Special Operations.Com
Co Roc Mountain Mission
Top of Hill 959, Hickory
Radio relay Site, Khe Sanh, July 1970. SFC
Noe with his platoon of Special Commandos
awaiting helicopter pickup. The commando standing
facing away from the camera was killed the
following week at the CCN compound
During the summer of 1970, as a member
of Command and Control North (CCN), Camp Villa Rosa,
Da Nang, Republic of South Vietnam (a MACV-SOG element),
SFC Robert Noe and his Bru Montagnard Special Commandos
had just completed an extended period of time providing
security for an isolated Radio Relay Site deep in
enemy held territory known as Hickory Radio Relay,
Hill 950 (Photo above) overlooking the Khe Sanh Valley
and Khe Sanh Combat Base airstrip to the west. Beyond
the valley to the South West stood Co Roc Mountain,
to the north was the demilitarized zone (Hickory Radio
Relay site was overrun on 4 and 5 June 1971 by an
estimated North Vietnamese Battalion sized element
with SGT Robert R Jones being killed in action and
SSG Jon Cavaini awarded the Medal of Honor Posthumously
for his actions, the Army had though he had been killed
to our joy it was learned he had been captured upon
his released in April 1973.
Upon SFC Noe’s return to CCN, he was
assigned as the Platoon Sergeant with his men integrated
in the platoon as part of Co A. The platoon was assigned
a mission to "Land on top of Co Roc Mountain"
on 19 July 1970. At the Tactical Operation Center
(TOC), the Platoon Leader, a 1st Lieutenant, name
unknown, and SFC Noe were briefed and told, "We’ve
been trying to land a recon teams around the base
of the mountain and have them ascend for a long time
and we’ve not been successful. All the teams have
met heavy enemy resistance, now we’ve decided we’re
going to land a platoon on top of it. During the briefing,
it was stated there would be no problems with the
enemy because the enemy was going to be blown to hell.
The plan was to be bomb the mountain top for 24 hours,
commencing 24 hours before insertion. As the Lieutenant
and Noe left they discussed the situation. Noe commented,
"What a hunch of crock these guys are dug in
deep and they’re not going to be blown out with whatever
is thrown at them." Both reaching the realization
this was a "suicide mission," but all SOG
missions were. They did not have to tell the men what
to expect, merely telling them what the mission was
evoked a rapid response from the Montagnard Platoon
Leader, "Trung Si (sp 9), You crazy, we all die."
That was the only expression, and without hesitation
all prepared for the mission. The Americans wrote
what they felt were their last letters home.
Newly discovered, now declassified
information supports the platoon's initial gut reaction.
The book: SOG MACV Studies and Observation Group
(Behind Enemy Lines) by Harve Saal, 1990 published
by Edwards Brothers contains an article which fixes
Co Roc Mountain just inside Laos with its base sharing
the border between Laos and South Vietnam. In 1968,
the North Vietnamese Army hid their 152mm artillery
pieces in caves on the East side facing Khe Sanh.
The North Vietnamese would roll the artillery pieces
to the mouth of the caves when needed, they were mounted
on rail road tracks. The guns were virtually untouchable
by airstrikes, including Arclight (B-52 boming raids)
and the very accurate bombing techniques called 'Sky
Spot. Even the American artillery guns firing were
ineffective against the positions. One of the SpikeTeams
volunteered to conduct a 'Sapper' raid on the Co Roc
caves using forty-pound satchel charges, as was used
to destroy the enemy ammunition storage facilities
in Khe Sanh. However, their ‘suicide raid' was not
allowed by higher headquarters.
At this time, Noe states he can only
recall the name of one other American on that mission
who was SSG Samual R. Snyder, whom he knew at Ft Bragg
during Special Forces Training and recalls SSG Snyder
had a "red corvette." SSG Snyder performed
a number of other missions with CCN and was with Co
A when SSG Martin Arbeit, a friend of Noe, was killed
in action on Nov 24, 70.
The platoon was flown to Mobile Launch
Site 1, Quang Tri, with two squads under the control
of SSG Synder to be taken to the old Khe Sanh airstrip
and dropped off with the helicopters returning to
pick up SFC Noe, the Lieutenant and the remaining
two squads to be flown and inserted on top of Co Roc
Mountain. Once inserted, it would be a short distance
for the helicopters to drop in and pick up the two
squads at the Khe Sanh airstrip.
