papabear
GA Mafia Imperial 1SG
- 13,520
- 2,468
- 113
- Location
- Columbus, Georgia
Someone recently asked a friend (more like a brother) why we built the Proud American Guntruck Tribute.
My only answer is....after reading about how she came to be and meeting some of her crew...we just had to:
20 February 1971 Richard B. Frazier (right gunner) was killed during an ambush of the gun truck, Satan’s Lil’ Angel near Fire Support Base Vandergriff, South Vietnam.
Chester Israel the NCOIC was severly wounded and medically evacuated by helicopter.
Calvin Bennett (gunner) and Robert Thorne (driver) survived. They were asked by Captain Donald Voightritter (Captain V), Commanding officer of the 523rd Transportation Company, to rebuild the gun truck.
The Angel’s gun box was put on another truck and the work began, with the help of the 523rd welder. There were a few slight changes. With those complete they began gathering
the ammo and weapons that they would need, Thorne would remain the driver and Calvin the rear gunner. Two more crew members were needed and SP4 "Mac" McDonald was chosen as right front gunner along with SP5 Nelson Allen as NCOIC. With everything in place they again began convoy security operations.
The truck would no longer be known as Satan's Lil Angel. Calvin suggested The Proud American.
12 March 1971 a convoy from Khe Sanh returned to Vandergrift, the convoy commander, 1LT Tom Callahan (Tom Terrific), reported to the Battalion Commander, LTC Alvin C. Ellis (Big Al) that they had received fire and in his opinion it would not be safe to run another convoy in that area. Big Al ran the convoy.
The convoy commander was 1Lt James Baird (Pig Farmer) on the gun truck, Proud American. As expected, shortly after leaving Vandergrift the call went out "Contact, contact, contact". Along with the crew and Baird, the truck also carried the 523rd commander Capt. V. The officers and men of the 523rd were as one. There didn't seem to be the separation between the groups as there was in other units.
At FSB Vandergriff, 1LT Ralph Fuller (Ranger Ralph) assembled all gun trucks and the crews monitored the radios. 1LT Callahan had told him about the possibility of an ambush. When the call was received there was no holding any of them back. An engineer tried to stop them saying, "There is an ambush up the road". 1LT Fuller on the ¾ gun truck Daughter of Darkness and five 5 ton gun trucks raced to the scene.
The Black Widow was "dead lined" for having no brakes. Leon Vance the NCOIC was still monitoring the radio and told his driver Mike Eischens. "Let’s go! Those boys are getting hit". Mike reminded him that they had no brakes to which Leon said, "We only have to stop once." A lieutenant tried to stop them but was removed from the running board by Leon. There was no way anyone was going to stop them from going to help. Shortly after the 6 gun trucks rolled in and began lighting up the area, the enemy broke contact.
The Proud American was destroyed only 22 days after being built. The only 523rd Gun Truck never having a name painted on the armor.
Calvin, Baird, and Thorne are again in a major ambush. At first contact an RPG (Rocket Propelled Grenade) hit the truck in the cab on the driver’s side. Thorne does not survive. Baird was at the radio behind his driver and sustained major wounds and lost his left arm. McDonald had a wound to his face and Calvin had a wound to his wrist that he never reported.
Callahan got Baird on a stretcher and Fuller called in a Medivac. The chopper couldn't land on the road. Fuller found a bridge to bring the helicopter close to the ground, and they had to lift Baird up into it. Fuller was heard to tell the Medivac crew to "Take care of him he's a good one" as the helicopter went airborne.
Chester, when he picked his crew for Angel had picked Thorne for his driver because he was a skilled mechanic, but on this day, the last day of his life, it was far more then those skills that he exhibited. It was his skill and awareness as a driver that saved the crew. In his last breath that he took in this world, a steep bank on one side of the road and a deep ravine on the other, he chose to drive into the embankment, saving the lives of everyone else on the truck.
Robert Thorne was removed from his truck and was taken to Vandergrift on the gun truck Black Widow. Thorne was from Denver, Colorado and will always be 20 years old.
