.

RTO: His Call Sign Is Courage The Voice of Combat e is the one who calls in the dustoff when you are hit and artillery when you are pinned down. Sometimes you think he has it easy and other times you wouldn't take his job for all the rice in Asia.   He is a radio-telephone operator (RTO)--often your only contact with other elements.   Any private first class or specialist assigned to a line unit as a rifleman is eligible for the job. Yet only a handful ever make good RTOs because they require what commanders call "that something extra." An RTO needs above average intelligence because be must understand the entire tactical situation and juggle calls for resupply, medical evacuation or information.    He also needs a cool head. His knowledge is useless if he gets rattled during combat and can't keep his call signs straight. And there is more.   "I pick a guy who has a lot of confidence," said First Lieutenant Craig Bennett, 25, a former platoon leader with the 4th Battalion, 39th Infantry. "Often the platoon leader doesn't have time to take every call that comes in and the RTO has to have the brains and confidence to supply a quick correct answer. At the same time, he has to be a good soldier who follows orders explicitly.    "You must have confidence in him because if you get hit he may end up taking over many of your jobs. There are cases where an RTO has taken over an entire platoon.

By 1LT John F. Lamm

5        

.

7

8

cealed enemy positions. The "Warwagon" had succeeded in its main mission of enticing the NVA to disclose their positions.    "The Cobras, the Army's newest super-fire attack helicopters mustered quickly and began their screaming gun-runs. Salvo after salvo smashed directly into the enemy position."    "Our job," said first Lieutenant Ace A. Cozzalio, 21, of Carmichael, Calif., a team leader with Troop D, 3d/5th, "is to find and fix the enemy and start the battle. Once we have done this,we move out and let larger units, who are capable of destroying the enemy, move in."    Cozzalio is a pilot of the Army's tiniest helicopter, the four-seater Cayuse. Its odd shape and small size can be deceiving. On a single gun-run,the gutty little fighter can raze an area the size of a football stadium.    One of the Cayuse's most interesting features is its engine. Weighing only 136 pounds,the engine has a shaft horsepower output of 317 horsepower with a continuous cruising maximum of 270 horsepower.    Although the Cayuse weighs only 1,158 pounds empty, it has armor protection for the crew and vital engine components. "Mattell Messerschmitt"    Called the "Mattel Messerschmitt" and "Timex Tornado," the Cayuse,when combat deployed with Troop D,is properly dubbed "Warwagon."    Operating under the tactical banner of the 9th Infantry Division, "Warwagons" are part of a lightning quick cavalry strike force which also employes the combat talents of the 36 inch-wide, super-fire attack helicopter, the Huey Cobra    Designed as an assault helicopter, the new Huey Cobra is a sleek, two-man, heavily-armed version of the

. .

LOHs in combat formation . highly successful Huey. Its yard wide fuselage is one third the width of other Huey models presenting a tougher target to enemy ground fire.    The combat-proven Cobra gunships, whose stubby wings give it a shark-like look, can carry 1,500 pounds of mixed 7.62mm ball . . ammunition and 2.75 rockets on a typical two-and-one-half hour mission. The Cobra cruises at 190 knots per hour.    Mounted under the forward part of the fuselage is a rotatable turret which houses a 40mm grenade launcher and a mobile 7.62mm minigun.

10

fter the grim Tet attacks in January, General William C. Westmoreland, then Commander of Allied Forces in Vietnam, reassigned Troops A, B and C, 3d Squadron, 5th Armored Cavalry to the DMZ to bolster armored firepower there.
    The 9th Division unit was sent to Wunder Beach, 15 miles south of the DMZ, making it the northern-most Division unit. For tactical purposes, the Cavalry units were under the operational control of I Corps.
   Unique is the fact that the Bulk of the 9th Division is fighting deep in the Mekong Delta in the III and IV Corps Tactical Zones, south of Saigon.

