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at this time with ceilings being at most 150 to 200 feet. Nevertheless, helicopters kept flying and placed the troops close to the assault positions even if they could not make an actual air assault. I think it was at this time that General Creighton W. Abrams said that any previous doubts that he had had about the ability of the helicopter to fly in marginal weather were removed.

The 1st Cavalry was spread particularly thin at this time. The 1st Brigade with four battalions was completely occupied at Quang Tri. The base at Camp Evans with approximately 200 helicopters had to be secured and the main land supply line from Dong Ha down to Camp Evans needed to be reinforced.

The logisticians had more than their share of problems during the Battle of Hue. The road from Hue-Phu Bai to Da Nang was cut and we actually backtracked some supplies from the north at Cua Viet. The Air Force did a tremendous job in flying parachute resupply missions to Camp Evans. At times they were dropping supplies with the ceiling around 300 feet using our pathfinders and Ground Control Approach radar. It was eerie to see the parachutes come floating out of the clouds minutes after the C-130's had passed. During this same period, our flying cranes and Chinooks flew out to sea and landed on the AKA's, picked up supplies, and flew them back to Camp Evans. To the best of my knowledge, this was the first example of ship-to-shore resupply in combat.

Two Cavalry battalions were initially committed to the mission at Hue and eventually four battalions were involved in some of the most furious combat that had taken place in Vietnam since the beginning of the war. Air strikes were very difficult to call in because of the bad weather and low ceilings. Most of our helicopter operations were at an altitude of about 25 feet. The Cavalry had cut off one of the enemy's main supply lines and had taken a heavily fortified tactical headquarters at La Chu on the outskirts of the city of Hue. Our Naval gunfire support during the battle of Hue could only be described as superb. For example, one cruiser set a record for the number of shells fired in one day in support of ground operations.

I had sent one of my assistant division commanders, Brigadier General Oscar E. Davis, into the city of Hue to be my personal representative at the headquarters of Brigadier General Ngo Quang Truong, Commanding General of the 1st Army of the Republic of Vietnam Division. General Truong had forecast that "when the Cav reaches the walls of Hue, the battle would be over." He was right. Later, interrogation of prisoners indicated that three enemy regiments had begun moving from around Khe Sanh into the area