Battle of Hill 488 The Battle of Hill 488 was a military engagement of the Vietnam War that took place on the night of 15 – 16 June 1966 . A small United States Marine Corps reconnaissance platoon inflicted large casualties on regular North Vietnamese Army and Viet Cong fighters before withdrawing with only a few dead . Background . In June 1966 , the 1st Marine Division began expanding its Tactical Area of Responsibility north into Quang Tin Province ( today part of Quảng Nam Province ) . In order to interdict enemy fighters between Tam Kỳ and the Hiệp Đức District , Brigadier General William A . Stiles conceived of an extensive reconnaissance effort in the area . Dubbed Operation Kansas , the initial phase was to find the headquarters of the 2nd North Vietnamese Army near the Quế Sơn Valley , then exploit that in the second phase by engaging with eight battalions of Marine and Army of the Republic of Vietnam infantry . On the afternoon and evening of the 13th , seven teams from 1st Reconnaissance Battalion were deployed in the area around Núi Lộc Sơn and Quế Sơn , ringing the valley . They were tasked to actively report on enemy activity via AN / PRC - 25 radio , and to call in artillery fire and airstrike s . While most of the teams successfully avoided detection , a scout dog accompanying an enemy patrol caught scent of one team near Hill 555 . As patrol advanced towards their position , the team hastily retreated and were exfiltrated by helicopter to Chu Lai . Team 2 was deployed at dusk on 13 June , a platoon of 16 Marines and 2 attached corpsmen , under the leadership of Staff Sergeant Jimmie E . Howard . They were dropped off near the top of Hill 488 , known to locals as Nui Vu , near Hiệp Đức . Settling into static positions atop the hill , they established a defensive perimeter around the poorly - covered and - concealed hilltop to establish their observation post . By constant observation over the next few days , the team was able to monitor many enemy patrols and troop movements , and successfully call in artillery fire from a nearby battery about to the south . Though they became concerned that the enemy might conclude they were being observed , Howard decided against exfiltration on the evening of the 14th . Requesting permission from the battalion commander , Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Sullivan , to remain in the area for one more day , he cited a good escape route to the east , and his request was granted . Battle . On the 14th , the North Vietnamese began organizing a force to attack the post . On the night of the 15th , a nearby Army Special Forces team leading a Civilian Irregular Defense Group patrol radioed warning that a full battalion of about 200 to 250 regulars and Viet Cong were closing in . At 22 : 00 that night , Lance Corporal Ricardo C . Binns fired the first shots from his M14 rifle . The Vietnamese quickly surrounded the Marines and advanced in too close for fire support to assist . Enemy DShK and fire kept the Marines from maneuvering out of their hilltop positions . After the initial contact , the Marines withdrew from their outposts to the main position near a rocky knoll , and the Vietnamese responded with a shower of hand grenade s and a short assault that was repelled . Switching to more cautious tactics , the Vietnamese began quietly probing the Marine ' s lines for weaknesses , being rebuffed violently each time , forcing them to withdraw long enough to regroup . Near midnight , Howard radioed his company commander , Captain Tim Geraghty , to ask for extraction and close air support , but these were delayed at III Marine Amphibious Force ' s ( III MAF ) Direct Air Support Center . After fending off another coordinated assault , the Marines were low on ammunition , and all of them had been wounded by that point . While the frustrated pilots circled the area without being able to see clear targets , a C - 47 did deploy flares for illumination at around 01 : 00 . Early into the morning , as Marines traded taunts with the enemy , desperate pilots began dangerously close attack missions , including one Air Force F105 , Marine F8U Crusaders , and helicopter gunships . Armed UH - 1Es stayed with the Marines through the morning until the end of the battle , often serving as airborne forward air controllers with the aid of Howard and his red - filtered flashlight . As the Vietnamese launched their third assault , Howard forbade the use of automatic fire to conserve ammunition . Out of grenades , the Marines threw rocks in the hopes that the enemy would confuse them for live explosives . A pair of UH - 34 Choctaw s attempted to land at about 03 : 00 , but were driven off by heavy fire . By 04 : 00 , six of the eighteen Americans had been killed , and Howard was immobilized by a wound to his back , using Binns to relay commands to the platoon while he called in air strikes . The Vietnamese ceased offensive tactics and dug into cover ( as daylight made them vulnerable to unassisted air attack ) , but kept the Marines trapped on the hilltop . During a lull in the fighting , Major William J . Goodsell , commanding officer of VMO - 6 , risked a landing to medivac the wounded , but was shot down and later died of his wounds . When a second UH - 1 offered itself as bait to draw out enemy positions , it too was shot down , killing a crew chief . Two other Marines were killed of gunshot wounds in their helicopters . Just before 10 : 00 , Company C , 1st Battalion 5th Marines arrived on the south face in UH - 34s . While the reconnaissance team was evacuated immediately , the infantry company remained for a few hours to finish the fight . After brief resistance , the Vietnamese retreated in the face of the reinforcements , leaving forty - two of their dead behind . Aftermath . After both sides had retreated , the battle had lasted approximately twelve hours of vicious fighting , some hand - to - hand . The marines of Team 2 lost six men , Company C lost four , and the two aviation squadrons lost two Marines each , along with two UH - 1Es . The estimates of Vietnamese casualties range from 42 to 100 or 200 . The first phase of Operation Kansas ended on the 16th , and the second phase of the operation was modified . The ARVN forces were unavailable due to fighting at Huế , but Lieutenant General Lewis William Walt , the commander of III MAF , ordered the operation to continue . With 141 reported sightings , Marine infantry and fire support dispersed North Vietnamese troops from the area , and the operation ended on the 22nd . The next month , Sullivan would take his battalion onto Operation Washington . Each member of Team 2 was decorated for their actions , each also receiving the Purple Heart for their wounds . Howard was promoted to Gunnery Sergeant and received the Medal of Honor from President Lyndon B . Johnson at the White House on 21 August 1967 . Commissioned in 2001 , would be named for him . Four would receive the Navy Cross : Corporal Binns , Petty Officer Second Class Billee Don Holmes , while Corporal Jerrald Thompson and Lance Corporal John Adams would be awarded posthumously . The remaining thirteen would all receive Silver Star s , four posthumously , as were two members of Company C . The desperate nature of the fighting , often hand - to - hand , lead to comparisons with Battle of the Alamo and " The Longest Day " .