Abandoned in Hell : The Fight for Vietnam's Firebase Kate (9780698144262)

by Albracht, William; Wolf, Marvin; Galloway, Joseph L. (FRW)

  Location/Notes

  CHICKEN HAWK (HAWK)

  CPT William Albracht

  Firebase Kate Bu Prang

  SPOOKY 41 VICTOR CREW 1—VIN CREW 2

  CPT Al Dykes CPT Wells

  Phan Rang Spooky 41 navigator/mission commander Follow-on navigator of Spooky 41

  UNJUST CHASER

  SSG DeNote, Commo Chief A-236

  Bu Prang Special Forces Camp

  JULIET

  Division Control

  BMT

  PEEPER 38

  Artillery SMAJ?

  Firing clearance for Hawk

  CARBON OUTLAW 25

  USAF air traffic control

  Gives Peeper 38, 60 and Chowder 60 authorization to fire at ground targets

  PEEPER 60, 62, DELTA

  USAF Gunships

  GRAND PALETTE JULIET

  SHADOW 48

  Replaced Spooky 41 on 31 Oct 69

  RAGGED SCOOPER

  Control element for Spookies and Shadows

  CHICKEN HAWK’S BUDDY, BEAK

  Lt. Maurice Zollner

  Changed his call sign to Beak due to shrapnel thru the nose

  SPAD ZERO TWO

  USAF Major Gerald Helmich

  A1H Skyraider air support for Kate

  KANGAROO CONTROL

  No flares until clearance due to 4 different elements; any Viking call sign

  LIMA SALINES

  Mike Force

  CAB ZERO SEVEN

  MIKE EIGHT ZERO

  ROADRUNNER

  Oscar 3

  MAIN TRIPOD

  SSG Denote, Commo Chief

  Bu Prang, Special Forces Team A-236

  PRYBAR

  USAF aircraft run by Main Tripod

  PAPA 43

  Team on ground in Tape 3

  Night of 31 October—1 November

  MAKING CONTACT

  Chicken Hawk: Spooky 41 this is Chicken Hawk.

  Spooky 41: Roger Chicken Hawk, this is Spooky 41, go.

  Spooky 41: Chicken Hawk are you on Victor [VHF radio], over?

  Chicken Hawk: Spooky 41 this is Chicken Hawk.

  Shadow 61: Spooky 41, Shadow 61, Chicken Hawk is on Fox Mike (FM radio).

  Spooky 41: Roger.

  Chicken Hawk: OK buddy, is he in our area?

  Spooky 41: We heard him talk to you once, called him back, couldn’t get an answer.

  Spooky 41: Chicken Hawk, Chicken Hawk Fox Mike

  Chicken Hawk: Aww, roger, Spooky 41, are you picking me up?

  Spooky 41: Roger, loud and clear.

  Chicken Hawk: . . . how far are you from my location?

  Spooky 41: Stand by one.

  Spooky 41: About 15 minutes out, over.

  Shadow 61: (Unintelligible) . . . I don’t know if they advised you but we left a Lulu for you to help mark the camp. It’s about 200 meters 080 bearing from his camp.

  Spooky 41: Roger, sir, appreciate that much.

  Spooky 41: Sir, do you have contact with Chicken Hawk at this time?

  Shadow 61: Roger, we do.

  Spooky 41: OK he’s talking to me and he comes in sometimes, sometimes he don’t. Uhh, can you ask him if he reads me please?

  Shadow 61: Chicken Hawk you reading Spooky aren’t you?

  Chicken Hawk: This is the Hawk, I can read him loud and clear, loud and clear.

  Shadow 61: Roger . . . reading you loud and clear Spooky 41.

  Spooky 41: Roger, I read you that time Chicken Hawk. How do you read me now, over?

  Chicken Hawk: Lo . . .

  Spooky 41: Chicken Hawk you were broken, I’ll give you a call back in a few minutes.

  Shadow 61: Can you flash a landing light?

  Spooky 41: Roger we just flashed landing light.

  Shadow 61: Roger we’re almost due west of your position.

  Spooky 41: Roger we have you in sight.

