These guerrillas were fighting the colonial power of France. It has been well-documented in epidemiology studies . 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. After completing basic training, he qualified for Officer Candidate School, from which he graduated as a second lieutenant, before receiving orders sending him to Vietnam. ", People dont know about Cotton and it shows. He returned to Southeast Asia in 1969 and remained there until 1971 when he left the Army. Richard James Flaherty (November 28, 1945 May 9, 2015) was a captain in the United States Army who served in the Vietnam War. Some 385,000 American troops were sent to Vietnam in 1966, the year Richard Flaherty graduated from high school. Again, tripwires would trigger the release of snakes hidden somehow inside bamboo sticks, known to soldiers as bamboo vipers. [1] During the war, more than 58,000 servicemen and women lost their lives. Start Reading. A particular Special Forces member, Capt. A few years later, we started talking. He deployed with the Screaming Eagles to Vietnam and served as a platoon and recon platoon leader. If you're looking for the best war movies on Netflix we're here to help you stop the scrolling, move past the algorithm and An aging CIA agent gets pulled back in for one more mission. Richard Flaherty, who was raised in Connecticut, had to obtain a waiver to join the Army during the Vietnam War. Between February and March 1973, 591 American servicemen were released by the North Vietnamese. He served as an A Detachment Commander and Liaison Officer. David Yuzuk directed, co-produced and co-wrote a biographical documentary film about the life of Flaherty, The Giant Killer, which was released in 2017. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast, Press J to jump to the feed. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person. A large proportion of the U.S. troops consisted of African American men from the inner cities, the sons of immigrants . Sometimes, they would smear the tip of the stakes with urine, feces, poison, or other contaminants to infect the wound when it penetrated the skin. Primary Source. The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user. The NVA troops hit the soldiers with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades. Funds are paid by Greater Good Charities to benefiting organizations as a grant. But it wasnt easy. He was a Platoon Leader and Recon Platoon Leader with companies B, C, D, & E. Flaherty participated in some fierce combat outside of Hue City during the Tet Offensive which earned him a Silver Star, 2 Bronze Stars and 2 Purple Hearts.[4]. Of those killed, 61% were younger than 21 years old. He was 69 . He also weighed less than 100 pounds, further disqualifying him from serving in the Army. Be Nice. Comprised of 12 Special Forces soldiers, an ODA can operate independently behind enemy lines for long periods of time without supervision. The World War Two story of David and Goliath - an Allied 5ft 3in soldier who captured Germany's tallest soldier at 7ft 6in has been uncovered. When he graduated OCS and his Special Forces training, he volunteered for combat duty with the 101st Airborne Division in Vietnam. On the other hand, combat troops had nearly an even chance of getting wounded, roughly 50%. All rights reserved. Richard James Flaherty (November 28, 1945 May 9, 2015) was a captain in the United States Army who served in the Vietnam War.Due to his small stature (he was just 4 feet 9 inches (1.45 m) tall), he was known as "The Giant Killer". But then everything we know about him gets lost in a blur of fragmentary vignettes. Holy shit even disregarding the adversity overcome about his height, this dude seriously fucked. However, he was initially turned down because of his size. MILTON The shortest soldier to serve in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War, a highly decorated officer who completed one tour of duty as a platoon leader with an airborne battalion and . 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. What they failed to realize is that many of the tunnels had several layers and doors built into them to help prevent such fatalities. After his tour in Vietnam, he returned to the U.S. and attended the Special Forces Officer Course at Fort Bragg. We here at the Veterans Site offer our sincerest thanks to Richard Flaherty for his service to the nation. A Soldier's Thoughts. Submitted photo. These homeless veterans deserve more from us. After his girlfriend died in a car accident, his life also took a sharp turn. His mother didnt know at the time of his birth that her blood type was Rh-negative which may lead to serious health problemsand deathin a second-born fetus. Photo credit: Peter Alan Lloyd Website. Click here to stay informed and subscribe to Herald-Dispatch. 10,422 Vietnam War Soldiers Photos and Premium High Res Pictures - Getty Images. On parachute operations he was always the first out of the plane. He came home from Vietnam after his second tour and moved to Hallandale, Florida, where he worked for a time with the U.S. This would-be Captain America was just 49, three inches too short for Army service. It's an exclusive offer for our viewers! 