• previous pagenext page\\\Ripcord

Mike Jacobi  Jul 1   #61350

According to Wikipedia Ripcord started 50 years ago today. I googled Ripcord photos to verify this photo as it was slightly before my time. I flew over it much later and it had been carpet bombed by B52’s after it was abandoned. Salute to those of you who flew this one.

    

  

The Battle of Fire Support Base Ripcord was a 23-day battle between elements of the U.S. Army 101st Airborne Division and two reinforced divisions of the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) that took place from 1 to 23 July 1970. It was the last major confrontation between United States ground forces and the PAVN during the Vietnam War. Three Medals of Honorand six Distinguished Service Crosses were awarded to participants for actions during the operations.

Bill Walker

9:34am   #61396

About two weeks after Ripcord was abandoned, I drew the mission to go back to the base to bring back bodies.

Man, what a gruesome day!  We had to fly with gas masks, and I think brought out about a dozen body bags.

I wish I could forget that.

And, it was so eerie sitting on that windy bald mountain top, fully expecting mortars to start raining down again, and looking for .51 Cal. tracers each time we lifted off with another load.

We didn't draw any fire, as the NVA had withdrawn, as usual.

And, the masks didn't do a very good job of masking the odor.

Getting in and out of Ripcord during the height of that battle, took ingenuity in getting to one of the three pads to load or offload in a matter of 10 seconds or less.  Each pad was  zeroed in for their mortars.

During the Ripcord siege, it was the only time I ever experience this; while on a lagging mission to resupply one of the ground units that acted as skirmishers in the surrounding area, I asked them to pop a smoke.

Three separate smokes rose through the treetops, in three different spots.

Those sons-of-bitches were listening to our radio transmissions, and were hoping to lure us in.

In the final days of Ripcord, I flew my only CS mission.  Grease pencil lines were drawn horizontally across the bubble below my feet.  These were my marker lines for estimating when to tell the crew to kick out one of the big canisters of CS.

I don't know how the NVA could breath.  It looked like fog was enveloping the area, but it was all CS mixed with gun smoke and smoke from exploding artillery rounds, RPGs and .51s.

That was really rough and steep terrain.  And, how the NVA brought all of that weaponry to bear was astounding.  We could sometime see them wheeling anti-aircraft guns or .51's out of caves, with nothing more than a handkerchief over their faces.

Hard to believe how fresh so many of those Ripcord memories are. I had one four-week period in which I logged over 170 combat hours during the end of Project Delta and Ripcord.

I don't even remember coming back to the Round Table, or eating anything other than C rations, if we were lucky enough to get them.

Never been so tired in all my life.

Bill 17

Steve (RS16) 9:40am   #61397

The “siege” lasted 23 days, we flew our asses off.  Only times I can remember not having to refuel at every rearm.  14-18-hour days were common.

Tim Delong 1:18pm   #61426

Just a note here. I DEROS’d at the beginning of April  1970.  Sometime a month or so before that (can't remember the exact date) we CA'd into Ripcord and me and my crew almost got our asses shot off. They shut  the mission down. ARC lighted the place for a couple of days and then tried to go back in and they shot us up again. So, that mess went on for a long time.