Fall and Winter Operations
_Dry Weather Fighting--Monsoon and Flood Relief Operations--Changes and
Improvements--Action as the Year Ends_
_Dry Weather Fighting_
The military situation in I Corps remained essentially unchanged as
HMM-162 began its assignment with SHUFLY. Hot, dry weather, with its
promise of near perfect flying conditions and spirited fighting,
continued over the mountainous northern provinces.
After a series of orientation briefings and familiarization flights,
Lieutenant Colonel Curtis’ squadron initiated support operations in
the closing days of June. HMM-162’s first real taste of action came on
the last day of the month when six UH-34Ds, escorted by two armed U.S.
Army UH-1Bs, attempted to resupply ARVN troops operating in the hills
nine miles west of Tam Ky. While trying to locate a Communist position
which was firing on the resupply aircraft, one of the gunships was hit
and crashed in flames. Two transport helicopters landed immediately to
rescue the crew. The Marines pulled three of the four injured men from
the wreckage before being driven away from the scene by approaching
guerrillas. During takeoff, one UH-34D was struck by ground fire but
was able to continue its flight to Da Nang. The wounded copilot of the
downed Army aircraft died while enroute to the dispensary, but the
injured pilot survived and later was evacuated to the Nha Trang Field
Hospital. The heat from the still-smoldering aircraft hulk prevented a
second attempt to extricate the body of the fourth soldier later in the
day. It was finally recovered on 1 July.
The squadron’s first critical troop lift came within days of its
initial action when the task element was called upon to helilift
urgently needed reinforcements to the Nam Dong CIDG camp which had come
under heavy Communist attack. Situated in south central Thua Thien
Province at a point where two prominent mountain valleys converge,
Nam Dong held special strategic appeal to both sides engaged in the
struggle for South Vietnam. It sat astride natural infiltration
routes from Laos into the lowlands around Da Nang and Phu Bai and
also protected some 5,000 Montagnard tribesmen who occupied a string
of villages along the valley floor. The camp and the villages were
defended by only a handful of U.S. Special Forces personnel and three
CIDG companies, none of which could muster more than 90 men. Its
status as a thorn in the enemy’s side, its relative isolation, and its
proximity to Communist base areas along the Laotian border, combined to
make the outpost a particularly lucrative target for the Viet Cong.
Nam Dong’s hour of crisis came shortly after midnight on 7 July when
the Communists launched a large-scale ground assault against the barbed
wire-enclosed main camp. Shortly after 0400, with his position holding
out against heavy mortar and machine gun fire, Captain Roger H. Donlon,
the Special Forces officer in charge, radioed for assistance. Two hours
later, six Marine helicopters, loaded with U.S. Special Forces and
South Vietnamese personnel, launched from Da Nang for the beleaguered
little fortress. Colonel Merchant, flying an O-1B, led the transport
helicopters to the objective area while two U.S. Army UH-1B gunships
provided escort. Meanwhile, two other HMM-162 helicopters launched for
An Diem carrying U.S. Special Forces officers with instructions to
assemble a company-sized reaction force for commitment to Nam Dong.
Intense enemy mortar and ground fire at Nam Dong initially prevented
the six UH-34Ds from landing the reinforcements, whereupon Colonel
Merchant and the flight returned to Da Nang for fuel. At the airfield
the task element commander briefed VNAF A-1H Skyraider pilots and the
crew of a Marine O-1B on the battlefield situation. He took off again
at 0910, this time to act as TACA in an Air Force U-10. Meanwhile, a
U.S. Army CV-2 Caribou (a twin-engine, fixed-wing light transport)
had managed to airdrop small arms ammunition to Donlon and the
embattled defenders. Following this emergency resupply, air strikes
were conducted on the hills to the south and west of the outpost,
causing enemy ground fire to diminish somewhat. At 0945, a flight of
18 Marine helicopters, led by Lieutenant Colonel Curtis and escorted
by four UH-1B gunships and two VNAF Skyraiders, began landing a 93-man
relief force which had been collected earlier from Da Nang and An Diem.