This makes the Division the most widespread in Vietnam.
   Base Camp for the 3d/5th Black Knights is Wunder Beach, a post-card perfect setting of sand dunes and tropical scrub evergreens. Located 50 miles north of Da Nang, tanks and personnel carriers rest in ankle deep sand on a stretch of beach that extends the entire coast line of Vietnam.
 While the men wear the 9th Division patch, they have fought with many other divisional elements in the northern provinces. Initially they supported the 1st and 3d Marine Divisions. Later they fought alongside the Screaming

Eagles of the 10lst Airborne Division. Presently, under the control of the 1st Air Cavalry Division, the Black Knights are roaming the oceanside hamlets of the coastal plains, searching for NVA and Viet Cong who move near the De-Militarized Zone.
   On June 27, the U.S. troops found a battalion of enemy in one of these villages and killed over 200 in a two day battle. Encircling the village, the tanks and APCs drove the enemy to the sea.
   The mud and slime of the Delta contrasts sharply with the gleaming white sand of Wunder Beach. but the fierce fighting is the same.

18

If your're going from Vinh Kim to My Tho, this is your bus. Crammed to the bursting point and leaning slightly to one side, it waits to pass one of the Army dump trucks hauling gravel to the repaving crews. (Photo by Lamm) .

. . . . Armored personnel carriers and "dusters" provided much of the security for the road crews. The road had to be swept each morning for mines and during the day, repaving crews risked sniper fire.                        (Photo by Lamm) Traffic often backed up for over a mile as the engineers had to close both lanes to repave a section. The vehicles all sat poised, waiting for the road to open, so they could try and dash through before the gate was closed again. The MPs had their hands full. (Photo by Lamm)

. Resurfacing crews graded, tarred, then spread gravel. After rolling the fresh mixture, the road had to sit for 24 hours. The process was repeated with a 36 hour wait and the road was ready for traffic. (Photo by Lamm)

21

	HELICOPTER HOIST Hoist methods of pulling wounded 9th Infantry Division soldiers from dense jungle to a dust-off helicopter recently were demonstrated. The hoist method is essential to jungle rescues because pilots are unable to evacuate the wounded by normal landing. To effect the jungle evacuation, two types of hoists are used --"forest penetrator" and "stokes litter." The forest penetrator is an improvised seat which is lowered and then folded down. This stable method of extraction takes less room than the stokes litter and is easier to operate. It is used for sick or lightly wounded patients. Resembling a large basket, the stokes litter is used for extracting unconscious or seriously wounded patients. They are strapped into the basket and hoisted up.
	LONELY WATCH    Climb a 55-foot tower in the middle of a mortar attack and turn on a huge, bright light? Not on your life, but Private First Class Gary Buhler does it every time for the 2d Battalion, 60th Infantry. Designed to sweep the area outside the Tan Tru base perimeter with white or infrared light, the spotlight allows very bright, pinpoint illumination to help spot mortar tubes and attacking enemy. When turned on, the unit resembles a full moon 55 feet in the air.
	AMMO FEEDER    The firepower of the M-60 machinegun used by the doorgunner in D Troop, 3d of the 5th Cavalry's Light Observation Helicopters has become a sure thing. The Cav has mounted the ammo rack and feeder from a Huey gunship in the back seat of the ship and feed it over the gunners left shoulder to the weapon. While the rack and feeder could easily be lifted from the gunship, the Cav had to develop and fabricate the various fittings. Results have been so successful, the system is being mounted in all their LOH's.
	NEW DICTIONARY    If one of the 9th Infantry Division's Tiger Scouts yells "Hit do duc" you had best get down in a hurry. He has learned this phrase from his new Tiger Scout Dictionary and is warning you to hit the dirt. The dictionary was compiled by the 9th Division with the help of interpreters. The Tiger Scout Dictionary, using an easily understood picture-word teaching method, is allowing them to communicate immediately with their American comrades. A picture of a grenade is followed by the Vietnamese word "luu dan", and the English, "grenade". Then in parentheses is a phonetic pronunciation of the English word in syllables which the Vietnamese can easily pronounce. Grenade becomes "gri-nay-do." Prisoner becomes "pri-don-no." And "are you ready to go" becomes "a-ro-iu-ret-di-tu-gau."

