Prelude
Morning of 16 February 1968

10 Clicks South of the Rockpile

A Marine reconnaissance team, known only as 3A1 from the patrol debriefing form of Alpha Company, 3d Reconnaissance Battalion, were departing their overnight harbor site to continue a mission that commenced the day before about noon time when they were inserted by helicopter in the vicinity of XD 969471.  The team consisted of eight enlisted Marines from Alpha Company, one Navy Corpsman (HN Alexander Giejc) and a scout dog with his Marine handler.  Their mission was to conduct reconnaissance and surveillance in their assigned zone to determine enemy activity.  Engage the enemy with supporting arms.  Make every effort to capture a prisoner.  Plot possible helicopter landing zones for future operations.  Pay particulair attention to trails and their frequency of use.

The patrol debriefing report indicates they carried, in addition to their normal weapons and equipment, the following:
    Communication Equipment: (2) AN/PRC 25s.
    Observation Equipment: (2) 7X50 binoculars.
    Special Equipment: 4 claymore mines, 4 WP hand grenades, 10 gas masks, 10 CS gas grenades, 1 block of C-4.
    Special Weapons: 1 M-79 w/ 70 HE, 1 CS, and 8 canister rounds as well as 1 M-60 w/ 1,000 rounds.

Their planned extraction was specified only as when they had satisfactorily covered the area assigned to them.  

This image of Razorback Ridge will give some idea of the terrain the recon team was patrolling.  The actual ridge was south of this location on another unnamed ridge.

Phu Bai, Squadron Area of HMM-364

The crew of YK-14, the lead aircraft of two CH-46s, were preparing for a mission in support of III MAF.  The 1968 Tet Offensive launched by the North Vietnamese Army and the Viet Cong was now in its twenty seventh day but, they anticipated being tasked with several non combat movements of troops/passengers and a limited amount of non combat cargo.  The crew probably saw this tasking as a "piece of cake" compared to supporting the maneuver elements of the 1st and 3rd Marine Divisions, Third Force Recon and the 26th Marines under siege at Khe Sanh.

Capt. Robert W.  Wiegand Pilot	Capt. Rocky E. Darger Copilot

Cpl. Thomas J.  "TJ" Miller Crew Chief	Sgt. Donald A. Stoughton Gunner	Sgt. John "Jack" Cowling Gunner

Dong Ha, Alpha Company, Third Force Recon Area

As mentioned before, the Tet Offensive was underway and all US military installations were shoring up their defensive perimeters and bunkers.  The Corpsmen assigned to Third Force Recon, not actively in the field with their teams, were engaged in filling sand bags to reinforce their working and living spaces at Dong Ha.  Among them were HM3 William R.  Ditterline and HM3 Jim Whitlatch.

	Need Photo
HM3 William R. Ditterline	HM3 Jim Whitlatch

0900H (XD 970405) - The recon team heard movement approximately 30 meters to the northwest of their positin.  They estimated two squad size units of approximately ten men moving in parallel lines about fifty meters apart.  No action was taken, recon team continued on their mission.

1100H (XD 971476) - Moving in a northerly direction the team found a water buffalo trail running from east to west. The trail forked with one going northeast and the other continuing to the west.  They observed one set of buffalo tracks on the westerly extension that were six to eight inches deed.  From their experience that told them the animal had been heavily loaded with gear.  They also observed one set of boot prints following along with the buffalo, each of the tracks appeared to be four to five hours old.

1220H (Phu Bai) - Upon lifting off from Phu Bai, Capt. Wiegand leads the section of CH-46s to various locations within the northern portion of I Corps.  They completed a series of logistical troop, logistical cargo, liaison tasks and one medical evacuation.  All but three of them were to areas considered to be secure locations.  Those three were out Highway 9 to the west of the Dong Ha Logistical Support Activity (LSA). (see After Action Report and map depicting the insecure locations).

1300H (XD 970476) - The recon team found a bomb crater that had been used as a one man harbor site.  They also observed fresh boot prints and buffalo tracks in the area.  The team estimated the area had been used within the past twelve to eighteen hours.

