Today we pause to remember SFC Charles “Charlie” Edward White, FOB-2, Project B50, who on January 29, 1968, became the first MACV-SOG member to become MIA in Cambodia.

Today we pause to remember SFC Charles “Charlie” Edward White, FOB-2, Project B50, who on January 29, 1968, became the first MACV-SOG member to become MIA in Cambodia.
In the fall of 1967 and into early 1968, MACV-SOG formally absorbed the 5th Special Forces Group's (SFG) old Projects Omega and Sigma. These cross-border missions included those code named "Daniel Boone." The MACV-SOG teams were stationed at new bases at Ban Me Thuot for missions into Cambodia and at Kontum for missions into both northern Cambodia and Southern Laos.
On 29 January 1968, then SFC Charles E. White was the reconnaissance patrol medic assigned to Company B, MACV-SOG, Command and Control North (CCN). The mission identifier was "Daniel Boone." The reconnaissance team was inserted into the extreme northeastern corner of Cambodia from Forward Operation Base 2. The team's mission was to locate and report on NVA forces also operating clandestinely in this region. The team engaged a NVA element. They were able to fight their way free and make it to a small opening in the dense jungle where McGuire rigs, which were a type of rope sling, were dropped to the team from a waiting Huey helicopter.
The helicopter hovered approximately 100 feet off the ground as SFC White and two indigenous team members climbed into the rigs. After SFC White gave the all clear signal, the pilot increased the Huey's altitude to about 200 feet to clear the jungle canopy. As the Huey began to pull the team up through the trees, Charlie White radioed, "I'm having a problem with the rig." A passenger aboard the helicopter looked out and saw SFC White turn upside down and fall out of the McGuire rig and into the jungle below. According to the passenger, Charlie White fell from an altitude of roughly 25 feet above the ground. Because of the large number of NVA in the area, no immediate search and rescue (SAR) operation was possible.
The location of loss was in the densely forested mountains of extreme northeastern Cambodia approximately 2 miles south of the Cambodian/Lao border, 12 miles southwest of Ban Pakha, Laos; 36 miles southeast of Attopeu, Laos; and 49 miles west-northwest of Kontum, South Vietnam; Ratanakiri Province, Cambodia.
On 31 January, a MACV-SOG rescue team, including SFC Fred Zabitosky and SFC Dallas Longsteath III, was inserted into the same landing zone (LZ) the missing medic was being extracted from. As they searched the area, they found enemy tracks where the NVA got in line and swept up the hillside, then discovered a place where all the tracks came together at one spot. They found where SFC White had fallen through the jungle canopy into a clump of thick bamboo that had been crushed by his fall. Because there was no blood on the ground or any of the stalks of bamboo, they determined there was enough foliage to have safely broken his fall. By the appearance of the tracks, all the NVA left in the same direction as a single party. Because all the boot prints were so intermixed, there was no way to tell if Charles White's larger boot prints were among them.
During their inspection of the bamboo thicket and surrounding area, the search team found no sign of a freshly dug grave. Because of the lack of blood found and no grave, the team believed that Charles White had not been injured or killed either by the fall or by enemy troops. They also found no personal equipment of SFC White's in the trees or on the ground. These facts also bolstered the team's belief that Charlie White not only survived the fall, but also was captured and led away by the NVA.
By the time the rescue team was inserted, it was a full day behind the communist forces who searched the site before them. Because of the large number of communist troops known to be in the region, the search team was unable to follow the enemy's trail. With no other course of action available to them, the search team radioed for the extraction helicopter to pick them up. In spite of the overwhelming evidence that he survived the fall and was captured, Charlie White was declared Missing in Action and the country of loss was officially listed as South Vietnam at the time the formal search was terminated. No additional search efforts were attempted due to the continuous enemy activity in the area.
Shortly afterward in a letter to Charlie White's mother from his commanding officer dated 23 February 1968, Mrs. White was told that her son "became missing while under heavy hostile fire near Khe Sanh in South Vietnam." The true facts and circumstances surrounding his loss remained classified and hidden from public view until declassified in 1973.
No direct action was taken on this case with either the Vietnamese or Cambodians until his case file, along with those of other men missing in Cambodia, were passed to the Khmer representatives at the United Nations in December 1975. The Khmer representatives stated there were no American prisoners in Cambodia and the Cambodian government had no information about any missing Americans. Although missing in an area where large numbers of North Vietnamese were known to be operating, there is no record that the Vietnamese were ever queried about SFC White's fate.
Under the circumstances, there is no question that the Vietnamese know what happened to him. If Charlie White died as a result of his loss or under enemy control afterward, he has a right to have his remains returned to his family, friends and country. However, if he survived, his fate like that of other Americans who remain unaccounted for in Southeast Asia, could be quite different.
After his status was changed to 'presumed dead', the family of SGM White placed a Memorial Stone for him in Highland Memorial Gardens, Bessemer, Alabama, where he was born and raised. SMAJ White is the husband of Mrs Mary L White, Son of Mr Otis and Mrs Margaret White, Father of Charles E., Chester E., Carl E. and Cathy E. White.
He served as a Sergeant Major with Detachment B-50(PROJECT DELTA), Command and Control South, Military Assistance Command-Vietnam, Special Operations Group, 1st Special Force Group, United States Army, Vietnam.
He was awarded The Bronze Star Medal, The Combat Infantryman’s Badge(CIB), The Combat Medical Badge(CMB), The Purple Heart Medal for his combat wounds, The Good Conduct Medal(s), The National Defense Service Medal(s), Vietnam Jump Wings, Paratrooper Jump Wings, The Vietnam Service Medal with two Bronze Stars, The Vietnam Campaign Medal and The Vietnamese Gallantry Cross Unit Citation.

