“At That Time I Knew We Were Going To Die”: Service In Vietnam With D Company, 1-5 Cavalry

Bob Spengler grew up in Florida and New Mexico. His father was a dentist during World War II and served as a Veterans Administration dentist after the war. He applied to the Air Force Academy and considered Air Force ROTC at the University of Colorado, but glasses limited his options. He graduated from the University of Colorado in 1963. When his marriage deferment expired, he received his draft notice and subsequently enlisted in the Army Reserve as a company clerk. His commander encouraged him to attend Officer Candidate School (OCS), and he was commissioned as an infantry officer in the National Guard. His unit was activated, and he was sent to Vietnam in May 1969 as an individual replacement, where he was assigned as a platoon leader in D Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment. He describes his brief but intense experience leading a platoon on patrol in Tay Ninh Province. On July 15, 1969, after about five weeks in the field, his platoon was ambushed during a mission riding M-113s from Phuc Vinh to the Song Be Bridge. He remembers that they had not worked with 113s before. During this, his first and only direct combat engagement, he was wounded in the neck by shrapnel. He was evacuated and spent time recovering at a hospital in Cam Ranh Bay. He was further evacuated back to the United States. Due to the demobilization of his original National Guard unit and his injuries, he was granted an early release and returned home. He remained in the National Guard until 1974, working with the OCS program at the Denver Federal Center. He left the National Guard as a Captain after company command. After the war, he became a banker. He reflects on the complexities of the war, the emotional impact of his service, and the "fog of war" he experienced. He discusses the guilt and second-guessing that followed him years later, particularly after his retirement. Reflecting on his time in the Army, he states, “I did what I was called to do.”