Sequential Listing of Significant Events

1. Combat Operations
3. June

• 01 At 1130H, Company D, while patrolling in the vicinity of XD 827584, spotted two NVA moving along a ridge. The company fired 81mm and 60mm mortars and directed an AO into the area.   The AO (in an OV-10A) fired rockets into the suspected enemy position.   The company sent Marines into the area to search it out with negative results.
• 02 At 0545H, Companies A and B continued their sweeps to the west.   Four Marines from Company A were wounded (two medevac) as they returned from a night OP/LP. CHICOM grenades were thrown at them in the vicinity of XD 880586 at 0545H.   Contact with the enemy was immediately lost.   The area was searched at daybreak with negative results, except for a claymore mine found, wired for command detonation.   It was blown in place.

At 1240H, A Platoon from Company C while patrolling in the vicinity of XD 831617, came upon three to four NVA in the process of setting up and ambush. The patrol assaulted the position killing one NVA. One Marine was killed and five were wounded. One Chinese type of claymore mine was captured.

• 03 At 1100H, Company C while conducting a patrol in the vicinity of XD 825610, found 14 ‘A’ frame bunkers and an assortment of small arms ammunition and miscellaneous gear, including cooking pots, sneakers, ponchos, communication wire, sandals and engineer hand tools.   All gear was destroyed.

• 06 At 0820H, Company D found two RPGs in the vicinity of XD 805584.   They were destroyed.

At 2055H, Company D while sweeping west found and destroyed 10 82mm mortar rounds and miscellaneous gear.   Just prior to this find Company D discovered a living bunker containing several miscellaneous items of gear.

• 07 At 0850H, Company D found 15 82mm mortar rounds in the vicinity of XD 774573. They were destroyed.   During the evening a Recon Team in the DMZ was in heavy contact.   Two helicopters were shot down and the Battalion was directed to deploy a unit to aid in the extracting of the Recon Team.   This changed plans for 08 June considerably.   Company B being the closest unit, was directed to move toward the DMZ at first light.
• 08 At 0714H, 2^nd Platoon, Company C 1^st Battalion 9^th Marines became OPCON to the Battalion. Their mission was to assist Company B in their effort in the DMZ, and at 0930H they were helilifted into LZ Beaver (XD 862648).
• 09 A Platoon from Company B departed at first light into the DMZ, with the remainder of the unit moving to LZ Beaver.

At 1030H, The Alpha Command Group received a boundary change increasing the Battalion’s AO to the northwest to include the ‘Belmont Tones’ Recon Team at XD 905674.   The Battalion also received an order to send a Platoon to aid in the extraction of this team.

At 1122H, Company B (-), at LZ Beaver, received small arms fire as a helicopter was bringing in supplies.   A ‘Huey’ gunship delivered fire on the suspected enemy firing position.

At 1306H, Company A, located at FSB Neville, found two blocks of TNT and one CHICOM grenade while holding police call along the lines. They were very old and were destroyed.

• 10 At 1640H, Company C attempted to evacuate the Recon Team and the ‘Sparrow Hawk’ (2^nd Platoon, Company C, 1/9) from LZ Beaver, but the helilift was aborted when a CH-46 took .50 caliber machinegun fire from the area. The CH-46 went down in the DMZ. The crew was picked up immediately by another helicopter. After an air strike, helicopters returned and the team ‘Fighting Mad’ was extracted at 2010H from LZ Beaver. The team ‘American Beauty’ remained at Hill 695 from where they were to be extracted.
• 11 At 0015H, Helicopters arrived in the AO to lift Recon Team ‘American Beauty’ from Hill 695. The lift was completed at 0045H.

At 0915H, an extraction of the remaining Sparrow Hawk and Recon Reaction force from LZ Beaver was attempted; however, the first helicopter into the LZ took .50 caliber fire and the lift was terminated. At this time Company B, along with the other personnel, commenced their move by foot from LZ Beaver to LZ Catapult.

• 12 At 1605H, the lift of the Recon Reaction Force and Company C 1^st Battalion 9^th Marines commenced from LZ Catapult.   The lift was completed at 1710H.
• 15 At 2215H, A Company A OP at XD 775597 received CHICOMs which resulted in four Marines WIA.
• 16 At 0055H, Medical evacuation by helicopter of four wounded Marines from Company A was completed.
• 17 At 1310H, Company B, at LZ Catapult, received 8-10 rounds of 82mm mortar fire from the vicinity of Hill 695 (XD 849648).   There were no casualties as all incoming impacted outside of the Company position. They returned 81mm mortar fire and called an artillery mission on the suspected enemy position.
• 20 At 2150H, an ambush from Company B was involved in an incident in which a Marine received multiple fragment wounds from an explosive device.   The wounded Marine claimed that the grenade was thrown by an NVA.   The Company Commander suspected an accidental detonation, since no other members of the ambush party who were located nearby heard any movement.   The Marine was an emergency medevac, and his evacuation by helicopter was completed at 2345.
• 21 At 0705H, Company B dispatched a patrol to the area of contact on the previous night. They found an NVA body blown in half. He evidently had been a sapper with explosives strapped to him.   Upon encountering the ambush sight, it is assumed that he detonated the explosives strapped to him. A pair of binoculars and an AK-47 were also found.   Additionally, the NVA soldier was in possession of a map, which outlined a plan for an attack on LZ Catapult. The map was forwarded to the 4^th Marines Regiment.

