 Photograph courtesy of Jim Leatherwood |
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Remains of the trawler at rest in the Sa Ky Morning of July 15, 1967 |
| Sa Ky River Aftermath |
| July 1967 |
| Chu Lai - Da Nang |
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For the remainder of the early morning hours of July 15, three US Navy Ships (Wilhoite, Gallup, Walker) and two Swift Boats (PCF's 20 and 54) kept up a bombardment of the area around where the trawler had grounded. The ROK Marine artillery also conducted bombardments of the scene at periodic intervals. At first light, VNN Yabuta patrol boats from Coastal Groups 15 and 16 arrived and were the first to board the vessel. They were shortly followed by ROK Marines who made helicopter landings to secure the adjacent land area and also boarded the trawler. Because Mui Batangan was the Korean's Tactical Area of Responsibility (TAOR), they insisted, in terms that were not likely to be ignored, that all US and VNN Naval personnel leave the area of the trawler immediately. Later in the morning, US Marine CH-46 helicopters landed on the nearby small islet to carry away the large cache of small arms weapons which had been retrieved from the vessel. These were taken to the Korean Brigade Headquarters for their use and disposition. |
 Salvaged weapons displayed at ROK Headquarters |
 Box of recoiless rocket rounds recovered from the trawler |
| Photographs courtesy of Jim Leatherwood |
So it was not until approximately one o'clock in the afternoon that instructions were relayed from Saigon for the ROK's to let the US naval and other units have access. A technical assessment team from MACV surveyed the vessel at the same time that salvage operations to extract the hulk from her grounded position were started. This operation proved more difficult than it initially appeared, so it was not until 1630 that two LCM (Mike) boats from NSF Chu Lai were able to pull the intruder off of the rocks, configure the trawler in a "sandwich" between them, and start the slow transit to the docks at Chu Lai ... accompanied, appropriately enough, by a Swift Boat.
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| Photograph courtesy of J. D. Wiggins |
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| Photograph courtesy of Raul Herrera |
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About this time, ole Fat Dumb and Happy #45 arrived in area Two Delta November to resume normal patrol along the southern shoreline of Mui Batangan ... the daily activities of Operation Market Time never ceased. PCF-45 couldn't resist moving into the entrance of the Sa Ky to pay their respects to the Coastal Group 16 Yabutas that were still conducting clean up tasks in the wake of the trawler's departure. One of the Yabutas hailed the Swift and came along side. A VNN sailor approached the crew with the severely burned ChiCom ensign that they had confiscated from the rear of the intruder during their boarding at first light ... before the ROKs arrived. Through the VNN liaison, the CosGrp 16 sailor indicated that he wanted to make sure that the Swift Boat that had put the re-supply vessel to rest in the Sa Ky received this trophy of their actions. It was readily agreed to do so. |
This discussion was rudely interrupted by the explosion of an artillery round about 100 feet from where the two craft were tied together. Just the Koreans providing a friendly reminder that allied force visitors in their TAOR space were not welcome. Buzz off !! The next time the two Swift Boats (79 and 45) were off patrol at the same time, the flag was presented to Ed Bergin in a small ceremony at the PCF Junior Officer's Club back at Chu Lai. |
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Meanwhile, back on the "Mike" boats, the long six hour journey to ferry the stricken trawler back to Chu Lai ended after dark at 2230 hours with the trawler moored to the LST pier inside the harbor. The plan was to start the unloading and inventory of her cargo on the following morning. However, before dawn, the vessel sank along side the pier due to the many holes in her hull from the bombardment she had been subjected to on the previous night. So the job became one of simultaneously refloating the hulk and offloading what turned out to be almost one hundred tons of armaments, ammunition, and explosives. Ensign Staubach and the NSF crew accomplished this task with professionalism and dispatch during the next day or so. |
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The activity on the dock provided an opportunity for all personnel in the Chu Lai area to get a close up view of the direct evidence of North Vietnamese attempts to resupply their forces via infiltration from the sea. COMNAVFORV and other high ranking VNN officers also came up from Saigon to view the intercepted intruder. The disabled trawler was a tribute to the efforts of Operation Market Time to deny this avenue of support to enemy. |
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| An Inventory of the Trawler's cargo. As reported in the US Naval Forces Vietnam Summary of July 1967 |
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Once the battered hull of the Sa Ky infiltrator had been refloated, and its cargo removed, both were transported north to the city of Da Nang. The trawler was made available for viewing by the Vietnamese and American military. Commander Stephans {on the left}, CTG 115.1, and Lieutenant Pete Reiling, the Psy Ops Officer that broadcast the surrender tape from the USCGC Point Orient are seen touring the vessel. |
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Henry Hansen (Pacific Edition of Stars & Stripes).
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Many of the weapons from the attempted infitration were placed on display during a ceremony in late July. Nuygen Cao Ky, the Premier of South Vietnam, personally gave decorations to a significant number of Vietnamese and American military personnel who were credited with contributing to what was called "The Great Sa Ky River Victory". All of the crew of PCF 79 were included in these decorations. Ed Bergin was awarded the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry. Credit for the Sa Ky River Trawler success is due not just to a single unit or individual, but to the combined efforts of a number of sailors, soldiers, and airmen .... American, Korean, and Vietnamese:
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