Run Run Cricket Run, page 22
“I’m wondering what the hell is going on. An invasion of Laos by the South Vietnamese is just short of insane. Has anyone heard of Dien Bien Phu?”
“Dien Bien Phu was a fortress. This is a mobile maneuver. Maybe there’s an ace in the hole we don’t know about.” Col. Melendez lit a cigar and tilted back in his chair.
“Yes sir. And we may be it. We can’t win the war because we can’t plug the supply lines from the air, despite ten years of constant bombardment. American ground troops aren’t allowed in Laos by the Geneva Convention. We need to pull out of Viet Nam with minimum loss of face, so we arrange for the South Vietnamese and Laotians to launch a major ground offensive into Laos, probably with tanks. We direct air strikes around the clock based on the fire they’re getting. They’re the cheese in the trap, so to speak. They will cut and run, of course, and it will be a total disaster. So, we use it as an excuse to pull out, but at a faster rate than we have been. Since American troops won’t be involved directly, it won’t an American defeat.”
He paused and neither officer spoke for a few minutes, pondering the situation. Finally, Thatcher spoke again. “Maybe it will give us a chance to negotiate something short of a complete disaster, politically and militarily.”
Col. Melendez pondered his subordinate’s theory for a few moments and then broke the pause. “If you’re right, and I think you probably are, our squadron is going to revert to a lot of low level, close air support situations at the expense of bombing the trucks on the trail. We don’t have a lot of experience there, except for Nails working with the Green Berets and you Cricket West FACs supporting the CIA stuff. How do you see this unfolding?”
“Until I attend the meeting, I won’t know but here’s a guess: We are going to be asked to provide around the clock air cover and the number of anti-aircraft guns will grow like mushrooms. American air power will be used to give as much cover as possible, but there is no way we can stop the massacre. The Nails without experience in close air support of ground troops can be used on the guns, and they’ll be very busy. But there was already one friendly fire incident with a Cricket West operation. You know the lieutenant I’m talking about. He killed a half dozen of our Laotian allies.”
“I remember.” The colonel shook his head with an exasperated look on his face.
“The NVA artillery capability is very credible. And I can’t believe they won’t be bringing SAMs with them. Another problem, the territory around the DMZ, as you know from experience colonel, is basically flat, 50% covered with trees and somewhat featureless. The lack of defined physical landmarks means a lot of confusion over exactly what coordinates are in play. This doesn’t smell good to me.”
He paused for a few moments; the colonel picked up a smoldering cigar from his desk ashtray and took a drag, blowing the smoke toward the ceiling. Then Thatcher continued.
“Colonel, you know what happened at Dien Bien Phu in 1954 better than anyone. The French picked a site for a set-piece battle, thinking they had the advantage. They thought their trenches, barricades, and breastworks made them safe from artillery. In fact, they were in a hole. General Giap did something the French never dreamed he could do, hauled artillery up jungle-covered mountains and rained down pure hell. Our bases at Dong Ha and Khe Sanh just south of the DMZ were abandoned for the same reason: they were hammered from a distance at night. There were very few frontal assaults. My youngest brother was a Marine at Dong Ha and is now medically retired with a mangled right arm. My brother told me he never got the chance to shoot at an enemy soldier; the NVA just sat back a few hundred meters and hammered away with artillery and missiles 24 hours a day.”
Thatcher paused, frowned, and then continued, “By the time the NVA finishes with artillery and rocket attacks at night, they won’t have to mount any suicide charges. Their artillery can fire up to 22 miles. The South Vietnamese, still alive, will run like hell. I wish someone would read Bernard Fall.”
The Squadron Commander shook his head in a sign of agreement and dismay and then paused. “Well, do whatever you can do to make all that clear in your meeting.”
“Yes sir.”
After another long pause during which neither officer spoke, Thatcher stood up and the two men shook hands without any further discussion. The faces of both men were expressionless. Ted Thatcher saluted and left.