75,000 Vietnam veterans are severely disabled. He used to spend all day at a movie theater. One of the prerequisites for and provisions of the accords was the return of all U.S. prisoners of war (POWs). The center offered classes designed to show the best techniques of searching, detecting, and destroying hiding places. The 'Hanoi Hilton' Is No Trump Hotel. He left the Army in 1971 at the rank of captain due to a reduction in force. You will usually find him on the top of a mountain admiring the view and wondering how he got there. They reported to Aventura police that they had seen what looked like a body in some bushes alongside the road. In fact, volunteers boasted of their ability to change flashlights in pitch black without realizing the damaging consequences of this. After his service in Vietnam, Richard Flaherty applied for Special Forces training at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. You had to be a minimum of 5 feet tall and weigh at least 100 lb. Here we go: 1. Start your free trial today. He was often mistaken as a freshman when he was a senior. Richard Flaherty (far right) seen with members of the Army's 101st Airborne Division. As a man, he stands tall in my book. February 24, 2023. The Viet Cong were experts at creating very sophisticated tunnel systems that would sometimes be so large that they could be used as company-sized staging areas for hiding and for rest, even for hospital facilities. More from us: Phil Bucklew: The Father of US Naval Special Warfare. While many draft-age males of that era sought ways to avoid being among the 385,000 troops sent to the beleaguered Southeast Asian nation that year, Flaherty was working the angles to find a way in. We'd love to hear eyewitness He was successful and joined the US Army. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. He returned to the US at the end of his tour and attended Special Forces Officer Course at Fort Bragg. The action took place on April 20, 1968, when Flahertys platoon was ambushed and came under withering enemy fire. Richard Flaherty was just a kid I knew briefly in high school. So began a wild adventure involving guns, cash, and High Altitude Low Opening parachute jumps into the Florida Everglades swamps. This offensive is commonly seen by historians as a turning point for American involvement in the Vietnam war. When you used to stack bodies, but your 15 yo great grandson keeps calling you "Piper Perri" and you don't know why. He met Flaherty as a homeless man in 2000. 20002023 The Veterans Site and GreaterGood. A colleague dragged him out before he grabbed a frag and threw it into the hole too. He returned to Vietnam in 1969 and stayed there until 1971 when he left the Army. The Viet Cong used this to their advantage to scare, and even kill, American soldiers. However, as the Viet Cong soldier highlighted, by throwing grenades into the void ahead, or shooting pistols, the noise was deafening and alerted them to their presence. [1], Flaherty was born on 28 November 1945 in Stamford, Connecticut. . That month, his platoon came under heavy automatic weapons and rocket propelled grenade fire from a North Vietnamese Army force. Abandoned by the CIA, Flaherty locates a smuggling ring stealing tons of explosives including a classified weapon from inside a U.S. Army base, and signs on to work the investigation undercover with the Federal law enforcement agency the ATF (Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms). It changed Richard, he said, adding that he had found letters in his locker explaining why he needed help to treat his post-traumatic stress disorder. Like Liked by 1 person Hed traveled a lot, read a lot and was interesting to talk with.. Generally, while underground tunnel rat soldiers employed a shoot first, ask questions later method. After DNA testing confirmed his identity, the remains were removed from the tomb and returned to Blassie's family, but the Medal of Honor remained as a tribute to those . Oct 15, 2015 Ian Harvey, Guest Author. 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 healthy soldier/worker effect gradually subdued over time. Standard weapons carried by most infantrymen were unsuitable for use in such tight confines. That special task began to take shape in September 1966, when Flaherty received a letter from Rep. Donald J. Irwin, D-Conn., informing him that the Armys Surgeon General had recommended granting a waiver to the height requirement. I never thought of him after that until I received an email last May from one of my old high school friends. You see, Richard Flaherty was only 410. When Flaherty was born, hed been deprived of oxygen, due to a rare blood condition his mother had, which stunted his growth. Flaherty was given a Silver Star for his actions in combat during the Tet Offensive, when his unit was ambushed with machine guns and grenades by Northern Vietnamese Army (NVA) troops in a hidden bunker. It included an article about Flahertys tragic death in Aventura, Florida. If the army located an entrance and needed it explored, the team lowered a tunnel rat into the area to scout out the surroundings. Men most often explored these tunnels in pairs. God only knows what that experience and so many other combat experiences did to Flahertys mind. Archives held in Texas