Capt. William A. Branch
Golden Dragons 2/14th 25th
DIV
1969-70 Binh Duong Province
I found only a
handful of photos, sent home in letters, from Dad's second tour. He wore dark
circles under his eyes and a different insignia on his uniform, but he still
wrote to my mother everyday. 12Sep69, he became the A company CO of the
2/14th, and on 1Nov69 he moved up to S-3. On 21Feb70, he became the S-2 of
that unit. He spent his time on the ground with his men or in the air, as a
passenger in a cramped Loach helicopter, gathering intelligence and passing it
on.
"Your father's job was to locate the enemy. He sifted through reports to build a picture of the enemy's activity and location. He coordinated with the Vietnamese district HQs, screened reports... recommended likely areas where units should deploy to contact the enemy. Sometimes the companies would move by Airmobile units. Other times they would walk to their AO. Much of the field work was done at night with ambushes set by platoons or companies. Grueling and dangerous business. Your dad was good at pulling all the pieces together to paint the enemy situation. His recommendations were always sound. He was a great soldier."
~ COL Charles Norton, BN CO, on dad's time as S-2
My Dad died on June 6, 1999 from wounds he sustained in a helicopter crash. It was to be one of his last missions. Dad was coming home. Instead he left behind photos, hearts. He left behind men who remember him well. Some are found below.
