Beginning of the Chopper War: We Were Soldiers Once… And Young

The Battle of Ia Drang was the first major engagement between United States regular Army and the North Vietnamese. The Army was testing a new concept: Airmobile Infantry; troops would be quickly inserted into enemy territory using UH-1 Iroquois (“Huey” or “Slick”) helicopters from whence they would fight on foot. The horse cavalry of the Indian Wars was now the Air Cavalry.

Commanding this experimental detachment was Lieutenant Colonel Harold G. (Hal) Moore. The unit was created from elements detached from the 1st Cavalry Division and denominated the 1st Battalion of the 7th Cavalry Regiment or 1/7 Cav, with the motto “Garry Owen,” alluding to General George A. Custer’s former command and marching song of the same name. The idea of Custer’s ill-fated demise at The Little Bighorn also factors into the thinking of the troopers who staff the battalion, and Colonel Moore especially.

In November of 1965, LTC Moore, UPI Correspondent Joe Galloway and 450 troopers of the 1/7 Cav were inserted by helicopter into the Ia Drang Valley, deep in hostile territory. Immediately surrounded, the troops later learned they had landed in the middle of a North Vietnamese Divisional Headquarters composed of approximately 4,000 men. Three days and nights of intense fighting result in a victory at LZ (Landing Zone) Xray, while the 2/7 Cav coming to their relief is defeated a short distance away at LZ Albany. Such are the fortunes of war… The final tally, 1,800 kills for the 1/7 Cav and 80 dead troopers. Overall 305 troopers from the 7th Cavalry Regiment were killed in the action at Ia Drang.

Harold G. Moore and Joe Galloway collaborated in authoring We Were Soldiers Once… And Young. Their account is not easy reading as they tried to be comprehensive with names, dates, and places for all of the men involved in the action. You can sense Moore's concern for his men as he struggled to include everybody in the narrative. The authors sought out men from BOTH sides, including the Vietnamese commander, so all aspects of the battle are covered. The 560-page book will reward the careful reader with insights of the chaos that reigned and the excellent leadership exhibited by LTC Moore who pulled his men through the harrowing engagement at Ia Drang while the 2/7 Cav lost more than half its fighting men. I do believe a little time spent in rewriting to integrate the story would pay dividends in clarifying and making the account more readable. Let me put it this way - five stars for content and three stars for writing style and organization.

Despite its disjointed writing style, I highly recommend We Were Soldiers Once… And Young to all history buffs as well as those interested in the Vietnam War.

Also recommended to all is Mel Gibson’s highly acclaimed movie:

We Were Soldiers

Military history buffs will also want to be sure to read:

Black Hawk Down

Thank you for reading!


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