What's that old saying from Hogans' heroes "I know nothing and I see nothing" From Sgt.. Shultz. They can say that they were given to us but I'll guarantee you that they weren't just given to us. Maybe after we saved someone's Bacon sometime they might have said they gave them to us, but at first no one wanted anything to do with us That's why they called us the "Bastard Arty Unit on the Hill".
The "D" Btry 1/92nd saved a few people's bacon on a few occasions. I mentioned that I was a crewmember on one of them. Section chief was a Master Sgt.. and there were a couple of cooks on our gun also. So you see these people (other than a few senior Non-Coms) were by no means or stretch of the imagination school trained Gun Bunnies these guy's were in training under fire and we had to learn quick.
In your statement you have reported that the guns were returned to various units in the 52nd Arty Grp. If they were it was after I left and I spent a whole tour 12 months from the date we landed in Da Nang. "D" Btry distinguished itself the first time when a Rocket attack was opened up on the Air Force Base just down the road from Arty Hill. Charlie was hitting the Air Base and Plieku pretty hard if I'm not mistaken that was the night that the TET started and also the night that I had a young Lt. out on Patrol with me. He had only been in Country about 1 or 2 weeks but he got broke in real good that early morning when TET started. Well we could see from our position that "Spooky" was not able to give proper corrections and our Arty from the hill was way over shooting the Target soooo, this young Lt. called in to the TOC and ask permission to call fire from where we were at because we could see better than "Spooky". It took about 2 minutes and felt like about an hour before the Bn XO called back out and said go ahead give your correction. I will remember his correction forever "DROP 1000, RIGHT 500. It took the guns about 1 minute to do the correction and two rounds were on the way. The next thing we hear was "Spooky" saying bring it on you hit "em right where they live. Well they started walking those 105 rounds in an ever expanding circle and within about 1 hr and a bunch of rounds later there was nothing coming from that location except smoke. "Spooky" went in on mop up, and opened up with his "minnie guns" nothing could have survived that onslaught. We ask for permission to go to the location and check it out and they said negative they were sending a "Huey" for us and for us to get back to the hill. I guess that was a good thing tho' cause we were just a listing patrol and didn't have enough ammo for an extended fire fight.
Then there was the time that right after the Major had us put Fuel and diesel in 55 gal drums with detonators on them that. Charlie tried to hit us with a frontal assault and we put some WP in the perimeter and set off some of those cans and lit Charlie up like a Christmas tree. We found a few dead in the perimeter in the morning or at least what was left of them. We also fired some BEE-HIVE rounds that night and you could hear them scream in agony, but when we went out to check there was nothing but the dead ones no wounded at all. Charlie probably hauled them (the wounded) out as he retreated.
Webmasters note:The last engagement described by Ed accounted for 80 VC/NVA KIA. The 31 incoming 60mm&82mm mortar rounds caused 38 WIA to 1/92nd forces. I thank Ed for relating these tales from a unique and special fighting force- D Battery, 1/92nd Artillery. My hat's off to you men. |
