Ghost of Vietnam

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The voices that made this book possible

This book exists because veterans and families trusted me with memory.

My deepest thanks go to Captain Lowell D. Bittrich, whose reports, recollections, patience, and generosity provided the backbone of this narrative.

I also owe thanks to the many men and families who shared stories, documents, corrections, and hard-won insight over the years, including Robert M. Gregson, John “Dutch” Holland, Curtis, Major General (Ret.) Richard “Dick” Chegar, Bill Golembieski, Floyd Riester, Daniel Simons, Melody Connetto, Bob Gregson, and others who preferred to remain unnamed.

James A. Thompson's diary was invaluable. So were the many records—official and unofficial—that survive in after-action reports, field notes, memoirs, correspondence, and fading family archives.

To everyone who helped me carry this story forward: thank you. Any mistakes that remain are mine alone.

Foundational Sources

1966Non-Fiction

Captain Lowell Bittrich's Post-Op Reports — B Company

The crown jewel of the research. An unvarnished, boots-on-the-ground chronicle that anchored everything else in fact and precision.

1968Non-Fiction

Beyond Combat — Chaplain James M. Hutchens

The first published account to directly address the events of Operation Hump on Hill 65.

2015Non-Fiction

Account by 1LT Al Conetto — A Company Platoon Leader

A firsthand account from inside the ambush — raw, precise, and indispensable.

2025Non-Fiction

Lt Col (Ret) Fred Fairhead — Infantry Operations in the Vietnam War, Vol. I

A thoughtful operational write-up prepared in planning for the 60th Anniversary commemoration.

OngoingTestimony

Hundreds of personal accounts from those who were there — both living and dead

Kitchen table conversations, phone calls across decades, letters passed through trembling hands.

Coming Soon

Ghost of Vietnam — Historical Fiction based on all of the above, and the many voices who gave their time, their memory, and their trust.

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