ICE-X and the Phoenix Program
 
Operation Phoenix - ( The Phoenix Program )
Operation Phoenix became official in 1968 however existed for years before that - Operation Phoenix was instigated by the CIA with an aim to, ' destabalize, neutralize, capture and kill ' members of an organization the CIA called the VCI (Viet Cong Infrastructure ) - The program was designed to disrupt any civilian activity that supported the VC south of the DMZ - this included people that supplied guides, foods, storage dumps, people who helped with conscription to the VC. The Central Intelligence Agency turned the Operation over to the US Army and the ARVN in 1968 and continued to operate until 1972 -
Not many of these patches were made - the patches was assigned to US and RVN soldiers working on Operation Phoenix. Also called the Phoenix Program.
 
 
ICEX
 
ICEX was the CIA Operated Pacificiation Program, forerunner of the Phoenix Program.
 
The operation ran from as early as 1961. Was organized and operated by CIA operatives out of the Saigon station, in conjunction with South Vietnam Intelligence Operatives and Indigenous Mercenaries.
 
Only officially named in 1967, ICEX was in actuality operating from as early as 1961. Run by the CIA the later Phoenix Program (Operation Phoenix / Phoenix Assassination Program) was to borrow most of it's ideas from this unit.
 
In many cases, post 1966, ICEX operated in conjunction with the Phoenix Program although it remained a separate, CIA run entity that sat with MACV-SOG For convenience.
 
ICEX was considerably more aggressive than the Phoenix Program.
 
 
ICEX and The Phoenix Program - Comparison
Phoenix Program

• Phoenix Program responsible for the Neutralizing of some 30,000 Suspected Enemy
• Phoenix Program responsible for the arrest of some 50,000 Suspected enemy.

These figures are conservative, it is unlikely that the Phoenix Program touched only 80,000 suspects in total (in fact some numbers put the assassination rate of the Phoenix Program at over 100,000 alone).
 
Of the 80,000 suspects suggested, 37% of suspects were neutralized.
 
 
ICEX

• ICEX responsible for Neutralizing of at least 11,000 enemy
• ICEX responsible for minimal arrests, certainly less than 600

Again these numbers are conservative however probably closer to the mark.
 
ICEX was known for targeting it's prey in a much clearer way than the Phoenix Program.
 
Of the 11,600 suspects dealt with under the ICEX Program, 95% were neutralized.

Air America-Yankee Air Pirates

CIA, Central Intelligence Agency - AIR AMERICA -Yankee Air Pirates
Air America was a supposed Commercial Airline, however owned and operated by the CIA they conducted numerous illegal missions throughout South East Asia during the war including the running of operatives into countries not supposedly involved in the war.
The term, Yankee Air Pirates was coined by Ho Chi Minh to describe the pilots of Air America, invariably, ex-Military Pilots, they were paid some three times that of their military counterparts.

MEDTC – CIA – Military Equipment Delivery Team Cambodia

Military Supply Delivery Team, Cambodia
MEDTC - CIA, Special Forces - Khmer Republic
 
Military Equipment Delivery Team Cambodia. Formed under the CIA by 1966 the actions of the MEDTC had passed through to FANK ( Forces Armee Nationale Khmer Training Command out of US Special Forces B-36 at Nha Trang ) and the US Special Forces.

The official role of the MEDTC was to supply Military Equipment to the pro US and anti-Communist, Khmer Army of Cambodia. Although this role was completed the primary role of the MEDTC was to operate clandestine operations with the elite of the Khmer Army, later to become the Palace Guards and the previously French formed and CIA run Special Forces, Shock Battalions.


Project Omega – Detachment B-50 – Special Recon

US Special Forces - Project Omega, Operation Omega - Elite Operatives - Detachment B-50, Special Recon. The role of Project Omega was to provide additional and specialized Recon beyond that provided by Project Delta (Project Delta info below).

Project Delta - Detachment B-52.
The duties of USSF detachment B-52 was to train US Special Forces and Elite US Army personnel in Long Range Reconnaissance Techniques.
 
The first group of trainees were drawn from the elite of the 101st Airborne Division (and they were volunteers) and commenced their course in September 1965. The MACV Recondo School was taught at Nha Trang with combat training exercises conducted at Hon Tre Island.
 
Only the elite of any unit were picked to attend, combat experience was essential. Over 2,000 of the Soldiers that started the course failed to complete it due to the strict guidelines of completion provided by the MACV.
The mission of those involved in Project Delta was;
Location of Enemy Units, Collection of Intelligence, Assessment of Bomb damage, Artillery and Air Strike Co-Ordination, Hunter Killer Missions, Special Purpose Harassment and Deception Missions.

The 81st Ranger Group
The 81st Rangers were a unique unit originally formed as part of the Project DELTA reaction force. Formed on 1 November 1964 as the 91st Airborne Ranger Battalion and consisted of three companies of Montagnards.
A fourth company was added in 1965.
It was reorganized in 1966 as the 81st Ranger Battalion by the "purging of non-Vietnamese" to make it more "effective". The 81st consisted of six all-Vietnamese companies. It was officially under LLDB command and not that of Ranger Command.
It was actually under the direct control of Project DELTA although two companies were made available to the LLDB. Its primary mission was to provide airmobile reaction forces to aid in the extraction of recon teams and execute immediate exploitation raids on targets discovered by the teams. It was also used to reinforce SF camps under siege. During and after Tet it also fought in Saigon and handled urban fighting conditions quite well.
The 81st Ranger Battalion was later expanded to seven companies and renamed the 81st Ranger Group which was facilitated by the merger of Delta Teams with the existing three Ranger Companies. The entire unit was parachute trained and was under the direct control of the ARVN G-2.
In 1975 it was headquartered at Trang Lon, Tay Linh, and consisted of a Headquarters, seven Ranger and one Pathfinder company. Group strength varied from 920 to 1200 men.
The 91st/81st battalion continued to wear the old LLDB Green Beret instead of the Ranger Brown/Maroon Beret.
 
Command and Control Central.
Formed by MACV-SOG in late 1967 as an expansion of FOB 2 (Forward Operating Base 2) at Kontum.
CCC had responsibility for 'classified unconventional warfare' in the Tri Border area of Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. CCC Comprised of, Hatchet Companies, Spike Recon Teams and SLAM Companies and numerous Hill Tribe and Mercneary Units.
CCC was closed on the 30th of April 1972. There was no official insignia for CCC.
The flash on the beret on this piece identifies the wearer as a member of the US 7th Special Forces group Airborne. The 7th Primarily operated in Laos.
 
VNAF- South Vietnam Air Force
The South Vietnam Air Force (Vietnamese: Không lực Việt Nam Cộng hòa – KLVNCH), officially the Republic of Vietnam Air Force (sometimes Vietnam Air Force – VNAF) was the aerial branch of the Republic of Vietnam Military Forces, the official military of the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam) from 1955 to 1975.
 
The VNAF began with a few hand-picked men chosen to fly alongside French pilots during the State of Vietnam era. It eventually grew into the world's sixth largest air force at the height of its power, in 1974. It is an often neglected chapter of the history of the Vietnam War as they operated in the shadow of the United States Air Force. It was dissolved in 1975 after the Fall of Saigon; many of its members emigrated to the United States.
 
US NAVY 7th FLEET
Seventh Fleet represented the first official entrance of the United States into the Vietnam War, with the Gulf of Tonkin incident. Between 1950 and 1970, the U.S. Seventh Fleet was known by the tongue-in-cheek nickname "Tonkin Gulf Yacht Club" since most of the fleet's operations were conducted from the Tonkin Gulf at the time.
On 12 February 1965, USS Salisbury Sound (AV-13) became the first U.S. Navy ship to conduct operations inside Vietnam coastal waters.
Salisbury Sound set up a seadrome in Da Nang Bay and conducted seaplane patrols in support of Operation Flaming Dart, the bombing of North Vietnamese army camps.
Operating primarily from Yankee Station off the north coast of Vietnam and the aptly-named Dixie Station off the south coast of Vietnam in the Gulf of Siam, Seventh Fleet was organized into a series of task forces, often known by the acronym CTF (Commander Task Force).
In 1975, ships and aircraft of the Fleet evacuated thousands of U.S. citizens and refugees from South Vietnam and Cambodia as those countries fell to opposing forces.
 
NLF - National Liberation Front
 
The Việt Cộng, also known as the National Liberation Front (NLF), was a communist political organization with its own army – the People's Liberation Armed Forces of South Vietnam (PLAF) – in South Vietnam and Cambodia that fought the United States and South Vietnamese governments, eventually emerging on the winning side.
 
It had both guerrilla and regular army units, as well as a network of cadres who organized peasants in the territory it controlled. Many soldiers were recruited in South Vietnam, but others were attached to the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN), the regular North Vietnamese army.
 
During the war, communists and anti-war activists insisted the Việt Cộng was an insurgency indigenous to the South, while the U.S. and South Vietnamese governments portrayed the group as a tool of Hanoi. Although the terminology distinguishes northerners from the southerners, communist forces were under a single command structure set up in 1958.
 
North Vietnam established the National Liberation Front on December 20, 1960, to grow insurgency in the South. Many of the Việt Cộng's core members were volunteer "regroupees", southern Việt Minh who had resettled in the North after the Geneva Accord (1954).
 
Hanoi gave the regroupees military training and sent them back to the South along the Ho Chi Minh trail in the early 1960s.
 
The NLF called for southern Vietnamese to "overthrow the camouflaged colonial regime of the American imperialists" and to make "efforts toward the peaceful unification".
 
The People's Liberation Armed Forces of South Vietnam (PLAF)'s best-known action was the Tet Offensive, a massive assault on more than 100 South Vietnamese urban centers in 1968, including an attack on the U.S. embassy in Saigon.
 
The offensive riveted the attention of the world's media for weeks, but also overextended the Việt Cộng. Later communist offensives were conducted predominantly by the North Vietnamese. The organization was dissolved in 1976 when North and South Vietnam were officially unified under a communist government.
 
ARVN – 18th Infantry Division
The 18th Division was an infantry division in the III Corps of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN).
The U.S. Military Assistance Command Vietnam considered the 18th as undisciplined and was well known throughout the ARVN for its "cowboy" reputation.
In 1975 the 18th was made famous for its tenacious defense of Xuân Lộc, the last major battle before the Fall of Saigon.
During the last major battle of the Vietnam War, the vastly outnumbered 18th Division stood and fought at Xuân Lộc, 38 miles (61 km) northeast of Saigon.
This battle is considered the last stand of ARVN forces, where the 18th earned the name "The Supermen". It was commanded by General Le Minh Dao.
 
The 18th fought against communist forces in Xuan Loc, a city strategically important for intersecting five main routes.
The fierce fighting raged for two weeks. The 18th Division, outnumbered 7:1 by the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) forces, destroyed all but three PAVN divisions before finally being overwhelmed by superior numbers. The division was forced to evacuate from the city on April 21, 1975, nine days before the fall of Saigon.
Upon learning the 18th had lost Xuân Lộc that afternoon at 3:00pm President Nguyen Van Thieu made a tearful televised speech that was broadcast around the world in which he blamed the United States for abandoning South Vietnam; he closed the speech by resigning the presidency.
 
The 18th was finally destroyed while defending Bien Hoa Air Base. South Vietnam surrendered on the afternoon of 30 April 1975.
 
Detachment B-52.
The duties of USSF B-52 was to train US Special Forces and Elite US Army personnel in Long Range Reconnaissance Techniques.
The first group of trainees were from the elite of the 101st Airborne Division (and they were volunteers) and commenced their course in September 1965. The MACV Recondo School was taught at Nha Trang with combat exercises conducted at Hon Tre Island.
Only the elite of any unit were picked to attend, combat experience was essential. Over 2,000 of the Soldiers that started the course failed to complete it due to the strict guidelines of completion provided by the MACV.
 
 
 
The mission of those involved in Project Delta was;

• Location of Enemy Units
• Collection of Intelligence
• Assessment of Bomb damage
• Artillery, Air Strike Co-Ordination
• Hunter Killer Mission
• Special Purpose Harrassment and Decption Missions

 
The 281st AHC Transported for Project Delta;

• 12 Spike Recon Teams
• 12 Indigenous ROADRUNNER Teams
• A Nung, Montagnard Hilltribe battalion
• 5 Companies of the Tiger Force Rangers operating as SPECIAL REACTION FORCES

 
In total the 281st was charged with the insertion, extraction and Medevac of over 90 US Special Forces Personnel and over 1,200 Indigenous operatives as well as their role in the training of Special Forces Operatives at the US Special Forces Recondo School (B-52) - Information on B-52 Below.
 
The Unit ceased operations on the 30th of June 1970.
RVN MARINES – VNMC
The Republic of Vietnam Marine Division (RVNMD) (Vietnamese: Sư Đoàn Thủy Quân Lục Chiến (TQLC) was part of the armed forces of the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam).
It was established by Ngo Dinh Diem in 1954 when he was Prime Minister of the State of Vietnam, which became the Republic of Vietnam in 1955.
The longest-serving commander was Lieutenant General Le Nguyen Khang. In 1969, the VNMC had a strength of 9,300 and 15,000 by 1973.
The Vietnamese Marine Corps had its origins during French rule of Indochina.
The 1949 Franco-Vietnamese Agreement stated that the Vietnamese Armed Forces were to include naval forces whose organization and training would be provided by the French Navy.
Whilst conscription into the South Vietnam Army (ARVN) was in place during the Vietnam War, places in the VNMC were through Volunteering only.
The South Vietnam Marine Corps was considered an elite force although this was belief may have been driven by the strong anti-communist feelings not always felt in the ARVN.
Whilst the war officially ended on the 30th of April 1975 many Southern Marines continued to fight in the Mekong Delta until late May (Major Ba Binhs Seawolves) before being evacuated by US Naval ships.
 
101st Airborne Division (Airmobile)
The Screaming Eagles
The first element of the 101st Airborne, the 1st Brigade arrived in Vietnam in July 1965.
They later arrived in Vietnam as a full Division, out of Fort Campbell under the command of Major General Olinto M. Barsanti on the 19th of November 1967.
The 101st Airborne Division was to remain in Vietnam until the 10th of March 1972.
Operating from Phan Rang and throughout CTZ III the 101st were to deploy to CTZ I and Quang Tri Province and Thua Thien Province during the Tet Offensive of 1968.
The 101st were heavily involved in the Battle of Hue / Battle of Hue Citadel.
By 1969 the US Military had decided that full scale Paratrooper assault were unlikely to be used in Vietnam and by July 1969 the 101st Airborne were fully Airmobile (Helicopter insertion).
This is an interesting period for the 101st Airborne – Not all operatives Airborne Qualified, only those that are airborne qualified are entitled to use the ‘Airborne’ tab above the Screaming Eagle.
Battles at Dak To, Phong Dien, a HQ at Hue / Phu bai, Operations Texas Star and the last major US Offensive of the war (inside Vietnam), Operation Jefferson Glenn (September 1970 – October 1971) were to follow.
The 101st Airborne were then involved in the US / ARVN Invasion of Laos in (December 1971 – January 1972) – Operation Lam Son 719.
The 101st Airborne served 1.573 days in Vietnam.
 
1st Air Cavalry Division
The 1st Cavalry Division by the start of the Vietnam War was no longer a conventional infantry unit The division had become an air assault division as the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile), commonly referred to as the 1st Air Cavalry Division.
The use of helicopters on such large scale as troop carriers, cargo lift ships, medevacs, and as aerial rocket artillery, was never before implemented, but by doing so it freed the infantry from the tyranny of terrain to attack the enemy at the time and place of its choosing.
In 1965, colors and subordinate unit designations of the 1st Cavalry Division were transferred from Korea to Fort Benning, Georgia, where they were used to reflag the existing 11th Air Assault Division (Test) into 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile).
The division's first major operation was to help relieve the Siege of Plei Me near Pleiku and the pursuit of the withdrawing North Vietnamese Army which culminated in the Battle of Ia Drang, described in the book We Were Soldiers Once...And Young, was also the basis of the film We Were Soldiers. Because of that battle the division earned the Presidential Unit Citation (US), the first unit to receive such in the war. In 1966, the division attempted to root the communist Viet Cong and the North Vietnamese army (PAVN) out of Binh Dinh province with Operation Masher, Operation Crazy Horse and Operation Thayer. 1967 was then spent conducting Operation Pershing, a large scale search and destroy operation of communist base areas in II Corps in which 5,400 communist soldiers were killed and 2,000 captured. In Operation Jeb Stuart, January 1968, the division moved north to Camp Evans, north of Hue and on to Landing Zone Sharon and Landing Zone Betty, south of Quang Tri City, all in the I Corps Tactical Zone.
On the 31st of January 1968, the largest battle of the Vietnam War, the Tet Offensive, was launched by 84,000 communist soldiers across South Vietnam.
In the 1st Cavalry Division's area of operation, the North Vietnamese Army (NVA) and Vietcong forces seized most of the city of Huế.
As the 3rd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, fought to cut off communist reinforcements pouring into Huế, at Quang Tri City, five battalions, most from the 324th NVA Division, attacked the city and LZ Betty (Headquarters 1st Brigade).
After intense fighting, 900 NVA and Vietcong soldiers were killed in and around Quang Tri City and LZ Betty.
In March 1968 the 1st Cavalry Division shifted forces to LZ Stud, the staging area for Operation Pegasus to break the siege of the Marine combat base at Khe Sanh. The second largest battle of the war.
All three brigades participated in this airmobile operation, along with a Marine armor thrust.
US Air Force B-52s alone dropped more than 75,000 tons of bombs on North Vietnamese soldiers from the 304th and 325th Divisions encroaching the combat base in trenches. As these two elite enemy divisions, with history at Dien Bien Phu and the Ia Drang Valley, depleted, the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) leapfrogged west, clearing Route 9, until at 0:800 hours 8 April, the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry, linked-up with Marines at the combat base, ending the 77-day siege.
On 19 April 1968, as the 2nd Brigade continued pushing west to the Laotian border, the 1st and 3rd Brigades (about 11,000 men and 300 helicopters) swung southwest and air assaulted the A Shau Valley, commencing Operation Delaware.
The North Vietnamese Army was a well-trained, equipped, and led force. They turned A-Shau into a formidable sanctuary.
A long-range penetration operation was launched by members of the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile)'s, long-range reconnaissance patrol, against the North Vietnamese Army when they seized "Signal Hill" the name attributed to the peak of Dong Re Lao Mountain, a densely forested 4,879 feet (1,487 m) mountain, midway in the valley, so the 1st and 3rd Brigades, slugging it out hidden deep behind the mountains, could communicate with Camp Evans near the coast or with approaching aircraft.
The Division continued support of almost all major US Operations in Vietnam (Laos and Cambodia) until, on the 29th of April 1971, the bulk of the division was withdrawn to Fort Hood, Texas.
(but its 3rd Brigade remained as one of the final two major US ground combat units in Vietnam, departing 29 June 1972 and its 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry, Task Force Garry Owen, remained another two months)
 
In the Vietnam War, the First Cavalry Division suffered more casualties than any other army division.
 
ICE-X and the Phoenix Program
 
Operation Phoenix - ( The Phoenix Program )
Operation Phoenix became official in 1968 however existed for years before that - Operation Phoenix was instigated by the CIA with an aim to, ' destabalize, neutralize, capture and kill ' members of an organization the CIA called the VCI (Viet Cong Infrastructure ) - The program was designed to disrupt any civilian activity that supported the VC south of the DMZ - this included people that supplied guides, foods, storage dumps, people who helped with conscription to the VC. The Central Intelligence Agency turned the Operation over to the US Army and the ARVN in 1968 and continued to operate until 1972 -
Not many of these patches were made - the patches was assigned to US and RVN soldiers working on Operation Phoenix. Also called the Phoenix Program.
 
