Gen. Maxwell Taylor, former U.S. ambassador to South Vietnam and now a consultant to President Lyndon B. Johnson, and presidential adviser Clark Clifford tour South Vietnam, Thailand, Australia, New Zealand, and South Korea to sound out opinion on the possibility of another summit conference on the situation in Vietnam. Reportedly, they were also seeking additional troops for the war. On their return to Washington, Taylor and Clifford reported no major disagreements on any aspect of the war among the national leaders with whom they had spoken during the trip. Thailand, Australia , New Zealand, and Korea eventually sent combat troops to South Vietnam to fight alongside the Americans and South Vietnamese.

On this day, July 10, 1965 U.S. planes continue heavy raids in South Vietnam and claim to have killed 580 guerrillas. U.S. Phantom jets, escorting fighter-bombers in a raid on the Yen Sen ammunition depot northwest of Hanoi, engaged North Vietnamese MiG-17s. Capt. Thomas S. Roberts with his backseater Capt. Ronald C. Anderson, and Capt. Kenneth E. Holcombe and his backseater Capt. Arthur C. Clark shot down two MiG-17s with Sidewinder missiles. The action marked the first U.S. Air Force air-to-air victories of the Vietnam War.

Interestingly, one of the F-4C Phantom Jets believed to have made one of the service’s first F-4 “kills” of a MiG-17 during the Vietnam War is housed at Misawa Air Base, home to The 35th Fighter Wing. In 2006 it was taken off of display to get some needed up keep, but is now back with a new paint job and some cosmetic fix up.

On June 16, 1970, SSgt. Deverton C. Cochran was team leader and SP4 Carl J. Laker the assistant team leader of a reconnaissance team from Company H, 75th Infantry, 1st Cavalry Divison on an area search mission in Cambodia.

1st Squadron, 9th Cavalry also know as the Bullwhip Squadron was an aerial reconnaissance cavalry squadron operating with an aero-scout (”white”) platoon; aero-weapons (”red”) platoon, and an aero-rifle (”blue”) platoon. The squadron also had a ground cavalry element. Cochrane is listed as attached to “75th Infantry, 1st
Squadron, 9th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division.” Laker, however, is listed as assigned to Company H of the 75th Infantry, 1st Cavalry Division, which is a Ranger unit. If these unit designations are accurate, then Laker was a Ranger while Cochrane was probably a “blue” (infantry man) assigned to the Company H mission. In 1970, the Company H strength was 198 men. The 75th Infantry
(”Merrill’s Marauders”) had only been organized the beginning of 1969 to provide a parent unit for the separate long-range reconnaissance patrol companies (LRRP). Ranger companies in Vietnam were particularly elite.

The team was operating just inside Cambodia in Mondol Kiri Province due east of the South Vietnam city of Dak Song. After a successful infiltration, the team set up in the vicinity to conduct a trail watch and to establish a night defensive position.

The next morning, the team moved out to conduct reconnaissance until 1535 hours when, upon entering a wood line, the team leader was fired upon by enemy troops. Members of the team saw the team leader fall holding his neck and loin. SP4 Laker tried to crawl forward to assist, and fell on top of another member of the team who later reported that Laker had been hit above
the left eye, gravely wounded.

The team finally managed to break contact and one member was able to evade the enemy and return to friendly lines. An extensive search was made of the battle area for several days, but only 2 wounded members of the team were rescued. There was no trace of Cochrane or Laker.

Although the Ranger missions were hazardous, few remain missing from them. Laker was classified as Killed in Action, Body Not Recovered because the extent of his injuries were known, and they were serious. Cochrane’s injuries, on the other hand, could not be assessed, and it was felt there
was the possibility of survival and ultimate capture. Cochrane was classified Missing in Action.

(Source: Compiled from one or more of the following: raw data from U.S.
Government agency sources, correspondence with POW/MIA families,
published sources, interviews. Updated by the P.O.W. NETWORK in 1998. )

On this day in 1969 a slap in the face to the 3rd Battalion, 187 Infantry, 101st Airborne Divison happened. These were the men who fought onHamburger Hill. That particular battle occurred during Operation Apache Snow, and also involved the 9th Marines.

