K Troop 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment

The Blackhorse In Vietnam 1966 - 1972

hosted by Bob Hersey


When Ever Duty Calls
Our Country To Be Free,
With A Thunderous Roar
We Will Ride Again, 11th Cavalry

Vietnam Service and Campaign Ribbon


We few. We happy few. We band of brothers . . . 
For he that sheds his blood with me this day, shall be my brother


Welcome.  I'm Bob Hersey.  I served with K Troop, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment from April 1968 until April 1969.  I am proud of my service with the Blackhorse Regiment in Vietnam and of the men whom I served with. This site is dedicated to them - those who came home and those who did not.

While in K Troop, I photographed over 500 subjects chronicling the lives of the Blackhorse Troopers - their courage, their sacrifices, their triumphs and their heartaches.  The Photo Gallery is a tribute to them.

  K Troop Convoy From Blackhorse Base Camp
If you explore nothing else on this website, please at least visit the Photo Gallery and see why the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment was the finest fighting force of men in Vietnam.

In addition to taking over 500 photographs I sent home to my parents 92 letters and 22 audio tapes.  All 92 letters are reprinted on this site.  ãReal Audio from some of my audio tapes are available here as well.

What else will you find here?  Begin at Base Camp.  This is your base of operations.  At Base Camp you will find the "meat and potatoes" of K Troop (sorry, I was a cook).  In the Orderly Room you will find my 201 File, letters, DD Form 214, the daily report and more.  Hungry?   Stop by the Mess Hall.  The coffee's on and so is a little lighthearted humor.  Along your journey, you will find an informative history of the "Blackhorse Regiment" - the 11th Armored Cavalry.

In addition, you will find a tribute to K Troop's fallen heroes on the Taps page.  See which Hollywood celebrity has joined the growing list of contributors on Contributor's Corner.   Stop by the Motor Pool and see why the VC called the M113A - Armored Cavalry Assault Vehicle (ACAV) the - Green Dragon and don't forget to visit the photo gallery.  The pictures tell the whole story of K Troop in Vietnam.

Feel like chatting with an old friend or like to make new friends, enter K Troop's Chat Room.


Bob Hersey - Vietnam 1968I very much value your opinion about what you find here.  If you would care to express your views please send me your remarks by way of the Feed Back form.

Allons!
(Let's Go)

Bob Hersey


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To The Guest Book
Please sign the Guest Book.
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K Troop's Honor Roll

Today In History

No One In K Troop Was Killed On This Date.

Go To K Troop's Honor Roll

The Honor Roll is dedicated to the 62 brave men of K Troop who were killed in Vietnam.  We honor their memory.  Their names are inscribed here that they might never be forgotten.

For the Honor Roll by date in history - Go Here


President Barack Obama Awarding The Presidential Uniti Citation To Alpha Troop, 11th ACR.

Congratulations to our Blackhorse brothers at A Troop,11th ACR, winners of the first Presidential Unit Citation awarded by the Obama administration.
Read More Here
Video


Captain Phillips Honored In Portsmouth

Aug. 16, 2009
Pease International Tradeport, NH

My wife Hellen and I had the great honor and pleasure of meeting and talking with Captain Richard Phillips, Captain of the Maersk Alabama, the merchant ship captured by Somali pirates on April 9, 2009.  Captain Phillips was freed of his captors by a rifle team of Navy Seals aboard the USS Bainbridge and returned safely to his home in Vermont.

Captain Phillips was on hand at Pease International Tradeport to greet a flight of returning US Army soldiers who had been deployed to Iraq after having spent 12 months there rebuilding the country.  Captain Phillips was introduced to those attending and spoke briefly of his ordeal and what it meant for him to be among his "heroes", the brave men and women fighting for freedom's cause.  Captain Phillips said, "I wouldn't be here today if it weren't for men and women like you".  Captain Phillips presented a flag of the Merchant Marine Service to be displayed at the air terminal as a reminder of his visit and the contribution the Merchant Marine Service has made to America's safety in the world.


25th Annual Reunion

Grand Hyatt Washington, DC
11th Armored Cavalry's Veterans of Vietnam and Cambodia
August 25th - 29th, 2010

It was a terrific reunion.  If you were not there, you missed a great one.  About 1275 Blackhorse troopers along with their wives, sweethearts, family and friends attended.  Washington, DC was this year's site of the 25th Annual Reunion of the 11th Armored Cavalry's Veterans of Vietnam and Cambodia.  The Grand Hyatt Washington was our basecamp and area of operations that began on Wednesday, August 25th, 2010.   The host hotel sold out and the overflow hotel, the Dupont, provided addition rooms to our attendees.

