Americal Daily News Sheets information
for 23 INF DIV
F/8 CAV

For date 690102


23 INF DIV was a US Army unit
F/8 CAV was a US Army unit
Primary service involved, US Army
Quang Tin Province, I Corps, South Vietnam
Location, Chu Lai
Description: The following is an edited version from the Americal Daily News Sheets Vol. 3. No. 3 Friday January 3. CHU LAI (AMERICAL IO) - Increased contact with NVA forces and the largest weapons discovery in almost two weeks highlighted a day of moderate action for Americal Division forces in southern I Corps yesterday. Division units reported killing six NVA and 13 VC, finding the bodies of four VC, capturing 14 individual and one crew-served weapons and 1000 pounds of rice, detaining 19 VC suspects, and relocating 161 refugees. Of 15 incidents reported involving contact with enemy forces in the 196th Inf. Bde. area, 10 occurred within a two-mile square area 24 miles west of Tam Ky. There, and throughout the 196th area, five NVA and nine VC were killed, four VC bodies were found, and six weapons were captured. Action centered around units of the 4-31 Inf. which were involved in eight contacts that accounted for eight enemy dead, four found dead, and all six weapons. C/4-31 Inf., working with the 2-1 Inf., ran into small arms fire from an unknown enemy force and killed four NVA in the ensuring firefight 24 miles northwest of Tam Ky. Captured in the action were a .30 caliber machinegun, an SKS rifle, and an AK-47 rifle. Later in the same area Co. C killed another NVA and took his AK-47. Slightly further west at 0755 hours, Co. D took on three VC and killed one. At 1340, Co. D engaged an NVA a mile nearer Tam Ky and got his AK-47 and, two hours later, found the bodies of three VC killed by artillery fire. Co. B killed a VC in the same area at 1420 hours and, six hours later, a recon element of the 4-31 killed a VC there. At 2110 hours, the recon element engaged an NVA and captured his SKS rifle. Units of A/3-21 Inf. killed four VC in four small arms firefights from 11-13 miles west of Tam Ky. Other VC kills in the area were credited to F Trp, 17th Cav. and "Blue Ghosts" gunships of F Trp., 8th Cav. A/2-1 Inf. discovered the body of a VC killed by artillery. Amidst its contacts with the enemy D/4-31 Inf. found time to help relocated 105 refugees to Tam Ky from an area 25 miles to the west. Fifty-six more refugees were taken from an area 22 miles west of Tam Ky to Nui Loc Son by F Trp., 17th Cav. The half-ton of rice was found in two crocks by C/1-46 Inf. in a search of two hootches 11 miles southwest of Hoi An. B/4-21 Inf. took the war to the enemy's front porch by charging into a recently occupied base camp 12 miles west of Duc Pho. The raid netted eight weapons and cost enemy forces 12 huts and numerous supplies. In light action elsewhere in southern Quang Ngai Province, 11th Inf. Bde. forces killed one NVA and three VC, wounded three VC, detained 16 VC suspects, and recovered a ninth weapon. Discovery of the base camp was made at 0925 hours as Co. B patrolled a jungle area. The "Gimlets" moved into the camp which showed signs of having been abandoned hurriedly. Of the 12 huts, one was an auditorium-mess hall capable of serving 130 men, and several contained one and two-story sleeping quarters. Two huts were booby-trapped. Weapons found included four K-44 rifles, two French MAT-49 submachineguns, an M-1 carbine, and an M-1 rifle. Also recovered were 100 rounds of small arms ammunition, a Chicom hand grenade, web gear, and four packs. In another early-morning incident, B/1-20 Inf. received six to 10 rounds of automatic weapons fire and returned it to kill one VC, a young male wearing black pajamas, two miles north of Duc Pho. Short range patrols of C/4-3 Inf. and the 1-20 Inf. killed two VC. One was shot while fleeing through a hedgerow four miles southeast of Duc Pho, and the other was killed when the 1-20 called for fire support from the 6-11 Arty. in a rice paddy eight miles northwest of Duc Pho. The NVA was killed in the mountains 16 miles northeast of Duc Pho by A/3-1 Inf. Units of the 4-3 Inf. wounded three VC and rounded up 15 VC suspects in day-long activity. A/4-3 Inf. captured an M-2 carbine six miles southeast of Duc Pho. "Blue Ghosts" gunships of F Trp,, 8th Cav. killed their second VC of the day in the 1st Sqdn., 1st Cav. area 13 miles northwest of Tam Ky. For the second consecutive day, units of the 198th Inf. Bde. reported no major contact with the enemy. The only action involved detention of three VC suspects and destruction in place of two booby-trapped mortar rounds. The 198th's weekly civic action report showed 1164 Vietnamese treated last week on MEDCAPs while troops distributed 1040 pounds of food, 50 pounds of soap, 100 pounds of clothing, and 50 school kits. One Americal Division soldier was killed, and 15 were wounded and evacuated for medical treatment, according to an initial report. The lone casualty marked the first time in five days that an Americal Division soldier was killed. In that time enemy losses totaled 181 killed.

The source for this information was NEWS6901.AML & AVN supplied by Les Hines


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Date posted on this site: 05/13/2023