1400H (XD 970478) - The recon team was moving toward the top of a ridge line being alert to the possibilities of trip wires, booby traps and punji pits.  The day before they had found a punji pit along their route that was about eighteen inches square, twelve inches deep and contained punji spikes about eight inches long.  Fortunately the camouflage covering had fallen into the pit making it quite visible.  Then, about twenty meters to the northeast of their position a very large explosion detonated and several of the team's members were hit by the shrapnel.  The radio operator immediately called for an emergency extraction indicating at least one Marine killed and several wounded.  About this time the scout dog alerted toward the west.  Tension grew among the team as they found their Corpsman, HN Alexander Giejc, had been wounded as well as the Scout dog handler.  Their cross training in performing other members duties resulted in the logical sequence of taking care of the most immediate problems of caring for the wounded and calling for supporting arms suppressive fire.  A fire support base was called to deliver two rounds in the direction the dog had alerted.  One Marine utilized the M-79 grenade launcher to send fire in the same direction while the other members not engaged in assisting the wounded were tossing grenades in the same direction.

1405H (Dong Ha LSA) - Captain Wiegand's section of CH-46s were refueling when the call for an emergency extract was heard.
 

What follows is background information to be used above as the narrative continues

Cpl. Thomas J. "TJ" Miller recalls:

My pilot was Capt. Robert W. "Bob" Wiegand who had intercepted a radio message from a Marine reconniassance team that had been discovered by the enemy, were engaged  with the hostile force and needed immediate extraction.  I recall they had  1 KIA and 1 WIA.  We patched in and had radio contact with the team and I could hear a shoot-out going on in the back ground.  Capt. Weigand asked their location.  The radioman commented that they were making there way to the top of a ridge and probably could make it there by the time we got on scene, slow going with a KIA and a WIA.  Capt. Weigand called for some gunship support but the Huey's had to refuel and would be delayed.

We continued on and as we neared the site they popped a smoke.  My heart nearly stopped when I saw the smoke.  They were about 50 meters from the top of the ridge but there was absolutely no suitable landing zone, trees, rocks, brush, etc.  This ridge was like a sharp razorback and dropped nearly straight down on the east side of the ridge.  Charlie was on the other side so we didn't what to go over there.  We made a close pass to the side of ridge to get a better look.  Capt. Weigand comes up with the bright idea that we slide to our right and lean our right gear against the side of the ridge and we could bring the team in though the side crew door.  Great idea until our rotor blades hit the side of the ridge.  I was a bit speechless so I think I just clicked my mike a couple of times.  Capt. Weigand put the bird in a hover and edged to our right.  We just were clearing and edge of the ridge.  I dropped the side crew door open and we were still 10-15 feet from the edge of the ridge.  Somehow Capt. Weigand kept our rear gear against the side of the ridge and edged our nose ever closer.  I hooked up my gunner belt and stepped out on the bottom step.  We were still 4-5 feet from the edge of the ridge (which dropped nearly straight down.  Hey This might work!

A couple of the recon Marines ducked under the rotor blades and slid the KIA Marine down the slope. I could just reach out far enough to grab hold of him and drag him into the cabin.  The second Marine  we brought aboard was also KIA.  The next marine was of German Sheperd decent.  Swell, I'll  grab this guy and loose an arm.  I reached out and grabbed a handful of dog and drug him in.  The next Marine was shot through both legs and I can still hear his screams as I drug him up over the steps into the cabin.

