MCB 4 - Ken Walden 1967 DaNang Vietnam Deployment Camp Hoover Liberty He had been an NVA machine gun leader and had spoken about the number of Marines he had killed. Semper Fi to every Marine who served with 2/5 at An Hoa. When he fell down, the can went BOOM! I have pictures of that day and the day after. I remember that like yesterday. There are groupd travels but they tend to only stay at one location for maximum a day. Maintenance window scheduled to begin at February 14th 2200 est. I do have some specifics, but you understand my hesitancy, considering the length of time and the fog of war effects on my memory.. There was all so 9 Marines hit by the rocket. Take the village from the front. The An Hoa Basin also includes Charlie Ridge and surrounding areas. Grim Reaper 14 was the ground unit call sign requesting the medevac. What Was The Significance Of The American Victory At The Battle Of Saratoga In October 1777. from Nov 69 to Aug 70. A chu hoi led the grunts to a VC propaganda leader on. Golden Bridge, also known as the Giant Hand Bridge is located on the top of Nui Chua Mountain, Ba Na Hills, Da Nang. Home | About | Contact | Copyright | Privacy | Cookie Policy | Terms & Conditions | Sitemap. Nobody knows who he was. Despite heavy loss of blood, Ray managed to crawl through the barrage of enemy fire to assist another fallen Marine, shielding him from a grenade blast. I was at An Hoa for much of 1967. Dr. Faust, I was with you and Dr. Donald Turner, DDS on the medcap that day. | View Image Page. Liberty Bridge Today, Quang Nam, Vietnam WarSpecter 64 subscribers Subscribe 57 5.2K views 3 years ago We visit the remnants of a bridge formerly constructed by US Marines in an area of high. Lost alot of them also. He was a Staff Sgt. The Map page has a map, of Hills 65, 37, 25, 52. Thanx. combat narratives are told by those who actually engaged in the. Ears still ringing It crosses the Monongahela River and intersects Interstate 579 (the Crosstown Boulevard) at its northern terminus. I was there when the nurses were abducted. The bridge was the part of the MSR from DaNang. I think we called it the Rocket Capital of the World, lol. Good for you! I made so many great buddies with 2/5. I was celebrating my 1st year in the Corps the night Liberty Bridge was over ran, we had a blonde hair Cor Man who was really good and should be a hero for his actions. First impressions are forged early in Marine units and those who served alongside Ray took note of his dedication and great humility. I have a neighbor who fought with the Marines near An Hoa in 69. Done. 1/5 Third Platoon, USMC An Hoa Base, as A Grunt Marine, from October 1968 to November 1969. Victory Bridge A few kilometers south of the base, across the mountain ridges is the Que Son Valley with plenty of old firebases including LZ Baldy and LZ Ross that are also very interesting to visit. Remember to check out the Hue City article on this website also, you might recognize a few places. Samper Fi ! or nature. The Golden Bridge has come into operation since . High school classmate was Mike 3/5. My father was a mechanic in the USAF stationed in Taiwan. Liberty Bridge was constructed and located at coordinates AT 923532, in Dai Loc District, Quang Nam Province. I believe one Monk was killed. 3/1 comm plt. we shared the chow hall when it was in one piece ! I heard sometime later that in total they had killed 32 NVA before the hedgerows came alive with automatic weapons fire. I went through four operations while I was in Vietnam, including the Durham Peak and Pipestone Canyon operations. The following year, Bobby Rayor as he is better known to us today, David Robert Raywas posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. This includes, but not limited to: The Arizona, The Phu Lacs, Liberty Bridge, Duc Duc, Antenna Valley, The Indian Country, Go Noi Island, Dodge City, Henderson Hill, Mau Chanh and the Que Son Mountains of South Vietnam. New one of the KIA ( Gunny, Floyd Keffe) . It was against the 36th NVA Regiment. Would like to know the name of the area on the map, where Operation Mead River and Operation Arizona Territory took place?? Only 25 kilometers west of Hoi An it is a half day trip for those who are interested in discovering a legendary US Marine Corps base. Thomas Murry Frew Jr. Marine Engineers began construction He was only 10 years old. I love some Marines (my shortfall lol). At the east end of the runway are a couple of craters and some dug out areas that seem to be from the era. Not sure why that worked. The Liberty Bridge . If I ever get there, I hope I can figure out about where my bunker was. Built at An Hoa-21 Miles SW of Da Nang by MCB-4 Liberty Bridge MCB-4 - seabee-rvn Photo Sharing About SmugMug Browse Photos Prints & Gifts Terms Privacy Contact Owner Log In 2023 SmugMug, Inc. I was there when the CBs built us a hooch and the tent went away. Thanks