Today we pause to remember SGT David Ives Mixter, CCC, RT Colorado 1-2 was KIA, BNR on January 29, 1971.

Today we pause to remember SGT David Ives Mixter, CCC, RT Colorado 1-2 was KIA, BNR on January 29, 1971. Source - "Behind the Wall" by George "Sonny" Hoffman.
"David Ives Mixter (Mix) stood tall in the ranks as a Green Beret should. He had a rough complexion, a bit pocked. With a little more meat on his bones he'd have been a bad-looking dude. Though he was tall, Mix wasn't bad. He was a soft-spoken gentle giant who laughed easily but rarely made anyone else laugh. Practical jokes, rubber barf, and gags were more his style. His virtue was generosity. He would give you the shirt off his back. Mix would share his last buck with you and was always good for a short-term loan.
I liked having Mix in our group. He looked like a Green Beret, even in civies, and made bad guys think twice before messing with us. In a fight, however, he'd be a liability. Mix was gangly and a fast oponent could slap him silly before Mix could land a blow. That's just conjecture, because we never had to fight. I often called him "Dumb Shit." I did so, not because he was dumb, but because I could. Calling a big man a dumb shit was like yanking a lion's tail when only you know he's just a big pussy cat.
I ran into Mix at the beginning of my second tour. We were both in the same Recon outfit at CCC and didn't know it. For two months, his team and mine were never in the camp at the same time. We crossed paths while crossing the compound in opposite directions. We just stopped and stared. "Mix?" "Sonny?" You get the picture.
We talked for hours. We had so much to catch up on, so many friends we had to exchange information about. Mix had been running recon longer than I had and was full of useful tips. He was dismayed that I hadn't found time to have a recon shirt made. "You have to have a good recon shirt, man."
A recon shirt is a jungle fatigue jacket with the bottom pockets removed and sewn on the sleeves. This made the blouse easier to tuck in. The bottom pockets are useless when web gear is worn, and recon men can't get enough pockets. You keep as much on your person as possible. His was a lucky recon shirt, he explained. The Yards put some magic on it. We all had lucky something-or- others. Mix had a lucky recon shirt.
Mix's team was on stand down--no missions for the forseeable future, a time to train, heal, replace lost men. RT Montana, my team, was on our way to Long Thanh for a week of training in preparation for a POW snatch mission. The mission was to launce from there, and we were due to leave that day--no time for a recon shirt, or a Yard magic potion. Mix insisted I take his.
That's one thing you don't do--take a guy's lucky something-or- other. You don't hide it, mess with it, steal it, or borrow it. The luck is his, anyway. If he hadn't told me it was his lucky thing, I'd have accepted the shirt without much thought. Borrowing from Mix was an old habit. My credit was good with him. He was relentless about my taking his shirt. The mission we drew was a tough one. I'd be going on it with no recon shirt, and a good recon shirt was something you had to have, he repeated. I took the shirt.
I was wearing that recon shirt when I met Frank Celano at Long Thanh, when I suddenly felt the need to take a nap. Our POW mission was a dry hole. We got hauled out and returned to Kontum. I was not looking forward to my return. I'd have to tell Mix about Frank. He'd be happy that the luck in his shirt saved one friend. Mix would look on the bright side, and he'd find the luck working on his behalf.
I went in search of Mix with his cleaned shirt in hand. My first query left me cold. Mix took a B-40 rocket in the chest. The team had to leave his body. Mix was an MIA, but absolutely dead.
Here's what happened:
His team had to pull reaction duty because there were no operational teams that weren't already deployed. Normally, the reaction team, like the fire department, just hangs out at the ready. The NVA shot down a fast mover (a jet) over southern Laos where Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam come together. The area was always hot. They went in to look for the pilot and ran into bad guys right away. A brief, intense firefight broke out between the team and a very large NVA unit that was manuevering to encircle them.
Mix was hit in the chest by a shoulder-fired B-40 rocket. Some said the rocket hit him in the chest, others said it hit right in front of him while he laid prone on the ground. In either case, his chest was a mess and he was unresponsive. His team leader took one look and knew he was dead. Every Yard that saw him said likewise. Mix was too big to carry and staying would doom the entire team. Since he was the only loss, the team leader made the decision to leave his body and try to get the team out.
Ordinarily, a team leader that leaves a man is ostrasized, even if he saves lives doing so. I don't think anyone faulted him under those circumstances. He got his team out under extremely difficult conditions, and leaving Mixter made that possible. Mix would have made them go if he were conscious. I know he would. He couldn't, because he was dead.
He was dead because an NVA soldier fired a B-40 rocket at him. You couldn't convince me of that until recently. He died because I had his lucky recon shirt. I survived the war because I stole it from his family.
The proper thing for me to do at that time was to turn in his shirt so that it could be returned to his family with his other personal effects. I let the picture of Frank's girl go, and regretted doing so. I kept the shirt. The shirt was, indeed, lucky.
When I stood before Mixter's name on The Wall, we talked about the shirt. No, I didn't talk out loud. People would think I was nuts, but we talked. He laughed when I apologized for taking his lucky shirt. He said he had three of them, and that all that bullshit about being lucky was for my benefit. I told him I kept it when I should have turned it in for shipment home to his family. He said they didn't send any field uniforms home. I told him I wore that shirt for years after the war. I wore it until the material would not hold together. He thought that was pretty funny.
I don't care what that dumb shit Mixter says; that was a lucky shirt."
From the POWNetwork: The unit was operating near what is known as the "Parrot's Beak" area of Cambodia, where Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam borders meet. At 1400 hours that day, Mixter's team made contact with an enemy force. B40 rocket propelled grenades were fired at the team, one of which exploded directly in front of Sgt. Mixter. When he was checked by the team leader, Sgt. Mixter's chest was covered with blood, and he did not respond at all.
Sgt. Mixter was thought to be dead, and had to be left behind in the rush to break contact with enemy troops. The remainder of the team was ultimately extracted. Searches the next day produced some of Mixter's possessions, but he had vanished.
SGT Mixter, age 22, is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

Today we pause to remember SSG Gary Lee Crone, SP5 Michael Thomas “Tommy” Mahoney and SFC Charles Tredinnick of FOB-3, Khe Sanh.

