Headquarters & Headquarters
Company |
1st Bn 8th Cav (1967-1968)
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1st Air Cavalry Division
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| Update 12 Feb 2005 A SHORT HISTORY OF
1967
The operations conducted in 1966 continued, for the most
part, in 1967, provided the battalion with continued experience,
became more skilled in conducting the various missions assigned to
them - patrolling, ambushes, cordon and sweeps. Offensive operations
at the beginning of the year, were conducted North of the Village of
Bong Son in the Bon Son Plains, in II Corps area. During the
February Operation, PFC James H. Monroe, a medical corpsman in C Co,
earned the second Medal of Honor awarded to the 8th Cavalry in
Vietnam, by diving on a grenade and absorbing the blast, he saved
the lives of several of his comrades. Continuing operations I n the
Bon Song Plains, Co D stood off a Viet Cong attack on their night
defensive perimeter which resulted in 19 Viet Cong killed. Moving
from the plains to the Cay Gier mountains along the coast, the 8th
Cavalry continued to demonstrate its capabilities and flexibility to
fight in rugged terrain. The battalion continued to inflict grievous
losses on the Viet Cong as the enemy was sent reeling in every major
contact with the battalion. The year was closed out with fierce
fighting by Co C through the Dai Dong area. After a two day battle
through the village, the enemy left behind 204 dead.
In
addition to providing security and pacifying the land, the battalion
was experimenting with new tactics including psychological
operations and medical assistance to villagers. Improving old
techniques, the use of aerial rocket artillery and air strikes were
increased. Proving to be highly mobile, the battalion during
November assumed the responsibly of the entire 1st Brigade area of
operations, as the remainder of the brigade was operating with the
4th Infantry Division.
A SHORT HISTORY
1968
OPERATION PERSHING, the last large operation in 1967,
came to a close with outstanding results on 21 January 1968. The
totals for the operation (division wide) included 5,000 killed,
nearly 2,500 captured and over 1,000 weapons confiscated. The
battalion moved with the 1st Brigade to continue operations in I
Corps at the beginning of 1968, as this was to turn out to be a
memorable one for the battalion and the 1st Cavalry Division as a
whole. Moving into Quang Tri, the battalion protected the brigade's
fire bases during the enemy TET Offensive. The defense of the city
itself ran from 31 January to 6 February. At the end of his time,
the 8th Cavalry had defeated the enemy and begun pursuit operations.
Operating on the shores of the Gulf of Tonkin, Companies A and B
engaged an estimated battalion of enemy soldiers and killed 19 while
capturing valuable enemy arms. April 5, marked the beginning of
OPERATION PEGASUS; the battalion and other 1st Cavalry elements came
to the relief of the Marines at beleaguered Khe Sanh. After
successful operations, the battalion moved on to their biggest
operation for the year. The Ashau Valley was the first objective of
OPERATION DELAWARE. Located in a strategic position guarding the
passes to Laos and the Ho Chi Minh Trail, all units found large
caches of enemy equipment including crew served weapons, Soviet
trucks, rockets and rice. In many respects, this operation in an
enemy stronghold would reflect the battalion's activities in
Cambodia a year and a half later.
Later in the year, the
battalion began to conduct joint operations with ARVN soldiers and
the local forces. This was another sign of progress as the 1st
Cavalry Division already had initiated the Vietnamization program
long before it became a national concern. Cordon and search
operations utilized local Regional and Popular Forces in order to
deny the enemy the vital rice which he so desperately needed. The
Summer months and early Fall were spent securing Highway 1 and
conducting operations within their own AO, the battalion had been
operating in an area designated as base area 101 by the Viet Cong
and continued to engage small enemy units, the classical way to
fight guerrilla war. The last big battle fought by the battalion in
I Corps was at Quang Tri City on 22 August.
A new phase was
begun in October. The entire battalion moved along with the division
to III Corps where the mission was to interdict infiltration routes
and destroy enemy forces. Primary emphasis was on stopping
infiltration from Cambodia through the "Angel's Wing" and the
"Parrots Beak" two staging areas in South Vietnam. Maximum
coordination was made with the US Navy as the battalion went
"watermobile". This emphasized a maximum use of sea and air power to
cover a large area of operations. Joint operations were launched
along the maze of waterways to eliminate enemy traffic, neutralize
bases and seek out caches. As a mini-armada of battalion troops in
armed Navy ships moved up stream, they would turn to shore at
irregular intervals and deploy troops to search the area long the
waterway. 1968 closed with the NavCav operations, indicating the
ability of the battalion to coordinate both with allied ARVN and
other branches of the US Armed Forces. It was a memorable year for
the battalion, truly emphasizing mobility from the dusty reaches of
Khe Sanh in I Corps to the waterways of the lower III Corps.
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