Your e-mail address will be used to confirm your account. Reaching for the radio, I readied for my toughest report. racist or sexually-oriented language. Don't knowingly lie about anyone Bernosky was seriously wounded on March 16, 1966 during an operation near Phuoc Vinh where B Company was the lead company of the First Battalion 503D Infantry going to the aid of another unit, this time the Second Battalion 503D Infantry. He usually began by asking them if they were in the fight. The same report came from the only survivor of the seventeen missing from C Company on the following day. Both had been wounded in action in early October near Ben Cat as we penetrated the Iron Triangle. The third was seriously wounded and I wondered if he would even live. How? Trying to confirm that report I became convinced it was highly improbable because the A Company enemy contact occurred within about two hundred and fifty meters of the battalion base. operation hump, the first major battle between the u.s. army and the viet cong and north vietnamese forces, took place november 5-9, 1965, in south vietnam's war zone d. known as "the hump," it would change the nature of the war, escalating it from a hit-and-run guerrilla conflict to a bloody contest between communist main force units and accounts, the history behind an article. The worst was yet to come. The company closed on the new company base at approximately 0715 hours. A special message played on the DMG big screen from Big & Rich ended the ceremony. We deployed the company as planned, began to move to the creek, totally surprising the enemy force to our front. our paratroopers were the best our government has ever put on any battlefield. Winds light and variable.. Having a bit of a phobia on being in a hospital, usually getting sick to my stomach if there more than about fifteen minutes, it became my habit to get there as quickly as possible to avoid any excuses. We won't share it with anyone else. US and Australian forces set out upon a search and destroy mission and were ambushed by over 1200 VC combatants. Shortly after 0815 hours I took three actions; first, ordering all platoons to halt their movements and to hold their current positions; second, to get prepared to move in the direction of the firing; and third, notified the battalion we had stopped our search pending any instructions to continue, return to the battalion base or to move in the general direction of hill 65. Too another question I responded When we finally fought our way to the top of the hill, we counted 111 Viet Cong bodies lying there. SSgt Wear offered,I dont know what VC unit was there, but I know the other side knows we were there and wont want to tangle with the 173d again for a long time. The most quotable quote was offered by Sgt. IN THE HUMP'S EARLY DAYSfrom its inception in early 1942 through the spring of 1943the U.S.-run operation was what some likened to a civilian flying club run by its pilots. When you get knocked down by a machine gun, you stay down.. As he entered each tent our troops were called to attention and then instructed to continue working on their -equipment as part of the six-hour drill. Some of those wounded he had dragged out of the firing. Operation Hump. The General spotted our dead, all covered in ponchos, stopped, looked at them, and seemingly paused to say a prayer. Moving rapidly, at approximately 0925 hours, Lt. Thurston reported enemy movement forward of the third platoon on the far side of the creek just short of hill 65. Gunships were returning fire as we extracted. So each year on the 8th of November, Harris puts on a suit and tie, and has a drink out of respect for is fallen brothers. Approximately thirty five air strikes supported this effort. He had spent a day on the battlefield playing dead surrounded by the enemy. On November 8th 1965, the 173rd Airborne Brigade on "Operation Hump", war zone "D" in Vietnam, were ambushed by over 1200 VC. That article caused a reaction in the states that would lead to us sending Terry and all seventeen year old soldiers home. I would learn why latter. Unless we made enemy contact earlier, the third platoon was to hold up just short of the creek at approximately grid coordinate- 108309, a creek bed just east of hill 65, at which time I intended for both the third and first platoons to go on line with the first platoon moving to the left of the third platoon and the second platoon following the third platoon onto hill 65. I reported that we were loosing contact and felt that the enemy was trying to escape. We agreed that they only needed to halt the fires on the east side of hill 65 as we would be attacking from the east side of the creek to get to them. The following is a bit lengthy, and well worth the time, in this grateful and spoiled Mericans estimation, of course! I knew we would lose more wounded through the night. Again we found nothing. In a January 18 meeting with World War II veterans and Leningrad siege survivors, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russia had launched its "special military operation" in Ukraine to stop the war that went on there since 2014. Early on Friday, November 5, 1965 the 173D Airborne Brigade (Separate) entered War Zone D in the Republic of Vietnam to conduct Operation HUMP (OPORD 28-65). The dead were Lt. Thurston and Specialist 4th Class Wayne W. Humphries. And third, with all the anxiety amongst Americans on the merits of this War (a situation I attribute solely to our lack of political leadership) I dont wish to provide anyone, any basis to question the valor of our soldiers or their leadership. Early Stages of Traumatic Brain Injury Recovery. I alerted my platoons that if they suspected they were receiving friendly fires they were to hold their position until I could work it out. Notifications from this discussion will be disabled. [1] The search-and-rescue operation at the scene of a Russian missile strike in the city of Dnipro has been completed. High around 35F. An excellent companion piece to The HUMP is retired Army Col. Keith M. Nightingale's Just Another Day in Vietnam, which takes place in 1967. The General, knowing of my concern, simply smiled at me and with confidence said Let me know when your ready. With that I said that B Company would take the lead, left him with Captain Tucker, and began to organize the march to the battalion base. Thankfully it didnt last long. In this case we stayed on the ground until the battalion headquarters flew out. Operation Hump was a search and destroy operation initiated on 8 November, 1965, by the 173rd Airborne Brigade, in an area about 17.5 miles (28.2km) north of Bien Hoa. person will not be tolerated. The fires were devastating but the enemy would soon tactically adjust to lower their effect. While this heavenly verse frames up the Big & Rich video encapsulating their Nov. 8, 1965, shoot-out, 173d Airborne Brigade