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FSB BASTOGNE aka FOB Bastogne and LZ Bastogne West southwest of Nam Hoa and southwest of Hue; due West of FSB Birmingham along north side of Hwy 547 in Thua Thien Province, I Corps. A sprawling firebase located in the vicinity of Chu Lai in the surrounding mountains of the Ashau Valley and built in Mar/Apr 68 during Operation Delaware, by 2d Bde, 101st Abn Div and 2d/502d Inf. North end of A Shau Valley was within 175 mm range of site. Was scene of heavy fighting and overrun and occupied by NVA forces during both the 1972 Easter Offensive and the 1975 Final Offensive.

 

Taken sometime between Sept 1969 and March 70
Sign lettered by Dennis Peterson

Photo submitted by Lloyd C Irland

 

Photo courtesy of Larry Stafford

Photo submitted by Bob Worrall

This was taken sometime in February 1970 from a bunker on the east side of Bastogne looking east towards FSB Birmingham in the distance. The road that you can make out is Highway 547–a two lane dirt road built by Army Engineers from Hue to the Ah Shau Valley. Fields of fire had been cleared by bulldozers, and you may be able to make out the stack of sandbags in the lower right corner of the pic. The sandbags formed a cradle for a 55-gallon drum of “fougasse”–basically napalm ignited by Claymore mines and White Phosphorus grenades in the event of a sapper attack.

Photo submitted by Bob Worrall

This was taken December 22, 1969 looking up at FSB Bastogne. I don’t remember which direction this is taken from, but it gives a good picture of this miserable little mud hill we got to call home when we were not out humping the boonies.

Taken in 1969

Photo courtesy of Dan Albrecht

The red clay soil was characteristic of much of Vietnam, as was the generally “untended” bare earth appearance of most firebases.

 

Another sign lettered for Bastogne by Dennis Peterson

 

 

“Folks, I was visiting my local Italian grocery store when my eye fell on this small package. The package states that Le Bastogne is France’s no. 1 biscuit brand. The biscuit is named after the small Belgian town for which someone named FSB Bastogne. Actually the things are pretty good!”

Lloyd C. Irland

“Redleg”

“Class of 69”