The next morning was uncharacteristically cool. Captain Thatcher, Nail 79, was seated on the NKP ramp near Base Ops, wearing blue jeans and a green golf shirt, waiting for a pickup by Raven 1, the commander of the Raven Detachment near Pakse, Laos. The early flights of daytime Nails were cranking up and taxiing out for take-off as the last of the night flights were landing. Right on time, at 0700, Raven 1 touched down and taxied over to the Nail portion of the flight line. Ted Thatcher waved to the O-1; the aircraft headed directly to him, shutting down the engine, and coasting to a stop a few feet from Thatcher and his overnight bag. The pilot, also wearing blue jeans, completed his ensemble with a Hawaiian shirt, and a cowboy hat. He stepped briskly from the Bird Dog and met Ted Thatcher halfway to the plane. He was slim, sported a smile on his face, and held out his hand. Thatcher shook it before picking up his bag,
“Hi. Brandon Sugg. Raven 1. I hope you’re Nail 79.”
“So do I.” Thatcher was smiling. “I’m Ted Thatcher. Do you need to make a pit stop?”
“Negative, but thanks for the offer. I’m ready if you are.”
“Let’s go. I’m ready to hear the strategy for our upcoming victory.”
Raven 1 laughed. “I see why you were selected for this mission. What’s your outlook on this war?”
“I don’t have an outlook. I just practice what I learned hunting doves in North Carolina: ‘shoot at everything that flies and take credit for everything that falls.’”
Brandon laughed again and motioned to the open door of the O-1.
They climbed into the small O-1 Bird Dog, Major Sugg in the front seat and Thatcher in the back. Before Thatcher fully strapped in, the O-1 was taxiing toward the runway, but they didn’t make it. Raven 1 gunned the engine on the O-1 and was airborne in about 400 feet, using only the taxi way. Ravens prided themselves on being a little out of the ordinary and made every effort to demonstrate how unconventional they were. Within two minutes, they leveled off at 400 feet and Major Sugg checked in on the intercom.
“I was given the highest recommendation for you by your Squadron Commander. Apparently, you’ve had some previous experience here. My only question is, why in the hell did you come back?”
“Before I answer, you have to tell me why you volunteered to become a Raven. Have you lost your mind?”
“That’s simple enough. Where else can you fly without someone looking over your shoulder every minute and asking why you did what you did?”
“Verstehen. I guess you knew Paul Bartram.”
“Of course. He was a Raven through and through. I feel for his wife and family. How did you know him?”
“He was my introduction to the Air Force Academy, my element leader the moment I walked onto the campus. He trained me to walk, talk, march, sleep, and everything else.”
“Well. I’ll be damned. I didn’t know he went to the Academy. I thought he got right off a tractor and into a cockpit.”
“Not hardly. He was definitely a farm boy, but he was also in the top 25-percent of his class. And he was tough as nails, pardon the expression.”
“I’ll pardon it. We Ravens don’t think the Nails are tough at all.”
“Look,” laughed Thatcher, “I fly with our Laotian X-Ray friends, just like you, but when I get back, my next mission may very well be flying an O-2 over Mu Gia Pass. Want to join me?”
“Hell, no! That’s Air Force stupidity. Why would they ever put an airplane without an ejection seat into that environment?”
“It didn’t start that way. Initially, the anti-aircraft fire was lower caliber stuff. As it grew from heavy machine guns to real anti-aircraft artillery, the O-2s didn’t show any more or fewer casualties than the newer OV-10s. Know why?”
“I would guess they are smaller and not as noisy.”
“Bingo. When I volunteered for a second tour, I specified O-2s. Quite frankly, you Ravens would be a lot safer in O-2s.”
“We would be, except we have to make a lot of short field takeoffs. Sometimes we land in rice paddies, dry ones of course.”
“Of course. What’s your guess on this meeting? From the Nail perspective, we’re losing, which I predicted two years ago. We can’t even begin to slow the truck traffic. Every time we launch an airstrike at night, the rest of the trail looks like an interstate highway. They even turn their lights on once we start an airstrike knowing we can’t strike in two places at the same time. By the time we put in one airstrike, there’s no telling how many other trucks have moved several more miles.”
Brandon Sugg chimed in, “I agree we’re losing. There’s been no letup in Pathet Lao activity in the western half. It’s definitely increasing. More villages are losing their rice to the bad guys. It means there are more bad guys. We’re seeing gunfire from areas that were friendly a year ago. Maybe that’s what this meeting is about.”
