MWSA Book Review

The Blue Spaders at the Battle of Ap Gu

Author:  David H. Puckett, Sr.

Publisher:  Cantigny First Division Foundation

Reviewer: Bill McDonald – President of the MWSA

During the spring of 1967, U.S. Army conducted the biggest military operation of the Vietnam War.  It was called “Operation Junction City” and took place in and around an area known as War Zone C- just north of Saigon.  I personally remember that time very well.  I was shot down while flying as a crew-chief / door-gunner, on a Huey helicopter several times and was wounded on the 14th of April, the day before the end of that long operation.  So when I read David Puckett’s book, “The Blue Spaders at the Battle of Ap Gu,” I was very interested in the details of what happened.  During that time when you are engaged in fighting, there is that general “fog of war” that doesn’t give you the over-all view of what is really taking place at the time.

His accounting of what happened to a small unit of the 1st Infantry Division, in one really awful and ugly battle, is gripping and feels like a battlefield “after action report” with emotions and prose.  This little book (Almost a booklet, with just a couple of dozen pages) is well worth reading.  The history is strongly captured in very vivid details that feels like it must have been written by a combat participant just days after the events—the descriptions feel that fresh and alive.

The best little history book to read about battles from the Vietnam War.  The author makes that battle more than just an event in a long war but shows us the men who fought and died there in a more personal light.

Synopsis

The Battle of Ap Gu took place on 31 March through 1 April 1967.  It was the largest, most decisive battle fought by the 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry (Blue Spaders) of the 1st Infantry Division (Big Red One) during their five-year tour of duty in Vietnam.

While outnumbered almost ten-to-one by the NVA and local VC near their safe haven of Cambodia, the Blue Spaders left the battle field strewn with over 600 enemy bodies when the fighting stopped.

This account traces the action on a daily basis using comments by soldiers who were there, including the Battalion Commander, LTC Alexander Haig (later, General and Secretary of State) and other Blue Spaders.

For their actions, the Blue Spaders were awarded the Valorous Unit Award by the Secretary of the Army.