Evacuation of the dead and wounded began immediately. At 1545, a flight
of 10 UH-34Ds lifted 9,500 pounds of ammunition, medical supplies,
radios, and miscellaneous equipment to Nam Dong. Six passengers, five
wounded Vietnamese, and eight more bodies were evacuated to Da Nang on
the return trip. By then, the battle was finished. Two Americans, one
Australian advisor, and 55 South Vietnamese had been killed. Captain
Donlon, who earned the first Medal of Honor awarded for action in
Vietnam, and 64 other defenders had been wounded. The Viet Cong, who
had failed to eliminate the Nam Dong outpost, left 62 bodies on the
battlefield.[12-A]
[12-A] For a more detailed account of the battle for Nam Dong,
see Donlon, _Outpost of Freedom_.
Four days after the battle for Nam Dong, Colonel Merchant’s tour in
Vietnam ended. He returned to Okinawa to assume command of Marine
Aircraft Group 16 whereupon Colonel Hardy (“Tex”) Hay, a 1940 graduate
of Texas A&M, assumed command of Task Element 79.3.3.6.[12-B]
[12-B] For his role as Task Element Commander, ARVN I Corps
Aviation Headquarters Commander, and Senior U.S.
Aviation Advisor to I Corps, Colonel Merchant was later
awarded the Legion of Merit with Combat “V.” He was also
decorated with two Vietnamese Crosses of Valor--one for
SURE WIND 202 and the other for the relief of Nam Dong.
Normal flight operations continued during the remainder of July with no
major heliborne assaults conducted and no Marine aircraft lost. These
operations, however, did not lack excitement. Supporting the Marine
and ARVN forces on Tiger Tooth Mountain proved extremely hazardous as
the HMM-162 crews soon came to realize. On 11 July, for example, the
mountain nearly claimed one of their helicopters when a UH-34D lost
power as a result of the extreme altitude while delivering supplies to
Advisory Team One. As the aircraft plummeted into the hillside landing
zone, its tail pylon struck the vegetation around the edge of the tiny
clearing causing some structural damage. Fortunately, the damage was
such that the crewmen were able to make emergency repairs while Major
Gray’s men provided security around the aircraft. This accomplished,
the crew returned their damaged helicopter to Khe Sanh without further
incident.
Daily operations continued to produce action for the newly arrived
squadron as July wore on. On the 15th a UH-34D was hit by Viet Cong
fire while performing a routine resupply mission south of Da Nang.
Again, damage was only minor and the aircraft continued its mission.
Support for Tiger Tooth Mountain dominated SHUFLY’s operations on
the 18th after MACV officials ordered Major Gray’s Advisory Team
One withdrawn to safety. Colonel Hay directed HMM-162 to commit all
available aircraft in order to complete the withdrawal as rapidly as
possible. Good weather and flying expertise helped the helicopter crews
transport the entire Marine force (92 men) and over 21,000 pounds of
equipment to Khe Sanh before nightfall on the 19th.
In a simultaneous but unrelated development, HMM-162 was called upon
to detach four helicopters to Udorn, Thailand, for temporary duty.
These aircraft and crews were assigned to assist with search and rescue
operations in support of ongoing U.S. aerial reconnaissance efforts in
that area.
In early August, the heightened international tensions which
accompanied the Gulf of Tonkin crisis prompted General Westmoreland to
order all American military installations throughout South Vietnam to
brace for possible enemy attacks. Colonel Hay responded to ComUSMACV’s
instructions by placing his Marines on high alert status for several
weeks. The precautions were relaxed gradually as the crisis eased and
the likelihood of a sudden Communist attack diminished.
The pattern of helicopter operations in the northern provinces
throughout the remainder of the summer differed little from that which
had emerged earlier in the dry season. Medical evacuation and resupply
sorties continued to constitute the majority of the task element’s
support missions. Generally, medical evacuation missions, many of
which were executed while Viet Cong and South Vietnamese forces were
engaged in combat, provided the major source of action for Lieutenant
Colonel Curtis’ squadron during this period. On 6 August, for example,
a UH-34D was hit by enemy fire while its crew was evacuating ARVN
casualties from a landing zone along the Song Tra Bon. Two days later,
a second Marine helicopter was hit during an attempt to evacuate dead
and wounded from the mountains about eight miles west of Tam Ky. The
following day, on 9 August, another HMM-162 UH-34D drew fire while
evacuating a wounded U.S. advisor from a village on the coastal plain
12 miles southeast of Tam Ky. In all three incidents the aircraft
received only minor damage and were able to return safely to Da Nang.
