The History of F-58th INF. [LRP] 1968

The following history was obtained from the National Archives

1968 SUPPLEMENT TO COMPANY “F”, 58^TH INFANTRY UNIT HISTORY

THE YEAR AT A GLANCE

 The activation of company “F”, 58^th Infantry occurred in the Republic of Vietnam on 10 January 1968.  The personnel comprising the company were drawn largely from two sources-the cadre of Fort Campbell’s renowned RECONDO school who had arrived in-country during the two previous months, and personnel form the 101^st Airborne Division’s First Brigade’s Long Range Reconnaissance Platoon (LRRP).  Thus the personnel were well trained and suited to perform their assigned mission of conducting long range patrols.  However, because the 101^st Airborne Division had just recently arrived in-country and was facing the monumental job of establishing itself, both in a semi-permanent location and as a well functioning fighting team, Company “F”, 58^th Infantry, better known as the Division LRRPs, was called on to perform numerous functions other than long range patrolling and it was not until 4 May 1968 that the first long range patrol was conducted.

 Shortly after its official activation the LRRP Company moved from its headquarters at Bien Hoa Army Base to the city of Song Be to assist in securing that city.  By 28 January 1968 the company was again at Bien Hoa, and two six-man teams were dispatched with General Clay, the Assistant Division Commander, to help locate and secure a new area for the division.  The remainder of the company became involved in repelling the enemy’s TET offensive in the Bien Hoa area.  Shortly after TET the company moved t join its two teams in securing what was to become the Division’s base camp, Camp Eagle, near the city of Hue.  During the ensuing two months the company was primarily involved in assisting in providing security for the quickly developing base camp.

 May 4, 1968, marked the beginning of long range patrol operations for the company.  A six-man patrol, led the 1LT John W. Gay, Jr., was emploged into the mountainous jungles north-west of fire support base Birmingham.  Two hours later, after killing one and possible three VC/NVA the team was extracted.  This mission turned out to be a harbinger of the action the company was to see for the rest of the year.  During the next eight months the company successfully completed 124 long rage patrol missions.  The information obtained contributed immeasurably to the Division’s intelligence effort, and on these missions a total of 62 enemy were killed by body count, and a larger but undetermined number was killed by air strikes and artillery called in by the teams.  Loss of company personnel due to enemy action was five killed and 14 wounded during the year.

 Additionally, concurrent with the long range patrol missions the LRRP Company performed numerous close-in security type ambushes for the Division, provided reaction forces for the Division as needed for general security and for responding to the needs of high ranking officials should the occasion arise, and it trained Division personnel in repelling and in the use of the McGuire Rig.

 In summation, Company “F”, 58^th Infantry throughout 1968 was totally committed to the military effort in Vietnam, and its performance was commendable in every aspect.

1

BIEN HOA TO SONG BE TO CAMP EAGLE

Company “F”, 58^th Infantry upon its activation on 10 January 1968 found itself located at the Bien Hoa Army Base in the Republic of Vietnam.  Most of the personnel were the cadre of Fort Campbell’s RECONDO school who had flown by C141 to Bien Hoa only within the preceding two months, and members of the First Brigade’s Reconnaissance Platoon.  The time prior to the activation was spent establishing the company as a working unit and in refresher training covering all areas needed to be known for the special mission of performing long range patrols – from repelling to immediate action drills.  So the prospects for the year 1968 were bright.  The men, although few had prier combat experience, were well trained and confident and moral was high.

 Although the men were anxious to begin performing long range patrol missions the needs of the Division were such that this event would be postponed until 4 May.  Shortly after the official activation the company boarded C-130s at the Bien Hoa airfield and headed for song Be to assist in securing that city.  Soon after arrival the first ambush team was sent out and for the next two weeks the company provided the city security by sending out ambushes and close in reconnaissance missions.  Helicopter support was limited at this time so all missions were conducted within easy walking distance of the perimeter.  During this period the company received its first casualty when an enemy mortar round killed one and wounded two company members.

 On 21 January the company began its move to return to Bien Hoa to rejoin the 101^st Airborne Division which was formulating relocation plans.  But shortly after the first half of the company departed Song Be the city came under enemy attack.  This was the beginning of the communist TET offensive and it was seven days before the company was again reunited at Bien Hoa.  During the TET offensive the company member at Song Be saw a considerable amount of action.  They received rocket, mortar and RPG rounds, and at one point during the ground fighting assisted in repelling the enemy from a quad 50 position which they had overrun.  By the 28^th of January the enemy had retired and the half of the company at Song Be returned to Bien Hoa.

 At Bien Hoa the company began to perform security missions for the Division and General Clay, the Assistant Division Commander, took two six-man teams with him to help locate and secure a new area for the Division.  These teams accompanied General Clay in his C-130 to Quang Tri, DaNang, and finally Phu Bai.  In the Phu Bai area they provided security at a temporary base established near Gia Le, and accompanied General Clay in his survey of the surrounding area.

 The decision was made to move the 101^st Airborne Division to the Hue area.  During the Communist TET offensive Hue was occupied by the communists for 27 days and the enemy threat was strong in the area.  Company “F”, 58^th Infantry was one of the first units sent.  The company joined the two teams already in the area and secured the area which was to become Camp Eagle.  In doing so they killed four enemy who had approached their parameter. 

