Our Time: Training, Deploying, and Combat with Company C, 2Nd Battalion, 47Th Infantry

Copyright © 2014 LTC (Ret) John E. Gross.

Cover photograph credit: Richard Ulrich

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ISBN: 978-1-4917-3096-6 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4917-3097-3 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2014906191

iUniverse rev. date: 3/31/2014

CONTENTS

Preface

Chapter 1   ROTC

Chapter 2   The 9th Infantry Division

Chapter 3   Riley and Benning

Chapter 4   Fort Bragg and the USS John Pope

Chapter 5   Vung Tau and Bearcat

Chapter 6   Combat Initiation

Chapter 7   Landing in Vietnam

Chapter 8   Learning the Ropes

Chapter 9   Division Reaction Force

Chapter 10   Binh Hoa Security

Chapter 11   Company Command

Chapter 12   Operation Santa Fe

Chapter 13   Hill 108

Chapter 14   Tet, 1968

Afterward

Where They Are Now

Bibliography

Notes

For my brothers, the Vietnam veterans of the

Second Battalion (Mechanized), 47th Infantry

PREFACE

I spent twenty two years in the Army. I had been in the service only a year and a half when I went to Vietnam. When I came home, I saw only two of the soldiers I had served with in Vietnam. I visited John Ionoff while he was a student in the Infantry Officers’ Advanced Course at Fort Benning six months or so after returning stateside, and Joe DeLapenta, the second platoon leader, came through Ranger school while I was an instructor in the Florida phase in 1970. I retired from the Army in 1988, still having had no other contact with any of my Vietnam brothers. I was convinced I would never see any of them again. Then in 2003, I received a phone call from John Ax, who had been one of my squad leaders while I was in command. He simply said, We’ve been looking for you.

Henry Jezek, who retired as a colonel and served as the Honorary Colonel of the 47th Infantry Regiment, served longer and had more jobs in our battalion in Vietnam than any other officer. He was the reconnaissance platoon leader, a rifle platoon leader, company executive officer, battalion staff officer, and company commander. He had been wounded terribly during the Tet Offensive. In the mid 1990s, John Ax felt the need to reconnect with his Vietnam brothers. His search for them started with only six names, but slowly he found more and more of them. Henry joined in the search a year later. By research and referral, they began to track down other veteran members. Others joined the search and together, they located over 1,400 names of veterans of the Second Battalion (Mechanized), 47th Infantry. After a couple of years, the list had grown to over 1,500 names, including members of the third and forth battalions of the 47th. They used this list to put together the first 47th Infantry regimental reunion, which was held in 1997. During the last 47th Infantry reunion held in 2012, over 300 veterans of WWII and Vietnam attended. The list has been handed off to Dennis Cherry, an original 2-47 (Mech) member. Dennis, and others, have found and continue to find our veteran brothers. The list probably contains over 2,000 names now. I attended my first reunion in 2006 and was astounded by the number of veterans I remembered. Brice Barnes, one of my best friends in Vietnam and his merry band of scouts, as well as John Ax, Henry Jezek, Russ Vibberts, and several of my C Company brothers are regulars at the biannual reunions.

I wish to point out that the 2nd Battalion, 47th Infantry is now a basic training unit at Fort Benning, Georgia. Our veterans have formed a close relationship with these outstanding soldiers who are currently serving. The battalion vigorously supports our reunions which are held at Columbus, Georgia. Our veterans, particularly John Ax and Charles Oscar Walton, are regulars at family days, graduations and social events held by the battalion. I wish to thank Lieutenant Colonel Chris Bresko, his company commanders, staff, drill sergeants and their wives for the wonderful support they so graciously provide.

Initially, I was anxious about attending a reunion. In Vietnam, I was 24 years old, commanding 180 troops in combat. Had I been unfair to anyone? I was proud of the fact that C Company had no combat deaths while I was in command. But had my actions caused distress, wounds, or injury to anyone? When I arrived at the reunion and voiced my concerns, one of my brother veterans said, Hell, we were all young. We did the best we could do. That said it all.

I had done some writing, and when I met with other veterans at our reunions, I was amazed at how many of my brothers had also written things about their experiences. I remembered how therapeutic my writing had been, and I am sure the same was true for them. One of my soldiers, Jim Love, and others have written narratives. and the gunner on my armored personnel carrier, Bill Rambow, has written two books. The present Honorary Colonel of the 47th Regiment, Col Brice Barnes, also has written a magazine article and is finalizing a book. Jasper Northcut has written an excellent narrative. Others have kept journals or have written private accounts of their lives and experiences. One of my soldiers, David Zabecki received a direct commission and was promoted to Major General, and has become one of the premier military historians in the country. He has written hundreds of articles and several books, many about Vietnam

At a recent social gathering of veterans, Emmitt (Snuffy) Smith, a veteran of the battalion’s reconnaissance or scout platoon, as it was commonly called, asked me if I would write a history of our battalion’s scouts. I initially replied that it would be very difficult, since the battalion was in Vietnam for four years and the veterans and their records are now scattered by nearly 50 years and would be impossible to track down. But, because Snuffy asked, I researched what I could and interviewed those who were available, and I did write a short narrative about the scouts. When I distributed it among our veteran brothers, Oscar Walton suggested I do the same type of narrative about our time serving in C Company. I agreed with Oscar. We both felt that leaving something our children and grandchildren could read about what we did in Vietnam is important. I started with a narrative about our battles, based on two magazine articles I had written, but then realized that the combat was only part of the story. I began to add stories about how we lived in base camp and in the jungle, and this book evolved.

