VW-obit-Smith-Ronald Eugene
From findagrave.com
Ronald E. Smith was born in Kingman Indiana on March 29, 1940. He joined the U.S. Navy as a young man, completed his commitment and then joined the Army. He advanced in the Army to Sergeant First Class, and received Special Forces training. He served in Germany until 1968, then was shipped to Vietnam, where he was assigned to Command and Control Central, MACV-SOG.
On November 28, 1970, Smith was a rifleman and a member of a joint Vietnamese and American long range reconnaissance team (LRRP) named Kentucky/Louisiana on a mission in Attopeu Province Laos, near the tri-border area of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. At 1605 hours, the team came under enemy attack from a reinforced enemy company. The team became separated and several members were wounded. In the initial attack, Smith was hit by enemy fire, and was wounded and sought cover.
The team leader immediately went to him to bring him to cover. When he turned Smith over, he saw that Smith had been hit in the forehead, chest and side by automatic weapons fire. While he was attempting to recover Smith, a B40 rocket propelled grenade (RPG) hit the area, killing a Vietnamese member of the team who had also come to assist Smith. Enemy fire again struck Smith, and concussion from the rocket fire knocked the team leader unconscious.
The remaining team members, who were Vietnamese, broke contact with the enemy, carrying the team leader with them. The team leader later stated that it was his opinion that Smith was dead. Smith's body could not be evacuated due to heavy enemy action. No search could be made because of continuing hostile troop movement in the area. The area of loss was then classified, and Smith's family was informed only that he had been "operating deep inside enemy dominated territory.
On April 28, 1971, the Army again wrote to Smith's family and stated that it had been decided he could not have survived the incident. He was declared Killed in Action/Body Not Recovered. The action was based on the "additional information" that the team leader "definitely determined that [Smith] died of his wounds." (Provided by Mike) - thanks to "Mike" for his wonderful tribute to Ronald Eugene Smith
