Page 11 - DFCS News Magazine Spring 2014

Captain Richard B. Hathcock, USA was assigned to the Casper Aviation Platoon, 173rd Airborne Brigade in Sept. 1965. Captain Hathcock was an Infantry Officer, Air- borne/Ranger and a qualified Army Aviator who received the first of two DFC’s in December 1965 and this is the story. as he remembers it.
Early on 17 December 1965, the 173rde Airborne Brigade, com- manded by Brigadier General Ellis Williamson, conducted Oper- ation Smash 1. The Brigade moved from the Vo Dat area to the vicinity of the Courtney Plantation Airstrip in a combined heli- borne and ground movement. Intelligence summaries indicated that the Viet Cong were going to make an attack during the holi- day season in the general area of Xuan Loc and Ham Tan. The 173rd Airborne Brigade, in conjunction with the 2nd Brigade 1st Infantry Division, was to conduct a swift spoiling operation in Phuoc Tuy Province.
This was a month of continuous combat operations and, the crews of the Casper Platoon and Company A of the 82nd Air- borne Aviation Battalion were flying night and day in support of the 173rd Airborne Brigade.
On 19 December, the Brigade continued to chase the fleeing VC without much success. We took Company C into a small village north of Courtney Plantation in a helicopter assault and sealed off the village. This action resulted in the capture of 54 suspect- ed VC and, we did not take fire in the assault. The unit S3 decid- ed that we needed to find the main force VC unit and that a (LRRP) Long Range Recon Patrol would be assigned to do the job. My crew was given the assignment of the LRRP insertion and, we were to take the team to a place in the northern portion of the operation area. The mission of the LRRP team was to remain out three days and locate the enemy. Our mission was to take off just before dark on 19 December and to make several fake insertions before finally dropping off the LRRP team into their chosen position. We picked up the LRRP team at LZ Pranc- er and conducted our briefing with the LRRP team leader, a Lieutenant, and his eight-man unit. The weather was clear and warm and, the evening promised to turn into a very dark night which was good for the LRRP team. After the briefing everyone was on edge, anticipating the upcoming mission. The team leader was nervous and stressed that his biggest fear was to be dropped into the middle of the VC and not have a way to get out quickly. I assured him that in that event we would be back to pick up his team and all that he had to do was call on the tactical radio frequency that we had prearranged.
We took off thirty minutes before dark and flew to the first fake insertion area. I was flying the mission and, the first and second areas were no problem. As darkness descended on the jungle, we picked out the real insertion point and made the approach and dropped off the team, then headed away from the spot to orbit in case of problems on the ground. The night was very dark and, our adrenaline levels were very high. We had been orbiting for about ten or fifteen minutes when we heard a whis- per over the tactical frequency. The LRRP team leader was call- ing, saying that they were in the middle of a large VC unit and that he needed immediate extraction. We told him we were on the way and would be there in five minutes, telling him to hold tight and we would get him out. The only reply was “Hurry”.
The LRRP team had moved from the area of drop off and, the LRRP leader would have to guide us in to his location by flash- ing his strobe light. We immediately proceeded to the area and I had the entire crew looking for the light when suddenly, the
By Richard Hathcock
right side door gunner picked up the strobe and directed me to the team’s location. The LRRP team leader said the VC was getting closer and the team would be discovered soon. Once again, it was very dark and very difficult to see obstructions on the ground. As I began the approach, we began taking fire with the VC using tracer rounds that looked as big as footballs. I kept on the approach, telling the door gunners not to fire because we did not know the exact location of the LRRP team. This put us in a difficult position because we were being hit by small arms fire, so once on the ground, I told the door gunners to cover the tree line but not to fire until we located the team. The Lieutenant and his team were now taking fire and, they were having a hard time disengaging from the VC. There were no lights illuminated on the Huey and it was very dark, so I decided to leave the helicopter and find the team so that I could lead them back to the Huey. I left the co-pilot in charge and told the door gunners not to fire until I located the team, then I told the team I was coming after them and not to shoot to their rear. It seemed like a long time until I found the LRRP team and started leading back to the Chopper, but I’m sure it was only seconds.
Heavy fire was coming from the wood line and, the door gunners were now firing at the VC. When everyone on the LRRP team was in the Chopper, I took off in the opposite direction of the enemy fire. There were some high trees that I had to get over to make it out of the landing area and somehow we cleared the obstacles in the dark and were on our way out of the area. The VC must have been really pissed because we could still see tracer rounds being fired, as we climbed to safety. Once at a safe altitude I told the co-pilot to take over the flying and then I started to shake. I guess I realized that I had just used an- other of my nine lives and the list of remaining lives was getting shorter. I didn’t like the feeling.
The LRRP team was animated and wired, knowing how close they had come to being captured or killed and, they thanked the entire crew over and over. We knew we had made friends for life even if we did- n’t even know all of their names. Back on the ground and after all the celebration and thanks, we inspected our helicopter and found that we had been hit eight times and luckily for us, the bullets had not hit any vital spots on the helicopter and, we lived to fight another day. The mission had been a success as we had located the VC, and death and destruction were put on them by air strikes and artillery with no friendly casualties. Operation Smash 1 ended on 22 December 1965 and we returned to our base camp at Bien Hoa and a safe Christmas.
Page 11