Word: meloy
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Dates: during 1960-1969
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Eight Hours of Lead. Things became a lot more certain the next day. Major Guy S. Meloy was leading 400 of his riflemen through the Tay Ninh jungles when, as he put it, "all hell broke loose." An ambush of 1,500 Communist soldiers opened up with automatic rifles and machine guns on the Americans-and kept on firing and firing. "For eight hours it was nothing but solid lead," said Meloy later. "Where the V.C. got all the ammunition, I've got no earthly idea." Six times the Red soldiers launched human wave charges, yelling and screaming above...
...Meloy's ordeal triggered the massive infusion of men into the battle. Operation Attleboro had begun as a routine operation a month ago, with elements of the U.S. 25th Division and 196th Light Infantry. Now more 1st Division units and the 173rd Airborne Brigade were brought up. Major General William E. DePuy, commander of the 1st Division, took charge of Attleboro and set up an operational headquarters at Dau Tieng. The once-sleepy village bordering a large rubber plantation soon resembled a World War II beachhead as lumbering C-1235 transports and darting helicopters brought in hundreds of tons...