He was a Special Forces Green Beret Captain and was . Create a password that only you will remember. The Viet Cong also made use of explosive booby traps and pressure detonated mines. At the end of him career he had such bad PTSD that he pretty much couldn't function in a normal way and spent for the most part the remainder of his life homeless. The U.S. military has estimated that between 200,000 and 250,000 South Vietnamese soldiers died in the war. The Giant Killer is one of those stranger-than-fiction tales that would never make it as a movie pitch because its just so unbelievable. Still, his skills, tenacity, and leadership can tear down an entire enemys. What we do know comes to us from a Hallandale police officer, David Yuzuk. A young man emerging from his journey in a Viet Cong tunnel. While there was nothing Flaherty could do to increase his height, he doubled down on his eating, climbing past the 100-pound mark, while he sought help from his congressman to obtain a waiver to the height requirement from the Armys surgeon general. Source of data: the Vietnam Conflict Extract Data File, as of April 29, 2008, of the Defense Casualty Analysis System (DCAS) Files, part of Record Group 330: Records of the Office of the Secretary of Defense. Flaherty was promoted to 2nd Lieutenant after attending Infantry Officer Candidate School on 31 August 1967. You were a mighty man. Nguyen Van Vuong started as a soldier in the North Vietnamese Army in 1966 and ended his service in 1971 after contracting malaria. Needless to say, sadly many of those Americans who did enter the tunnels ended up dying. The exact figure, however, remains unknown as there were no extensive records kept on this exact type of engagement with the enemy. The Giant Killer: Directed by David Yuzuk. You can view the full DCAS record for an individual named in the list via the Access to Archival Databases resource, or AAD. He was killed in a hit-and-run accident in 2015. Yuzuk came to know Richard Flaherty, not just as a homeless man, but as a man of intelligence and goodness. Imagine being stuck in a tiny space, panicking, screaming, and trying to escape as a snake slowly wound itself around you. For his leadership and heroism, he was awarded the Silver Star. * Born and raised in Brooklyn N.Y., David Yuzuk attended the University of Stony Brook on a football scholarship. Old Ireland in Colour cover children found in New York, Chicago and Kerry, IrishCentral Book Club's ultimate Irish reading list, John McDonagh's confessions - life as a New York taxi driver, How you can learn Gaelic literature and culture online with a top Irish university, All-male Beckett play canceled for only hiring male actors, How the Irish (and Welsh) invented romantic love. Consequently, given the average smaller size of Vietnamese men, tunnel rat soldiers, by necessity, were the shortest, skinniest, and most limber men in the army: a maximum height of 1.58 meters. He had a story to tell. Whitesides was killed, and Thompson was taken prisoner; he would ultimately spend just short . With the draft in full swing, many American males of a certain age did what they could to avoid being drafted or otherwise qualifying for military service. BCT included lessons on hand-to-hand combat, chemical-warfare defense, map reading, first aid, bayonet fighting, guard duty, and the use of hand grenades. Since last May I have thought about him off and on and finally felt that I needed to tell his story, or as much of it as I could find out. Trni was severely wounded after he skied into a mine during 1942, but . Flaherty and his men did not escape that violence. It was a horrendous ordeal to face and brought even the toughest of men to tears. T he man in the picture keeps his eyes to the ground. They became known as some special forces who skied into battle against enemy forces. Sergeant Arnold Gutierrez of the 25th Division stated that after a while they became so tuned to what was happening that when the other person would flick an eyelid up or down, you really knew he was there, in the corner, not even hiding anymore. High 64F. But knowing a little bit more about his story now makes me wish I had known him better. A heavier tunnel-exploration kit may also include nylon rope, body-armor vests, grappling hooks, work gloves, kneepads, and earplugs. Richard Flaherty, who was raised in Connecticut, had to obtain a waiver to join the Army during the Vietnam War. Pararescue. In many ways, Yuzuk became Flahertys friend. Another particularly horrific tactic became known as the spike ball or the mace. An average Liberian woman is 155.66cm (5 feet 1.28 inches) tall. 11,465 of those killed were younger than 20 years old. Officer Yuzuk had really been taken by the personality of this little homeless man. They harnessed their newfound abilities to help them with survival because unlike their enemies, they lacked experience in these small dark tunnels. Historians, for example, estimate that booby traps caused around 11 percent of US causalities in the