HORACE HIGLEY FLEMING III
Rank/Branch: O2/US Marine Corps
Unit: HMM 256, Marine Air Group 16
Date of Birth: 13 May 1941
Home City of Record: Pensacola FL
Date of Loss: 10 May 1968
Country of Loss: South Vietnam
Loss Coordinates: 152200N 1074500E (YC965009)
Status (in 1973): Missing In Action
Aircraft/Vehicle/Ground: CH46A
Source: Compiled from one or more of the following:
raw data from U.S. Government agency sources,
correspondence with POW/MIA families, published
sources, interviews. Updated by the P.O.W.
NETWORK in 1998.
Personnel in Incident: Ngok Tavak: Horace H.
Fleming; Thomas J. Blackman; Joseph F. Cook; Paul
S. Czerwonka; Thomas W. Fritsch; Barry L. Hempel;
Raymond T. Heyne; Gerald E. King; Robert C. Lopez;
William D. McGonigle; Donald W. Mitchell; James R.
Sargent (members of USMC search team - all
missing); Glenn E. Miller; Thomas H. Perry (USSF
teammembers - missing); Kham Duc: Richard E.
Sands (missing from CH47); Bernard L. Bucher;
Frank M. Hepler; George W. Long; John L. McElroy;
Stephan C. Moreland (USAF crew of C130 - all
missing); Warren R. Orr (USSF on C130 - missing);
Harry B. Coen; Andrew J. Craven; Juan M. Jimenez;
Frederick J. Ransbottom; Maurice H. Moore; Joseph
L. Simpson; William E. Skivington; John C.
Stuller; Imlay S. Widdison; Danny L. Widner; Roy
C. Williams (all missing); Julius W. Long (released
POW).
REMARKS:
SYNOPSIS: Kham Duc Special Forces camp (A-105),
was located on the western fringes of Quang Tin
("Great Faith") Province, South Vietnam. In the
spring of 1968, it was the only remaining border
camp in Military Region I. Backup responsibility
for the camp fell on the 23rd Infantry Division
(Americal), based at Chu Lai on the far side of
the province.
The camp had originally been built for President
Diem, who enjoyed hunting in the area. The 1st
Special Forces detachment (A-727B) arrived in
September 1963 and found the outpost to be an
ideal border surveillance site with an existing
airfield. The camp was located on a narrow grassy
plain surrounded by rugged, virtually uninhabited
jungle. The only village in the area, located
across the airstrip, was occupied by post
dependents, camp followers and merchants. The
camp and airstrip were bordered by the Ngok Peng
Bum ridge to the west and Ngok Pe Xar mountain,
looming over Kham Duc to the east. Steep banked
streams full of rapids and waterfalls cut through
the tropical wilderness. The Dak Mi River flowed
past the camp over a mile distant, under the
shadow of the Ngok Pe Xar.
Five miles downriver was the small forward
operating base of Ngok Tavak, defended by the
113-man 11th Mobile Strike Force Company with its
8 Special Forces and 3 Australian advisors. Since
Ngok Tavak was outside friendly artillery range,
33 Marine artillerymen of Battery D, 2nd Battalion,
13th Marines, with two 105mm howitzers were
located at the outpost. Capt. Christopher J. Silva,
commander of Detachment A-105 helicoptered into
Ngok Tavak on May 9, 1968 in response to growing
signs of NVA presence in the area. Foul weather
prevented his scheduled evening departure. A Kham
Duc CIDG platoon fleeing a local ambush also
arrived and was posted to the outer perimeter. It
was later learned that the CIDG force contained
VC infiltrators.
Ngok Tavak was attacked by an NVA infantry
battalion at 0315 hours on May 10. The base was
pounded by mortars and direct rocket fire. As the
frontal assault began, the Kham Duc CIDG soldiers
moved toward the Marines in the fort yelling,
"Don't shoot, don't shoot! Friendly, friendly!"
Suddenly they lobbed grenades into the Marine
howitzer positions and ran into the fort, where
they shot several Marines with carbines and sliced
claymore mine and communication wires.
