INTERVIEW WITH VIETNAM VETERAN ROBERT COURT part two
An Interview with Vietnam Veteran Robert Court - Part 2
Editor's comment: Robert and Debby Court are lifetime members of the Seymour Community Historical Society and avid supporters of the museum. They have always attended exhibits and speakers on military topics. Several times it was mentioned that I would like to include an interview with a Vietnam Veteran in the newsletter and install it on the military kiosk at the museum. No one volunteered until several months ago Debby mentioned Robert was ready to be interviewed.
Robert, who was a medic, served in Vietnam for 14 months and often was under enemy fire. He was one of the first to land in Cambodia in 1970; his helicopter was shot down, he saved lives and had his life saved. While modest about his experiences, he answered every question and related a compelling story. I didn't realize the degree of his commitment until I read the book "Twelve Days In May" by Jerald Berry. It is the previously untold story of the 3-506th Infantry of the 101st Airborne Division. Thank you Robert Court for your distinguished service.
"South Vietnam was divided into four sections or Corps and I got assigned to the 101st Airborne Division which operated in the northern part of the country. The 3-506 is one battalion of the 101st Division. The 3-506th (Currahee's) means to stand alone. The battalion commanders that were in Vietnam in the 3-506th knew if shots were fired in I Corps or II Corps we would be called in. We were transported in whatever was available. It could be a helicopter, C-130 plane, Chinook helicopter or by semi/cattle truck. Six infantry men traveled in a helicopter, two on each side with their feet hanging out and ready to jump off and two in the middle facing each other. The medic and radio operator were in the middle so they were protected. Such was the case in the helicopter that I got shot down in.
Introduction to the Infantry
On February 19, 1970 on Hill 474 a medic got killed and that was the day I went out in the field. The medical staff spent 6 months out in the field which was longer than most. I actually spent 10 months because things were winding down and there were no replacements. On May 5 or 6 we went into Cambodia. I wrote home and told my mom and she wrote back that she didn't believe me because she said that President Nixon said we didn't have any troops in Cambodia.
Under Fire
The first experience I had with seeing the VC up close was a life threatening situation. They were no more than 20 yards ahead of me, our machine guns were behind me and I was in 'no man's land.' My two wounded people, the Lieutenant and point guard were just ahead of me. Fortunately, the point man was just shot through the arm and wasn't wounded very badly, so I bandaged him up and went after the Lieutenant. He was shot through the femur, it was broken, not bleeding badly, but still a very serious wound.
Saving the Lieutenant
I was about 6'3, but pretty thin and the Lieutenant must have weighted about 210. I figured I could load him up on my back and bear crawl him out of there. After about eight to ten feet I could see that wasn't going to work. This all happened within two or three minutes. By now both machine guns melted down and only a few M-16s were left to give me cover. It seemed like the enemy firing stopped and I called for help to get the Lieutenant out of there.
A Close Encounter
Three guys came and helped me carry him out in a poncho. I distinctly remember seeing this log ahead of me with a VC behind it. He had a rifle that looked so long that it could extend out and touch me. I figured it had to be one of those extra long single-shot Chinese rifles. Anyway he was bringing it up and I grabbed my rifle, put it on automatic and fired, but only one shot fired, the one in the chamber. The clip to my M-16 had fallen out and I had to find a replacement. So I found a clip, put it in and emptied it. I didn't even look up. I found another clip and fired that without even looking up. I thought bullets were ricocheting off my helmet because I was hearing and feeling something. When I did look up I realized it was the guy I was bandaging. My rifle was about six inches from his head and he kept hitting me on the helmet with his fist to get my attention because of the rifle noise.
Saved by the Cake
The following night I was going through my rucksack looking for something to eat and I found a pound cake that was in a can the size of a tuna can. I have to admit that most of the food we ate seemed like it was left over from WWII. Later on we got dehydrated food in a plastic bag that just needed water added and that was a little better. I opened it up and it was drier than dry. Absolutely no moisture was left in the cake. I felt something on the back and I turned it over and a AK-47 round had gone through the can and lodged in the cake. I saved the round and have it at home. I realized that this was on my back and I came inches from getting killed.