Although the medical evacuation missions generally attracted more
Viet Cong attention, many resupply flights also proved hazardous.
Small landing zones, high elevations, and bad weather often made even
the most routine missions difficult. HMM-162 lost a helicopter as a
result of a combination of two of these adverse conditions--extreme
elevation and a small landing zone--on 30 August. While resupplying
a mountain-top outpost five miles southwest of Nam Dong, the UH-34D
struck a tree at the edge of a tiny clearing and crashed. The crew
members were uninjured, but the extent of the aircraft’s damage was
too great to permit repair. It was stripped of radios, machine guns,
machine gun mounts, and other usable parts before being destroyed.
In mid-August the Marines also lost their first observation aircraft
since deploying to Vietnam in 1962 when an O-1B crashed after
experiencing mechanical failure. The incident occurred on the 15th
while the pilot and observer were conducting a reconnaissance of
the northwestern corner of Quang Ngai Province. Bad weather delayed
rescue attempts for over an hour, but the two injured crewmen were
finally recovered by helicopter and flown to the Da Nang dispensary
for treatment. The pilot’s injuries were severe enough that he was
evacuated to the U.S. field hospital at Nha Trang.
The last major heliborne assault conducted in extreme western I Corps
during 1964 was initiated in the first week of September. Eighteen
Marine UH-34Ds, four Army UH-1Bs, six VNAF Skyraiders, two Marine
O-1Bs, and two U.S. Air Force liaison aircraft were assigned to support
a 2d ARVN Division heliborne offensive against Communist infiltration
routes in remote southwestern Quang Nam Province. The operation, code
named CHINH BIEN, began on the morning of 4 September when 15 HMM-162
helicopters (the other three UH-34Ds participating in the operation
were serving as search and rescue aircraft) lifted the first wave
of South Vietnamese soldiers from Kham Duc, a government-controlled
town located 12 miles from the Laotian border in northwestern Quang
Tin Province. Their objective was a landing zone situated 24 miles
northwest of the assembly area in Quang Nam Province and only three
miles from the Laotian border. No enemy resistance was encountered
and the initial assault helilifts were completed shortly after noon.
Support for CHINH BIEN continued the next morning. When the helilifts
were finally completed shortly before 1000, Marine UH-34Ds had flown
265 sorties for 180.2 flight hours in another effort to place ARVN
ground forces in remote areas of I Corps.
_Monsoon and Flood Relief Operations_
Adverse weather began influencing SHUFLY’s operations a few days
after CHINH BIEN ended. On 14 September all flights were cancelled by
rain and high winds from Typhoon Violet, a severe tropical storm. All
aircraft remained grounded until late afternoon of the next day when
HMM-162 helicopters conducted an emergency evacuation of storm victims
from Tam Ky which had been hard hit by Violet. The typhoon caused some
minor damage to SHUFLY’s facilities when electrical power was lost for
a few hours. By the morning of the 16th, power was restored and all
Marine operations returned to normal.
Within a week, however, a more severe weather disturbance--Typhoon
Tilda--struck the coast near Da Nang. On the morning of 21 September,
in the face of the approaching storm, Colonel Hay ordered Lieutenant
Colonel Curtis to displace his squadron to Nha Trang in central II
Corps. Later in the day, the unit’s entire complement of aircraft
departed Da Nang on the 325-mile flight to safety. The task element’s
C-117D found refuge at Saigon. HMM-162 remained at Nha Trang until the
23d when it returned to I Corps.
[Illustration: _Marine helicopters enroute to an objective overfly the
coastal plain south of Da Nang. (Official USMC Photo)._]
Typhoon Tilda caused considerably more damage to the Marine base of
operations than had her immediate forerunner. Most of the permanent
structures in the compound showed signs of water damage and the
electrical power was lost for an entire week, except at the waterpoint
and the mess hall where a concerted repair effort restored power
promptly. Teletype communications circuits were closed for a full week
as a result of damage, and the radio link with the 1st MAW was broken
for nearly two hours.