The defenders suffered heavy casualties but stopped
the main assault and killed the infiltrators. The
NVA dug in along the hill slopes and grenaded the
trenches where the mobile strike force soldiers
were pinned by machine gun and rocket fire. An NVA
flamethrower set the ammunition ablaze, banishing
the murky flare- lighted darkness for the rest of
the night. SFC Harold M. Swicegood and the USMC
platoon leader, Lt. Adams, were badly wounded and
moved to the command bunker. Medical Spec4
Blomgren reported that the CIDG mortar crews had
abandoned their weapons. Silva tried to operate
the main 4.2 inch mortar but was wounded. At about
0500 hours, Sgt. Glenn Miller, an A-105
communications specialist, was shot through the
head as he ran over to join the Marine howitzer
crews.
The NVA advanced across the eastern side of Ngok
Tavak and brought forward more automatic weapons
and rocket-propelled grenade launchers. In
desperation, the defenders called on USAF AC-47
"Spooky" gunships to strafe the perimeter and the
howitzers, despite the possible presence of
friendly wounded in the gun pits. The NVA countered
with tear gas, but the wind kept drifting the gas
over their own lines. After three attempts, they
stopped. A grenade fight between the two forces
lasted until dawn.
At daybreak Australian Warrant Officers Cameron
and Lucas, joined by Blomgren, led a CIDG
counterattack. The North Vietnamese pulled back
under covering fire, and the howitzers were
retaken. The Marines fired the last nine shells
and spiked the tubes. Later that morning medical
evacuation helicopters supported by covering
airstrikes took out the seriously wounded,
including Silva and Swicegood. Two CH46's were
able to land 45 replacements from the 12th Mobile
Strike Force Company, accompanied by Capt. Euge E.
Makowski (who related much of this account to
Shelby Stanton, author of "Green Berets at War"),
but one helicopter was hit in the fuel line and
forced down. Another helicopter was hit by a
rocket and burst into flames, wrecking the small
helipad. The remaining wounded were placed aboard
a hovering helicopter. As it lifted off, two Mike
Force soldiers and 1Lt. Horace Fleming, one of the
stranded aviation crewmen, grabbed the helicopter
skids. All three fell to their deaths after the
helicopter had reached an altitude of over one
hundred feet.
The mobile strike force soldiers were exhausted
and nervous. Ammunition and water were nearly
exhausted, and Ngok Tavak was still being pounded
by sporadic mortar fire. They asked permission to
evacuate their positions, but were told to "hold
on" as "reinforcements were on the way". By noon
the defenders decided that aerial reinforcement or
evacuation was increasingly unlikely, and night
would bring certain destruction. An hour later,
they abandoned Ngok Tavak.
Thomas Perry, a medic from C Company, arrived at
the camp at 0530 hours the morning of the 10th. He
cared for the wounded and was assisting in an
attempt to establish a defensive perimeter when the
decision was made to evacuate the camp. As
survivors were leaving, Perry was seen by Sgt.
Cordell J. Matheney, Jr., standing 20 feet away,
as Australian Army Capt. John White formed the
withdrawal column at the outer perimeter wire on
the eastern Ngok Tavak hillside. It was believed
that Perry was going to join the end of the column.
All the weapons, equipment and munitions that
could not be carried were hastily piled into the
command bunker and set afire. The helicopter that
had been grounded by a ruptured fuel line was
destroyed with a LAW. Sgt. Miller's body was
abandoned.
After survivors had gone about 1 kilometer, it was
discovered that Perry was missing. Efforts were
conducted to locate both Perry and Miller,
including a search by a group from Battery D. They
were searching along the perimeter when they were
hit by enemy grenades and arms fire. Neither the
men on the team nor Perry was ever found. Included
in this team were PFC Thomas Blackman; LCpl.
Joseph Cook; PFC Paul Czerwonka; LCpl. Thomas
Fritsch; PFC Barry Hempel; LCpl. Raymond Heyne;
Cpl. Gerald King; PFC Robert Lopez; PFC William
McGonigle; LCpl. Donald Mitchell; and LCpl. James
Sargent. The remaining survivors evaded through
dense jungle to a helicopter pickup point midway
to Kham Duc. Their extraction was completed
shortly before 1900 hours on the evening of May
10.
In concert with the Ngok Tavak assault, the Kham
Duc was blasted by a heavy mortar and recoilless
rifle attack at 0245 hours that same morning.