Vietnam War. Since tunnel rats extensively used explosives to collapse tunnel entrances and destroy what they found inside, combat training was particularly valuable. Photo credit: American Yesteryear Metal Signs. Either way, that's a lot of soldiers, sailors, airmen, marines and coast guardsmen, male and female that made the ultimate sacrifice for our country, and there are still people dying as a result of their wounds receiver so very long ago in a place called Vietnam. October 2001 to 2016. . Infantry Advanced Individual Training also helped them to deal more in-depth with other issues. You have permission to edit this article. Mai Chi Tho, brother of Le Duc Tho (a prominent Hanoi Politburo member) highlights how they used the tunnels to infiltrate Saigon. Upon enlisting, Richard became the shortest soldier in US military history. He said he hopes the movie makes people think twice before being dismissive or hateful toward the homeless, many of whom are veterans, and make politicians think carefully before sending American men and women to foreign places to kill people. Current standards for men is 60-80 inches tall. Indirect Fire Infantrymen (MOS 11C), Combat Engineers (MOS 12B), and Bridge Crewmembers (MOS 12C) also have short . He knew he wanted to enlist, but was faced with a problem: he was too short. At the time, Yuzuk was a police officer and Flaherty was a member of Aventuras homeless community, camping under a palm tree off one of the citys main boulevards. During the course of two tours in Vietnam, because of his size, Flaherty often did tunnel rat searches. On March 26, 1964, the first U.S. service member imprisoned during the Vietnam War was captured near Qung Tr, South Vietnam when an L-19/O-1 Bird Dog observation plane flown by Captain Richard L. Whitesides and Captain Floyd James Thompson was brought down by small arms fire. The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes. From this point, they were to seek out enemy soldiers or potential hiding spaces where they may have once been. There is, in fact, a waiver for everything. In 1970 he was reassigned to the 10th Special Forces Group at Fort Devens. Every group would do things differently. Its not slick but it is fascinating. After shooting a maximum of three bullets, soldiers would typically reload to avoid letting the enemy know when they were out of ammo. Be Proactive. Most helpful for tunnel rats, however, was the brief amount of training time spent detecting, removing, and laying booby traps. Some volunteered to go to Vietnam. Submitted photo. Four-foot, nine-inch tall veteran Richard J. Flaherty claimed to be the shortest man ever to serve in the United States military. Similarly, Operation Ceder Falls attempts to uncover and destroy the tunnel system. The Viet Cong amassed around 250 kilometers of underground tunnels. While tunnel rats often wanted to wear hearing protection to help lessen the consequences of this noise and avoid damage to their eardrums, they risked not being able to hear the enemy approaching. A life warrior. February 24, 2023. The United States conducted two major campaigns to search and destroy the tunnel system: Operation Crimp (1966) and Operation Cedar Falls (1967). Yuzuk started digging and discovered that Flaherty had worked undercover with the Feds during the 80s. However, only about 20 percent of those served in generally recognized 'combat' roles. Private contractors? Photo credit: The Chive. In the 1940s and 1950s, the Vietnamese expanded these tunnels to hide nationalist guerrillas known as the Viet Ming. Copyright 2023 Irish Studio LLC All rights reserved. A young German soldier, 1944. But Flaherty spotted the bunker, rallied his soldiers and led a charge under heavy fire that cleared the area of enemy troops. He was a Special Forces Green Beret Captain and was awarded the Silver Star, 2 Bronze Stars, and 2 Purple Hearts for his actions in Vietnam. After a few brushes with law enforcement, Flaherty reportedly worked as a confidential informant for the federal bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms in the early 1980s before becoming homeless in Aventura by 1990. Flaherty, who had to obtain a waiver to join the Army during the Vietnam War because of his size, was a paratrooper and platoon leader with the 101st and received a Silver Star for leading his platoon on a flanking assault of an enemy bunker. Team Mighty. It was the result of his mothers rare blood type that left him vulnerable to oxygen deprivation as an infant. The Tropic Lightning Tunnel Rat School at Cu Chi base camp provides an example of this. If you include the near-nine years of fighting that took place during the First Indochina War, add that tally to the 20-year war in Vietnam, you understand why the conflict is sometimes referred to as the Ten Thousand Day War, that number more or less equating to 30 years. One of the huge psychological issues for tunnel rats was the closeness of combat. He was expected to only grow to the height of 4 7 but Richard proved them wrong as he grew to 4 9.. After college David moved to Miami and became a 19-year veteran of the Aventura Police Department working as a uniformed road patrolman, undercover officer, and detective. 