soldiers Niles Harris, Sonny Bartow, and Michael Lovelace have actually been to hell and back together and lived to tell about it. A daily e-mail to let you know when the new e-edition has been posted. Poll closes at Noon Friday and the winner will be announced in Saturday's print edition. I am totally blown away by its nature and force. Bartow has vivid memories he recalls from time to time, as well. In fact, they had a point. Celebrities who died in 2021: movie stars, musicians and more And now, this. All but one of my soldiers responded they had fired their weapon. Late in the day I got called away from the hospital with an urgent message to return to my unit. Then we began to hear artillery fire. Later some of my troops would say I blew that question. On November 8th, 1965, the 173rd Airborne Brigade on Operation Hump, War Zone D in Vietnam were ambushed by over 1200 V.C. including tossing a bit of John 15:13 in at the end: On November 8th 1965, the 173rd Airborne Brigade on Operation Hump, war zone D in Vietnam, were ambushed by over 1200 VC. Forty-eight American soldiers lost their lives that day. Saturday, together in Deadwood for the first time ever, they recalled a few of their most vivid memories and impressions left from the life-changing event, as the fourth annual Deadwoods Veterans Salute sponsored by the Deadwood Business Club and held at Deadwood Mountain Grand, honored their service and sacrifices, along with all area veterans. It was a standby. I led him to each soldier in their squad tent. Now we knew the Dust Off would be coming in. My operations sergeant, Staff Sergeant Ernest J. Sundborg, turned to me and asked if I had heard them. This memoir of an Operation Hump survivor begins with the sequence of events leading up to the battle, from the French defeat at Dien Bien Phu in 1954. Upon reaching the top of the hill I spotted Tucker. Big Kenny began by offering a toast to the 173d and the survivors for their 50th anniversary of deployment to Vietnam. Sylvester Bryant, SSgt. My excellent artillery team, from the 319 Artillery Battalion, brought a curtain of steel forward of us. I doubted that I would ever forget that message. A Missing Man Table and honors ceremony was performed at Saturdays event by the Black Hills Chapter of the American Legion Riders. 11 Having learned that Captain Tucker had joined and committed his remaining platoon to the fight, I told my platoon leaders we would most likely be going directly to the assistance of C Company and if that were the case we must be prepared to move on a moments notice. Operation Hump, the first major battle between the U.S. Army and the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese forces, took place November 5-9, 1965, in South Vietnam's War Zone D. Known as "The Hump," it would change the nature of the war, escalating it from a hit-and-run guerrilla conflict to a bloody contest between Communist main force units and American commands of battalion size or larger. Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in. I approved the effort but stated I was going with him. VICENZA, Italy Operation Hump, in which 48 soldiers with the 173th Airborne Brigade were killed and many more wounded, was largely forgotten, just one of several horrific, unheralded battles. Don't Threaten. Photographer Mick Rock uses a point and shoot camera to photographer the photographers at the Uncut Ray-Ban . Moving initially with the first platoon my headquarters element crossed the creek and began climbing hill 65. Our friend, Niles Harris, retired 25 years United States Army, the guy who gaveBig Kennyhis top hat, was one of the wounded who lived. You might know it as the 8th of November. With a lot of effort from the battalion, the Air Force came to our rescue. Joseph Alsop from Washington gave an account of the battle. The General stood firm. Typically, in any major battle when a country has stood toe to toe with the Army Infantryman, they have failed. Through the night we lost one of our wounded. Approximately twenty minutes later the first platoon moved in the direction of the trail at 115329 and following their move, ten minutes later, the second platoon headed in the direction of a hill marked on my map as hill 78. The troops shared my concern and seemed to get a very determined look in their eyes. Video footage of Putin's remarks was published by TASS. our medics were pushed to their limits but accomplished the seemingly impossible. It was still not good enough. 5 min read. The search for four people still missing after a major plane crash in Nepal resumed on Monday, as a video purportedly filmed by one of the passengers . Release date . When we thought we had finally got the job done we called for a medical evacuation helicopter (Dust Off). Severely wounded and risking his own life, Lawrence Joll, a medic, was the first living black man since the Spanish-American War to receive the United States Medal of . Through five decades they have remained close friends and even inspired the Big & Rich smash hit 8th of November, an ode to their struggles. As light broke through the jungle on Tuesday, November 9, 1965 all our leaders knew what to do and were moving. They posed questions via chords and via their lyrics. OPERATION HUMP Introduction In all US wars throughout history, the US Army Infantryman has played a crucial role in the success or failure of every battle. Prior to the first assault, in an effort to collect, treat, and protect the wounded, I had begun to established a position for them on the south side of hill 65. With 21 survivors, it wasand remainsthe largest single aircraft parachute escape. Up to this point in the fight we were not able to put a name to any of the dead. And while over 150 years have passed since its inception, the meaning behind the Medal has never tarnished. The Indian Ocean raid, also known as Operation C or Battle of Ceylon in Japanese, was a naval sortie carried out by the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) from 31 March to 10 April 1942. OPERATION HUMP 08 November 1965 On 05 Nov 1965 the 173rd Airborne Brigade initiated "Operation Hump", a reconnaissance in force in an area about 15 miles north of Bien Hoa. With that I grabbed the radio and ordered the company to move out. While very tired, the troops were superb, and just as in the poem by SP4 Kenny: The guys no longer look tired,Theyve a determined look of eyeAs they scan the shrouded flankAnd treetops that hide the sky.. (Operation Hump was named so because it occurred exactly halfway through the unit's tour of duty.) You have permission to edit this article. On New Years Day 1966, during Operation Marauder on the Plain of Reeds west of the Oriental River near Kien Tuong, B Company again had to go to the aid of C Company. A curtain of steel forward of us the hospital with an urgent to... 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