Fort Benning to commemorate Battle of Ia Drang

Fort Benning will commemorate the 50th anniversary of the first major battle of the Vietnam War next week with a series of educational and memorial events on post Monday and Tuesday.

The Battle of Ia Drang, which was documented in a number of books and in the major motion picture "We Were Soldiers Once And Young," was fought Nov. 14-18, 1965. It was the first major firefight with the North Vietnamese Army, and it took place in two parts of south Vietnam.

A number of those involved in the battle will be returning to Fort Benning.

Maj. Gen. Scott Miller, commander of the Maneuver Center of Excellence, said he is using the anniversary as a teaching moment for young Army leaders.

One of the pieces of the commemoration will be a leadership series for Fort Benning soldiers. There will be two leadership lessons, one running from 10 a.m. to noon on Tuesday and the other from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.

The panels will include soldiers who were in the fight. Those who will participate are: retired Col. Ramon "Tony" Nadal; retired Command. Sgt. Maj. Southern "Buddy" Hewitt; retired Sgt. 1st Class Clyde "Ernie" Savage; retired Col. Joe Marm; retired Lt. Col. Bill Franklin; retired Maj. Joel Sugdinis; Bud Alley Jr.; Jim Lawrence; Larry Gwin; and Joe Galloway, co-author of "We Were Soldiers Once And Young." The two lectures are open to the public.

Retired Lt. Gen. Hal Moore, the lieutenant colonel in command of the 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, at the Battle of Ia Drang, will not attend the anniversary events, said his son, David Moore.

Gen. Moore lives in Auburn, Ala., and at 93 is suffering from dementia, his son said.

"This shrinks his world to his family," he said.

The Moore family will be represented at the events.

Galloway will also speak at a dinner Tuesday night at the National Infantry Museum & Soldier Center.

The cost of the dinner is $35, and it is open to the public.

For more information, email inquiries to tina@fbcinc.com or call 301-206-2940.

Prior to the dinner at 5 p.m., there will be a wreath-laying ceremony at the National Infantry Museum Vietnam Memorial with Huey flyover.

Earlier in the day, there will be the presentation of commemoration plaques to the families of Moore, the commander during that battle, and retired Command Sgt. Maj. Basil Plumley, the chief enlisted man under Moore. Plumley died three years ago.

This story was originally published November 18, 2015 at 10:11 PM with the headline "Fort Benning to commemorate Battle of Ia Drang ."