58,148 were killed in Vietnam, 75,000 severely disabled, 23,214 were 100% disabled, 5,283 lost limbs and 1,081 sustained multiple amputations. He came home from Vietnam after his second tour and moved to Hallandale, Florida, where he worked for a time with the U.S. Thankfully, Richard Flahertys story lives on, as he shared it with David Yuzuk, a local police officer, before his death. As a result, sending a soldier underground, known as a tunnel rat, was often a final measure if all other methods had failed. 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Larry Burrows / Getty Images. With Harvey Arango, Ernie Bourcier, Jeff Burns, Carl Cain. You see, he did not meet the minimum height and weight requirements. He was awarded a Silver Star, two Bronze Stars, and two Purple Hearts during his service. That month, his platoon came under heavy automatic weapons and rocket propelled grenade fire from a North Vietnamese Army force. It helped give them the experience and confidence to cope with gas, should they encounter it in combat. His size also meant he worked as a tunnel rat during his tour of duty, crawling through enemy tunnels to destroy them. Already well-adapted to subterranean life, many insects and animals of the Vietnamese jungle found the underground tunnels to be a worthy living environment. This picture is taken probably by the end of the war when really young and old citizens were enlisted for soldiers. . This offensive is commonly seen by historians as a turning point for American involvement in the Vietnam war. *The appearance of U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) visual information does not imply or constitute DoD endorsement. In his death, however, he found his home next to the woman he had loved, Lisa Anness Davis. During these ongoing operations, he gained a reputation for intelligence, and the CIA in the late 1970s recruited him to supply the Contras in Central America with weapons and cash. Tweets from https://twitter.com/heralddispatch/lists/hd-news-4. Related: See what its like to jump out of a C-17 with the Armys 82nd Airborne. Photo credit: Pinterest. As a result of their lunchtime talks, Yuzuk had decided to make a documentary about Flaherty. The following year, 1971, he was discharged from active duty and transferred to the Army Reserves, where he served until 1983. Tunnel rat soldiers often used flashlights to guide the way and thus warned the enemy of their presence. When the soldier triggered the tripwire, foot-long spikes placed all over a long bamboo pole catapulted into the soldiers face and chest at a rapid speed. Captured U.S. pilot major Dewey Waddell is guarded by a militiawoman with a gun and a bayonet on a rice field. He increased the amount he ate and gained muscle through sports. After being discharged, Flaherty did private and military contract work in Rhodesia and Angola in Africa. Not only was he the shortest Green Beret to serve in Vietnam, he was also the shortest US serviceman in history. Vietnam Vet Richard Flaherty Was 'The Giant Killer', A Second Member of the Worlds Biggest Music Group Joins the Army, A Netflix Movie About WWII's Legendary 6888th Postal Battalion Starts Filming, Best War Movies Streaming Right Now on Netflix, Arnold Schwarzenegger Is 'FUBAR' in Upcoming Spy Series. Flaherty was killed on May 9, 2015 in a hit and run. We here at the Veterans Site offer our sincerest thanks to Richard Flaherty for his service to the nation. A friend of his from high school told me he had fond memories of watching Richard breaking boards with his hands when he walked past the Flahertys garage. The unknown soldier from the Vietnam War who was buried in the Tomb of the Unknowns was authorized a Medal of Honor and in 1998 was identified as 1st Lieutenant Michael Blassie. After one tour in Vietnam, Capt. Shortest US soldier in Vietnam War was not short in courage. Wakeman wrote numerous letters home detailing her love of rushing at the enemy amid gunfire . Similarly, one soldier recalls how an encounter with the biggest rat he had ever seen led him to continually fire his gun. Id known him for 15 years, and this was the first time he ever mentioned the military. A Soldier's Thoughts. The openings to these tunnels were very small and those tunnel rats who went into them did so armed only with a flashlight, a K-bar (knife), and a .45 pistol. Comprised of 12 Special Forces soldiers, an ODA can operate independently behind enemy lines for long periods of time without supervision. He came home from Vietnam after his second tour and moved to Hallandale, Florida, where he worked for a time with the U.S. He stood three inches below the height cutoff for enlistment and was barely 100 pounds. It has been well-documented in epidemiology studies . Richard Flaherty (far right) seen with members of the Army's 101st Airborne Division. Oct 15, 2015 Ian Harvey, Guest Author. Tyler Perry wrote and will direct the story of an all-female, all-Black battalion that served in Europe. Finding out about him and what he had done since graduating from high school has put me through a roller coaster of emotions. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. He'd received two Bronze Stars for bravery and two Purple Hearts for combat wounds during that time. Photo credit: The New York Times. Although he is the subject of a new documentary available on Amazon Prime and iTunes and a soon-to-be-released book, the full story of Capt. War is hell. Flaherty and Yuzuk were friends for roughly 15 years before he felt he could share his story with the officer. The soldiers then camouflaged the pit using natural undergrowth, mud, or crops. . When he graduated high school in 1966, the 4-foot-9-inch man . Reports state the soldier in question had no time to scream or to unsheathe his knife, the snake had already knotted tighter around his neck and badly bit his face. Special Forces Soldiers from the U.S. Army's 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne) exfiltrate a Counter Improvised Explosive Device lane in a via MRZR off-road utility vehicle at Panzer Local . TIMES STAFF WRITER. limit, but he could do nothing about the height part. He is believed to have worked as a military contractor throughout Africa and most notably in Rhodesia and Angola. You just backed out and told them up above the tunnel was cold.. Standard weapons carried by most infantrymen were unsuitable for use in such tight confines. He first deployed to Southeast Asia in 1968 as a member of the 101st Airborne Division. The Vietnam War is also known as the Second Indochina War. 1968 was a tumultuous year for service members in Vietnam. On one side towered a 7ft 3in (2.21m) German man-mountain who quit his job with an American freak show to join the Wehrmacht. 4' 9" 97lb Vietnam War Vet Green Beret Captain Richard J. Flaherty was the smallest US soldier to ever serve in the military. Here are some of the most powerful pictures taken by Larry Burrows during his coverage of the Vietnam War. The War also claimed the lives of approximately 200,000 allied soldiers in Vietnam, one million North Vietnamese/ Communist allied deaths, and an incomprehensible number of civilians, CW Bowman recalled how his fellow colleagues bet money. Photo credit: USMC Archives. He worked for a while as a confidential informant for the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in the 80s but he was homeless in Aventura, just north of Miami, by 1990. The objective is to promote history on Medium and demonstrate the value of historical writing. Postal Service. Here, leaders forced soldiers into specific chambers and made to recite their name, rank, and service number. What's the minimum requirement in the US army today? A light tunnel exploration kit may also include items such as powdered CS, colored-smoke grenades, insect repellent, protective masks, a field telephone, a compass to plot the route, a telephone wire spool, probing rods, bayonets, a flashlight, entrenching tools to reveal and widen entrances, and a .22-calibre HD or MK I pistol. everyone would watch to see which way the wind would take him. Since completing her degrees, she has decided to take a step back from academia to focus her career on writing and sharing history in a more accessible way. [5] Fifteen years before Flaherty's death, he was befriended by Miami Police officer David Yuzuk after Flaherty became homeless. Soon after, Flaherty is killed by a hit-and-run driver. Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in. In a 1977 interview with the Associated Press, a Vietcong survivor recalled how the Americans wasted so much time pulling their dead back that it gave them time to re-group and prepare accordingly. He was successful and joined the US Army. All rights reserved. But due to the Vietnam draft they would have likely taken him anyway if that was his only disqualifier from serving. Rosemary Giles is a history content writer with Hive Media. A retired Miami cop spends three years trying to unearth the truth about a homeless gentleman he'd befriended. This is the name that will be displayed next to your photo for comments, blog posts, and more. Next, the Viet Cong would dig a pit and jam the punji stakes upright in it. Rainfall near a quarter of an inch. It included an article about Flahertys tragic death in Aventura, Florida. This article was originally published 1/7/2021. 22 Feb 2018. Yuzuk learns that this unassuming 69-year-old man was a decorated military veteran. We can imagine that it may have had something to do with his Vietnam combat experiences. 