UPDATE - AUGUST 25, 2005

CHANGES

After the successful start of Operation Greybeard in 1999, we continued to work with successive commanders of the 3/17th U.S. Cavalry until after the air troops of the 3/17th shipped to Iraq in 2003. For Christmas 2003, we shipped CARE packages and children's Christmas cards to the Apaches of A Troop in Afghanistan. They had shipped to Afghanistan before the air troops went to Iraq, continuing the 3/17th's well-established tradition of squadron fragmentation and dispersal.

After Apache Troop rotated home from Afghanistan, the Army reorganized the 3/17th Cavalry, reassigning the ground cavalry troop to another unit and turning the 3/17th into an aviation battalion.

The Apaches of A Troop are no more. A Troop, 3/17th is now a helicopter troop known once again as the Silver Spurs. This change got enthusiastic support from several Silver Spur veterans, who took over the function of the Greybeard Project. They farmed out CARE package preparation to professional organizations, and established liaison with the 3/17th at Ft. Drum.

As a result, the Greybeard Project pages are now a part of 3/17th Air Cavalry history for the period 1999 to 2003, and will not be updated. Further inquiries should be directed to the Silver Spurs website.

The original Greybeard Project pages follow:

Webmasters Roger Young, Skip Davis, and Bill Nevius have joined forces to create the Greybeard Project - a project to make the resources of the Vietnam veterans of the 3/17th Air Cavalry available to the current troopers of the 3/17th U.S. Cavalry. We have found that the 3/17th U.S. Cavalry is alive and well as part of the 10th Aviation Brigade in the 10th Mountain Division at Fort Drum, New York. The squadron remains an independent air cavalry squadron, although armament, vehicles, and aircraft are quite different from those used by the squadron in Vietnam.

The squadron is organized a little differently, with the Bluetigers of Delta Troop now known as the Apaches of Alpha Troop. The three Vietnam-era air cavalry troops, A, B and C Troops, are now combined into Bravo (Blackjack) and Charlie (Crazyhorse) Troops. Today's Delta Troop (recently renamed to "the Blue Tigers) is the maintenance troop. While the Vietnam-era squadron numbered some 1200 troopers, today's squadron totals about 250 troopers. Alpha Troop rides HMMWV vehicles in place of jeeps, and Bravo and Charlie Troops fly OH-58D Kiowas exclusively.

A Little Background

Contact between the webmasters and the squadron began with a search for historical information. The squadron Executive Officer, Major Jon Goodsmith, made the mistake of answering his own phone, and, in a conversation with Bill Nevius, each party discovered a profound ignorance about the activities of the other. And both discovered a sincere interest in replacing ignorance with knowledge. It soon became clear that there is a natural linkage between the past and the present.

When the word was passed that there were three web sites actively documenting the 3/17th in Vietnam, the 3/17th Commanding Officer, LTC Patrick Plourd, and the squadron Command Sergeant Major, CSM James Dale, began visiting the Silver Spur, Burning Stogie, and Bluetiger web sites to learn what they could about the history of the squadron in Vietnam.

The webmasters have chosen to respond to this newly-discovered interest by creating the "Greybeard Project". Its purpose is two-fold:

• to inform Vietnam-era troopers about the current 3/17th U.S. Cavalry - its missions, status, location, and equipment;
• to inform current 3/17th troopers, while they are in garrison, about the unit's history in Vietnam.

The webmasters intend that, when the 3/17th U.S. Cavalry next goes in harm's way, the Vietnam-era 3/17th troopers will provide support, CARE packages, and email correspondence with the troopers in the field. The webmasters ask the support of Vietnam-era troopers in this effort. We remember the treatment many of us received from civilians during the Vietnam war, and we vow, "Never again."

- Roger Young, Webmaster at the Silver Spur site
- Skip Davis, Webmaster at the Burning Stogie site
- Bill Nevius, Webmaster at the Bluetiger site

The Initial Handshake

The 3/17th U.S. Cavalry was most recently deployed along the United States-Mexico border. Bravo and Charlie Troops flew night missions to interdict drug traffic across the border. Alpha Troop, prevented from patrolling the border because of the incident several years ago in which a civilian was killed by a completely different and unrelated unit when he was mistaken for a drug runner, conducted training exercises at Yuma, Arizona.

