Military Vehicles Magazine • OCTOBER 2019 69
Establishment of a base in the
middle of hostile territory invari-
ably led to the position being con-
tested. Artillery batteries arrived
before their positions were com-
pleted and almost immediately
went into action in support of the
infantry making sweeps in the
surrounding area. The guns could
fi re up an astounding amount of
ammo and there was a constant
need for replenishment, mostly by
road. Convoys were attacked and
incoming fi re was randomly re-
ceived, making for some stressful
times and sleepless nights — even
with elements of the 101st Air-
borne patrolling the vicinity.
Perimeter security was en-
hanced by pushing up a dirt berm
between defensive bunkers and
fi ghting positions. Miles of barbed
wire and concertina wire around
the perimeter denied easy access
to the “hostile people.” Trip fl ares
and rattle cans (beer, pop, or ration
cans with a few pebbles to make noise) were hung in the wire
and directional claymore antipersonnel mines were set out. Rifl e
and machine gun positions on the perimeter were always staffed
at night. Nearly every artillery battery carried a few “shot gun”
type rounds for close-in, across-the-berm defense.
As construction of Firebase Blaze continued and the major,
critical, components were completed, more comforts of home
began to appear such as: shower points (barrels on a stand with
shower nozzle), covered “4-hole” latrines with half barrels to
collect waste, fi eld mess facilities, extra generators for power to
the mess areas, work shops, radios, the CO’s headquarters, PSP
to provide a work fl oor in the shops and other structures, and on
and on.
The air around the fi rebase was fre-
quently made smoky by burning of the
latrine waste, debris, trash, and the un-
used excess artillery powder charge
bags. The noise was constant: artillery
fi re, engines running, heavy equipment
working, helicopters in fl ight, and jet
fi ghter/bombers on missions.
“Needs Must” and personnel and
equipment were frequently moved or ro-
tated through in order to accomplish the
larger mission. My brother Don, initially
a cannon loader on a 105mm battery
with the 101st and later assigned by his
gun battery as an RTO (radio telephone
operator) to an infantry unit, remembers
frequently packing up and being airlifted to another fi rebase.
These re-positionings came as often as every two weeks.
Army units would rotate through Firebase Blaze and each
new command had an idea on how to make their sector “better.”
Changes were always being made to the structure of Blaze. As
the major components to Firebase Blaze were completed to the
specifi cations in hand, elements of the 591st Engineer Company
(Light Equipment) were moved out to their next task down the
road.
“Drive On!” ✪