The Massacre at My Lai | Pinkville | 2

0:00American scandal uses dramatizations that are based on true events. Some elements, including dialogue, might be invented, but everything is based on historical research. A listener note, this episode contains descriptions of violence and may not be suitable for all audiences.

0:32It's just before dawn on March 16, 1968, at Landing Zone Dotti, a U.S. Army base in Quang Nhai Province, South Vietnam. In his quarters, 24-year-old Lieutenant William Calley wakes up before his alarm. He's instantly alert. Last night, his unit was given new orders to search and destroy the village of My Lai. It's a suspected Viet Cong stronghold in a dense pocket of Quang Nhai known to American forces as Pinkville. The men of Charlie Company have been warned to expect heavy casualties. They will likely be meeting the 48th Battalion of the Viet Cong, one of the most feared of enemy units, and it's likely they will outnumber the American soldiers two to one.

1:13Still, Callie has been itching for a real fight for months, and he's raring to go. He makes his way down to breakfast, then checks his weapons, fills up his water canteens, and grabs as many sea rations as he can carry. Then, just after 7 a.m., action on the base starts to pick up. Eleven helicopters arrive, a mix of troop carriers and gunships. Kali and around 80 other GIs climb on board and strap themselves in. Then the helicopters take off just a few minutes before 7.30 a.m., bound for the village of My Lai.

1:48As the choppers zip over a green patchwork of rice paddies, Kali feels a surge of adrenaline. He mutters quietly, pumping himself up, getting ready for whatever's waiting for him and his platoon on the ground. But his excitement is interrupted by one of his men, who sits across from him in the vibrating cabin. Sir, you really think Captain Medina meant it literally? And what literally? Destroy everything? I mean, in the briefing? He was just fired up, right? He said what he said. No restrictions. His words. But what about civilians? Farmers? Kids? I mean, come on. No, you heard the intel. They're all VC or helping the VC.

2:23It's not our job to second-guess that. Well, it just doesn't sit right. Look, the VC is dug in down there. You want to get picky with orders when they start shooting back? No, sir, it just seems like, I don't know, slow down? Verify? We can't slow down. We execute the mission. If you want to stay alive, you follow the chain of command. The GI doesn't respond. He just stares out the open side door of the helicopter. Below them, the trees and fields start giving way to scattered houses. They've reached Mealai. but there's no sign of the enemy. The soldier glances up at Callie. It looks cold to me, sir.

2:58Or maybe they're just waiting to spring a trap. The helicopter banks sharply and begins its descent toward the village. Callie yells over the wind to the rest of his platoon. Okay, eyes up everyone, this is it. As the Huey helicopter hovers over a field just outside the village, escorting gunships lay down suppressive fire. Callie gets to his feet. Remember, no restrictions, no hesitations. Let's go. Let's go. Despite what they were led to believe, when these U.S. forces enter My Lai, they find no enemy fighters lying in wait for them, only villagers. The American troops could retreat, declare that the mission intel was wrong, and try to hunt down the Viet Cong another day.

3:38But after weeks of mounting American casualties, William Callie and his men have come to the village looking for revenge. And one way or another, they're going to get it.

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5:59Lieutenant William Calley and the other infantrymen of Charlie Company arrived in Vietnam in late 1967. Their commanding officer, Captain Ernest Medina, promised the young soldiers glory. But from the start, America's war in Southeast Asia looked nothing like what they'd imagined. Booby traps, sniper fire, and ambushes left the men bitter and paranoid, rarely even getting the chance to shoot back at their attackers. And soon, the unit's grief for the growing number of fallen comrades turned into a thirst for vengeance. On the morning of March 16, 1968, Charlie Company entered the village of My Lai.

6:35They were told they'd be facing hardened Viet Cong fighters, so the men landed ready for battle. But their actions were something else entirely. This is Episode 2, Pinkville.

6:49After their helicopters land in the fields outside My Lai, the men of Charlie Company begin their sweep through the village. Private First Class Michael Bernhard trails near the edge of the hamlet, scanning for danger. A rifleman in the second platoon, Bernhard is 21 years old. But unlike many in his generation, he's always had faith in his government and its mission in Vietnam. He dropped out of his junior year at the University of Miami to volunteer for the Army, believing that being a soldier was a natural part of a young man's life. His father's generation fought in World War II, and now it's his turn.