22

U Minh Forest

No Longer a VC Sanctuary

here have all the VC gone? This was the question Allied commanders in the Mekong Delta were asking themselves in late spring and early summer this year.
   Three answers immediately came to mind. First: enemy forces encircling Saigon were drawing replacements and reinforcements from as far away as Vinh Long Province. Next: the enemy was still rebuilding after a disastrous Tet which saw the Mobile Riverine Force (MRF) pulverize VC units from My Tho to Can Tho and, accordingly, was deliberately avoiding contact. Finally: it is now rice-planting season and, since everyone needs food to survive during the coming year, peasant and guerrilla are working side by side in the rice paddies.
   Finally, in late July, MRF tacticians and IV Corps planners mapped out a bold plan which would thrust almost 3,000 Allied soldiers into an area where no Allied and few Vietnamese soldiers had ever dared venture before--the wide stretch of marshland zigzagging southwest from Can Tho to the notorious, legendary U Minh Forest.
   For centuries a safe haven for pirates, smugglers, bandits and, recently, the Viet Cong, the U Minh forest failed to capture room on the front pages until Spring, 1968.
  At that time, this giant maze which had resisted every human destructive force up to and including the French, succumbed to a three month long blaze which left almost two-thirds of the forest defoliated.
   Still, the U Minh forest remained a sanctuary and training center for the enemy.
   On July 30, Naval Assault Flotilla One unloaded 2d Brigade soldiers in the area. Less than half an hour after they disembarked, one U.S. commander discovered a cache featuring assorted enemy firearms, medical suplies, documents "...You name it and it was there," said one infantry platoon leader, "it got so bad that the men didn't want to find any more because it meant they had to carry it back to the boats." And that was the way it was for the entire ten day operation. Contact with the enemy was frequent.
   One enemy cache after another. One large body count after another. And, incredibly, not one U.S. soldier was killed.
  For the first time in MRF history, the 2d Brigade command post went ashore. From the CP and his command and control helicopter, Colonel Robert Archer personally coordinated the efforts of his own two infantry battalions and five artillery batteries with the 5th Vietnamese Marines and supporting ARVN artillery.
   Major Donald Morelli, River Raider operations officer, in a masterful understatement, explained: "Once again the 9th Division's 2d Brigade River Assault Flotilla One have demonstrated their unique long range strike capability."    And demonstrate they did--in territory where the local population had never seen a C-ration can.
   "To give you an idea of how positive the local Vietnamese officials were that this area was 100 per cent VC," said Morelli, "we had a huge specified strike zone. In other words, the provincial government gave our artillery prior clearance to fire on an unusually large sector of land. Though we still needed U.S. clearance, hours were saved."
   In the eyes of the world, 10 rockets landing in Saigon are more important than 10 U Minh Forest Operations. But in the Mekong Delta, both Allied and enemy commanders possess renewed awareness that no VC stronghold can be considered forever secure. The U Minh forest's greatest importance may prove to be psychological as it decisively showed the enemy that their time was running out, that as soon as the threat to Saigon was diminished sufficiently to permit more U.S. troops to move south, the days of the Viet Cong infrastructure, safe for decades, would be numbered.

By 1LT Howe McCarthy

23

 By 1Lt Charles C. Ashton III

 

lam! He was down. "My God, I've been hit," he thought, reflecting on the impact that drove him to the ground, the burning pain that seemed impossible to localize and the seeping wetness that saturated his shirt. One thought became dominant -- help!    This cry for help, echoing across a Mekong Delta waterway, brings immediate response from a combat medic anywhere in the 9th Infantry Division area of operations. They are a determined breed of young men with the vital mission of prolonging life, saving a fellow soldier.    "My medic was not only an important member of the platoon, but a necessary factor in keeping the morale of the men high." said First Lieutenant Charles J. Craig, 25, of Symsonia, Ky., former platoon leader with Company A, 3d Battalion, 47th Infantry. "Eveyone knew that 'Doc' would be there when we needed him."    The medic in Vietnam, unlike past wars, has the vital factor of time in his favor. The ability to move anywhere, anytime has provided immediate aid for