revealed this happened to one unfortunate soldier. I just tell them Im 35 pounds of muscle, 14 pounds of dynamite and one pound of uranium-238, and it gets a lot of laughs.. David Yuzuk's police radio blared from his shoulder as he leaned against his patrol car outside Boston Market in Aventura. He increased the amount he ate and gained muscle through sports. If the stakes pointed downwards, soldiers became unable to remove their limbs without causing severe damage. Short in size he might have been, but short in courage he wasnt. Flaherty led his platoon in a flanking assault on the enemy position, during which an NVA bunker was spotted. The U.S. military has estimated that between 200,000 and 250,000 South Vietnamese soldiers died in the war. Shortest US soldier in Vietnam War was not short in courage. Neither family, nor friends know why. 7'3" Jakob Nacken (221 cm), the tallest German soldier of WW2, chatting with 5'7" (170 cm) Eddie Worth, AP photographer with the wartime still picture pool, after his surrender. Operation Crimp hoped to target a key Viet Cong headquarter location believed to be unground. What did we lose because we were unable to understand him, or to welcome him home? world war ii. Richard Flaherty was probably the most unique Green Beret to ever serve in the U.S. Army's Special Forces. The only reason anything is known about his own past is that he shared it with an Aventura cop before he died. In Britain, during the Nap. Naturally, their opponents were equally as skilled in this department and so tunnel rat soldiers were careful not to clean too much, or use certain products in case their enemies smelled them coming. Four-foot, nine-inch tall veteran Richard J. Flaherty claimed to be the shortest man ever to serve in the United States military. The primary focus of his time in the CIA was supplying the Nicaraguan Contras in Nicaragua. SS recruiters for the division accepted boys as young as 14 into the . Richard Flaherty is laid to rest in an unmarked grave in Milton near Lisa Anness, a woman he described as the love of his life. But he may have left me with more mysteries than Ill ever be able to solve.. This meant naturally handguns were most commonly chosen. 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. He says of Flaherty, I think that Vietnam tortured Richard.. Richard Flaherty had to get a waiver to join the Army during the Vietnam War. 45 calibers with a seven-round magazine as they were readily available. Soldiers who are not fluent in another language will attend six to 18 months at the Defense Language Institute (DLI) prior to AIT. As a Vietnam veteran he is my brother. T he man in the picture keeps his eyes to the ground. Vietnam-era Radiomen life expectancy was 5 seconds. Capt. Jan 31, 2021 - MILTON The shortest soldier to serve in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War, a highly decorated officer who completed one tour of duty as a platoon leader with In particularly horrendous circumstances, enemy soldiers would dig another pit directly beside it. July 21, 2015. Flaherty served with the 101st Airborne & the 3rd Special Forces Group. You could not help but notice him. The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network. This way, they smelled the same as the GIs and the dogs became unable to locate the enemy. The following year, 1971, he was discharged from active duty and transferred to the Army Reserves, where he served until 1983. Due to the blood type, his growth was stunted which resulted in him being diagnosed with dwarfism.[2]. Jeremiah Purdie (center) is led past a stricken comrade after a fierce firefight for control of Hill 484. A small donation goes a long way. He becomes a mystery to family and friends alike. Of course, the local Vietnamese population designed the tunnels with their own size in mind. A group of soldiers would then charge the gap to hopefully get a foothold and allow other troops to pile in. Upon enlisting, Richard became the shortest soldier in US military history. But due to the Vietnam draft they would have likely taken him anyway if that was his only disqualifier from serving. Yuzuk started digging and discovered that Flaherty had worked undercover with the Feds during the 80s. Bob Roberts, who was photographed when Jakob Nacken was captured, has been awarded France's highest military honour, the Legion d'Honneur, by the French . It helped give them the experience and confidence to cope with gas, should they encounter it in combat. He also discovered that, while homeless, Flaherty was secretly traveling to places like Jordan, Iraq, Thailand, Vietnam and Venezuela. Larry Burrows / Getty Images. In his death, however, he found his home next to the woman he had loved, Lisa Anness Davis. There is, in fact, a waiver for everything. This early condition stunted his growth. There is a story about Flaherty being involved in a federal investigation that ended in the arrest of two Green Berets in the 1980s. Alternate title, "Dating on tinder when you're 5'11" or shorter". 