I felt trying to put together what I could was something I could do to show my brother veterans of Charlie Company the love and respect I hold for them. There is a danger here. We were in Vietnam nearly 50 years ago. Names are simply gone from my memory. I could not mention even a fraction of the troops so most would be left out. The names and events included here come from my memories and the stories and memories my veteran brothers have shared with me. There is no way this could be a complete history. The purpose of this book is not to be a total account of what happened to us. It is an effort to leave our children and grand children a record of some of the things we did, how we fought, how we lived, and how we survived in probably the most divisive war in our nation’s history.

At our 47th Infantry reunions, we have a tendency to remember the good guys. Our memories are often selective, celebrating the valor, tenacity, and selfless service of our friends who were there with us. Of course no Army unit is manned with only good guys. We had our share of dead beats, shirkers, and ne’er-do-wells as well as leaders who displayed horrible judgment. I feel compelled to include some of their stories to insure a balanced telling of our experience.

Although this book is about C Company and what it did in training, in deployment, and in Vietnam, it is also my story, and I believe my experiences prior to Vietnam influenced what happened there. I include some of my pre-Vietnam educational and Army experiences primarily to help my children and grandchildren appreciate the part I played in the events of 1966 -1968. I hope the rest of the story does the same for the C Company soldiers who served with me—and their children and their grand children.

CHAPTER 1

ROTC

T wo years of ROTC were required at East Tennessee State University at that time. Like other land grant institutions, a requirement for ROTC was included in the establishment of the college. I was happy when I finished this requirement. Although I had enjoyed the classes (often the Army instructors were the most entertaining teachers on the staff at the university.) I did not, however enjoy the weekly drills. During fifth period each Thursday, fifteen hundred uniformed male cadets somehow filed through the arms room, drew their M-1 rifles, and then formed up on the track at the stadium. We had an inspection, and went through drill and ceremonies and manual of arms training. My friends and I viewed wearing the uniform once a week as an unwelcomed burden on our normal college activities.

During the summer between my sophomore and junior years, however, I reevaluated my situation. This was during the summer of 1963 and the draft was still very much alive. While I enjoyed a college deferment from the draft, I realized that I would probably graduate from college and immediately receive my draft notice. I reasoned that if I must serve two years in the Army after college, I might as well be an officer. I didn’t know much about the Army then, but I did know that officers lived better and made more money than enlisted soldiers. When I went to the ROTC officer responsible for enrollment, he was more than happy to sign me up.

Advanced ROTC was a different experience than I had had up to this point. At the weekly drills, I served as a platoon leader, teaching the drills I had learned during my first two years. Initially, I was not particularly excited about being an ROTC officer. But during the spring of my junior year, our instructors took the advanced cadets on a five-day field trip to visit the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, NC. While we were there, we wore fatigues, slept in barracks, ate in mess halls, and, in general, were treated like soldiers. We went running every morning on Ardennes Street mingling with thousands of raucous, chanting paratroopers. We got to fly in a helicopter and jump from the 34-foot parachute training towers.

I was enthralled when we visited the 82nd Airborne’s museum. In college, I hated history. At ETSU, the endless parade of European royalty and meaningless wars bored me to tears. But in the museum, history exploded before my eyes. I became obsessed with airborne history and the history of World War II in general. Also, that year, the movie based on Cornelius Ryan’s excellent book The Longest Day was released. That did it. I suddenly knew what I wanted to do when I graduated.

ROTC became the center of my life. Between my junior and senior years, I attended ROTC advanced camp at Fort Bragg, again hosted by the 82nd Airborne. Fully motivated now, I meant to succeed. I knew that selection for active duty, branch selection, and being offered a Regular Army commission depended on performance at advanced camp. As a pole vaulter and high hurdler on the university track team, I was in much better condition than most of my fellow cadets. I read military history and studied tactics and leadership from books, and listened carefully to and constantly questioned my instructors. The Professor of Military Science at ETSU at that time was Colonel Edson R. Matice, who had served in the 82nd during WWII. He had made the jump into Holland and had fought for the bridge at Nijmegen. I thought he was one of the finest men alive and I hung on his every word. Often, my other courses suffered as I plowed almost all my efforts into ROTC. At advanced camp, I finished second in my platoon of fifty cadets and fourth in the entire company.

Following summer camp, a friend and I took a road trip to see the country in an old Volkswagen bus. We were camped at a state park outside