These words are the words from the heart of Mr. Billy Perri. Billy was one of Larry’s best friends in Vietnam. Instead of writing letters home, he would tape them. I have over 3 hours of his tapes. These are the words that he spoke to his parents just four days after Larry died. A piece of American History.

Dear mom and dad................the other day............lets see, last Thursday night?.......I guess we had a............Thursday night?..............Friday night?..........it was Friday night. We had a party....you know........the gun ships down there.......you know. They had 3 or 4 guys that were going home this month. So they had a party. We had about 10..15 cases of beer...and I don’t know....about 10 quarts of whiskey....something like that.....and ahhh..Oh..they had BBQ chicken....which was all pretty nice....and we were all down there drinking......... having fun...riding that tug...we have this tug that pulls the ships around. Everybody gets on it.......just like back in the states.........it is the only thing that I have drivien since I been over here........so........we were all having a pretty good time.........it was sorta sprinkling..........it wasn’t raining to bad...........we were all in the line shack anyways.........

Then about 11:30 or so.......it started to rain pretty hard..............ahhhh.......about that time they got a call for a ship to go out and pick up a VC/POW..........it wasn’t to far away......in some of my pictures you can see this mountain, behind the hoochs....you know........the highest one.......it has a tower on it......it was just over the other side of that mountain.....the Koreans had captured the VC out there.........and so......ahhhhhh....Larry Jackson.......my friend, this really pretty close friend.....his name was Jackson...you probably heard me talk about him before....I know that either you or Kathy has got some pictures of him.........it was his ship......you know.....that was on stand by that night....it was “257”....he was the Crew Cheif.......so.......they called on him........you know......to go out....Mr. De Santis, our maintinance officer, he went too.....he was the AC......and there was another pilot that went........and a kid named Hargrave. Hargrave has only been here for 3 months or so........and ahh...well.....they went out about 12:00....something like that.......in the rain....actually...they shouldn’t of went out.....you kow...this rain and that.......and about 2:00 in the morning....1:30 in the morning..they hadn’t made it back yet.........and they had reports that they couldn’t find them......they didn’t know where they went in the rain.......so they sent up 4 of our gun ships.....you know...to go up and look for them....... and four slicks that were throwing flares out...these flares were...just over the side of the mountain here.....you could see them from the hooch here.......they was lighting up the place looking with search lights and that for about 2 hours.....and then they........well.......they found them.......finally.............and ahhhh.....I guess it was raining so hard....and they couldn’t see the mountain....you know, so high.......just like where you can see, at the top on this side......well......it was only less then a mile and a half away....and off the other side of the mountain...they never...you know....they were flying to low and they never seen the mountain.........and they run right into the mountain...and it.........it crashed....well......it burned up.....everybody in it burned up in it.......and ahhhh......well......there was our 4 crew members, 3 Koreans, and the VC/POW....you know......they all burned up in the ship.......I don’’t know.........it doesn’t seem right.......you know that..........7 guys to die for one dam gook....no reason that they couldn’t waited untill morning to go up and get him....you know...but...some Officer...you know.....said...what the hell...go get him now......Maybe......I don’t know........it’s just kinda hard to take.......here you are drinking with a guy...friends all the time.......right there one minute......next minute he is not around......you know........ Jackson was 21 the day he died.......he was married....had a little girl.....4 years old.....thats all he ever talked about.........that his wife left him when he come in the Army. She started chasing round when he was in basic.....now she just............since he has been over here...she didn’t care........she left the little girl to Jackson’s mom and dad........thats all he ever talked about.......was her........like.................well....we always used to go down and get drunk........well....he used to live in my other hootch down there........he was sorta a quite guy..........and that........and we.....well........a lot of times..like on my days off.......to break the manotny..he would be flying VIP and he would take a Korean General or some General down to Miami Beach..it was about a 15 minute flight for all day..........some General would go down there and some officers would go too.......when Jackson went flying like that.....you know...wasn’t anything dangerous...he told me he would never take me on anything dangerous......so he would come.......and I would be his gunner..just to ride down to miami beach...only take about 15 minutes to fly down there...then we would set down there......Generals would get off and go swimming...we would either go swimming or go to the club..or something....you know....it’s like an R&R center there..and I can go down there and chase around........in fact.......last Thursday........I went down with him.....just before....you know.....the day before....................... I don’t know..........it’s kinda hard to take......Jackson only had......he was to go home Dec. 3rd.......I believe.............and ahhhh........I don’y know.....I got some pictures I’m going to send you......... Jackson had this patch............I gave it to Kathy.........what he used to wear on his pocket...you know.....2nd flight platoon patch....and underneath he had...well.....we nicked named him Pop-A-Top...and he had writtin Pop-A-Top on his patch.
The other day, Mr. Mier...and one of the other Pilots came up and got me...we went down and inventoreid Jacksons stuff to send home...boxed it all up and that......that was Saterday???.......yesterday????..I guess it was....No Saterday...........that was about 3 days ago.....so you can see why I havn’t felt like writting any letters or anything...and then.......well......Hargrave............he had been here...like I said...3 months.....he was the gunner....the other gunner........Jackson’s other gunner, was a liltle to drunk and they didn’t want to take him up becuase he was a newby...and so...Hargrave went up.......Hargrave had been married and his wife had a baby boy 3 days after he got to Nam....and he never seen him........he got killed too ya know.........Mr De Santis..he was the AC.....the Pilot. He was our Maintenance Officer pilot, and they ask for volunteers to go up...Mr De Santis was married and had 2 kids I think. He was getting out of the Army in 33 days. The other Pilot had 22 some days and he was getting out too......... Oh well.........I guess......I guess thats the way things goes over here........well....I have to turn the tape over on the other side and finish this off....there aint much left on this side......guess it don’t do no good to talk about it........you know........... Yea.....it didn’t even seem like a war over here till then....ya know........but......I don’t know......all these guys loosen thier lives, and for no reason at all...well.........I guess there could be a reason......but...I mean......these gooks don’t appriciated it.....they turn around and stab you in the back anyways...you know........and then....well.......I guess thats about all I can say....so........this side is about ready to run out.......I’ll turn it over and talk bout something else.....I guess it don’t do no good to talk about it.....so.................................................

28 years after Billy spoke these words into a recorder for his parents to listen to, I had the oppertunity to have him set at our kitchen table. After we both had a few of our own drinks of our own JP4, Billy must of thought that I was looking for an answer as to why Larry died. I wasn’t., and never really have look for an answer, but nobody has put it into words better then Billy has to me. As he clenched his fist, and lay it upon the table, and then he raised his fist up to make an arch and then set it back down on the table....................He looked at me and said.........

“Mark”..........................................

“ THEY WENT UP, AND THEY CAME DOWN”