Memories

by
Steve Linthwaite
Apr '69 - Apr '70

Sgt Jose Flores [KIA Aug 12, 1969] was my TC in D32 or D35... can't remember now. Doesn't really matter cause we all jumped around a lot. We were in a series of running gun fights around Loc Ninh as I recall. It had been very quiet for weeks but we had rumors of the NVA coming over from Cambodia. Things heated up on Aug 10 or 11th and we started getting ambushed daily or making heavy contacts for over 2 weeks. All our work was in the rubber plantations around Loc Ninh and it was pretty sporty for us. Sgt Flores was a really fine soldier and great young NCO. Just a shake and bake, but I could tell he had the right stuff that would eventually take him places. He had been with us only a few months and was still learning.....

Dale French ["Doc"] was our medic. He was wounded the day before or 2 days before Sgt Flores was killed as I recall. He was pulling night watch in the turret on one of 1st or 2nd Platoon's tanks in a NDP between the airfield and the town of Loc Ninh. We were set up a few hundred meters from a French plantation owner's house [there was a tennis court and swimming pool there if memory serves]. An NVA sapper platoon had crawled up on us from the house and about half of them including their Lieutenant were hiding behind a large shrub about 100 feet in front of my D33 or D34 track when the TC [I cannot remember his name now!] heard something and popped a 90mm canister round on them at point blank range. Killed about 8-10 of them instantly and by pure luck we totally screwed up their whole attack. The rest started hitting us with RPGs as they were not close enough yet to use the satchel charges. Doc's tank took an RPG which started a small turret fire. I jumped off and ran over to pull him out, not realizing at that time who it was I was pulling out. I got him on the ground/covered behind another tank and started giving him first aid and started yelling for a medic.... his face, arms and exposed body had been totally blackened and burned. Then, one of my guys said, "Sir... that is the medic".... so I started working on Doc as best I could. He was flash burned and lost a finger, but looked like he would come out OK. [I can't find an email address listed for him with the association, and if you have one, please pass it on to me].. I'd like to know how he came out.... Oh.. One other tidbit. I searched the dead NVA Lt's body.... he had a complete diagram of our NDP layout, the CP track, and each tank position by bumper #!!! He had our radio frequency. He even had the names of some of the company/platoon troopers. From that day on... no Vietnamese kids or 'mama-sans' were allowed within 50 feet of the perimeter.... we had gotten sloppy over the past weeks with our inactivity and this was our formal wake up call. That same night we watched as the Loc Ninh airfield was hit with rockets and mortars that cooked off an ammo dump there.... made for quite a light show just a click away. An Loc and Quan Loi to the south of us had major ground attacks that night also..

The attached picture was taken about May 1969. It is/was the Bailey bridge over the Song Be just outside of Ben Cat. The view in the distance is the good ole Iron Triangle..... The Michelin Rubber plantation is off to the right out of the picture about 5 miles? distant. The sign says: "Welcome to the Iron Triangle. Courtesy of E Company 1st Engineer Battalion [1st Infantry Division guys]. Another Die Hard Bridge. 'Always First'" The guys tore the sign off a post and put it in the picture. SSG Dorothy and his M88 retriever are the guilty parties here [remember Dorothy? the greasy 'old' motor sergeant could could change a tank engine injector under a poncho with a flashlight!]. He was towing my D32 tank with the M88 on a tow bar back to Bien Hoa base camp for major repairs/combat loss. The various armor units including the 1/4CAV had managed to collapse this bridge 2-3 times over the past 2 years. The 1st Inf Div Commander [this was his AO] was highly pissed at most all armor guys already, since this was his main supply road between the Triangle and Bien Hoa. Sgt Dorothy had been specifically told before the trip to unhook D32 and winch it across the bridge, but SSG Dorothy marched to a different drummer and went across a class 60 bridge with a 60 ton M88 and a 55 ton M48 on a tow bar. D32 must have made quite a splash. Dorothy managed to get the M88 unhooked and out unharmed, and after a day of hard work and another retriever, winched out D32. SSG Dorothy later got to personally meet the Commander of the 1st Infantry Division in his private office by special invitation for a come to Jesus meeting. He was still the best motor daddy I can recall.... just a little headstrong.