After the 71st MP Detachment (Dog Platoon HQ), 209th MP Detachment (Dog Platoon HQ), 221st MP Detachment (Dog Platoon HQ), 72nd MP Detachment (Dismounted Patrol), 26th MP Detachment (Supervisor), and 45th MP Detachment (Animal Care) arrived in-country and set up their temporary cantonment at Pershing Field in Tan Son Nhut Air Force Base, Saigon in Gia Dinh Province of III Corps Tactical Zone, they were formed into several small groups (the exact component percentages unknown) and prepared for deployment.

     A small detachment (then referred to as an element) of handler teams with one corporal and sergeant was transported by airplane to the Vinh Long Army Airfield for security duty.

     Upon arrival the element had no organic compound awaiting them and were temporarily assigned to existing billets and the utilization of mess facilities and medical services provided in the compound of the 114th Assault Helicopter Company (UH-1).

     The introduction of Army Sentry Dog units to Vietnam was a new and initially poorly planned concept approved to provide security to the many Army airfields and ammunition supply depots that were often the targets of enemy sapper teams. Since the Army had yet to formulate specific surveys and guidelines as to when and where the use of handler teams were best suited, many of the base commanders assigned them based on the premise of being a psychological deterrent rather than tactical support where their keen sense of smell, hearing and eyesight would provide the greatest advantage in confronting the stealthy sapper attacks. Their first assigned posts often hampered the K9’s natural abilities to perform as trained. There were still many lessons to be learned. .

      The handler teams worked 6 to 7 hour shifts at night along the company cantonment’s perimeter, two days on two days off. At times they were also assigned to anti theft security posts at the cantonments ever expanding new construction sites. Not an authorized use they were trained and being provided for.

      With the loose supervision at the detachment the handlers were often able to leave (unauthorized) to visit the sights in Saigon or their friends at the Vung Tau detachment. Sometimes they stayed overnight and caught a flight back in the morning. There was always fixed wing or helicopter transport flights available between Vinh Long and other airfields. Their only concern during their off duty trips was the possibility of running into a senior NCO or officer from company headquarters.

     The unit had only one vehicle, a 1/4-ton truck (Jeep) assigned to SGT Hawkins. The Veterinary Technician’s regularly visited the detachment to check on the K9’s, and also responded to any major medical problems. If they couldn’t handle the emergency the K9 was flown to Saigon for treatment.

     At the end of the month the company would fly in an officer or senior NCO to pay the handlers. The dog food and other supplies and equipment were also flow in. For their medical problems or injuries the handlers reported to the (83rd Medical Detachment) dispensary at the helicopter company cantonment.

     The transition between billeting at the helicopter company and having their own compound occurred quickly. An Army engineer unit did the construction of their separate cantonment area.

      With the airfield compound perimeter bordering the river, at night their K9’s sometimes alerted to movement at the end of the runway. The movement often turned out to be a “walking carp.”

17 January   The 88th MP Company (K9) was deactivated and reflagged as the 212th MP Company (Sentry Dog), MACV, with their headquarters still located at Pershing Field, Tan Son Nhut Air Force Base, Capital Military District, Gia Dinh Province, III Corps Tactical Zone.

26 September   The 18th MP Brigade (activated state-side on 23 March 1966) became active upon its arrival in Vietnam, and assumed operational control of the 89th MP Group and its subordinate commands to include the 212th MP Company. The 212th was reassigned to the 18th MP Brigade for operational control and subordinate to the 95th MP Battalion (Long Binh Post) for administrative support. At this change of command the company changed from the MACV to the 18th MP Brigade patch.

October

Exact Date Unknown The company was reorganized to three platoons of two sections each. Each section was assigned to a particular military installation. The two sections of the 3rd Platoon were assigned to IV Corps Tactical Zone in the Mekong Delta Region at the Vinh Long and Soc Trang Army Airfield’s.

December

Exact Date Unknown The end of the month found the company commander CPT James T. Roberts, Jr. in Vinh Long with SP/4 Danny Conyers his driver and a third MP riding as shotgun. His mission was to persuade the airfield commander to allow the detachment handlers to work the airfield perimeter to deter sapper infiltration instead of using the dog teams to walk the flight line in an effort to reduce thievery of aircraft parts between the aviation companies. The commander indicated that he would not change his policy.

29 January BG John S. Lekson, the Commanding General, Headquarters, II Field Forces (Long Binh Post), issued a Joint Message Form to all its major field commands.