Today we pause to remember SSG Gary Lee Crone, SP5 Michael Thomas “Tommy” Mahoney and SFC Charles Tredinnick of FOB-3, Khe Sanh. On January 29th, 1968, SSG Crone and SP5 Mahoney, as members of MSG William S Wood’s recon team, were on patrol near Hill 471 in Khe Sanh. The team was ambushed by a North Vietnamese force that vastly outnumbered them.
SSG Crone was killed almost immediately upon being ambushed, reportedly as he attempted to radio for support. SSG Crone's remains would not be recovered until the summer of 1968. He is honored on Panel 35E, Row 58 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and buried in Quickels Lutheran Church Cemetery, Zions View, York County, PA. SSG Crone was due to be redeployed to Okinawa the day after he was killed. He was survived by his parents and three siblings.
“Tommy” Mahoney had been a volunteer on that team. He was wounded in the leg during the ambush, and the team was split. He was last seen alive on the hill trying to evade the enemy and get back to the FOB. In April 1968, after the siege was lifted, Marines found Tommy's remains on Hill 471. We remain uncertain of exactly how or when he died, but it is likely that he died from the wound(s) received earlier, and/or further enemy fire. He is buried in Saints Peter and Paul Cemetery, Towanda, PA.
SFC Charles “Chuck” Nicholas Tredinnick of Dallas, PA, was killed leading a unit to recover SSG Crone's remains and was posthumously awarded the Silver Star. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery, Section 33 Site 11550. He was married to Joy Keller who joined him in Arlington in 2005.
SFC Tredinnick Silver Star citation follows:
“The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 8, 1918 (amended by act of July 25, 1963), takes pride in presenting the Silver Star (Posthumously) to Sergeant First Class Charles Nichol Tredinnick (ASN: RA-52357613), United States Army, for gallantry in action while serving with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), 1st Special Forces, while engaged in military operations involving conflict with an armed hostile force in the Republic of Vietnam. Sergeant First Class Tredinnick distinguished himself by exceptionally valorous actions on 29 January 1968 as a member of a small Special Forces rescue party on a search and rescue mission near Khe Sanh. When his team came under intense small arms and automatic weapons fire, Sergeant Tredinnick fearlessly led his small group in a blazing assault against a numerically superior force. The ferocity of the assault caused the enemy to abandon their well fortified positions. When Sergeant Tredinnick spotted an enemy platoon attempting to outflank his position, he personally took them under fire, delivering such a withering and accurate volume of machine gun fire that he broke the flanking maneuver, causing the enemy to flee. When he saw one of his comrades fall, he showed a complete disregard for his own safety by running through a curtain of fire to pull his comrade to safety. Sergeant Tredinnick was mortally wounded while placing the welfare of his comrades above his personal safety. Sergeant First Class Tredinnick's gallantry in action, a the cost of his life, was in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflects great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.”

Today we pause to remember the seven men assigned to B-52 (Project Delta) who were lost on January 29, 1966 in the An Lo Valley

