The Battle of Ia Drang Valley Symposium

We will breakdown the first major battle between the United States Army and the People’s Army of Vietnam/North Vietnam during the Vietnam War.  The Battle of Ia Drang Valley took place between November 14 and November 18, 1965 and involved close air support by U.S. aircraft and a strategic bombing strike by B-52s.

Veterans of the 1st of the 7th Cavalry will participate in this symposium as part of their 50th anniversary reunion. These heroic men and their wives will discuss their memories of this battle from the front lines and at home. The 7th Cavalry of the US Army was the focus of the 2002 movie "We Were Soldiers" -- that was based on the book, "We Were Soldiers Once...And Young," written by Lieutenant General (Ret.) Hal Moore and reporter Joseph L. Galloway (both of whom were right in the heat of the Battle of the Ia Drang Valley). The veterans at the symposium will talk about the movie and how accurately, or not, it portrayed the actual events of that time.