Alpha Company - First In
When we first went into Cambodia Alpha Company was to lead and this included me. Our commander was in a little two man 'Bumblebee' helicopter. He was checking out these landing zones that they had picked out on a map. Everything was live. Shots were being fired everywhere. So we are flying around with about 20 other helicopters looking for a place to land. Eventually the pilots said, 'we have to go back and refuel.' We did, but didn't have enough refueling depots to accommodate all the birds. So that took two hours. Our battalion commander was determined that the 101st had to be the first with boots on the ground in Cambodia. So we went back and I was on the third chopper to land. By evening we had the landing zone and firebase all set up. They said Alpha Co. was to stay and provide cover while the fire base was established. We were bulldozing dirt and putting concertina wire around. Our job in Cambodia was to disrupt the enemy and destroy as many weapon caches, food caches and medical supplies as possible.
The Black Market
When we went into Cambodia we were one of four battalions. We captured cases of M-16s that hadn't even been opened. That just shows how widespread the black market was. We couldn't believe that they would have brand new cases of American weapons that weren't even opened.
Helicopter Crash
There was one medic for every platoon (about 30-35 men). Each company was three platoons or around 100 men. As Bravo headed out on our mission the VC ambushed them. The VC set up the perfect ambush by getting between two platoons. Bravo called for reinforcements and I was on the first chopper to answer the call. But we never made it in. We got hit by enemy fire and crashed a quarter mile or so from the site. When we crashed I was in the middle and I did a somersault over one of the guys and was quite dizzy. I remember having trouble walking. The captain of my chopper was severely wounded, but I didn't know that. Nineteen men were wounded and six died.
The second chopper landed and now we had twelve infantry men to set up a defensive perimeter, but the VC never attacked. The higher ups wanted us to guard the chopper overnight, but we knew better and decided to get out of there and get to a clearing where the enemy couldn't sneak up on us. There were numerous clearings where napalm had been dropped. We used one of these areas to set up our secure area for the night. Everything was charred and the residue from the napalm was all over among the burnt stumps. We set up a defense where we put Claymore mines out and trip wires.
Rescue
During the night a water buffalo came in and set off the trip wire. We were prepared to stop any VC with our knives since a rifle flash would let the enemy know where we were and possibly draw mortar fire. When the buffalo tripped the wire a flare went up and lit up the area. We were hugging the ground and fortunately the VC had left the area. Being a farm boy, the water buffalo didn't upset me.
None of us got any sleep that night. You have to remember Bravo Company was isolated with 19 men wounded and 6 dead. I thought the rest of the company was there to cover for them, but they went back to the base. The next afternoon a Chinook chopper arrived to lift out the downed chopper. Two more choppers arrived to return the 12 of us to the firebase and our company.
Recommendation for Valor
I got a recommendation for valor for saving the lives of the two soldiers. In the letter I got it says, ‘Cambodia Campaign.'
Agent Orange
In Vietnam everyone smoked, but worse than that was the soot left behind by Agent Orange. We would always set up camp in a clearing where everything was burnt off and covered with soot. I asked 'Why don't we set up in the vegetation where it is clean.' Everyone felt it was safer in the open where the VC couldn't sneak up on us. They had to be damn fools to crawl through that stuff.
More on Cambodia
When we went into Cambodia we were supposed to be there 30 days, but we only lasted 12. At first we did a lot of damage, but after enemy reinforcements came in it was much more difficult and we got out of there. After the Cambodian incursion, the battalion commander got the word that the VC occupied a hill. He decided he wanted several companies to attack the enemy. So we set up on the side of a hill. Bravo and Delta were coming up the backside to flush the VC out toward us. So he is flying around in his bumblebee helicopter checking things out. Suddenly the radio operator says, 'Holy crap the whole hill is moving, there has got to be a thousand of them' They never expected that. Two hundred against 100 we had pretty good odds, but not against a thousand!
