The Battle of Loc Ninh began as the North Vietnamese Army attacked the village on September 11th, 1968. A ferocious battle would last for three days involving Sgt. David Hack and his commanding officer, Major General Keith Ware. The short story of General Ware and Sgt. Hack’s involvement as been told in the book, The Life of a Warrior.
The full story of the battle has now been published in the magazine Vietnam, entitled “A Sergeant’s Prayer is Answered” by Lt. Colonel Jeff Harvey USA (Ret). This compelling work tells the horror of the three day battle and the units involved. As told in “The Life of a Warrior”, Sgt. Hack was severely wounded as he was trying to meet General Ware at the Loc Ninh airstrip via track vehicle. Maj. Gen Ware had departed Lai Khe via helicopter to oversee the battle. His helicopter was shot down killing all aboard.
General Ware’s obituary can be found at http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/klware.htm and further describes the events of Friday September 13th.
It was a very costly battle. The 1st Brigade after-action report tallying the losses for all units recorded American casualties of 70 killed and 488 wounded and NVA losses that included 608 confirmed killed.
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