1971 Scrapbook

The scrapbooks on this page are organized by month. Scroll down and click each scrapbook for additional pictures and information.

Note: The scrapbooks are not meant to tell the entire story in a definitive manner but simply display pieces of the overall story. 100 percent accuracy is difficult to attain: division and brigade level reports do not contain details regarding the daily operations of the battalion (nor do articles); reports may have omissions and errors; soldiers who were at the same battle/event often remember things differently due to position, perspective, line of sight, fatigue and stress; memories have sometimes faded; and in 1968 the battalion was a rapid response force with elements often operating in different areas. The more information we obtain, the more accurate we can become.

January

January 1971

January 1971 found the Rakkasans continuing with Operation Jefferson Glen in the mountains of I Corps Tactical Zone, west and northwest of FSB Rakkasan. Elements of the 3/187th were at and around FSB Granite and FSB Gladiator. Combat operations in early to mid-January were north of the Coc a Bo Mountains and South of the Ngon O Lau in an area of operation known as the Falls. During this time period, the Rakkasans found trails, bunkers, booby-traps and engaged in sporadic firefights or varying intensity with the NVA. The Rakkasans suffered multiple casualties as a result. Originally scheduled for extraction and a return to Camp Evans on January 18, 1971, the extraction was delayed due to an extended firefight that Charlie Company engaged in on January 17, 1971. As a result, the 3/187th remained in the Falls AO for several more days. By January 20, 1971 the Battalion had returned to Camp Evans for stand-down and refresher training. The time at Camp Evans (usually just a few days) was extended for several days. Unbeknownst to the Rakkasans, the 101st Airborne Division (Airmobile) was gearing up for Dewey Canyon II/Lam Son 719. On the morning of January 30, 1971 Operation Dewey Canyon II kicked off. The rifle companies of the battalion were choppered out in mass from Camp Evans and inserted into positions in and around FSB Shepherd in Quang Tri Province. The 3/187th was securing the bridges and mountains along QL9 near FSB Shepherd as the highway was being reopened into Khe Sanh combat base. The 3/187th suffered one soldier killed in action in January of 1971 - Stephen Paul Krug, HHC Medic with Bravo Company.

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February

February 1971

In early February, the 3/187th continued Dewey Canyon II, in and around FSB Shepherd, in support of the reopening of QL9 into Khe Sanh Combat base. In mid-February of 1971, combat operations shifted slightly north, in and around FSB Scotch.