White Teams & Naval Gunfire Missions
Brian Harrison, Dan Keirsey and Terry Young provide stories of when F Troop supported Naval Gunfire Missions in 1972.
Can you add comment/notes?
Brian "Stretch" Harrison: The 11th Combat Aviation Group records for 15 November 1972 state:
F Troop 4th Cavalry observed and engaged 2 T54 tanks, 2 Soviet Armored personnel carriers and 4 trucks one mile south of Qua Viet River (YD379662). During the engagement the team received heavy automatic weapons fire and one SA-seven was launched by enemy ground troops forcing the aircraft to depart prior to making a damage assessment of enemy forces.
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One of the first flights I rode along as a door gunner early Jan 1972 was a single-slick recon flight up to the scene of this engagement (roughly a month after it occurred). The convoy had been heading south in a line through the sand dunes and were all severely damaged on the ocean side, ripped open by naval gunfire. I remember seeing a T-54, PT-76, a personnel carrier, and 1-2 trucks.
We made a couple of low-level “gun runs” on the wrecks flying in from the ocean side trying to see who could come closest with a smoke grenade… the A/C, P/P, crew chief, and I all had a different color grenade in hand. I got lucky and bounced my grape smoke right into the inside of one of the vehicles. I was most likely flying with pilots Dan Keirsey and Ron Holmes, and crew chief SP/5 Bob Totten.
The Scouts often flew “white team” missions with Marine F/Os who were trained to direct the Naval gunfire and temporarily assigned to our unit. I remember being pissed anytime white teams went out without a slick (I wanted to fly).
I don’t have pictures of the scene but Wayne Moose did bring back pictures of destroyers off the coast.
And Pete Barber's terrific photo album shows similar captured Russian and Chinese vehicles being examined by F/4 pilots earlier in the war. https://www.centaursinvietnam.org/SlideShows/SSBarberPeter.html
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Here are 11th CAG mentions of other late-war F/4 white team missions, also referred to as light reconnaissance team missions:
11 December 1972:
A light reconnaissance team from F Troop 4th Cavalry, acting as a Naval Gunfire adjustment platform, directed fires resulting in 11 secondary explosions.
12 December 1972:
An Air Cavalry white team from F Troop 4th Cavalry observed an enemy troop concentration and 2 130mm guns firing on friendly positions. The team adjusted Naval gunfire resulting in 12 secondary explosions.
31 December 1972:
A light reconnaissance team from F Troop 4th Cavalry observed 4 tanks and 20 troops at YD338704. The team adjusted Naval gunfire with unknown results.
Dan Keirsey: I recall flying out adjacent to a destroyer off the coast and directing Naval gunfire on the enemy positions. We certainly had some interesting and exciting adventures. At one point the NVA were attempting to resupply their troops by floating bundled bales of rice down the coast to hopefully be retrieved by their forces. I recall landing and having the crew retrieve some of them. Subsequently dropping them in what were (hopefully) friendly villages.