Statement
Of
Captain
Rupert E. FAIRFIELD, USMC
[The following is a
verbatim transcription of Rupert Fairfield’s official statement. His
service number has been withheld to protect his privacy. Paragraph
breaks, italics and bold text have been added for readability.....Editor]
On 19 August 1967, I was assigned as
co-pilot of an armed UH-1E helicopter which was acting as chase aircraft
for the Medical Evacuation H-34. Captain PLESS was the pilot of the
gunship and Gunnery Sergeant POULSON and Lance Corporal PHELPS were
serving as the gunner and crew chief.
At approximately 1600, we received
an emergency Med-Evac Mission and, because the H-34 was experiencing
mechanical difficulties, we decided to launch and proceed independently to
the Medical-Evacuation site. While enroute, we heard several
transmissions on “Guard” channel to the effect that an aircraft had been
badly shot up and was proceeding to Duc Pho following a landing on the
beach south of Chu Lai, and that the Viet Cong had taken four Americans
prisoner.
Captain PLESS transmitted on “Guard”
that we were a Huey gunship with a full load of fuel and ordnance and
asked if we could be of any assistance. Although this transmission was
not acknowledged, we had by this time deduced the location of the action
and I had also ascertained that our original mission, the evacuation of
one wounded Korean Marine, could be accomplished by the H-34 without our
escort. I advised the Medical Evacuation helicopter that the zone was
secure and that we were proceeding to the area where the four Americans
had been captured.
As we neared the mouth of the Song Tra
Khuc, we observed a number of explosions on the beach approximately one
mile north. The explosions stopped abruptly and thirty to fifty armed Viet
Cong ran from a tree line onto the beach. Captain PLESS asked “how
we felt about going down”, and I turned to give the
thumbs-up signal to Gunnery Sergeant POULSON; he and Lance Corporal PHELPS
quickly returned the signal, and we began preparing our ordnance while
Captain PLESS dove the aircraft at the Viet Cong on the beach. As we
passed directly over the top of the Viet Cong at an altitude of less then
fifty feet, we saw the four American prisoners lying on the sand. One
Viet Cong had a rifle and was smashing one of the prisoners in the head.
However, another prisoner managed to raise his hand and wave.
Captain PLESS ordered Gunnery Sergeant
POULSON to open fire with his door gun. As he did, the Viet Cong
abandoned the four Americans and ran into the tree-line only thirty meters
from the beach. Captain PLESS immediately pulled the aircraft into a near
wingover to the right and fired fourteen rockets into the mass of Viet
Cong. Our white phosphorus rockets scored direct hits on the Viet Cong,
but the smoke obscured the trees and the enemy.
Our rockets expended, Captain PLESS
repeatedly made machine gun runs, firing into the smoke and through the
trees at an altitude so low that the windscreen quickly became covered
with mud. Although we were receiving intense fire from automatic weapons,
the smoke and our low altitude must have prevented us from taking any
hits. Our ordnance was almost exhausted and Captain PLESS
transmitted “I’m going to land”. He flared the aircraft
to a spot on the beach directly between the four Americans and the Viet
Cong and continued firing from a hover. Then he kicked the aircraft
around, pointed the nose of the aircraft seaward, and landed, thus
utilizing the aircraft itself as a shield for the four Americans.
Gunnery Sergeant POULSON jumped onto the beach and assisted the only
American capable of walking back to the helicopter. Lance Corporal PHELPS
continued firing for a few seconds at several Viet Cong who attempted to
close with us from our left rear, and then he, too, jumped from the
aircraft to help carry the three remaining men.
I also unstrapped and exited the aircraft through the right rear door. As
I came out, I suddenly saw three Viet Cong with rifles less then ten feet
from the rear of the helicopter. I removed the right door machine-gun and killed
them. I then ran out to assist Gunnery Sergeant POULSON and Lance
Corporal PHELPS. As I reached the beach, I saw more Viet Cong trying to
overrun us and ordered PHELPS back to his machine gun.
The soft, powdery sand made it
impossible to carry the largest American, and Gunnery Sergeant POULSON and
I literally dragged him to the aircraft. Then gunnery Sergeant POULSON,
Lance Corporal PHELPS, and I ran onto the beach and picked up the third
American and carried him to the aircraft. All the while, Lance Corporal
PHELPS and I continued firing our pistols at Viet Cong who kept appearing
on the small sand dunes overlooking the beach.
Then, I ran to the fourth man, but
failing to detect heartbeat or pulse, I became certain he was dead. He
had been badly mutilated and his throat was slashed. I looked for dog
tags but found none. I ran back to the helicopter and noticed that the
small arms fire had intensified. I jumped in and told Captain PLESS that
the fourth man was dead. Gunnery Sergeant POULSON affirmed that he, too,
had checked the man and thought him dead.
Then Captain PLESS and I saw a
Vietnamese H-34 approaching from the water, and an Army Huey began
strafing runs on the Viet Cong positions. I yelled at Captain PLESS that
the Vietnamese helicopter would pick up the dead man and that we should
try to save the three wounded we had with us.
Our aircraft was at least five hundred
pounds heavier than maximum take-off weight, and our skids hit the water
four times before we finally became airborne. We jettisoned our empty
rocket pods, and tossed out all our armor plating. While Captain PLESS
continued forcing the aircraft to fly, Gunnery Sergeant POULSON and Lance
Corporal PHELPS rendered first aid to the three wounded men. I contacted
our controlling agencies, told them our position, and requested that they
cancel all artillery between our position and First Hospital at Chu Lai.
We landed at First Hospital a few minutes later, where we discharged our
passengers. We then returned to Ky Ha.
R. E. FAIRFIELD
