My Uncle, Magdaleno Tarango was a Lance Corporal D co., 1st Bn, 9th Marines when he was killed in action during operation Prairie II on 5th March 1967. I loved him very much and I still miss my Uncle Neno. Even though these men are of the Army 9th Infantry Division, it brought back some old memories.
They were assigned to III Corps which was in the far south end of Vietnam in Mekong Delta a very tough area of operations that had been an enemy strong going back to the French Indochina War. They had to do a lot of Amphibious operations to to the terrain and worked very closely with the US Navy Riverine Force(Brown Water Navy) who operated the landing craft and patrol boats as well as US Navy Seals who also operated very heavily in III Corps. Certainly one of the generally lesser known areas of operation during the Vietnam War despite probably overall being the most difficult AO. Pretty interesting stuff if you read up on it.
I posted this earlier, but I have a cousin that was awarded the Silver Star while serving with the 9th ID. His unit was working with Navy PBRs at the time, doing what exactly I don't know. I know he was based in Ben Luc. I can only imagine that it was a very difficult AO to have to work in.
Originally the 9th Infantry Division was in III Corps, based at Bear Cat, but moved down into the Delta (IV Corps) in late 67-68 and based at Dong Tam.
I have a cousin that served with the 9th Infantry Division from 68-69. He was awarded the Silver Star for his actions during a battle somewhere near Ben Luc. He made it home thankfully.
I see the name "Tackett" on the film slate (ID card). I knew (Bob?) Tackett and, as I recall, we were both in the 9th Signal Battalion photographic unit at the same time (our MOS was 84 Charlie Mopic, shooting "movies"), including our brief stay at Fort Riley, Kansas, and the slow boat ride to Vung Tau. Apparently we went our separate ways early on: he was sent to Dong Tam and I spent most of my time in Rach Kien, which is maybe halfway to Saigon from Dong Tam. His footage looks eerily similar to that which I shot, with the same delta landscape. His film reminded of the odd stares we would get when we shot closeups of individual soldiers. He was a better cameraman, though-the lenses on the Bell & Howell "Filmo" 16mm cameras we used had to be focused manually-guessing at distance of subject from camera for each shot and I tended to get excited and forget-shot more than a little out-of-focus film, lol. Others have noted here that the footage is kind of boring: just troops walking, traveling on boats, and resting. I answered that those activities were about 99% of what happened on any given operation. The VC tended to avoid contact with us unless they had a tactical advantage or a strategic need, which was arae in the delta. On other rare occasions we might surprise or stumble across them. These moments were the 1% that could be dangerous, but not necessarily dramatic on film (it ain't like you see at the movies!). We were lucky that our commanding officer, Lt Bob Rutkowski, requested "dailies" from the Army Pictorial Center in Queens, NY, where our raw footage was sent to be processed, so we eventually did get to see what we had shot. But it was an unreliable process, and we didn't see anything "daily"-they might have sent film back regularly, but we would needed to visit Camp Bearcat to see anything as the only 16mm projectors were there; none in Rach Kien anyway. I still have some of the dailies from what I shot. You can see some film I first shot as an army cameraman (of the USS Barrett departing from the Oakland (CA) army base) on the Alamy website: www.alamy.com/video/1966-the-usns-barrett-troop-carrier-ship-casts-off-with-the-9th-infantry-division-in-san-francisco-bay-609277528.html?videoid=BCDD1F44-9571-40C8-8525-EB2A6CEEB699&p=2380268&pn=1&searchId=80be8308ef6d949dd9b1838d3889cc9c&searchtype=17&fbclid=IwY2xjawEreARleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHTmDMnRnmgzNGqF-Qz03Vqv0PaBnuQvtqwQagsrAd3fWFBms-gtzpzBjsg_aem_l-7xfL34szw9SDLm8eFf3g
I was with the 9th infantry division in 1968 and I can still hear combat some nights before bed and it makes me angry because it seems that nothing works to make it go away.
I worked in. Broadcasting in the 60s and we used to get AP, UPI, Reuters, etc via satellite. We recorded them on 2" quad video tape to be used for news. Broadcast. We got some gruesome stuff. It was against the FCC regulations to broadcast and soldier with blood on them in color. So, often times I would have to eliminate the color during a chroma key if a piece was needed like that. There should have been a slate at the beginning with the date/location/reporter/and source as they did on every feed clip
My grandpa fought in Nam as infantry marine. Only told me one war story my entire life. He said his freind has just been killed and that he had to stack his dead comrades on top of each other to use as sand bags. So sad.
Interesting to watch this with no sound as almost all footage from this war is silent film including by news men. Exception are those where a soundman lugged a tape recorder along with the cameraman. All documentaries including those by PBS always add sound to the 16mm film clips. Without narration, my impression is it's hot and humid, endless time of constant patrol where it is really boring. There's always army bureaucracy BS, change of mission for no apparent reason, egos from "pointies," the guys thinking about when they will finally get to go back to "The World." Among all this is the fear of a surprise attack by "charlie" which can happen at any moment.
That is the way most operations in the delta happened...98% walking and resting-it is the 2% that were dangerous, but also infrequent. Usually, the VC avoided contact with us unless they had a tactical advantage or a strategic need.
My Uncle, Magdaleno Tarango was a Lance Corporal D co., 1st Bn, 9th Marines when he was killed in action during operation Prairie II on 5th March 1967. I loved him very much and I still miss my Uncle Neno. Even though these men are of the Army 9th Infantry Division, it brought back some old memories.
God bless Uncle Tarango for his service to our great nation.
@@PeriscopeFilm thank you very much, keep up the good work. What you do is needed, and very much appreciated. God bless you and keep you.
