GySgt. Sanders' letter that accompanied the above photo.
I was assigned to support the 37th ARVN Ranger Bn., commanded by Capt. Hoang Pho (later Col.) who I am still in contact with. I don't know the other Marine in this photo, he was assigned to me at Hill 10 as my assistant F.O., he has the binocs. I had never seen him before. I am the guy leaning against the rock. We are without our flak jackets as only ARVN officers wore them. So when we humped in the mountains with them (ARVN) we did not wear them. We were supposed to wear them and 11th Marines, my parent unit, made us wear them on my first outing with the 37th. and I lost a radio operator, LCpl Mark J Tamkus, who was WIA Sept 17, 1967 during Lien Ket 116. Because we were wearing the damn things, a sniper mistook me for an officer (as I was wearing binoculars) but he missed and hit Tamkus.
The Carronade; I'll tell you what impressed me about the ship, it wasn't the rockets, it was the gun crew of the 5" 38. On Desoto, we had a DD and a DE to support us as well. We were using the DD quite a bit but then it was pulled away from us and we started using the rocket ships. When we first arrived, all we had were LSMR's and we were there before the arty (artillery) arrived as well, so for several days NGFS (Naval Gunfire Support) from the LSMR's was the only real support we had because arty ammo was in very short supply. We were used to the 5" 54 and it could fire rapidly, but we noticed that the 5 inch 38 mount of the Carronade was nearly a match for speed, and as we found out later, accurate as well. It was our impression that it was as fast and better shooter than the automatic 5" 54 gun on the DD.
One incident at night occurred. We had been getting shot at quite a bit and some of our fixed wing aircraft also. What we started doing was plotting the location of the origin of the tracers toward us and the aircraft. These guys were firing red tracers also. We'd call it in and the ship, not sure which, it was an LSMR type though, the sailors would plot it and another spot team would also, we'd triangulate and the target fired on. This went on into the evening. At one point we had unfriendly movement to the front and I fired the individual. I carried an automatic rifle, we still had the M-14 and I normally carried every fifth round a tracer which is standard, but I had a magazine that was all tracer. It was my "...they're coming through the wire..." magazine. Well, this stream of red light the area like an LA freeway at night, the gooner had been scared to death, and my friends with the other spot team and the ship are plotting in the position of that stream of tracers. We still have movement, and they now know where I am and I can only whisper, "Check fire, check fire, that's me!".
(Note: When Sgt Sanders refers to "LSMR's", he is making reference to the class of "rockets ships" whether LSMR or IFS. In another letter with an accompanying "Action Report", the Carronade is mis-ID'd as an DD.) |
GySgt Doyle Sanders, leaning against the rock, his spotter next to him, about a year after "Operation Desoto".
A stroll through the elephant grass in "Tiger Country".