LTC Plourd, Major Goodsmith, and CSM Dale invited Bill Nevius to visit the squadron at their field location outside El Centro, California recently, because it was close to Nevius' home. Nevius accepted the invitation on behalf of the webmasters.

Since the squadron officers and troopers have expressed an interest in increasing the information available to 3/17th troopers about the sacrifices made by the squadron in Vietnam, the webmasters, on behalf of each and every trooper from the 3/17th who served in Vietnam, presented the squadron with a print of a pink team in flight over Vietnam. The pink team was from F Troop/4th Cavalry (which was part of the 3/17th in 1971).

LTC Plourd (left) and CSM Dale with print
entitled "Looking for Trouble", February 15, 1999

We believe the print was well-received. When it was presented to the squadron as a whole, in formation, one trooper was heard to exclaim from the rear of one troop, "Wow, real helicopters!"

We want the contributors and correspondents to our websites to know that the commander and his staff are sincere in their interest in our websites. LTC Plourd says that he recently spent six hours reading material on the web sites and CSM Dale says that he recently spent over two hours viewing the websites.

LTC Plourd writes to all Vietnam-era contributors and correspondents:

Thanks for helping us remember. Our linkage to the past teaches us many important lessons. You have been a great teacher. Lets hope I have been a good student.

- - LTC Patrick Plourd

The webmasters have produced pages on our various sites with details of the current 3/17th's troopers, equipment, and missions, while we continue to build a history of the 3/17th in Vietnam. We invite all to take a look and learn what the 3/17th U.S. Cavalry is today.

Bill Nevius

The Story Continues . . .

UPDATE - N0VEMBER 2, 1999

We have received a newspaper article covering the Draper Award ceremony for Delta Troop's legacy, the Apaches of A Troop, 3/17th Cavalry. We extend our congratulations to the troopers who pulled the weight, and to the officers and NCO's who led them. We are proud of each and every trooper.

As I read the article and note the achievements required to receive the award as the best cavalry troop in the whole damn Army, I choose not to recall that 29 years ago this month, the Bluetigers of Delta Troop failed an IG inspection for combat readiness in the field in Vietnam. It seems that we could not account for serial numbers that had been ground off some jeep engines and frames, nor for some serial numbers that matched those of jeeps reported stolen by the M.P's. There was also some question about jeeps that had had their speed governors removed.

Higher command never responded to our arguments that since we failed the IG, and since the IG was designed to test a unit's combat readiness, the Army had proved that we were not combat ready and, therefore, we should be sent home.

CPT Frank Turner, Adjutant
and Master of Ceremonies

Performance - 3rd Squadron, 17th Cavalry A Troop wrests Draper Goodrich Riding Trophy from Fort Bragg Unit

By Pvt. Stacey Lannoye, Staff Writer, Fort Drum Blizzard

For outstanding performance throughout 1998, a 3rd Squadron, 17th Cavalry unit was recognized July 12 with the Draper Goodrich Riding trophy.

This is the third year of the competition, which is open only to ground cavalry units. The trophy is given out annually by the Department of the Army to promote, sustain, and recognize effective leadership in the units.

CSM Dale Turning Over The Squadron to MAJ Goodsmith at Draper Ceremony

Units eligible to compete for this award are: Troop A, 3rd Squadron, 4th Cavalry (Light), Schofield Barracks, Hawaii; Troop A, 1st Squadron, 17th Cavalry, Fort Bragg, North Carolina; Troop A, 3rd Squadron, 17th Cavalry Fort Drum, and Troop E, 1st Cavalry, Fort Wainwright, Alaska.

These units were critiqued on their Army physical fitness test averages, M16 score averages, maintenance readiness rate, safety-related incidents/accidents, gunnery scores, notable events, and excellence in armor members. Based on A Troop's overall performance, they won the trophy away from Fort Bragg.

