Subject: Pyramid Control
Date: Tue, 30 Dec 1997 06:32:30 -0800
From: Deryl Sadler <dls@notnow.com>
To: klk@itjob4u.com

Hi.... I was assigned to Pyramid from Jan '64 to Jan '65 and was part of the second team in there after it was activated. We were ABAT-7, MAAG.

Our 'air force' consisted of two L19s with wooden props and one Huey. And the poor radar... you're right. We could track someone about 5 miles and that was it. No one turned their SIF on back then and our best piece of gear was the DF radio. We actually did some amazing work with it, similar to WW2 days. Did an IFR recovery with it and did some on-target clandestine supply drops to the A-teams out in the woods using just that and dead reckoning. The pilots thought we could actually see them! Fools! The height finder never did work. We suspected that the VC thought we were drilling for oil and they were going to wait until we hit pay dirt before they took us over. The HF (radio) was the 'hobby shop' for maintenance guys.

Think the truck you mentioned belonged to our local US Army advisors and was used on the mail run out to BMT east on a daily basis. The supply sergeant seemed to own it. As for quarters, our five man group, 2 captains & 3 E-7s, lived at the Army compound with the big huts (sic, the Bungalow).  And yes, those were originally part of the Bao Dai's setup. As part of the taxes the 'yars paid, they supposedly built and kept the place up in the old days and that was the Bao Dai's upcountry cathouse. Never heard anything about Teddy Roosevelt, but think it was built well after he died. I understand it burned to the ground around '68 or so. We always thought one flaming arrow would do it in as it was a monster fire hazard and riddled with termites. Did you get to meet Rev. Zimmer while there? He was the local 'yar missionary. He and his entire family were slaughtered by VC later on. I've still got an original copy of his 'history of the Montagnards' The US Army later adopted it into a manual on Vietnam and gave it official recognition. I spent a lot of time with Y Ba Han, the leader of the 26 tribes, both in North and South Vietnam. He had been a lt in the French army there until they left. We spent lots of time spinning yarns in his village where I was a frequent guest. There's nothing like good old 'yar wine and roast God-knows-what for dinner. He later went to Cambodia for asylum as the VC really wanted him badly since he was considered a living deity by the 'yar tribes. Will put some pix together and scan them for you.... might be interesting to compare what we had with what you got involved with. Hell, we were the only 5 USAF guys between Pleiku and Saigon!