Summary of John Stryker Meyer & John Peters' On The Ground - E-book - ePub

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Sample Book Insights: #1 In June 1968, Staff Sergeant Pat Watkins had been running recon for over seven months and had seen some of the worst of what that could entail. He had started with ST Moccasin, operating out of Da Nang, and when recon operations at Da Nang were placed on hold due to the lack of sufficient personnel, he volunteered to head north to Khe Sanh. #2 In May 1968, RT Lion was joined by a wiry, tough-as-nails little paratrooper named Lou Jake Three Zero DeSeta.
DeSeta had served with the 173rd Airborne Brigade for 13 months and participated in the fabled Battle of Dak To. He was only five feet three inches tall, but his eyes told you all you needed to know. #3 The S-3 informed Watkins that the scheduled over-flight of the area had been canceled because the anti-aircraft fire was too intense. Covey, the code name for the Forward Air Controller in SOG missions, would select his primary and secondary LZ for him.
This was not something Watkins was used to. #4 The team was dropped off in Oscar-8, and while they were moving south into deeper cover, NVA anti-aircraft artillery opened fire on the departing helicopters. Watkins made sure the tail gunner was covering up the team's tracks, and then he made his first contact with Covey 265, the team's overhead air traffic controller and communications lifeline.