. .

the wounded. And, often, it is in these first critical moments that lives are saved.    Medical advances in the last 25 years have seen a corresponding change in training for combat medics. After basic combat training, potential medics are sent to Ft. Sam Houston, Texas, for ten weeks of intensive training in the fundamentals of combat medicine and first aid. They are then assigned to medical units where they acquire practical experience, advanced training and, above all, confidence.    In Vietnam, each medic has his own combat-tested method of operation, but the mission is the same for all, to perform emergency first aid until evacuation can be effected.    "I don't carry a weapon because it gets in my way, I can't move quick enough," explained Specialist Five James E. Viazamko, 22, of Detroit, Mich., a medic with Company A, 3d Battalion, 47th Infantry.    I gave my M-16 to an infantryman in my first firefight and haven't carried one since." In heavy fighting, during the first of April 1968, at the "Crossroads" area, ten miles southwest of My Tho, Viazamko's platoon was

. . .

caught in a crossfire and the point man was immediately wounded.    "I could see he needed help. I crawled toward him through grass about three feet tall. As I moved, bullets cut it down over my head. When I got to him he was not critically wounded, but insisted he was going to die," Viazamko recalled. Often this frame of mind will speed the harmful effects of traumatic shock and put a slightly wounded man in serious condition. "We were pinned down by fire and I stayed there reassuring him he was going to be all right and that the dustoff, medical evacuation by helicopter, was on its way," Viazamko continued. "I would hate to have been a medic in WW II without dustoffs. Here we get the wounded out of the field and into the hospital within minutes."    "The helicopter has revolutionized our medical capabilities," said Lieutenant Colonel Frank K. Kriz, 33, Winter Park. Fla., Commanding Officerof the 3d Surgical Hospital.    Ambulance helicopters respond to calls for help from the field anytime of the day or night.

25    

.

Anytime--day or night

In the Delta, medevacs can extract wounded infantrymen of the 9th Division within 15 minutes of the request. "There isn't a prettier sight in the world than that chopper with the big red cross on it coming in to get you out," said Specialist Four Lee E. Wilson, 19, of Zanesville, Ohio.

He was a member of the Recon Platoon, 2d Battalion, 47th Infantry wounded during the Tet Offensive on Jan. 31. "That ship was taking hits as he came in for us and I wanted to tell the crew how much I appreciated what they had done, but all I could do was wave thanks as they dropped us off at the 93d Evacuation Hospital."

"I wouldn't want to fly anything else but dustoffs because I feel the job is an important and rewarding one," explained Captain John E. Matt, 23, of Ft. Worth, Texas, a pilot with the 57th Medical Detatchment.

"If there are wounded men on the ground I always make an effort to go in. It is my job to get them out. When an area is insecure, we have to do the best we can. One time we went into a hot area with

Dustoff chopper is a welcome sight in the Mekong Delta as
its pilots often brave intense fire to evacuate wounded for
speedy trip to awaiting skilled medical attention. Ground
units are never more than 15 minutes from immediate
medical aid.                                         (Photo by Ashton)

.

.The combat medic is known
for his sponsiveness and
courage on the battlefield.

...

..Working from a portable medical kit designed for combat and field conditions, 9th Division medic gives aid to wounded troop while fellow medic holds plasma bottle.    (Photo by Walker)

.

.

26

he slight figure slipped noiselessly into the treeline and dense undergrowth. His small wide boots were still caked with the thick rice paddy mud of the Mekong Delta. A former Viet Cong, he was point man today for a U.S. patrol. Directing his new friends around lethal VC mines and punji pits, he was well aware of the deadly game he played. After all, he had seen it from both sides.
   The American intelligence officer had called him "Tiger Scout." His U.S. buddies just call him "Number One," which in the vernacular of American soldiers all over the world means "the best." He was proud to be a Tiger Scout, proud of his new uniform and boots, and most of all proud of his new M-16 rifle. He was proud, too, of the trust and friendship of his American comrades.
   On this particular day, Number One Tiger Scout was on a recon with his platoon from the 9th Infantry Division's 2d Mechanized Battalion, 47th Infantry. Their mission for the hundredth time was to locate the VC in the sprawling water-woven Mekong Delta, a VC sanctuary for years because of its inaccessability.
   The last man in the platoon had just broken the woodline, when a signal from Tiger Scout Number One brought them to a sudden halt. Every man dropped. Platoon leader First Lieutenant Jack Mooney of Bryan, Tex., crept forward and Tiger One pointed out two command detonated claymore mines only 15 feet ahead. One claymore can fill an area 100 yards deep and 50 yards wide with thousands of tiny shards from the height of a man's head to his feet.

