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JUNGLE WARRIORS
This website is dedicated to the men of the First Platoon, Company A, 3rd Battalion, 1st Inf Regiment, 11th Infantry Brigade, Americal Division that served from 1969 to 1970 in South Vietnam. Members of the First Platoon donated all of the photographs, letters, videos, and stories to share their year in South Vietnam.
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In the military, it’s said that men create a bond from combat, and this bond is understood only inside the military. First Platoon was a family during their year in Vietnam and every day after they returned. They are all brothers and have a bond that cannot be explained. They fought, bled, cried, played, and partied together.
After the enemy killed or wounded one of the platoon members, the pain they felt was unimaginable. As men, they unapologetically held another platoon member during their grief. They still miss the platoon members who never came back home. Our only regret is that we didn’t get to know them better.
The platoon members helped each other without any questions. They would give their life to save another. They helped carry each other’s load and willingly shared their rations, water, ammunition, and packages from home. First Platoon members are brothers, and the bond they formed in combat will always exist.
After the enemy killed or wounded one of the platoon members, the pain they felt was unimaginable. As men, they unapologetically held another platoon member during their grief. They still miss the platoon members who never came back home. Our only regret is that we didn’t get to know them better.
The platoon members helped each other without any questions. They would give their life to save another. They helped carry each other’s load and willingly shared their rations, water, ammunition, and packages from home. First Platoon members are brothers, and the bond they formed in combat will always exist.
The Brotherhood
I now know why men who have been to
war yearn to reunite. Not to tell stories
or look at old pictures. Not to laugh or
weep. Comrades gather because they
long to be with the men who once acted
at their best; men who suffered and
sacrificed, who suffered and were
stripped of their humanity.
I did not pick these men. They were
all delivered by fate and the war. But
I know them in a way I know no other
man. I have never given anyone such
trust. They were willing to guard
something more precious than my life.
They would have carried my reputation,
the memory of me. It was part of the
bargain we all made, the reason we
were so willing to die for one another.
As long as I have memory, I will think of
them all, every day. I am sure that when
I leave this world; my last thought will
be of my family and my comrades.
“Such good men!”
Michael Norman
I now know why men who have been to
war yearn to reunite. Not to tell stories
or look at old pictures. Not to laugh or
weep. Comrades gather because they
long to be with the men who once acted
at their best; men who suffered and
sacrificed, who suffered and were
stripped of their humanity.
I did not pick these men. They were
all delivered by fate and the war. But
I know them in a way I know no other
man. I have never given anyone such
trust. They were willing to guard
something more precious than my life.
They would have carried my reputation,
the memory of me. It was part of the
bargain we all made, the reason we
were so willing to die for one another.
As long as I have memory, I will think of
them all, every day. I am sure that when
I leave this world; my last thought will
be of my family and my comrades.
“Such good men!”
Michael Norman
A two minute video introducing the men of First Platoon.