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After two years in Vietnam, the 9th Infantry Division
has established a proud record of accomplishment both in and out of combat.
In such places as Bau Bang, Cholon, the Y-Bridge and the Plain of Reeds,
the Division has carved its niche in the history of the war in Vietnam. On
the occasion of the second anniversary the Octofoil sent First Lieutenant
David H. Furse to interview the Division’s third commander in Vietnam,
Major General Julian J. Ewell. In his office in Dong Tam, General Ewell discussed
the Division in the delta, the accomplishment of the infantryman, air mobility
and civic action.
OCTOFOIL:
General Ewell, in the two years since the Division arrived in Vietnam,
it has killed over 12,000 enemy troops and has had a body count at a ratio
of well over 10 to one. How does this compare with other
Divisions? |
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GENERAL.EWELL: Unfortunately, I don’t really keep book on all the divisions
in Vietnam, but I think the record of the 9th Division since its arrival
here has been one of which every soldier in the 9th can be proud. We’ve
damaged the VC severely and we’ve done it at a minimum cost in casualties
to our own men. I don’t think you can ask for much more than that.
OCTOFOIL: Since
the Division has moved to Dong Tam, how successful has the Division been
in thwarting the VC here and denying him access to the rice-rich
Delta?
GENERAL
EWELL: I think the Division has been quite
successful. Of course, starting with the offensive right after Tet, the 9th
Division and the 7th ARVN Division, which works in this area with us, were
quite fortunate and lucky in being able to wrack the VC in Dinh Tuong Province,
and by this summer |
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the VC were on pretty shaky ground in the My Tho area. Since
then we have had several good battles with them and the main and local force
battalions in this area are almost ineffective.
The big change has been in the next province down,
Kien Hoa, which has historically been a center of the Viet Cong movement
and before that, the Vietminh movement. No one had ever really been able
to make any substantial inroads into Kien Hoa on a continuing basis. When
our second brigade went down there with two battalions, and now with three,
they really started taking the VC there, who are pretty tough and slippery,
apart by the numbers. The climate in Kien Hoa is radically different now
than three months ago. However, I think we have a lot of hard work to do
in Kien Hoa because the VC have been there since 1945. It will probably be
weeks or months before we can definitely say that we’re riding free
and clear in that area. |
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