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Capt. Kenneth Michael (Mike) Wallace of Modesto tries a souvenir Viet Nam hat on his wife. He is on convalescent leave. Bee PhotoInjured Modesto Officer Asks ‘Drastic’ Viet StepsBy Lee RoddyThe veteran officer of Viet Nam combat gently fingered the patch over his right eye.“We’re going to have to do something over there pretty soon. Something drastic.”The words came from Capt. Kenneth Michael (Mike) Wallace of Modesto, home on convalescent leave for treatment of an eye injur)' suffered after five months of continuous combat action in Viet Nam.Wallace, a career infantry officer, is one of two Americans assigned to the Vietnamese Reconnaissance Company, 3rd Division, based at Kuang Ngai near Da Nang.MJC GraduateA native Modestan, Wallace is a graduate of Modesto High School and a 1956 Modesto Junior College graduate. He was graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point* N.Y., in 1962.As a member of theAirborne Rangers Capt. Wallace was an adviser to to 120 men in the South Vietnamese regular army. He had three months of of training in the language but used an interpreter during the five months of combat.Except for an American Marine sergeant from Tex-j as, Wallace was alone with the Vietnamese troops during their search and kill actions. He had no com* | mand responsibilities “I lived with them, ateI heir food and went where they went*” he began. This included skirmishes in rice paddies and mountainous areas.Light CasualtiesCasualties were light on both sides, the captain asserted- However, battles originally were against squads of 10 men or pla* toons of 30 to 50 but had developed to full-scale engagements of regiments of 4,000 to 5,000 men when Capt. Wallace was evacuated wth an eye injury.’‘Lverytime we'd go out. we’d have contact with the enemy,” Wallace explained. The company was “very a g g r essive and fought for three or fourdays at a time.“We couldn’t always tell who the enemy was/* Wallace continued. In the beginning. Viet Cong guerrillas might pose as villagers working in rice fields. Dressed in black “pajamas,” they could not be distinguished from SouthVietnamese.Sometimes engagements were with uniformed Viet Cong regulars. They wore Ian, green or blue uniforms, sometimes resembling the friendly troops. This was carried to the point of wearing the same color red or blue scarves about the neck favored by the South Vietnamese as a symbol of good luck and happiness.Althoug “I felt more likeA Ccan instructor on patrol/' Wallace said he was under almost continuous small arms and mortar attack by guerrillas or regulars. Trained TroopsThe original purpose of his assignment was to train South Vietnamese troops to draw out and defeat the enemy. The Vietnamese had all American equipment which Wallacetaught them how to useand maintain.He also acted as air strike coordinator, calling down American choppers” to evacuate the wounded when Vietnamese h e I i c o p t e rswere not available.The captain and his companions joined tin* American Marines in Ojh: ration Harvest Muon, a large-scale engagement with perhaps 5.000 men on both sides.His men, “trained above the average of the Vietnamese” came up against “highly organized and trained troops” in that operation.It was during this action that a tree branch caught momentarily against the radio operator’s equipment as he moved ahead of Wallace. In the darkness, the captain did not see the limb snap free, it hit him in the right eye.Lens DamagedHe suffered damage to the lens and cornea. Flown from the valley where they had chased the Viet Cong,See Injured, Page A-4SAIGON. V The clock totthe Viet Onclaimed four-da lunar new year staged a scries of bloodiest at a cam, Vietnamese refugee American armed i mained on full alert, i unclear if the Contruce offer — advert!effective at 11 p.m., “/PS I — covers U.S. and i Allied troops.Thirty-three persons w killed and 54 wounded as l guerrillas swept down befoi ^wn on the sleeping camp he outskirts of Tam Kyfl ncial capital 350 miles; of Saigon. Many oV were women and'tnllles’ the raid-4 huts* on'iinye.do.Moo The »She Stanisi of a ski v alio ’ abrai •rib
Newspaper Details
Modesto Bee and News Herald
Modesto, California, US
Wed, Jan 19, 1966
Page 27
Full Page
Clipped by
Mike W.
NA, 04 Oct 2022
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