My only answer is....after reading about how she came to be and meeting some of her crew...we just had to:
20 February 1971 Richard B. Frazier (right gunner) was killed during an ambush of the gun truck, Satan’s Lil’ Angel near Fire Support Base Vandergriff, South Vietnam.
Chester Israel the NCOIC was severly wounded and medically evacuated by helicopter.
Calvin Bennett (gunner) and Robert Thorne (driver) survived. They were asked by Captain Donald Voightritter (Captain V), Commanding officer of the 523rd Transportation Company, to rebuild the gun truck.
The Angel’s gun box was put on another truck and the work began, with the help of the 523rd welder. There were a few slight changes. With those complete they began gathering
the ammo and weapons that they would need, Thorne would remain the driver and Calvin the rear gunner. Two more crew members were needed and SP4 "Mac" McDonald was chosen as right front gunner along with SP5 Nelson Allen as NCOIC. With everything in place they again began convoy security operations.
The truck would no longer be known as Satan's Lil Angel. Calvin suggested The Proud American.
12 March 1971 a convoy from Khe Sanh returned to Vandergrift, the convoy commander, 1LT Tom Callahan (Tom Terrific), reported to the Battalion Commander, LTC Alvin C. Ellis (Big Al) that they had received fire and in his opinion it would not be safe to run another convoy in that area. Big Al ran the convoy.
The convoy commander was 1Lt James Baird (Pig Farmer) on the gun truck, Proud American. As expected, shortly after leaving Vandergrift the call went out "Contact, contact, contact". Along with the crew and Baird, the truck also carried the 523rd commander Capt. V. The officers and men of the 523rd were as one. There didn't seem to be the separation between the groups as there was in other units.
At FSB Vandergriff, 1LT Ralph Fuller (Ranger Ralph) assembled all gun trucks and the crews monitored the radios. 1LT Callahan had told him about the possibility of an ambush. When the call was received there was no holding any of them back. An engineer tried to stop them saying, "There is an ambush up the road". 1LT Fuller on the ¾ gun truck Daughter of Darkness and five 5 ton gun trucks raced to the scene.
The Black Widow was "dead lined" for having no brakes. Leon Vance the NCOIC was still monitoring the radio and told his driver Mike Eischens. "Let’s go! Those boys are getting hit". Mike reminded him that they had no brakes to which Leon said, "We only have to stop once." A lieutenant tried to stop them but was removed from the running board by Leon. There was no way anyone was going to stop them from going to help. Shortly after the 6 gun trucks rolled in and began lighting up the area, the enemy broke contact.
The Proud American was destroyed only 22 days after being built. The only 523rd Gun Truck never having a name painted on the armor.
Calvin, Baird, and Thorne are again in a major ambush. At first contact an RPG (Rocket Propelled Grenade) hit the truck in the cab on the driver’s side. Thorne does not survive. Baird was at the radio behind his driver and sustained major wounds and lost his left arm. McDonald had a wound to his face and Calvin had a wound to his wrist that he never reported.
Callahan got Baird on a stretcher and Fuller called in a Medivac. The chopper couldn't land on the road. Fuller found a bridge to bring the helicopter close to the ground, and they had to lift Baird up into it. Fuller was heard to tell the Medivac crew to "Take care of him he's a good one" as the helicopter went airborne.
Chester, when he picked his crew for Angel had picked Thorne for his driver because he was a skilled mechanic, but on this day, the last day of his life, it was far more then those skills that he exhibited. It was his skill and awareness as a driver that saved the crew. In his last breath that he took in this world, a steep bank on one side of the road and a deep ravine on the other, he chose to drive into the embankment, saving the lives of everyone else on the truck.
Robert Thorne was removed from his truck and was taken to Vandergrift on the gun truck Black Widow. Thorne was from Denver, Colorado and will always be 20 years old.
![[thumbzup]](https://www.steelsoldiers.com/images/smilies/icon_smile_thumzup.gif "Thumbs Up [thumbzup]"){kind=icon}