On June 17, 1969 U.S. intelligence reports that an estimated 1,000 North Vietnamese troops have reoccupied Ap Bia Mountain (Hill 937), one mile east of the Laotian border. U.S. and South Vietnamese forces had fought a fierce battle with North Vietnamese troops there in May. The battle was part of a 2,800-man Allied sweep of the A Shau Valley called Operation Apache Snow. The purpose of the operation was to cut off the North Vietnamese and stop any infiltration from Laos that was menacing Hue to the northeast and Da Nang to the southeast. Paratroopers from the 101st Airborne had engaged a North Vietnamese regiment on the slopes of Hill 937, known to the Vietnamese as Ap Bia Mountain. Entrenched in prepared fighting positions, the North Vietnamese 29th Regiment repulsed the initial American assault and beat back another attempt by the 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry on May 14. An intense battle raged for 10 days as the mountain came under heavy Allied air strikes, artillery barrages, and 10 infantry assaults.

On May 20, Maj. Gen. Melvin Zais, commanding general of the 101st, sent in two additional U.S. airborne battalions and a South Vietnamese battalion as reinforcements. The communist stronghold was finally captured in the 11th attack when the American and South Vietnamese soldiers fought their way to the summit of the mountain. In the face of the four-battalion attack, the North Vietnamese retreated to sanctuary areas in Laos.

During the intense fighting, 597 North Vietnamese were reported killed and U.S. casualties were 56 killed and 420 wounded. Due to the bitter fighting and the high loss of life, the battle for Ap Bia Mountain received widespread unfavorable publicity in the United States and was dubbed “Hamburger Hill” in the U.S. media, a name derived from the fact that the battle turned into a “meat grinder”. Since the operation was not intended to hold territory but rather to keep the North Vietnamese Army off balance, the mountain was abandoned soon after the battle.

The news of the battle and subsequent U.S. withdrawal from the area resulted in public outrage over what appeared to be a senseless loss of American lives. It was exacerbated by publication in Life magazine of the pictures of the 241 U.S. soldiers killed the week of the Hamburger Hill battle. This furor only increased when it was revealed that the North Vietnamese had reoccupied their original positions after the American soldiers left Gen. Creighton Abrams, commander of U.S. Military Assistance Command Vietnam, was ordered by the White House to avoid such battles. Because of Hamburger Hill, and other battles like it, the U.S. started to shift its policy towards Vietnamization, wherein primary responsibility for the fighting of The Vietnam War would be handed over to the South Vietnamese.

Major John R. Schumann was an advisor from Headquarters, MACV, and his job was assisting a village chief in Dinh Tuong Province, South Vietnam. On June 16, 1965, he was in an automobile with the village chief while the unit they were overseeing was operating about 5 miles northeast of the city
of Vinh Long along the border of Dinh Tuong and Vinh Long Provinces.

The unit was ambushed and Schumann and others were captured. The village chief escaped capture. Schumann was held with several Americans during the period he was a prisoner of war, and all who were subsequently released report that he died in captivity.

In 1973, Henry Kissinger gave the Vietnamese a list of “discrepancy cases” on whom the Vietnamese should have information. John R. Schumann’s name did not appear on that list.

Since the war ended, the Vietnamese have made no effort to return the body of Robert Schumann, even though it should be readily available to them. Although dead, Schumann remains a prisoner of war.

Others who are missing do not have such clear-cut cases. Some were known captives; some were photographed as they were led by their guards. Some were in radio contact with search teams, while others simply disappeared.

(Source: Compiled by Homecoming II Project from one or more of the following: raw data from U.S. Government agency sources, correspondence with POW/MIA families, published sources, interviews. Updated by the P.O.W. NETWORK with numerous “clip and paste” notes on John Robert from numerous sources. )

Hey everyone, sorry I’ve been MIA, sometimes work gets the best of us. On a side note, still not getting pics to show up on my blog, will have to figure something out, because when I do peices on Military Badges I would like to show a picture of them too Ok, enough with that and on to history:

On June 16, 1965: Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara announces that 21,000 more U.S. troops are to be sent to Vietnam. He also claimed that it was now known that North Vietnamese regular troops had begun to infiltrate South Vietnam. The new U.S. troops were to join the U.S. Marines and paratroopers from the 173rd Airborne Brigade that had arrived earlier to secure U.S. airbases and facilities. These forces would soon transition from defensive missions to direct combat operations. As the war escalated, more and more U.S. combat troops were sent to South Vietnam. By 1969, there were over 540,000 American troops in Vietnam.