At 1100H, In the vicinity of XD 783642, a Platoon from Company A discovered a cave complex.   The total number was about 20, two of which were about 400-500 meters deep. The rest were about 10-25 meters deep. There was no indication of recent use; however, the caves contained some rice, cooking pots, baskets and about 700 rounds of assorted small arms ammunition, which were destroyed.

• 22 At 1407H, A Platoon patrol from Company C found a fresh trail that had been used by an estimated 15 to 20 NVA. They altered their route and tracked them for three hours without contact.

At 1615H, A Platoon patrol from Company B made contact with a small group of NVA.   Two ChiCom and small arms fire was received and the NVA fled.   There were no casualties on either side.   While setting in for the night and clearing fields of fire, Marine tripped a booby-trapped grenade and was wounded.   He was evacuated by helicopter about one hour after the incident.   The patrol also found a claymore mine, blasting caps, TNT, an AK-47 magazine full of rounds, some chow and eating utensils.   All of the items were destroyed.

At 1900H, A Platoon patrol from Company B received six 82mm mortar rounds in the vicinity of XD 827645.   There were no friendly casualties. Artillery and mortar fire was returned on the suspected enemy position at XD 837645 with unknown results.

At 1915H, Company A, while patrolling with two Platoons in the vicinity of XD 783642, spotted nine NVA moving toward them. In an attempt to get into an ambush position, a squad was spotted and fired upon by the NVA, who then fled. Two squads assaulted through the area with negative contact. Two ambushes were set in for the night and the area was to be searched at first light the following day.

24             At 0900H, Company A, while searching out the area of the previous night’s contact, found a small cave at XD 787637 containing 400 rounds of AK-47 ammo and a packet of salt. Cave and gear were destroyed. In the same general area at 0700H, a patrol from the Company had found and destroyed a cave containing two US flak jackets, 1 NVA helmet, and food cans with Chinese markings.

At 0945H, A helicopter on a resupply mission at LZ Catapult received small arms fire from the vicinity of XD 833627. The helicopter returned .50 caliber machinegun fire and Company B returned 81mm mortar fire into the suspected enemy position.

25              At 1045H, 20 to 25 82mm mortar rounds were fired at Company B as a resupply helicopter approached their LZ. Counter-Battery Fire was delivered with artillery and mortars, with unknown results.   A fixed wing strike was requested. There were no casualties. The Company received 10 more 82mm mortar rounds and small arms fire at 1330.   Two of the mortar rounds impacted inside the Company perimeter, wounding three Marines.

26              At 1005H, A patrol from Company C found and destroyed one CHICOM grenade, one RPG round, one 60mm mortar round, one NVA helmet, and two canteens.   All gear was located in a bunker in the vicinity of XD 842583.

At 1140H, Company B received 10 rounds of 82mm mortars as a helicopter attempted to land at LZ Catapult. All rounds impacted outside the perimeter resulting in negative casualties or damage.

2. Significant events not related to combat operations.

01              The month commenced with the Battalion located in northwestern Quang Tri Province. Company G 2^nd Battalion 4^th Marines was OPCON to the Battalion and located at FSB Russell. Company A was conducting a sweep from FSB Russell to the west to eventually relieve Company D, which was located at FSB Neville, along with the A Command Group.   Company B was conducting a sweep to the west to occupy their position of a week ago, Hill 304, at XD 858614. Company C was continuing their defense of LZ Catapult and conducting patrolling in that area with Platoon and Squad size units.

• 03 At 1205H, Col. Goggin, CO, 4^th Marines Regiment, visited the Battalion.

At 1600H, LtGen Stillwell, CG, XXLV Corps, US Army visited the Battalion.

05              At 1100H, Company C was chopped back to 2/4.

• 06 At 0346H, A ‘100% alert’ message was received from the 4^th Marines Regiment.   Word originated from 3^rd Marine Division and Task Force Hotel.   All companies were informed immediately.

At 0412H, A S-2 report was received from the S-2, 4^th Marine Regiment, indicating that the enemy would conduct an all-out offensive commencing on 6 or 7 June.

At 1015H, A boundary change was affected changing the Battalion’s eastern boundary from a point at XD 870582.   From this point, the boundary changed to run northwest to the intersect on of the 8659 Grid lines, then north up the 86 lines to the DMZ.

• 07 At 0730H, VCB received 107mm rocket fire resulting in two Marines from the Battalion receiving minor wounds.