     There are a number of positive intelligence indicators that the enemy will deliberately violate the truce by attacking friendly installations during the night of 29 January or the early morning hours of 30 January. Addressees will take action to insure maximum alert posture throughout the TET period. Be particularly alert for enemy deception involving use of friendly vehicles or uniforms.

1 February   At 0310 hours, mortars and 122mm rockets and small arms fire started hitting the compound and the airfield. Word was passed down to all the detachments and troops were added to build up the perimeter.

     Some of the attacking VC breached the west end of the airfield compound perimeter by coming over the top of the mounds of sand that had been dredged from the river and overflowed the perimeter concertina wire fence. By 0330 hours the airfield commander LTC Thompson was killed by small arms fire along with SSG Newton who was a passenger in his jeep as he was inspecting the area of the breech.

     The VC progressed into several revetments that contained the O-1 aircraft, and although the airfield troops could not suppress the enemy fire with the weapons at hand they were able to deny the enemy freedom of movement within the revetments. Once additional personnel were able to reinforce the area they began rooting out the enemy sappers within the revetments.

     The VC had been boxed in by the reaction force and they broke from the revetments and attempted to flee south over a mound of dredged sand and thereby escape into the rice paddies and trees on that side of the airfield. The fleeing enemy troops were taken under fire and many were killed or wounded and their weapons captured. The U.S. casualty list also included one additional KIA and several troops wounded.

     An after-action evaluation indicated the brunt of the VC attack had been directed against aircraft in the revetments located on the south side of the airfield. Even though the VC had been in the revetments with satchel charges, they had not been able to place them and no aircraft had been destroyed. Of the twelve O-1 aircraft in the revetments only four had been damaged and these were all repairable at unit level.

     Within days the remaining enemy troops were killed or captured during fierce fighting in and around a nearby village by ARVN infantry brought in to sweep and clear the area.

Personal Reflection “After returning from Saigon, 1LT Seligman and I reviewed our situation. All six detachments of the three platoons had reported in. The only casualties were associated with the Long Binh ammunition depot. The Vinh Long Detachment had been in the midst of the battle for the airfield. Our handler teams went into defensive positions around the dog kennel (which was on the perimeter) and had to depend on the airfield for ammunition resupply. The sergeant-in-charge indicated that he needed hand-held slap flares as the garrison had expended their entire basic load."   CPT [COL Ret.] James T. Roberts, Jr. Commanding Officer, 212th MP Company, 89th MP Group, 18th MP Brigade, Vietnam, November 1967 to June 1968.

2 February

Personal Reflection   “We were able to secure a helicopter from the USARV aviation detachment for a re-supply flight to Vinh Long. When I arrived at the heliport, the aircraft was waiting. We secured our supplies inside the cabin, took off, and headed southwest into the delta. As we passed Saigon, we could see the smoke rising from the fighting still raging west of the city.

     The flight was about forty-five minutes. We landed without incident and the pilot, CPT Montgomery Price, parked the aircraft near Ambassador Bunker’s C-47. He was visiting the provinces to determine the status of the government’s capability to continue governance.

     While CPT Price checked in at airfield operations, several of our handlers unloaded the supplies while the detachment sergeant and I visited the others. They briefed me on the attack and their response. I was pretty proud of their actions. They had held a piece of the perimeter that was critical. The VC attacked through the wire at the far end of the runway and seized a number of the perimeter bunkers lining it before being driven off.

     CPT Price came over and indicated that we had limited minutes on the ground. Operations had notified him that they were expecting another attack. We took off and headed northeast. We settled down to another uneventful flight using the black smoke plume that identified the western part of Saigon as our guide.

     We went back to our normal security duties knowing that we had seen combat and were better for it. During the next six months, the VC tried a number of times to penetrate our detachment perimeters. Our dogs always alerted and we were able to cause the penetrations to fail. With the exception of the unfortunate attack at Long Binh depot, the deployed company teams never allowed a penetration of their posts. In the tradition of the Military Police Corps, every man and dog did his duty to his utmost.”  CPT [COL Ret.] James T. Roberts, Jr. Commanding Officer, 212th MP Company, 89th MP Group, 18th MP Brigade, Vietnam, November 1967 to June 1968.

  Due to the absence of 720th MP Battalion S3 Daily Activity Logs at the National Archives for 1969, there are no available official daily records on activities of the battalion's organic and subordinate units. If you can provide any photographs or information on the 212th MP Company Vinh Long Detachment activities for 1969, please use the Email Link at the top of this page to contact the History Project Manager.