ICEX
ICEX was the CIA Operated Pacificiation Program, forerunner of the Phoenix Program.
The operation ran from as early as 1961. Was organized and operated by CIA operatives out of the Saigon station, in conjunction with South Vietnam Intelligence Operatives and Indigenous Mercenaries.
Only officially named in 1967, ICEX was in actuality operating from as early as 1961. Run by the CIA the later Phoenix Program (Operation Phoenix / Phoenix Assassination Program) was to borrow most of it's ideas from this unit.
In many cases, post 1966, ICEX operated in conjunction with the Phoenix Program although it remained a separate, CIA run entity that sat with MACV-SOG For convenience.
ICEX was considerably more aggressive than the Phoenix Program.
ICEX and The Phoenix Program - Comparison
Phoenix Program
Phoenix Program responsible for the Neutralizing of some 30,000 Suspected Enemy
Phoenix Program responsible for the arrest of some 50,000 Suspected enemy.
These figures are conservative, it is unlikely that the Phoenix Program touched only 80,000 suspects in total (in fact some numbers put the assassination rate of the Phoenix Program at over 100,000 alone).
Of the 80,000 suspects suggested, 37% of suspects were neutralized.
 
ICEX
ICEX responsible for Neutralizing of at least 11,000 enemy
ICEX responsible for minimal arrests, certainly less than 600
Again these numbers are conservative however probably closer to the mark.
ICEX was known for targeting it's prey in a much clearer way than the Phoenix Program.
Of the 11,600 suspects dealt with under the ICEX Program, 95% were neutralized.
 
 
 
 
Cambodian Special Forces
The Khmer Special Forces, also designated 'Khmer SF' for short or Forces Speciales Khmères (FSK) in French, were the elite Special Operations unit of the Khmer National Armed Forces (commonly known by their French acronym, FANK) during the 1970-75 Cambodian Civil War.
The history of the Khmer Special Forces began in October 1971, when the 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) was organized at Phnom Penh under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel (later, Brigadier-General) Thach Reng.
The Khmer SF were actually a creation of Lt. Col. Ronnie Mendoza, a Special Forces-qualified US Army officier assigned to the American Military Equipment Delivery Team, Cambodia (MEDTC) assistance program earlier in June 1971.
A prominent member of the MEDTC’s Plans and Programs Section, Mendoza focused on providing the Cambodian Army unconventional warfare units capable of carrying out guerrilla operations in the northern and eastern Cambodian provinces under the control of both the North Vietnamese Army (NVA) and their Khmer Rouge allies.
Two other SF groups, the 2nd Special Forces Group (Airborne) and the 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne) were activated in the following year.
 
Under the auspices of Operation “Freedom Runner” – a FANK training program set up in November 1971 by the United States Special Forces (USSF) –, Khmer Special Forces teams began to be sent to South Vietnam to attend Parachute courses at the ARVN Airborne Training Centre in Long Thành, and the Special Forces’ (SF) course at the Army of the Republic of Vietnam Special Forces (LLDB) Dong Ba Thin Training Centre near Cam Ranh Bay.
Manned by the USSF Detachment B-51, assisted by New Zealand Army instructors from the 2nd NZ Army Training Team Vietnam (2 NZATTV) and modelled on the USSF/LLDB own training programs, the course began with four weeks of basic SF skills followed by training in one of six SF job skills: operations and intelligence, demolitions, light weapons, heavy weapons, radio communications, or medical.
Other advanced additional courses included psychological warfare, political warfare, anti-tank warfare, and Taekwondo.
A two-week ‘live-fire’ field exercise (sometimes complemented by a field operation against NVA/Vietcong (VC) forces in the surrounding areas of the training centre) completed the SF course.
 
More specialised SF training was carried out in the United States and Thailand since December 1972. Khmer SF trainees attended technical courses at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, by the USSF 5th Special Forces Group and at the Royal Thai Army (RTA) Special Warfare Centre at Fort Narai, Lopburi Province by the US 46th Special Forces Company; additional Guerrilla and ‘Commando’ skills were taught by Thai instructors from the Royal Thai Army Special Forces (RTSF) and Royal Thai Police (RTP) Police Aerial Resupply Unit (PARU) at the latter’s Phitsanulok and Hua Hin training camps.
Advanced Ranger/LRRP and radio communications’ courses also took place in early 1973 at the Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV) Recondo School at Nha Trang, South Vietnam, manned by the USSF Detachment B-36, and at the RTA Recondo School co-located at Ft. Narai, Thailand, before “Freedom Runner” was concluded on July that year.
The Khmer Special Forces were closely modelled after the United States Special Forces (USSF) and the South Vietnamese Army of the Republic of Vietnam Special Forces (LLDB).
The final days 1974-75
By March 1975 with all land and river routes leading to Phnom Penh cut, the Khmer Rouge began their final assault on the Cambodian capital.
Aside from three ‘A’ Detachments operating in Battambang and two in Siem Reap, the bulk of the Khmer Special Forces were withdrawn to Phnom Penh to assist in its defense.
Two teams secured the National Stadium, in the Cércle Sportif Complex, where seven KAF UH-1H transport helicopters were being kept to evacuate key members of the government.
On the morning of April 17, 1975, after supervising the heliborne evacuation of only a handful of top officials and their families from the improvised helipad at the National Stadium (three of the helicopters had to be abandoned due to technical malfunctions), Brig. Gen. Reng handed over the command of the Khmer SF to Colonel Kim Phong and boarded the last helicopter to abandon the Stadium.
Left to fend for themselves, Col. Phong and his subordinates planned a massive breakout by land to the south-east towards the South Vietnamese border.
Although the Khmer Special Forces escape force managed to sneak out across the southern suburbs of the capital, they never reached the border and were all presumed killed in action.
The remaining Khmer Special Forces teams defending the last government-held holdouts at Battambang, including the teaching staff of the Recondo School, and Siem Reap reportedly tried to escape in small groups to Thailand by trekking across hostile territory.
Only a handful of Special Forces personnel managed to evade enemy patrols and reach the Thai-Cambodian border; the rest was either killed in action or captured and sent to the Khmer Rouge-run labour camps (also known as the “Killing Fields”), where they died after enduring the terrible working and living conditions during the late 1970s.
Operation Arc Light
During Operation Arc Light (Arc Light, and sometimes Arclight) from 1965 to 1973, the United States deployed B-52F Stratofortresses from bases in the US to Guam to provide close air support to ground combat operations in Vietnam.
The conventional bombing campaign was supported by ground-control-radar detachments of the 1st Combat Evaluation Group (1CEVG) in Operation Combat Skyspot.
Arc Light operations usually targeted enemy base camps, troops concentrations, and supply lines.
Previously dedicated to carrying nuclear weapons, in 1964 the U.S. Air Force began to train strategic bomber crews to deliver conventional munitions flying the B-52F.
The B-52Fs were deployed to Andersen Air Force Base in Guam and U-Tapao Royal Thai Navy Airfield in Thailand.
To add conventional bomb capacity, Project Big Belly modified all B-52Ds to enable them to carry nearly 30 tons (27 t) of conventional bombs.
By the middle of April 1966, all B-52Fs were redeployed back to the US and were replaced by the Big Belly modified B-52D.
Later in the Vietnam War, the B-52G was also deployed with the B-52D.
Congressional investigations of secret CIA activities in Laos revealed that B-52s were used to systematically bomb Laos and Cambodia.
In fact, the United States dropped more ordnance on North Vietnamese Army-occupied eastern Laos than it did during World War II on Germany and Japan combined. To this day, large areas of Laos and Cambodia are still very dangerous because of unexploded ordnance.
 
JCRC
The JCRC (Joint Casualty Resolution Center) was formed in January of 1973 and was a US Special Forces, MACV-SOG commanded unit responsible for the location of US Prisoner of Wars and US Servicemen lost in combat in the Vietnam theatre of War.
With the US no longer officially conducting aggressive combat missions within Vietnam the role of the JPRC (Joint Prisoner Rescue Command) and Bright Light Teams was officially ended.
This however did not end the search for US Servicemen, missing or held Prisoner and this role was assumed by the JCRC.
Officially the role of the JCRC was to find and collect the remains of servicemen for identification by the newly formed 'Central Identification Laboratory Thailand' (CIL-THAI). The unit operated in Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam until 1976. No official, covert ground missions are recorded after this time in South East Asia.
With numerous name and structural changes over the ensuing years the Unit now operates from a Headquarters in Hawaii.
 
71st Air Commando Squadron
 
On 15 June 1968, about a month after its parent 930th Tactical Airlift Group had been mobilized at Bakalar Air Force Base, with eighteen C-l19Gs, the 71st Tactical Airlift Squadron moved to Lockbourne Air Force Base, Ohio, and converted to AC-119 gunship operations. On that same date, the 71st was redesignated as the 71st Air Commando Squadron, a name that lasted less than a month, as the unit became the 71st Special Operations Squadron on 8 July. Conversion from tactical airlift to gunship operations in the AC-119 brought significant changes. The crew composition increased from five to eight as the crew acquired a second navigator and two gunners while the loadmaster cross-trained as an illuminator operator. Also, a change in the ratio of crews to airplanes increased total crew requirements from sixteen to twenty-four.
 
By 21 November 1968, the crews had formed and were ready. The aircrews left for Vietnam on 5 December; four days later, other elements of the squadron left via Lockheed C-141 Starlifters. The unit was reassigned to the 14th Special Operations Wing on 20 December 1968. During its time in South Vietnam, the 71st got away cheaply for having flown more than 6,000 hours in six months in a combat zone. It lost no aircraft, and only six received any kind of battle damage in the air. The most serious incident involved an aircraft struck by about twenty six rounds of 12.7-mm fire which put 19 holes in the aft part of the fuselage and caused minor lacerations in the neck and back of a gunner. This active force man was augmenting the basic reserve crew; nevertheless he became the first combat casualty aboard an Air Force reserve aircraft since the 452d Bombardment Wing was relieved at Pusan East (K-9) Air Base, South Korea, on 7 May 1952 during the Korean War.
 
The squadron was relieved from active service and returned to Bakalar Air Force Base on 18 June 1969. It was inactivated on 1 October 1973.
 
HMM 361 - Helicopter Marine Medium 351
One of the first of all US Helicopter Units, HMM 361 were flying choppers from as early as 1952 and took part in the largest single helicopter operation of all time, the Atomic testing at Desert Rock, Nevada.
Although having a number of prior different designations, HMM-361 came into being in 1962 shortly before their participation aboard USS IWO JIMA flying operations around Cuba during the 1962 Missile Crisis.
In June of 1963, whilst known as 'The Flying Tigers', In June 1963, HMM 361 deployed to Da Nang, South Vietnam out of a tour into Okinawa and became one of the first units to participate in Operation Shufly. It was during their deployment into Da Nang that they became known as the Ross Rice Runners after their commanding officer, Lt. Colonel Tom Ross.
In August of 1965 conducted the first night operations by USMC Helicopter Units lifting Marines into combat during 'Operation Midnight'.
In 1967 whilst based at Dong Ha, all aircraft of HMM 361 were destroyed by a ground and artillery assault by the Viet Cong and shortly after the Unit moved to Marble Mountain and by the end of 1967 had deployed out of Vietnam.
Later redesignated HMH 361 ( Marine Heavy Helicopter 361 ) and again served in Vietnam out of Hue (Phu Bai) from 1969 through to 1970 when they returned once again to the US.
 
LAOTIAN HIGHWAY PATROL - Operation White Star – Laos – 7th Special Forces - Recon
US SPECIAL FORCES - MACV SOG
Initially instigated by the SOE in 1959 ‘Operation White Star’ was set-up to train members of the Meo Tribe to resist the growing threat of the Pathet Lao, the Communist's in Laos.
Operation White Star was discontinued in 1962 after the Geneva Accords. It was revived with a defined role and renewed vigour in 1965.
Led by US Special Forces, Major Larry Thorne, Op 35 (Operation White Star and later named Operation Shining Brass) was set-up to fight the Pathet Lao and the North Vietnamese inside Laos. It consisted of three stages;
US Special Forces Recon into Laos (from South Vietnam, North Vietnam, Thailand and Cambodia) to identify trails used and base camps of enemy.
US Special Forces led, Exploitation Commando units including Montagnard Special Forces annihilation of VC / Pathet Lao Base Camps.
US Special Forces Operatives remaining in Laos after Operations to set-up Resistance Cells amongst the locals, these units called the 'White Star Resistance'.
They operated from the US Special Forces camp at Kham Duc on the Laos Border.
Note: It should be noted that Major Larry Thorne was a native Finn and a winner of the highest Military Award of Finland, The Mannerheim Cross, on two occasions for his defence against Soviet Attacks in WWII including an ambush on a Russian Convoy that led to the deaths of over 300 Soviets without him losing one Man.
 
During WWII he commanded Finnish Commandos behind Soviet Lines to harass their advance - At the end of WWII he joined the US Army, under the Lodge Bill, as a Private, volunteered for Special Forces and within months was commissioned a Captain.
The first operation of the renewed Op 35 (White Star) took place in October 1965 - During this operation, before a shot had been fired inside Laos by the newly formed group, the helicopter carrying Larry Thorne, all passengers and crew were lost.
Operation White Star, Officially Operation 35, later to be known as Operation Shining Brass was to continue in varying forms and with varying names through to the end of the war.
 
506th Airborne – 101st Airborne Division
The Pentomic structure was abandoned in 1964 in favor of brigades and battalions, and the 1st Airborne Group, 506th Infantry was reorganized and redesignated as 1st Battalion (Airborne), 506th Infantry.
Additionally, the lineage of Co. B, 506th Airborne was reactivated as HHC, 2nd Battalion (Airborne), 506th Infantry.
Both battalions were part of the 3rd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, which was deployed to Vietnam from late 1967 to 1971.
1st Company / 506th was recognized for its role during the Tet Offensive in early 1968 and the Battle of Hamburger Hill in May 1969 together with 2nd / 506th, during the battle of FSB Ripcord.
On 1 April 1967 the colors of the former Company C, 506th were reactivated at Fort Campbell as HHC, 3rd Battalion, 506th Infantry.
Assigned to the 1st Brigade, it served in Vietnam and was inactivated at Fort Campbell on 31 July 1972.
The division, including the 506th, was reorganized as Airmobile in 1968, later renamed Air Assault in 1974.
During the Vietnam War, five soldiers from the 506th were awarded the Medal of Honor.
 
Recon Team Anaconda
Mobile Strike Force Recon team, Anaconda. RT Anaconda was the first of the Recon Team's in Vietnam not named after a US state.
Formed by MACV - Special Operations Group, RT Anaconda comprised of three US Special Forces personnel and nine Nung Tribesmen.
The Nung tribesmen, native’s of North Vietnam were considered 'Superb' in their fighting capabilities and members of RT Ananconda were all Special Forces Trained (and Airborne Trained) and entitled to wear the Green beret of the US Special Forces.
The Nung were originally supporters of the Viet Minh during the French Indochine War however were anti-communist and found themselves fighting on the side of the South and United States in the second Vietnam war.
The member’s of the Nung that manned RT Ananconda out of Khe Sanh were the elite of their Civilian Irregular Defense Groups (CIDG).
 
2nd Battalion - 47th Infantry ( Panthers )
9th Infantry Division
2nd battalion, 47th Infantry - 9th Infantry Division
Whilst the majority of the 9th Infantry Division served afloat as part of the Mobile Riverine Force, the 2nd / 47th was a fully mechanized ground battalion serving with the 9th Infantry.
Out of Fort Riley and into Vietnam at the end of January 1967 with a strength of over 900 operatives the battalion was to stay in Vietnam (primarily in the Mekong Delta area) until October of 1970.
In May and June of 1970 the Battalion was part of the spearhead that successfully invaded Cambodia driving the Viet Cong and Khmer Rouge allies some 30 kms inside Cambodia before congress decided that the full invasion should cease and troops withdraw.
They were variously based at Phu My, Dong Tam (My Tho), Binh Phuoc and Bear Cat.
 
Recon Team Hunter Killer / Recon Team Crusader
 
Command and Control North - Recon Hunter Killer - Nung Recon. (Also operated as Recon Team Crusader).
Operating out of Khe Sanh (Under control of CCN, Da Nang) - Recon Team Hunter Killer (RT Crusader ) was a SPIKE RECON TEAM.
US Special Forces Led, Nung Hill Tribesmen personnel Recon Team charged with cross border clandestine sabotage activity north of the DMZ. RT Hunter Killer was later known as RT Crusader.
As late as 1971 was operating almost exclusively withing Laos in harrassment and POW location exercises.
 
FOB 4 - Forward Operations Base 4/Vietnam War - US Special Forces - Marble Mountain.
On the 23rd of August 1968 FOB4, Da Nang, at the bottom of Marble Mountain came under attack by a force of over 100 North Vietnamese.
The 23rd of August 1968 and the Battle at FOB-4 are noted as the 'worst day in US Special Forces history'.
 
120th Aviation Company - Assault Helicopter, Airmobile
1st Lift Platoon - Snoopy.
Amongst the longest serving of all Helicopter Companies in Vietnam the 120th (Razorbacks and The Deans) were formed in-country at Long Binh in June of 1963 before the large influx of US Forces into the war zone.
They were to serve until October of 1972.
 
17th Air Cavalry Regiment (Vietnam) – 3rd Squadron.
 
The 3rd Squadron, 17th Cavalry arrived in Vietnam on 30 October 1967 and was assigned to the 12th Aviation Group, 1st Aviation Brigade, primarily stationed at Dĩ An.
It was responsible for air cavalry support in the western part of III Corps Tactical Zone.
On 20 July 1970 it was placed under the control of II Field Force, Vietnam.
In January 1971 Troop C was transferred to the 7th Squadron, 1st Cavalry.
Troops A, B and D departed Vietnam together in April 1972 and Troop C rejoined them for the redeployment.
In late 1970 the squadron was placed under the operational control of the 1st Cavalry Division and, when combined with the division's 1st Squadron, 9th Cavalry, enabled the 1st Cavalry Division to form an ad hoc air cavalry brigade - a highly successful innovation.
The squadron was inactivated on 19 June 1973 at Fort Lewis, WA.
 
 
Recon Team Mamba / Manba
Recon Team Mamba was one of the later Recon Teams formed out of Command and Control Central - Charged with the conduct of 'Unconventional Classified Warfare Operations' in Laos and Cambodia RT Mamba was not formed until late 1969 and was one of the last Spike Recon team formed.
The name of the Recon Team on being formed was misspelled and initial patches made for this unit arrived with the name 'RT MAMBA' - It was meant to be called after the venomous MAMBA Snake.
The name stuck and the Recon Team was know as Manba, not Mamba – Patches with both spellings exist.
It was extremely un-common for originally misspelled unit names to be changed due to the suspicious nature of operatives and 'The Story' attached to varying units.
Recon Team New Jersey
Officially, as a cover called, 'The Military Assistance Command Vietnam, Studies and Observation Group', MACV, Special Operations took over the roles previously performed by the CIA in Vietnam.
Recon Team New Jersey, under the command of MACV - Command and Control North was headquartered at da Nang and shared their bases throughout Da Nang, Hue and Khe Sanh.
Their role was to conduct, highly classified, unconventional warfare, highly classified sabotage and psy-ops operations throughout South and North Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. It operated until April 1972 (when again further operations would continue to be run by the CIA).
 
Recon Team Louisiana
This patch during the time of Recon Team Louisiana whilst based at Khe Sanh, Highway 9 adjoining DMZ and North Vietnam.
Out of Command Control North's Base at Khe Sanh (FOB 3), Recon Team Louisiana operated within the largest of the Command Centres (HQ base at Da Nang).
RT Louisiana was a Spike Recon Team and conducted classified missions into North Vietnam (unofficial operations as early as february 1964 prior to the formation of CCN).
Operated in conjunction with the CIA Trained MEO Tribesmen (Montagnards).
 