7:23He keeps his rifle raised as he moves, his finger hovering over the trigger, waiting for the moment when the shooting starts. Back in February, on two separate missions, His fellow soldiers were flanked and attacked by the Viet Cong from behind. Bernhardt and the other men of Charlie Company have no intention of letting that happen again. But as the minutes tick by and the platoons fan out through the hamlet, Bernhardt realizes something strange. As far as Bernhardt can tell, no one's been shot at since they've arrived. They haven't come across any booby traps. There haven't been any sudden screams of any ambushed American soldiers.

7:58All they've encountered is the usual morning stillness of a tiny farming village. Chickens clucking in their pens, pots clattering in unseen kitchens, and smoke lazily rising from cooking fires. It's increasingly clear to Bernhardt that whatever intelligence they had about this place was wrong. If the 48th Battalion of the Viet Cong was here, they're gone now, and there's no fighting to be done in My Lai. So Bernhardt slings his rifle over his shoulder, its muzzle pointing at the ground. He walks along a path behind the village's huts. In the field beyond, he sees an elderly man waving his arms.

8:32It's hard for Bernhardt to tell whether he's saying hello or trying to shoo them off. But either way, he's clearly not holding a weapon. Bernhardt turns to tell the rest of the platoon that the man isn't a threat. But before he can say a word, he hears an order barked out to open fire. Bernhardt spins around. He thinks it was Lieutenant William Cawley who gave that command. but there's no time to confirm before a shot rings out and the old man in the field falls to the ground dead. That single bullet seems to slice through whatever thin thread of restraint has been holding Charlie Company back, and now the men's fury is unleashed.

9:08Within minutes, the quiet morning in My Lai unravels into chaos. Old men, teenagers, women holding children are gunned down, some as they flee, others as they're dragged from their homes and shot at close range. And each killing seems to fuel the next. Private Bernhardt doesn't move. He doesn't speak, he just watches, numb, as the slaughter committed by the American troops continues around him. And as the horrifying choir of gunfire, screams, and explosions echoes through My Lai, some Charlie Company officers try to intervene. They shout out they're meant to stop and pull back, but it's too late.

9:44Months of frustration, grief, and anger have built up to this, and there's no controlling the soldiers now. Homes are torched. Livestock are machine-gunned in their fields. Elsewhere, American troops begin assaulting and raping women and girls, some barely in their teens. The enemy the men are meant to be fighting is nowhere to be seen, but the momentum of violence keeps building. Lieutenant William Calley's first platoon is supposed to be completing a speedy sweep through the village before rendezvousing with the rest of Charlie Company on the other side. But by 8 a.m., 30 minutes after their deployment, Cali and his men have stalled in the village.

10:23While smoke fills the air from burning huts and gunfire erupts in the distance, Cali's soldiers have collected around 40 Vietnamese civilians, and they're marching them slowly down a dirt path on the outskirts of the village. They're mostly women, children, and old men, clinging to each other as they walk. Some shout out that they're not Viet Cong. Others are entirely silent. But all of them are terrified. They've heard about American soldiers swooping into villages before, but they've never known anything like this. Another group of civilians is pushed down the trail by a second platoon of Charlie Company, making the miserable line even longer.

11:00Some trip and fall, but are shoved roughly back onto their feet. Then Callie orders his men to huddle the villagers together and keep them all under guard. That's when he gets a radio call from Charlie Company's captain, Ernest Medina, who's stationed at a command post just outside the village. Callie takes a few steps away from his men, then answers the squawking radio.

11:24Yes, sir, this is Callie. What's your status? Why aren't you at the rendezvous point? Sir, we're still sweeping the village, but progress is slow. We've come across multiple bunkers. Forget the bunkers, dammit. I didn't tell you to check them out. I told you to get your men in position. You're behind. Now move it. Yes, sir, it's just, we've got a large group of Vietnamese with us, maybe 40, 50 people. I'm not seeing a problem here, Callie. Get rid of them. Captain Medina cuts the conversation short. Tightening his jaw, Callie strides back to his men. He calls out to Private First Class Paul Meadlow, the young GI from Indiana who's the nearest man standing watch over the civilians.

11:59Meadlow, we got to get this moving. You know what to do. But before Callie can explain any further, there's a commotion behind him. One of his men is grabbing a Vietnamese woman who's struggling to get away from him. Callie shakes his head. God damn it. Hey, hey, hey, hey, what do you think you're playing at? We don't have time for this. Get her in line with the others. Callie yanks the soldier off the woman and shoves her roughly toward the other villagers. She clutches her torn clothes as she stumbles into the crown. Callie, give me an update. Callie grabs the radio. Sorry, sir, we're still dealing with these civilians.