God bless uncle Magdaleno
@@gilesy2468 Thank you very much.
They were assigned to III Corps which was in the far south end of Vietnam in Mekong Delta a very tough area of operations that had been an enemy strong going back to the French Indochina War.
They had to do a lot of Amphibious operations to to the terrain and worked very closely with the US Navy Riverine Force(Brown Water Navy) who operated the landing craft and patrol boats as well as US Navy Seals who also operated very heavily in III Corps.
Certainly one of the generally lesser known areas of operation during the Vietnam War despite probably overall being the most difficult AO.
Pretty interesting stuff if you read up on it.
I posted this earlier, but I have a cousin that was awarded the Silver Star while serving with the 9th ID. His unit was working with Navy PBRs at the time, doing what exactly I don't know. I know he was based in Ben Luc. I can only imagine that it was a very difficult AO to have to work in.
Originally the 9th Infantry Division was in III Corps, based at Bear Cat, but moved down into the Delta (IV Corps) in late 67-68 and based at Dong Tam.
No sound, but I can just hear goodnight Saigon playing softly in the background. I was a little kid of 7 when these men passed through the fort.
I have a cousin that served with the 9th Infantry Division from 68-69. He was awarded the Silver Star for his actions during a battle somewhere near Ben Luc. He made it home thankfully.
I see the name "Tackett" on the film slate (ID card). I knew (Bob?) Tackett and, as I recall, we were both in the 9th Signal Battalion photographic unit at the same time (our MOS was 84 Charlie Mopic, shooting "movies"), including our brief stay at Fort Riley, Kansas, and the slow boat ride to Vung Tau. Apparently we went our separate ways early on: he was sent to Dong Tam and I spent most of my time in Rach Kien, which is maybe halfway to Saigon from Dong Tam.
His footage looks eerily similar to that which I shot, with the same delta landscape. His film reminded of the odd stares we would get when we shot closeups of individual soldiers. He was a better cameraman, though-the lenses on the Bell & Howell "Filmo" 16mm cameras we used had to be focused manually-guessing at distance of subject from camera for each shot and I tended to get excited and forget-shot more than a little out-of-focus film, lol.
Others have noted here that the footage is kind of boring: just troops walking, traveling on boats, and resting. I answered that those activities were about 99% of what happened on any given operation. The VC tended to avoid contact with us unless they had a tactical advantage or a strategic need, which was arae in the delta. On other rare occasions we might surprise or stumble across them. These moments were the 1% that could be dangerous, but not necessarily dramatic on film (it ain't like you see at the movies!).
We were lucky that our commanding officer, Lt Bob Rutkowski, requested "dailies" from the Army Pictorial Center in Queens, NY, where our raw footage was sent to be processed, so we eventually did get to see what we had shot. But it was an unreliable process, and we didn't see anything "daily"-they might have sent film back regularly, but we would needed to visit Camp Bearcat to see anything as the only 16mm projectors were there; none in Rach Kien anyway.
I still have some of the dailies from what I shot. You can see some film I first shot as an army cameraman (of the USS Barrett departing from the Oakland (CA) army base) on the Alamy website:
www.alamy.com/video/1966-the-usns-barrett-troop-carrier-ship-casts-off-with-the-9th-infantry-division-in-san-francisco-bay-609277528.html?videoid=BCDD1F44-9571-40C8-8525-EB2A6CEEB699&p=2380268&pn=1&searchId=80be8308ef6d949dd9b1838d3889cc9c&searchtype=17&fbclid=IwY2xjawEreARleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHTmDMnRnmgzNGqF-Qz03Vqv0PaBnuQvtqwQagsrAd3fWFBms-gtzpzBjsg_aem_l-7xfL34szw9SDLm8eFf3g
More of these please.
may God bless all 9th div troops from ww2 to now! I was in hhc 2nd bde 80's!
Psychedelic Cookie Division, so called because of their shoulder patch.
I was with the 9th infantry division in 1968 and I can still hear combat some nights before bed and it makes me angry because it seems that nothing works to make it go away.
Have you ever found yourself oddly wishing you were back there?
I worked in. Broadcasting in the 60s and we used to get AP, UPI, Reuters, etc via satellite. We recorded them on 2" quad video tape to be used for news. Broadcast. We got some gruesome stuff. It was against the FCC regulations to broadcast and soldier with blood on them in color. So, often times I would have to eliminate the color during a chroma key if a piece was needed like that.
There should have been a slate at the beginning with the date/location/reporter/and source as they did on every feed clip
My grandpa fought in Nam as infantry marine. Only told me one war story my entire life. He said his freind has just been killed and that he had to stack his dead comrades on top of each other to use as sand bags. So sad.
Interesting to watch this with no sound as almost all footage from this war is silent film including by news men. Exception are those where a soundman lugged a tape recorder along with the cameraman. All documentaries including those by PBS always add sound to the 16mm film clips.
Without narration, my impression is it's hot and humid, endless time of constant patrol where it is really boring. There's always army bureaucracy BS, change of mission for no apparent reason, egos from "pointies," the guys thinking about when they will finally get to go back to "The World." Among all this is the fear of a surprise attack by "charlie" which can happen at any moment.
Good morning Vietnam!!
Kodus to Vietnam's citizens - nothing is for free!
Все куда-то едут, идут,плывут реальной боевой обстановки не видно! Видать так и воевали,дистанционно….
That is the way most operations in the delta happened...98% walking and resting-it is the 2% that were dangerous, but also infrequent. Usually, the VC avoided contact with us unless they had a tactical advantage or a strategic need.
Tunnel Rats...
NON GRATUM ANUS RODENTUM
P.O.W.
M.I.A.
Never Forget