I never assaulted if technology would accomplish close to the same end. Since we never held territory I was not going to have my men killed for it unless we had no other choice of tactics. I definitely think we did the right tactics that day. We saved most or all of our men and inflicted some pretty good smoke on the enemy. I never inflated body counts but I am sure we did kill a lot more than 14. I had reported 13.
Three incidents stick out in my mind. My platoon Sgt. looking at me and saying surely I was joking about the bayonet charge (wish I had a picture of his face, it was priceless when I gave the order), I polled the men for alternatives when we ran out of ammo but no had any. I just remember all the bayonets seemed to go on with just one big click at the same time, seemed like slow motion in the movies to me. I told them we would not surrender. I had two magazines and one grenade left when it was all over, my basic load was 48 mags and 6 grenades.
2. Another officer ran over to me and wanted to assault but I refused since still inflicting allot of heat on NVA with fire power and wanted them to come to us since they had shot up those rifle companies so bad. I felt we may need to assault eventually but that was plan "Z" in my book. I also felt they would get us with a secondary ambush before we got back. I really wanted them to get whipped and leave, not chase us like a pack of dogs.
3. That sniper I blew out of the tree with the tank 90mm shot my M-16 completely in two just above the trigger finger. I was drawing a bead on an NVA and just squeezed the trigger and nothing happened; first time the old smoke pole had ever failed me. I lowered it and the butt stock and pistol grip was in one hand and the bolt group, barrel and such in the other hand. Knocked her completely in two.
Yep, I thought every one there did a real fine piece of work. I was cursing Col. English pretty heavily on the radio, for not keeping his promise on the tanks (he was a good man and I am sure was worried about the bigger picture of needing those tanks to save Polei Kleng), when they finally told me they were going to court martial me if I did not ease up. I told Bn I accepted the court martial and but to come down and get me so there would be some thing left to court martial.
That's when I switched pushes and called Johnson in the tanks direct and explained if he did not disregard his orders we were toast. He came. He was above us on some high ground firing in direct support. Since the NVA had not done too well knocking out the APC, I knew Johnson could kick some ass with those 48s. Don't know if my assessment of situation was correct but ammo wise, and time of day wise, I felt it was getting a little thin for us. I had lost most of my blood so would not say I was in best state of mind. I know when Johnson showed up the NVA hauled ass so felt it was a good call. We killed and wounded a lot more of them than they of us. I was in the IA Drang valley twice and saw some too eager commanders really get their asses kicked so I was pretty careful about falling into Charlie's classic V ambush on the assault. Never ever got caught in a kill zone all the time I was there. I did some dumb stuff but it never cost my men.
Later Joel