Company C, located at Da Nang, was the parent unit for all I Corp A-Teams. Officially, it was known as Company C, Det C-1, 5th Special Forces Group. It also had another 'official' name... what was the 'official' name?

Hint: C...... M.............     (Pssssst!    You can the answer at the bottom of this page.)

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Almost heaven...

To the A-Team members, it represented a chance to get away from camp life... it meant real food, hot water, and an opportunity to relax. It meant cold beer, playing cards, and forgetting that tomorrow you may die. To the men assigned here, it was 'work'.

Civilization!

These were the barracks at Da Nang. They were clean, dry, and above ground. Sidewalks and other features brought a touch of the States to this far off place. The wind and the dust were frequent companions at HQs... but nobody complained.

Being a larger military facility Da Nang was home to numerous units of several branches of the US Armed Forces. Da Nang air base, which served as our 'supermarket' at times, was only a few miles away from Headquarters. It was the busiest airport in the world. [More about Da Nang airbase on another web page] I believe there was a PX (Post Exchange) at Da Nang while Nha Trang had a BX (Base Exchange, the Air Force equivalent). Compared to the A-Teams, Da Nang Headquarters represented an unparalleled level of comfort.

My 'housekeeper'

Local Vietnamese women provided limited cleaning and laundry service. The lady in the white top was assigned to my room. In retrospect we must have seemed a strange group to them.

Only my close friends know that I have a fear of falling. Not a fear of heights, mind you... a fear of falling. So climbing the water tower to take some pictures was, for me, a daring thing to do. How then do I explain being 'Airborne-qualified' - a prerequisite for Special Forces?? Sheer will power! After all, if you can't make yourself do that which scares you to death, how can you expect yourself to do what you must at times do?!? How could your team members count on you?? I have twenty-one jumps. Each one of them represents a triumph of will power over common sense!

High wire act

Northwest View

These pictures show part of the antenna system at Da Nang. Our sophisticated system provided HF communications half-way around the world.

See the clouds and the surf?? The clouds mark the transition between seasons. I know this photo was not taken during actual monsoon season. How do I know? Because it's dry!! During the monsoons, nothing is dry!!

Southwest View

The black part of the building (lower level) in the picture at right was the actual commo operations area. The South China Sea is also clearly visible.

See the clouds and the surf in the larger Northwest image?? The clouds mark the transition between seasons. I know this photo was not taken during actual monsoon season. How do I know? Because it's dry!! During the monsoons, nothing is dry!!

Southern View

Looking south towards Marble Mountain. The Marine outpost on it dominates the landscape and guards the southern approach to Da Nang.

Western view: South China Sea

Notice the clouds?!? Photo was taken between the dry and monsoon season transition. Note the size of the waves.

Additional view from the water tower....

Northern View

To the north lay Da Nang city and the massive US military facilities. Although not accessed by a yellow brick road, Da Nang boasted of many luxuries such as a real store.

A good view of Company C Headquarters building...

The other name for Co C is shown on the monument. Company C was called Camp McBride.