28

.

The keen eye of the Tiger Scout is often a lifesaver for American troops as he can spot VC mines, booby traps and hiding places. Taking the point, he often leads the Americans through what might have been one of his former VC haunts. (Photo by Lamm)

Monney quickly moved his men out of the killing zone. No sooner had they moved out, than both mines exploded, raining death on the spot they had just left. Spots Claymores "I had my reservations about using a converted Viet Gong as a Scout," said Mooney. "But after our Tiger Scout spotted those two VC claymore mines right on top of us, I started to rely on him. Since then he has pointed out bunkers and booby traps for us that an American never would have seen."     Mooney's story could apply to almost any of the

155 Tiger Scouts now employed in the 9th Infantry Division. Less than a year ago, all were Viet Gong soldiers, many ofthem officers. Yet they are making a distinguished record today as guides, interrogators and fighters with 9th Division units against their former VC comrades.    Their aggressiveness in the field searching out the VC and their loyalty to their American unit is another of the many paradoxes of the Vietnam war. All Tiger Scouts rallied voluntarily to the South Vietnamese government under the Chieu Hoi (Open Arms) amnesty program and then further volunteered for duty as scouts with the Americans.

   Six months ago the 9th Division had only 32 Tiger Scouts. Now there are over 150, and the Division plans to add another 50 shortly. They are well paid by Vietnamese standards, roughly the same as an unmarried staff sergeant in the South Vietnamese Army. It amounts to 5,000 piasters (approximately $45) a month.

Value proven

"The value of these scouts is becoming increasingly apparent," says Captain Stephen Swartz, a former Boston lawyer who heads up the Tiger Scout program for the 9th Division. "We could hardly be more pleased with the results of the program.
   The most serious problem so far has been to secure the odd boot and fatigue sizes for the small Vietnamese. Another is language, since most of the scouts speak no English. Plans already are underway for a one-week basic English course for the Tiger Scouts.
   Medical treatment for the scouts was another problem area initially. Only emergency medical aid was authorized for the Tiger Scouts at U. S. facilities. Now the scouts are given the same complete medical attention as any American soldier.
   Tiger Scouts have proven of great value to U.S. fighting units because of their first hand knowledge of VC tactics and methods. During one month the 3d Battalion, 60th Infantry credited its Tiger Scouts with locating numerous booby traps and command detonated mines.
   "On one occasion," the report continues, "a Tiger Scout under fire pointed out several enemy bunkers which were later knocked out by friendly troops. Several times our Tiger Scouts have located VC by their ability to communicate with the Vietnamese nationals."
   The individual battalion intelligence officers in the 9th Division recruit and hire their own unit's

.

29

Looking for what might be a VC hiding place this Tiger Scout leads a division element through twisted vines,  
(Photo by Lamm)

Tiger Scouts from Chieu Hoi repatriation centers in their areas of operation. Captain Lawson Geiger, Jr., of Amarillo, Tex., the intelligence officer for the 2d Battalion 47th Infantry, recently hired scouts from the Saigon center.
   "I look first for a man with jungle experience," explains Geiger. Does he know VC tactics and booby traps? Did he have a leadership position with the VC?
   "At the Chieu Hoi center I talk first with the Chieu Hoi Chief explaining the program and its benefits. He then asks if any of his people are interested. From then on it's like an interview for any other job." When a Tiger Scout first enters his American unit, he is assigned a U.S. buddy who explains the unit's policies and shows him how to maintain his new weapon. When the new

