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Information on Lam Son 719 from Keith Short |
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Charlie and Alpha Companies |
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(Grateful appreciation to Keith Short for providing this information) |
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For those of you who served when the Lam Son 719
operation began in 29 January 1971, and for those of you who are
interested in another aspect of the 1st Battalion, 11th Infantry Regiment
Pioneers' tour in Vietnam: By early evening of Thursday, 18 February, A/1-11 Infantry had replaced us at the border. We were extracted to begin patrols to the west and then NW of Khe Sanh. On March 7, 3d Platoon from A/1-11 was in a contact in the vicinity where 1/C/1-11 had walked back into South Vietnam from a little Laotian RIF the late afternoon of 5 February. The commander of A/1-11 Infantry, CPT Philip Bodenhorn, needed a C&C flight to see for himself what was going on with his ambushed platoon. Randy Ard was the pilot of that flight and LTC Sheldon Burnett climbed into the copilot's seat. They picked up CPT Bodenhorn and his FO, Lieutenant Jerry Castillo. For whatever reason, they overshot the contact area, and the border, and were shot down about four kilometers west of where 1/C/1-11 Infantry had been in contact on 8 February. Burnett was pinned in the chopper, going in and out of consciousness, and Randy Ard was stuck in the front panel of the chopper. Bodenhorn and Castillo left their commander LTC Burnett, and pilot CWO Ard, as the NVA moved in. Randy Ard and Sheldon Burnett have been MIA until a couple months ago. Click here to view a 1/1 Cav, Daily Staff Journal from 18 Feb 71. Keith Short
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