Evacuation
So the battalion commander called our company commander and told him to get down the hill and he had already called for choppers to pick us up. Well, we didn't have that many choppers and since you can only get six on a chopper it would take quite awhile to pick everyone up. They had to leap frog, take one group and come back for another. As we are coming down the hill we are looking for clearings where Agent Orange had been used. We found a clearing and the Captain told the radio operator to call in the first chopper and he would guide him to set down. Since the chopper pilot had no idea of the slope of the terrain, the captain stood with his rifle over his head with it level to the ground.
Tragedy Strikes
He was standing about three feet above where the chopper was going to land. The chopper came in and the blade cut off the captain's hand, his other arm was hanging by a couple tendons and part of his face was sliced off. His eyes were open, but his nose and jaw were gone. I'm about 5 feet away. Two guys grab the captain and throw him on the chopper, I see his hand on the ground and pick it up and throw it in the chopper. It takes a few seconds for the chopper to lift off. I thought the captain was dead, but he braced himself up on his elbow, looked at the machine gunner and pointed to his head with his stump. He wanted the gunner to shoot him with his pistol.
Six weeks later I got a letter from a surgeon on a navy hospital ship thanking me for sending the hand with him. He said they made three attempts to reattach the hand, but they all failed. They reconstructed his face and the captain did survive. I discovered author Jerry Berry who wrote a book, Twelve Days In May and three other books about the Cambodian Incursion. My wife contacted him and he asked if I had any interesting stories. I told him about the incident with the captain. He said he got to know the captain well and went hunting with him for about 12 years in the western states. Unfortunately, he passed away in 2004.
Natives of Vietnam
The native people of Vietnam who befriended Americans knew when the VC took over that they would be killed. I remember going through hamlets where people were friendly and several weeks later the hootches were all burned and the whole area destroyed. The people who came to the United States knew if they didn't get out they would be killed. It was a war that couldn't be won. By day many of the locals were your friends, but at night the VC would come in and order them to move weapons from point A to point B. What choice did they have? If they didn't do it their whole family could be killed or raped. We would sit in the mountains at night and could see the flashlights and all the activity in the villages. Being a medic and a religious person, it was very disheartening to see all the women and children who were victims of the war. When we first arrived getting off the plane I will never forget the smell evidently caused by the humidity and improper sanitation. I was in Vietnam for 14 months.
Adjustment to Civilian Life
There was a lot of adjustment when I returned from Vietnam. We lived out where the cemeteries are so we weren't too far from the big quarry on Highway 54. One day they blasted and I dove under the table. When I would go out I often went to Wally's. Then it was downtown on Main Street. A car came down the hill and backfired and I jumped under the pool table. Of course everyone laughed at me. I was drinking too much and smoking up to three packs a day. I decided I had to stop and that June I went 'Cold Turkey.'
Old Glory Honor Flight August 1, 2014
The Honor Flight
The honor flight blew me away. I went through the EAA. Everyone on our plane was a Vietnam vet and on the way to DC everyone told their story. It was just amazing to hear all the stories. Mike Birling and John Minlschmidt were with me and I sat with them. When we got to DC they gave us a warm welcome with fire trucks shooting water in the air that the plane went through.
Things were much different when I came home from Vietnam. I flew into Fort Lewis Washington and five hours later I was out of the army. I got off the plane and there was Chub Garsow from Seymour. He was one of the guys telling us to take our clothes off and change into other clothes that were provided, I had new boots and perfectly good clothes, but they wanted us to put them in a pile and change into civilian clothes 'so you don't get disrespected' when you get off the plane. I didn't get spit at, but others did. We had a two to three hour layover before we could get a flight to Milwaukee, so four of us rented a car and drove. Three of them were from Milwaukee. Once we got to Milwaukee I got on a Greyhound Bus and rode to Green Bay."