This book tells the story of a US Marine Corps rifle company that fought in Viet Nam from April 1966 to March 1971.  The core group consisted of men who had served together in Viet Nam the year before.  They returned to Camp Pendleton, California, and volunteered to redeploy together as Company F, 2^nd Battalion, 5^th Marines.  Great Marines and Navy corpsmen, as many as 1500, were added to the company as individual replacements for those men killed, wounded, or transferred.  For the next five years their courage, camaraderie, and pride were in keeping with their Fox Company brothers-in-arms who fought gallantly during offensive and defensive campaigns of World War I, on Guadalcanal, Peleliu, and Okinawa during WW II, and at Pusan, Inchon, and the Chosin Reservoir during Korea. 

 As they fought the men bonded into a tight brotherhood that placed immeasurable fear in the hearts of their enemy and, today, binds those that survived into a close-knit family.  The stories they brought home and have shared with each other are their Battelines.

 Among the stories in Battlelines are Fox’s entry into Vietnam, its first significant engagement near the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ); its key role during the Tet Offensive in retaking the Treasury Building, the provincial prison, and the liberation of the mayor of Hue City; the near annihilation of the company during Operation Union II; the battle for the Nong Song Coal Mines; and fighting in the mountains during Operation Taylor Common.  Most of their time was spent in the An Hoa Valley.  There, the Marines sought to protect the indigenous population from the Viet Cong while at the same time stopping the never-ending supply of North Vietnam Army soldiers from using the valley and surrounding mountains as a principal route into the rich and populous areas in and around Danang. 

 Even while battling mines and booby traps, getting napalmed, and experiencing other tragedies of war, their resilience, love for each other and pride in Fox Company, resulted in great triumphs on the battlefield.  The war did not preclude these young men from having some fun along the way.  These stories, frequently retold at their reunions, help kindle the fire of the brotherhood born on the battlefield over 30 years ago.

 The men who fought beside them share the courage of Fox Company Medal of Honor recipients, Captain Jim Graham and PFC Melvin Newlin.  Battlelines tells the story of the youngest American killed in that war, Fox’s PFC Dan Bullock, who was 14 at the time of his enlistment.

 Battlelines combines unique points of view spanning from the Company Commander, Staff NCOs, to the infantry soldier, encompassing the totality of emotions and experiences in a war zone. This work relives the historical events of Fox’s involvement in the Vietnam War, its baptism by fire, and the experiences of the men who fought, died, and found an unwavering friendship through all.  We hope you enjoy their Battlelines.