       For the next two months the company was deeply committed to providing security for the Division’s rapidly developing base camp.  Its primary missions included providing close in ambushes and daily clearing of the road connecting Camp Eagle and Highway 1.  On one occasion elements of the company responding to an enemy ambush of an American truck on this road killed one fleeing enemy.

 During this period the men of the company found it does get cold in Vietnam.  They had left Bien Hoa in such a hurry they took with them only what they would immediately need.  The 1968 Monsoon season was unusually cold and the men found the damp cold air went right through their light jungle fatigues.  The unquestioned conclusion was that reports that Vietnam is always hot were grossly in error.

 In addition to learning that Vietnam is not all sweat the men learned that not just any bunker will survive the monsoon rains, and during a two week period the most respected man in the company was SSG Richard Burnell whose bunker remained sound and dry while all other bunkers, if they did not wash away entirely, were reduced to mudholes.

 Good weather follows bad, however, and with the good weather came a change in the company’s operations.  Helicopters were assigned to the company and on 4 May the company conducted its first long range patrol.

 LONG RANGE PATROL OPERATIONS

 The company finally had started to function in its intended capacity.  That is, sending six-man teams deep within the jungles, far from friendly ground troops, with the assigned mission of reconnaissance primarily, but occasionally to attempt to snatch prisoners or to conduct ambushes.  The helicopter was used for insertion and extraction.  Five helicopters were used – the lift ship, a chase ship, two gun ships, and a Command and Control ship.  The company was under the operational control of ACofS, G-2 and the five helicopters were assigned to the company whenever the company was engaged in missions.  The pilots and crews were from the 160^th Aviation Group, the “Black Widows” and the “Kingsmen” and they were truly both proficient and professional.  They lived at the LRRP company when assigned and a rapport quickly developed.  They became integral members of the “team” and were deeply respected and appreciated by every member of the company.

  The company’s first long range patrol mission showed the company’s promise for the future, and set the pace for the rest of the year.  The patrol was led by 1LT John W. Gay, Jr. into the mountainous area north-west of fire support base Birmingham in the vicinity of coordinates YD 677153.  Their mission was to confirm sniffer readings in the area.  The team was inserted at approximately 1300 hours.  They were detected shortly after landing on the LZ and called in gunship strike at 1320 hours on three VC/NVA that they spotted overlooking the LZ.  Since their presence had been detected they were extracted at 1450 hours.  The result was one VC/NVA killed (by bodycount) and probably two others, but the bodies could not be spotted from the air.  The team definitely confirmed the sniffer reading.

 The following day two more teams were inserted out further to the west.  Both teams were extracted under emergency conditions during the next two days with negative friendly casualties and two more VC/NVA killed.

 In the following months many more missions were conducted with similar results.  SSG James Johnson became known as “Contact Johnson” because on every mission he led he found the enemy.  On two occasions he discovered enemy base camps, one was of battalion size, and called in airstrikes and artillery on them.  Other teams were also finding the enemy, however, and the company became a prime source of intelligence for the Division G-2.  The teams worked throughout the Division AO in the areas west of Hue and Camp Eagle all the way out to the A Shau Valley and south to the 85 east-west grid line and north to the 30 east-west grid line.  Information of enemy movements, base camps, trail networks, bunker complexes, weapons and rocket firing positions were continuously reported.  The company operated generally with three teams in the field at one time and it was found that normally a team could cover about two-thousand square meters in a three day period, and that became the average length of the missions.

 On 25 June one platoon from the First ARVN Division’s Reconnaissance Company was made OPCON to the LRRP company.  They moved into an area adjacent to the company area and a one week training program was immediately initiated.  The ARVNs were quick to grasp the concepts used by the LRRPs and they proved themselves very capable soldiers.  In the next two and a half weeks a total of six teams consisting of two ARVNs and four Americans were sent out, with the American Team Leaders in charge.  The ARVN’s knowledge of the jungle proved a helpful contribution to the missions.  On 19 July, however, the ARVN platoon was recalled to join its company.

 The company 3 October was removed from the control of the G-2 and attached to the 2/17^th Cavalry, and shortly thereafter moved to a new location on Camp Eagle.  Construction of the new company area was accomplished in conjunction with LRRP missions and it was a busy time for all involved.  Under the control of the 2/17^th Cavalry the company’s commitments increased.  Five and as many as eight teams were sent out on missions at one time.  The company continued its exceptional performance with an increased number of enemy sightings and enemy kills.

  On 19 November the company received its first casualty on a long range patrol mission.  A twelve man team had sprung an ambush on ten VC/NVA and killed nine of them, one having escaped.  After searching the bodies and confiscating the enemy’s weapons and documents they carried, the team moved a short distance away and began to prepare for extraction.  As the point man began to move toward the LZ he was hit in four places with enemy automatic weapon’s fire.  The team quickly returned suppressive fires and pulled the wounded man into the hastily established perimeter and became deeply engaged in a fire fight with the undetermined sized enemy force.  During the battle an explosion, presumed to be a CHICOM claymere mine, killed four and wounded seven of the team members.  A reaction force of two LRRP teams was immediately sent into assist the team in trouble, followed by the Aero rifle platoon of the 2/17^th Cavalry.  Before everyone was extracted and air strikes called in thirteen of the reaction force were wounded.  Enemy casualties were twenty known dead, and many more presumed so.