ambush of the 173rd airborne

Regt ., and supporting units such as the 335th Aviation Company. I would've died successfully cause another 10 year war in the Middle East would definitely leave a mark," authorities said. Task Force Black consisted of Charlie Company supported by two platoons of Dog Company and Task Force Blue which was composed of Alpha Company and the remaining platoon of Dog Company. [16] The brigade deployed to France along with the rest of the division in September 1918, but it did not participate in any campaigns and never saw combat, instead being utilized as a pool of laborers and reinforcements for frontline units. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. She then had another arrest warrant issued against her after allegedly violating the terms of a protective order by contacting her former Mesa County office to demand a recount of that election. An official website of the United States government. [20] It was then designed uniquely from other separate brigades. | The New York Times. The complaint also argues that the Trump campaign broke the law by not disclosing the contribution. Two more companies arrived after dark and provided much-needed food and water to the exhausted troopers. He was arrested in June 20020 and pleaded guilty in 2022. February 15th, DVIDS Hub works best with JavaScript enabled, Version: 89f6906e9817dc7b192edf8e8d786e2b331150b5_2023-02-27T10:21:17, B-Roll Package: Squad Ambush with Cypriot Troops, Strategic . The 2-503rd conducted combat operations in Zabul Province. Prosecutors said Eric Melzer, 24, of Kentucky, gave information about the location and layout of a U.S. military installation overseas to the anti-government group Order of Nine Angles. took place InTuyhoe then on to the kontum proence battle 3/68.then to ahn khe.gravy.then we went to lz english I Think.Dalat Was The LAST . Throughout the movie, he wears the Vietnam-era, mustard yellow, "subdued" shoulder sleeve insignia worn by 173rd paratroopers on their jungle fatigues during the Vietnam War. Short Range Ambush Platoon 1968 - 1969. III, No. The song was based on the story of Niles Harris, a member of the 173rd, during Operation Hump. The Justice Department will use all available resources to disrupt and bring to justice those who would aid foreign terrorist organizations and use violence to harm our men and women in uniform or any American anywhere., Ethan Melzer infiltrated the U.S. Army in service of a neo-Nazi, white supremacist and jihadist group, said U.S. Attorney Damian Williams for the Southern District of New York. He was the first living Medal of Honor recipient since the Vietnam War. The obstruction charge carries a minimum sentence of six months in jail. The following year, he deployed to Italy with the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team. Nicholas Slayton Email: [email protected] Abandoned weapons, helmets, rucksacks, clothing, canteens and empty ration containers littered the battlefield. Melzer deployed abroad with the Army to Italy as a member of the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team . A second base was opened in Vicenza called Del Din and is the current headquarters of the 173rd. Six helicopters from the 335th Aviation Company attempting to resupply the pinned-down troopers were shot down during the day. ", By A former soldier was sentenced to 45 years in prison for attempting to plot with a hate group to attack his unit. The brigade returned to its home station in Europe in November 2010. As the father of four young boys, I know that childhood is as special as it is short. Melzer began active service as an Army infantryman in June 2019 and deployed that October to Vicenza, Italy, as a member of the 173rd Airborne Brigade. One of the few combat operations that brigade conducted during this time was an amphibious assault against PAVN/VC forces as part of an operation to clear the rice-growing lowlands along the Bong Son littoral. [5] It was a subordinate unit of the U.S. Army's VCorps and after June 2013, subordinate to US Army Europe. One thing that we took a great deal of pride in was that every wounded soldier, many in very, very serious condition, reached the 71st Evac Hospital at Pleiku alive.. 