30

Scout with the 9th Division scans the watery Mekong Delta as the Old Reliables help the Allies secure the sprawling area south of Saigon.  (Photo by Lamm)

 

scout walks point on a patrol, his buddy walks it with him.   "Under fire our scouts are very aggressive," Geiger continues. "They have great confidence in their ability to fight the VC. Most of them walk point on operations here with 2d/47th. In fact, they will have it no other way. . . "Under fire our scouts are very aggresive. They have great confidence in their ability to fight the VC,"

VC leaders    "We have had no disciplinary problems to speak of, and none of them have been absent without leave. When we grant them a leave, they usually come back early. Our Tiger Scouts are treated well here, just like any American soldier. It seems to be motivation enough for them to do the fine job they do." Tiger Scouts with the 9th Division range in age from late teens to 40 years old. They come from a variety of backgrounds and former jobs with the VC. Some were riflemen or ammunition bearers. Many were officers or aspirants (Warrant Officers) who commanded VC units

.

A Tiger Scout, one of 200 former VC working with the Old Reliables, carefully leads a patrol through heavy filiage during recon in force in Long An Province.  (Photo by Lamm)

31

.

By SP5 John Collins          

    32

.

he chips are down in combat. When a man goes to war, he faces the most severe challenge of his life. Rarely will he ever undergo a more significant test of his life. Rarely will he ever undergo a more significant test of his ability to keep a grip on his emotions.
   Troops entering combat for the first time find themselves forced abruptly to round the psychological bend that separates a life characterized by choice between comfort or discomfort from a way of life--and death--called Vietnam combat.
   How have they stood up under the terrifying stress of war?
   For an answer to these questions and others related to the 9th Division's overall mental hygiene picture, the 9th Division Information Office queried Lieutenant Colonel Robert L. Pettera of Tacoma, Wash., and Captain Dasil M. Johnson of Wichita, Kan. Pettera is the Division's resident psychiatrict Johnson is the Division social work officer. They head a staff of eight social work-psychology specialists serving the more than 15,000 troops of the 9th.

Psychiatric reaction

According to figures compiled for 1967 by the Division's Mental Hygiene Consultation Service (MHCS), a surprisingly low number of combat troops have suffered no psychiatric combat reaction.
   Pettera and Johnson point out that referrals to the MHCS are not always made for medical reasons. Some referrals are made for purely administrative reasons. As a preliminary action in certain court martial proceedings, for example, a referral to the Division psychiatric staff is requested.
   The figures, gathered during the Division's first full year of combat, reveal that an overwhelming majority (94.9 percent) adjusted to combat, fought, suffered and bounced back.
   The extremely low mental hygiene referral rate is even more encouraging compared to World War II figures. "More than 20 percent of U.S. casualties during World War II were combat reactions of a psychological nature," according to Johnson.
   In addition to the Division's surprisingly low mental hygiene referral rate, all but a tiny minority of those who suffered "combat reactions" have returned to normal duty, the mental hygine staff reports

.

.

.

Pettera and Johnson emphasize that World War II and Vietnam are vastly different in nature and therefore present widely varied problems to soldiers.

Prolonged contact

World War II and the Korean War frequently brought American soldiers into prolonged periods of enemy contact. Some Pettera and Johnson report, faced combat for as many as 400 consecutive days.
   In contrast, Vietnam fighting is sporadic with relatively long periods of rest between engagements. This is the nature of guerrilla war. But other stress factors are present in Vietnam. The enemy cannot easily be identified.
   In view of detectable differences between other wars and the present one in Vietnam, and in view of observations they have made, Pettera and Johnson recommend an updated approach to combat psychiatry, both in the diagnosis and treatment of psychiatric combat reactions.    Their findings are included in a yet unpublished paper titled "Psychiatric Management of Combat Reactions With Emphasis on Combat Neurosis."
   Among their recommendations: --Instead of lumping together all combat reactions, at least three distinct types can be observed. Each should be clinically distinguished and each treated separately. --Profiles or disabilities should not normally be prescribed for persons suffering from psychiatric combat reactions. Rather, casaulties of a psychological nature should receive treatment (medical and administrative) analogous to treatment given physical casualties.