While the Marines of the MABS-16 sub unit concerned themselves with
cleaning up the debris and repairing their damaged facilities,
HMM-162’s crews resumed combat support operations. On the
afternoon of their return from Nha Trang, a flight of UH-34Ds
delivered 19 passengers and 4,000 pounds of cargo to Tien Phuoc, a
government-controlled town located seven miles west of Tam Ky. The next
day Major General Paul J. Fontana, who as commanding general of the
1st Marine Aircraft Wing was responsible for the administrative and
logistical support of the task element, arrived at Da Nang for a one
day visit to assess the damage and to confer with Colonel Hay. Flood
relief missions and clean up activities combined with normal flight
operations to consume the remainder of September.
Two changes were made in the composition of the Marine task element in
late September and early October. On 29 September, the security force
from the 1st Battalion, 9th Marines rotated back to its parent unit
on Okinawa. It was replaced by a 78-man element from Company E, 2d
Battalion, 9th Marines the same day. Led by Second Lieutenant Anthony
A. Monroe, the newly arrived Marines would provide protection for the
aviation unit until late November.
The second alteration occurred about a week later when HMM-162 was
relieved on-station by the officers and men of a fresh squadron.
The rotation of helicopter units was completed on 8 October when
Lieutenant Colonel Curtis officially signed over the aircraft and
maintenance equipment to the new squadron’s commanding officer. In
a three month deployment to the war zone HMM-162’s helicopters had
conducted approximately 6,600 sorties for a total of slightly over
4,400 flight hours. Many of these sorties had been missions of mercy
flown in the wake of the typhoons which had ravaged Vietnam’s northern
provinces. During three months of sustained combat support activities,
the squadron had lost two UH-34Ds and one O-1B in operational
accidents.[12-1]
The newly arrived squadron, HMM-365, was commanded by Lieutenant
Colonel Joseph Koler, Jr., an experienced Marine officer who had
begun his career shortly after World War II as an infantry platoon
leader with the 1st Marine Division in China. Under his leadership
the squadron began performing resupply missions the same day that
the last of HMM-162’s personnel departed Da Nang. On their first day
of operations, Koler’s crews airlifted over 25,000 pounds of cargo
to various outposts around Da Nang. The following day a flight of
12 HMM-365 helicopters provided transportation for ARVN troops who
were being rotated between Kham Duc and A Roe, an isolated outpost in
southwestern Quang Nam Province less than seven miles from the Laotian
border. On 11 October the newly arrived Marine pilots and crews tasted
their first actual combat when eight UH-34Ds drew Viet Cong fire while
landing a 112-man Vietnamese unit in the hills 10 miles west-southwest
of Tam Ky.
The day after its crews had witnessed their first ground fire, Koler’s
squadron lost its first aircraft in Vietnam. The incident occurred in
western Quang Nam Province while a UH-34D was attempting to take off
from a South Vietnamese landing zone located high in the mountains.
The crash, in which the pilot was slightly injured, resulted from a
loss of power due to the high altitude. After the crew was evacuated, a
maintenance team salvaged the usable parts and destroyed the aircraft.
In mid-October Colonel Hay summarized the situation in I Corps for his
superiors at the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing. The task element commander
was particularly concerned about a new phase of Viet Cong activity
which he saw developing in the coastal lowlands of the northern
provinces. Although there were few visible signs of either combat or
enemy movement to confirm the trend, intelligence sources indicated
that Viet Cong main force battalions in I Corps had increased in number
from nine to 11 in the past several months. During this same period,
the number of local force Viet Cong companies in the area had jumped by
50 percent to a total of 17. These growth patterns, Colonel Hay noted,
enabled the Communists to tighten their grip on the civilian populace.
Likewise, they were responsible for increased enemy harassment of
lines of communications in I Corps and posed a particular threat to Da
Nang.[12-2]
Colonel Hay’s tour as task element commander ended on 17 October.