“Maybe.”
The secret meeting to win the war in Laos and Viet Nam began at 1400 hours on December 1, 1970. It was held in a briefing room at a Raven compound in southern Laos. There were no uniforms of any kind, and no full names were used, only call signs. It was not because the meeting was super-secret, which it was, but because those attending would be using their call signs in the upcoming campaign. This way they could put a face with the call sign during the upcoming battle. An American in civilian clothes began the meeting. He was apparently the CIA officer in charge.
“Gentlemen, thank you for attending. Let’s see who’s represented here.”
Raven 1 started, “I’m Raven 1 and I represent the Raven FACs at this location, four of whom are with us here. We have a half dozen pilots and eight Laotian fighter pilots flying AT-6s.”
Ted Thatcher went next, “I’m Nail 79 and I represent the Nails. We have four Nail/X-Ray teams at NKP and we can supplement them with as many solo Nails as necessary. Our squadron has 28 pilots and ten navigators who can operate day or night in both O-2s and OV-10s. I have been instructed to commit to this operation whatever is needed.”
The CIA leader, who introduced himself as Bob, began the briefing by describing an anticipated major infantry invasion of Laos by South Vietnamese forces, spearheaded by five tank battalions. Entitled Lam Son 719, it would begin in early 1971 to block Route 9, the main road into South Viet Nam for the trucks on the Ho Chi Minh Trail. The designation “719” represented the year the South Vietnamese attack would commence, 1971, and the Route into South Viet Nam it would concentrate on blocking, Route 9 through Tchepone. The town of Tchepone, the bombed-out Laotian village just north of the Laotian/South Vietnamese border, was the intended focal point. Well known to the Nails, the convergence of the roads there would be captured and held for an indeterminate period using 12,000 Vietnamese infantry supported by their own tanks and U.S. air power. A push by U.S. troops into Laos had been seriously considered but rejected by the Nixon administration since it would be a violation of the Cooper Church Amendment prohibiting U.S. troops in Laos.
To provide intelligence on potential enemy reaction, there would be an initial probing test launched not from South Viet Nam, which might telegraph the punch, but from the Laotian side of the Mekong River across from Ubon, Thailand. This test would use one battalion of mercenaries from Laos commanded by a CIA officer and would measure the resistance from the Pathet Lao and North Vietnamese. It would occur in December 1970, one month in advance of the major invasion. The information gathered would be used in planning the major invasion.
For the major invasion itself, Dong Ha and Khe Sanh, the abandoned U.S. Marine bases just south of the DMZ, would be reactivated to provide artillery support. Army helicopter gunships and all available U.S. air power would be used to accompany the infantry/tank offensive, but no U.S. ground troops would be used. All of the ground operations, including the initial test by Laotian mercenaries in December, would depend heavily on U.S. airpower from the Thai airbases at NKP and Ubon, as well as the closest U.S. bases in South Viet Nam, such as Danang.
The briefing officer concluded, “Our major goal is to plug the Ho Chi Minh Trail from South Viet Nam by using South Vietnamese infantry, tanks, and U.S. airpower, including B-52 strikes. By stopping the flow of men and materials from Laos into South Viet Nam, it will allow the U.S. to ….” The briefing officer didn’t finish the sentence because he didn’t have to. Everyone in the room understood the U.S. was politically unable to continue prosecution of the war.
When asked if there were any questions, Ted Thatcher asked if anyone was familiar with the French defeat at Dien Bien Phu. The CIA officer responded quickly, “Of course. The NVA used artillery hauled up the mountains and rained down hell on the French who expected a set piece battle. They expected a frontal assault which they could defeat with artillery and airpower. The difference here is there are no mountains close enough to give the North Vietnamese that advantage.”
“That’s true.” continued Thatcher, “but the enemy doesn’t commit in broad daylight. Their tactics have always been rocket, mortar, and artillery fire, especially at night. They have artillery that can reach 20 miles. They don’t have to be on a mountain. The South Vietnamese infantry will have nothing but foxholes. We can’t use air attacks safely at night, even with flareships. The use of tanks is also questionable, at least in my mind. We’re not dealing with the farmland of Europe; we’re dealing with the jungle of Southeast Asia. Even where there are roads, they’ll be mined heavily. What do you call a column of tanks with the lead tank blown up and blocking the rest of the tanks behind it? It’s called a shooting gallery, and the French learned it the hard way.”