  Chicken Hawk: I’ll be putting out a strobe for you, right on our firebase here. We’ve only got one, ahh, and its low on batteries, so I’m going to put it in and let’s get a real good adjustment and then I gotta turn it off. Is this OK with you?

  Spooky 41: Roger that, and Chicken Hawk, Outlaw 25 said that he’d kind of like us to just fly around a little bit before we start expending or dropping too many flares so we can, ahh, so we can extend our time with you, over.

  Chicken Hawk: That’s a roger roger roger on that buddy. Like I was telling the 61, I’ve worked him before, real good people there, and ahh, as long as they hear you up there, you put out a little bit here and a little bit there, they’re not going to try a hell of a lot because . . . they know you can shoot up every time they move with you people up there.

  Spooky 41: Roger that and by the way, Happy Halloween, the Spookies are out.

  Chicken Hawk: (Laughing) Roger that. Listen, have I ever worked you before?

  Spooky 41: I was over here the other night buddy.

  Chicken Hawk: OK, real fine, real fine, I’m glad you’re familiar with the area. Give you a little update, this has been heaviest yet, we took all kinds of shit today. I ain’t kidding you, every time we turned around we were getting it. So that’s why when I’m directing you all around the perimeter, believe me it’s all there.

  Spooky 41: Roger buddy, and I got a question to ask you. Is your position on top of a scraped-off hill with about 50 meters from your position a tree line starts and just north of your position another bald hill with a clump of trees right in the center of it?

  Chicken Hawk: That’s us baby, you been here before.

  Spooky 41: Roger, I know where you’re at.

  SHOP TALK

  Spooky 41: Ahh, roger on that and ahh, I hope it stays cool down there for you.

  Chicken Hawk: Hey buddy, another day like today and ahh, I tell you, I don’t know.

  Spooky 41: What all did they hit you with today, over.

  Chicken Hawk: Everything from 57 recoilless to 82 mortars to small arms and ahh, what the hell did I leave out, oh yeah, how the hell could I forget the good old B-40 rockets.

  Pilot: . . . he left out the kitchen sink.

  Spooky 41: Go ahead, Hawk.

  Chicken Hawk: You’re up in world news a little bit, who’s ahh, who’s in the limelight here in country, who’s catching the most shit right about now?

  Spooky 41: You boys are catching it, believe me.

  Chicken Hawk: Is that right, ahh, we’re the ones that are catching the most right now in country?

  Spooky 41: That’s a roger on that old buddy.

  Chicken Hawk: I don’t know if that makes me feel good or not.

  Spooky 41: Yeah, I just hope this doesn’t turn into another Duc Lap like last year.

  Chicken Hawk: Old buddy, I’m with you on that.

  Spooky 41: Roger, they, ahh, had a big rice cache down here on the border of II and III Corps on one of the in route things, I forgot, it was something like 9 tons of rice that they had brought in there.

  Ch
icken Hawk: Roger that, roger that, ahh, I know that area. Ahh, I’m from Unjust Chaser’s location which is not too far from here, ahh, I think you boys know it by a different name or something but this, ahh (unintelligible) . . . I’m in now. And it’s been quiet and all of a sudden, my God, overnight it just turned into, ahh, well what it is now.

  Spooky 41: Roger that, we were talking about before we got over here that it kind of reminded us of Duc Lap last year when we had 4 Spookies overhead all the time.

  Chicken Hawk: Roger that, hey listen, I heard Duc Lap caught a little bit the other day.

  Spooky 41: Yeah, they took a little bit, seems like, ahh, from our intel reports they were kinda coming in between you there down here and they’re kinda spreading out. Its hard to tell what they’re gonna do.

  Chicken Hawk: Yeah, it sure is, it sure is. I don’t know what it is they want with this firebase but, ahh, we’d better get some stuff in here tomorrow or they just might get it.

  Spooky 41: Roger, it, ahh, suits all the Spooky boys if we could get to stay over here in the day time too, but they just won’t let us.