After a brief change of command ceremony during which he expressed his
appreciation to his subordinates for their assistance, Hay departed
for Okinawa to assume command of MAG-16. His replacement at Da Nang,
Colonel John H. King, Jr., an officer who had seen his first action
as a fighter pilot during World War II, was well prepared to direct
the task element’s operations. A recent graduate of the National War
College, King had commanded the first operational Marine transport
helicopter unit, Marine Helicopter Squadron 161, during the Korean War.
HMM-365’s operations continued throughout the remainder of October
with only a few significant actions reported. One of these was an
abortive medical evacuation mission attempted on 26 October during
which the squadron suffered its first combat casualties. The incident,
in which both the copilot and crew chief were wounded by Viet Cong
small arms fire, occurred while the helicopter was approaching a poorly
protected landing zone 10 miles southwest of Tam Ky. The pilot managed
to return the damaged helicopter to Tam Ky and land safely, whereupon
the seriously wounded copilot was evacuated to Nha Trang and the crew
chief was administered first aid.
In early November, at the height of the monsoon season, Typhoon Iris
struck the Annamese coast. The tropical storm, whose full force was
felt on 4 November, was followed by nearly a week of continuous
rain, wind, and fog. The conditions caused flight operations to be
suspended except for emergency medical evacuations. When the operations
resumed on the 10th, the Marine Corps birthday, the Leatherneck crews
concentrated on rescuing Vietnamese civilians from the inundated
coastal plains. Between 1700 and 1900 on their first day of the flood
relief operation, Lieutenant Colonel Koler’s Marines rescued 144 flood
victims. These rescues, many of which were accomplished by hoisting
the Vietnamese from precarious positions in trees or on roof tops were
complicated by sporadic Viet Cong harassing fire. Many of the stranded
civilians were evacuated to the Da Nang airfield. Following emergency
medical treatment administered by Navy doctors and hospitalmen, the
civilians were given shelter in the task unit hangar. Lieutenant Robert
P. Heim, the Navy chaplain assigned to SHUFLY at the time, later
praised the Marines who shared their birthday cake with the homeless
Vietnamese that night.[12-3] The next day, although poor visibility
continued to hamper flights, the Marines helilifted 1,136 more flood
victims to safety. Again the guerrillas harassed the rescue attempts
with small arms fire, this time hitting three of the participating
aircraft.
The humanitarian operation continued until 16 November, when another
typhoon--Kate--threatened to make matters even worse. The weather on
the storm’s periphery forced the cancellation of many Marine flights
but the center of the disturbance passed about 200 miles south of Da
Nang. The flooding which resulted from the two back-to-back storms,
however, demanded a rescue effort beyond the capabilities of the Marine
and VNAF helicopter units located in I Corps. Accordingly, the Special
Landing Force (SLF) of the U.S. Seventh Fleet joined the operations on
17 November. Lieutenant Colonel Curtis’ HMM-162, the helicopter element
of the SLF, returned to its former operations area and spent six days
rescuing flood victims. The Marines evacuated the most seriously
injured to the USS _Princeton_ where they received emergency treatment
before being returned to civilian hospitals. When the SLF departed
Vietnamese waters on 23 November, HMM-162’s helicopters had flown over
600 hours and completed 1,020 sorties in support of the disaster relief
operations. Unfortunately, one UH-34D was lost at sea in an operational
accident on 21 November while participating in these operations. Two
crewmen, Corporal Richard D. Slack, Jr. and Lance Corporal David
Nipper, died in the crash.[12-4]
With the SLF’s departure, the Marine task element and the VNAF 217th
Squadron reassumed the full burden of rescue operations until they
were finally terminated on 10 December. During this period HMM-365 was
forced to divide its flights judiciously between combat support and
missions of mercy.[12-C]
[12-C] The magnitude of the damage inflicted upon the
inhabitants of Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, and Quang Tin
Provinces by the November storms is borne out by the
following statistics. In these three provinces over
50,600 houses were destroyed while 4,870 civilians
were reported either dead or missing. Another 12,240
Vietnamese were forced to seek refuge at government
centers in the wake of the flood. (CTU 79.3.5 ComdD,
17Oct64–14Jan65.)