The room was quiet, and the briefing officer paused before speaking. When he did, it was with very measured language.
“I hear you loud and clear. All I’m authorized to say is the U.S. effort here is winding down and this is the opportunity for the South Vietnamese and Laotians to assume the lead role in protecting their countries. You are all in this room to provide air cover, you know the territory, you know the enemy, and you will have unlimited access to whatever you need.” There was a long pause while the reality of the situation sunk in.
“I understand.” Thatcher was the one speaking but the rest of the room nodded in agreement. There was no need to expand the discussion any further at this point.
That night, Ted Thatcher, the CIA officers involved, and the Raven FACs assembled at a local restaurant in the nearby town. The Crown Prince of Laos, resplendent in his dress uniform, the Princess, his very attractive wife, the Laotian X-Rays headed by Major Khampat, and the Laotian T-28 fighter pilots joined the Americans at a long banquet table. To Thatcher’s acute embarrassment, some of the American CIA radio operators brought prostitutes into the room as dates as well. The meal was served, along with wine and mixed drinks consumed by the Americans only. After dinner, the Crown Prince delivered a very moving speech directed to the Laotian fighter pilots present. Although the Americans could not understand him, the emotional content was clearly discernible. The Prince obviously conveyed the utmost seriousness of the upcoming offensive, and the Laotians present displayed very somber faces both during and after the speech. The Prince finished his remarks, and the diners rose in respect as the Prince and his wife departed. He probably suspected 1,000 years of the monarchy were coming to end. And he was right. He would ultimately escape across the Mekong River into Thailand, but much of the rest of the Royal Family, including the King, would be sent to camps where they lived until they died.
After dinner, the American pilots moved upstairs to a bar that featured a Laotian rock band trying hard to mimic American music. A number of Laotian ‘ladies’ and Americans who were not in the meeting were already dancing.
Thatcher assumed the Americans were the aircraft mechanics and radio operators who supported the Raven FACs in their missions in the Cricket West missions in the Laotian territory bordering Thailand. Raven 1 and two other Ravens Thatcher knew only by call signs from previous aerial encounters, ordered beer, and spent a few minutes trading backgrounds with each other before launching into a discussion on the upcoming operation.
Raven 1 started with a direct question to Thatcher. “Nail 79, you were a little rough on the briefers in there. We agree with you 100 percent, but you know as well as we do it’s over. We’ll do our duty, as you Nails will, but the end is not going to be pretty.”
Thatcher paused a moment before answering. “Every American soldier, sailor, and airman in Southeast Asia knows it’s over. This operation, in my opinion, is designed to allow the administration in Washington to say we tried, and that it’s not our fault the South Vietnamese couldn’t step up to the plate.”
Then he spoke in a lower tone of voice to avoid anyone hearing other than the FACs at the table. “As far as this initial test from Thailand into Laos to block the trail, our CIA test battalion coming in from Laos on Route 9 will be sitting ducks; they won’t even have a tree to hide behind. Route 9 is basically a dirt road through abandoned rice paddies. Our air power is impressive, especially the B-52s. But the NVA will strike unexpectedly and retreat quickly. And all of this will be at night, when we’re sleeping. The battalion won’t last a week.
“The South Vietnamese invasion scheduled in January will be a different story, but with the same ending. There is nothing to hide behind, and all the tanks in the world won’t change this because this is not the open farmland of Europe, this is the jungle of Southeast Asia. This is an historic moment, and we are right here at the starting gate. Maybe I should say we’re at the finish line. But the most painful part to me is that our Laotian friends, the ones we have all been flying with for our entire tours, are going to endure hell, and we all know it. The Viet Nam fiasco has been an inexcusable exercise in American ignorance. Ho Chi Minh was probably the logical choice to be the leader of his country. But the Laotian communists are not patriots, and they do not have the support of the people. They’re Chinese puppets. They are thugs and we all know it.”
