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Good to know

Experienced radio operators
not the guys who just arrived in country -- used PENS, not pencils.  
Do you know why??  

Because there is more friction when using a pencil!!  A pen required less effort to write.  Although not significant for a short period of time, this became a fatigue factor over several/many hours of copying code!!

Thanks Gary

 

 

 

   

Gia Vuc Commo Bunker

1966/67

Gia Vuc Commo bunker was a vital part of the camps defences and was situated in the inner perimeter close to the US team house. The bunker was restricted to US personnel only and double up as a Tactical Operation Centre (if/when required). This was built under ground with a set of steps and doorway leading to a single room crammed with radios. This allowed the team to contact USSF headquarters in Nha Trang, their C team in Da Nang, other A-camps in the I Corps together with approaching aircraft and nearby patrols. One of the US camp Radio operators would sleep there when not on duty or patrol. Main antenna was mounted on the bunker with secondary antenna in the adjacent areas.

Aerial photo of the inner perimeter showing the team house (long building towards the top of the photo) and the Commo bunker (in the centre covered in grass).

It is interesting to notice that the Dodge M37B1 3/4 ton truck and the water trailer are position in the same location as photo below, photos come from two different sources

 

teamhouse 2.jpg
View of the team house from the top of the Commo Bunker

TH from top of commo bunker 2.jpg
Top of the Commo Bunker looking west towards

TH left Commo right 2.jpg
Top of the Commo bunker looking South

GiaVucCommo1 2.jpg
Entrance of Commo bunker

TH right Commo left 2.jpg
From outside Commo bunker looking North

gv1commo 2.bmp
Inside, as the radio console stood when Gary Bowes was at Gia Vuc

Compilation of some of Sgt Gary Bowes A-103, Oct 66 to Jan 67 e-mails 
send to me during my research on GV Commo Bunker.

Okay...  here is my input.  Remember  Bill and I were at A-103 at different times.  So the layout/configuration may not have been the same -- and it appears it was not!
 
I do not remember any sleeping quarters in the bunker during my time.  When you walked down the steps into the bunker, you opened the door.  As you went inside, the shotgun was directly over your head.  You could not see it as you entered.  The wall on the left was solid and extended to the back wall -- my *GUESS* is about 2.5 - 4m.   There was no covering on any kind on the wall... bare concrete.   The room expanded to the right... about 7 or 9 feet (2 - 3m).  After entering, you make a 90 degree right turn and you are facing the radio 'console'.  gv1commo 2.bmp  There was one operators chair -- approximately centred in the console.  To the operator's left is storage for crypto materials, WP grenades, etc.  We had no fan... ventilation was poor.  There was provisions for ventilation as I recall, but -- because of security/safety -- they did not simply run a pipe straight up to air.  [VC drop grenade down pipe = no more SF radio]  Signs were generally NOT used because of the humidity.  EVERYTHING like that -- paper, cloth, straw -- would retain moisture and mildew!!!  We used no fan, but that might be because of the timeframe I was there.  (Winter??)   The personnel trench system allowed below-ground-surface travel throughout the camp... but there was NO trench directly into the commo bunker.  That means you had to be above ground to get to the commo bunker.  That caused more than a little nervousness a couple times!  Antenna mast was mounted on top of the commo bunker, with dipole antenna end supports in adjacent areas.

We did not have a 'routine', as I recall.  I monitored the radio periodically during the day.  Sent and received radio traffic as needed.  We had scheduled radio check-ins with Da Nang and Nha Trang.  Our duty day was sometimes drastically extended when the camp was hit or we were needed to relay to another A Team.  (This is what happened when Bato came under
attack.)

All team members pulled combat patrol duty on a rotating basis.  Patrols were normally 3 to 6 days in length. All team members pulled a two-hour "guard" shift on a rotating basis.  This
meant that there was always an American awake.  There was not a team member in commo all day.  As Bill said, there were many times when there was only one radio ops in camp.  The other was on food scrounging run at Da Nang or on patrol.  Of course, we did not have a lot to do when in camp so I spent time in the commo bunker voluntarily.  Remember also that the non-Radio Ops personnel could not copy Morse code... so, even if they heard the radio, a CW message could be directed to Gia Vuc and they would never know it.

Sgt Gary Bowes A-103, Oct 66 to Jan 67

1A103_CommBunker.jpg

Radio console slightly later on when Bill Howe was the radio operator, some of the signs have been moved, the two men  from left are  Jr Rto C Woodson and Cpt V Carter.

Bellow is a compilation of some of SSG Bill Howe A-103, March 67 to Mai 67 e-mails send to me during my research on GV Commo Bunker.

I was Sgt. Paul Lowe's replacement at Gia Vuc.  I believe that was in 1967.  When I jumped off the CV-2 "Caribou" with my gear, I had forgotten my M-16.  Top Sergeant Slover never let me forget that! I wired up the camp for 3-phase power as one of my 1st duties and installed an intercom from the Commo Bunker to the Team Hut so we had faster message capabilities. My MOS was initially 05B2S (Radio Operator), but after flying to several A-Camps just before expected attacks, to make sure the radios and antennas were set up and tuned, the Army saw fit to change it to 05B4S (Radio Supervisor).

