The Battle of Ia Drang was the first conventional conflict between American forces and North Vietnamese forces during the Vietnam War. For days the two sides met at the foot of the Chu Pong Massif – giving and receiving death, pain, and disfigurement. It’s a battle made famous in the film We Were Soldiers. It’s all here and it’s all free on Battlecast – the world’s foremost podcast on war and it’s sociopolitical impact.

Download episode 77 here: download link

Maps and Images:

Extensive maps and images are posted to the historical atlas located here: Battle of Ia Drang historical atlas

Music Source:

Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio /// website: karlcasey.bandcamp.com

References:

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Appy, C. Patriots: The Vietnam War remembered from all sides. 

Caldwell, J.D. (2018). Anatomy of a victory: Why the United States triumphed in World War II, fought to a stalemate in Korea, lost in Vietnam, and failed in Iraq. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.

Kelly, M. & Summer, H. G. (October, 1999). 1st Cav recon in the la Drang. Vietnam Magazine.

Moore, H. We were soldiers once and young. 

Moore, H. & Galloway, J.L. We Are Soldiers Still: A Journey Back to the Battlefields of Vietnam

Steinman, R. (2015). The soldiers’ story: Vietnam in their own words.

Coleman, J.D. Pleiku: the dawn of helicopter warfare in Vietnam

Carland, J. (2000). Stemming the Tide: May 1965 to October 1966.

Harris, J.P. (2016). Vietnam’s High Ground: Armed Struggle for the Central Highlands, 1954-1965.

Head, W.P. (2020). Storms over the Mekong : Major battles of the Vietnam War. Texas A&M University Press. 

Leonard, S.M. (n.d.). Forward support at Ia Drang. Professional Bulletin of United States Army Logistics. 

Hasset, S. (August, 2021). 1st Cav’s return to Ia Drang. Vietnam Magazine. 

Ngyuen, T. (October, 2018). A New Look at Ia Drang. Vietnam Magazine. 

Vance, R. & Beck, B. (December, 2011). Eyewitness Ia Drang. Vietnam Magazine. 

DelaRosa L. (August, 2005). Headhunters in the Ia Drang Valley. Vietnam Magazine. 

Schifferle, P.J. (1994). The Ia Drang Campaign 1965: A successful operational campaign or mere tactical failure? School of Advanced Military Studies United States Army Command and General Staff College. 

Arnold, D (November 11, 1995). The blood brothers of Ia Drang 30 years ago, the battle raged; today, the healing goes on. Boston Globe. 

Vogrin, B. (July 14, 2010). Vietnam vet fulfills battlefield promise to injured comrade. The Gazette.

Hendrick, B. (February 27, 2002). Film’s horror too true, say 60’s soldiers. The Atlanta-Journal Constitution. 

Alley, J.L. (n.d.). The ghosts of the green grass. Codi Publishing. 

Harris, J.P. & Kenneth, E. (2020). Ia Drang 1965: The struggle for Vietnam’s Pleiku Province. Osprey Publishing.