Eventually, Robinson located one of the snipers who was inflicting the heaviest casualties. But as the choppers flew away, intense enemy machine gun fire rained down on those who remained.ĭespite the chaos, Robinson moved confidently among the men to instruct and inspire them, and to put them into strategic positions. Two other companies were supposed to back them up but had lost track of them in the jungle's dense foliage.Īccording to a 2019 Dupage County Chronicle article, at some point in the afternoon, Air Force pararescuemen had been able to cut a hole in the dense jungle canopy to repel down and airlift out about a dozen wounded men. They tried to take cover, but it was hard in the dense jungle, where enemy snipers hidden in trees were able to easily spot them. The heavy fire they were taking from all sides quickly started to decimate their numbers further. At the time, the company was already light on men due to leave and injury, Army records showed.

On April 11, 1966, Robinson was part of Company C when it walked directly into an ambush set up by a Viet Cong battalion about 40 miles east of Saigon.

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