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. Vietnam War. That medically makes you a dwarf (little person). M. However, Bowman said that he was never that scared of the tunnels; he was so young he believed he was invincible. A Soldier's Thoughts. Growing up, Flaherty was sensitive about his height (4'9"), therefore he tried to achieve the best physical fitness and learned martial arts. During the Second World War, the Vietnamese first constructed underground tunnels to fight Japanese invasion. 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 . In most cases, tunnel rats were engineers, infantrymen, cavalry scouts, or chemical specialists. 58,169 were killed and 304,000 wounded out of 2.59 million who served. Theyre known for their specialization in counterinsurgency, a skill that was heavily used during the Vietnam War. He was later reassigned to the 10th Special Forces Group at Fort Devens, Massachusetts. Meanwhile, Flahertys burial spot, just behind Lisa Davis Annesss grave, remains unmarked as another Veterans Day approaches. While braving the intense hail of hostile fire, Lieutenant Flaherty displayed astute direction and leadership, leading to the enemy bunker being swiftly destroyed and allowing his platoon to advance and continue its devastating attack on the enemy, according to the citation for the Silver Star Flaherty was awarded for the action. Here, leaders forced soldiers into specific chambers and made to recite their name, rank, and service number. That did not deter Flaherty. Communist soldiers would attach one side of the string to a stake in the floor, and the other to the safety pin in the grenade. Here are some of the most powerful pictures taken by Larry Burrows during his coverage of the Vietnam War. The Tropic Lightning Tunnel Rat School at Cu Chi base camp provides an example of this. person will not be tolerated. Yuzuk had started to look into his friends story well before his death and discovered that hed worked as an undercover agent for federal authorities during the 1980s. During the course of two tours in Vietnam, because of his size, Flaherty often did tunnel rat searches. When he graduated from high school, Flaherty was 4 feet, 9 inches tall three inches too short to meet the Armys height requirement at the time. Mai Chi Tho, brother of Le Duc Tho (a prominent Hanoi Politburo member) highlights how they used the tunnels to infiltrate Saigon. In the end, his life has as much mystery in it as it does accounts of real grit and heroism. After Flahertys death, Yuzuk kept digging, researching, and confirming. Even if they could deal with the claustrophobic conditions, air and artillery support had not prepared them for the type of old-fashioned combat that relied on savage behavior, individual strength, guts, and cunningness. A young man emerging from his journey in a Viet Cong tunnel. He showed his fearsome warrior spirit during the Vietnam War, and later entered the roster of the Army's elite task . Myanmar 159.52cm (5 feet 2.80 inches) The Temples of Bagan in Mandalay, Myanmar. The exact figure, however, remains unknown as there were no extensive records kept on this exact type of engagement with the enemy. Click Today's Obituaries to view all of the listings. He ended up leading a reconnaissance platoon, showing great . accounts, the history behind an article. Capt. In a way, he was like a mentor. 11 talking about this. Sometimes these snakes were even poisonous and so became known as three-step snakes because a soldier was only granted three more steps before the venom killed him. The Vietnam War is also known as the Second Indochina War. Shortest U.S. On the other stood a 5ft 7in (170 . Though Americans, Australians, and New Zealanders claim to know these hideouts existed, they overlooked their size and importance. You have permission to edit this article. My three-year journey of discovery dragged me down the rabbit hole of CIA conspiracies and the hunt for stolen classified weaponsstretching from the bloody jungles of Vietnam to the dangerous streets of Iraq and Venezuela, all in search of the peripatetic Green Beret Captain Richard J. Flaherty, Yuzuk said. . According to archives held by the US government, there were 58,220 US military deaths overall as a result of the Vietnam War. 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. If you are squeamish or hate thinking about claustrophobic conditions, take this as a warning: gruesome facts lie ahead! His friend decides to investigate and finds a passport that shows Flaherty was secretly traveling to dangerous locations like Jordan, Iraq, Thailand, Vietnam, and Venezuela while living as a homeless man. 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. saigon 1975. army soldier. A lot of the time, other soldiers thought these volunteers also had to be a certain type of crazy. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. The Vietnam War was the longest military battle in the history of the United States. The Viet Cong amassed around 250 kilometers of underground tunnels. I have been stewing over it for several months now. Don't Threaten. It has a rating of 7.4 on IMDb. Tragically, he was killed in a hit and run during the early hours of May 9, 2015. Why they volunteered varied person to person, but one American soldier speculated volunteers were trying sometimes to make up for problematic lives back home or to prove their manhood in truly testing conditions. The same soldier noted that once rats conquered their fear, assuming they survived, some even came to like their work for the rats, the light at the end of the tunnel was usually a VC with a candle.. Eugene Debruin: civilian with Air America captured 5 Sep 63 in Laos when C-46 was shot down, If they hesitated at all, it is highly likely they would be the ones to die in such close confines. limit, but he could do nothing about the height part. During this deployment, he would be promoted to captain, earn two Bronze Stars and would be wounded in combat two times, receiving a Purple Heart for each time. Friendships sometimes happen casually, the former policeman said. Current standards for men is 60-80 inches tall. This kit included a S&W .38-calibre special model 10 revolver with both a silencer and aiming light. A former TV Reporter. After Vietnam, he did contract work for the CIA all over the world. Yuzuk is the director and its his first movie. An example of a classic punji booby trap. Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in. U.S. involvement in the Southeast Asian country had more than doubled from 1965. Flaherty enlisted late that year. He would see Flaherty and talk with him every day; they would even eat lunch together. However, only about 20 percent of those served in generally recognized 'combat' roles. Please support The Veterans Site by adding us to your ad blockers whitelist ads help us to provide food and supplies to veterans. I quote the half-inch ants have such a powerful bite that to pull them off means losing a bit of skin. In many ways, Yuzuk became Flahertys friend. As a student, she worked in a variety of research positions, including as an archivist. Flaherty began to open up and talk to Yuzuk about his life only a few weeks before his tragic and lonely death as a hit-and-run victim last May. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes. When the soldier tripped the wire, the ball would swing down the tunnel and strike into the face of anyone in the way. When it came time to weigh in, Flaherty barely tipped the scale of 100 pounds. But knowing a little bit more about his story now makes me wish I had known him better. I am going to cite some data here and I wish I could recall the sourcesI don't have them. Similarly, one soldier recalls how an encounter with the biggest rat he had ever seen led him to continually fire his gun. We offer our condolences to his family and to his friends. Bullied and ridiculed through basic training, Flaherty nonetheless achieved the kind of stature thats only dreamed of: He became a Green Beret Captain, earning the Silver Star, two Bronze Stars, and two Purple Hearts for his actions in Vietnam. Looking for Irish book recommendations or to meet with others who share your love for Irish literature? Photo credit: The New York Times. Reads: 47 Comments: 1. . Putting people in that situation changes them. he said. In the war's moral outrages, crimes and betrayals, many saw the US empire for the first time. By 1990, the US Army veterans was homeless and living in Aventura, Florida. Thus, when Richard was born, he was different. 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. . However, he was eventually arrested for possession of gun silencers and removed from the agency. Flaherty returned to the U.S. later that year, and graduated from the Armys Special Warfare School at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, becoming a member of the elite Green Berets. Shortest US soldier in Vietnam War was not short in courage. 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. Miami police officer David Yuzuk befriended a homeless man and, after 15 years of friendship, Richard J. Flaherty finally revealed who he really was. The Lone . Step into a world of glamour at Dublin's most stylish townhouse, Number 31, Irish American woman's 50-year-old cold case murder finally solved, Joe Biden honors "grit and determination" proclaiming Irish American Heritage Month, Ireland and Northern Ireland pols react after Northern Ireland Protocol "breakthrough", Ireland Womens National Team heading to the US this spring for two friendlies, In praise of Ireland's exciting and diverse future, On This Day: Barry McGuigan, The Clones Cyclone, was born, Patrick J. Kennedy to receive Sober St. Patrick's Day award, Irish Americans continue to maintain strong bond with Irish roots, survey finds. , cavalry scouts, or to meet with others who share your love for literature... Of France used this to their advantage to scare, and you are squeamish or hate thinking claustrophobic! North Carolina Army Reserves, where he served until 1983 Flaherty had worked undercover with the 101st Airborne the... Flaherty often did tunnel rat school at Cu Chi shortest soldier in vietnam camp provides an example of this these were... To Richard Flaherty, who was raised in Connecticut, had to be unground and... Percent of those served in generally recognized & # x27 ; is no Hotel. Offer our sincerest thanks to Richard Flaherty graduated from high school from high school him diagnosed. Most infantrymen were unsuitable for use in such tight confines was so he. Army 's 101st Airborne & the 3rd Special Forces training, he was discharged active! 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