Today we pause to remember the seven men assigned to B-52 (Project Delta) who were lost on January 29, 1966 in the An Lo Valley. Binh Dinh Province 12 miles west of Tam Quan, South Vietnam. The An Lao Valley was long and narrow with rice fields interspersed with patches of tall elephant grass. Heavily forested mountains rose up on either side of the valley. At the time, B-52 was led by MAJ “Charging” Charlie Beckwith. The three recon teams inserted suffered so many injuries, Delta was temporarily out of business. Charging Charlie was also wounded while flying overhead in his command chopper, but he survived.
Delta's mission was to support the 1st Air Calvary Division with RT's. TAOR was in the northern end of the An Lao Valley. RT's were to observe the main routes leading into the area to determine if VC or NVA were using them to reinforce or to withdraw from US Marines pushing south toward the valley and the 1st Cav and ARVN pushing north.
Intelligence was from unconfirmed agents, weather was terrible, limiting air support and communications, and it was common knowledge that bad guys controlled the valley, 1958 being the last time a friendly unit had operated in this area. Everything looking negative, Delta staff decided to brief the RT's and ask for volunteers. Three teams, 17 men total, volunteered and were infiltrated at last light, 27 January 1966. Five would be killed, three wounded and two reported MIA. The following is a list, from official sources, of those men:
TEAM One: SFC Henry A Keating; SFC Robert P Whitis; SSG Norman C Dupuis (WIA); SSG Agostino Chiariello and SSG Brooke A Bell.
TEAM Two: SFC Frank R Webber (WIA); SFC Marline C Cook (KIA); SSG Donald L Dotson (KIA); SSG Geore A Hoaglund (KIA); SFC Jesse L Hancock (KIA); and SSG Charles F Hiner (WIA).
Team Three: SFC Marcus L Huston; SSG Billy A McKeithe; SSF Wiley W. Gray; SSG Ronald T Terry (MIA); SFC Cecil Joe Hodgson (MIA) and SSG Frank N Badolati (KIA)
At 0930 on the 28th, Team One made contact resulting in 1 VC killed, 2 VC wounded, 1 American wounded (Norman C. Dupuis).
Team Three also made contact on the 28th at 0930 and again at 1205, when SSG Badolati was struck in the upper left arm by a bullet that severely mangled, and nearly severed, his arm. SFC Hodgson immediately applied a tourniquet just before the patrol broke contact. The Americans moved approximately 600 meters before stopping to treat Frank Badolati's arm. As soon as the patrol stopped, it was attacked again. The team immediately returned fire and then separated into two groups of three to attempt to evade the enemy. SFC Marcus L Huston and SSG Billy A McKeithe remained with SSG Badolati. Throughout the rest of the afternoon and night, they cared for Frank Badolati while painstakingly moving through the rugged terrain as they evaded the VC. Periodically they would stop to adjust SSG Badolati's tourniquet. When they would loosen it, the mangled arm began bleeding profusely again.
In the darkness, they came to a streambed that flowed westward from the Song An Lao River. The Americans entered the stream and used it to hide their trail. Finally SSG Badolati stated to the others that he "could not go any further" and for them to leave him behind. The other soldiers selected a position two to three feet up the bank that was well concealed with shrubs and boulders. The three men remained in place from 0300 hours to 0515 hours. During that time, both men administered medical attention to Frank Badolati's mangled arm, however, his condition continued to deteriorate. They believed he died in the early morning of 29 January 1966. After his death, they were forced to leave Frank Badolati's body hidden in the boulders and scrubs as they continued to evade the VC. Huston and McKeithe were exfiltrated by helicopter later that day.
The second group of three,SSG Wiley W Gray, SFC Cecil A Hodgson and SSG Ronald T Terry, evaded for the rest of the day (28th). On January 29, they moved at first light into a defensive position, whereupon they encountered enemy forces and another firefight ensued. Terry indicated that he had been hit, and others thought he had been killed. When they looked for Hodgson, he was gone. He was last seen with 9mm pistol in tall grass within arm’s reach of Gray and Terry, when they opened fire on a hostile element blocking their escape and became separated. Survivors heard additional shots, which they believed were shots fired at Hodgson, and they believed he also had been killed.