3rd Mike – Mobile Strike Force Battalion.
US Special Forces
Patch of US Operatives, Green Beret, Special Forces of Mike Force out of Pleiku.
3rd Mobile Strike Force Battalion. This unit was responsible for the 'BLACKJACK 31' operations.
They were headquarted at Pleiku and operated from 1962 (as a Mobile Guerrilla Force Unit) through to 1970 when the Unit was disbanded.
One of the Larger Mike Force Units, at times this Force numbered, with US Operatives, almost 2,000 men.
 
1st Cavalry Regiment - "Animo et Fide".
 "Courageous and Faithful"
In August 1967, the 1st Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment (1-1 Cavalry) was detached from the 1st Armored Division and sent to Vietnam attached to US Army Pacific.
On deployment to Vietnam in 1967, the 1st Squadron 1st Cavalry Regiment consisted of three armored cavalry troops and one air cavalry troop, D Troop, which was not deployed until July 1968. 'D' Troop, 1st Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment was shipped to Vietnam with its aircraft to join its parent unit, the 1-1 Cavalry, which was already in Vietnam attached to the Americal Division at Chu Lai.
En route, D Troop's orders were changed, temporarily attaching it to the 101st Airborne Division.
The troop disembarked at Da Nang on 21 July 1968 and flew directly to Camp Eagle. The Troop then remained on combat duty in I Corps for the next four years and used the call sign Sabre.
1st Squadron, 1st Cavalry served in Chu Lai, Da Nang, Tam Kỳ, and Thach Khe. They departed Vietnam on 10 May 1972.
On 1 July 1963, the 2nd Squadron, 1st Cavalry was relieved of their duties to the 3rd Armored Division, United States Army, Europe and reassigned to the 2nd Armored Division at Fort Hood, Texas. On 8 August 1967, the unit left Fort Hood for Vietnam where they were attached to the 4th Infantry Division, headquartered in Pleiku.
During their service in the Central Highlands, troopers saw action in Pleiku, Đắk Tô, Suoi Doi, Kontum, An Khe and many other nameless stretches of road and jungle. In May 1969, the squadron was transferred to Task Force South in Phan Thiet and attached to the 1st Field Force, Vietnam.
Now operating in the rice paddies and rubber plantations of Vietnam, the Blackhawks further distinguished themselves in actions around Phan Thiet, Song Mao, Phan Rang and their environs.
The 2-1 Cavalry departed Vietnam in October 1970, leaving Cam Ranh Bay for reassignment to the 2nd Armored Division at Fort Hood, Texas.
Troop E, of 2-1 Cavalry, was raised on 1 July 1966, and served on assignment with the 11th Infantry Brigade until it 18 October 1971.
7th Squadron (Air), 1st Cavalry was a self-contained Vietnam-era air cavalry squadron, made up of 5 troops. Headquarters and Headquarters Troop (callsign Kingbird/Blackhawk), Alpha Troop (callsign Apache), Bravo Troop (callsign Dutch Master), Charlie Troop (callsign Sand Piper/Comanche) and Delta Troop (Powder Valley/Dragoon). D Troop (the squadron's armored cavalry troop) participated in successful night ambushes, escorted convoys, search and clear missions and other ground operations. Troops A, B and C were Air Cavalry units.
Equipped to perform scout, insertion, interdiction and attack missions, the troops supported the ARVN 21st Division and other units throughout the Delta IV Corps area after the 9th Infantry Division returned stateside. They were first attached to the 12th Aviation Group, then from 3 June 1968, to the 164th Aviation Group.
In April 1972, 7-1 Cavalry was assigned to the 194th Armored Brigade, Fort Knox, KY. In 1976, the unit was inactivated and used to form air cavalry troops in the reactivated 5th, 7th and 24th Infantry Divisions.
All US combat troops were withdrawn by 30 November 1972.
 
TAKHLI Air Force Base – Thailand
The initial squadrons and units deployed to Takhli were placed under the command and control of the Thirteenth Air Force, headquartered at Clark AB in the Philippines. Thailand-based aircraft flew missions mostly into Laos until the 1964 Gulf of Tonkin Resolution which expanded the air war into North Vietnam.
 
In 1962, the U.S. Military Assistance Group in South Vietnam was upgraded to U.S. Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV), a promotion which gave it authority to command combat troops. Shortly thereafter, the Military Assistance Command, Thailand (MACT) was set up with a similar level of authority in order to aid Thailand, (America's) ally and historic friend in resisting communist aggression and subversion.
 
The United States Air Force component of the U.S. Pacific Command was Pacific Air Forces (PACAF). Thirteenth Air Force was headquartered at Clark Air Base, Philippines. Seventh Air Force, another Numbered Air Force of PACAF was headquartered at Tan Son Nhut Air Base, South Vietnam, although the Seventh controlled many units based in Thailand. Thai sensitivities about units based in Thailand reporting to a headquarters in South Vietnam caused a shift whereby the Seventh Air Force was ostensibly subordinate to Thirteenth Air Force for administrative matters (and therefore referred to as 7/13 Air Force). The commander, Seventh Air Force, played a dual role as MACV's deputy for air operations.
In July 1962, the 6011th Air Base Squadron was organized, the first "host" unit at Takhli RTAFB.
 
Command and Control:
There were three Command and Control HQ in South Vietnam.
CCC, Command and Control Central - HQ'd at Kontum in the Central Highlands. CIA operatives operated from Kontaum from the mid 1950's recruiting Montagnard (Hill Tribe) Mercenaries. CCC included Pleiku, Cambodian Border, An Khe, Dak To, Ia Drang and more. CCC HQ closed in 1971. Operations in South Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia, Ho Chi Minh Trail.
 
CCN, Command and Control North - HQ'd at Da Nang - Controlled Highway 9, Khe Sanh, Cam Lo, Nha Trang, Hue, DMZ, Laos Border, Cam Lo, North Vietnam - Closed in 1971 and converted to Task Force 1 - Commanded Invasion of Laos and cross border incursions and agents in North Vietnam.
CCS - Command and Control South - HQ - Ban Me Thuot, Everything South of Saigon, into the Mekong delta, cross border into Cambodia, led forward ops incursions prior to US Invasion of Cambodia 1970.
CCM - Unofficial Command Control - HQ'd at Can Tho and My Tho - Primarily commanded river ops in the CCS area of operations and provided NAVY SEAL ops and advisors to South Vietnam Navy. A particularly elite group containing Navy SEALs, Green Berets, US Rangers, USAF Combat Control teams, CIA Operatives.
 
1st REC – Foreign Legion
The 1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment (French: 1er Régiment Étranger de Cavalerie, 1er REC) is the only cavalry regiment in the French Foreign Legion.
As of 2009 it was the only armoured cavalry regiment of the 6th Light Armoured Brigade. The regiment recently moved camp after being stationed at Quartier Labouche for 47 years in Orange, Vaucluse, France since it moved from Mers-el-Kébir, Algeria in October 1967.
In 1939 the two existing regiments of Foreign Cavalry were still only partially motorized. However, in 1940, the 1e REC was dispatched to France as part of the 97th Reconnaissance Group of the Infantry Division (97e GRDI).
As such it was engaged in combat from May 18 (at the Somme) until the Armistice.
A citation issued at the orders of the Armed Forces praised the heroism of the Legionnaires during this period.
Following the Battle of France the 1er REC took up garrison duties in Tunisia.
In 1943, the regiment was re-equipped with U.S. material, consisted of one light tank squadron and four armored car squadrons.
Its new role was that of divisional recce regiment of the newly raised 5th Armored Division (5e DB).
In 1943, the 1er REC was engaged against the Germans in Tunisia.
In 1944, the 1er REC landed on the côtes de Provence as one of the French armored units participating in the Liberation of France.
At the end of World War II, the regimental colors were decorated with two new palms and the fourragère of the Croix de Guerre.
In 1946, the 1er REC embarked for Indochina.
The regimental squadrons plus two autonomes groups (detached units) served for nine years in Cochinchina and Tonkin.
Three new citations and the fourragère of the Croix de Guerre of TOE were added to the regimental colors, while the two autonomes groups earned 6 citations.
After returning to French North Africa in 1954, the regiment was involved in the Pacification of Algeria for eight consecutive years of active service.
Following the Évian Accords and the independence of Algeria the 1er REC regrouped at the base of Mers El Kebir.
It was then reassigned, on October 17, 1967, to peacetime duty in metropolitan France for the first time.
 
1st BEP - 1st Foreign Parachute Battalion.
Twice Destroyed in Vietnam, Dong Khe and Dien Bien Phu.
The 1st Foreign Parachute Battalion (French: 1er Bataillon Etranger de Parachutistes, 1er BEP) was a foreign parachute battalion of the French Foreign Legion formed from the Parachute Company of the 3rd Foreign Infantry Regiment.
The 1st Foreign Parachute Battalion, (1er BEP, I formation) was created on July 1, 1948 at Khamisis, in Algeria.
The 1er BEP embarked to Indochina on November 12th 1948 and was engaged in combat operations in the Tonkin area (Red River Delta, North Vietnam).
Battle of Dong Khe
The Battle of Dong Khe (September 1950) was a major battle of the First Indochina War fought at Đông Khê.
The fight took place in Dong Khe, in the Province of Tonkin, during September and October 1950, ending with a Viet Minh victory.
The outpost was held by two companies from the 2nd Battalion/3rd Foreign Legion Infantry regiment and on 16 September 1950 the Viet Minh attacked with mortar bombardments and human wave attacks of up to 2,000 soldiers.
After two days of close quarter fighting only a few legionnaires managed to escape.
The outpost had been designated as the rendezvous point for the evacuation of the small town of Cao Bang approximately 15 miles away.
The evacuation was to take place in early October but was forestalled by the Viet Minh assault which may have indicated that General Giap appeared to be already aware of it.
On 18 September the 1st Foreign Legion Parachute Battalion (1BEP) was dropped in south of Dong Khe but was unable to fight their way to recapture the outpost.
A week later a column of 3.500 Moroccans assembled at Lang San under Col Le Page and marched up to meet the 1er BEP. They linked up on 1 October and together they moved up to retake Dong Khe.
Col Charton at Cao Bang was ordered to march south and he moved out with a column of 1,500 legionnaires and Moroccans. This column was burdened with a number of civilians.
Both columns were attacked by the Viet Minh and eventually left the roads in an attempt to outflank the Viet Minh through the jungle.
By the time the two columns met on October 7 they had suffered heavy casualties, were short of food and ammunition and had many wounded.
Half of the 3rd Colonial Commando Parachute Battalion (3BCCP) and a company of 1er BEP replacements were dropped into That Khe to hold that post for the arrival of survivors from the Charton and Le Page columns.
Only 300 men managed to reach the post which was then abandoned in haste.
Three weak companies of 3BCCP and 1BEP formed the rearguard of the column and by 14 October almost all of them had been killed.
Eventually only 600 men from the two columns fought their way back to French lines. 4,800 were listed as dead or missing. It was by far France's worst defeat in the war so far.
As a result of the disaster the French government passed a law that French conscripts were prevented from being sent to areas in which military operations were taking place or to take part in them other than in time of war. This law would have serious consequences in three years time during the Battle of Bien Bien Phu.
The battalion was then dissolved on December 31, 1950; is reconstituted on March 1, 1951 (1er BEP, II formation) and participated in combat operations at Cho Ben, on the black river and at Annam.
On November 21, 1953; the reconstituted 1er BEP parachuted onto Dien Bien Phu.
In this gigantic battle, the reconstituted (1er BEP, II formation) 1er BEP lost 575 killed and missing. For the second time the 1st BEP were destroyed.
Reconstituted for the third time (1er BEP, III formation) on May 19, 1954, the 1er BEP leaves Indochina on February 8, 1955.
The 1er BEP totals 5 citations at the orders of the armed forces and the fourragère of the colors of the Médaille militaire.
The 1st Foreign Parachute Battalion (1er BEP, III Formation) becomes the 1st Foreign Parachute Regiment (1er REP) in Algeria on September 1, 1955.
The insignia of the 1st Foreign Paratrooper Battalion was created in 1948 by Commandant Segrétain, battalion commander Chef de Bataillon, CBA of the 1er BEP.

MAG 11 - Marine Aircraft Group 11
Marine Air Base Squadron 11
Previously based in Japan the United States Marine Corps, Marine Aircraft Group 11 (MAG 11) deployed to Vietnam in April 1965 for what was originally to be a short duration tour ('Shock and Awe type') to counter communist attacks. Within 72 hours of arriving in Vietnam MAG 11 had completed the first of many thousands of attack missions that were to follow.
MAG 11 was to remain in Vietnam until May of 1971 when it redeployed to El Tora California.
MAG 11 flew missions 24 hours a day throughout the entire Tet Offensive and were instrumental in the Battle of Hue.
 
68th Assault Helicopter Company - Top Tigers.
Attached to the 145th Combat Aviation Battalion serving II Field Force in the III Corps Military Tactical Zone.
Operated in Vietnam from November 1965 through to 1970 with the 145th and an additional tour through to 1971 (April). Based at Bien Hoa (and earlier at Vung Tau).
ARVN – 1st Infantry Division.
The 1st Division of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN)—the army of the nation state of South Vietnam that existed from 1955 to 1975—was part of the I Corps that oversaw the northernmost region of South Vietnam, the centre of Vietnam.
The 1st Division was based in Huế, the old imperial city and one of two major cities in the region, which was also the corps headquarters. It operated throughout the northern sector of South Vietnam including DMZ operations along Highway 9.
 
31st Infantry Regiment
When the Army abandoned battle groups in favor of brigades and battalions in 1963, the 31st Infantry's 1st and 2d Battalions were reactivated in Korea, the 3d Battalion remained in the Army Reserve, and the 5th Battalion replaced the 2d Battle Group at Fort Rucker. When the war in Vietnam came, two more battalions of the 31st Infantry were formed. The 4th Battalion was formed at Fort Devens, Massachusetts in 1965 and the 6th Battalion was formed at Fort Lewis, Washington in 1967.
Soldiers from the 4th Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment at Nui Cho Mountain.
The 4th Battalion went to Vietnam in the spring of 1967, operating initially in War Zone D and around Tay Ninh near the Cambodian border as a unit under the 196th Brigade(Sep).
In 1967, the battalion moved north to help form the 23d "Americal" Infantry Division.
Operating at Quang Ngai, Chu Lai, and the Que Son Valley for most of the rest of the war, the 4th Battalion fought to keep Viet Cong guerrillas and the North Vietnamese Army from capturing the coastal lowlands.
Two of the battalion's members earned the Medal of Honor almost a year apart near the bitterly contested village of Hiep Duc.
When American forces departed, the 4th Battalion 31st Infantry was part of the last brigade to leave Vietnam. It was inactivated in 1971.
The 6th Battalion was sent to Vietnam in the spring of 1968, arriving just in time to help recapture Saigon's suburbs during the enemy's abortive May offensive.
For the next two years, the 6th Battalion fought all across the Mekong Delta and the Plain of Reeds.
When the 9th Infantry Division departed in 1969, the 6th Battalion 31st Infantry formed the nucleus of a 1200-man task force under LTC Gerald Carlson (Task Force Carlson) to cover the division's departure.
Remaining in Vietnam, the 6th Battalion conducted an Air Assault as part of the 3rd Brigade into the Parrot's Beak area of Cambodia in May 1970, making the famed "Seminole Raid" to seize and destroy a huge enemy base area bordering the Plain of Reeds. The battalion returned to Ft Lewis for inactivation in October 1970.
 
 
NAVY SEALs – UDT 12
In the Mekong delta from 1965 the US Navy's Underwater Demolition Team 12 (UDT 12) served in Vietnam until 1971. UDT 12, at various times during their role in Vietnam performed SOG (Special Operations) Activities in conjunction with the US Special Forces and Navy SEALS (Indeed at varying time UDT 12 contained USN Seals).
The Pacific Command recognized Vietnam as a potential hot spot for unconventional forces. At the beginning of 1962, the UDTs started hydrographic surveys and along with other branches of the US Military, the Military Assistance Command Vietnam (MACV) was formed. In March 1962, SEALs were deployed to South Vietnam as advisors for the purpose of training Army of the Republic of Vietnam commandos in the same methods they were trained themselves.
The Central Intelligence Agency began using SEALs in covert operations in early 1963.
The SEALs were involved in the CIA sponsored Phoenix Program where it targeted key North Vietnamese Army personnel and Vietcong sympathizers for capture and assassination.
 
The SEALs were initially deployed in and around Da Nang, training the South Vietnamese in combat diving, demolitions, and guerrilla/anti-guerrilla tactics. As the war continued, the SEALs found themselves positioned in the Rung Sat Special Zone where they were to disrupt the enemy supply and troop movements and in the Mekong Delta to fulfil riverine operations, fighting on the inland waterways.
Combat with the Viet Cong was direct. Unlike the conventional warfare methods of firing artillery into a coordinate location, the SEALs operated close to their targets. Into the late 1960s, the SEALs were successful in a new style of warfare, effective in anti-guerrilla and guerrilla actions. SEALs brought a personal war to the enemy in a previously safe area. The Viet Cong referred to them as "the men with green faces," due to the camouflage face paint the SEALs wore during combat missions.
In February 1966, a small SEAL Team One detachment arrived in Vietnam to conduct direct actions missions. Operating from Nha Be, in the Rung Sat Special Zone, this detachment signaled the beginning of a SEAL presence that would eventually include 8 SEAL platoons in country on a continuing basis.
SEALs also served as advisors for Provincial Reconnaissance Units and the Lein Doc Nguio Nhia, the Vietnamese SEALs. The last SEAL platoon departed Vietnam on Dec 7, 1971. The last SEAL advisor left in March 1973.
 
SEALs continued to make forays into North Vietnam and Laos, and covertly into Cambodia, controlled by the Studies and Observations Group. The SEALs from Team Two started a unique deployment of SEAL team members working alone with South Vietnamese Commandos (ARVN). In 1967, a SEAL unit named Detachment Bravo (Det Bravo) was formed to operate these mixed US and ARVN units, which were called South Vietnamese Provincial Reconnaissance Units (PRUs).
At the beginning of 1968, the North Vietnamese and the Viet Cong orchestrated a major offensive against South Vietnam: the "Tet Offensive". The North hoped it would prove to be America's Dien Bien Phu, attempting to break the American public's desire to continue the war. As propaganda, the Tet Offensive was successful in adding to the American protest of the Vietnam war. However, North Vietnam suffered tremendous casualties, and from a purely military standpoint, the Tet Offensive was a major disaster for the Communists.
By 1970, President Richard Nixon initiated a Plan of Vietnamization, which would remove the US from the Vietnam War and return the responsibility of defense back to the South Vietnamese.
Conventional forces were being withdrawn; the last SEAL advisor, left Vietnam in March 1973 and Vietnam fell to the communists in 1975.
 
The SEALs were among the highest decorated units for their size in the war, receiving 2 Navy Crosses, 42 Silver stars, 402 Bronze Stars, 2 Legions of Merit, 352 Commendation Medals, 3 Presidential Unit Citations and 3 Medals of Honor.
By the end of the war, 48 SEALs had been killed in Vietnam, but estimates of their kill count are as high as 2,000.
The Navy SEAL Museum in Fort Pierce, FL displays a list of the 48 SEALs who lost their lives in combat during the Vietnam War.
 