  Chicken Hawk: Roger, I understand that, ahh, I do understand that. But I tell you one thing, the most important thing we got going for us at night is you guys upstairs. Let me tell you. . . . and they know you’re up there like I said and they’re going to stay down and they’re not going to mess with us too much, well it’s good to get some sleep now and again and have some peaceful time. We got a lot of wear and tear here on the boys, ahh, they all holding up pretty good but, ahh, I don’t know, ahh, that battle fatigue gonna get to a lot of people here pretty soon if, ahh, this shit don’t slack off.

  Spooky 41: Roger that, I know what you mean and you tell all those guys down there we’re pulling for you and we’re going do what we can from up here.

  Chicken Hawk: I don’t have to tell them, they already know it. Ahh, oh shit ever since the first night and it really didn’t take no building up because you’ve been living here with me like I said and more.

  Spooky 41: We’re gonna try. We were just talking saying we wish we had everything in the book that we could stay here and drop on those guys, but all we got is beaucoup miniguns, so we’re gonna use what we got.

  Chicken Hawk: Roger that buddy, as long as you got those, we’ll keep their heads down and we’ll keep this area safe tonight.

  Spooky 41 Internal: Man those guys got it rough down there.

  Spooky 41: Carbon Outlaw 25, this is Spooky 41 Victor.

  Pilot: . . . Gotta take a leak real quick before we start here.

  Carbon Outlaw 25: This is Carbon Outlaw 25, go ahead.

  Spooky 41: Roger, Carbon, you gonna have a replacement for us when we start to pull out of target? We’d like to keep something over these boys maybe all night if we can.

  Carbon Outlaw 25: Roger, we’ve got you scheduled for a 15-minute overlap.

  Spooky 41: Sounds good, these guys been taking it, as soon as we pull off target and get home we’ll be ready to go again.

  Carbon Outlaw 25: Roger, roger, thank you very much.

  Spooky 41: Roger that.

  Spooky 41 Internal: OK then we got about an hour and 40 minutes before the time I gave him at 30 so you wanna start now?

  Pilot: Moon’s coming up.

  Spooky 41 Internal: Roger that.

  Spooky 41: Chicken Hawk, Spooky 41.

  Chicken Hawk: Spooky 41, this the Hawk.

  Spooky 41: Roger buddy, old lady up here is ready to clear us to do a little talking for you.

  Chicken Hawk: OK real fine. Tell you what, let’s put it to the Echo, the Echo of our location. . . . Sierra Echo and work it on up to the November Echo. How’s that sound?

  Spooky 41: Roger that sounds good, we’re gonna come in right now and drop a flare and, ahh, we’ll start working on the Echo, the Sierra Echo and bring it up to the November Echo.

  Chicken Hawk: Roger, roger on that, OK, ahh, walk it right into the wood line there, right in the wood line if you can.

  Spooky 41: OK now, all your friendlies are inside your perimeter there, except the ones to the November Whisky, is that Charlie?

  Chicken Hawk: That is a definite affirmative.

  Spooky 41: OK and how far to the edge of the wood line, how close to the edge of the wood line do you want us to bring it, over?

  Chicken Hawk: I tell you what you bring it in as close as your little heart desires right in there because we get probes during the night and they kinda sneak up there when nobody’s watching and I’d like to surprise them.

  Spooky 41: Roger. We’ve also found out that if we shoot out a couple of hundred meters, it drives them into the perimeter, also, so we’ll try to drive them out a little bit.

  Chicken Hawk: That’s fine buddy, that’s fine. Use every trick you got.

  WORK BEGINS

  Spooky 41: Roger, stand by.

  Spooky 41 Internal: OK, they’re ready to go babe.

  Gunner: . . . ready to drop the flare . . .

  Pilot: . . . from north to south . . .

  Spooky 41 Internal: Roger that.

  Gunner: OK. OK, flare will be lighting just a second, we’ll take a look at . . .

  Pilot: The flare should be . . . position . . . fairly strong wind from the east.

  Spooky 41 Internal: OK, there’s his position right there, brother, by the pipper . . .

  OK, now see that bald spot to the east side over by that little bitty knob?

  Pilot: OK, where the, ahh, ground marker is?

  Spooky 41 Internal: Yeah, OK, let’s start up close to his perimeter where those tree lines [are] on the southern edge of it and work north.

