More about Operation Tame the West – May 5, 1970.
Sometime after the book “Into Cambodia” was written by Keith William Nolan ( passed away from cancer in 2009), published in 1990 by Presidio. I discovered this narrative account in Vietnam magazine. I immediately purchased the book and read it non-stop to find the reference about Pleiku and the campaign that was launched within days after the start of the Cambodia Incursion, May 1 1970.
This is part of our American history and military history; I was able to share this account with family members and friends.
Being witness to the U.S. Army units that stayed at Pleiku airbase for a couple of days before they convoyed from the airbase to Kontum then west into Cambodia south of the tri-border area of Laos, and South Vietnam. Those of us airmen who primary duty as perimeter guards knew something important was about to happen. We made it our duty to help our fellow soldiers with entertainment, sharing our ration cards so they could enjoy the liquor, food and girls we knew that would ease the tension and the unknown they would soon be engaged with searching for the North Vietnamese Army and their supply caches.
We felt we had done some good for the Army grunts, soldiers and support units. We never knew any of them by name or can I tell you who they were or from what part of the United States. We knew them as Americans who we would never see again, not knowing if any were KIA, or WIA or missing in action.
This experience that I share with you is one of the many reasons for making the film “A Weekend to Remember, 25th Anniversary Vietnam Veterans Memorial.”
This is part of the Vietnam veterans experience and their memory that is preserved by book, personal account by me and others.
I now call upon the helicopter units at Camp Holloway, the field artillery units who were part of the campaign to share their accounts here on this blog, Weekend to Remember documentary film page at Face Book.com or at the film website http://www.weekendtorememberfilm.com.
If any of the reader ship knows of those veterans who were part of this campaign, let them know our history is preserved and here for them and the general public.
I will share more thoughts about this personal experience of 1970 in the days and weeks to come.
Thank You,
Mark
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