Ivy Leaf Famous Fourth information
for 119 AHC
1/8 INF

For date 690427


119 AHC was a US Army unit
1/8 INF was a US Army unit
Primary service involved, US Army
Kontum Province, II Corps, South Vietnam
Location, FSB McNerney
Description: The following is an edited version of an article in Ivy Leaf, Vol. 3, No 17 dated April 27, 1969. The article is titled "??" by PFC Jerald A. Kreeps. Firebase McNerney - More than 100 rounds of 60mm mortar and B40 rocket fire, along with the NVA version of Chieu Hoi pamphlets, rained down on the 1st Battalion 8th Infantry, during a day on Hill 467 near Polei Kleng. The day had ended, but the Bullets from Bravo and Charlie Companies, comprising Task Force Alpha, weren'' sleeping. Continuous heavy movement around the perimeter kept the men close to the fighting positions --alert and waiting. "We were given the word," related PFC Edwin Gehringer of Kutztown, PA, "to throw grenades and lob M79s into the area if we heard any movement at all." As expected, the enemy forces attacked just after dark. Their thrust was strong enough to allow a few enemy soldiers to get through the wire, but no further. Then, shortly before daybreak, the enemy made another assault. Again the Bullets were waiting, but this time with blinking flashlights, and aerial aid. Snoopy, flying overhead, saturated the area beyond the perimeter of blinking lights with minigun fire. The NVA soon broke contact under the intense fire. A sweep the following day revealed five dead enemy close to the perimeter. To complicate the early-morning battle, two platoons returning from an overnight operation found themselves outside the perimeter and facing the problem of having to infiltrate through the enemy. "I don't know how we did it, but somehow we got through without making contact," said 1LT James Keane of Chicago. Finally the battalion was notified that they would be leaving the hill. Ten evacuation ships came in at fifteen minute intervals without receiving any fire. Then, all at once, the enemy opened up on all sides of the hill. Again and again, the ships of the 119th AHC braved the intense fire and lifted the infantrymen from the hill. "When we got down to where there were only nine men remaining things were beginning to get a little tight," recalled SGT Larry Hanson of Sioux City, ND, Bravo Company RTO. "I was a bit concerned when a Headhunter plane overhead told us he had spotted two large NVA forces moving into the area." "The gunship pilot kept asking whether we could see any NVA," remarked LT Keane. "He said we were completely surrounded." "It seemed like it took days to bring in the last two birds," remembered SGT Hanson. "We couldn't get all nine men on the first bird, so we split up and put five on and waited for the last ship." With doorgunners' M60 machine guns blazing, the last ship swooped into the LZ. The four remaining men backed up to the helicopter, were helped aboard, and lifted safely away.

The source for this information was Original scanned by Larry Massoletti and sent as an email attachment in Feb, 2000.


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Last updated 02/15/2000

Date posted on this site: 05/13/2023