The bulk of those 21,000 more troops would be the First Cav. (Airmobile). They were ordered to Vietnam beginning 28 July 1965. By August of 1965, 16,000 men and 435 helicopters were In Country, and the Army’s first air mobile division, The First Team was back in combat as the first fully committed division of the Vietnam War.

Today was in interesting day for Vietnam War history. To add on to what happened today I was able to find a round about first hand report on this particular incident. The following is a condensed version of an article that appeared in the July issue of Proceedings, journal of the US Naval Institute in Annapolis, Maryland as printed in Air Force Magazine, October 1999. It was written by Commander Glenn Tierney, a retired US Navy fighter pilot. It was a quiet Sunday afternoon in Hawaii on 5 June 1964. . . .I was the assistant current air operations (Navy, J-3116) on the staff of the commander in chief, Pacific (CinCPac). Admiral Harry D. Felt. . . . My four-digit designator put me well down on the totem pole. As one of the few Navy pilots on the staff with any recent fleet experience, however, I wound up in the middle of things when the air war in Southeast Asia expanded. .

After many months of indecision, on 23 May 1964 the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) finally authorized the Navy to conduct low-altitude photographic reconnaissance flights over the Plaine des Jarres [in Laos]. Within days, Photographic Squadron (VFP)-63 pilots began flying missions from the USS
Kitty Hawk (CVA-63), which was operating from Yankee Station in the Gulf of Tonkin. Along with the authorization came orders that the RF-8 Crusader photo planes were to operate without armed escorts–even though the practice hand been standard operating procedure since World War II. . . .

The potential problems with the flights were their frequency and Times Over Target (TOT), which were specified by the Secretary of Defense. For these missions, the TOTs were specified as every other day a 1 p.m. (Laotian time). Anyone could see that such a pattern created a built-in opportunity for the Pathet Lao to spring an ambush. . . . The telephone in my quarters rang late on that Sunday afternoon: “You asked me to call you whenever we had a problem with one of your projects [meaning overt and covert aerial reconnaissance]. We have a bad one,” said Army Master Sergeant Duncan, in charge of communications in the CinCPac Command Center. . . . I automatically assumed that we had lost a Navy photo plane and pilot in the Plaine des Jarres; that day’s TOT had been about an hour earlier. Duncan confirmed my fears: The pilot had been shot down and the escort pilot had seen him moving about. The Rescue Combat Air Patrol (ResCAP) from the ship
had launched, he added quickly, but had been recalled because the “word” had come down that there was to be “No round-eye” [American] effort to rescue the pilot. I could not believe it. We had two Air America helicopters stationed on a hill about 20 miles away, on alert for just this purpose. . . .The ridiculous aspect of the order was that there were no other forces available. . . .For all practical purposes, at this point the photo pilot had been abandoned by the government that had sent him in harm’s way. I called the JCS on the secure telephone and spoke with the Army brigadier general who was the duty flag officer. He confirmed the order. When I
literally demanded to know who had issued such an order, he said he was not sure. I respectfully suggested that he find out as soon as possible and we would be calling him back, also ASAP. As I dropped the secure phone, I called my immediate boss, Marine Brigadier General George Bowman, our
J-3/operations officer, but he was not at home. To hell with this, I said to myself, and I called Admiral Felt on his private line at his quarters in Makalapa, just down the hill; I was bypassing at least three other senior flag officers. The line was not secure, so I told him briefly that we had a
serious problem in the PDJ.. . . ‘I’m on the way,” he replied. Less than 10 minutes later, the JCS brigadier general was telling the admiral that the order had come from the Secretary of Defense himself. (Before he called the JCS< Admiral Felt had instructed me to pick up a second secure phone and admonished me: “You listen; you do not speak.”) . . . Admiral Felt spoke quietly: “General, get me the Secretary of Defense on this line immediately.” . . .

