Curry, Robert, 1952-. Oral history interview with Robert Curry, [sound recording], 2006.
Title:
Oral history interview with Robert Curry, [sound recording], 2006.
Robert "Bob" Curry, a Milwaukee, Wisconsin native, discusses his service in the Vietnam War doing aerial surveillance for the Army with the 131st Aviation Company and the 225th Aviation Company. Curry grew up in a blue collar neighborhood in Milwaukee and attended Milwaukee Lutheran High School. In 1969, He transferred to Washington High in order to graduate in December and enlist in the Army Reserves. Curry remarks he was inspired by recruitment posters of Huey helicopters and "an aura...in my neighborhood of Mom, God, and apple pie" that convinced him it was his duty to join. Curry briefly covers his basic training at Fort Polk (Louisiana), observing he never knew the South got cold. Next, he outlines helicopter school at Fort Walters (Texas). Curry tells how he was transferred in the middle of the night and sent to Fort Huachuca (Arizona), a military intelligence base, to learn to fly the OV-1 Mohawk, a stealth airplane. Curry spends much time describing the Mohawk, which "looked like a caterpillar" and used Slide Looking Airborne Radar (SLAR) and infrared technology for intelligence work and visual surveillance. Curry comments it was unusual that he was assigned as a Mohawk co-pilot because he was an 18-year-old E-5 enlisted man. Curry vividly describes the shock of arriving at Bien Hoa (Vietnam) in 1970, noting veteran soldiers ignored the "f-ing new guys." He was sent to the main base at Phu Bai to work with the 131st Aviation Company, I Corps. Curry describes frequent, unpredictable night attacks on the Army base, and he criticizes the Army's weapons policies: soldiers were not allowed to carry M-16s with them on base. In the event of an attack, they had to wait in line to be issued a weapon. Curry suggests this policy was created because of racial tensions and drug use among the troops. He also reports that disputes over funding between the Air Force and Army resulted in all weaponry being removed from the Mohawk airplanes, so the Mohawks were always escorted by fighter planes. Curry touches briefly on racial tensions, stating his unit never had a problem but others did. He discusses drug use in depth, considering marijuana and alcohol use widespread by 1971, and stating that harder drugs were used more in some companies than others. Curry describes a typical mission. His role was to develop film canisters in the cockpit, creating topical maps to track movements on the ground. He details the various cameras on the Mohawk. When Curry was not performing surveillance, his missions involved transporting munitions to North Vietnam. Curry recalls frequent missions over the Gulf of Tonkin between Vinh and Hanoi. He also flew some missions for the 101st Aviation Company near Chu Lai and Da Nang, looking for specific logistical information. After four months in Phu Bai, Curry took R&R at China Beach (Vietnam) and was transferred to a base in Udorn (Thailand) for Mission Steel Tiger. Curry contrasts the poor living conditions in Phu Bai with the nicer facilities in Udorn, and he praises the Thai military. Curry mentions he flew missions over Laos with the 7th Air Force during the Lam Son invasion in 1971. He explains his mission with the 7th Air Force was to look for Vietnamese trucks and traffic patterns, leading fighter planes to fire directly on the enemy. Curry would land at bases on the Plain of Jars and Long Chieng, the Hmong base in northern Laos. Curry spends much time relating the history of the Hmong, explaining how the CIA trained them to fight in Laos, and praising them for their support and protection of U.S. troops. He mentions meeting General Vang Pao, a Hmong resistance leader, and getting to know Hmong people at Long Chieng. Curry comments that Nixon officially denied the U.S. presence in Laos. Most of his missions were at night along the Ho Chi Minh Trail, doing intelligence and supporting Hmong guerrilla forces on the ground. Curry emphasizes that protecting the Hmong made him feel he had a purpose in a war that he had previously been conflicted about. Curry mentions working with Bill Lair, a CIA operative in the Secret War in Laos, and General Richard Secord, who handled Air Operations in Laos and later became part of the Iran-Contra scandal. Curry remarks Secord had "brilliant" but strange tactics, blowing up the toilet paper supply for the North Vietnamese Army (NVA) and pouring detergent on the Ho Chi Minh Trail to make it slippery. Curry also praises General Harry C. Aderholt for understanding how to get what was needed from the government. Curry muses that he was an "eighteen-year old punk" briefing generals on intelligence information. In contrast to his work in Laos, Curry characterizes the attitude of soldiers in Vietnam as "protect your own ass," adding that "your own military was damn near trying to kill you through stupidity." Curry tells an emotional combat story in which, on a clandestine mission, his airplane was hit and the pilot was killed. Curry ejected them both from the plane, but he landed between a Hmong firebase and invading NVA. He thanks the Hmong soldiers, especially Colonel Xay Dang, for saving his life. For years, Curry felt guilty about this incident, both for not having done more for the Hmong and for the death of the pilot. He regrets that he could not talk with the pilot's family because the operation was classified. Curry displays great affection for the Hmong and expresses frustration at racial tensions in Wisconsin. When Hmong refugees were relocated to the U.S., Curry was saddened that many veterans confused the Hmong with the Vietnamese. Curry also blames the U.S. government for leaving the Hmong to "a slaughter that was totally unnecessary and uncalled for" when they pulled out of Vietnam. In 1971, Curry finished his tour of duty in Vietnam. Curry speaks with bitterness about his homecoming. He had to fly one last mission over Saigon, and he was certain he would die on the mission. He describes his arrival at Fort Lewis (Washington) at night; military police strip-searched everyone, looking for drugs. Curry comments it was like basic training all over again. He says he never wanted "a pat on the back," but he did not expect such hostility. Curry describes being greeted at the Seattle Airport by angry protestors who chanted "baby killers!" and threw eggs and chicken blood at the veterans. Curry ran into the airport and changed into civilian clothes in the bathroom, throwing his uniform in the trash. Soon after arriving home, Curry describes having a flashback while at the mall and being angry at civilians who were not interested in Vietnam and Laos. After the war, Curry married June, his fiancee, and studied journalism at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. He admits he hid his service from his classmates and stopped listing his veteran status on his resume after being turned down for several jobs. During the Persian Gulf War, Curry began having flashbacks and drinking heavily. He explains his family intervened with the help of veteran Joe Campbell, and he was treated for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder at the VA Hospital in Milwaukee. Curry mentions relapsing after September 11, 2001 but states positively that the nation's support for Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans "gave [Vietnam Veterans] our respect back." Curry says he is no longer afraid to show his Vietnam badges in public and that strangers have approached him to thank him for his service. As a younger man, Curry states he was against veterans organizations; however, around 2001, Joe Campbell convinced him to join the Vietnam Veterans Association in Milwaukee, where Curry was reunited with Colonel Xay Dang. He discusses how renewing friendships with veterans and writing his book "Whispering Death: Our Journey with the Hmong in the Secret War for Laos" helped him release some of his anger and fight PTSD. Finally, Curry compares the politics of the Vietnam War with the Afghanistan and Iraq Wars, and he opines on the military service of Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and John Kerry. Curry mentions he has been active with Hmong groups in Wisconsin and is currently trying to build a library in Laos, which he considers a small way of "making it right."
ArchivalResource:
Sound recording : 3 sound cassettes (ca. 127 min.); analog, 1 7/8 ips.Master sound recording : 3 sound cassettes (ca. 127 min.); analog, 1 7/8 ips.Transcript : 51 p.
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