Capt. Weigand held the bird as  tight as he could against the slope.  It never quivered.  In fact, He reached over and flipped on Armed Forces Radio so I had some sounds to listen to.  As we gathered up the rest of the team, packs ammo, rifles the last man stood up just outside the rotors blades and pitched a grenade in Charlies direction.  The concussion rocked  us a bit but Capt. Weigand held us tight to side of that ridge.  The last man slid down the slope and we scooped him up and headed for Med.   I had set the Marine shot through the legs in the seats next to radio compartment and went to see if I could offer some aid.  He told me he was the dog handler and I didn't have to worry because the dog didn't bite.  The dog came over and nozzled my side  and gave me one of those, "Thank You" dog looks.  In all this our gunners were doing the best they could to offer gun support.  Our guns were completely useless because we couldn't fire at the team.  As we headed back to Med, think at Dong Ha, we met the hueys  coming to give a hand.  Rumor had it that they went in and hosed the area down and ended up losing a bird.

I wrote this incident up and  have always wondered if Capt. Weigand received an award.  I am absolutely certain if it wasn't for Capt. Weigand's determination that we were going to pull that team off that hill there would have been a few more names on "The Wall".  Capt. Weigand this is your crew chief Cpl. "TJ" Miller.  Yes sir,  everything is "copesetic."
 
 

Information provided by:
    Robert W. "Razor" Wiegand, Col., USMC (Ret)
    Thomas J. "TJ" Miller, former Cpl., USMC
    John A. "Al" Chancey, LtCol., USMC (Ret)
    Donald A. Stoughton, former Sgt., USMC
    William R. "Doc" Ditterline, former HM3, USN
    Jim Whitlatch, former HM3, USN
    HMM-364 After Action Reports from HQUSMC
    Debrief of Recon Patrol, 3A1, Third Recon Bn., "A" Company

Rocky Darger,   Hmm364 pilot April, 1967 - February, 1968

Frank, We have been battling a new computer, and have finally beaten it into submission, I think!
  In regards to your question about the corpsmen, I recall a quick hop or landing at a close medical facility (can't remember where) picking up two corpsmen. When we got the original call they had one KIA, and one wounded, and the corpsmen were close by. I also know that one of them jumped out and went up the hillside to help with the wounded and the other one stayed in the aircraft and helped pull in the guys. I remember we went straight back to the medical facility with the wounded and dead. It all happened very quickly, and a long time ago, but that is what I remember. Jack Cowling now has come into the modern age and bought a computer.

No apologies necessary.  Hope Capt. Bob can pin point this mission.  Sorry I can't be more specific to the time frame.

The picture could work.  Terrain was ugly!!   If you want to use the picture as a reference to highlight the actual conditions its fine with me.  Visualize the rear of the A/C to the right and our
nose to the left  on the side of a ridge like in the picture and you will have a pretty good image of our situation.  Maybe note it isn't an actual site photo but depicts the terrain fairly well.

A couple of more details maybe you can work in the story.  I remember the team mentioned 1 KIA and ! WIA when we received the call.  When we arrived on scene they had 2 KIA and 1
WIA.  When I realized that, the pucker factor went off the charts for me.  The last man in the LZ brought some gear down to me and I  pitched it into the A/C.  I turned to grab him and he was
crawling back up the slope to where they had been pinned down and grabbed some more gear.  I think that's when he pitched a grenade. The thought run through my mind.  What the hell is
this guy going to do next, police up the brass.

If I remember Capt. Wiegand had the rudder pedals kicked out as far as he could to keep us on the side of the hill.  I'm not a pilot but understand ground effects a bit and it was quite a feat to
hold us against the side of that ridge.

I also seem to remember that when we got back to the med and started to unload our passengers the first Marine brought on (thought to be KIA) was still alive.  In the chaos, gear and bodies
had been tossed on him and the Corpsman helled at me for my lack of concern.  Seem to remember I made a derrogatory remark to him.  Tears still flow today when I think of that Marine.  I
made the assumption the first on board would be the KIA's.  I am certain the team members believed he was also dead or he wouldn't have been brought aboard first.  I wonder if he made it.

To this day I can not understand why one of the bad guys didn't pop up and take us out.  Capt. Wiegand and the co-pilot had to be almost eyeball to eyeball with them.  Maybe my prayers were heard over the noise of the A/C.

Again I emphasize, Capt. Wiegand and his determination made this happen.

