Battle of An Khe South information
for 1 BDE 1 CAV
CH-47 Ladder
From date 651209 to 651216
1 BDE 1 CAV was a US Army unit
Primary service involved, US Army
Binh Dinh Province, II Corps, South Vietnam
Location, An Khe
Description: The 1st Brigade sent two battalions on a search and destroy mission about 20 clicks south of the Golf Course. On the morning of the 9th, helicopter inserted two infantry companies at LZ BULL. They met no enemy resistance and moved overland to LZ ROPE. Later in the morning, two CH-47s worked with C/1/8 Cav at their An Khe base camp and the infantry practiced using the troop ladders. This was a wide ladder designed to allow two troopers climbing simultaneously. Early in the afternoon, the 1/8 rappelled their recon platoon into LZ ROPE from eight hovering UH-1Ds. They ascertained that there were no enemy in the immediate area, so the Chinooks brought in C Company. They used a single ladder from the aft section of each bird. The first load put 35 troops on the ground in ten minutes. With experience and the use of a double-ladder technique, a platoon could climb up or down in a matter of 3 or 4 minutes. By the end of the day, the infantry and the engineers had cleared an area in the 40 foot trees and bamboo big enough for a Chinook to land to the ground.
Comments: Mertel, Kenneth D.; LTC; CO 1/8th Cav
The source for this information was Year of the Horse, P 158+
Additional information is available on CD-ROM.
Please send additions or corrections to: Gary Roush Email address: webmaster@vhpa.org
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Date posted on this site:
05/13/2023