The team could not search for Hodgson because of the heavy enemy activity, and were forced to move to a rallying point. They evaded capture for the remainder of the day, and were ultimately picked up by helicopter. Searches for all three missing were conducted for the next 4 days with no results. Hodgson was classified Missing In Action. Badolati and Terry were classified Killed/Body Not Recovered.
Team 2 member Charles 'Chuck' Hiner tells the story of his team.
“The team was inserted into the An Lo Valley at last light on 27 January 1966. Two wet days later -- it was raining hard -- my six-man team was sitting down taking a break when we came under heavy fire from a large force of Viet Cong.
In the initial burst of fire Cook, Webber, and Hoaglund were hit, and I don't know, but I think Dotson and Hancock were hit then too. I don't know for sure because they were on flank security. When we got hit I went to the top of the hill to keep anybody from coming over the hill on top of us.
Cook (the radio man) was flank security on the left side and he couldn't get to the radio -- he was paralyzed. He called me back down and I cut the radio off him. There was a pile of rocks in the middle of this clearing so I took the radio in there and lay down on it and started calling. I called everybody and their mother who would answer. The enemy continued to fire on us.
After we got the FAC (Forward Air Controller, a Capt. Kenneth L. Kerr) on the radio and started doing our shit I started looking around. I could hear Dotson. He was hit through the chest and I could hear that death rattle. This other kid (Hancock) -- first trip in, first time on the ground, the whole nine yards -- he was dead. They had stitched him from the ankle to the top of his head. Hoaglund was more-or-less still alive. Cook lasted a long time in there but he finally died, I guess maybe about 1:00 or 2:00 o'clock that afternoon.
Webber had four bullets, all in the arm, from the first burst of fire and shortly after it started I (Hiner) was wounded when I was shot in the head by a VC firing an AK-47. The dude shot at me the same time I shot at him. I hit him first, though, and it caused him to jerk up. It (the round) went about a quarter of an inch in my scalp. It went down into the bone and just left a perfect groove.
I had called airstrikes in on top of our position to keep from getting overrun. It was either do that or get overrun so 'What the hell.’
We were fighting -- I would dare say the closest -- within 10 feet of each other. It was that tight. That's why, when I popped smoke and told the FAC to take it 360 degrees from the center of that, he said 'I can't do it because it will come in on you.' I said well it's either you or them. And that's the way it went. He didn't like it but I didn't like it either.
During a lull near the end of the battle, which lasted four hours, Hiner crawled down the slope to strip the dead -- Hoaglund, Dotson and Hancock -- of their ammo since he and Webber were almost out.
When I got back to check on Hoaglund, I found him on his back, beside a tree, with the rifle muzzle pointing toward his head. "He had one arm shot off, the other was hanging by a thread.”
During the final minutes of the battle, two reaction forces moved frantically through the thick bush toward Hiner's position. One was from the 1st Air Cav., the other, that was first on the ground, was a Reaction Force from Project Delta commanded by a Lt. Holland and led by Sgt Maj. Walt Shumate, who later became an SF legend in his role as the Sgt. Maj. for "charging"Charlie Beckwith in many SF-commands.
Statement by Don Valentine, B-52 Vet: 1st LT. Guy H. Holland was the Delta Project Recon OIC at the time. After exhausting efforts to get the 1st Cav to react to the RT's in distress, he asked for volunteers to go in and get Team Two out. 21 or so of us (don't know why that number sticks in my mind) grabbed our weapons and web gear and bailed onto 3 Hueys and headed out. There were several Nungs included in this force. And, here we go again, regarding the valor of the Nungs. I remember the one that was on my chopper, real young, and didn't have a clue as to what was going on. He only saw us running toward the choppers in a state of emergency, armed to the teeth, and he reacted the way most of them did, entering whatever lay ahead beside their American friends.