Copperheads – 162nd AHC
Phoneix Program Attached
162nd Assault Helicopter Company
162nd Aviation Company (Assault Helicopter )
 
The 162nd Aviation Company has one of the most interesting histories of the Vietnam War, US Army Helicopter Units.
Formed in Fort Benning, Georgia on the 1st of September 1965 the unit was in Vietnam by the end of the month, one of the first Helicopter Assault Units to arrive.
Their pilots arrived with only 20 hours army training per man on average. Such was the instance of Warrant Officers in the unit however, flying experience was an average of 2,100 hours per man.
Initially based at Phouc Vinh north of Saigon they became one of the longest of all US Army serving units not departing Vietnam until May 1972.
The 162nd were the Assault Helicopter Company attached to the 'Phoenix Program' (Also known as Operation Phoenix), a CIA initiative of pacification and control of village VC Forces.
 
CA MAU – Mekong Delta
During the French colonial period, Cà Mau was only a small town.
During the Vietnam War, the area near Cà Mau was a stronghold (in Vietnamese: Chiến khu cách mạng) for the National Front for the Liberation of Vietnam also known as the Viet Cong, a Hanoi-backed guerrilla group fighting the United States Army and the South Vietnamese government during the Vietnam War.
After 1975, Cà Mau was made the administrative seat and the governmental center of Minh Hải Province, which included Cà Mau and Bạc Liêu Province).
 
PHU CAT
Phù Cát Air Base (Vietnamese: Căn cứ không quân Phù Cát) (1966–1975) was a United States Air Force (USAF) and Republic of Vietnam Air Force (VNAF) facility used during the Vietnam War (1959–1975). It is located north of the city of Qui Nhơn in southern Vietnam.
In late February 1966 Military Assistance Command, Vietnam decided to build a new jet-capable base at Phù Cát.
On 23 December 1966 USAF units began moving to the half-completed base.
At this time the runway was a 3,000-foot (910 m) long dirt strip while the taxiways and parking areas were covered in Pierced steel planking (PSP). Nevertheless, the 459th and 537th Troop Carrier Squadrons both equipped with C-7As began operations from the base on 1 January 1967
The 37th Tactical Fighter Wing (37th TFW) began operations from the base in April 1967.
In September 1967 a detachment from the 4th Air Commando Squadron equipped with 4 AC-47 gunships began operating from the base.
On 3 February 1968 the 355th Tactical Fighter Squadron (355th TFS) was attached to the 37th TFW.[3] On 5 May 1968 the 174th Tactical Fighter Squadron (174th TFS) an Iowa Air National Guard unit equipped with F-100Cs deployed to Phù Cát AB.[5]
 
On 23rd of December 1971 the US AIR FORCE, 12th Security Police Squadron was inactivated as the VNAF took over base security.
On 1 January 1972 the base was formally turned over to the VNAF.
 
82nd Airborne (Vietnam)
The 82nd Airborne (3rd Brigade) went into action in Vietnam during the Tet Offensive, which swept across the Vietnam in January 1968
The 3rd Brigade performed combat duties in the Huế – Phu Bai area of the I Corps sector.
Later the brigade moved south to Saigon, and fought in the Mekong Delta, the Iron Triangle and along the Cambodian border, serving nearly 22 months.
 
US Special Forces Detachment A-424
Mobile Strike Force / MACV-SOG
 
AN PHU (Previously Detachment A-6)
Green Berets / Mercenaries
US Special Forces - Mobile Strike Force Detachment A-424
An Phu was originally designated Detachment A-6 and was run by early operatives from the US, 5th Special Forces Group with recruiters from the Central Intelligence Agency organising local elements into Mercenary Fighting Forces.
An Phu was manned by the Indigenous Forces of the Raglai M'Nong, Montagnard Groups one of the few native fighting forces considered superb by the US Forces.
The An Phu, Montagnard Unit was Airborne Qualified.
The camp at An Phu had US Special Forces Operatives (rotating out of Japan) in place as early as 1962 but the US had an un-official presence in this area prior to this time.
An Phu was primarily a US Special Forces outpost (Forward Operations Base) - No more than 80 Indigenous Operatives operated with the USSF Unit here.
 
US RANGER
The Ranger Creed
(Lone Survivor)
 
Recognizing that I volunteered as a Ranger, fully knowing the hazards of my chosen profession, I will always endeavor to uphold the prestige, honor, and high esprit de corps of my Ranger Regiment.
Acknowledging the fact that a Ranger is a more elite soldier who arrives at the cutting edge of battle by land, sea, or air, I accept the fact that as a Ranger my country expects me to move farther, faster and fight harder than any other soldier.
 
Never shall I fail my comrades. I will always keep myself mentally alert, physically strong and morally straight and I will shoulder more than my share of the task whatever it may be. One-hundred-percent and then some.
Gallantly will I show the world that I am a specially selected and well-trained soldier. My courtesy to superior officers, neatness of dress and care of equipment shall set the example for others to follow.
Energetically will I meet the enemies of my country. I shall defeat them on the field of battle for I am better trained and will fight with all my might. Surrender is not a Ranger word. I will never leave a fallen comrade to fall into the hands of the enemy and under no circumstances will I ever embarrass my country.
Readily will I display the intestinal fortitude required to fight on to the Ranger objective and complete the mission though I be the Lone survivor.
Rangers lead the way!
 
F-16 – Fighting Falcon
The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is a single-engine supersonic multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics (now Lockheed Martin) for the United States Air Force (USAF).
Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it evolved into a successful all-weather multirole aircraft. Over 4,500 aircraft have been built since production was approved in 1976.
Although no longer being purchased by the U.S. Air Force, improved versions are still being built for export customers.
The Fighting Falcon's key features include a frameless bubble canopy for better visibility, side-mounted control stick to ease control while maneuvering, a seat reclined 30 degrees to reduce the effect of g-forces on the pilot, and the first use of a relaxed static stability/fly-by-wire flight control system which helps to make it a nimble aircraft.
The F-16 has an internal M61 Vulcan cannon and 11 locations for mounting weapons and other mission equipment. The F-16's official name is "Fighting Falcon", but "Viper" is commonly used by its pilots and crews, due to a perceived resemblance to a viper snake as well as the Colonial Viper starfighter on Battlestar Galactica.
In addition to active duty for U.S. Air Force, Air Force Reserve Command, and Air National Guard units, the aircraft is also used by the USAF aerial demonstration team, the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds, and as an adversary/aggressor aircraft by the United States Navy.
The F-16 has also been procured to serve in the air forces of 25 other nations. As of 2015, it is the world's second most numerous military aircraft and the most numerous airplane in service
 
56th Special Operations Wing – US AIR FORCE
Ravens - NEVERMORE (Nevermore from the Edgar Allen Poe, poem, THE RAVEN)
(Note; The 56th SOW were also involved in the SON TAY, attempted Prison Recue Raid).
The 56th Special Operations Wing, Raven (call sign, for 1965 - 1970 operations in Laos) took their operation motto from the Edgar Allen Poe, poem, the Raven.
Based at Udorn, Royal Thai Air Force Base Thailand, the 56th operated over neutral Laos from as early as 1965. The Steve Canyon Project was the supply and support of non-communist forces within Laos and for this operation, the 56th Special Operations Wing utilised the call sign RAVEN.
For this operation the 56th relocated to Nakhon Phan in Northern Thailand and recruited from the best and most experienced of pilots of the US Air Force and were formally under the command of the CIA. The 'Ravens' were generally un-armed aircraft utilised for forward air control and enemy spotting for ground and Special Operations / Special Forces troops.
Their main aim was to support the Meo tribesmen of Laos (recruited by CIA with funds coming from the export of Opium through CIA European contacts, mostly Corsican Mafia resident in Laos since the French Indochine war). The secrecy of their missions in Laos involved the flying of CIA and Meo operatives and the importation of Supplies for the conduct of the clandestine war.
They were also required to remove large quantities of supplies, marked highly classified and Top Secret to bases in Thailand for onward transportation to European contacts.
The 56th, Ravens never numbered more than 20 operative Pilots at any given time.
 
The Raven
By Edgar Allan Poe
Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore--
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
“’Tis some visitor,” I muttered, “tapping at my chamber door--
Only this and nothing more.”
 
Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December;
And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor.
Eagerly I wished the morrow;—vainly I had sought to borrow
From my books surcease of sorrow—sorrow for the lost Lenore--
For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore--
Nameless here for evermore.
 
And the silken, sad, uncertain rustling of each purple curtain
Thrilled me—filled me with fantastic terrors never felt before;
So that now, to still the beating of my heart, I stood repeating
“’Tis some visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door--
Some late visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door;--
This it is and nothing more.”
 
Presently my soul grew stronger; hesitating then no longer,
“Sir,” said I, “or Madam, truly your forgiveness I implore;
But the fact is I was napping, and so gently you came rapping,
And so faintly you came tapping, tapping at my chamber door,
That I scarce was sure I heard you”—here I opened wide the door;--
Darkness there and nothing more.
 
Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there wondering, fearing,
Doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before;
But the silence was unbroken, and the stillness gave no token
And the only word there spoken was the whispered word, “Lenore?”
This I whispered, and an echo murmured back the word, “Lenore!”--
Merely this and nothing more.
 
Back into the chamber turning, all my soul within me burning,
Soon again I heard a tapping somewhat louder than before.
“Surely,” said I, “surely that is something at my window lattice;
Let me see, then, what thereat is, and this mystery explore--
Let my heart be still a moment and this mystery explore;--
’Tis the wind and nothing more!”
 
Open here I flung the shutter, when, with many a flirt and flutter,
In there stepped a stately Raven of the saintly days of yore;
Not the least obeisance made he; not a minute stopped or stayed he;
But, with mien of lord or lady, perched above my chamber door--
Perched upon a bust of Pallas just above my chamber door--
Perched, and sat, and nothing more.
 
Then this ebony bird beguiling my sad fancy into smiling,
By the grave and stern decorum of the countenance it wore,
“Though thy crest be shorn and shaven, thou,” I said, “art sure no craven,
Ghastly grim and ancient Raven wandering from the Nightly shore--
Tell me what thy lordly name is on the Night’s Plutonian shore!”
Quoth the Raven “Nevermore.”
 
Much I marvelled this ungainly fowl to hear discourse so plainly,
Though its answer little meaning—little relevancy bore;
For we cannot help agreeing that no living human being
Ever yet was blessed with seeing bird above his chamber door--
Bird or beast upon the sculptured bust above his chamber door,
With such name as “Nevermore.”
 
But the Raven, sitting lonely on the placid bust, spoke only
That one word, as if his soul in that one word he did outpour.
Nothing farther then he uttered—not a feather then he fluttered--
Till I scarcely more than muttered “Other friends have flown before--
On the morrow he will leave me, as my Hopes have flown before.”
Then the bird said “Nevermore.”
 
Startled at the stillness broken by reply so aptly spoken,
“Doubtless,” said I, “what it utters is its only stock and store
Caught from some unhappy master whom unmerciful Disaster
Followed fast and followed faster till his songs one burden bore--
Till the dirges of his Hope that melancholy burden bore
Of ‘Never—nevermore’.”
 
But the Raven still beguiling all my fancy into smiling,
Straight I wheeled a cushioned seat in front of bird, and bust and door;
Then, upon the velvet sinking, I betook myself to linking
Fancy unto fancy, thinking what this ominous bird of yore--
What this grim, ungainly, ghastly, gaunt, and ominous bird of yore
Meant in croaking “Nevermore.”
 
This I sat engaged in guessing, but no syllable expressing
To the fowl whose fiery eyes now burned into my bosom’s core;
This and more I sat divining, with my head at ease reclining
On the cushion’s velvet lining that the lamp-light gloated o’er,
But whose velvet-violet lining with the lamp-light gloating o’er,
She shall press, ah, nevermore!
 
Then, methought, the air grew denser, perfumed from an unseen censer
Swung by Seraphim whose foot-falls tinkled on the tufted floor.
 “Wretch,” I cried, “thy God hath lent thee—by these angels he hath sent thee
Respite—respite and nepenthe from thy memories of Lenore;
Quaff, oh quaff this kind nepenthe and forget this lost Lenore!”
Quoth the Raven “Nevermore.”
 
 “Prophet!” said I, “thing of evil!—prophet still, if bird or devil!--
Whether Tempter sent, or whether tempest tossed thee here ashore,
Desolate yet all undaunted, on this desert land enchanted--
On this home by Horror haunted—tell me truly, I implore--
Is there—is there balm in Gilead?—tell me—tell me, I implore!”
Quoth the Raven “Nevermore.”
 
 “Prophet!” said I, “thing of evil!—prophet still, if bird or devil!
By that Heaven that bends above us—by that God we both adore--
Tell this soul with sorrow laden if, within the distant Aidenn,
It shall clasp a sainted maiden whom the angels name Lenore--
Clasp a rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore.”
Quoth the Raven “Nevermore.”
 
 “Be that word our sign of parting, bird or fiend!” I shrieked, upstarting--
“Get thee back into the tempest and the Night’s Plutonian shore!
Leave no black plume as a token of that lie thy soul hath spoken!
Leave my loneliness unbroken!—quit the bust above my door!
Take thy beak from out my heart, and take thy form from off my door!”
Quoth the Raven “Nevermore.”
 
And the Raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting
On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;
And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon’s that is dreaming,
And the lamp-light o’er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor;
And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor
Shall be lifted—nevermore!
 
Phan Rang – Air Base / Combat Base
Phan Rang Air Base (also called Thành Sơn Air Base) is a Vietnam People's Air Force (VPAF) (Khong Quan Nhan Dan Viet Nam) military airfield in Vietnam. It is located 5.2 miles (8.4 km) north-northwest of Phan Rang – Tháp Chàm in Ninh Thuận Province.
Initially built by Australian POW’s imprisoned by the Imperial Japanese Army about 1942, the airfield was also used by the French Air Force (French: Armée de l'Air) during the First Indochina War then abandoned in 1954.
The United States rebuilt the airfield in 1965 and it was used by the Republic of Vietnam Air Force (VNAF) and the United States Air Force during the Vietnam War in the II Corps Tactical Zone of South Vietnam.
It was seized by the Vietnam People's Army in April 1975 and has been in use by the Vietnam People's Air Force (VPAF) ever since.
 
Long An Province – Tan An
Tân An was the headquarters of the 9th Infantry Division during the Vietnam War.
There was an army base associated with the 9th Division in one part of town and Tân An air base on the other side of town that supported 9th Infantry helicopters and could land medium-sized prop planes.
The USSF base camp at Tân An was turned over to the South Vietnamese Army when the 9th division left in 1970.
The 9th Division was the first infantry division to leave.
 
101st Airborne Division - DOG HANDLER PATCH
42nd Scout Dog Platoon
 
101st Airborne Division 42nd SCOUT DOG Platoon (German Shepherds and Dog handlers - Utilised for the tracking of captured POW's, tracking of Enemy in retreat from battle and the search location of enemy location including tunnel entrances and jungle compounds, forward Recon of advancing units.
 
Based at Gia Le, in-country from 1966 through 1971.
 
MOBILE STRIKE FORCE (MIKE FORCE) - BLACK JACK 21 – Blackjack 31
 
Officially set up in 1965 Mike Force was originally called the ' Mobile Guerrilla Force' due to the nature of the actions performed by this group in conjunction with the Nung Tribesmen since early 1964.
Headquartered at Nha Trang, Mike Force had the selection of the best of the Indigenous forces available including tribesmen of the Rhade, Raglia, Koho, Nung and Cham with the entire contingent of both the Nung and Rhade rated as 'Superb' in their jungle fighting skills and all airborne qualified.
The standards of the other tribesmen allocated/chosen to fight with Mike Force was well above that of the normal Indigenous combatant.
In total, approximately 40% of the indigenous combatants were Special Forces trained and qualified. (totalling over 1,000 men at Nha Trang alone).
Unusually, the area of operation of the 5th Mike Force at Nha Trang was 'Vietnam' and not restricted to operations in any particular zone.
 
 
Used for re-inforcement of indigenous positions the Mobile Strike Force (Reaction Force) was also used for Recon Ambush, Recon and Combat, Rapid Insertion, Jungle Tracking and Neutralization and were capable of operating in areas considered as VC / NVA Strongholds for period of more than 60 days without re-supply or contact if necessary.
BLACKJACK 21
Developed as a theory of operation and first put into action in November 1966, 'Blackjack' saw considerable success during it's five years of operation until 1971.
Further to intelligence provided by Recon teams on long insertion missions a 3 to 4 man Recon Team would be sent to survey an area followed shortly by a 150 Man 'Mobile Guerrilla Force' (MGF) made up of Mike Force Trained Indigenous Soldiers commanded by a US Special Force Command Group.
The first such Blackjack operation was 'Operation BLACKJACK 21' in Kontum province in October / November 1966.
Having been air-dropped into the Plei Trap Valley on the 13th of October the entire action force was eventually airlifted out of the area. Having run into 3 NVA on bicycles (who were killed ) the force shortly afterwards came under intense fire from a large enemy force and spent four days attempting to prevent itself from been surrounded.
Enemy casualties (apart from the three cyclist) are unknown, no allied wounded or KIA. They were airlifted out on the 9th of November.
Not deemed a disaster (in fact having returned with a full contingent of personnel after almost a month in the field it was considered a considerable success) and in mid 1967 the Mobile Guerrilla Force was integrated into and came under the command of the Mobile Strike Force.
Blackjack 21 was followed by Blackjack 22 and later Blackjack 31.
 
Spooky Gunship – AC-47
The Douglas AC-47 Spooky (also nicknamed "Puff, the Magic Dragon") was the first in a series of gunships developed by the United States Air Force during the Vietnam War.
It was designed to provide more firepower than light and medium ground-attack aircraft in certain situations when ground forces called for close air support.
The AC-47 was a United States Air Force C-47, (the military version of the DC-3) that had been modified by mounting three 7.62 mm General Electric miniguns to fire through two rear window openings and the side cargo door, all on the left (pilot's) side of the aircraft, to provide close air support for ground troops.
Other armament configurations could also be found on similar C-47-based aircraft around the world.
The guns were actuated by a control on the pilot's yoke whereby he could control the guns either individually or together, although gunners were also among the crew to assist with gun failures and similar issues.
It could orbit the target for hours, providing suppressing fire over an elliptical area approximately 52 yards (47.5 m) in diameter, placing a round every 2.4 yards (2.2 m) during a three-second burst.
The aircraft also carried flares it could drop to illuminate the battleground.
 
Classified, Covert Operations
1st SOS / 20th / 21st SOS
 
The 1st SOS along with the 20th SOS and 21st SOS were responsible for the transport of personnel and equipment into war zones throughout Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam (North and South) from the time of their arrival in South East Asia in 1965.
 
In the earlier days of the war their cargo were essentially CIA personnel and their agents who would later infiltrate into North Vietnam via Laos.
 
The dropping of indigenous agents into Laos and North Vietnam however had effectively ceased by mid to late 1968 as the numbers caught (or surrendering with valuable information) within days of their drop by far outweighed the number that remained free to the point where the exercise was almost pointless.
 
Also utilised for the support and transport of US Special Forces RECON Teams into areas where they could locate POW's and damage supply routes of the Ho Chi Minh Trail.
 
Although the Project name, PONY EXPRESS highlights the use of the assigned units as been a Transport Unit the actuality of their mission was considerably different with the 1st, 20th and 21st SOS been engaged in combat activity on more than 80% of their assigned missions either on the way to dropping off cargo, on LZ or the return to base as well as missions in which they themselves were active (including the Son Tay raid).
 
All Pony Express Units were deactivated in 1972.
 
Geronimos - 1st Battalion, 501st Parachute Infantry – Apache Scouts.
Part of the 101st Airborne Division.
The 1st / 501st / 101st Airborne arrived in Vietnam during the Pre Tet Offensive attacks of December 1967.
Initially stationed at Cu Chi, west of Saigon city they moved to Hue in January of 1968 and later also fought at Quang Tri City.
They were to remain in Vietnam until January of 1972 – Serving their full time with the 101st Airborne they variously based themselves also at Bien Hoa (north of Saigon) and Phu Bai (Hue City).
Full Battalion Strength of over 900 operatives.
 