Semper Fi

TJ

Razorback Ridge Recon Extract
February 16, 1968
 

On the day of the extract, I was flying right gunner.  Jack Cowling was left gunner.  According to a letter I sent home the next day,  we did two re-supplies to the rock pile area and one medevac from Con Thien. We were refueling at Quang Tri when we got the radio call about the team in trouble.  We picked up two corpsmen and headed out with our wingman to Razorback.  The team had run out a ridge to the end of it and had set up a small perimeter on the point of a drop off and was in a firefight.

The hillside was very steep on three sides with brush and some large trees.  Captain Wiegand first tried to back in to the hill and put the ramp there for access.  No way!  We were cutting brush with the rotors.  He then flew in sideways and put the right main wheel on the ground and pulled the nose as close in as was possible.  T. J. Miller opened the front step door and one of the corpsmen jumped out and went up the hill.  The other stayed in the aircraft.  The bottom of the step door was 5 to 6 feet off the ground and the foreword rotor blades were very close to the side of the hill.  T. J. got out on the step with his belt on and since my gun was useless against the hill, I got in the doorway as they started to bring the dead and wounded down to the aircraft.  I think we were 30 to 35 yards down hill from the firefight but hidden from the NVA on the other side (According to what I wrote the next day).  There were three KIA’s, two wounded, a very large and wild-eyed German shepherd, and four men still OK.  They brought the dead and wounded first, T.J. grabbed them as best he could and we pulled them in the door.  I recall them being very hard to handle, limp, bloody and pulling them in by the web gear.  The other corpsmen and I dragged them to the back by the ramp.  The dog handler had been shot in the legs and had to be carried down the hill.  The dog would not leave him and was very frightened with all that was going on.  Pulling the handler in over the steps was horrible for him, very painful.  He was followed closely by the dog.  I agree with T.J.  Being handed the bad end of a German shepherd was scary but he behaved well considering the circumstances.

They started bringing the gear down and I recall walking on hot rifles, packs, grenades rolling on the deck and more gear than anyone could carry.  I heard Capt. Wiegand tell us 2 or 3 times on the intercom to hurry up as we were totally vulnerable hovering there stationary.  Jack stayed on his M-60 and fired into the tree line below helping as he could.  At one point, I saw him fire his 38 out the gunner’s window.

My most vivid memory of this incident was pride and awe of those Recon Marines and how calm and deliberate they were in this wild situation.  I swear, they policed up their empty brass.  They left nothing out there.  I have never been so proud of men in my life.  Our flight crew was also so impressive.  We never moved and kept getting heavier as we loaded up.  Capt. Wiegand and Lt. Darger did an outstanding job.  After hovering there for an eternity, we loaded the last aboard, shut the door, and flew away.  I fired about 50 rounds, mostly out of frustration and we headed for Dong Ha medical.  The corpsmen found the wounded man with the head wound and I watched them do a tracheotomy on him to get him breathing again.  Hard to do in a shaking 46.

I do not recall being scared while it was going on, as I was too busy to think about it.  I do recall all of us (the crew) being a little weak in the knees when we shut down and started to think about what had just happened.  Later I asked Jack Cowling what he was doing shooting his 38 out the window during all this.  He said, “Never had fired it, wanted to see if it worked.”  Cool guy in a wild situation.

It was an honor to be a part of this mission with some of the best men I will ever meet.  We saved some lives and lived to tell about it.  Semper Fi really fits here!