"You know when I knew I had made it?" asked Hiner, who recounted that he and Webber, down to just a few rounds between them were crouched down behind a log. "I looked up and saw Walt's bare ass coming over the top of that log. Walt told me later he was busting bush so hard and fast coming up that hill, he had busted out his pants."
KIA SFC Marlin Curtis Cook, was native of Vernon, Alabama and at the time of his loss he was a resident of Fayetteville, North Carolina. An 18 year veteran of the Army, he was 37 years old and was married with children. SFC Cook is on panel 04E, Line 106 of the Vietnam Memorial Wall in Washington D.C. His awards included a Silver Star for his actions during the attack.
“The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 8, 1918 (amended by act of July 25, 1963), takes pride in presenting the Silver Star (Posthumously) to Sergeant First Class Marlin Curtis Cook (ASN: RA-14265805), United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an armed hostile force in the Republic of Vietnam. On 29 January 1966, Sergeant Cook, a member of Detachment B-52, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), 1st Special Forces, was part of a six-man reconnaissance team which infiltrated the northern sector of the An Lao Valley. While stopped to listen for sounds of an unusual nature, they were suddenly subjected to hostile fire from insurgents in well-fortified positions.
Despite the fact that he had been seriously wounded, SFC Cook, realizing that total annihilation was threatened, immediately began firing at insurgent positions. Unable to move because of his wounds, Sergeant Cook directed a comrade in the use of his radio and called in air strikes upon the Viet Cong positions. He continued to render support to surviving team members by continuously placing effective small arms fire on known and suspected insurgent positions. Sergeant Cook succumbed to his wounds after two hours of continuous fighting. Sergeant Cook's extraordinary heroism and gallantry in action were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Army and reflect great credit upon himself and the military service. “
He was the son of Mr and Mrs Marlin Cook, and father to Steven and Marlin D Cook. He is buried in Lafayette Memorial Park, Fayetteville, NC.
KIA SSG Donald Luther Dotson was 27 years old and his wife Blanche C Dotson was living in Fayetteville, NC at the time of his loss. A native of Tennessee, SSG Dotson was buried in his hometown at Sherwood Memorial Gardens, Alcoa, Blount County, TN. His name appears on the Vietnam Veterans' Memorial at Panel 4E, Line 107.
KIA SFC Jesse Leroy Hancock, 33 years old and came from El Paso, Texas. He had been married for 10 years to Miriam Marcia (Trousdale) Hancock. Jesse was buried at the Golden Gate National Cemetery, San Bruno, CA and his name appears on Panel 04E; Row: 109 on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall.
KIA SSG George Appleton Hoagland III was 30 years old and from Phoenix, AZ. He was unmarried. SSG Hoagland is buried at Section 51, Site 122 of Arlington National Cemetery.
MIA (Killed/Body Not Recovered) SSG Ronald Terrance Terry was 28 years old at the time of his death. He was born and raised in Niagara Falls, NY. It is believed, according to DSC researcher Bruce Swander, that Terry was one of the few POW/MIAs to earn the DSC before capture. On 30 March 66 the U.S. Army issued General Orders Number 73, award of the Distinguished Service Cross, to Ronald Terry for action 9-14 December 1964 while serving as one of two Special Forces advisors to an eight man recon team. Several actions occurred that resulted in the DSC for extraordinary heroism in helping the wounded after multiple contacts with the enemy in this timeframe. SSG Terry has a memorial stone placed at Riverdale Cemetery, Lewiston, NY. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.
(MIA) SFC Cecil Joe “Jo” Hodgson, age 28, was born and raised in Greenville, Texas. He was married to Nelda Gayne Dunn and they had five children. Cecil has a military marker in his memory at Sullivan Cemetery, Hunt County, TX and his name is on the Tablets of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.

