To read about this mission go to My year in Vietnam by Patrick Bieneman
Posted in: Missions
Mission Number 4 – Down Bird
Posted on February 1, 2010
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Charlie Troop 1st Squadron 9th Cavalry Regiment 
John Wands Sacca
September 8, 2011
I had been a door gunner before joining the Blues, so I had some close relationships with the Red and White crew chiefs and door gunners. SP5 J.R. Svaran, from Montana, was a White crew chief and close friend. You may remember him as the crew chief who wore his hair in a Mohawk while at Camp Evans in I Corps. He was hard to miss. We drank beer together at the party and J.R. mentioned that he was going up at first light in his LOH. So when the alarm sounded for a downed bird the next morning, I thought of him. When I arrived at the crash site, all that was left was the tail assembly and the three bodies, as described above. Thinking the third body was that of J.R., I assisted in lifting it into a body bag. I wore my leather rappelling gloves and the flesh came off in chunks. And there was so little room on the lift ship, I had to sit on the body. The heat was intense. Later in the afternoon, J.R. made an appearance. Unbeknownst to me, he had been asked by a fellow crew chief to take his KP in exchange for the first light mission. Thus the two crew chiefs exchanged not only duties, but fate. Such were the consequences of mundane circumstance in the cavalry.
patrickbieneman
September 8, 2011
John,
Yes I remember JR.. I have a picture of him with that Mohawk on the DVD I make for Charlie Troop.
John Wands Sacca
September 8, 2011
I have a picture of J.R., Boucher and myself at the party the night before the LOH was shot down. J.R. returned to Montana after discharge and is still there.
What I remember about the party is the beer. There was never any beer at Evans. When we got to Phouc Vinh we used to get one can of beer per week. I wonder where all that beer came from the night of the party.
There is an account of the October operation in the mountains west of camp Evans we participated in with Delta Troop during the monsoon rains. It is written by Richard MacLeod and appears in a collection of stories compiled by Matthew Brennan, entitled “Headhunters: Stories of the 1st Squadron, 9th Cavalry, in Vietnam 1965-1971.” This will be found on pages 229-232.
My compliments to you and your family.
God bless!
John s.
patrickbieneman
September 8, 2011
I don’t know if I have a picture of Boucher or not. Can you jpeg me that one?
Pat
John Wands Sacca
September 8, 2011
Will comply.
Are you in receipt of the last batch of photos I sent?