Panthers – 505th Infantry – Airborne Infantry – 82nd Airborne Division.
Arrived in Vietnam at the height of the Tet Offensive the 505th were immediately deployed to the Battle of Hue Citadel.
From the 24th of February 1968 through to August of 1968 they operated in and around Hue and the Airborne base of Phu Bai.
In September 1968 they deployed to the Defense of Saigon.
As part of the Home Guard out of Fort Bragg the Panthers returned to the United States on the 11th of December 1969.
 
 
SE VANG - SOLDIER of GLORY - NLF VC MEDAL - Vietnam War
ORDER OF THE SOLDIER OF GLORY
 
Viet Cong - Vietnam War Medal - Chien Si Ve-Vang
National Liberation Front - Viet Cong
Established at the beginning of the Vietnam War and first awarded in late 1961 to previous combatants of the Viet Minh this award continued to be awarded through till the end of the Vietnam (American) War.
Presented to members of the Communist Forces. The minimum requirement been continuous service of 5 years in combat service in the fight for liberation.
 
VIET CONG MEDAL - MILITARY EXPLOIT ORDER - Combat Operations - Vietnam War
Awarded to both individuals and units it is one of the original of the Vietnamese Communist decorations established in 1947.
Inscribed, Huan Chuong Quan Cong – Order of Military Achievement – This medal was awarded for ‘Outstanding Performance / Achievement in Combat’.
Original Lightweight piece – Non Magnetic.
 
Dai Doan 320 - 320th Division – Vietnam Communist Army (Vietnam).
The 320th Division or Đồng Bằng Division (Vietnamese: Sư đoàn Đồng Bằng, Delta Division) is a formation and one of the six original "Steel and Iron Divisions" of the Vietnam People's Army. It was established in January 1951.
 
Indochina War
Regiment 48 of the 320th was stationed at Điện Biên Phủ when the French launched Operation Castor, however after some small skirmishes the Viet Minh abandoned the valley rather than engaging the French paratroops.
In late December 1953 General Giáp ordered the 320th Division to infiltrate into the Red River Delta and assist Viet Minh local regiments to increase the pressure on the French in this region while he concentrated his forces for the Battle of Dien Bien Phu.
Vietnam War
On 23 August 1965, the VPA General Staff ordered the division to split into 320th-A Division and 320th-B Division.
Later in 1967, 320th-A (later renamed the 320th) moved to fight in the front in South Vietnam while 320th-B (later renamed the 390th) remained in Hanoi and became a training division.
 
On 1 November 1967, the US Marines launched Operation Kentucky as part of the continuing operations to secure the DMZ around Con Thien.
The operation concluded on 28 February 1969, the 320th and 324th Division lost a total of 3839 killed and 117 captured while the Marines lost 520 killed and 2698 wounded.
 
Tet Offensive and the Battle of Khe Sanh
The 320th played a supporting role in the Battle of Khe Sanh, largely tasked with keeping Route 9 from Ca Lu to the Khe Sanh Combat Base closed.
On 24 January 1968 elements of the 320th ambushed a Marine "Rough Rider" convoy between Dong Ha and Camp Carroll and then ambushed the relief force from the 2nd Battalion 9th Marines killing 9 Marines.
The subsequent Marine clearing operation, including the "Battle of Mike's Hill", lasted until 29 January and resulted in 21 Marines killed and 130 NVA killed and 6 taken prisoner.
In early March 1968 following an action at Mai Xa Thi, prisoners revealed that the 320th was moving into the Cua Viet region to replace the 803rd Regiment which was moving further south into Thua Thien Province.
On 29 April the 320th attacked An Binh, north of Đông Hà, this drew two Battalions of the ARVN 2nd Regiment into a running battle and the 1st Battalion 9th Marines was sent into support the ARVN resulting in a 7 hour long battle that left 11 Marines, 17 ARVN and over 150 NVA dead.
The following day the 3rd Battalion 9th Marines arrived to support the Marine/ARVN force and was ambushed north of Cam Vu, 20 Marines and 41 NVA were killed. Also on 30 April, an NVA unit opened fire on a US Navy Clearwater patrol from entrenched positions near Dai Do, 2.5 km northeast of Đông Hà.
It was later discovered that four NVA Battalions including the 48th and 56th from the 320th had established themselves at Dai Do.
The battle at Dai Do lasted until 3 May and resulted in 81 Marines and over 600 NVA killed.
The NVA engaged US and ARVN forces elsewhere around Đông Hà from 4–6 April, on the evening of 6 April the 2nd Brigade 1st Cavalry Division was deployed into Tru Kinh and on 9 April was ambushed by an NVA force resulting in 16 Army dead for the loss of 80 NVA.
On 10 April a night attack north of Nhi Ha was broken up by air, artillery and naval support, 159 NVA were killed.
After this the 320th had broken into small groups and was moving back towards the DMZ, from 9–17 May the 2nd Brigade reported killing 349 NVA for the loss of 28 killed.
 
While it seemed that the 320th had abandoned their attempts to take Đông Hà this was just a temporary lull.
On 22 May a unit from the 320th ran into a Company from 3rd Battalion 3rd Marines between Con Thien and Gio Linh and was caught in the open by Marine artillery and air support.
East of Con Thien the 1st Battalion 4th Marines encountered another NVA unit setting off a two-day battle as the NVA tried to escape back through the DMZ resulting in 23 Marines and 225 NVA killed.
On 25 May in actions at Dai Do and Nhi Ha 350 NVA were killed.
In two actions at Tru Kinh on 26 May over 56 NVA were killed for the loss of 10 Marines, while the ARVN killed 110 NVA north of Thuong Nghia.
On 27 April the Marines killed 28 NVA and by 30 May the 320th was attempting to escape through the Marine and ARVN cordon.
Total NVA losses in the second Battle of Đông Hà were over 1000 killed.
 
On 12 August 1968, a deserter from the 64th Regiment revealed that the 320th had once again crossed the DMZ and was moving to positions near Cam Lo.
In response to this the 3rd Marines deployed north of the Cam Lo River on 13 August and engaged the 8th Battalion of the 64th Regiment, killing 43.
The operation continued until 26 October resulting in over 1500 NVA killed for the loss of less than 200 Marines.
 
Lam Son – Laos 1971
In 1971, the 320th, together with the 304th and 308th Divisions formed part of the VPA B-70 Corps based in southern Laos.
The 320th remains part of the Peoples Army of Vietnam (PAVN), Army Group 3.
 
Battle of Ap Bac- 2nd of January 1963
1963 - Vietnam War Flag.
 
The Battle of AP BAC:
‘It was a miserable…performance,’ Vann raged to Sheehan. ‘These people won’t listen. They make the same…mistakes over and over again in the same way.’
Lt. Colonel – US Special Forces –  John Paul Vann
One of the First Major Battles of the Vietnam War, the Battle of AP BAC took place on the 2nd of January 1963 at the Hamlet of Bac in the Mekong Delta.
The Battle of Ap Bac was the first major victory by the Viet Cong over joint South Vietnamese and US Forces. Commanders: Viet Cong, Hai Hoang - South Vietnamese, Bui Dinh Dam - US, John Paul Vann.
At about 7am on the morning of the 2nd of January 1963 (The battle ended mid afternoon), 1400 joint South Vietnamese and US Forces supported by Army Personnel Carriers, Helicopters and Artillery were attacked by a Viet Cong force of approximately 350 Men & Women, less than one third the size of the Allied forces the VC controlled the battle throughout the day downing 5 helicopters, killing 80 South Vietnamese and 3 US Advisors.
NB. Original Allied information on this battle indicated that the ARVN had, unbeknown to the VC Force, located and surrounded them – However, prior to his death in 2006, Vietnamese journalist Pham Xuan An, who had access to MACV briefings (was also a Viet Cong Spy and worked with Time magazine) disclosed that information that Ap Bac was actually an ambush designed around information he provided and the ARVN were in fact lured into the battle.
 
Ho Chi Minh
Hồ Chí Minh - 19 May 1890 – 2 September 1969), born Nguyễn Sinh Cung, also known as Nguyễn Tất Thành and Nguyễn Ái Quốc, was the Vietnamese Communist revolutionary leader who was Chairman and First Secretary of the Workers' Party of Vietnam.
Hồ was also Prime Minister (1945–55) and President (1945–69) of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam).
He was a key figure in the foundation of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam in 1945, as well as the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) and the Việt Cộng (NLF or VC) during the Vietnam War.
 
Hồ Chí Minh led the Việt Minh independence movement from 1941 onward, establishing the Communist-ruled Democratic Republic of Vietnam in 1945 and defeating the French Union in 1954 at the battle of Điện Biên Phủ.
He officially stepped down from power in 1965 due to health problems. After the war, Saigon, the former capital of the Republic of Vietnam, was renamed Hồ Chí Minh City.
Any description of Ho's life before he came to power in Vietnam is necessarily fraught with ambiguity. He is known to have used at least 50 and perhaps as many as 200 pseudonyms.
His place of birth and date of birth are products of academic consensus since neither is known with certainty.
 
Huy Chuong Chien Sy Ve Vang- Viet Cong Medal
Glorious Warrior Soldier
The Meritorious Soldier Medal is a medal of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (now the State of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam), established under the Ordinance of September 12, 1961 of the Regular Committee, National Assembly and promulgated under the Decree No. 52 / CT of September 16, 1961 of the President of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam.
According to the Law on Emulation and Reward (issued on 26 November 2003), the Meritorious Soldier Medal was changed to Glorious Soldier Medal.
 
The Glorious Warrior Soldier Medal is awarded or posthumously awarded to soldiers who have contributed to the building of the Vietnam People's Army since the French Resistance War (after July 20, 1954).
The medal comes in three orders and is recognised by the stripes on the ribbon.
1 Stripe – Continuous Service of 5 Years or more
2 Stripes – Continuous Service of 10 Years or more
3 Stripes – Continuous Service of 15 Years or more.
Soldiers sacrificed in combat or posthumous work rose to the rank of Meritorious Soldier Medal compared to the standard achieved before sacrifice.
Medal Description.
Golden yellow five-pointed star, in the middle is the flag of victory, surrounded by the words "glorious fighters" (In Vietnamese). The outer diameter of the star is 47mm, the copper material is gold-plated with 3 microns thick Nico.
Ribbon Description.
Rayon silk medallion pentagonal weave red flag, yellow line (classification by the line), gold-plated copper alloy Nico 3 micron thick; size 38mm x 27mm x 40mm.
 
Ho Chi Minh Campaign.
During the first week of April 1975 the North Vietnam Army deployed 18 divisions with over 300,000 men to the ongoing battle in South Vietnam.
The Offensive was so ferocious that the South Vietnam Army (ARVN) collapsed before it.
The Ho Chi Minh Campaign concluded on the 30th of April 1975 when T-54 Tanks smashed through the gates of the Presidential Palace in Saigon. The second Vietnam War, The American War, had ended.
 
11th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron. FIS
The 11th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the 343d Fighter Group at Duluth Airport, Minnesota, where it was inactivated on 30 June 1968.
 
318th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron
The 318th Fighter Interceptor Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with 25th Air Division based at McChord AFB, Washington. The squadron was inactivated on 7 December 1989.
On 22 March 1968 the 318th FIS deployed to Osan AB, Republic of Korea from McChord AFB, WA to provide air defense following the 26 January 1968 North Korea seizure of the USS Pueblo.
This marked the first time in history that Aerospace Defense Command F-106 fighter interceptors had flown to a critical overseas area, using in-flight refueling along with tactical air units.
It returned to the United States after the Pueblo Crisis ended, and flew F-106s throughout the 1970s. The 318th converted to F-15 Eagles in 1983.
 
 
 
Shoulder Patch - Airborne Recon
5th Special Forces
 
US Special Forces
 
 
 
Recon Team Anaconda
RT Anaconda was the first of the Recon Team's in Vietnam not named after a US state.
Formed by MACV - Special Operations Group, RT Anaconda comprised of three US Special Forces personnel and nine Nung Tribesmen. The Nung tribesmen, native of North Vietnam were considered 'Superb' in their fighting capabilities and members of the RT Ananconda were all Special Forces Trained (and Airborne Trained) and entitled to wear the Green beret of the US Special Forces.
RT Anaconda was one of the few Recon Teams that constantly changed its' patch design.
The Nung were originally supporters of the Viet Minh during the French Indochine War however were anti-communist and found themselves fighting on the side of the South and United States in the second Vietnam war.
The member of the Nung that manned RT Ananconda out of Khe Sanh were the elite of their Civilian Irregular Defense Groups (CIDG).
 
VMA 225 – Skyhawks – Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 225 – All Weather Attack.
 
In the early 1960s the squadron had been trained for "special weapons" delivery.
This meant they were certified to deliver nuclear weapons. On June 1, 1965, Skyhawks from VMA-225 were the first tactical fixed-wing aircraft to land at Chu Lai Air Base for participation in combat operations against Viet Cong forces in South Vietnam.
Several hours after landing, Lieutenant Colonel Robert W. Baker, VMA-225 Commanding Officer, lead the first combat mission from the base striking the enemy six miles to the north.
 
VMA-225 returned to MCAS Cherry Point in October 1965.
In April 1966 the Grumman built A-6 Intruder replaced the A-4 Skyhawk as the squadron's combat ready aircraft.
With the advent of the Intruder and it’s all weather capability, the squadron was redesignated VMA(AW)-225.
While stationed at MCAS Cherry Point, VMA(AW)-225 provided air support for units of the 2nd Marine Division, Fleet Marine Force, Atlantic.
The squadron also deployed several times to MCAS Yuma, Arizona, for live weapons training.
In January 1969, VMA(AW)-225 deployed to Da Nang Air Base, Vietnam.
The primary mission of Marine All Weather Attack Squadron 225 was to provide close air support and direct air support for ground elements for allied forces in the I Corp area of South Vietnam.
The squadron attacked and destroyed surface targets day and night, and in all weather conditions.
A secondary mission was to utilize the Intruder's unique search radar Airborne Moving Target Indicator (AMTI) features in the interdiction of trucks on the Ho Chi Minh Trail in Southeast Asia.
During May 1971, VMA(AW)-225 returned to MCAS El Toro, California, and the squadron was deactivated on June 15, 1972
 
119th Assault Helicopter Company – Gators and Crocodiles.
Formed in Vietnam on the 25th of June 1963 – Based at Pleiku. The 119th were formed from the assets of the 81st Transport Company (Light Helicopter), previously from Hawaii and based at Pleiku since the 17th of September 1962.
Original strength of 200 operatives (from the 81st Transport).
The 119th developed both Air Attack and Airmobile units – Maximum strength of 288 operatives at their peak in 1970.
Stood down (deactivated) at Pleiku on the 14th of December 1970.
 
Batmen – Marine All Weather Attack Squadron 242 – VMA (AW) 242.
In late 1966, VMA(AW)-242 joined the 1st MAW at Da Nang Air Base, Republic of Vietnam and by November of that year, was participating in combat operations against the Viet Cong and the People's Army of Vietnam.
Initially the squadron supported allied ground forces, but during April 1967, they were also assigned to the first of many Operation Rolling Thunder missions over North Vietnam.
The squadron, utilizing the unique capabilities of the A-6, flew patrols over North Vietnam until the bombing halt late in 1968.
Until the squadron’s departure from Vietnam in late April 1971, the squadron continued supporting allied forces in South Vietnam, as well as flying sorties against the Ho Chi Minh Trail in North Vietnam and central Laos.
During the squadron’s tour in the Republic of Vietnam, VMA(AW)-242 logged 16,783 combat sorties and delivered 85,990 tons of ordnance. During the war, the squadron was known as the Batmen.
At some date after the war this was modified to the Bats.
 
Duc Lap – US Special Forces – Combat Base / Camp.
Duc Lap Camp (also known as Duc Lap Special Forces Camp or Hill 722) was a U.S. Army, US Special Forces and Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) base southwest of Buôn Ma Thuột in the Central Highlands of Vietnam.
The 5th Special Forces Group Detachment A-239 first established a base here in October 1966.
The base was located 67 km southwest of Buôn Ma Thuột and approximately 14 km from the Cambodian border.
 
In August 1968, the base was manned by US Special Forces, 3 members of the 403rd Radio Research Special Operations Detachment, 11 ARVN special forces and over 600 CIDG troops.
From 23–25 August 1968 the NVA attempted to overrun the base.
The assault was defeated at a cost of 6 U.S., 1 ARVN, 37 CIDG, 20 civilians and over 303 NVA killed.
The 20th Special Operations Squadron used Duc Lap as a forward base for operations into Cambodia.
In October 1969 the NVA again besieged Duc Lap and Bu Prang Camp, with the siege only being broken by the ARVN in December.
In December 1970 the base was transferred to the Vietnamese Rangers.
 
BUCKANEERS – USS BUCK – US NAVY – DD 761
Korean War.
Late in 1950, as a unit of Destroyer Division 71, the USS Buck joined the United Nations Forces in Korea.
While there she suffered considerable damage in a collision with the destroyer John W. Thomason.
Buck was ordered back to the west coast after temporary repairs at Sasebo, Japan.
Between January and March 1951 she underwent repairs at Bremerton, Washington, and then returned to Korean waters arriving 30 April 1951.
She operated with United Nations Forces until July when she returned to the west coast.
In January 1952 Buck, with Destroyer Division 71, departed for another tour in the Western Pacific.
She operated with the shore bombardment forces and with the fast carrier task force until returning to San Diego 11 July 1952.
On her sixth Far Eastern tour, between February and September 1953, she operated with TF's 72, 77 (Tonkin Gulf), 95, 96, and 97 off Korea until the Armistice was declared.
Buck continued operations along the western seaboard and completed at least three more Far Eastern cruises.
Buck received six battle stars for her Korean service.
Vietnam War.
The USS Buck (DD 761) Operated as part of the US 7th Fleet n the Tonkin Gulf and as part of Operation Market-time until she was deactivated in July of 1973 and sold to the Brazilian Navy.
 
HMM 161 – Helicopter Marine Medium 161
HMM-161 deployed in May 1965 to Phu Bai Combat Base (Hue), Republic of Vietnam and attached to MAG-16, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing.
It then relocated in January 1966 to Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Okinawa to receive its new Vertol CH-46 Sea Knight.
By April 1966, the Greyhawks had redeployed to Da Nang, with a move to Phu Bai that June.
On September 25, 1966 a UH-34D HUS from HMM-161 was struck by a friendly artillery shell while conducting a medevac mission during Operation Prairie resulting in the death all five Marines on board.
It is the only known case of friendly artillery fire shooting down an American helicopter during the war.
The squadron relocated once again in November 1966 to Futenma, Okinawa, where it was attached to Marine Aircraft Group 15 (MAG-15), 9th Marine Amphibious Brigade.
A month later the Greyhawks returned to CONUS, as they were attached to Marine Aircraft Group 26 (MAG-26), 2d MAW at Marine Corps Air Station New River, North Carolina.
HMM-161 then redeployed in May 1968 to Quảng Trị Combat Base, Republic of Vietnam and attached to provisional Marine Aircraft Group 39 (MAG-39), 1st MAW.
The Squadron finished its Vietnam years with its final deployment to Phu Bai in October 1969 while attached to MAG-16, 1st MAW.
HMM-161 came home in September 1970 and attached to MAG-56, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, Fleet Marine Force Pacific.
It was reassigned in July 1971 to MAG-16, 3d MAW.
 
National Emulation Fighter - Chiến sĩ thi đua Ngành Tài Chính.
First issue – October 2017.
The title of "National Emulation Fighter" is awarded to individuals with outstanding achievements, among individuals who have won the title of emulation fighter.
The titles of emulation fighter at ministerial, provincial, central and provincial levels shall be considered and conferred on individuals with outstanding achievements.
 