Wow,  when you and Al Chancey hook up it's amazing the information you can dig up.  Couldn't hardly believe my eyes the other day when I see all the players listed on the extract you are
working on.  Have read Don Stoughton's  account and  I'm guessing his information is as accurate as you will get.  With his letter home with day old info it won't get any better than that.  I
don't remember picking up the  2  Corpsman and I would have guessed a couple of less members on the team.  I would also believe his numbers are correct on casualties.  I have vivid
memories of a Corpsman performing an emergency tracheotomy but I didn't remember it being this mission so I'd guess this was the one I witnessed.  I think my comment about the Marine
buried under the gear and bodies is valid.  My recollection was a Corpsman or possibly a doctor came out of the med (this person had not been on our A/C) and was triaging the last
casualty to be carried off the A/C.   I was standing on the deck, just off the bottom of the ramp and he grabbed my arm and commented something about that that Marine is alive and why had
we piled equipment and gear on him.  I was completely shocked by his comment and just jerked my arm away and made some (believe derogatory) remark.  As mentioned before, I wonder if
he made it.  I didn't remember that we even fired a shot.  I guess I was totally  focused on collecting up the team.  My pilots were busy with there duties and the gunners didn't need any
assistance from me. Later that day after we returned to base and I had a quite moment to myself,  I remember I sat down in my plane and as I replayed the days events I started to shake.
That really spooked me for a while. For a long time I wondered if I'd choke the next time things got hairy.
 
 

Capt. Wiegand spiraled down to wedge the bird's right main gear against the mountain side.  There was nothing bekow my port gun window but steep down slope.

As Miller and Stoughton were hauling chewed up recon Marines into the bird, I was using my M-60.  A voice from the cockpit, over the intercom system, kept telling me spray the tree line.  This I did, along with any and everthing else out there.

When the M-60 jammed, as we lifted off, Miller calmly reached over and helped clear it.

I would like to forget what the inside of the bird was like flying back to the medical facility but, I can't.  Such a small bloodless hole in that Marines temple!  Sounds of pain not covered by the screech and howell of the engines and transmissions.  A scared dog lying in the blood of the dead and wounded.

Map

After Action Report

On Feb. 16, 1968, I was filling sandbags with the rest of the corpsmen in 3rd Force Recon when a call came down for volunteers to assist an Alpha Company Recon team that had just been hit near the Rock Pile.  HM3 Jim Whitlatch and I volunteered for the mission.  The extract chopper set down on the launch pad and we boarded for what was to become one of the hairiest times I was involved with in Vietnam.  When we got to the team site, Whitlatch and I jumped from the chopper, falling about 15 ft., and receiving fire from the time we left the chopper and ran up the slope to where the team was located.  The first casualty we saw was the dog handler who had multiple wounds and several others who looked to be KIA.  Whitlatch reboarded the helicopter, which was forced to hover, and could not set down, and then they loaded the dog handler who Whitlatch took care of.  Then the rest of the team boarded the chopper.  One member of the team stayed on the ground with me, and we loaded up two bodie
s, and all of the gear that was left.  I then boarded the chopper and the Marine boarded after me.  When I got on board, the Marine Recon team members started yelling "get the dead one off the live one, get the dead one off the live one".  I saw two bodies lying on top of each other and picked up one, PFC Thomas Lee Little Sun, and tossed him aside, (I regret this to this day), and then looked for signs of life on the other body (HN ALEXANDER GIEJC ); not seeing any, I started to do a trach on Geijc.  Whitlatch handed me a scalpel, but the chopper was vibrating too much to do the operation.  I then tried mouth-to-mouth but Geijc's jaws were locked; I then began to give him mouth to nose and this was successful, but I had to continue it for the rest of the flight.  Every time I stopped, he quit breathing, so I had to start again.  When we landed at Dong Ha (Delta Med),  someone brought out a stretcher and we put Geijc on it; as we were exiting the chopper, someone said they were getting inco
ming, so we started to take him into a bunkered position.  That's when one of the Med company corpsman yelled that we were going to "kill that man" if we didn't get him into triage.  (I'd like to punch that corpsman for saying that); but apparently they weren't getting incoming (how were we to know that?).  Geijc lived about 24 hours, I think.  The chopper crew and the pilots were outstanding that day, they did everything right, and covered myself, Whitlatch, and the team bravely and with dedication.  Doc Ditterline 3rd Force Recon 67-68

By the way, I remember getting shot at
as soon as I exited the aircraft.  The rounds were very close, zipping
by my head and plucking at my clothes.