Periodic mortar barrages ripped into Kham Duc
throughout the rest of the day, while the Americal
Division airmobiled a reinforced battalion of the
196th Infantry Brigade into the compound. A
Special Forces command party also landed, but the
situation deteriorated too rapidly for their
presence to have positive effect.
The mortar attack on fog-shrouded Kham Duc resumed
on the morning of May 11. The bombardment caused
heavy losses among the frightened CIDG soldiers,
who fled from their trenches across open ground,
seeking shelter in the bunkers.
The LLDB commander remained hidden. CIDG soldiers
refused orders to check the rear of the camp for
possible North Vietnamese intruders. That evening
the 11th and 12th Mobile Strike Force companies
were airlifted to Da Nang, and half of the 137th
CIDG Company from Camp Ha Thanh was airlanded in
exchange.
The 1st VC Regiment, 2nd NVA Division, began
closing the ring around Kham Duc during the early
morning darkness of 12 May. At about 0415 to 0430
hours, the camp and outlying positions came under
heavy enemy attack. Outpost #7 was assaulted and
fell within a few minutes. Outposts #5, #1 and #3
had been reinforced by Americal troops but were in
North Vietnamese hands by 0930 hours.
OP1 was manned by PFC Harry Coen, PFC Andrew
Craven, Sgt. Joseph Simpson, and SP4 Julius Long
from Company E, 2nd of the 1st Infantry. At about
0415 hours, when OP1 came under heavy enemy attack,
PFC Coen and SP4 Long were seen trying to man a
106 millimeter recoilless rifle. Survivors
reported that in the initial enemy fire, they were
knocked off their bunker. Both men again tried to
man the gun, but were knocked down again by RPG
fire. PFC Craven, along with two other men,
departed the OP at 0830 hours on May 12. They
moved out 50 yards and could hear the enemy in
their last position. At about 1100 hours, as they
were withdrawing to the battalion perimeter, they
encountered an enemy position. PFC Craven was the
pointman and opened fire. The enemy returned fire,
and PFC Craven was seen to fall, with multiple
chest wounds. The other two men were unable to
recover him, and hastily departed the area. PFC
Craven was last seen lying on his back, wounded,
near the camp.
OP2 was being manned by 1Lt. Frederick Ransbottom,
SP4 Maurice Moore, PFC Roy Williams, PFC Danny
Widner, PFC William Skivington, PFC Imlay
Widdison, and SP5 John Stuller, from the 2nd of
the 3rd Infantry when it came under attack.
Informal questioning of survivors of this
position indicated that PFC Widdison and SP5
Stuller may have been killed in action. However,
the questioning was not sufficiently thorough to
produce enough evidence to confirm their deaths.
The only information available concerning 1Lt.
Ransbottom, SP4 Moore, PFC Lloyd and PFC
Skivington that Lt. Ransbottom allegedly radioed
PFC Widner and PFC Williams, who were in the third
bunker, and told them that he was shooting at the
enemy as they entered his bunker. SP4 Juan Jimenez,
a rifleman assigned to Company A, 2nd of the 1st
Infantry, was occupying a defensive position when
he was severely wounded in the back by enemy
mortar fire. SP4 Jimenez was declared dead by the
Battalion Surgeon in the early morning hours of
May 12. He was then carried to the helipad for
evacuation. However, due to the situation, space
was available in the helicopter for only the
wounded, and SP4 Jimenez'remains were left behind.
At noon a massive NVA attack was launched against
the main compound. The charge was stopped by
planes hurling napalm, cluster bomb units and 750
pound bombs into the final wire barriers. The
decision was made by the Americal Division
officers to call for immediate extraction. The
evacuation was disorderly, and at times, on the
verge of complete panic. One of the first
extraction helicopters to land was exploded by
enemy fire, blocking the airstrip. Engineers of
Company A, 70th Engineer Battalion, frantically
reassembled one of their dozers (previously torn
apart to prevent capture) to clear the runway.
Eight more aircraft were blown out of the sky.