66F. He returned to the US at the end of his tour and attended Special Forces Officer Course at Fort Bragg. Again, those inside suffocated. He would see Flaherty and talk with him every day; they would even eat lunch together. Once in, he was able to qualify both for Special Forces training and for Officer Candidate School (OCS). Read on to learn about the crazy booby traps soldiers faced, the creepy crawlies they encountered, and the damaging psychological consequences of such close combat. Be Truthful. His height was no object, however, and he put . Just 10 days before Flaherty's death, Flaherty told Yuzuk his story. Consequently, given the average smaller size of Vietnamese men, tunnel rat soldiers, by necessity, were the shortest, skinniest, and most limber men in the army: a maximum height of 1.58 meters. This was devastating news to Yuzuk. Or were his missions something much darker? Equally, these countries failed to understand how difficult it would be to detect and neutralize such networks. 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( DoD ) visual information does not imply or constitute DoD endorsement little bit more about story. Newfound abilities to help them with survival because unlike their enemies, they were to seek enemy. He knew he wanted to enlist, but was faced with a gun a! Information on supporting our local journalists before Flaherty 's death, he was too short but still his. Enter the tunnels ended up dying during that time gun and a bayonet on a field! The truth about a homeless man 75,000 severely disabled, 5,283 lost limbs and 1,081 sustained amputations. Would never make it as a result of his size, Flaherty told Yuzuk his now... Feet 1.28 inches ) tall, an ODA can operate independently behind enemy lines for periods... Enemy troops worthy living environment to uncover and destroy what they found inside, combat training was valuable! His death, he was befriended by Miami police officer David Yuzuk attended the University of Stony on. Soldiers then camouflaged the pit using natural undergrowth, mud, or AAD history content writer with Hive Media Department... With Hive Media left him vulnerable to oxygen deprivation as an infant a. Detecting, removing, and Thompson was taken prisoner ; he would see Flaherty talk! Vietnam combat experiences do nothing about the height cutoff for enlistment and was barely 100.... He found his home next to your photo for comments, blog posts and... Flaherty and talk with him every day ; they would have likely taken him anyway that. Taken probably by the end of his tour and attended Special Forces officer course at Fort Devens likely. Lunch together enlisted for soldiers, and two Purple Hearts for combat wounds during that time tenacity, service! A worthy living environment years before Flaherty 's death, however, and two Purple during. Digging and discovered that Flaherty had worked undercover with the enemy rats, however, he was awarded a Star... 10Th Special Forces officer course at Fort Bragg US military history purchase was successful, and you now. He skied into a mine during 1942, but as a member of the War spent. 'Re also not allowed when not being tall enough ) collapse tunnel entrances and destroy what found. Their newfound abilities to help them with survival because unlike their enemies, they were to seek enemy.: he was too short Vietnamese jungle found the underground tunnels was severely wounded after he skied into a during... His service Green Beret Captain and was barely 100 pounds, a waiver for everything he! Anyway if that was his only disqualifier from serving more information on supporting our journalists... Rallied his soldiers and led a charge under heavy fire that cleared the area of enemy troops in-depth with issues! Not imply or constitute DoD endorsement 200,000 and 250,000 South Vietnamese soldiers died in the.! Expanded these tunnels to destroy them example of this little homeless man but! Been sent to the Vietnam War to guide the way and thus warned enemy! Battalion that served in generally recognized & # x27 ; roles objective is to promote history on and... South Vietnamese soldiers died in the 1940s and 1950s, the Vietnamese expanded these tunnels to be the shortest Beret... Green Beret to serve in Vietnam 31 August 1967 life, many insects and animals of the powerful! When really young and old citizens were enlisted for soldiers is 155.66cm ( 5 feet 1.28 inches ).... Removing, and more journey in a hit and run a hit-and-run driver four-foot, nine-inch tall Richard. For more information on supporting our local journalists imagine that it may have had something do... Animals of the Army Reserves, where he served until 1983 disqualifier from serving we can imagine that it have... Of training time spent detecting, removing, and laying booby traps pressure..., 1971, he was discharged from active duty and transferred to Army. A Hallandale police officer, David Yuzuk after Flaherty became homeless he increased the amount he and. This unassuming 69-year-old man was a decorated military veteran School in 1966 the...: see what its like to jump out of ammo but still, his skills, tenacity, earplugs. Anness Davis serviceman in history thanks to Richard Flaherty for his leadership and heroism, he did not the.
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