Photo By Staff Sgt. Fred Brown | Soldiers from Company B, 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Armored Brigade...... read more read more
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FORT HOOD, Texas - Soldiers got the chance to speak with living heroes who fought in the Battle of Ia Drang, the first clash between U.S. forces and the Viet Cong during the Vietnam War, here Nov. 14.
Soldiers from the 1st Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment “Garryowen,” 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, spoke with veterans of the battle that were in Washington, D.C. via video teleconference during the 50th anniversary commemoration.
Troopers spoke to Retired Col. Bruce Crandall, who earned the Medal of Honor for his actions at Landing Zone X-Ray, war correspondent Joe Galloway, who co-authored “We Were Soldiers Once … and Young,” and Ed Times, who served in a mortar platoon for Company B, 1st Sqdn., 7th Cav. Reg.
“We really appreciated the chance to get to talk to veterans and the heroes who have served in the squadron in the past,” said Maj. Jeremy Williams, executive officer, 1-7 Cav. “It’s an honor to be in a squadron and regiment with such a storied history, and it’s something you see every day with our Soldiers. Just walking around our building with the pictures we have, not only from the Vietnam era, but also going back to the late 1800s; you feel the history.”
From the squadron’s conference room, known as the “LZ-X Ray Conference Room,” Soldiers had the opportunity to ask questions and hear first-hand accounts of the battle from the veterans. On the walls of the conference room, memorabilia from the battle and gifts to the squadron from Ia Drang veterans punctuated the video teleconference.
The Garryowen veterans were impressed with Soldiers serving now in the squadron, said Col. (Ret) Bruce Crandall.
“I think that the Cav that we have today is every bit as good, if not better, than the Cav we had in my day,” said Crandall. “We have some of the best people we’ve ever had, and I’d be proud to serve in your unit today.”
Soldiers in 1-7 Cav. and the other battalions of the 1st ABCT are staying busy.
Last year, Ironhorse Soldiers deployed twice as the regionally-aligned brigade to Europe to support multinational NATO exercises in Germany, and were called to Poland and the Baltics to deter Russian aggression as part of Operation Atlantic Resolve.
This year, the brigade conducted gunneries, a major field exercise, and a decisive action rotation at the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, California in preparation to replace the 2nd ABCT as the rotational brigade in the Republic of Korea.
“Ironhorse has a proud history of answering the nation’s call” said Col. John Digiambattista, commander, 1st ABCT. “We are trained and ready to perform our mission.”
| Date Taken: | 11.14.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 12.02.2015 11:30 |
| Story ID: | 183252 |
| Location: | FORT HOOD, TEXAS, US |
| Web Views: | 78 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Ironhorse Troopers speak with Vietnam heroes, by LTC Peter Bogart, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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