_Changes and Improvements_
While some of Lieutenant Colonel Koler’s men were employed in
evacuating the flood-stricken Vietnamese, others were modifying three
of the squadron’s helicopters to carry a new weapons system which
had been developed specifically for use on the UH-34D. The TK-1, an
externally mounted combination of M-60 machine guns and 2.75-inch
rocket launchers, was first used on 19 November in support of a Tiger
Flight mission conducted just south of the Song Thu Bon about 17 miles
from Da Nang. Two armed UH-34Ds expended 90 rockets and 500 rounds
of 7.62mm ammunition on enemy positions during prelanding strikes.
The effectiveness of the new system could not be determined after
this particular strike, but an estimated 10–15 Viet Cong were killed
in a similar action by the armed UH-34Ds the next day. The transport
aircraft armed with the TK-1 would continue to escort troop carrying
helicopters regularly throughout the remainder of the year. At best,
however, the TK-1 was of only marginal value. The inherent limitations
of the UH-34D, which possessed neither the maneuverability nor the
speed to conduct truly effective attacks, reduced the overall value
of the system. Because of these limitations the Marines seldom relied
solely on the UH-34D for fire suppression during assault missions.
The system would eventually be phased out in 1965 with the arrival of
Marine jet attack squadrons in Vietnam.
[Illustration:
MAJOR MARINE HELICOPTER
OPERATIONS SECOND HALF 1964
]
Two improvements, one in the physical facilities available to the task
element and the other in the size and composition of its security
detachment, were made shortly after the Marines began using the UH-34Ds
in the gunship role. On 25 November, HMM-365 moved its aircraft and
maintenance equipment across the airfield into a newly constructed
hangar just west of the strip. The second change took place the next
day when the security force from the 2d Battalion, 9th Marines was
replaced by Company L, 3d Battalion, 9th Marines, reinforced with
engineers, 81mm mortar teams, and counter-mortar radar personnel.
This adjustment came in response to the reports of the growing Viet
Cong threat to Da Nang. Designated the Security Detachment, Marine
Unit Vietnam, the 255-man organization was under the command of Major
William F. Alsop, the battalion’s executive officer. Captain John
Sheridan, the company commander, retained tactical control of the
infantry unit.
Although responsibility for the overall defense of the Da Nang airstrip
still resided with the ARVN, the enlarged security detachment greatly
strengthened the Marine defenses within the installation. Major Alsop
divided his reinforced rifle company into two groups--one to protect
the living compound and the other to defend the flight line and the
new hangar. Around the living compound the engineers constructed a
complex of machine gun positions, mortar pits, and ammunition bunkers.
A barricade was also erected at a gate near the Marine compound which
previously had been open and manned only by Vietnamese sentries. Strong
defensive positions were also constructed around the task element’s
new hangar and flight line. This network included fox holes, barbed
wire, and cleared fields of fire. As an added precaution, Company L
maintained a reaction force at the living compound. This force was
prepared to board trucks and rush to reinforce the critical defenses
around the aircraft and maintenance facilities in the event of an enemy
ground attack.[12-5]
Despite the stronger defenses and the presence of the larger Marine
infantry force, several security-related problems were still unsolved.
One which remained outside of Colonel King’s influence was the laxity
of the ARVN sentries around the outer perimeter who sometimes allowed
Vietnamese civilians to wander into the installation. Another was
that a small village close to the Marine compound, but outside the
perimeter fence, still harbored an occasional sniper. The task element
commander had lodged repeated complaints about both situations with the
appropriate South Vietnamese authorities but no action had been taken
to eliminate them. In spite of these minor sources of irritation, the
recent changes in its defenses greatly enhanced the task element’s
ability to protect itself against Communist ground attacks.
_Action as the Year Ends_
While Company L was developing defensive positions at the airbase,
HMM-365’s crews continued to provide support for both flood relief
and military operations throughout I Corps. On 7 December, 17 Marine
helicopters and eight Army UH-1B transports were called upon to help
trap a Viet Cong force known to be hiding in a village less than five
miles west of Da Nang. Code named DA NANG SIX, the operation began at
daybreak when the American helicopters lifted 240 men of the 11th ARVN
Ranger Battalion into the objective area. Two UH-1B gunships teamed
with two armed UH-34Ds to suppress ground fire that erupted as the
first wave of transport aircraft began their approach to the landing
zone. One Army gunship sustained minor damage when hit three times
during the exchange of fire. After the enemy had been silenced, the
landing proceeded without incident and the Vietnamese rangers quickly
secured their objective. In the process, nine Viet Cong were killed and
four others captured along with nine rifles and one automatic weapon.