Several minutes later, sounding very wide awake, and almost jovial, Robert McNamara came on the line and asked Admiral Felt the reason for the call. Admiral Felt was never one to mince words. “Mr.
Secretary, I have been told that you are aware that we just had a Navy photo pilot shot down in the Plaine des Jarres and that an order had been issued by your office that there was to be no ’round-eye’ effort to rescue the pilot. Is that correct?” “That is correct, Admiral,” McNamara answered. At this point Admiral Felt interrupted him: “May I ask by whose authority this
order was issued?” “The recommendation came from State,” McNamara replied, “and the Secretary of State and I discussed it and agreed that this is the best course of action.” . . . Admiral Felt turned slightly to look at me. . . . He spoke again, very quietly but in a short clipped tone that I had
never heard him use before. “Mr. Secretary, that is not a decision that can be made by the Secretary of State or the Secretary of Defense. The decision to rescue this pilot or not to rescue him can be made only by the Commander in Chief of the United States armed forces, and I am asking you to put me through to the Commander in Chief–now, sir.” . . . After a few seconds,
McNamara started almost mumbling; he didn’t argue the point, or refuse the request, but he made a big point that it was very late and that the President had just retired after a long evening. . . . Again, Admiral Felt quietly repeated his previous statement word for word. . . McNamara, without
another word on the subject, said, “All right, I will ring the President.” Within 30 seconds President Johnson came on the line. . . . “Good morning, Admiral Felt, what can I do for you?” “Mr. President, we just had a Navy photo pilot shot down over the Plain des Jarres in northern Laos, but the
Navy and Air America rescue effort has been called off by the Secretary of Defense as recommended by the Secretary of State. I just spoke to the Secretary of Defense and told him that this is a critical military decision that cannot be made by the Secretary of Defense or the Secretary of State,
but one that can be made only by the Commander in Chief of the United States
armed forces, and I am asking your permission to go in and rescue this pilot.” Without hesitation, President Johnson came back, “Well, I’ll be damned. Of course, go in and get him–and let me know how it comes out.” Note: The unfortunate Navy photo pilot was Lt. Charles F. Klusmann. He was
not rescued but was captured. It was several hours before Air America helicopter crews reached the scene. Heavy ground fire drove off the lead aircraft; Klusmann waved off the second helo because it, too, was flying into an ambush. The Kitty Hawk’s ResCAP never did show up; they had been
recalled. The author writes that, in all probability, they would have neutralized the area by the time the helicopters arrived and the Air America crews would have been able to make the pickup.

All in all, this is some pretty insightful stuff on just what did happen on June 06, 1964.

In the spring of 1964, Pathet Lao and North Vietnamese forces launched attacks against Neutralist forces on the Plain of Jars in Xiangkhoang Province, Laos, prompting Neutralist General Kong Le to warn the Royal Lao Government that without air support the situation was hopeless, mostly because the troops of the Royal Lao Army had fled. (Neutralist, in the military sense, refers to the soldiers who followed Kong Le, who sought to remove foreign influence and foreigners from the country. Earlier circumstances had forced him into an alliance with the Communist Pathet Lao, but he broke with them when he came to understand they were serving their Vietnamese masters in the way the Royal Lao Army was serving the United States. Later his troops fought against the Communists, but to complicate matters, a splinter group of leftist Neutralists fought with the Communists.)

Air Force and Navy photoreconnaissance jets were authorized in May 1964 to begin gathering intelligence information supporting T-28 bombing raids against North Vietnamese and Pathet Lao troops in Laos. Navy participation began on May 21 with a flight of two RF8A Crusader photoreconnaissance planes from the decks of the USS KITTY HAWK (CVA 63). During one of these
early Navy missions, LT Charles F. Klusmann, from VFP 63 onboard the KITTY HAWK flew over Laos and was hit by ground fire. Although the aircraft burned for twenty minutes en route back to the carrier, Klusmann was able to bring his Crusader back safely.