"Well done in your achievement," said Command Sgt. Maj. David Lady, U.S. Army Armor Center, Fort Knox, Ky. "I must confess, I wondered if this trophy would ever leave Fort Bragg, but you did it , and they are fighting to get it back."

Lady presented the trophy to Maj. Gen. James L. Campbell, 10th Mountain Division and Fort Drum commander, to be displayed at division headquarters before it goes home to 3/17 Cav.

CPT Richard Rouleau, 1SG Richard Eastwood and SFC Arthur Allen Receiving Awards from CSM Lady

The soldiers of the 3-17th Cav have worked hard, spending the last year training at an unbelievable operational tempo, according to Sgt. Kint Witten, 3-17th Cav scout.

During this time, Witten said the scouts have participated in numerous training events, including Mountain Peak; Warrior Peak; Joint Readiness Training Center (JRTC); desert operations in Yuma, Ariz.; Joint Task Force 6; a drug interdiction mission in El Centro, Calif.; armor simulation training (SIMNET) at Fort Knox; various opposing forces (OPFOR) missions, as well as running ranges and assisting units in preparing for the Bosnian mission.

"I feel the award is a testament to the hard work and long hours the troopers in A Troop put in in '98," said 3/17th Squadron Command Sgt. Maj. James E. Dale.

The cavalry scouts are led by Capt. Richard Rouleau, A Troop commander.

At the ceremony, Rouleau and 1st Sgt. Richard Eastwood, Redhorse Troop, received a Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Leadership, the Draper Leadership Award, a leather-bound Draper Combat Leadership book, and the Armor Center Coin. Sgt. 1st Class Arthur Allen, platoon sergeant, also received the Draper Plaque on behalf of Apache Troop.

"I am very proud of the cavalry troopers in A Troop," said Rouleau. "They have done an outstanding job and continue to shine."

"What I am most impressed with," said Sgt. Kint Witten, "is that the leadership gave us all the credit."

Apache Troop under the Command of 2LT Toby Austin for the Ceremony.

The 60 scouts of Alpha Troop are divided into four platoons, which train to work together in all types of reconnaissance and as hunter-killer teams.

"All the hard training will pay off in great dividends later down the road if we ever need it in combat," said Staff Sgt. Jeffrey Stewart, 3-17th Cav scout.

"I think as long as they continue to train hard and meet the high standards they set, they will be able to win the award again next year," said Lt. Col. Patrick Plourd, squadron commander.

While there are scout platoons in various infantry battalions on post, the only cavalry scouts in the division are with the 3-17th Cav, where they continue to be the eyes and ears of the commander.

"Keep up the good work, A Troop," CSM Lady said. "In fact, do better."

You can learn more about the Draper and Goodrich Awards at The Draper Armor Leadership Award.

UPDATE - JUNE 6, 2000

PLOURD GOES TO COLLEGE, DALE GOES TO KNOX, DRAPER GOES TO THE APACHES, AGAIN!

Captain Rich Rouleau, late of Apache Troop and now at Fort Polk, writes that the Greybeard Project is losing some great friends and supporters from today's 3/17th Cavalry. He writes:

Update from OUT FRONT! It's time to say good-bye to two super troopers! LTC Plourd, the current SCO, will be turning over the Squadron on 7 JUN to LTC Balish and will be heading to the War College! CSM Dale has been selected to be the Commandant of the NCO Academy at Fort Knox. Both of these outstanding individuals will be missed for their coaching, teaching and mentoring of the squadron. On 1 JUN the CSM of Fort Knox, CSM Christian (an old Brave Rifles Cavalryman, 3rd ACR) presented Apache Troop with its second Draper Armor Leadership Award Trophy for best ground cavalry troop in the Army for FY 99. Once again Apache troop is trying to maintain the standards set by the Blue Tigers! They will try to make it a three-pete in 00.

We extend our thanks to LTC Plourd and CSM Dale for their wholehearted support of the Greybeard Project, and wish them Godspeed in their new adventures. We extend our congratulations to Apache Troop for their second Draper Award in as many years.