MARS – Military Affiliate Radio Systems.
During the Vietnam War a small number of Marines, all licensed ham radio operators were given civilian amateur radio equipment and told to use their ham radio skills to run phone patches, or telephone calls home for their fellow Marines.
The operation was called the Military Affiliate Radio System. Most of the operators lived in their radio stations.
They had their own chain of command, as no other Marine Corps unit wanted anything to do with them, they seldom wore rank insignia, went by only first names (even on the radio) and answered only to other MARS personnel.
Their counterparts in the United States placed collect telephone calls to the families and friends of the Marines in the field and patched the calls through on frequencies near the ham bands.
Sometimes, when the signals became too weak to be 'phone patch quality', they sent and received written messages for the troops in the form of MARSGRAMS by 'CW', or Morse Code.
 
704th Military Intelligence
704th Military Intelligence battalion / Detachment
Previously the 704th Counter Intelligence Corps Detachment, this unit was deactivated in March 1955 whilst conducting service in Korea.
The inactive unit was designated on the 28 December 1961 as the 704th Intelligence Corps Detachment.
Activated 25 January 1962 in Vietnam.
Inactivated 7 March 1966 in Vietnam. Operated Aerial Surveillance, Ground Recon, never gained anywhere near battalion strength.
 
Lockheed - C-130E – Hercules.
The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is a four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built originally by Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin).
Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 was originally designed as a troop, medevac, and cargo transport aircraft.
The versatile airframe has found uses in a variety of other roles, including as a gunship (AC-130), for airborne assault, search and rescue, scientific research support, weather reconnaissance, aerial refueling, maritime patrol, and aerial firefighting. It is now the main tactical airlifter for many military forces worldwide. Over forty variants and versions of the Hercules, including a civilian one marketed as the Lockheed L-100, operate in more than 60 nations.
 
The C-130 entered service with the U.S. in the 1950s, followed by Australia and others.
During its years of service, the Hercules family has participated in numerous military, civilian and humanitarian aid operations.
The extended-range C-130E model entered service in 1962 after it was developed as an interim long-range transport for the Military Air Transport Service.
Essentially a B-model, the new designation was the result of the installation of 1,360 US gal (5,150 L) Sargent Fletcher external fuel tanks under each wing's midsection and more powerful Allison T56-A-7A turboprops.
The hydraulic boost pressure to the ailerons was reduced back to 2,050 psi (14.1 MPa) as a consequence of the external tanks' weight in the middle of the wingspan.
The E model also featured structural improvements, avionics upgrades and a higher gross weight. Australia took delivery of 12 C130E Hercules during 1966–67 to supplement the 12 C-130A models already in service with the RAAF.
 
Dau Tieng Base Camp.
Dầu Tiếng Base Camp (also known as LZ Dầu Tiếng or Camp Rainier) is a former U.S. Army and Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) base in the Dầu Tiếng District in Bình Dương Province in southern Vietnam.
US Special Forces and CIA operatives used the base as it had a facility for a runway and was essential to the operations on the Cambodian border.
A US / RVN Army base base was established in October 1966. At different times it housed elements of the US 1st and 25th Infantry Division.
The camp was located in the Dầu Tiếng District, 60 km northwest of Tan Son Nhut Air Base (Saigon) and 24 km east of Tây Ninh between the Saigon River and the Michelin Rubber Plantation.
On 4 July 1968 the base was subjected to a heavy People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) rocket and mortar attack followed by probes on the base perimeter resulting in 5 U.S. and 16 PAVN killed.
On 23 February 1969 the base was attacked by PAVN sappers. SSGT Robert W. Hartsock would be posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during the attack. 21 U.S. and 73 PAVN were killed in the attack.
Today, part of the base appears to remain in use by the PAVN. The airfield is no longer used but remains visible on satellite images.
 
503rd Infantry Regiment (Airborne Infantry) – The Rock.
The 1st and 2nd battalions of the 503rd Airborne Infantry Regiment arrived in Vietnam out of Okinawa on the 31st of May 1965.
They were followed by the 4th battalion out of Fort Cambpell on the 25th of June 1966 to replace the 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiments role with the 173rd Airborne.
The newly formed 4th Battalion arrived out of Fort Bragg ndson the 23rd of October 1967.
All battalions served with the 173rd Airborne.
The 2nd Battalion has the distinction of being the only airborne infantry battalion to make a Combat Parachute assault of the Vietnam War during operation Junction City (Tay Ninh, 22nd of February 1967).
The 1st Battalion was the first of the 503rd to leave Vietnam on the 27th of April 1971, the 2nd left in July, the 3rd on the 5th of August and the 4th battalion left Vietnam on the 20th of August 1971.
All battalions operated at full strength of approximately 900 operatives.
 
240th AHC – Assault Helicopter Company
Out of Fort Hood - 25th of May 1967 arrival in Vietnam - Based at Bear Cat - 240th Assault Helicopter Company - between 220 and 288 operatives at any given time during stay in Vietnam - Airmobile and Air Assault - Greyhounds and Mad Dogs - Greyhounds Airmobile - Mad Dogs, Attack Helicopter - Departed Vietnam - 26th of December 1971.
 
7th Tactical Fighter Squadron – Screaming Demons
US Air Force - USAF
Phu Cat - Takhli - Linebacker - Linebacker II - F-105 Thunderchief (Thud) - F-4 Phantom II - RF -101
USAF - Voodoo Missions - RF - 101
The Voodoo's career as a fighter-bomber ended in 1966, but the reconnaissance versions remained in service until the 1980's.
Along with the US Air Force's U2 Spyplane and US Navy's RF-Crusaders the RF-101 reconnaissance variant of the Voodoo was instrumental during the Cuban Missile Crisis, however the majority of it's service was during the Vietnam War.
Interceptor versions of the RF-101 served with the Air National Guard until 1982, and in Canadian service they were a front line part of NORAD until their replacement in the 1980s .
 
While the Voodoo was a moderate success, it may have been more important as an evolutionary step towards its replacement in most roles, the F-4 Phantom II.
 
VMFA 312 – Checkboards – Marine All Weather Attack Squadron 312.
During the Vietnam War, the Checkerboards performed the vital mission of training combat aircrews prior to their deployment to Southeast Asia, Phantom Mk II.
In 1973, the squadron received the newer F-4J aircraft, with its much improved radar and avionics, as well as improved aerodynamic design.
 
C-123 – Forward Air Control – Truck Killer – CANDLESTICK - Fairchild C-123
 
Candlestick - Truck Killer
Forward Air Control
 
The first C-123s to reach South Vietnam were part of the USAF's Special Aerial Spray Flight, as part of Operation Ranch Hand (Spraying of Agent Orange ) tasked with defoliating the jungle in order to deny the Viet Cong their traditional hiding places.
 
These aircraft began their operations at the end of 1961.
 
Aircraft fitted with spraying equipment were given the U prefix as a role modifier, with the most common types being the UC-123B and the UC-123K.
Aircraft configured for this use were the last to see military service, in the control of outbreaks of insect-borne disease.
FAC - Candlestick
The "Candlestick" aircraft had an extended life when several UC-123K's were transferred to Nakhon Phanom RTAFB - Thailand . During that period, it was used as a flare ship as well as a (FAC) aircraft.
The flare duties were generally used for troops in contact (TIC) while the FAC mission directed air strikes in Laos over the HCM Trail.
Forward Air Control Unit - Lighting ground for destruction of vehicles and personnel operating along the Ho Chi Minh Trail.
 
336th Assault Helicopter Company
The 336th Assault Helicopter Company deployed to the Republic of Viet Nam as Alpha Company, 101st Aviation Battalion and made their base at Soc Trang.
In September 1966 the 101st Airborne Division relocated north to the I Corps. Tactical Zone. "A" Company relocated north to I Corps. and became known as the 336th Assault Helicopter Company.
The 336th AHC relocated back to Soc Trang and operated there until October 1971 when the Company Stood-Down. They were the last Aviation Unit to leave Soc Trang.
 
Lai Khe Combat Base.
Lai Khê (ấp Lai Khê – xã Lai Hưng, Bến Cát, Bình Dương) (also known as Lai Khê Base) was a Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) and U.S. Army base.
Located along Highway 13 to the northwest of Saigon and about 20 km north of Thủ Dầu Một in southern Vietnam.
During the Vietnam War Lai Khê was a garrison town as the ARVN 5th Division was based there for most of the 1960s/70s.
Lai Khê was also the Headquarters for the U.S. Army's 1st Infantry Division.
Other U.S. Army units based at Lai Khê included:

• 2nd Surgical Hospital (1968-March 1970)
• 2nd Battalion, 5th Cavalry (April–December 1969)
• 5th Battalion, 7th Cavalry (April–December 1969)
• 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment (February 1969)
• 6th Battalion, 15th Artillery (May 1967-July 1968)
• 18th Surgical Hospital (December 1967-February 1968)
• 2nd Battalion, 33rd Artillery (July 1967-April 1970)
• 173rd Aviation Company (March 1972)
• 554th Engineer Battalion (October 1969 – 1971)

Today the base is shared between farmers and the Vietnamese Army.
 
Long Tieng – Laos – The Most Secret Place on Earth.
Long Tieng (also spelled Long Chieng, Long Cheng, or Long Chen) is now an off limits, Laotian military base located in Xiang Khouang Province.
During the Vietnam War, it served as a town and airbase operated by the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States.
During this time, it was also referred to as Lima Site 98 (LS 98) or Lima Site 20A (LS 20A).
At the height of its significance in the late 1960s, the "secret city" of Long Tieng maintained a population of 40,000 inhabitants, making it the second largest city in Laos at the time, although it appeared on few maps throughout this period.
In 1962 the CIA first set up a headquarters for Major General Vang Pao in the Long Tieng valley, which at that time had almost no inhabitants.
By 1964 a 1260m-long runway had been completed and by 1966 Long Tieng was one of the largest US installations on foreign soil, becoming one of the busiest airports in the world.
 
North Vietnamese forces began to threaten Long Tieng in late 1971, and came close enough to start shelling the area on December 31st at 15:30 local time.
In early January, 19,000 North Vietnamese forces launched a four pronged attack on Long Tieng from all four directions, encircling the site, capturing several facilities and positions, and installing antiaircraft batteries.
Despite subsequent claims of victory from communist forces, the 10,000 defenders of Long Tieng, a mixture of Hmong, Thai, and Lao, had not been overrun, and in mid-month reinforcements appeared in the form of CIA-led Thais and 1200 elite irregulars from southern Laos.
After enduring a third to 50% casualties, these forces succeeded in taking back key positions by the end of the month.
Long Tieng was often described as “The Most Secret Place on Earth”.
It was located in a valley at 3,100 feet elevation, high enough to have chilly nights and cold fogs. It was surrounded by mountains and on the northwest side of the runway were karst outcrops several hundred feet high.
In the shadow of the Karst outcrops was “Sky” the CIA headquarters in Long Tieng. Jerry Daniels, a CIA officer codenamed “Hog,” is said to have named Sky after his home state of Montana, known as “Big Sky Country.”
 Long Tieng was protected on three sides by limestone mountains.
“What a place is Long Tieng, Tribal soldiers dressed in military garb standing next to traditionally dressed Hmong, with Thai mercenaries milling about. And the Americans here are mostly CIA operatives with goofy code names like Hog, Mr. Clean, and Junkyard. The town itself is not much. There’s one paved road running through it and tin shacks on either side with eating shops, food stalls, and living quarters.”
USAID officer Jim Schill.
 
On February 22, 1975, the final defensive outpost for Long Tieng was defeated, leading US Brigadier General Heinie Aderholt to begin planning an evacuation.
By May 1975, there were almost 50,000 guerrillas and refugees living in and around the city.
However, by then, the U.S. had withdrawn all its civilian and military personnel from Indochina, except for a few Embassy personnel in Laos and CIA officer Jerry Daniels in Long Tieng.
There were few resources for an evacuation. Daniels had only a single transport aircraft and Hmong pilot in Long Tieng to take evacuees to Udon Thani, Thailand.
Aderholt located three additional American transport aircraft and pilots in Thailand. He had the planes “sheep dipped” to remove all markings identifying them as American-owned and sent them to Long Tieng.
On May 10, 1975, Vang Pao reluctantly followed the CIA's counsel and decided that he could no longer maintain Long Tieng against the opposing forces.
 Between May 10 to May 14, 1975, US C-130s and C-46s airlifted people from the airbase to US bases in Thailand.
Between 1,000 and 3,000 Hmong were evacuated.
Crowds of civilians surrounded the flights on the runways, creating a chaotic atmosphere. Those evacuated were primarily Hmong military leaders and CIA employees.
The evacuation ended with the departure of Major General Vang Pao and Jerry Daniels.
Vang Pao told the people still on the tarmac "Farewell, my brothers, I can do nothing more for you, I would only be a torment for you," as he boarded a helicopter.
Tens of thousands of fighters and refugees were left behind.
The 10,000 or more Hmong clustered around the airfield expected more aircraft to return, but they soon realized that none would come. The shelling of Long Tieng began on the afternoon of May 14.
Many of the Hmong fighters and their families made their way overland to Thailand during the next several years, a dangerous journey that cost many of them their lives
 
 
During the Vietnam War, Long Tieng became the largest Hmong settlement in the world.
General Vang Pao moved to the United States in 1975.
 
USAF PARARESCUE – Para Rescue
Pararescuemen (also known as PJs) are United States Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) and Air Combat Command (ACC) operators tasked with recovery and medical treatment of personnel in humanitarian and combat environments.
These special operations units are also used to support NASA missions and have been used to recover astronauts after water landings. They are attached to other SOF teams from all branches to conduct other operations as appropriate.
The Vietnam War was a pivotal conflict for the Pararescue teams.
The Air Force's scope of operations became so large that demand for Pararescue teams expanded as well.
The use of helicopters caused new tactics utilizing the speed, distance, and support they could provide. Rescue "packages" were created utilizing FACs (Forward Air Controllers), rescue escorts (such as AH-1 Cobras or A-1 Sandys), protective fighter CAP (Combat Air Patrol), HC-130 "King" Hercules for Rescue Mission Coordination and helicopter refueling, and the HH-3 Jolly Green Giant and HH-53 Super Jolly Green Giant helicopters to provide fast rescue for pilots shot down far behind enemy lines.
Pararescue personnel were part of these packages to provide medical assistance for injured aircrew as well as the ability to patrol for missing aircrew that might have been unconscious or dead.
Pararescue team members would be inserted to conduct LSO (Limited Surface Operations) searches while the escorts maintained an aggressive patrol to provide instantaneous support. Sometimes they would be inserted to search for personnel who were being forced to escape and evade; in such cases the mission might last for days.
The Pararescue teams racked up an impressive record; during the conflict only 19 Airmen were awarded the Air Force Cross.
Ten of those were awarded to Pararescuemen.
 
Detachment A-706 (A-106) – Ba To Combat Base
US Special Forces Detachment - Ba To
Mobile Strike Force / MACV-SOG
Tiger Force Rangers - PRU - Mercenary Special Forces
Tiger Force Rangers Detachment A-706
 
Ba To was a US Special Forces, Mike Force Detachment located in I CTZ (1 Corps Military Tactical Zone, Northern South Vietnam, South of DMZ).
The site is officially listed as having been opened in 1964 however CIA Operatives were running Indigenous Mercenaries out of this camp since at least as early as 1962.
November 1965 saw elements of the US Marines, 1st Recon Platoon located the with the US Special Forces detachment.
Having at it's it height more than 500 operatives based at the camp at Ba To (Quang Ngai Province) the camp was handed to the 69th Ranger Battalion (Tiger Force Rangers) in September of 1970 as the US Special Forces pulled out of the area.
Previously known as US Special Forces Detachment A-106, the re-occupying Rangers renamed the camp A-706.
They were to remain at the camp until Mid 1972 when the base was overrun.
 
Recon Team New Mexico – US Special Forces
RT NEW MEXICO
 
Recon Team New Mexico - Dead Man’s Hand - (After the hand of cards held by Wild Bill Hickcock when he was killed playing poker).
 
Recon Team New Mexico was charged with the conduct of non-conventional classified operations out of MACV Command and Control North at Khe Sanh and Da Nang, and specifically the incursion into Laos and Cambodia in pursuit of active VC and Khmer Communist Insurgents.
RT New Mexico, US Special Force, Green Berets, Elite Airborne
 
Phantom – F4-G (Desert Storm)
On 15 August 1990, 24 F-4G Wild Weasel Vs and six RF-4Cs were deployed to Shaikh Isa AB, Bahrain, for Operation Desert Storm.
The F-4G was the only aircraft in the USAF inventory equipped for the Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD) role, and was needed to protect coalition aircraft from Iraq's extensive air defense system.
One F-4G was lost when enemy fire damaged the fuel tanks and the aircraft ran out of fuel near a friendly airbase.
The last USAF Phantoms, F-4G Wild Weasel Vs from 561st Fighter Squadron, were retired on 26 March 1996.
The last operational flight of the F-4G Wild Weasel was from the 190th Fighter Squadron, Idaho Air National Guard, in April 1996.
 
Thuong Binh – Wounded Veterans and Martyrs
In order to direct the work of wounded soldier in the whole country, on February 26, 1947, the Department of War Invalids and Social Affairs was established.
In early July 1947, a campaign was organized to organize the National Day of Martyrs.
At this time, in Ban Co hamlet, Hung Son commune, Dai Tu district, Thai Nguyen province, representatives from the Viet Minh General Secretariat, the Central Vietnam Women's Union, the Central Youth Union, the Vietnamese National Team, the Propaganda Department and some localities attended a meeting organized by the Vietnam National Army Politburo.
 
The content of the meeting was the implementation of Ho Chi Minh's instructions to select martyrs and for the protection of wounded soldiers.
At this meeting, at the request of the political representative of the Vietnam National Army, after considering many aspects, the conference unanimously proposed that the Central Committee dated 27 July 1947 as the day of war invalids and martyrs.
Each year, on the 27th of July, is noted as the National Day of Mankind, Wounded Veterans and Martyrs.
 
Operation Market Time – Task Force 115
Operation Market Time was the United States Navy and South Vietnam’s successful effort begun in 1965 to stop the flow of troops, war material, and supplies by sea, coast, and rivers, from North Vietnam into parts of South Vietnam during the Vietnam War.
Also participating in Operation Market Time were United States Coast Guard Squadron One and Squadron Three.
The Coast Guard provided heavily armed 82-foot (25 m) patrol boats and large cutters that included 5" cannon used in battle and gunfire support.
 
DER's, (Radar Picket Destroyer Escort Ships) based in Pearl Harbor, provided long-term presence at sea offshore to guard against trawler infiltration.
Originally built for WWII convoy duty, and then modified for DEW duty in the North Atlantic, their sea keeping capability made them ideal for long-term presence offshore where they provided support for SWIFT boats, pilot rescue and sampan inspection. There were two or three on station at all times.
Deployments were seven-months duration, with a four- or five-month turn-around in Pearl. When off station, they alternated duty as Taiwan Defense Patrol, with stops in Subic and Sasebo for refit mid-deployment.
Operation Market Time was one of six Navy duties begun after the Tonkin Gulf Incident, along with Operation Sea Dragon, Operation Sealords, Yankee Station, PIRAZ, and naval gunfire support.
DEWS:
The Distant Early Warning Line, also known as the DEW Line or Early Warning Line, was a system of radar stations in the far northern Arctic region of Canada, with additional stations along the North Coast and Aleutian Islands of Alaska, in addition to the Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Iceland. It was set up to detect incoming Soviet bombers during the Cold War, and provide early warning of any sea-and-land invasion.
 