Happy New Year 2019 from An Như Phong

Passing of SOA member Pete Buscetto

SOA President Rick Estes announced today the “sad news” of the passing of former SOA Treasurer Pete Buscetto, 71. Pete passed away in his bed at home January 24 in Summerville, S.C., outside Charleston, said his son Chris Buscetto.

Rick Estes said, “It is my sad duty to report the passing of Pete Buscetto earlier today. Pete's many years of service to the SOA made him a very close friend to so many of us and will be greatly missed by all. The family will gather in the next day or two and make decisions regarding services. I told his son Chris how much he will be missed and that the SOA stood by to help anyway we can.”

Pete was appointed treasurer of the SOA in 2011 by the SOA Board of Directors to a three-year term in office. He was elected as treasurer in 2014 and again in 2017, but due to health issues was compelled to resign from his elected position during the summer of 2018. He joined the SOA in November 2000. He ran for director of the SOA in the early 2000 years and served on the SOA membership and by-laws committees working with then chairmen Ray Calafell and Ty Furbish.

Past SOA President John S. Meyer said, “In 2011, when the SOA board asked him to serve as treasurer, Pete stepped up to the plate and did all that we asked of him and more. He was a major asset to the SOA board and the SOA membership over the years. During my three-year term in office, Pete spent several hundred hours of his own time working to improve transparency of SOA financial reports as well as working with SOA tech staff improving on-line visibility and services for SOA members.”

SOA Membership Chairman Ray Frovarp said, “Pete was instrumental in developing the SOA website to include the ability to pay dues, apply for membership online and register for the annual reunion.

He was also instrumental in starting the annual CCS Southern Brotherhood Breakfast,” which began in 2012, working with former CCS commanding officer Col. Fred Lindsey, which brought together CCS recon men with all of the aviation units that served SOG recon teams running missions into Cambodia.

Meyer added, “In reflection, Pete said the period of his life that he was most proud of was serving as a SOG recon man, a Green Beret at CCS with RT Plane, at CCC and later trained SOG teams at Camp Long Thanh – the SOG training facility. He was the COO and president of CompUSA East, during a period of time that company grew to over $2 billion in revenues in 1992. He formed other companies, but his days in SOG were the highlight of his life, after marrying the love of his life Terry. In fact, he said that he often applied lessons learned from his recon days to business practices.”

SOA member Ben Lyons was CCS Recon team leader, One-Zero on RT Plane with Pete in 1971. “We ran six or seven missions together. He was real good in the jungle. On top of that, he was a good man and superb team mate. No ‘BS’ and no ‘Why this/why that/”crapopla with him unless he had a point to make and it was a good one. I never got the same questions twice from him and he always learned the first time. Can’t ask for much more out of a recon man...I’m real sorry to hear that he’s gone.”

Peter James Buscetto, was born June 14, 1947 to a career Air Force father, Bruce R. Buscetto. Being a military brat, Pete spent some of his childhood overseas, to include attending Ramsey High School in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico. Pete played football in high school, both as team quarterback and linebacker. He often said he enjoyed playing linebacker more than quarterback because as a linebacker his job was “to mess with the other team’s offense, I loved doing that.” During that time he became an accomplished martial arts student. He continued his education by attending Chowan College, Murfreesboro, NC, earning a Business degree (1964-1966). Pete enjoyed spending time in the woods of North Carolina, which he said helped him to be a good recon man moving through the jungle on missions from CCS and CCC.

Pete joined the Army in 1968 and served with Command and Control South (CCS), MACV-SOG 1970-1971 as a member of Recon Team (RT) Plane. In 1971 Pete was sent from CCS to CCC, and then To Camp Long Thanh to work as an instructor. Pete left Vietnam in Oct. 1971.

After his return from Vietnam, Pete married Theresa (Daiuto) on 18 Nov 1972. They enjoyed 46 years of marriage and the union produced two children, Christopher Buscetto, and Stacey (Buscetto) Wettermann.