Celebrating 25 years of coming together, this silver anniversary reunion was easily one of the very best.  This year's keynote speaker was non other than Joe Galloway, best selling author, "We were soldiers once . . . and young".  Find more about this event here.          


Guest Speaker
Best Selling Author Joseph L. Galloway
 


Thunder Run
Pizza Run
 

Pizza For Our Veteran Patients

Dan Stroia began a pilot program over 3 years ago at the VA hospital in Phoenix, Arizona.  The program provides pizza and soda pop to the veteran patients at the Phoenix hospital.  Dan would like to take his program nation wide and invites all members of the 11th Cavalry's Veteran Troopers of Vietnam and Cambodia to join him in providing in their area VA hospitalized veterans with pizza & soda pop.

If you would like to share in this very worthwhile project and put tons of smiles on our fellow veteran patients faces then contact Dan and he will give you all the details that you will need to begin a Thunder Run Pizza Run at your area VA hospital.  Dan says that the only cost to you would be your time.  Funds for the program may be provided  by veterans organizations such as the DAV, VFW, American Legion and others.  For additional information visit here and look for entries 474 through 478.

Dan Stroia
K Troop 11th ACR, Vietnam '67-'68
8350 E. McKellips #158
Scottsdale, AZ 85257

Cell 480 242 7040
ktroop6768@yahoo.com

 

 

Blackhorse Memorial's
Future In Doubt

Armor School Moving
To Ft. Benning

Where Will Our Memorial Be?

 

The US Army is moving its armor school from Ft. Knox, Kentucky to its new home at Ft. Benning, Georgia.  Ft. Knox is currently the home of the 11th ACR Memorial to our fallen brothers.  Many of you may remember this monument from your days at Blackhorse Basecamp, Vietnam.  The decision to keep the memorial at Ft. Knox or to move it to Ft. Benning must be given to Maj. Gen. Donald M. Campbell, Commanding General of the Armor Center at Ft. Knox.

Your help is needed.  Please visit the 11th ACVVC website.  Read the article there and make your feeling known to those individuals who have been charged with the responsibility to present our organizations plan to the general.


Photo courtesy of Fred Schottler

February 11, 2008 was a special day in the life of Marine Lance Corporal Jimmie McCain, son of Senator and Republican presidential  nominee John McCain and Cindy McCain and members of his family.  Jimmy, a member of Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 1st Marine Division returned home from Iraq along with 330 of his fellow Marines.  They arrived at Pease International Tradeport in Portsmouth, NH to a warm welcome by Pease Greeters.  Jimmy's flight was originally scheduled to land in Bangor, Maine but was diverted to Pease due to high winds in Bangor.  On the way to Pease, the aircraft developed flight control problems and declared an in-flight emergency and made an emergency landing.  The plane landed safely.


 

Bob Hersey With Army Specialist Jeremy Connelly

Specialist Jeremy Connelly
Greeted On Return From Iraq

Welcome Returning
Soldiers From Iraq

It was thirteen months since I first met Army Specialist Jeremy Connelly from Indiana.  Specialist Connelly was heading to Iraq in June, 2007 for a thirteen month deployment.  His flight brought him to Pease International Tradeport for refueling before heading overseas.  I, along with my wife Hellen, are members of what are known as Pease Greeters.  We have been greeting planes since March of 2007 having met over 75 flights.


 


Blackhorse
Cigarette Lighter Found

Australian, Keiran Bailey
Finds Lighter On Australian Beach

38 Years in the surf.

Keiran Bailey of Victoria, Australia found this remarkably preserved lighter clearly marked Black Horse with our distinctive Blackhorse patch on the face and on the back, 11th CAV, Xuan Loc, Vietnam with the date, 1969-1970.  Keiran found it during the Australian summer of 1991-'92 while snorkeling in a place called Congwong Bay on the northern corner on the march larger Botany Bay, some 23 Kms south of Sydney, and sent the lighter to me to preserve and to share it with our Blackhorse brothers.  Bill Lewellen, of K Troop, is bring this historic artifact to the 23rd Annual Reunion in Chicago of the 11th ACVVC for everyone to see and marvel over.