Cessna O-2 Super Skymaster - Suck n Blow
US AIR FORCE - Psy Ops
The term suck and blow came from the noise made by the engine of the Cessna placed behind the pilot.
The Cessna O-2 Super Skymaster was ordered by the U.S. Air Force in 1966 to replace the Cessna O-1 until a purpose-built aircraft could be put into service as a Forward Air Control and light observation aircraft.
Because the Skymaster was a two seater, one crewmember could be freed from piloting the aircraft to concentrate on the difficult mission of Forward Air Control, which included such diverse tasks as marking targets for air strikes, giving strike briefings to incoming attack pilots, and avoiding ground threats.
This made the O-2 ideal for the FAC mission, even if low-and-slow FAC pilots had to wait until the appearance of its successor, the OV-10 Bronco, to be protected by armor plating.
 
Boomer – Boom Operator
In the U.S. Air Force, a boom operator (Boomer) is an aircrew member aboard tanker aircraft who is responsible for safely and effectively refueling other aircraft during flight.
The name boom operator implies that one "operates a boom" which in the case of a tanker is a long extendable metal arm that connects two aircraft for fuel transfer.
Boom operators also control other air refueling equipment such as the refueling hose when using the probe-and-drogue system.
The official Air Force title for boom operators is "In-Flight Refueling Operator" but this title is usually reserved for administrative paperwork such as enlistment contracts and performance reports in reference to the 1A0X1 "In-Flight Refueling" Air Force Specialty Code.
The title "Boom Operator" is most commonly used, often informally shortened to "boomer".
 
Mechanized Panthers – 2nd Battalion, 8th Infantry, 4th Infantry Division.
Arrived in Vietnam on the 10th of August 1966 and was part of the 4th Infantry Division (Poison Ivy) – Was fully Mechanized by May 1967.
Based primarily in the central Highlands, Dak To, Pleiku, Kontum they were full battalion sized with over 900 Operatives.
They departed Vietnam on the 7th of December 1970.
PATHET LAO
The Pathet Lao (Lao: ປະເທດລາວ, "Lao Nation") was a communist political movement and organization in Laos. It was an ally of the North Vietnam Army and the Viet Cong.
 The group was ultimately successful in assuming political power in 1975, after the Laotian Civil War.
The Pathet Lao were always closely associated with Vietnamese communists.
During the civil war, it was effectively organized, equipped and even led by the People's Army of Vietnam.
They fought against the anti-communist forces in the Vietnam War. Eventually, the term became the generic name for Laotian communists.
The political movement of the Pathet Lao was called first the "Lao People's Party" (1955–1972) and later the "Lao People's Revolutionary Party".
The political wing of the Pathet Lao, called the "Lao Patriotic Front" (Lao: Neo Lao Hak Xat) served in multiple coalition governments, starting in 1956.
Through the 1960s and 1970s the Pathet Lao battled the Royal Lao government during the Laotian Civil War, gaining control of the north and east of Laos.
The Pathet Lao gained power throughout the country by the spring of 1975.
In December 1975, the US-backed Vientiane government fell and the Lao People's Revolutionary Party formed a new government.
 
M16 Rifle
The M16 rifle, officially designated Rifle, Caliber 5.56 mm, M16, is a United States military adaptation of the ArmaLite AR-15 rifle.
The original M16 was a selective fire 5.56mm rifle with a 20-round magazine.
In 1964, the M16 entered U.S. military service and the following year was deployed for jungle warfare operations during the Vietnam War.
In 1969, the M16A1 replaced the M14 rifle to become the U.S. military's standard service rifle.
Ammunition
The 5.56×45mm NATO (official NATO nomenclature 5.56 NATO) is a rimless bottlenecked intermediate cartridge family developed in Belgium by FN Herstal.
It is derived from, but is not identical to, the .223 Remington cartridge.
 
Battle of Ben Tre – Tet Offensive 1968
Bến Tre is the capital city of Bến Tre Province, in the Mekong Delta area of southern Vietnam.
Bến Tre is 85 kilometres (53 miles) south-east of Ho Chi Minh City and is connected to the surrounding provinces by the Rạch Miễu Bridge.
Nearly destroyed by Allied bombing, it played a significant role in the Vietnam War.
During the Battle of Ben Tre, Tet Offensive 1968, reports of the assault and resulting civilian casualties called into question the war aims of the United States.
A famous quote from the Vietnam War was a statement attributed to an unnamed U.S. officer by AP correspondent Peter Arnett in his writing about Bến Tre city on 7 February 1968:
'It became necessary to destroy the town to save it', a United States major said today.
He was talking about the decision by allied commanders to bomb and shell the town regardless of civilian casualties, to rout the Viet Cong.
 
US Coast Guard Cutter – North Wind – W-282
Built in 1946, USCGC Northwind (WAG/WAGB-282), The Grand Old Lady of the North, was a Wind-class icebreaker, the second United States Coast Guard Cutter of her class to bear the name.
She was built to replace USCGC Northwind/Staten Island (WAG-278) which was in U.S.S.R. lend-lease service.
 
During her career, Northwind conducted extensive oceanography, hydrography and cartography studies, as well as icebreaking, during Operation Nanook and Operation Highjump.
Northwind was the last Wind-class icebreaker when she was decommissioned in Wilmington, North Carolina on 20 January 1989 after 44 years of service.
 
2nd Signals Group – Tan Son Nhut – Saigon
The 2nd Signals Group arrived in Vietnam out of Fort Bragg on the 3rd of June 1965. 2nd Signals Groups was a HQ Detachment numbering between 100 and 150 operatives at different times during their Vietnam service.
They operated from Davis Station, Tan Son Nhut Air Base, Saigon. (now, Ho Chi Minh City International Airport) until January 1967 and then moved to Long Binh, north of Saigon.
They commanded Signal operations in CTZ III and CTZ IV.
The 26th, 39th, 40th, 41st, 44th, 52nd, 54th, 69th, 86th and 972nd Signal Battalions were under the command of the 2nd Signal Group, Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment (HDD).
They departed Vietnam on the 23rd of October 1971.
 
We Do It Immediately - Nos Statim Agimus - 268th Aviation Battalion.
Out of Fort Hood, 4th of May 1967 - A HQ and HQ Detachment, approximately 110 operatives - Served until 21st of January 1972 before returning to Fort Hood.
Initially stationed at Phu Hiep they moved to Tuy Hoa in September 1970. Provided aviation support for the northern sector of CTZ II.
At varying times commanded the;
48th, 61st, 129th, 134th, 180th, 192nd, 196th, 205th, 225th, 228th and 355th Aviation Companies.
 
F-5 Northrop – Aircraft
The Northrop F-5A and F-5B Freedom Fighter and the F-5E and F-5F Tiger II are part of a supersonic light fighter family, initially designed in the late 1950s by Northrop Corporation.
Being smaller and simpler than contemporaries such as the McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II, the F-5 cost less to both procure and operate, making it a popular export aircraft.
The F-5 started life as a privately funded light fighter program by Northrop in the 1950s. The design team wrapped a small, highly aerodynamic fighter around two compact and high-thrust General Electric J85 engines, focusing on performance and low cost of maintenance.
Though primarily designed for the day air superiority role, the aircraft is also a capable ground-attack platform.
The F-5A entered service in the early 1960s.
During the Cold War, over 800 were produced through 1972 for U.S. allies. Though the USAF had no acknowledged need for a light fighter, it did procure roughly 1,200 Northrop T-38 Talon trainer aircraft, which were directly based on the F-5A.
After winning the International Fighter Aircraft competition in 1970, a program aimed at providing effective low-cost fighters to American allies, Northrop introduced the second-generation F-5E Tiger II in 1972.
 
Cheo Reo Combat Base (Hau Bon) – Map 6635 i – Series – L7014
Note: Cheo Reo Special Forces Camp (and Ben Bang Heliport) is located at the square encampment, northwest of Cheo Reo City and airfield on map.
AREA INFORMATION: Cheo Reo Bordering Darlac Province and to the North of Saigon Cheo Reo was an important strategic town for the early US Military and CIA operatives working in Vietnam.
The CIA were operating WANDA Flights over this area as early as the mid 1950's in preparation of building a camp there.
 
A meeting point for many of the Montangard Tribes, Cheo Reo saw regular movement of Tribal people from Viet Cong controlled areas, providing valuable information and the means of inserting agents into their home areas.
 
A US Special Forces Base camp was set up in Cheo Reo, designated Detachment A-6 (and later A-424) as early as 1961 (and probably before) and the US Special Forces from Cheo Reo directed the operations of numerous Mike Force units in the area.
 
Shortly after the 5th Special Forces Detachment removed themselves from Cheo Reo in 1971 (and the camp was handed over to the ARVN Tiger Force Rangers) the area was lost to the North Vietnamese although the camp remained open until mid 1973.
 
CHFM
Cargo Helicopter Field Maintenance.
 
Finest of the First – 160th Signal Group
Arrived in Vietnam out of Fort Huachuca on the 2nd of May 1967 the 160th was a HHD (Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment) manned by approximately 120 operatives.
The 160th was located in Long Binh and was responsible for the for the training and operations of communication units in Saigon and Long Binh.
They commanded the 40th, 44th, 60th and 69th Signals Battalions as well as the Saigon Signal Support Agency, Long Binh SS Agency and the Southeast Asia Signal School.
 
2nd Battalion – 502nd Airborne Infantry
Strike – First to Strike – Last to Fall – Arrived in Vietnam 29th of July 1965 out of Fort Campbell and was part of the 1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division and was fully parachutist qualified.
By late August 1968 the battalion had been fully re-organised as an Airmobile Infantry Battalion (Helicopter insertion). They fought in the battle of Hue Citadel during the Tet offensive of 1968.
They departed Vietnam on the 19th of January 1972.
 
101st Aviation Group
Formed on Vietnam on the 25th of June 1969 it was originally designated the 160th Aviation Group. It was a HQ and HQ Detachment of approximately 220 operatives.
It was formed to give an increased Airmobile (Helicopter insertion) capability to the 101st Airborne Division. It was HQ’d at Phu Bai (Hue).
It was involved in the US Invasion of Laos (Operation Lam Son) in early 1971.
It departed Vietnam on the 19th of January 1972.
 
HABU – OLRK – US Air Force
Lockheed – SR-71- 99th Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron.
HABU – Nicknamed after the venomous snake HABU, found on the Ryukus Island chain, Japan.
OLRK – Operating Location 8 – Later re-designated OLRK, RK being for the island chain of Ryukus (which contains Okinawa.
 
USAF – 907th Tactical Airlift Group.
Established at Clinton County Air Force Base, Ohio on the 11th of February 1963, as the headquarters for the 356th Troop Carrier Squadron, which had been stationed there since June 1952.
Along with group headquarters, a Combat Support Squadron, Materiel Squadron and a Tactical Infirmary were organized to support the 356th.
The group's mission was to organize, recruit and train Air Force Reserve personnel in the tactical airlift of airborne forces, their equipment and supplies and delivery of these forces and materials by airdrop, landing or cargo extraction systems.
The group was equipped with Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcars for Tactical Air Command airlift operations.
The 907th TCG was one of two C-119 groups assigned to the 302d TCW in 1963, the other being the 906th Troop Carrier Group also at Clinton County AFB.
Replaced C-119s with Fairchild C-123 Provider assault transport in 1967, began training with special operations forces when parent 302nd Tactical Airlift Wing was re-designated as a Special Operations Wing in 1970.
Inactivated in 1975 as part of post-Vietnam War drawdown.
 
10th Aviation Battalion – Soldier of the Sky
The ‘Vagabonds of Vietnam” served with the 12th and 17th Aviation Groups.
Primarily located at Dong Ba Thin and in charge of Aviation movement in CTZ II (South Vietnam).
Out of Fort Benning 29th of October 1965 they were a HQ and HQ Detachment, company size of approx. 110 operatives.
 
Field Force I – FFI
I Field Force, Vietnam was a corps-level command of the United States Army during the Vietnam War. Activated on 15 March 1966, it was the successor to Task Force Alpha, a provisional corps command created 1 August 1965 (renamed Field Force Vietnam on 25 September) for temporary control of activities of U.S. Army ground combat units arriving in Vietnam.
I Field Force was a component of U.S. Military Assistance Command Vietnam (MACV) and had its headquarters at Nha Trang.
 
Field Force II
II Field Force, Vietnam was a United States Army Corps-level command during the Vietnam War.
Activated on 15 March 1966, it became the largest corps command in Vietnam and one of the largest in Army history.
II Field Force was assigned the lineage of the XXII Corps, a World War II corps in the European Theater of Operations. II Field Force was a component of U.S. Military Assistance Command Vietnam (MACV) and had its headquarters in Long Binh.
 
NVA – North Vietnam Army
During the French Indochina War (1946–1954), the PAVN was often referred to as the Việt Minh.
In the context of the Vietnam War (1959–1975), the army was referred to as the North Vietnamese army (NVA) or the Peoples Army of Vietnam (PAVN).
This allowed writers, the U.S. military, and the general public, to distinguish northern communists from the southern communists, or Viet Cong.
However, both groups ultimately worked under the same command structure.
Soon after the 1954 Geneva Accords, the 330th and 338th Divisions were formed by southern Vietminh members who had moved north in conformity with that agreement, and by 1955, six more divisions were formed: the 328th, 332nd, and 350th in the north of the DRV, the 305th and the 324th near the DMZ, and the 335 Division of soldiers repatriated from Laos. In 1957, the theatres of the war with the French were reorganised as the first five military regions, and in the next two years, several divisions were reduced to brigade size to meet the manpower requirements of collective farms.
 
By 1958 it was becoming increasingly clear that the South Vietnamese government was solidifying its position as an independent republic under Ngô Đình Diệm who staunchly opposed the terms of the Geneva Accord that required a national referendum on unification of north and south Vietnam under a single national government, and North Vietnam prepared to settle the issue of unification by force.
 
In May 1959 the first major steps to prepare infiltration routes into South Vietnam were taken; Group 559 was established, a logistical unit charged with establishing routes into the south via Laos and Cambodia, which later became famous as the Ho Chi Minh trail.
At about the same time, Group 579 was created as its maritime counterpart to transport supplies into the South by sea. Most of the early infiltrators were members of the 338th Division, former southerners who had been settled at Xuan Mai from 1954 onwards.
Regular formations were sent to Southern Vietnam from 1965 onwards.
Although the PAVN lost militarily to the US forces and ARVN in the south, the political impact of the war in the United States was strong.
In 1975 the PAVN were successful in aiding the Khmer Rouge in toppling the Lon Nol's US-backed regime, despite heavy US bombing.
After the withdrawal of most United States' combat forces from Indochina because of the Vietnamization strategy, the PAVN launched the ill-fated Easter Offensive in 1972. Although successful at the beginning, the South Vietnamese repulsed the main assaults with U.S. air support. Still North Vietnam gained significant territories.
Nearly two years after the full United States' withdrawal from Indochina in accord with the terms of the 1973 Paris Peace Accords, the PAVN launched a Spring Offensive aimed at uniting Vietnam.
Without direct support of its US ally, and suffering from stresses caused by dwindling aid, the ARVN was ill-prepared to confront the highly motivated PAVN, and despite numerical superiority of the ARVN in tactical aircraft, armoured vehicles and overwhelming three to one odds in regular troops, the PAVN quickly secured victory within two months and captured Saigon on 30 April 1975, effectively ending the 70 years of conflict stemming from French colonial invasion of the 19th century and unifying Vietnam.
 
Viet Cong – Long Haired Women
Women and women's groups played key roles in the three significant Vietnamese forces during the Vietnam War: North Vietnam, South Vietnam, and the Viet Cong (VC).
This was especially true for the Communists, who recognized few differences between the genders on ideological grounds and who argued that women as well as men must take part in the struggle for national liberation.
As early as 1930 the Indochina Communist Party, the precursor to the Vietnamese Communist Party, or Lao Dong, had an affiliated Women's Union.
In 1945 a woman leader of the Viet Minh, Ha Thi Que, formed an all-woman's guerrilla unit prepared to fight against the French; by 1954, hundreds of thousands of women participated in official guerrilla units throughout Vietnam.
Most fought the political fight rather than the military one, seeking to educate villagers, mobilize fighters, and provide behind-the-lines support. Untold numbers of women also worked as laborers in providing transport of materials and on building projects.
 
In 1960, when the Viet Cong movement was rising in South Vietnam, Nguyen Thi Dinh began to form an army of peasant women eventually known as the Long-Haired Army.
Their goals were to encourage South Vietnamese soldiers to desert, stage rallies and strikes, and otherwise protest against the corruption of the Ngo Dinh Diem's Saigon regime.
Within the VC itself up to 40 percent of regimental commanders were women, and large numbers served as political cadres.
Nguyen Thi Dinh was herself a VC general and one of its top commanders. Women took part in nearly every aspect of VC attacks, and they found that they made effective operatives in covert attacks, since neither the Americans nor the South Vietnamese were apt to suspect women of being active VC members.
Huge numbers of women also participated in the broader effort to oppose Saigon and its American allies.
By 1965, for instance, an organization known as the Women's Liberation Association (WLA) claimed as many as 1.2 million members in South Vietnam.
 
The WLA continued the effort to encourage soldiers to desert and provided education and communications to the VC. WLA members also constructed booby traps and prepared and delivered food.
By contrast, few women joined the North Vietnamese Army, although almost all women received military training.
In North Vietnam, women's contributions consisted of working in factories, forming self-defense teams, and otherwise working for social cohesion.
Those women who did join the army generally served as medics or in behind-the-lines roles. The North Vietnamese government recognized the value of propaganda praising women's contributions to the struggle for national liberation, as did the VC in the south. Women were praised in posters, pamphlets, and speeches, which sometimes hearkened back to earlier female heroes in Vietnam such as the Trung sisters who fought against Chinese domination.
In the south, women found their official roles far more limited, which may partly explain the appeal to women of the Communist insurgency.
During Diem's regime, his sister-in-law, Madame Nhu, formed a women's solidarity movement to support the government and combat immorality. Few took it seriously. When the Vietnam War got under way in the early 1960s the South Vietnamese army formed a Women's Armed Forces Corps (WAFC) as an affiliate body. The WAFC played a significant, though underreported, part in the South Vietnamese war effort. Members provided behind-the-lines or medical support and often also took part in fighting. In addition, a women's team of paratroopers and a special branch of the national police contributed greatly toward undermining the VC infrastructure in the late 1960s by collecting intelligence and infiltrating VC groups.
 
119th – USAF – Tactical Fighter Squadron.
On 15 October 1962, the 119th was authorized to expand to a group level, and the 177th Tactical Fighter Group was established by the National Guard Bureau.
The 119th TFS becoming the group's flying squadron. Other squadrons assigned into the group were the 177th Headquarters, 177th Material Squadron (Maintenance), 177th Combat Support Squadron, and the 177th USAF Dispensary.
The 119th transitioned into F-86H aircraft. Two years later, the unit transitioned into F-100 "Super Sabres".
In January 1968, a new crisis, the seizure of the American ship USS Pueblo by North Korean forces, and again the 119th was called to active duty. In May 1968, the squadron was activated to federal service, and its personnel were assigned to the 113th Tactical Fighter Wing, Myrtle Beach AFB, South Carolina.
Personnel were spread throughout the United States, Taiwan, Korea, and Vietnam with the main unit stationed at the 113th TFW.
The 119th TFS returned to Atlantic City, New Jersey, in June 1969, and transitioned into the F-105 "Thunderchief" in 1970.
 
Mercenary PRU - JEAN SCHRAMME
Originally the Patch of the 'Jean Schramme Mercenary Commando Group' that operated throughout the Belgian Congo and other African Countries, this patch was again used by mercenary advisors to Allied Provincial Recon Special Forces Units during the Vietnam war.
Although no clear information exists it is thought that members of the African Commando's were under the payment of the Government of South Vietnam (as were other mercenaries) and the patch originated from that.
The animal on the patch is an African Leopard.
 
