Marine Advisors With the Vietnamese Marine Corps: Selected Documents prepared by the U.S. Marine Advisory Unit, Naval Advisory Group

I first served with Vietnamese Marines in 1972 when they came on board the U.S. Navy ships that Battalion Landing Team 1/9 was embarked on. They were preparing for an amphibious landing to counter the North VietnameseArmy’s Spring Offensive inMilitary Region 1 (I Corps) in South Vietnam. They brought with them their U.S. Marine advisors who were known by the senior members of the battalion. We had already witnessed or heard of the exploits of then-Captain John Ripley and Lieutenant Colonel Gerry Turley in blunting the initial attacks of the Easter Offensive. As the Vietnamese were formed into helicopter or boat teams and fed a meal before going ashore, they bantered with the American Marines and Sailors, telling them to come along to “kill communists.”

After a turbulent start to the offensive, the Vietnamese Marines exhibited the fighting spirit that elite units create for themselves. This was reflected in the various names of their battalions that were the focus of their unit identification. The infantry battalions had a series of nicknames and slogans that were reflected on their unit insignia: 1st Battalion’s “Wild Bird,” 2d Battalion’s “Crazy Buffalo,” 3d Battalion’s “SeaWolf,” 4th Battalion’s “Killer Shark,” 5th Battalion’s “Black Dragon,” 6th Battalion’s “Sacred Bird,” 7th Battalion’s “Black Tiger,” 8th
Battalion’s “Sea Eagle,” and 9th Battalion’s “Mighty Tiger.” For the artillery units, this was the 1st Battalion’s “Lightning Fire,” 2d Battalion’s “Sacred Arrow,” and 3d Battalion’s “Sacred Bow.” Support and service battalions followed this example as well.