PFC Richard E. Sands was a member of Company A,
1st Battalion, 46th Infantry, 198th Light Infantry
Brigade being extracted on a CH47 helicopter
(serial #67-18475). The helicopter was hit by 50
calliber machine gun fire at an altitude of
1500-1600 feet shortly after takeoff. Sands, who
was sitting near the door gunner, was hit in the
head by an incoming rounds. The helicopter made a
controlled landing and caught fire. During the
evacuation from the burning helicopter, four
personnel and a medic checked PFC Sands and
indicated that he had been killed instantly.
Because of the danger of incoming mortar rounds
and the fire, personnel attempting to remove PFC
Sands from the helicopter were ordered to abandon
their attempt. The remaining personnel were
evacuated from the area later by another
helicopter.
Intense antiaircraft fire from the captured
outposts caused grave problems. Control over the
indigenous forces was difficult. One group of CIDG
soldiers had to be held in trenches at gunpoint
to prevent them from mobbing the runway.
As evacuation was in progress, members of Company
A, 1/46, who insisted on boarding the aircraft
first, shoved Vietnamese dependents out of the
way. As more Americal infantry tried to clamber
into the outbound planes, the outraged Special
Forces staff convinced the Air Force to start
loading civilians onboard a C130, then watched as
the civilians pushed children and weaker adults
aside.
The crew of the U.S. Air Force C130 aircraft
(serial #60-0297) consisted of Maj. Bernard
Bucher, pilot; SSgt. Frank Hepler, flight
engineer; Maj. John McElroy, navigator; 1Lt.
Steven Moreland, co-pilot; George Long, load
master; Capt. Warren Orr, passenger, and an
undetermined number of Vietnamese civilians.
The aircraft reported receiving ground fire on
takeoff. The Forward Air Control (FAC) in the
area reported that the aircraft exploded in
mid-air and crashed in a fire ball about one mile
from camp. All crew and passengers were believed
dead, as the plane burned quickly and was
completely destroyed except for the tail boom. No
remains were recovered from the aircraft. Capt.
Orr was not positively identified by U.S.
personnel as being aboard the aircraft. He was
last seen near the aircraft helping the civilians
to board. However, a Vietnamese stated that he
had seen Capt. Orr board the aircraft and later
positively identified him from a photograph.
Rescue efforts were impossible because of the
hostile threat in the area. At the time the order
was given to escape and evade, SP4 Julius Long
was was with Coen and Simpson. All three had been
wounded, and were trying to make their way back to
the airfield about 350 yards away. As they
reached the airfield, they saw the last C130
departing. PFC Coen, who was shot in the stomach,
panicked and started running and shooting his
weapon at random. SP4 Long tried to catch him,
but could not, and did not see PFC Coen again.
Long then carried Sgt. Simpson to a nearby hill,
where they spent the night. During the night, the
airfield was strafed and bombed by U.S. aircraft.
SP4 Long was hit twice in the back by fragments,
and Sgt. Simpson died during the night. SP4 Long
left him lying on the hill near the Cam Duc
airfield and started his escape and evasion toward
Chu Lai, South Vietnam. SP4 Long was captured and
was released in 1973 from North Vietnam.
The Special Forces command group was the last
organized group out of the camp. As their
helicopter soared into the clouds, Kham Duc was
abandoned to advancing NVA infantry at 4:33 p.m.
on May 12, 1968. The last Special Forces camp on
the northwestern frontier of South Vietnam had
been destroyed.
Two search and recovery operations were conducted
in the vicinity of OP1 and OP2 and the Cam Duc
airfield on July 18, 1970 and August 17, 1970. In
these operations, remains of personnel previously
reported missing from this incident were recovered
and subsequently identified. (SP4 Bowers, PFC
Lloyd, Sgt. Sisk, PFC Guzman-Rios and SSgt.
Carter). However, extensive search and excavation
could not be completed at OP1 and OP2 because of
the tactical situation.
It was assumed that all the missing at Kham Duc
were killed in action untilabout 1983, when the
father of one of the men missing discovered a
Marine Corps document which indicated that four
of the men had been taken prisoner. The document
listed the four by name. Until then, the families
had not been advised of the possibility there
were any American prisoners taken other than
Julius Long. A Vietnamese rallier identified the
photograph of Roy C. Williams as positively
having been a POW.
Until proof is obtained that the rest of the men
lost at Ngok Tavak and Kham Duc are dead, their
families will always wonder if they are among
those said to still be alive in Southeast Asia.
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