12:33I have a lot of Vietnamese here. What part of my order wasn't clear? Are you disobeying me, Lieutenant? No, sir. I'm trying. I don't want excuses. Waste them and get your men in position. Copy? Yes, sir. Copy that, sir. Callie exhales slowly. Then he heads back to the civilians under guard. Meadlow, what the hell are you waiting for? Private Meadlow flinches, caught off guard. Callie scowls at him. Come on, come on. We need them dead. That's an order. Captain Medina's waiting. Meadlow still hesitates. He looks between Callie and the villagers. Civilians huddle together, some weeping, some whispering prayers, others staring blankly ahead.

13:11Meadlow doesn't move, so Callie raises his rifle. Don't make me say it again, soldier, or I'll shoot you instead. Paul Meadlow doesn't know how to say no to his commanding officer. So he raises his M16, and when Lieutenant Callie says fire, Meadlow pulls the trigger. From 10 feet away, Meadlow and Callie empty clip after clip into the villagers. As the morning goes on, more civilians are routed up and executed under Callie's orders. And through it all, not a single shot is fired at the men of Charlie Company.

13:47About seven miles away from My Lai, back at the task force headquarters at landing zone Dottie, Lieutenant Colonel Frank Barker strides into the operations center. It's 8.40 a.m., just over an hour into the operation. He's just gotten word from Captain Ernest Medina that Charlie Company has eliminated 84 enemy fighters in My Lai so far. At least four Viet Cong have also been reported killed by helicopter gunships watching the trails outside the village. A clerk records the numbers in the official task force log. It should be a moment of triumph. On paper, almost 90 kills in just an hour of fighting is an overwhelming success.

14:24That kind of victory will delight all their superiors and make the newspapers back home as well. But there are no cheers or mutual congratulations in the operations center this morning. Colonel Barker scans the room, and everyone seems to feel it. Something is off. Charlie Company may have reported 84 kills, but there's no confirmation that the dead are Viet Cong, just Captain Medina's word. So Barker orders the men of Charlie Company to make sure they recover any weapons or documents that can be found on the bodies, anything that will prove the American troops really are killing the enemy, and not innocent civilians.

15:00But despite these orders, Barker is still uneasy. The telltale signs of a true firefight are all missing. The radio messages flying back and forth, the medevac calls, the desperate request for air support. There's none of that. Instead, it's just eerily quiet. Finally, a report comes in of an American casualty. Colonel Barker perks up because maybe this is the sign of the battle they've all been expecting. But it's just a foot wound, and even the cause of that is unclear. From the sound of things, the soldier possibly shot himself just to get out of the battle, or whatever's happening down there.

15:33Barker hopes it is a battle. That his men are engaging the enemy bravely, with discipline and purpose. That every kill reported is one less Viet Cong fighter and one more step towards victory. Because the alternative is unthinkable.

15:51I'm Alice Levine. And I'm Matt Ford, and we're the hosts of British Scandal. Yes, indeed. In this series, a Derbyshire couple are bored of their curtain-twitching, lawn-mowing suburban life. So they sell their house, build a yacht and sail off around the world. Which sort of sounds idyllic until a sperm whale sinks their boat and they begin to starve. Oh yes, and they didn't bring a radio because real sailors don't use radios. Right? This is the story of Marilyn and Maurice Bailey. And the 117 days they spent lost at sea. Follow British Scandal wherever you get your podcasts or listen early and ad-free on Audible.

16:32I'm Alice Levine. And I'm Matt Ford and we're the hosts of British Scandal. Yes indeed. In this series, a Derbyshire couple are bored of their curtain-twitching, lawn-mowing suburban life. So they sell their house, build a yacht and sail off around the world. Which sort of sounds idyllic until a sperm whale sinks their boat and they begin to starve. Oh, yes, and they didn't bring a radio, because real sailors don't use radios. Right? This is the story of Marilyn and Maurice Bailey. And the 117 days they spent lost at sea. Follow British Scandal wherever you get your podcasts or listen early and ad-free on Audible.

17:24The My Lai operation has been underway for an hour and a half when Warrant Officer Hugh Thompson circles over the village in his Raven Light Observation helicopter. He's a lanky 25-year-old pilot from Georgia, but despite his age, he's the most experienced man aboard. The two men squeezed in either side of him are barely more than kids. He's got a 20-year-old crew chief named Glenn Andriotta and an 18-year-old door gunner named Lawrence Colburn. And since the operation in My Lai began, they've been flying over the trails outside the village. Their job is to act as bait, to draw the fire of hidden Viet Cong fighters so the larger gunships can take them out.