I recognize some of the things in the A-103 Commo Bunker.  I installed an intercom between that bunker and the Team Hut.  One of the speakers above the built-in radio wall was dedicated to that.  One of the signs was a list of all the A-Camps, B-Camp at Ha Thanh and C-Camp at Da Nang...plus "callsigns". We also had a sign with a tune-up procedure for the Collins KWM-2A radio and a VHF frequency chart for Aircraft, including "Casper" (our friendly Huey Gunship). The  sign behind my Dokorder Tape Recorder was the remnant of a boxtop from Nha Trang, I believe.  My stereo receiver/amplifier (on top of the radio wall) was a Sansui that I used to power the intercom. Off to the left (not in the picture) was a small safe, about 24" x 24" which held our Code Books.  On top of that was a WP grenade. The sleeping quarters were through an opening to the left of the picture and was just big enough for two cots.  That's where the Radio Operators slept (including me) when not on-duty...which was almost never. The steps going up and out of the bunker were to the right of the picture. 

On top of the bunker were giant logs and dirt.  To the right of the exit was our drinking water well.  Just below the surface was an emergency escape tunnel which took us to beyond the outer perimeter.  As far as being used as a TOC, I can only remember a few occasions when Top Sergeant Slover was in the bunker with me when one of our Patrols got into trouble and we had maps sprawled all over the floor.  By the time we got an Air Strike organized, we had 4 or 5 Team Members in there on various radios and working coordinates.

SSG Bill Howe A-103, March 67 to Mai 67

Team Sgt  Slover

I am saddened to report that John Slover (Team Sgt) passed away recently.  John was a paradox...  a very quiet man but a superb soldier.  Rest in peace, John...  Gary

Team Sgt. John Slover was in his 3rd tour in 'Nam when I was at Gia Vuc.  Unbelievable.
Bill

Gia Vuc Call signs:

Single Squab was (I believe) the call sign for Da Nang C-1.  I believe the camps were Single Squab 13,  Single Squab 19, and so on.  Furthermore, I think the call signs were changed in early 1967 to separate call signs -- no numbers: Stanley Looker, Spunky Hanson, etc. 
(thanks to Gary) 

We have established the following

CAMPS

CALL SIGN

FREQUENCY

HQ      NHA TRANG 

 ?

 ?

C-1      DA NANG

 SINGLE SQUAB (1967)

 ?

B-11    QUANG NGAI CITY

 ?

 ?

A-101  KHE SANH/LANG-VEI

 SPUNKY HANSON  (1967)

 ?

A-102  TIEN PHUC

 ?

 ?

A-103  GIA VUC

  MACON WEAPON  (1967)

 ?

A-104  HA THANH

 ?

 ?

A-106  BATO

 ?

 ?

A-107  TRA BONG

 ?

 ?

A-108  MING LONG

 ?

 ?

A-109  THUONG DUC

STANLEY LOOKER  (1967)

 ?

A-110 CON THIEN

 ?

 ?

Can anybody else help on the call signs?

 

 

The sleeping quarters weren't much.  Just a small room sectioned off from the main radio area.  When I was there we used an Army Blanket over the opening and there were two cots available.  Mine was to the right as you walked in.

One night, during a light sleep (following a very long patrol and pulling off several leeches before hitting the rack) I felt something on my foot.  I awoke to find a big rat walking across the blood-soaked sheet (from pulling off the leeches) and I wasn't thinking clearly.  I pulled out my .45 from under my pillow and shot the thing off my foot, plastering him all over the cement wall.  Needless to say, I heard ringing in my ears for about a week!  It was truly one of the dumbest things I did in the camp.

SSG Bill Howe, Radio Operator , A-103, March 67 to Mai 67

 

Being the radio man on the team wasn’t really a critical position except when communications were needed or if the camp generator went down. So, I sometimes had a lot of time on my hands and was pretty well left to my own devices. I spent a lot of time in the commo bunker for whatever reasons, and one annoying fact that I contended with was that there seemed to be a lot of activity over head. A scratching, scurrying, squeaking kind of activity.  A rat kind of activity.  It sounded like there were hundreds of them.
  One night while I was trying to sleep, listening to the scurrying around sounds from over head, I devised in my mind the perfect way to rid myself of this distraction. It was a simple plan. There were rat holes all over the top so I figured I could block off all means of escape, except for one where they would have to exit, insert a smoke grenade in one, and stand by the exit hole with a long handled shovel to give them the what for when they exited.
  The next day I went about executing my plan. Armed with purple smoke and the shovel, I carefully walked the dome; closing each hole I could find with the heel of my boot, save for one at the rear for the smoke grenade and one in the front for the exit. Satisfied that all was in order, shaking with anticipation, I pulled the pin, jammed the grenade inverted into the hole, grabbed my shovel and ran to the exit hole. Nothing happened. All of a sudden, there were purple rats all over the place and I was running around trying to swat them with the shovel with little or no success. I finally had to abandon the mission and get the hell away from it. Unnoticed by me, my activities had attracted a few curious onlookers from the CIDG contingent who were having the time of their life laughing at me. Feeling somewhat like an idiot, I figured it was a good time to retreat in defeat.
  Something I had failed to consider in my planning was the fact that when it rained, water would find a way to seep into the bunker. Had I considered this, I would not have been so shocked when I entered the purple smoke filled bunker.
I don’t remember my exact thoughts at that time, but I probably considered the reason why I was the Radio Operator and not the Intelligence NCO.
Regards,
Sgt Paul A. Lowe, Radio Operator,  March? 66 to March 67

 

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