501FSC, 173rd Abn Bde. Before that she was a reporter for Killeen Daily Herald and a freelance journalist for publications including The Alcalde, Texas Highways and the Austin American-Statesman. Regt. [84] As the preparations for the brigade were in their final stages, it moved 10 trains and 300 trucks worth of equipment to the air base, as well as 120 busloads of soldiers. The attached Assault Helicopter Company, the 335th AHC, the "Cowboys", deployed with the brigade all over Vietnam into mid-1968 and comprised the Airmobile capability along with the Caspers. O9A members are instructed to fulfill sinister deeds, including insight roles, where they attempt to infiltrate various organizations, including the military, to gain training and experience, commit acts of violence, identify like-minded individuals, and ultimately subvert those groups from within. She is the spouse of an Army veteran and a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in journalism. Junger later wrote a highly acclaimed book, War, and, with Hetherington, produced the award-winning documentary, Restrepo, about the deployment. [69] A U.S. Army report detailed a pattern of "cruelty and maltreatment" between March 1968 and October 1969. He arrived in Italy in October 2019 and subscribed to encrypted online forums in which he downloaded and accessed videos of jihadist attacks on U.S. troops and facilities and jihadist executions of civilians and soldiers, in addition to far-right, neo-Nazi, and other white supremacist propaganda. Melzer joined the U.S. Army in approximately 2018 and infiltrated its ranks as part of an insight role to further his goals as an O9A adherent. Scandal-plagued Republican former Mesa County, Colorado Clerk Tina Peters has been convicted of obstruction of government operations, reported 9News on Friday. Given the province and its three major districts saw a massive influx of both foreign and domestic fighters due to the relatively calm winter prior to the brigade's arrival, its company-sized and platoon-sized elements found themselves in combat against anti-Coalition forces almost daily from the start of March 2010 until its relief. All rights reserved. Following on the heels of TF Blacks ordeal, A and B companies from the 2nd Bn., 503rd Inf., fought for more than four hours near Fire Support Base 16, located about five miles south of Hill 823. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. The 173rd Airborne Brigade prides itself on being a forward stationed high-readiness unit, available to deploy to U.S. African, European and Central Commands within 18 hours of notification. Silver Falcon 23 is a bilateral exercise between the United States and Cyprus and is designed to enhance interoperability between both nations militaries to ensure they are prepared for any contingency, particularly those involving crisis response and non-combatant evacuation operations. [54] Task Force Blue drew the job of going to the relief of the beleaguered task force; however, Task Force Blue ran into resistance and was pinned down by enemy fire on all sides. Melzer and his unit also received in-depth training about and practiced for numerous threat scenarios at the Military Base, including how to respond to various potential terrorist attack scenarios. He has deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan with the 172nd Stryker Brigade and 173rd Airborne Brigade. At 6:58 p.m., a Marine Corps fighter-bomber mistakenly dropped two 500-pound bombs on the U.S. position. And vets of that proud unit feel the sting. (the Red Warriors), participated in the final assault on Hill 875. [132], Numerous servicemen from the 173rd, mostly from the Vietnam era, gained notability after their military careers ended. Address: 18458 East Orkney Street, Azusa CA 91702-0219. Supporting the Veterans, Soldiers and Friends of the 4th Infantry Division Since 1919. Women in the military: Moving beyond firsts, Issues with the Armys Europe-based equipment trigger readiness alarms, Veterans Affairs drops mask requirement for all agency medical offices, Tax scams How to report them Money Minute, Capitol Hill weighs action on two controversial topics: medical marijuana and abortion, Lockheed wins hypersonics contract | Defense Dollars, Go inside a secret nuclear fallout bunker sealed for decades, Black Vietnam vet at last getting his due: Medal of Honor, Junior NCO promotions have collapsed heres the data, and why, Army artillery officer dies during assignment in Thailand. Vietnamization, as later conceived in 1969, was not an objective, and, in fact, the entire effort represented a return to the old strategy of pacification, with American combat operations now tied much closer to the overall task of local security. These contacts prompted division commander Major General William R. Peers to request reinforcement and, as a result, on 17 June, two battalions of Brigadier General John R. Deane's 173rd Airborne Brigade were moved into the Dak To area to begin sweeping the jungle-covered mountains in Operation Greeley. By unlawfully disclosing his unit's location, strength, and armaments to other O9A members and jihadists in furtherance of this ambush, Melzer traitorously sought to attack the very soldiers . In April 1969 Brigade commander Brig. At the same time that Hello Dolly opened at Nha