Ripcord: The Screaming Eagle Under Siege, Vietnam, 1970 [Mass Market Paperback]

Vietnam is a war I have read little about for many years - not since the period was rather in vogue (so far as a war can be) in the mid to late 80s, so I apologise if this review, for what it's worth, misses the bigger picture.

The backdrop to the campaign which Keith Nolan paints is a stifling and uncomfortable one. There is a heavy atmosphere of defeat amongst the Americans against which the Screaming Eagles valiantly struggle. The war was as good as lost, the division had recently paid a shocking price at the infamous Hamburger Hill, the anti-war feeling back home was in full swing, there was pervasive disillusionment and apathy amongst the enlisted men manifested in widespread insubordination, drug use, fragging of officers and an undercurrent of racial tension. Even though the airborne divisions were by now no longer all-volunteer but drawn also from conscripts, their standards of motivation, discipline and effectiveness were still far higher than the average line soldier and their ranks suffered less from the general mailaise at this time. Indeed the book is very good at maintaining the feeling that these were first rate troops fighting against the tide and in a futile situation which was out of their control. Nolan seems to emphasise the soldiers' frustrations that they could have made a difference, and their mission have been a success if only the powers that be had been more committed to the cause in terms of materiel but also in perparedness to take casualties in the wake of Hamburger Hill.

Ripcord was a a fire support base in the A Shau Valley in the north west corner of Vietnam. Bordering Laos, that particular mountainous region was one of the most active throughout the whole war, with very considerable concentrations of NVA troops. I think the theory behind the fire support base was to build hilltop defenses from which to offer artillery support for ground 'combat assault' operations to disrupt supplies and troop concentrations moving south. It was into this crucible that the famous 101st Airborne were inserted in 1970. They were to be extracted somewhat reluctantly four months later, after a gruelling stalemate in the Bastogne tradition.

The story is a day by day account of the siege of Ripcord, describing in vivid detail drawn from fantastically well-researched first-hand accounts the grim, monotonous and futile war of attrition endured by the 101st. Quite simply the Screaming Eagles were surrounded, besieged in an isolated outpost deep in the heart of bandit country. Each day was marked by constant shelling from artillery, mortars and recoilless rifles from invisible positions all around the neighbouring valleys. The Americans would combat-assault a hill at terrific cost, capture and clear it, establish a night defensive position and repel fanatical infiltrations, lobbing grenades and burning out M60 barrels under withering RPG and satchel charge assaults. Lacking the numbers to hold that hill they would then be forced to withdraw and give it up to the enemy. They would return to their firebase for more shelling until the next combat-assault, often on the very same hill either to retake it or else to recover the bodies of their comrades (the Americans were unflinching in their policy to recover their dead).

And that is how the siege wears on, there is little more to tell: combat-assaults follow shelling, with no significant strategic gains or losses. The ammo and supplies are brought in when the shelling permits (and occasionally when it doesn't), the Screaming Eagles keep dying valiantly and pointlessly, displaying typical courage and skill. The other major tension or theme which Nolan explores (aside from the perceived lack of full commitment to enable victory) is the dynamic between the officers and men. Distinctions are drawn between styles of leadership, the motivations of officers (selfish and selfless), the impossible decisions those in command were forced to make on a daily basis.

As an account of a specific battle this book is superb. I'm not sure I would agree with Stephen Ambrose who is quoted in its cover that it is the best account of combat ever written (I think I'm paraphrasing there) - it's no better than E.B.Sledge's 'Old Breed' - but it is certainly very comprehensive.

To come to the point quickly Keith Nolan has created another first-class addition to the canon of literature on the Vietnam War. This book brilliantly continues the line of works by this author exploring the nature of warfare in the foxhole and the character of the American fighting man in Vietnam.

He interweaves the story of the struggle in the field to achieve a challenging objective with the need to keep US casualties to a minimum. He highlights the differences between the career officers and soldiers, the 'Lifers', with those who just wanted to complete their tour and go home in one piece.

More than anything else he demonstrates that by 1970 the troops on the ground were not fighting for their Commander in chief or the ill-starred Republic of Vietnam but for each other. They just wanted to do their duty and not let down their buddies. That is not to suggest that Nolan portrays them all as gung-ho hard chargers but rather as ordinary men some very frightened, some heroic but most of them courageous in the face of the foe. For those of us fortunate enough not to have experienced combat he skilfully conveys the confusion of the battlefield and the terrible randomness of death in war.

Keith Nolan is entitled to stand in the first rank of Vietnam War historians, alongside such luminaries as Bernard Fall, and I am proud to say I have all of this author's works and eagerly waited to add this latest book to my collection. If you do not have the rest of Nolan's works I cannot urge you too strongly to rectify that oversight. If you do not have 'Ripcord' in your collection - you should.

Superb, the detail Nolan conveys gives the feel of an academic text whilst the pace is more akin to a work of fiction. I was a little put off initally in that the book covers only a very short period, unlike most Vietnam accounts which cover the usual 13 month tour, but the level of detail isn't off putting. Nolan must have spent months if not years interviewing veterans and it shows in the richness of the book. Certainly a book to go back to for a second read.