When it came to Americans, however, some found it difficult to kill when they were face-to-face with the enemy in such tight confines. This meant naturally handguns were most commonly chosen. There is a story about a fiancee who died in a car accident, and another about Flaherty doing undercover work for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF). 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. Finally, this list will look at how successful these attempts were in the grand scheme of things. I Spent Seven Years as a Vietnam POW. limit, but he could do nothing about the height part. 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. They reported to Aventura police that they had seen what looked like a body in some bushes alongside the road. 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. You will usually find him on the top of a mountain admiring the view and wondering how he got there. You can view the full DCAS record for an individual named in the list via the Access to Archival Databases resource, or AAD. Each panel is numbered from "1" to "70" at the base, with West Panel 1 and East Panel 1 . 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). 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. Start Reading. Comprised of 12 Special Forces soldiers, an ODA can operate . These homeless veterans deserve more from us. 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 He served as both an A and B detachment Commander. 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. Have the latest local news delivered every afternoon so you don't miss out on updates. His only problem was that he stood four feet, nine inches tall. [7] Flaherty was buried at Forest Memorial Park in Milton. 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. In a way, he was like a mentor. Because of this, they often targeted their legs instead. 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 . He met Flaherty as a homeless man in 2000. Many American men were trying to avoid serving the U.S. military in the 1960s and 1970s. Vietnam), evaded for two weeks with a banged up leg and his right arm broken in three places. 22. It was the year of the Tet Offensive, where U.S. troop numbers peaked at more than half a million. Several Viet Cong members knew the American soldiers had boots with plated soles to help prevent injury to their feet. They have given so much and suffered so much. Marines who score 250 or higher on BOTH the PFT and CFT are given an additional 1 percent body fat. Here are 10 of the most dangerous: 1. When the soldier tripped the wire, the ball would swing down the tunnel and strike into the face of anyone in the way. One battalion also found an underground complex that covered 2,000 meters and yielded cameras, films, printing presses, and type, in addition to the usual cache of weapons and ammunition. Shockingly, a US soldier even uncovered a missing M-48 tank buried six feet deep; the Viet Cong were using it as a command center. Palm trees swayed gently in the humid air while he waited for his friend . However, Bowman said that he was never that scared of the tunnels; he was so young he believed he was invincible. Richard James Flaherty was born on November 28, 1945. One tunnel rat claimed that the booby traps and Viet Cong did not frighten them as much as encountering the local ants. We can imagine that it may have had something to do with his Vietnam combat experiences. Yuzuk said none of the relatives or companions of Flaherty or Anness he has spoken with was aware of a relationship between the two. If it did not force the enemy out, those inside the tunnels often suffocated to death instead. Well anything under 4'10" is legally a disability under the law. It was only after a determined effort, which included the involvement of his local Congressman, that he managed to acquire a waiver. His height was no object, however, and he put together an impressive record, with the honors to match. Richard Flaherty had to get a waiver to join the Army during the Vietnam War. He began to eat and stay in fighting shape, as he was an avid sportsman in high school, especially good at martial arts. July 21, 2015. He served as an A Detachment Commander and Liaison Officer. Captured U.S. pilot major Dewey Waddell is guarded by a militiawoman with a gun and a bayonet on a rice field. An example of a classic punji booby trap. Stories reveal that one American soldier raised his head through a tunnel entrance only to have a piece of metal automatically speared through his neck. The Viet Cong also made use of explosive booby traps and pressure detonated mines. Capt. The Viet Cong amassed around 250 kilometers of underground tunnels. 11 talking about this. However, he was eventually arrested for possession of gun silencers and removed from the agency. racist or sexually-oriented language. Comprised of 12 Special Forces soldiers, an ODA can operate independently behind enemy lines for long periods of time without supervision. Oct 15, 2015 Ian Harvey, Guest Author. The US Army Special Forces, commonly referred to as the Green Berets, are one of the countrys most elite fighting forces. 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. In a more direct attempt to seek out the enemy, US soldiers used portable turbines to blow CS gas into tunnel shafts they located. Wounded Marine Gunnery Sgt. Richard was involved in martial arts long before anyone else knew much about them, Yuzuk said. 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. After Vietnam, he did contract work for the CIA all over the world. Infantry Advanced Individual Training also helped them to deal more in-depth with other issues. Approximately 2.7 million American men and women served in Vietnam. The Lone . 