Mental hygiene

"The philosophy of this Mental Hygiene Consultation Service is to treat combat reactions as close to the front as possible," Pettera explains. In fact, during February, 1968, roughly three-fourths of the total number of patients were seen by battalion surgeon staff members and social work-psychology specialists, rather than by Pettera or Johnson themselves.
   "Battalion surgeons and the social work specialists consult with us, of course, as they conduct interviews and therapy, but slightly more than 25 percent of the total were referred directly to us for consultation," says Johnson.

They strongly believe that battalion surgeons and brigade social work specialists should treat combat reactions whenever possible.
   It frequently appears that the work of the battalion-level surgeons, the Inspector General's office and the various unit chaplains dovetail in certain respects.
   For that reason, Pettera and Johnson offer special guidance in mental hygiene to chaplains in the field. Visits with battalion medical staff members and chaplains is a usual portion of the time they devote to field trips.
   They believe that combat reactions can be divided into three major categories; combat fatigue, combat neurosis and a third category which includes several types of nebulous, transient anxieties. All are directly related to combat, they emphasize, and are not observed in soldiers serving in support activities.
   In other words, truck drivers, clerks and cooks would not normally experience these "combat reactions."

Combat fatigue

Combat fatigue and combat neurosis, say Pettera and Johnson, seem to be severely incapacitating, while the third category seems to be only moderately incapacitating.
    Combat fatigue, a psychological disturbance characterized by psychic distress, is most often observed in soldiers who have been in combat for prolonged periods of time, according to their report. It is nothing new to men at war. In World War II, for example, when men were in daily enemy contact for as many as 300 to 400 consecutive days it was classically observed. This form of disturbance is clearly precipitated by physical and emotional fatigue.
   The nature of the Vietnam war, however, is quite different from conventional or front-line war. The differences have a discernible effect on combat neurosis.
   This does not imply that combat soldiers in Vietnam, as observed in the 9th Division, have an easy time. Surely, the shadowy, unknown character of the guerrilla enemy here intensifies the element of anxiety which is liable to affect the modern soldier in Vietnam.
   He cannot know when contact will come. He may participate in four consecutive recon in force missions without making contact of any kind.

.33  

But the fifth may produce furious combat. By the account of a soldier who served 10 months as an infantryman it is extremely wearing on the nerves. He described his own reactions to combat:
   In the beginning of a combat tour, the soldier "is scared of the unknown. He asks himself, will I panic and run, will I freeze or just sit down and cry?
    When combat fatigue has been diagnosed, sleep has enabled the patient to regain complete physical and emotional control.
    They recommended sleep-inducing medications, noting that in their 9th Division experience, patients after awaking from 24 to 48 hours of uninterrupted sleep not only regain emotional control, but usually are very anxious to return to duty with their units.

Combat neurosis

Distinct from combat fatigue is another disturbance which Pettera and Johnson have labeled "combat neurosis." Noting that the actual term "combat neurosis" may not meet with universal agreement, they suggest that " combat phluggelphram" could be substituted.
   Their concern is to define a specific set of symptoms rather than to engage in semantics, they hasten to point out. The term combat neurosis has been used in the past to describe and define all types of combat reactions.
   As they have observed the phenomenon, however, combat neurosis is uniquely a disturbance in soldiers serving in combat. It has never, they add, been observed in soldiers whose jobs are of a non-combat type.
   Why does combat neurosis seem to affect only combat soldiers? Pettera and Johnson clain it is precipitated by repeated severe psychic-trauma (In layman's language, psychologically shocking events) and appears to develop only after a prolonged period. Combat neurosis, they continue, is more than merely psychic disturbance. Rather it is a disturbance of a psychophysiological nature--one which affects both the body and the mind. This syndrome or configuration of symptoms affects both the physical and emotion make-up of the individual suffering from it.

Suffer anxiety

For example, in addition to insomnia, anxiety and guilt, the patient truly suffers physical discomfort, sometimes severe enough to cause vomiting and diarrhea.