  Pilot: Close to his perimeter?

  Spooky 41 Internal: Right, let’s start right along the tree lines and work out.

  Pilot: . . . right in this valley.

  Spooky 41 Internal: OK.

  Spooky 41: Hawk, we’re coming in hot.

  Pilot: OK, guns on the line . . .

  Pilot: What about this valley, right in here?

  Spooky 41 Internal: Looks good.

  Spooky 41: Hawk, this is Spooky 41.

  Chicken Hawk: OK Spooky 41, this the Hawk, go buddy.

  Spooky 41: OK, we’re coming in hot.

  Chicken Hawk: OK, I’m going out and observe.

  Spooky 41 Internal: Looks good, OK bring it in a little closer.

  Gunner: Miniguns on line, sir.

  Spooky 41 Internal: You got his position well marked, that right?

  Pilot: Roger, got it.

  Spooky 41: Just keep to the tree line out.

  Pilot: How’s that?

  Spooky 41: OK, let’s . . . shoot over their head.

  Pilot: OK.

  Spooky 41: OK, you can shoot right in there.

  Pilot: OK, bring it up closer to him?

  Spooky 41: Yeah.

  Pilot: That OK?

  Pilot: How’s that?

  Spooky 41 Internal: That looks good.

  Spooky 41 Internal: OK . . . You’re still looking good . . . OK, you can come a little closer right on to this side here in front of the pipper now . . . OK now bring it up the east side here.

  Pilot: OK.

  Spooky 41 Internal: All along that tree line . . . OK, I’ll let you bring it a little closer to him next time on that pass . . . We got plenty of time. . . . I’ll just fire on the, ahh . . . south thru the north on the east side there firing over their heads. . . . You can put fire on southern perimeter of them.

  Pilot: Right there where the pipper is?

  Spooky 41 Internal: Yeah right back by the edge. There you go.

  Spooky 41: Hey Hawk, how we looking baby?

  Chicken Hawk: Hey, this the Hawk, this the Hawk. Hey buddy you’re looking real fine. I was out there watching you and you’
re putting it dead in on them. I’d like you to put a few rounds in on the other side of the slopes as you, ahh, OK, ahh, I’ll explain myself here. As our camp sits here on this hill, all right, then you [go] down to the east side, you go down the hill past the wires and you hit the, ahh, bottom of the hill, then you hit the dense vegetation and then you start going on up the other side up the other slopes. OK, during the daytime they’re rocketing us from all points around the camp, so at night time they might just figure its safe to pull back to the other side of the hill, you know, so, ahh, put a few rounds on the other side of the ridge lines here and maybe we can shake them up a little bit.

  Spooky 41: Ahh, roger that, we’ll do it.

  Pilot: . . . mean this ridge line up to the east?

  Spooky 41 Internal: Roger, you got it good, right in there.

  Pilot: . . . how’s that look?

  Spooky 41 Internal: Looks good. Just kinda work all the way around them, Vin.

  Chicken Hawk: Hey Spooky 41, this is the Hawk. Are you talking to one of your people? Over.

  Spooky 41: Ahh, sorry about that, I was talking to him, I’m giving him good clearance here.

  Chicken Hawk: OK, go ahead buddy, ahh, that’s OK, ahh, thought somebody else [was] down here directing you and if somebody else was directing you I was gonna say who.

  Spooky 41: Ahh, just forgot to switch back, just get too excited sometimes.

  Chicken Hawk: OK, roger that good buddy, go ahead.

  Spooky 41: Okeydoke, we’re gonna drop another flare.

  Spooky 41 Internal: Oh shoot . . .

  Pilot: Roger, we’ll get another flare out here

  Spooky 41 Internal: Just on the other side of first little valley is where they been taking it . . . and we can just move on around the southern edge around to the western edge of him there within about 200 meters of the camp.

  Pilot: Roger.

  Pilot: That last flare was a little too far out.

  Spooky 41 Internal: Roger that.

  Pilot: (Unintelligible.)

  Spooky 41 Internal: All right, go ahead.

  Spooky 41 Internal: OK, now you mark on this side too, see the hill out there above the pipper? Right pretty close to him?