eaving the high section of a river flowing over hill and dale, the helicopters changed direction and flew due north.  The Americans surely had enough of the toxic defoliant, Agent Orange, to lay in ruin all the immense jungles spreading beneath us.  Groves of trees, stripped of leaves, displayed white tops and looked very much like heads of grey hair.  Life down there was breathing its last breaths.  The sky lowered and rain flew among damp cold clouds.  The uncovered parts of my body became numb.

After thirty minutes in the air, the helicopters began to descend and circled around, changing direction.  The camp, occupying the whole top of a hill amidst surrounding valleys, was encircled by many defensive barriers.  It was equipped with 105mm artillery pieces, and an airstrip designed for the C-123 Caribou - a Short-Take-Off-and-Landing-type aircraft - to land and deliver supplies brought to the high-riding camp from the lowlands.  Not far from the airstrip were two hamlets, one for Kinh people and the other for Thuong people, where houses with corrugated metal roofs clustered very close to one another.  This was the ninth American Special Forces camp to have been established, and it was considered the most important among a total of 62 in the whole of South Vietnam, because it served as a solid barricade to check infiltration of North Vietnamese communists from Laos.  This very morning it would be handed over to a Vietnamese Special Forces A-Team.  Subsequently, the twelve American Green Berets constituting the American Special Forces A-Team, A243, would board two awaiting helicopters and leave forever this camp, a camp which their efforts had made as solid as a fortress during the eight years since they had ventured to set foot on this mountainous spot, a location completely without security and quite deserted.

Of importance was the fact that precisely at this place, four years ago, a massacre of Vietnamese had occurred, which, in the aftermath, led to repeated racially-induced bloodshed.  That devastating event had been a thorn stuck in General Thuyet's throat.  Had he remained in Vietnam, this day would have been one of the happiest of his life, much as, in contrast, it had to be a dark and bitter time for Tacelosky and the American Green Berets, a day which only added to their difficult straits and somber demeanor.  Ever since President Kennedy, the father who had created them, was assassinated, this strong and brave combat-arm had been confronted with numerous difficulties and had been stripped of all its special privileges.

On the other hand, this day offered General Tri a good opportunity to assert his role in the highlands. Right at the beginning of the speech delivered at this ceremony, he was wise enough, as he had always tried to be in his position, to highly extol the effective support given by the Americans in general and by the members of American Special Forces Team, A243, in particular.  This great support was expressed in their joint effort with the Vietnamese to transform the wilderness of the locale into a strong military base, which helped both Kinh and Thuong peoples to have a comfortable life and to progress in all aspects.  The general went on to say that he strongly believed that, with the continued support of the U.S., and, given all the experience they had gathered in years past, teams of Vietnamese Special Forces would be able to assume direct responsibility for management and control of all Thuong Civilian Irregular Defense Group camps. NEXT