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. Just sitting and waiting. Use the 'Report' link on Some of us may have known Richard Flaherty only because of his small size. A twenty-two year old U.S. Army Lieutenant finds himself in the fight of his life on his birthday. When he reached adolescence, Flaherty was small compared to his peers. There is a story about Flaherty being involved in a federal investigation that ended in the arrest of two Green Berets in the 1980s. Was the shortest soldier in US military history a CIA operative who had been assassinated? This restoration was pivotal as it enabled some of the key successes enjoyed by the Viet Cong. 10,422 Vietnam War Soldiers Photos and Premium High Res Pictures - Getty Images. When he graduated OCS and his Special Forces training, he volunteered for combat duty with the 101st Airborne Division in Vietnam. As a student, she worked in a variety of research positions, including as an archivist. He was expected to only grow to the height of 4 7 but Richard proved them wrong as he grew to 4 9.. Pararescue. Most likely a member of the 12th SS Panzer Division "Hitlerjugend" which sustained 43% casualties during the Normandy campaign. How can we help? The only reason anything is known about his own past is that he shared it with an Aventura cop before he died. In 1970, Flaherty was reassigned to the 10th Special Forces Group, where he commanded another ODA and then an Operational Detachment Bravo (ODB), a headquarters element. Low near 45F. 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 came home from Vietnam after his second tour and moved to Hallandale, Florida, where he worked for a time with the U.S. Tools of the trade metal tin sign. 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. Flaherty led his platoon in a flanking assault on the enemy position, during which an NVA bunker was spotted. Of those killed, 61% were younger than 21 years old. Of course, the local Vietnamese population designed the tunnels with their own size in mind. The following year, 1971, he was discharged from active duty and transferred to the Army Reserves, where he served until 1983. After all, it was a very stressful and dangerous job. Today, the mistreatment of American POWs and the suffering they endured remains a powerful legacy of the Vietnam War. With a passion for historical learning and historical education, her writing interests include social history, and war history, especially researching obscure facts about the Second World War. Four-foot, nine-inch tall veteran Richard J. Flaherty claimed to be the shortest man ever to serve in the United States military. Capt. When triggering a tripwire, a plank weighted with barbed metal spikes and bricks would fall rapidly from the earth squashing the soldier below. Upon graduation he was assigned to the 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne) as a Special Forces Operations Detachment A (SFODA) Commander in Company A of the 3rd SFG in Thailand. I mean really small. Join IrishCentrals Book Club on Facebook and enjoy our book-loving community. Doctors from Stamford Connecticut's Regional Hospital worked intensely to save the newborn as his mother wasn't aware of her blood group of Rh-negative. One soldier would crawl about five meters behind the other to minimize the chance of death or injury if their leader activated a trap or a mine. But due to the Vietnam draft they would have likely taken him anyway if that was his only disqualifier from serving. David Yuzuk's police radio blared from his shoulder as he leaned against his patrol car outside Boston Market in Aventura. top . Tiger traps were also particularly violent. They became known as some special forces who skied into battle against enemy forces. Current standards for men is 60-80 inches tall. Here, leaders forced soldiers into specific chambers and made to recite their name, rank, and service number. 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. Be Truthful. SS recruiters for the division accepted boys as young as 14 into the . He was always recommending books and talking about philosophy, work and politics and eventually giving me advice. We here at the Veterans Site offer our sincerest thanks to Richard Flaherty for his service to the nation. Share with Us. High 64F. We had built the runway surface with 2 ft by 12 ft Marston Mat aluminum planks with interlocking grooves along each edge. Flaherty was the shortest of these elite soldiers, standing at only four feet, nine inches tall. Five men killed in Vietnam were only 16 years old. A particular Special Forces member, Capt. Although the driver fled the scene, they were eventually caught. Capt. Huge bees, gigantic rats, centipedes, spiders, snakes, bats, and fire ants (to name a few) plagued these tunnels. Again, tripwires would trigger the release of snakes hidden somehow inside bamboo sticks, known to soldiers as bamboo vipers. Frank Gutierrez, for example, served with the US Army in Vietnam from 1967 to 1970 as a rifleman, field wireman, and an ordinance specialist at Chu Chi and Long Binh. His size also meant he worked as a tunnel rat during his tour of duty, crawling through enemy tunnels to destroy them. I am going to cite some data here and I wish I could recall the sourcesI don't have them. Whitesides was killed, and Thompson was taken prisoner; he would ultimately spend just short . To even attempt Special Forces training, Flaherty had to gain six pounds and get another height waiver. His height was no object, however, and he put . Most helpful for tunnel rats, however, was the brief amount of training time spent detecting, removing, and laying booby traps. It has been well-documented in epidemiology studies . Already well-adapted to subterranean life, many insects and animals of the Vietnamese jungle found the underground tunnels to be a worthy living environment. Millions of Americans and tens of thousands of veterans and soldiers opposed the war in Vietnam. The average Liberian is 159.66cm (5 feet 2.85 inches) tall. Maybe its because, as a high school student, I knew him, if only from a distance. Or were his missions something much darker? . Team Mighty. Vietnam-era Radiomen life expectancy was 5 seconds. Richard J. Flaherty may never be known. each comment to let us know of abusive posts. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism Meanwhile, Flahertys burial spot, just behind Lisa Davis Annesss grave, remains unmarked as another Veterans Day approaches. Richard Flaherty had to get a waiver to join the Army during the Vietnam War. Current standards for men is 60-80 inches tall. The army sent in tunnel rat soldiers with the aim of locating the enemy, finding their resources, and cutting off their supplies. The Vietnam War is also known as the Second Indochina War. Photo credit: The New York Times. [5] Fifteen years before Flaherty's death, he was befriended by Miami Police officer David Yuzuk after Flaherty became homeless. I quote the half-inch ants have such a powerful bite that to pull them off means losing a bit of skin. 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. U.S. Air Force pararescuemen and a simulated 'survivor' watch as an HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter comes in for a landing. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. He deployed for the first time in 1968 as part of the 101st Airborne Division, acting as a platoon and reconnaissance platoon leader with companies B, C, D and E. While making parachute jumps, Flaherty would be the first to leap, so his men could see where the wind took him and ensure he didnt get carried somewhere alone because of his light weight. And there was more; he was homeless. Click #isupportlocal for more information on supporting our local journalists. Richard J. Flaherty with two classmates at Officer Candidate School in 1967 (Photo: David Yuzuk / Laptrinhx.com ). The NVA troops hit the soldiers with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades. Awarded Medal of Honor for escape and resistance as a POW. Yet, both of these tactics were not as successful as they hoped. BTS will be on hiatus until all seven members complete their mandatory military service in South Korea. Weve got a clip from the movie that details Richards ruthlessness in combat. Yuzuk said it was not long after he moved to Florida in 1999 and joined the Aventura Police Department that he noticed Flaherty. Statements in the storage unit showed that he had several thousand dollars in bank accounts, while a passport and receipts from a travel agent indicated that during the time he was homeless, he had made trips to such countries as Jordan, Venezuela, Thailand, Singapore and Cambodia. We often look at college students as punk kids, lazy frat guys or any other kind of social stereotype. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph. For this action he was awarded the Silver Star in 1968. As a result, many tunnel rats often avoided using hearing protection while underground. The primary focus of his time in the CIA was supplying the Nicaraguan Contras in Nicaragua. Richard Flaherty returned from war and studied at the University of Miami in Florida. He also discovered that, while homeless, Flaherty was secretly traveling to places like Jordan, Iraq, Thailand, Vietnam and Venezuela. 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. His stint with the CIA came to an end when he was arrested for possessing silencers. Be Proactive. After Flahertys death, Yuzuk kept digging, researching, and confirming. By the time RichardFlaherty graduated from high school in 1966, the US was already heavily involved in Vietnam. April 12, 2021. If you forget it, you'll be able to recover it using your email address. 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. Marines who score 285 or higher on BOTH the PFT and CFT are exempt from height/weight standards. He was killed in a hit-and-run accident in 2015. Photo credit: Funker530. The Lone Soldier. Yuzuk is the director and its his first movie. Not only was he the shortest Green Beret to serve in Vietnam, he was also the shortest US serviceman in history. 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. He was the smallest man on campus. By April 1968, Flaherty was a paratrooper and a platoon leader with the 101st Airborne Division. To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. For his leadership and heroism, he was awarded the Silver Star. John Zander in Chu Lai, Vietnam in 1965. Rosemary Giles is a history content writer with Hive Media. In 1970 he was reassigned to the 10th Special Forces Group at Fort Devens. Got the VC screaming "we said no Oddjob! It was if he was hardening himself up for some special task.. 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. Flaherty was unfazed by the criticism he continued to receive throughout his life. Maybe the best way to do that is to find better ways to deal with the problem of veteran homelessness in our own cities and towns. when a soldier had approximately two months remaining on his tour in Vietnam, he might take a long stick and notch it for each of his remaining days in-country. These guerrillas were fighting the colonial power of France. He was awarded a Silver Star, two Bronze Stars, and two Purple Hearts. Miami police officer David Yuzuk befriended a homeless man and, after 15 years of friendship, Richard J. Flaherty finally revealed who he really was. 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 another as a Green Beret captain, lies at rest in an as-yet unmarked grave in a Milton cemetery. . Wakeman wrote numerous letters home detailing her love of rushing at the enemy amid gunfire . One Viet Cong soldier highlighted their lack of discreteness. Unbeknownst to his parents, Richard and his mother, Beatrice Rose, shared incompatible blood types (Richard, Rh-Positive; Beatrice, Rh-Negative). Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions. The US army now sought alternate measures. On November 28, 1945, doctors in Stamford Connecticut's Regional Hospital intensely worked to save newborn Richard James Flahertys life. Click here to stay informed and subscribe to Herald-Dispatch. pearl harbor. Example of a spike ball booby trap on display. 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