Trang airbase, a company of 173rd Airborne had walked into an ambush in Viet Cong base zone, known as the Iron Triangle. Melzers proposed attack evolved as he gathered and distributed additional sensitive information about the deployment. The 4th Battalion launched an unsuccessful attack at around 3 p.m., and pulled back to defensive positions after dark. Neither battalion faced heavy resistance as the NVA had decamped during the night, denying the Americans a chance at some revenge. On Veterans Day, Task Force Black (170 men of the 1st Bn., 503rd Inf.) NAME AND TYPE OF OPERATION: Unnamed ambush patrol on Route 19, RVN. 74th LRS operated out of FOB Price near the town of Gereshk in the Helmand Province. Noted for its roles in Operation Hump and Operation Junction City, the 173rd is best known for the Battle of Dak To, where it suffered heavy casualties in close combat with North Vietnamese forces. Membership. "Operational Report Lessons Learned (1 May 1969 31 July 1969)." NVA snipers made the going slow, but B Company finally reached the perimeter by dusk. C/4-503 was then assigned the mission of relieving Task Force Black and they too encountered significant PAVN fire, but they made it, reaching the trapped men at 15:37. The next morning, Nov. 20, 4th Bn., 503rd Inf., set out to relieve the 2nd Battalion paratroopers. "He deserved punishment, but he also deserved the chance to prove he could do something positive with his life. A former Army paratrooper was sentenced to 45 years in prison Friday for plotting with a violent extremist group to ambush and kill members of his own Italy-based unit, federal law enforcement officials said. Dawn on Tuesday, Nov. 21, revealed a scene on Hill 875 no survivor of that battle could ever forget, Edward F. Murphy wrote in Dak To: Americas Sky Soldiers in South Vietnams Central Highlands. [49] Charlie Company was ordered to support, but heavy vegetation and difficult terrain made movement extremely difficult. Melzer, who is from Louisville, Ky., joined the Army in 2018. [25] They took their theme song from the television series Rawhide. The rifle companies suffered 51% losses in just one month, Murphy wrote. But there was a silver lining: Investigators . In the process the American officers tried to increase pressure on local enemy forces through intensive patrolling and to encourage ARVN battalion, company, and platoon-level leadership through longer, more decentralized operations. The operation was a success, and the battered VC division fled. Plan. On 23 April 2014, four paratrooper companies of the 173rd were deployed to Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania to reassure America's NATO allies threatened by Russian military maneuvers along the borders of eastern Ukraine during the 201415 Russian military intervention in Ukraine. The Order of the Nine Angles, a U.K.-based anarchist operation that espouses antisemitic and satanic beliefs, is known for encouraging its membership to infiltrate the military, among other organizations, with the goal of dismantling from within, according to court documents. Phone: (626)664-0219. was inserted into a landing zone on Hill 823 and wound up losing 20 KIA, 154 WIA and two MIA. (Department of Justice). Training also included securing roads, bridges, and other infrastructure and treating and evacuating casualties. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. [55], Following an attack on the k T Base,[56] and actions on hill 882 by the 1-503rd that saw 7 men dead and 34 wounded,[57] 330 men of 2-503 moved in to assault Hill 875. The 1/91st Cavalry was given a mission to transform western Logar province into a secure environment; a mission that was not greeted as an easy task. . The 173rd Airborne Brigade fielded the 1st, 2nd and 4th battalions of the 503rd Inf. Private Olive's body absorbed the full, deadly blast of the grenade and he died saving his comrades. After. [79] The force also received force field artillery headquarters from the 2nd Battalion, 15th Field Artillery, which brought a Tactical Operations Center, a Q-36 counterfire radar and Combat Observation and Lasing Team (COLT)a pair of Dragoneye Unmanned Aerial Vehicles from the US Marine Corps, to be operated by the Brigades Ground Surveillance Systems (GSS) team. Headquarters and Headquarters Company Its "glorification of violence and mysticism has found a renewed international audience," he said. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Melzer secretly used an encrypted messaging application to propose, advocate for, and plan a deadly attack on his fellow service members. In May 2020, Melzer was reassigned to a unit preparing for deployment. Subscribe to Task & Purpose Today. In order to successfully accomplish this mission, the battalion . After he was notified of the assignment, Melzer joined his new unit and attended weeks of training, including classified and unclassified briefings, to prepare for the deployment. Conetto, Al, "In the Beginning, there was the Hump,". The Army did not immediately respond Friday to comment about when Melzer was discharged from the service. Headquarters, 173rd Airborne Brigade. The group is a white supremacist, neo-Nazi and pro-jihadist organization. [121], In May 2021, as part of the NATO training exercise Swift Response 2021, soldiers of the brigade were simulating seizing and securing the decommissioned Cheshnegirovo airfield in Bulgaria. Nine soldiers from the brigade lost their lives during the deployment. [33], The 1st and 2nd Battalions, 503rd Infantry were the first Army combat units from the 173rd sent into South Vietnam, accompanied by the 3rd Battalion, 319th Artillery. Want to write for Task & Purpose? [94] The entire battle for Kirkuk cost the brigade only nine casualties. All rights reserved. In the 1987 movie Lethal Weapon, the patch worn by Danny Glover's fictional character Roger Murtaugh during a retrospective of his time in Vietnam was that of the 173rd Airborne Brigade. Todays sentence holds Mr. Melzer accountable for an egregious and shameful act of betrayal against his own military unit and his country, said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Departments National Security Division. The brigade returned most recently from a deployment stretching from late 2013 to late 2014. 173RD Airborne Brigade Sergeant Major CSM Christopher D. Clapin CSM Christopher D. Clapin entered active duty service on 7 January, 1998. [5] Under Williamson, the unit trained extensively, making mass parachute jumps. "An arrest affidavit says that when officers tried to seize the iPad, people sitting at the table with her started passing around the tablet. [7] The 1st Battalion, 508th Infantry colors were moved to Ft. Bragg, North Carolina to serve under the 82nd Airborne Division. The 173rd secured these areas with company sized detachments, often patrolling the 4th ID's sectors with two unarmored M998 cargo Humvees at any given time. 173rd Airborne Brigade deploys to South Vietnam The lead element of the 173rd Airborne Brigade ("Sky Soldiers"), stationed in Okinawa, departs for South Vietnam. New. it would be another war . [141][142], Staff Sergeant Salvatore Giunta received the Medal of Honor for heroic actions as a rifle team leader in Company B, 2503 INF (Airborne) when his squad was caught in a near-ambush the night of 25 October 2007 during Operation Rock Avalanche in the Korengal Valley of Afghanistan. [The 173rd] were good soldiers and did their fair share, said Steve Stark, who was an artillery liaison specialist with 6th Bn., 29th Artillery, 1st Bde., 4th Inf. [3][4] The remaining units of the 173rd were inactivated. "He used his membership in the military to pursue an appalling goal: the brutal murder of his fellow U.S. service members in a carefully plotted ambush.". [70] It was decided that the 173rd would be used to help rebuild the division, which had been converted into an airmobile formation during the Vietnam War. [24] Immediately after its transformation, the brigade began intensive training in both Germany and Italy to prepare itself for future deployments. Soldier Admits Plotting with Neo-Nazi Cult to Kill Fellow Troops", "U.S. To walk away from Hill 875 would have diminished the importance of their sacrifices, Murphy concluded. Melzer was listed Friday as an inmate at Metropolitan Detention Center Brooklyn in New York, according to the Bureau of Prisons. On Nov. 19, 1967, Chaplain Watters repeatedly exposed himself to enemy fire in order to aid fallen men outside the perimeter. 2/503rd 2014-2015 Melzer, a private, was assigned to the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, which was deployed to Italy. [130] He was depicted as being in "the 505th battalion", although no such unit was ever part of the 173rd. The next day, American forces advanced to Kirkuk during Operation Option North, hoping to control oil fields and military airfields in and around the city. The 173rd Airborne Brigade ("Sky Soldiers"[1]) is an airborne infantry brigade combat team (IBCT) of the United States Army based in Vicenza, Italy. [3][15], From 1961 to 1963, the Army began reorganizing its force so that each division would have a similar structure, which would vary depending on the type of division it was. [129], Captain Willard, a fictional character portrayed by Martin Sheen in the 1979 film Apocalypse Now, was a member of the 173rd assigned to Military Assistance Command, Vietnam Studies and Observations Group. Ethan Phelan Melzer, aka Etil Reggad, 24, of Louisville, pleaded guilty to attempting to murder