Keiran writes that while snorkeling, he was looking for some shells, rocks or sponge coral for his marine aquarium.  He says that while swimming along he noticed a metallic glint about 15 meters from the shore.  Upon investigation he notice the lighter wedged between the sand and some pebbles in a crevasse about 15 feet deep with only the shinier base of the light showing in the light of day.  He recognized it immediately as a Zippo lighter not unlike the one he himself owned.  The lighter sat in his undersea treasure collection until a year ago when he examine the inscriptions, did a web search and sent in on to us here at Ktroop.com.

Inscribed on the bottom of the light are the words, "New Oriental", presumably the manufacturer.  The lighter has no personal inscription so we can only wonder who might have lost it.  In all likelihood it was lost by a Blackhorse trooper while on R&R (rest & relaxation) in Sydney.  If it did wash from the shores of Vietnam all the way to Australia that would be an extraordinary journey for this lighter to take, but I wonder?

Mr. Bailey writes in the letter that he enclosed with the lighter, "I am very pleased and it makes me content to know that this lighter is finally in its rightful place among its original owners.  I hope and pray it conjures up some good memories for your Blackhorse buddies.  I'm sure that if this lighter could talk it would disclose a vast amount of incredible stories to share with us all".

I thank Mr. Bailey for sending the lighter along to us, at his own expense, and after having done some creative internet investigative work in locating us hear at K Troop, 11th ACR, Vietnam at Ktroop.com.


Pease Greeters Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Pease Greeters

Welcome Returning
Soldiers From Iraq

Lt. Col. Joe Greeley of Somersworth, NH piloted 50, B17 bombing raids over Germany before his 21st birthday.   Here, Joe is seen greeting a Boston native as he and his fellow soldiers arrive at Pease International Tradeport on their way home after completing their tour of duty in Iraq.

The Boeing 737, operated by Miami International Airlines, arrived at the former Pease Air Force Base in Portsmouth, NH recently and was welcome by a throng of greeters know as the Pease Greeters.  The guests of the Pease Greeters (formed by the Marine Corp League of the Seacoast) have time to stretch their legs, refresh themselves, make free phone calls and visit with the greets while their plane is fueled before continuing on to their final US destination.

Go To Pease Greeters


Contributor's Corner At Bob Hersey's K Troop

Your place in history at K Troop's - Contributor's Corner.  See who has contributed their photos, stories, personal letters and more.  Who knows, you might see yourself in your buddy's photo.  Do you have some of your own that you would like to share?  Send them along and I'll include them.  For more details, visit your corner of K Troop - Contributor's Corner.

Your newest contributor - Errol Brumm served as K Troop's maintenance sergeant in 1967-'68.


My Audio Cassette Tapes That I Sent Home From Vietnam
My Audio Tapes
Sent Home From Vietnam                      

I, like many of my buddies, sent home audio tapes to loved ones.  Some of us sent reel to reel and others sent cassette tapes.  I recorded mine on a Sony, portable desktop cassette tape recorder.  The recordings captured my impressions of the war and my service with K Troop.  Not only do they convey personal messages, exchanged with my mother and father, they also contain radio transmissions, firefights, TV broadcasts and sounds of Vietnam.  I've chosen what I consider to be the best of the 22 tapes and placed them here.  A fraction of the total are available now.  New excerpts are added each week.

Go To The Tapes


Standing Firm - We Will Not Be Moved

Declaration of Support

We, combat veterans of the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment (Blackhorse), fought for the United States of America in Vietnam and Cambodia.

During this war against communist aggression, our nation was bitterly divided and many American citizens rose in protest against our involvement. Members of our armed forces were the objects of disdain and ridicule. We returned home to a national landscape of public opinion and political division unchanged until the morning of September 11, 2001.

Read the entire Declaration HERE.


See what Military.com is saying about Bob Hersey and K Troop in an article called, "Cooking For K Troop - My Life with the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment in Vietnam".   Visit Military.com today.


Seabeecook.com

Yours truly is making a splash at Seabeecook.com in a  featured article on the Cooks & Bakers page titled A Cook with the Blackhorse in Vietnam.  Visit Seabeecook.com today and discover more about US Military - Cooks and Bakers.


K Troop, 11th ACR Vietnam is a  proud member of the

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Updated: August 30, 2010

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