This Day in History By Doug Miller

• December 25, 2022

December 23-24-25, 1969, Delta Company occupied what was known as the “Old French Fort”.

The position had been abandoned by the French in 1954 and sat alongside a dirt road shown on our maps as LTL Route14. The location was nothing more than a 4-foot raised earth berm shaped as a triangle.

It was close to the Saigon River which served as a major infiltration route used by the NVA-VC. We would use this location as a company NDP (night defensive position) for the next several days.

Troops from our unit, Manny Pais, Roger Lynch and Charlie Scott were sent to the Bob Hope Christmas show in Lai Khe. During the day we conducted RIF operations (reconnaissance-in-force) in the area and at night occupied the NDP. No contacts with the enemy took place.

 

On Christmas Day we had a hot meal flown in by helicopter. The chow was delivered in mermite cans to our position.

For an Infantryman life was pretty good. Unfortunately, in the next few days all of that would change.

ASHLAND WEATHER