U.S. service members, providing and attempting to provide material support to terrorists, and illegally transmitting national defense information on June 24, 2022, before U.S. District Judge Gregory H. Woods, who imposed todays sentence. The following day, the Army of the Republic of Vietnam's (ARVN) elite 1st Airborne Task Force (the 5th and 8th Battalions) and the 3rd Brigade, 1st Air Cavalry Division (5th Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment; 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry; and an additional infantry battalion) arrived to conduct search and destroy operations north and northeast of Kon Tum. Under the direction of the 173rd Airborne Brigade, the 1/50th formed this special collection of hand picked volunteers. [87] The jump took a total of 58seconds, though 32 paratroopers were unable to jump because they would have landed too far from the rest of the force. [103] Throughout their 15-month deployment, the brigade participated in more than 9,000 patrols throughout the region. Del Din hosts 173rd Brigade Headquarters, 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, the Brigade Support Battalion, and the Brigade Special Troops Battalion. For the bravery and sacrifices of its paratroopers around Dak To, the 173rd earned the Presidential Unit Citation. Secure .gov websites use HTTPS Leading up to that climactic end, the 173rd Airborne Brigade fought several engagements south of Ben Het. [104][107] The 173rd's tour ended in July 2008, and the last redeploying paratrooper from the brigade returned to Europe by the beginning of August 2008. [24], In mid-1967, the 4th Infantry Division's 1st and 2nd Brigades conducting Operation Francis Marion in western Kon Tum Province were making heavy contact with People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) forces. ", In messages to O9A, Melzer wrote, [y]ou just gotta understand that currently I am risking my literal free life to give you all this" -- in regards to the sensitive information he was sharing. [5][12][13], The 173rd Infantry Brigade was constituted on 5 August 1917 as an infantry brigade and organized on 25 August at Camp Pike, Arkansas,[14] as an element of the 87th Division[15] along with the 174th Infantry Brigade. It conducted combat operations in Kandahar Province. In approximately early May 2020, the Army informed Melzer that he would be reassigned to a unit scheduled for a further foreign deployment, where the unit would be guarding an isolated and sensitive military installation (the Military Base). A search of the battlefield revealed only 15 dead North Vietnamese. Reproduced from VFW Magazine, March 2006 issue, article by Tim Dyhouse. [61], The battle of Hill 875 had cost 2-503 87 killed, 130 wounded, and three missing. On the afternoon of 21 November, both battalions moved out to take the crest. Centre for Analysis of the Radical Right. Upon learning the importance and sensitivity of his upcoming deployment, Melzer immediately began passing that information to members of O9A. He was awarded the Medal of Honor nearly 60 years after he was nominated. Forward deployed across Italy and Germany, the brigade routinely trains alongside NATO allies and partners to build partnerships and strengthen the alliance. "Ethan Melzer infiltrated the U.S. Army in service of a neo-Nazi, white supremacist and jihadist group. [38], The brigade was the first unit sent into War Zone D to destroy enemy base camps, introducing the use of small Long Range Reconnaissance Patrols. There is something gut-wrenching about severely wounded men that I will never forget, recalled Earle Jackson, a 173rd medic who served on Hill 875. The 174th set up on Hill 875 about 10 miles southwest of Ben Het and less than a mile east of the Cambodian border. [3][30] The brigade, organized as Task Force Bayonet, assumed control of Regional Command-South (RC South). Sky Soldiers Killed in Iraq. One of these was the 101st Airborne Division, which had also been redeployed to Fort Campbell. Harold B. Birch, battalion commander at the time, recalled that about 14 Red Warriors were wounded in the attack, some by a misdirected American helicopter gunship.. Melzer told members of O9A in his encrypted electronic communications [y]ou just gotta understand that currently I am risking my literal free life to give you all this and that he was expecting results. Melzer further acknowledged that he could be killed during the attack and described his willingness to die for O9As goals, writing who gives a fuck [. By clicking below to download MFAH collection images, you agree that you have read and agree to the Terms and Conditions of MFAH Website Use: [83] The use of the 173rd as a part of a special operations task force was a unique first in U.S. Army history.