Pete was preceded in death by his step-mother, Ruth Adelaide (Crowell) Buscetto. He is survived by his father, Bruce R. Buscetto; wife Terry Buscetto; son Christopher and daughter Stacey Wettermann; sisters JoAnn Vergnolle, Deirdre M Buscetto, Nancy B Burns and brother Bruce Greg Buscetto.

In 2001, commenting on being a recon man with MACV-SOG, Pete wrote: “Only three things counted in those days: did the man pull his missions, was he any good in the woods, and would you go to the bush with him. These standards, once meet, formed a bond among us that will last a life time.”

On January 24, 1964 the Military Assistance Command Vietnam, Studies and Observation Group (MACV-SOG) was established.

On January 24, 1964 the Military Assistance Command Vietnam, Studies and Observation Group (MACV-SOG) was established.

MACV-SOG was an unconventional warfare task force engaged in highly classified operations throughout Southeast Asia. The U.S. Army's Special Forces (Green Berets), Air Force Combat Controllers, Navy SEALs and other units channeled personnel into MACV-SOG through Special Operations Augmentation (SOA), which provided their "cover" while under secret orders to MACV-SOG. The teams performed deep penetration missions of strategic reconnaissance and interdiction which were called, depending on the time frame, "Shining Brass" or "Prairie Fire" missions. By 1968, 327 missions had been conducted by reconnaissance teams into Laos and Cambodia. About 2,000 Americans served in SOG between 1964 and 1972. More than 300 of them died. In the late 1990s the story of MACV-SOG was finally declassified.

MACV-SOG headquarters was located in Saigon, Vietnam. Its ground operation personnel were stationed in Forward Operating Bases located throughout the country. Eventually three field Command and Control sub-headquarters were established - North (CCN), Central (CCC) and South (CCS).
Before 1962, the US military advisory effort in Việt Nam was co-ordinated by MAAG, which initially occupied the former SAMIPIC villa at 606 Trần Hưng Đạo in District 5. In February 1962, following the arrival of the first US Army aviation units, MAAG became part of the Military Assistance Command Việt Nam (MACV), which was set up to provide a more integrated command structure with full responsibility for all US military activities and operations in Viet Nam. MAAG survived until May 1964, when its functions were fully integrated into MACV. In May 1962.

When MACV relocated to larger premises, the villa at 606 Trần Hưng Đạo became known as MACV II. Then in 1966, following the transfer of MACV operations to Tân Sơn Nhất Air Base, it was vacated by the Americans and became the headquarters of Republic of Korea Forces Vietnam, which remained there until the signing of the Paris Peace Accords in 1973. Today, 606 Trần Hưng Đạo is home to a number of local businesses, but the old villa is currently under threat of redevelopment.

The second MACV headquarters in Saigon – an unassuming three-storey apartment building at 137 Pasteur in District 3 – has an interesting history. Before being taken over by the US military in May 1962, it served from 1955 to 1959 as the headquarters of the Michigan State University Group (MSUG), which was controversially engaged to advise President Ngô Đình Diệm on the reorganisation of his feared secret police. By 1966, MACV had outgrown this building too, so on 2 July 1966 it was relocated to the new purpose-built “Pentagon East” complex, adjacent to Tân Sơn Nhất Air Base. Between 1966 and 1972, 137 Pasteur functioned as the 
headquarters of the MACV’s Studies and Observations Group (MACV-SOG), a special operations unit tasked with covert warfare operations. When the last active-service US military units departed in 1972, all MACV operations in the south, including MACV-SOG, were subsumed within the Defense Attaché’s Office (DAO), a branch of the US Embassy. In the following year all DAO operations were transferred to the “Pentagon East” complex and 137 Pasteur was returned to civilian use.

Nothing now remains of the huge “Pentagon East” complex, which was formerly situated on the east side of modern Trường Sơn boulevard (the Tân Sơn Nhất International Airport approach road), between the Cửu Long and Hồng Hà street junctions. In its place today stand the CT Plaza Tân Sơn Nhất shopping mall and cinema complex, and next to it a very large building site. 

However, on nearby Hồng Hà street, visitors can still see the former Dodge City Bachelor Enlisted Quarters (BEQ) and one surviving building of the MACV Annex, both currently used by the Southern Airport Services Company (SASCO).