The LRRP Nightmare

By

Ray Janes/Rash 4

My job as ALO/FAC flying the OV-10 Bronco attached to the 1/9th Air Cavalry Squadron in the 1st Air Cavalry Division also included supporting the 75th Ranger Co. H which was also attached to the Squadron. They provided the Long Range Reconnaissance Patrols, better known as the LRRPs, for the Division. Their job was to be inserted by a UH-1 helicopter into the jungle to monitor traffic by the VC/NVA on the trails through the Division's Area of Operation. They also ambushed the enemy and occasionally snatched a soldier for intelligence purposes. The patrol could vary in number but the usual number was about five or six Troopers. They were all volunteers and were trained at Phouc Vinh which hosted the Company HQ. The most visible part of their training was running around the base in the hot sun with a pack filled with rocks. They often had to run a mile or more in a desperate situation to a site where they could be lifted out by helicopters. The Commander asked me to brief them on the air power I could provide to help them in an emergency. I told them that if it really got bad I would bring in the big stuff and get them out but they needed to be sure I could put the bombs on the enemy and not them because getting killed by friendly fire was everybody's night mare. I emphasized that if all else failed I would get them out if it was humanly possible.

 

The Patrols were monitored each day by the Scout Teams as a normal part of their mission if a team was located near the area where they were operating. As a FAC I was also briefed occasionally to contact the team to make sure they were OK. It usually consisted of flying close enough for radio contact but not close enough to give away their location. We could call them using a code name and they would usually answer with two clicks if everything was OK. If they thought they would soon be in trouble they would tell us the situation in whispers which usually meant we would check on them more often and the Blue team used to extract them would go on a higher state of alert. I had supported several extractions but none like on May 6th 1969

I was flying a normal VR mission on a day that I didn't expect much action. I had been briefed that I would have a preplanned strike which was one of several provided each week to the Army that was used to hit targets of their choice. They were usually unproductive because the Intelligence they were based on was several days or even weeks old. The FACs called them 'Monkey Killer' or 'Turning Trees into Toothpicks' missions. There was no other air support available because of a large operation by another Division in another area. The Troop Commander came up on my frequency and told me that a LRRP team was in bad trouble. They had been inserted the evening before and had settled down for the night when at least a company of VC had bedded down for the night around them. They had been OK all night but were discovered early in the morning and were under extremely heavy attack and at least several were wounded and the team was unable to move. I asked about using Artillery or Attack helicopters because they were the quickest way to help them and he told me that all the Squadron assets were already committed as was all the available Division assets.

 

This was very strange because whenever troops were in trouble I had seen massive amounts of support diverted to the sole task of getting them back as safely as possible. Then it dawned on me that the Army didn't know the real situation and didn't want to be charged with a Friendly Fire incident by killing their own troops so the obvious solution was to let the Air Force do it. Now I had to keep my promise to the Troopers and had to get some air support. I had the preplanned strike but I had to get permission to divert it.

 

I talked to the LRRP Radio Operator and it was immediately obvious that the situation was critical. The first clue was his screaming voice. These guys always talked in a whisper even when they were on the run. He was screaming that they were surrounded and he didn’t know if anybody was left but him. The firing was so intense and from so many directions that all he could do was keep his head down. I calmly asked him to try to tell me his estimate of the size of the force and if he could tell me from which direction the fire was coming. I also asked him not to pop any smoke until I asked for it and if his position was the one I had been given. He calmed a little bit and told me that he couldn't answer any of my questions but he would try to find out if I would just get some air support so they had a chance to get out. I told him to hang tough and not to expose himself. I then went direct to the Direct Air Support Center (DASC) on the HF radio and told them in no uncertain terms that I needed air support and I needed it now. They told me that there really wasn't any. Everything was already committed. I knew about a preplanned strike for the 1st Cavalry Division due in a few minutes and asked about that. He told me that they weren't allowed to divert preplanned strikes without the Division's permission. I told him that the Division had given the problem to me and that was all the permission he needed. He said he would have to contact the Division. I asked to speak to his supervisor and the voice that came on the radio was a classmate of mine who had taken the DASC job I had been offered earlier. I explained the situation to him and he told me the same thing. By this time I was getting irritated and asked what his initials were and when they were what I expected I gave him mine and asked if he knew who I was. He answered, "Yes". I told him that I had people dying on the ground and I didn't have time for any more arguments because the strike would either be too low on fuel or expended by the time it was sorted out. I would take full responsibility for the diversion and if there were any more problems I was prepared to press charges as far as I had to go up the line. He paused and then told me the strike was mine. He turned the radio back to the director who gave me the information I needed. I went to the assigned frequency and called the fighters who immediately answered. I explained the diversion and asked for their load. It was all 500 lb. slick bombs. I told them they would need to drop the best bombs of their life on this mission because the good guys were surrounded and the bad guys were in their faces. There was a moment of silence and then lead said, "We're getting low on fuel but we'll do the best we can". I told them to hold high while I assessed the ground situation and contacted the LRRP operator. He answered immediately and told me the situation hadn't changed.

He was still under very heavy fire from all directions and didn't know the condition or location of the rest of the team members. I asked him to give the coordinates he wanted hit and he gave me his position. I told him that would put them on his head and he answered in a resigned voice, "It doesn't make any difference we're all dead anyway". I told him that wasn't true and I was going to put in a mark and he was to tell me his position from that mark. I told the fighters to ignore my mark and rolled in and put the mark about 100 meters from what I thought was his position. He said the firing paused and he could see the smoke about 50 meters from his position. I told him to dig a hole if he could or to turn in to a pancake because the bombs were going to be close and shrapnel would be flying over his head. He said, "Roger", in the same voice as I went back to the fighters. I told one to hit my mark and two to wait for a second mark. I put the first mark 50 meters from the practice mark He put it on the money and as his bomb exploded I put my second mark 200 meters to the side of the first one and cleared two in hot to hit my mark. I told one to hold until I put in another mark. Two was also right on target and I put in another mark at the point of a triangle between the two marks and 100 meters from the position I had been given and cleared one in hot to hit my mark. As he hit it I put in another mark 200 meters above the last bomb and then began to expand the square I had started. As I was putting in the fifth mark the Radio Operator screamed into the FM radio that I had them running and he had located the other team members but couldn't tell their condition because they also were flat against the ground. I put the bombs into an expanding square until the fighters were Winchester or out of ordinance and gave them a BDA of 100% of their bombs on target. I also told them to take credit for saving the team and they had given me the best bombs I had ever controlled from F-4s. They thanked me in a relieved voice and headed home. I contacted the C Troop Commander, Cavalier 6, and told him I thought they could cover the team until Med Evac arrived. He congratulated me while he was covering the fleeing VC with rockets and mini gunfire. I was suddenly exhausted and covered with sweat so I told them I was recovering and to let me know how things turned out. As I flew back to Phouc Vinh I called the DASC and thanked them for their support and that it had worked to save the team. I also told them I didn’t know their condition but that at least one of them survived. That evening Cavalier 6 told me that the entire team had been Med Evaced out. One was KIA, four were severely wounded and the Radio Operator was so stressed that he was babbling. I never heard anything further.

I landed hot and very tired but my day wasn't over yet. My Crew Chief, told me to contact the 1/9th Tactical Operations Center (TOC) and I found out they had located an anti aircraft position and were out of fuel, ammunition and idea. I spent the hours until dark controlling artillery and a C-119 gunship to wipe out it out. But that's another story.