The plans put SFC Noe and part of
one squad of six special commandos on the first helicopter
to be inserted first, and the lieutenant on another
helicopter with six men with the remaining men in
the other two helicopters. When the helicopters returned
from dropping off SSG Snyder and the two squads at
the Khe Sanh airstrip, they had to refuel. After refueling,
the first helicopter arrived and SFC Noe and his men
loaded up, followed by the other helicopters arriving
and being loaded. As the helicopters lifted off and
started the flight to Co Roc Mountain, the helicopters
rearranged their flight formation. The helicopter
with SFC Noe fell behind the helicopter with the Lieutenant.
Now the Lieutenant was going to be first to hit the
landing zone.
As the helicopters approached Co Roc
Mountain, there was still a variety of aircraft dropping
bombs on it. The flight of helicopters with the insertion
team was placed in a holding pattern where the men
watched the fire works with bomb after bomb being
dropped. Looking at the valley below the men could
see the entire Khe Sann Valley moving slowly beneath
their feet as the cool wind brushed their skin viewing
the beautiful, lush greenness of the country with
different shades of vibrant green colors caused by
different vegetation and the silver topped clouds
with dark gray lower linings shading the sun light.
The valley appeared so deceptively peaceful and quite
while in reality, the grim reaper hid, filling his
quota of death from both sides as it had for years.
Watching the explosions on Co Roe, Noe was mesmerized
by the sight, but fully aware of what awaited below
in the July heat. After about 15 minutes, that lasted
an eternity, the insertion team was cleared for insertion
and the first helicopter began its descent with SFC
Noe following closely behind, moving from the West
from Laos to the East in the direction of the Khe
Sanh Valley, so beautiftil with the darkened hills
far beyond. Watching the mountain top move closer
the first helicopter descended to just a couple of
feet above the ground to Hoover so the troops could
disembark. Noe caught the glimpse of a North Vietnamese
soldier stepping out of what was left of the smoldering
wood line with a Rocket Propelled Grenade Launcher
on his shoulder and fired immediately hitting the
first helicopter causing it to explode. The pilot
was able to pull it forward and off the hill top while
burning and spiraling out of control as it fell down
the mountain side, moving back to the west inside
of Laos
The helicopter Noe was on was in a
descending attitude and started taking a hail of small
Arms fire and the pilot was desperately trying to
pull it up as the helicopter approached the mountain
top reaching a few feet from the ground and still
moving forward at a rapid rate of speed and was able
to clear the top of Co Roc Mountain and beyond the
cliff some 1000 feet above the jungle floor below.
As the helicopter started taking on enemy fire one
of the special commandos jumped from the aircraft
as he was trained to do. Noe reacting with instinct,
grabbed him which yanked Noe almost out of the helicopter
however, he was able to hold with one foot still on
the skid, the other dangling in the air, and one arm
around something in the helicopter - still holding
his CAR 15 and holding onto the commando STABO RIG
with the other. The commando in his fall must have
realized his error because by the time he had exited
the helicopter the ground was some
1000 feet below him. Somehow he was
able to grab on to the skid, perhaps with Noe grabbing
his STABO RIG, it turned him around to face the skid.
The action was very rapid and all the events are not
remembered except for the jumping then there was the
commando dangling below the chopper, hanging on the
skid with Noe holding his STABO RIG. Noe then pulled
man back into the helicopter.
SFC Noe and two other helicopters
returned back to the Mobile Launch Site and a Bright
Light team was inserted to recover the down helicopter
crew and men. Noe says he doesn’t know if anyone was
killed in the incident but stated he had been told
there were some causalities and the lieutenants back
was broken. Not to dwell on the mission, was it a
success? It certainly determined the enemy was still
there and 24 hours of continuous bombing had not dislodged
him. The assessments made regarding
Co Roc made in 1968 were still valid. Immediately,
another mission was assigned to insert the platoon
into Kham Duc to reopen it as a camp after it had
been abandoned a couple of years earlier due to poor
location and hostile enemy activity.
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