Successful though it was, the action on the outskirts of Da Nang
confirmed previous reports that the Communists were tightening their
grip on Quang Nam Province.[12-6]
Another indication of the enemy’s growing strength in I Corps came only
two days later when a large Viet Cong force overran an ARVN outpost
four and a half miles southwest of Tam Ky. I Corps Headquarters quickly
drew up plans for a multi-company search of the area even though the
Communists had withdrawn from the badly damaged government position
shortly after their final assault. At 0845, 18 Marine UH-34Ds (three
armed) and four Army UH-1Bs (two armed) helilifted a 208-man Tiger
Force from Da Nang to Tam Ky where it had orders to stage with other
units for the operation. While the U.S. helicopters were in the process
of transporting the Vietnamese troops to Tam Ky, an aerial observer
sighted a large formation of Viet Cong moving southwest from the scene
of the previous night’s battle. The observer immediately brought air
strikes and artillery fire to bear on the enemy, blocking his escape.
Firepower contained the enemy throughout the morning while the infantry
units at Tam Ky prepared to exploit the situation with a heliborne
assault. The helilift was launched at 1345. Enroute to a landing
zone, located six miles southwest of Tam Ky, the helicopter formation
passed over the smoldering ruins of the ARVN outpost where ammunition
stockpiles were still exploding. Once at the objective, the armed
helicopters began delivering suppressive fire into the surrounding
hedge rows and treelines as the troop carrying aircraft approached
the landing zone. Still, after nearly six hours of air and artillery
strikes, the Communist force was able to oppose the landing with
intense small arms fire. No helicopters were hit during the landing,
however, and the assault force managed to secure the landing zone.
This accomplished, two companies from the 11th ARVN Ranger Battalion
were helilifted into the position without incident. After the final
troop lifts, the Marine transport helicopters began evacuating
casualties from the outpost where eight Vietnamese soldiers and one
American advisor had died and 20 ARVN and an Australian advisor had
been wounded. The government’s response to the enemy-initiated action,
including air and artillery strikes, accounted for 70 Viet Cong
killed and 39 weapons captured. While reflecting a moderate success,
these statistics were little compensation for the knowledge that the
Communists could destroy a well-fortified position within five miles of
a provincial capital.[12-7]
Weather caused many Marine flights to be delayed and some to be
cancelled during the closing month of 1964. But the interruptions
were not frequent enough to prevent the task element from fulfilling
its support commitments. The only type of support operation actually
curtailed due to the monsoons was the preplanned heliborne assault into
the mountains. Brief periods of favorable weather usually enabled the
Marine crews to accomplish resupply and medical evacuation missions
even into the most remote areas of I Corps, although delays of such
flights were not uncommon.
Lieutenant Colonel Koler’s HMM-365 was past the midpoint of its
assignment in Vietnam as 1964 drew to a close. Through 31 December the
unit’s helicopters had already flown over 6,700 sorties for a total of
nearly 4,700 hours of flight time. Since its arrival in early October,
Koler’s squadron had distinguished itself not only by providing support
to military units throughout I Corps but by its extensive participation
in the flood relief operations of November and December. During the
30-day period after 10 November, HMM-365 had contributed a substantial
percentage of its flights to the prolonged effort to rescue and
evacuate Vietnamese civilians from flooded areas.[12-8]
FMFPac changed the designation of the task element on the final day of
1964. From that date until mid-March of the following year the Marine
helicopter squadron and its supporting elements in Vietnam would be
known officially as Task Unit 79.3.5, Marine Unit Vietnam. This change,
however, did not alter the existing command relationships. ComUSMACV
continued to exercise operational control over the Marine task unit
while the Commanding General, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing retained
responsibility for its administrative and logistic support.