SP4 Clifford Van Artsdalen was on a combat operation with his unit in Quang Tin Province, South Vietnam on May 9, 1968. The unit was operating about 20 miles west of the city of Tam Ky. At 1300 hours, the weapons platoon assumed a front-firing position, and Van Artsdalen and two others were sent to a position to provide a base of fire.
At that time, the enemy returned a heavy volume of fire and an explosion was seen from their position, and a helmet was seen flying through the air. The weapons platoon sergeant near the position saw that Van Artsdalen had been hit in the head. Two men who attempted to recover his body were also wounded. Because of heavy fire, Van Artsdalen’s remains could not be recovered. Searches of the battle area were conducted as well as could be in view of the hostility in the area.
Clifford Van Artsdalen was listed as killed, body not recovered. He is among nearly 2500 Americans who remain unaccounted for from the Vietnam war. The cases of some, like Van Artsdalen, seem clear - that they perished and cannot be recovered. Unfortunately, mounting evidence indicates that hundreds of Americans are still captive, waiting for the country they proudly served to secure their freedom.
In our haste to leave an unpopular war, it now appears we abandoned some of our best men. In our haste to heal the wounds of this same war, will we sign their death warrants? Or will we do what we can to bring them home?
Incidental Information
