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THE PEAK YEAR

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In order to cover the area left open in the PERSHING area of operations, I spread the remainder of the 1st Cavalry Division north and south of the Bong Son River. With the Division's unique ability to rapidly generate a reserve force from other forces in contact, I had no hesitation in allowing all maneuver elements to be committed.

This is not to say that any commander is happy to lose operational control of any of his forces. The 2d Battalion, 7th Infantry that had been detached from the 1st Cavalry before I took command had been operating in the southeast corner of the II Corps Tactical Zone near Phan Thiet since September 1966 and circumstances dictated that I would not have it back under my wing until after January 1968, when it would join me in the I Corps area. Administratively, it still belonged to the Division and we were responsible for all normal support for this unit except operational control, which was vested directly to General Larsen.

Throughout the Battle of Binh Dinh, one airmobile battalion task force was detached under I Field Force control in Binh Thuan Province to support pacification activities around the city of Phan Thiet. The task force was created and moved on 24 hours notice. Although scheduled for 60 days of operation, it stayed in being for 17 months. The task force contained a very significant part of the division's assets. In addition to the 2d Battalion, 7th Cavalry, it included a scout section from the air cavalry squadron, a platoon of engineers, a battery of 105-mm howitzers, a platoon of aerial rocket artillery, lift helicopters, a signal team, and intelligence and civil affairs personnel, plus a forward support element for logistics. This battalion-sized operation, known as Operation BYRD, was especially interesting as a parallel to the Division's activities during this period. BYRD was in effect a microcosm of the Division's operations in Binh Dinh.^[1]

Binh Thuan is located about 100 miles northeast of Saigon, 200 miles south of Binh Dinh and bordering the South China Sea. The principal port city, Phan Thiet, was surrounded by a heavily popu[lated]

↑ Task Force BYRD was originally under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Billy M. Vaughan. It was in turn commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Fred H. Karhohs who made several significant changes in the Task Force's operations. Upon General Norton's recommendation, Karhohs took over the 2d Brigade the same day I assumed command of the Division. Lieutenant Colonel Leo D. Turner became the new commander of Task Force BYRD. During the last six months of the Task Force's operations, it was commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Joseph T. Griffin, Jr., who wrote a definitive thesis on Operation BYRD while attending the U.S. Army War College in 1970.

[ref1-1] Task Force BYRD was originally under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Billy M. Vaughan. It was in turn commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Fred H. Karhohs who made several significant changes in the Task Force's operations. Upon General Norton's recommendation, Karhohs took over the 2d Brigade the same day I assumed command of the Division. Lieutenant Colonel Leo D. Turner became the new commander of Task Force BYRD. During the last six months of the Task Force's operations, it was commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Joseph T. Griffin, Jr., who wrote a definitive thesis on Operation BYRD while attending the U.S. Army War College in 1970.

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