At 1000H, The Battalion’s western boundary was moved to the west to include approximately 35 additional 1,000-meter Grid Squares. This had been requested two weeks previous, to enable units operating in the Lang Ho Valley to control the high ground to the west of the valley.

At 1315H, an additional boundary change was affected adding approximately eight 1,000-meter Grid Squares to the southwestern corner of the Battalion AO.

• 08 At 2200H, A boundary change was received from the 4^th Marine Regiment increasing the Battalion’s AO to the North, from the southern border of the DMZ to the Demarcation Line at the Ben Hai River.   Four additional 1,000-meter Grid Squares were also added in the northeast corner of the former AO, just south of the DMZ.   At the same time a frag order was received directing the Battalion to send a Platoon from Company B into the DMZ (XD 847665) to recover a recon insert KIA.
• 09 Resupply, which had been a continuous problem, reached an all-time low.   The LSA at VCB dispatched every load except one to the wrong location, resulting in two Companies not getting needed supplies and two others being overloaded with items they had not requested.   These errors in each instance seriously disrupted tactical plans.
• 10 At 1500H, Col. Goggin, CO 4^th Marines, and the Regimental S-3 visited the Battalion Headquarters at FSB Neville.   They were briefed by the Battalion Commander.
• 11 Effective at 1400H, The Battalion’s boundary was changed back to the boundary in effect before the movement of Company B to the DMZ, with the exception that it continued north along the NS 86 Grid Line to the Ben Hai River, inside the DMZ.
• 12 At 1515H, The Battalion Commander departed for the Battalion rear areas to carry out Administrative Responsibilities.

At 1915H, 2^nd Platoon, Company C 1^st Battalion, 9^th Marines was chopped back to 1/9.

14              At 1714H, The Battalion received the work that the 9^th Marines had been designated the RLT to be withdrawn from Viet Nam.

15              New Communications Operating Instruction (COI) became effective at 0600H.   (See Supporting Documents).

At 1245H, Word was received from the 4^th Marine Regiment that ARCLIGHTS were scheduled along the southern edge of the DMZ. Company B was informed of the scheduled B-52 strikes and made plans to operate to the south and west of the area.

• 18 At1045H, Word was received from the 4^th Marine Regiment that the Battalion’s western boundary would be changed effective 2400H.   The change increased the southwestern portion of the Battalion AO by approximately ten 1,000-meter Grid Squares.

At 1600H, an additional boundary change was received deleting approximately four 1,000-meter Grid Squares from the southeastern corner of the Battalion’s AO.   This change was also to be effective at 2400H and was to remain in effect until 232400H, June.

• 19 Word was received from the Battalion CO at 1900H that the Companies would start being helilifted out of the AO on 23 June.   Order of move was established and included G Battery, 3/12 (located at FSB Neville) which was to be lifted prior to the lift of Company G.   The plan included the closing of FSB Neville, and redeployment of the Battalion into another area, which had not yet been determined.
• 20 At 0900H, Word was received from the Battalion CO that the Battalion would be employed in the defense of VCB. Helilift of Company D was scheduled for 21 June followed by Company A, Company B, G Battery, and Company C on successive days, commencing on 22 June.
• 21 At 0830H, the helilift of Company D from Alpine to VCB commenced.   The lift was completed at 1035H. At 1330, the Company was chopped OPCON to 3/4.

24              At 1030H, Major General W.K. Jones, CG 3^rd Marine Division paid a visit to the Battalion CP at FSB Neville and was briefed by the S-3.   The General departed at 1045H.

At 1015H, The CO of Company B at LZ Catapult observed an unidentified high-performance aircraft flying through the gun target line during a live artillery mission.   The plane appeared to be of the F-100 series but had no US markings.   It was flying at 1,500 to 2,000 feet on an easterly course, then veered off sharply to the north and was not seen again.   Incident was reported to the 4^th Marines Regiment in a spot report.

• 25 At 0940H, The Battalion Commander returned to the Battalion Headquarters at FSB Neville.

At 1030H, Col. Goggin, CO 4^th Marines, visited the Battalion Headquarters at FSB Neville and was briefed by the Battalion Commander.

At 1530H,  LtGen Stillwell, CO XXIV Corps, US Army, visited the Battalion Headquarters and was briefed by the Battalion Commander.

• 26 The helilift of Company A to VCB commenced at 0815H and was completed at 0925H.
• 27 Helilift of Company B to VCB from LZ Catapult commenced at 0800H.   Lift was completed at 0940H without incident.   The helilift of the A Command Group commenced at 0945H and was completed at 1020H. Battalion CP reestablished at VCB effective 1015H. The 4^th Marine Regiment was so notified.
• 28 Company A was chopped OPCON to 3/4 effective at 0600H.
• 29 Company C closed FSB Neville and was helilifted to VCB.   The lift was completed at 1620H.
• 30 At 0930H, Company B was chopped OPCON to 3/4.

 

This page last corrected 6 September 2011