18:01But no one has taken a shot at them so far, and now they're running low on fuel. Thompson radios to the gunships that he's headed back to landing zone Donnie to refuel, then steers his helicopter away, passing over the village. As they fly overhead, they can see dead civilians, scattered in the fields and among the houses below. Some of them he recognizes, groups of women and children he saw earlier that morning, heading down the road toward the market, carrying empty baskets. But now they're here and all dead. Thompson doesn't understand. There hasn't been a battle, yet something terrible seems to have happened.

18:35He puzzles over it all the way back to base. And after a quick refueling, he's back in the air. At around 9 a.m., Thompson flies over a rice paddy just south of My Lai and spots another group of Vietnamese civilians, again, all dead. Except when he sees one of them, a woman who's just wounded. So Thompson hovers over the field and drops green smoke grenades to mark her position. Then he relays a message to ground troops requesting immediate medical assistance. Thompson stays on the scene and watches from the air as Charlie Company's commanding officer, Captain Ernest Medina, approaches the wounded woman.

19:10Thompson assumes Medina will help her, but instead, Medina casually prods her with his foot and, without a word, shoots her. Thompson and his crew shout in outrage from the cockpit. They can't believe what they just saw. Thompson starts running through justifications in his head, trying to make sense of it. Maybe the woman was too far gone. This was a mercy killing. Or perhaps she had some sort of concealed weapon that he couldn't see from his vantage point. But something in Thompson's gut tells him it was neither of those things. and that what he actually witnessed was nothing more than a murder.

19:43If that's the case, then perhaps the same thing happened to all the other dead people they've seen this morning. Thompson maneuvers his chopper over to the eastern side of the village, where American soldiers are standing beside an irrigation ditch. It's filled with bodies of Vietnamese civilians, and even from the air, Thompson can see that some are still moving. He swings his chopper around, gaining himself just a moment to think, then decides he has to intervene. He should ask permission from command to attempt a landing, but there's no time for that. He turns to his crew members and asks if they're with him.

20:16They immediately say yes. So Thompson lands near the ditch and hops out of his pilot seat. He storms over to the soldiers and confronts a sergeant who doesn't seem to think anything is wrong. Then Lieutenant William Calley himself walks over to see what Thompson wants. Thompson implores Calley to stop whatever is happening here. The moment is tense, but by the time he heads back to his helicopter, Thompson believes he's put an end to the killing, that Callie has heard him, loud and clear. But as soon as Thompson is airborne, he sees Callie immediately order his men to shoot the survivors in the ditch.

20:50Thompson's intervention has done nothing. So furious, he veers away, seeing if there are other villagers who can be helped. By 9.45 a.m., Thompson is over the northeast corner of the village, and there he spots an elderly couple with a young child, scurrying toward a rudimentary earthen bomb shelter at the edge of a field. They're being pursued by soldiers from Charlie Company's 2nd Platoon, and Thompson knows he has to do something. Over the radio, he calls for immediate support from nearby gunships. And without a second thought, he once again lands his helicopter, this time putting it between the advancing men of the 2nd Platoon and the group of terrified civilians.

21:27Then he gets out and issues his crewmates Glenn Andriotta and Lawrence Colburn in order. If the GIs open fire on the civilians, they are to shoot. The two young men nod and train their guns on their fellow Americans. Thompson then confronts the commander of the second platoon. It's another tense standoff. Thompson asks for help to evacuate the civilians from the bomb shelter, but only gets sneers from a soldier saying they could use a hand grenade to get them out. Thompson warns the commander to keep his men back, and then with no one else willing to help, Thompson holsters his gun and steps into the bomb shelter himself.

22:01As his eyes adjust to the dark of the moss-covered shelter, Thompson sees that there are nine terrified civilians huddled inside. Extending a hand, he tries to coax them out. It's not easy. The Vietnamese have little reason to trust Thompson, who looks like every other American soldier who's terrorized them that morning. But one by one, Thompson manages to convince them to follow him outside. Two of the heavily armed gunships have answered Thompson's call for backup. And despite the extreme risk of landing in a free fire zone, one pilot touches down twice to ferry the civilians to safety, while the other pilots circle overhead, offering cover from 500 feet above.