Jim Liles

Company C 1/22 Infantry

4th Infantry Division

April 1966-July 1967

Arrvived from the 101st Airborne to Ft Lewis in April of 1966, assigned to C Co as a Heavy weapons 106 Recoiless rifle gunner.
Went to Nam on the General Nelson M. Walker and arrived on August 5, 1966 my Birthday (19). Left the ship on August 6th,
and was kept back and the next day our company came off of a landing craft to be welcomed to Viet Nam.
General Westmorleand was there and spoke. Served as a 106 gunner in Tuy Hua and then in Kontum as a Mortar Squad Leader
and then volunteered to go out as a FO to get out of base camps. On Feb. 16, 1967 A Company got hit hard
and we tore through the jungle to assist. When we got to A Company's area we got ambushed and Capt. MacManus
ran up and was shot. I had taken cover from behind a tree and saw the Capt lying in the jungle with bullets hitting the ground
around him. I threw off my pack and weapon and ran out and tried to pick him up but he was too heavy.
Another guy behind a tree was reaching out and trying to pull the Capt so I got on my knees and put my arms around his body
and drug him about two feet forward when I saw a burst of bullets hit the ground and the Capt's body jumped
as he was hit again and I was hit in the right calf. We drug the Capt partically behind a tree and the shooting stopped in our area.
I tried to bandage my wound and a Medic came up and put a dressing and brace on my leg. We got up and went into
A Company's perimeter and were put with 32 other wounded. I laid in the jungle for 14 hours and was the last one pulled out
by cable from a Chinook..

On Feb. 16, 1967 when we were close to A Company's position a helicopter came over very low and took fire.
The Lt. in the front of the column, can't remember his name stopped the column and told me to assault to the front,
Stonebraker to the left and another guy to the right. We ran leapfrogging doing cover and movement for about 30 feet
when Capt MacManus ran up from the middle of the column and ordered us back and yelled at the Lt. to keep everyone together.
It was only about a minute later when we ran into the ambush and Capt. Macmanus ran up again and was shot.
If he had not stopped us the first time, I am sure the three of us would not have made it, as it was the three of us
and others were wounded, but I have no doubt he saved our lives. I only saw 2 NVA and myself and Sgt. Apo
emptied a magazine at them as they ran past us about 8 feet away.

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