34

Nearly all soldiers found to be suffering from this syndrome had compledted an average of 10 months in combat. Combat neurosis, like combat fatigue, according to their observations, severely affects combat effectiveness.
   Persons suffering from combat neurosis, they report, have described anxiety about whether they will make it through the remainder of the tour. The phenomenon might be expressed: "I've made it through 10 months of fighting. But I've just been lucky so far. I know I won't make it to DEROS."
   Pettera noted the apparent dependence upon a certain period of combat, usually ten months but occurring between nine and eleven months. This, they feel, has less to do with the number of months completed than the number of months left in a tour. " I would suspect," said Pettera, "that if the Vietnam tour were not 12 months long, but, say, 18 months long, patients suffering from combat neurosis would experience similar anxiety within two to three months of the end of the tour--not at ten months, but at 16 months.

Related stresses

Combat neuroses, like combat fatigue, should be treated at the battalion aid station, whenever possible. Patients should not be granted permanent disabilities on the basis of having suffered from combat neurosis. In almost all cased, the MHCS staff has found that return to regular duty should be arranged very soon after treatment.
   A stream of less-defined stresses related to combat duty has also been described by the MHCS staff.
   None of these reactions severely incapacitates the sufferer, although they too are acute. These, say the MHCS members, are usually only moderately incapacitating.
   Three periods withing the averate 12-month combat tour have been isoldated as presenting the greatest psychic problems related to combat. The first period, when a soldier begins his combat tour, is characterized by fear of the enemy, fear of his own reactions.
   Having survived the first period and having proven himself mature and capable, he faces a second stress period. The routine of patrolling, preparing defenses, even the daily chores of burning trash and guarding bases is emotionally fatiguing. This period often ends as the soldier completes the first nine months of his tour.

Loneliness and guilt

A third trying time usually begins when soldiers approach the final three months of a combat tour. Loneliness, anxiety, even guilt may cause distress.
   Pettera and Johnson suggest that one apparently effective means of breaking up a combat tour and simultaneously relieving the monotony of the second period distress is the selection of an appropriate Rest and Recuperation break. They recommend midway through the twelve-month tour as a good time.
   It appears that if most soldiers chose this time in their tours for an R&R, no manpower and unit strength considerations would adversely affect Division combat effectiveness.
   Based on their Vietnam experiences, the consultants believe the most important persons having an effect on morale are the company commanders. If their leadership is good, morale in their unit will be high.
   Reflecting this, they point to one 9th Infantry Division infantry company in which 30 members voluntarily extended their Vietnam combat tours beyond the usual 12 months in order to be with their commander. A desire to continue working with the same companylevel commander plays an important role in motivating: a soldier to extend.

Predictable frequency

Individuals who are psychologically immature are predisposed to suffering some kind of combat reaction, they pointed out. This is not to say that psychiatric problems occur with a predictable frequency among immature people.
   Can the overall effect of combat have a generally good effect on the soldier? Pettera and Johnson answer affirmatively. In this way they feel it can have a beneficial effect:
   More than any other experience, combat teaches the man to face hardships squarely and to exercise the independence of a truly mature person.
   "Combat teaches him to make what he can of life, when the chips are down and afterward, he should be able to face almost anything, making the best he can out of it. That," they added, "is what maturity is all about."

.

.

.

.

   The United States Armed Forces Institute provides opportunities for military personnel to continue their education while on active duty with the Armed Forces. USAFI supplies instructional material, including courses for individual correspondence study and for group classwork and tests. Over 200 courses may be taken directly from USAFI in pre-high school, high school, college and technical subjects. Begin furthering your education, visit your nearest Army Education Center.

SHARE YOUR 'WAR STORIES'

  Everyone who has been in combat in Vietnam has an experience worth sharing. The OCTOFOIL needs that experience to insure that members of the 9th Infantry Division are aware of and will profit by the experiences of those who went before them. In order to make your combat experience available to the entire Division at the earliest possible date you are invited and encouraged to submit your Vietnam experiences to: Editor, OCTOFOIL, Information Office, 9th Infantry D