Guestbook
wrote on May 22, 2026
at
7:16 am
My account of a firefight in the Ashau Valley after Charlie miking out of Firebase Bastone .
Colonel Beckwith and CSM Gergen were with us as we pushed west toward Cam odoan border. We were going deeper into the mouth of the tiger(Ashau Valley). We were breaking through triple canopy jungle with machetes
while mechanized unit accompanying us was on dirt road parallel to our movement west.
Suddenly , we were ambushed by dug in NVA troops. Small arms fire from NVA was intense. I remember hearing the intense crackling of
rapid fire from a Russian light machine gun from a sniper up in the trees. It a fuckin RPD rain shit down on us at 1100 rounds per minute. Sgt Williams took a direct hit in his head from shrapnel probably from a Chinese
claymore that proceeded the initial small arms fire that started the ambush. Colonel Beckwith was in a gully beside the dirt road.where armored track vehicles were moving
Beckwith ordered the mechanized unit commander to move forward into triple canopy jungle to back us up. The mechanized commander refused. He knew it was a strategic mistake. Colonel Beckwith in defiance commanded us the move forward. To advance directly into the mouth of the tiger
NVA forces. My reaction Are you F__kin kidding me. Here goes: the shit hit the fan we flanked the NVA meeting strong resistance.
Wherever we moved we were countered by high trained NVA forces. RPD raining down on us. In a brief moment I realized * had been hit by shrapnel. I knew if I stayed in field my wounds would get infected. Infection might cause me to lose a body part. So I returned fire and withdrew to area on road where Medivac helicopter was about to take off. I jumped in just in time for liftoff to triage area a few miles away. I remember being tagged by triage medic in field an evacuated to marine hospital in Hue Phu Bai.
Colonel Beckwith and CSM Gergen were with us as we pushed west toward Cam odoan border. We were going deeper into the mouth of the tiger(Ashau Valley). We were breaking through triple canopy jungle with machetes
while mechanized unit accompanying us was on dirt road parallel to our movement west.
Suddenly , we were ambushed by dug in NVA troops. Small arms fire from NVA was intense. I remember hearing the intense crackling of
rapid fire from a Russian light machine gun from a sniper up in the trees. It a fuckin RPD rain shit down on us at 1100 rounds per minute. Sgt Williams took a direct hit in his head from shrapnel probably from a Chinese
claymore that proceeded the initial small arms fire that started the ambush. Colonel Beckwith was in a gully beside the dirt road.where armored track vehicles were moving
Beckwith ordered the mechanized unit commander to move forward into triple canopy jungle to back us up. The mechanized commander refused. He knew it was a strategic mistake. Colonel Beckwith in defiance commanded us the move forward. To advance directly into the mouth of the tiger
NVA forces. My reaction Are you F__kin kidding me. Here goes: the shit hit the fan we flanked the NVA meeting strong resistance.
Wherever we moved we were countered by high trained NVA forces. RPD raining down on us. In a brief moment I realized * had been hit by shrapnel. I knew if I stayed in field my wounds would get infected. Infection might cause me to lose a body part. So I returned fire and withdrew to area on road where Medivac helicopter was about to take off. I jumped in just in time for liftoff to triage area a few miles away. I remember being tagged by triage medic in field an evacuated to marine hospital in Hue Phu Bai.