The United States charged the Pathet Lao with “an outright attempt to destroy by violence what the whole structure of the Geneva Accords was intended to preserve (neutrality of Laos)”. There was ample evidence to support this claim. Navy and Air Force reconnaissance planes had come back
with photos showing the Plain of Jars bristling with newly installed anti-aircraft guns–sixteen sites in all, housing guns capable of firing 150 rounds a minutes, effective to a ceiling of 15,000 feet.

Ambassador Leonard Unger obtained approval from the Johnson Administration to release the fuses on previously delivered U.S. bombs, for use by the Royal Lao Air Force. Prince Souvanna Phouma also authorized the use of U.S. fighters to accompany the unarmed reconnaissance jets over Laotian territory, and these missions became code-named Yankee Team.

Once again, LT Klusmann launched in his RF8A as a Navy Yankee Team aircraft on June 7. Again his aircraft was hit by ground fire. This time, the damage was so severe that Klusmann had to eject near communist troops. The Pathet Lao forces immediately set out to capture him, firing on an Air America rescue chopper sent to pick him up. The helicopter was finally forced to abandon Klusmann who, to make matters worse, had twisted his ankle during his parachute landing. Another Air America helicopter was hit when it attempted to make a recovery three hours after the plane went down. The Pathet Lao had set up a flak trap (where the downed pilot was kept alive and allowed to call for help while enemy gunners lay in wait for the arrival of vulnerable helicopters).

The two Air America helicopters abandoned their rescue effort when two crew members were critically wounded in the heavy fire. LT Klusmann, was captured by the Pathet Lao. Happily, Charles F. Klusmann was able to escape captivity with several Lao prisoners in late August, 1964. After two days of hiding in the jungle from his captors, he was able to reach a government camp and was
eventually rescued. He is one of only a handful who ever escaped captivity in Southeast Asia.

The events on the Plain of Jars in June 1964 and in subsequent weeks were released by New China News Agency in Peking, and ultimately reached U.S. media sources. The situation raised a howl of outrage from the U.S. media. The lid was blown on the entire Yankee Team operation. From this point on, U.S. operations in Laos were fully classified and kept ultra-secret. The U.S. Government was not to acknowledge more than “armed reconnaissance” flights in northern Laos until March 1970. One of the proposed articles of impeachment against President Richard Nixon would deal with his treatment of the secret war in Laos.

(Source: Compiled by Homecoming II Project 15 May 1990 from one or more of the following: raw data from U.S. Government agency sources, correspondence with POW/MIA families, published sources, interviews. Updated by the P.O.W. NETWORK 1998. )

On June 06, 1964, two U.S. Navy jets flying low-altitude target reconnaissance missions over Laos are shot down by communist Pathet Lao ground fire. Washington immediately ordered armed jets to escort the reconnaissance flights, and by June 9, escort jets were attacking Pathet Lao headquarters. The downing of the two reconnaissance aircraft and the retaliatory strikes were made public, but the full extent of the U.S. involvement in Laos was not. In fact, the U.S. fighter-bombers were flying combat missions in support of Royal Lao forces in their war against the communist Pathet Lao and would continue to do so until 1973.

So, I decided to Tivo that new show on CBS called Swingtown. Why? Well….hey I was only 2 in 1976 and I wanted to see what the fuss was all about! I certainly don’t remember my parents being like those couples nor do I remember my sisters being like the teenagers on the show. Then again, we were living on post at Fort Ord, so I doubt there was much swinging going on! What would this have to do with Vietnam? Well, it was interesting to see CBS roll out some old ad footage, and you got to see things in the show that you haven’t see in years. Seriously, when was the last time you saw someone open a Tab can? Anyways, I was sitting there and on came an ad for TimeLife. It was for a DVD collection on the Vietnam War . To quote the website, “Walter Cronkite tells the story of the long and divisive conflict as seen through the eyes of CBS News. Dan Rather, Morley Safer and Ed Bradley report the stories of American courage, failed programs, an elusive enemy and ultimately an end to a tragic war.” It may be worth checking out and it just might make a nice addition to your Vietnam War collection.