to you and all my grunts that touched my life. I was there between July 68 to September 69. Then sent to Delta battery hill 65. Also, I could occasionally rotate out to the Command Post to serve with the Marines in the field. i was on hill 65 when the orphanage was attacked. Ray performed his duties as his units life line with great pride earning their respect while on patrol and on each successive search and destroy operation. Rock Hill SC Liberty Bridge Connecting Jersey City to NYC Dr Donald Turner DDS and I. I have a pictures of that Medcap. They left 17 of us to guard what was left on 2/5 base We could hear orphans screaming but could not help. Cant remember his real name but he looked dead on Lee Marven. I watched the firefight from our trench line. Semper Fi marine, Hi Jonas, regarding the hospital, I read on another site that the hospital was located just south of the compound near a lake,if that helps. Fuentes, Gidget. Later during that year, in April, the base was used again and it was at this time it became a permanent installation. I remember you ,Webster , Star ,Gunny Flanagan and the Lee Marvin fellow but not his name ,he was a kick. He was walking up to the gate and I was telling the boy to put the can down because he wasnt allowed to come in with the can. This disambiguation page lists articles about roads and streets with the same name. But my B Battery had been split off from the battalion on arrival in Vietnam and placed in a defensive position near Da Nang. I was with Mike 4/11, a 155mmSP battery in late 68 to May of 70. About a third of the temples are still standing in various condition. 5 faves. We used to patrol Dodge City day and night with just squad size patrols, Keep in mind in late part of 1968 the 2 NVA Division which hung out on Go Nio island moved a regiment of NVA hard core the 36 NVA regiment into Doge city M bro was with 3/5 Lima company in operation Meade river lots and lots of bunkers. I remembered seeing tanks with flame thrower keep burning the area. We moved from An Hoa to Phu Bai in December 67 and then into Hue during TET. The one Seabee Ican remember had handlebar mustache and was nicknamed Gunsmoke. It is one of the most convenient ways to see one of the large combat bases and understand a bit of how the Marines fought during the war. From April to September 1967 Seabees of Mobile Construction Battalion 4 built a 2,040 feet (620 m) "Liberty bridge" (T Do bridge, now the Giao Thy bridge) over the Thu Bn river. Casualties and losses. Mort Hurt here. I took it from the 2/11 chow hall ( I was with 1st Force Recon) Oops! | Flickr [3] The airfield was capable of handling C-7, C-123 and C-130 aircraft. The hospital was still standing when I returned there in 1997. Colonel Ernie Cheatham was our battalion commander. I dont have any of the information you seek but, I would like the same info, if you come across it I hope we can share it. Rupnik, E.J. Liberty Bridge Today, Quang Nam, Vietnam - YouTube I was there with you. The battle raged for five hours, during which the Marines threw back four attack waves. Im doing some research on his time in-country. To make this long story short, we got our asses kicked that day. The force of the explosion knocked me head over heals, and knocked me unconscious. The lake might have been called Alligator Lake . He even fought off an attack of two NVA soldiers before he himself was wounded. A bridge guard threw frag at something in the water. Will always admire the grunts and docs who did so much! Airlifted off the An Hoa airfield matting runway by Air Force C-130s to Phu Bai while with Hotel Co. 2/5 1st MarDiv in Jan 68. We never slept when in from the bush. I remembered one time farmers brough young rice plants to wash in the river upstream and the solders fired recoiless canon at them. Thomas Krex served with 4 a at fire base Ross 1969 to 1970 was at Jan 6th sapper attack, was sign pearl chest, was on berm watch during fire fight. Went back in 2000, nothing leftat all. There is a brick factory here but no memorial. My name is Richard Vesper I was in AN Hoa 69 and 70 untill we turned it over to the ARVNS I believe in Sept. of 70. Webster would come up to Mike 4/11 all the time to change the PTO pumps on your turrents. Today if you Google David Robert Ray you will come across a portrait showing a gangly, smiling youth in service dress and a Dixie Cup hat. At the time I was there we had the NVA come on our radio net and tell us they would have complete control of Liberty Bridge and our CO told us we were surrounded by 5000 NVA Regulars. We never slept even when not in the bush. On June 9th ,1968 we caught the 90th NVA Regt off guard, as we had camouflaged so well & moved at night when the NVA lest expected Marines on the move & foufgt a successful battle at An Bang 3 village area killing 80 NVA by body count, & collecting 100s of enemy wpns. The $4.5 million structure was funded by the City of Greenvilles Hospitality Tax, which must be spent on tourism-related facilities. Bulkeley, John. tuckga@carolina.rr.com Would like to find out who he was. These kids were told they had to protect their families from being killed, and they were just doing what they were told to survive. John Conley, I was there with 1st Force Recon 1969 The bridge, in the heart of Quang Nam province about 25 miles southwest of DaNang, was built by the . His battery commander later related that when you were as tall as Ray, had a southern drawl and were serving with the Marines you know youre in for some rough kidding. The Antenna Valley is located across the pass to the west from the Que Son Valley. Images of VietNam I Corps - marzone.com Participated in many combat operations. The bridge opened on March 27, 1928, following a 5-mile (8.0 km) vehicle parade from the southern suburbs. Wade. I once attended a Catholic service in a bunker by regiment and had this beautiful blond sit down next to me and later discovered she was from the German Hospital outside our wire. Many thanks to all the veterans out there! A tour of Naval Hospital Long Beach followed. Vivid image in my mind. 4th Plt was also at An Hoa, We had 10 tanks split between An Hoa and Liberty Bridge. Pictures - Securenet Their initial task was to provide security for the Da Nang airbase. Hello Mike. Posted by Dave at 6:38 PM. Today, if you visit any Navy medical command you will find Rays portrait proudly exhibited among the 28 pictures of hospital corpsmen, physicians and dentists who have each been awarded the Medal of Honor. Iv talked with some of the Marines I was with but most have Passed on. The many convoy escorts to liberty bridge and back, lost quite a few Marines on those, mines and booby traps. I was there. Danny Mitchell served in Vietnam with Delta Battery, 11th Marines, 1st Marine Division at Liberty Bridge . Ray was awarded a scholarship to the University of Tennessee in 1963, but this same sense of service weighed heavily on him. I remember while serving at An Hoa that 2 nurses were abducted from the Hospital by the VC and when my tour of duty was over in Aug. 69 they had never been found. Operation Taylor Common - Wikipedia February 15th, DVIDS Hub works best with JavaScript enabled, Version: 378719a7422dbf16a653a31d0524fb9a2058ed47_2023-04-20T10:09:12. We were young, dumb and lived on borrowed time. I ran the 2/5 Battalion Aid Station, and I got to do some medcaps in the surrounding villages. A chu hoi led the grunts to a VC propaganda leader on this one. I came to visit the vendor shed sometimes and remembered there were a nice big ship docking near the liberty bridge. Primary Location During Vietnam: Da Nang, Vietnam, Story Themes: 1967, 1968, 1969, 1st Marines, An Hoa Valley, Combat, Da Nang, David Tabaka, Marines, Quang Nam Province, Saint Paul, St Paul, A Twin Cities PBS initiative in collaboration with the MN PBS Stations, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1st Marines, An Hoa Valley, Combat, Da Nang, David Tabaka, Marines, Quang Nam Province, Saint Paul, St Paul, Terms and Conditions for Submitting Your Story. In a Free Fire Zone SW of Danang in 1968. One of them I knew. Three times only twelve of us survived fierce battle scenes. An Ha Combat Base (also known as c Dc) is a former U.S. Marine Corps and Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) base west of Hi An in Qung Nam Province, Vietnam. The Liberty Bridge is a pedestrian friendly bridge that would connect Jersey City to Manhattan. I also recall hearing that after we turned An Hoa over to the ARVNs the VC came right through the orphanage, and attacked the base. On January 31, 1968, South Vietnam exploded from North to South. Third platoon. Not a nice place slept with flack jacket and helmet all the time ! Hill 65, Liberty Bridge - June 1967 - War-Stories.com I can be of help with some suggestions. I watched the whole thing from my foxhole and listened to the Marines crying out on my radio. 1st Bridge Co. Yaa, way remote. You can NOT get into Vietnam right now. That didnt last long unfortunately. We landed at the bottom and walked up a path to the top where we caught another chopper and headed back to An Hoa. As we got 20 to 30 yards into the paddy Kinh and the other Chieu Hoi had killed a half dozen NVA that had dug spider holes in the rice paddy and hid. 106mm RR View directly south from a 106mm mounted on a Mule guarding the approach to Liberty Bridge. I have spent a few days visiting the various web sights searching for anything I can find on An Hoa Combat Base and yours has been very helpful, I was there in 69-70. Operation Pipestone Canyon - Wikipedia Theyd chew right through the tins. Kinh told Captain Graham not to take his company into that rice paddy. Vietnam: America's Deadliest Days, 1965-1972 covers some 80 battles.