Nui Ba Den – Black Virgin Mountain
Black Virgin Mountain (Vietnamese: Núi Bà Đen, Khmer: Phnom Chol Baden) is a mountain in the Tây Ninh Province of Vietnam.
To the Vietnamese the mountain is the center of a myth about Bà Đen, a local deity of Khmer origin.
During the Vietnam War the area around the mountain was very active as the Ho Chi Minh Trail ended a few kilometers west across the Cambodian border.
The Mekong Delta is generally a flat region with the exception of the Black Virgin Mountain. The mountain commands everything in its sight and was therefore a strategic location for both sides during the war.
In May 1964 the mountain top was assaulted by the Special Forces 3rd MIKE Force and the peak was held by American forces as a radio relay station. Due to it’s height Nui Ba Den was able to provide signals to almost all units in South Vietnam and Cambodia and into Laos and North Vietnam.
Supplied by helicopter for much of the war the Americans controlled the top and the Vietcong controlled the bottom and surrounding foothills.
The base was occupied by over 140 Americans when on the night of 13th May 1968 the base was attacked and overrun by the Vietcong. By the morning of the 14th of May the Vietcong had been driven off by gunship and artillery fire.
The results of the attack were 24 U.S. killed, 2 U.S. MIA and 25 Vietcong killed.
In January 1969 the mountain was extensively searched by US Special Forces and Ranger Units.
In the tunnels that honeycombed the mountain they found arms caches, and engaged Vietcong units stationed on the mountain. Throughout the war the Vietcong returned to the mountain and its cave bases.
 
Colonel Donald Cook was the first Marine captured in the Vietnam war. For a time he was held near Black Virgin mountain.
In late 1973 the mountain was closed as an American base and handed over to the South Vietnam Army.
During the closing days of the war when the mountain was abandoned by Army of the Republic of Vietnam troops, the local population left the region afraid of the approaching communist soldiers.
 
TAY NINH Combat Base
Tây Ninh Combat Base was established approximately 5 km west of the city of Tây Ninh and 12 km from the Vietnam-Cambodia border.
Tây Ninh served as the base for the 196th Light Infantry Brigade from April 1966 until August 1967.
Other US Military units stationed at Tây Ninh included:

• 7th Battalion, 9th Artillery (August 1969 – April 1970)
• 2nd Battalion, 32nd Artillery (April 1967 – October 1969)
• 3rd Battalion, 82nd Artillery (August 1966 – February 1969)
• 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division (March–May 1968, July 1968 – April 1970) comprising:
  • 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry Regiment
  • 4th Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment
  • 2nd Battalion, 14th Infantry Regiment

 

• 2nd Brigade, 25th Infantry Division (April 1968, July 1968 – April 1970) comprising:
  • 4th Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment
  • 2nd Battalion, 14th Infantry Regiment
  • 1st Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment
• 3rd Brigade, 25th Infantry Division (August 1967 – February 1968, February–April 1970) comprising:
  • 1st Battalion, 14th Infantry Regiment
  • 2nd Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment
  • 3rd Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment
  • 1st Battalion, 35th Infantry Regiment
  • 2nd Battalion, 35th Infantry Regiment
• 1st Brigade, 1st Cavalry (November 1968 – May 1970) comprising:
  • 1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry
  • 2nd Battalion, 5th Cavalry
  • 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry
  • 1st Battalion, 8th Cavalry
  • 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry
  • 1st Battalion, 12th Cavalry
  • 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry
• 187th Assault Helicopter Company
• 229th Aviation Battalion
• 588th Engineer Battalion (April 1967 – May 1970)
• 45th Surgical Hospital (October 1966 – October 1970)

 
The US Air Force 619th Tactical Control Squadron Detachment 7 provided air traffic control from August 1965 until May 1968.
On 21st of June 1969 after two days of shelling, the PAVN attacked the base and Tây Ninh City but were repulsed, suffering 194 dead for the loss of 10 Americans.
In April 1970 the base was used as a staging area for U.S. units participating in the Cambodian Campaign for attacks west into the Parrot's Beak and north into the Fish Hook.
 
LAI KHE – Lai Khe Combat base.
Lai Khê (ấp Lai Khê – xã Lai Hưng, Bến Cát, Bình Dương) (also known as Lai Khê Base) was a former Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) and U.S. Army base, located along Highway 13 to the northwest of Saigon and about 20 km north of Thủ Dầu Một in southern Vietnam.
The CIA ran US Special Forces operations and Mobile Guerrilla Forces from Lai Khe as early as 1961.
During the Vietnam War Lai Khê was a garrison town as the ARVN 5th Division was based there for most of the 1960s/70s
Lai Khê was also the Headquarters for the U.S. Army's 1st Infantry Division from October 1967 until January 1970.
Lai Khe was a major hub for the US Air Cavalry and the US Army Assault Helicopter Units operating in South Vietnam.
 
 
Landsberg Military Prison
The 4010th Labor Service Company (Polish) was tasked with guarding Landsburg Prison in addition to actions during the War Crime Trials.
Landsberg, at one time held, amongst others, Rudolf Hess and it was in Landsberg Prison in the 1920's that Mein Kampf was written (although then not a military prison).
Landsberg Prison was the landing spot of war criminals prosecuted at the Dachau Trials, more than 200 executions took place at Landsberg between 1946 and 1951. Designated by the US Military as 'War Criminal Prison No. 1', Landsberg was eventually closed by the United States as a Military Prison in 1958.
Between 1945 and 1946, the prison housed a total of 110 prisoners convicted at the Nuremberg trials, a further 1416 war criminals from the Dachau trials and 18 prisoners convicted in the Shanghai trials, (These were military tribunals conducted by the American forces in Japan between August 1946 and January 1947 to prosecute 23 German officials who had continued to assist the Japanese military in Shanghai after the surrender of Nazi Germany.)
In five and half years, Landsberg prison was the place of execution of nearly 300 condemned war criminals. 259 death sentences were conducted by hanging and 29 by firing squad.
Executions were carried out expeditiously. In May 1946 twenty eight former SS guards from Dachau were hanged within a four-day period.
Bodies that were not claimed were buried in unmarked graves in the cemetery next to the Spöttingen chapel.
 
LAGRANGE CANAL (Canal LaGrange) – Vietnam
The LaGrange Canal was throughout both the French Indochina War and the later Vietnam War (American War) used for the transportation of goods for the Viet Minh and later the Viet Cong.
The fields around the LaGrange Canal were considered a communist stronghold.
Both the French army and the French Navy held continuous combat operations along the canal.
The LaGrange canal is located in area known as the ‘Plain of Reeds’ and runs from the Cambodian border into the My Tho River and north towards Saigon (intersecting with the Ong Lon Canal).
The French forces were under continuous attack on the LaGrange Canal.
In the later American War (Vietnam War) the US Army and the US Navy had continuous operations along the LaGrange Canal. It was patrolled on a regular basis by both US Special Forces and the US Navy SEALs.
It was on the banks of the LaGrange Canal at Ap Bac in January 1963 that the Viet Cong had their first victory against a combined US and South Vietnamese Force.
It was to remain a thorn in the heal of the Allies until surrender in 1975.
Operation Giant Slingshot was conducted by US Special Forces / SEALs on the LaGrange Canal.
The LaGrange Canal was patrolled ongoingly during Operation Market Time.
Such is the interest of this area, that US Military Intelligence updated their information on this area twenty years after the end of the War in Vietnam.
For further reading on LaGrange Canal please see, “Combat at Close Quarters: Warfare on the Rivers and Canals of Vietnam”
By Edward J. Marolda, R. Blake Dunnavent.
 
LAGRANGE CANAL (Canal LaGrange) - Vietnam
Le canal de LaGrange a été tout au long de la guerre d'Indochine française et la guerre du Vietnam plus tard (guerre américaine) utilisée pour le transport de marchandises pour le Viet Minh et plus tard le Viet Cong.
Les champs autour du canal de LaGrange étaient considérés comme un bastion communiste.
L'armée française et la marine française ont mené des opérations de combat continues le long du canal.
Le canal de LaGrange est situé dans la région connue sous le nom de «plaine des roseaux» et s'étend de la frontière cambodgienne dans la rivière My Tho et au nord vers Saigon (intersection avec le canal Ong Lon).
Les forces françaises étaient constamment attaquées sur le canal de LaGrange.
Au cours de la dernière guerre américaine (guerre du Vietnam), l'armée américaine et la marine américaine ont mené des opérations continues le long du canal LaGrange. Il a été patrouillé régulièrement par les forces spéciales américaines et les US Navy SEAL.
C'est sur les rives du canal de LaGrange, à Ap Bac, en janvier 1963, que les Viet Cong ont remporté leur première victoire face à une force combinée américaine et sud-vietnamienne.
Il devait rester une épine dans la guérison des Alliés jusqu'à leur reddition en 1975.
Opération Giant Slingshot a été menée par les forces spéciales américaines / SEAL sur le canal de LaGrange.
Le canal LaGrange a été patrouillé continuellement pendant l'opération Market Time.
Tel est l'intérêt de cette région, que les renseignements militaires américains ont mis à jour leurs informations sur cette zone vingt ans après la fin de la guerre au Vietnam.
Pour en savoir plus sur le canal de LaGrange, veuillez vous reporter à la rubrique «Combattre à proximité: la guerre sur les rivières et les canaux du Vietnam».
Par Edward J. Marolda, R. Blake Dunnavent.
 
309th Tactical Fighter Squadron – Wild Ducks
Previously involved in the invasion of France and other WWII operations in the early 1950’s the 309th was assigned to Strategic Air Command at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia as a fighter-escort squadron, equipped with straight-winged Republic F-84E Thunderjets.
Assigned to Turner Air Force Base, Georgia with mission of long-range escort of Boeing B-29 Superfortress bombers, later Boeing B-50 Superfortress and Convair B-36 Peacemakers as newer aircraft came into operation by SAC.
Relieved from assignment to SAC and made non-operational in 1957 with phaseout of B-36 and end of SAC escort fighter concept.
On 1 April 1957 the parent 31st SFW was transferred back to Tactical Air Command and moved to George Air Force Base, California.
Trained in tactical air support of ground forces, deploying to NATO bases for operational exercises. Reassigned to Homestead Air Force Base, Florida after the Cuban Missile Crisis, late 1962 to provide air defense of South Florida.
Was deployed to Southeast Asia, 1964 as part of advisory forces operating against North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces in South Vietnam.
 
Reassigned back to TAC at Homestead AFB in 1970, as part of re-establishment of 31st TFW upon its return from duty in Southeast Asia.
Equipped with McDonnell F-4E Phantom IIs. Was deployed to Thailand, July 1972, engaging North Vietnamese forces in northern South Vietnam in response to the communist spring offensive. Returned to the United States in the late fall 1972.
 
187th Airborne Infantry – 101st Airborne Division
In December 1967 the 3rd Battalion deployed to Vietnam from Fort Campbell, alongside 1st and 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment.
Over the next four years the Iron Rakkasans fought in twelve major campaigns, conducting numerous air assaults and search and destroy missions.
During one such mission in March 1968 Captain Paul W. Bucha, commander of D Company, received the Medal of Honor when he crawled through a hail of fire to single-handedly destroy a machine gun bunker with grenades near Phuoc Vinh, Vietnam.
When the battalion colors returned to Fort Campbell the unit had distinguished itself by earning two Valorous Unit Awards, and its third and fourth Presidential Unit Citations for the battles of Trang Bang and Dong Ap Bia Mountain (commonly known as "Hamburger Hill").
The Iron Rakkasans emerged from the Vietnam War as the country’s most highly decorated airborne battalion.
HON TRE Island – Project Delta – B-52
One of the most prestigious qualifications that could be earned by soldiers during the Vietnam War was to graduate from the Recondo School.
The inspiration for the school was the successful Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol (LRRP) training program provided for personnel from Detachment B-52 of the 5th Special Forces Group (Project Delta).
The Project Delta course was established in May 1964 and the effectiveness of its techniques quickly led to student application requests from regular Army units. By August 1966 soldiers from conventional units accounted for 52% of each class.
General Westmoreland directed that Special Forces organize and conduct a three-week course of instruction on LRRP techniques.
The resulting MACV Recondo school was opened in Nha Trang by Westmoreland in September 1966 and Major Edward Rybat was named as its Assistant Commandant and Detachment Commander of the school staff.
Student selection was deemed to be critical to the success of the LRRP program and a result the school implemented the following stringent selection criteria:
 
 
Each student must:

• Be a volunteer
• Possess a combat arms MOS (Military Occupational Speciality)
• Be in excellent physical condition
• Have a minimum of one month in-country
• Have six months remaining in Vietnam
• Have an actual or anticipated assignment to a LRRP unit
• Be proficient in general military subjects

After being suitably equipped students began a gruelling course of instruction that lasted 20-days and encompassed 310.5 hours of training (15 and a half hours a day).
During the school’s 4-year existence a total of 5,626 soldiers, including 296 Koreans, 193 Thais, 130 Vietnamese, 22 Filipinos and 18 Australians, attended Recondo training.
More than a third failed, but the 3,515 who graduated were authorized to wear the Recondo insignia in Vietnam and were assigned a Recondo number that was entered into the permanent section of their military file. The honor graduate from each class also received a special knife.
 
The school was officially closed on 19th December 1970
 
 
Pathet Lao – 20th of January 1949
On the January 1949, the independent Lao army was created. Every year since then, large posters are a reminder throughout the country that date which was certainly the first step towards full independence and domination of the Lao Communist Party.
The Lao army was long supported by the Vietnamese army, particularly during the years 70-80 (which served as the maintenance of order as the resistance to external pressures including Thai). Since the Laotian army has regained its independence, and can provide only the civilian and military peace inside the country.
 
Spain in the Vietnam War (Tay Ban Nha – Viet Nam)
Spain - Spanish Military Medics - Go Cong - Mekong Delta
Free World Military Forces
Mekong Delta - Go Cong Spainish military - medic team - that operated out of Go Cong.
Whilst kept relatively low key and secret in Spain during the period of the war, The Franco Government of Spain (Espana) maintained a team of between 12 and 15 medics in South Vietnam, primarily located at Go Cong south of Saigon between 1963 and 1972.
The Spanish lost no Military Operatives during the war in Vietnam.
 
An Loc – The Battle of An Loc.
April 13th 1972 – July 20th 1972
NVA launch attack to cut off An Loc from Saigon – An Loc close to the Vietnamese border and highway QL 13 vital to resupply for the North Vietnamese / Viet Cong.
The Battle of An Lộc was a major battle of the Vietnam War that lasted for 66 days and culminated in a decisive victory for South Vietnam. In many ways, the struggle for An Lộc in 1972 was an important battle of the war, as South Vietnamese forces halted the North Vietnamese advance towards Saigon.
Aftermath
ARVN reported:
2,280 killed
2,091 missing
8,564 wounded
U.S.: unknown
38 tanks and APCs, 32 howitzers destroyed
10 aircraft, 20 helicopters lost
NVA
U.S. estimate: 10,000 casualties
Vietnamese figures: ~ 2,000 killed and 5,000 wounded
47 tanks destroyed (in An Loc)
Whilst the South Vietnamese Army claimed Victory at An Loc, The victory, however, was not complete, QL-13 still was not open.
The ARVN 18th Division was moved in to replace the exhausted 5th Division. The 18th Division would spread out from An Lộc and push the PAVN back, increasing stability in the area.
On August 8, the 18th Division launched an assault to retake Quần Lợi, but were stopped by the NVA in the base's reinforced concrete bunkers. A second attack was launched on August 9 with limited gains. Attacks on the base continued for 2 weeks; eventually one third of the base was captured.
Finally, the ARVN attacked the NVA-occupied bunkers with missiles and rockets, breaking the NVA defense and forcing the remaining defenders to flee the base.
The fighting at An Lộc demonstrated the continued ARVN dependence on U.S. air power and U.S. advisors. For the NVA, it demonstrated their logistical constraints; following each attack, resupply times caused lengthy delays in their ability to properly defend their positions.
 
Loc Ninh – Battle of Loc Ninh
Easter Offensive – 4th to the 7th of April 1972.
The Battle of Lộc Ninh was a major battle fought during the Easter Offensive during the Vietnam War, which took place in Bình Long Province, South Vietnam between 4–7 April 1972.
On 30 March 1972, two North Vietnamese Army divisions smashed through the Demilitarized Zone, marking the commencement of the Easter Offensive.
They quickly overwhelmed South Vietnamese units in the I Corps Tactical Zone.
With the rapid collapse of South Vietnamese forces in the northern provinces of South Vietnam, North Vietnamese and Việt Cộng forces began preparing for their next offensive, targeting Bình Long Province in the rubber plantation region north of Saigon.
On 4 April, the Việt Cộng's 5th Division opened their attack on Lộc Ninh, defended by the ARVN 9th Infantry Regiment.
After three days of fighting, the vastly outnumbered South Vietnamese forces, though well supported by American air power, were forced to abandon their positions in Lộc Ninh.
The fight cost both sides dearly. The true extent of Viet Cong and North Vietnamese casualties is largely unknown, but due to their exposure to American firepower, the Communist forces undoubtedly suffered heavy losses.
Nonetheless, the successful capture of Lộc Ninh exceeded Communist expectations, as they had thought that the South Vietnamese would hold out longer.
Lộc Ninh became the seat of the Provisional Revolutionary Government, the capital of Communist-occupied territories in South Vietnam.
The South Vietnamese, in their efforts to hold the district, lost more than three thousand soldiers killed or captured; only about fifty soldiers actually reached An Lộc.
The Viet Cong also captured all seven American advisers and an embedded French journalist, Yves-Michel Dumond, in Lộc Ninh; they were taken to a prison camp in Kratié Province, Cambodia.
Dumond was released on 14 July 1972. On 12 February 1973, the Americans were released in accordance with the Paris Peace Accord.
As Lộc Ninh was succumbing, other Communist formations turned their attention to the provincial capital of An Lộc.
At 9 am on 7 April, Brigadier General Lê Văn Hưng ordered Task Force 52 to abandon its bases, destroy all heavy weapons and vehicles, and withdraw to An Lộc, following their failed attempt at reinforcing the 9th Infantry Regiment.
As Task Force 52 tried to break through National Highway 13, they ran into another large Viet Cong ambush.
It would take the soldiers of Task Force 52 about a week to reach An Lộc, infiltrating through Viet Cong and North Vietnamese positions along the main road.
Late on 7 April, the Viet Cong's 9th Division attacked Quan Loi airfield, just 3 kilometres north of An Lộc.
Elements of the ARVN 7th Infantry Regiment defending the area were unable to hold off the Viet Cong, so they were ordered to destroy their equipment and join other South Vietnamese units in the provincial capital. The next step in the North Vietnamese offensive was the "Battle of An Lộc"
The South Vietnamese Army lost approximately 2000 killed and almost 1900 captured. Only 50 soldiers reached An Loc.

 
Loc Ninh – Battle of Loc Ninh
Easter Offensive – 4th to the 7th of April 1972.
The Battle of Lộc Ninh was a major battle fought during the Easter Offensive during the Vietnam War, which took place in Bình Long Province, South Vietnam between 4–7 April 1972.
On 30 March 1972, two North Vietnamese Army divisions smashed through the Demilitarized Zone, marking the commencement of the Easter Offensive.
They quickly overwhelmed South Vietnamese units in the I Corps Tactical Zone.
With the rapid collapse of South Vietnamese forces in the northern provinces of South Vietnam, North Vietnamese and Việt Cộng forces began preparing for their next offensive, targeting Bình Long Province in the rubber plantation region north of Saigon.
On 4 April, the Việt Cộng's 5th Division opened their attack on Lộc Ninh, defended by the ARVN 9th Infantry Regiment.
After three days of fighting, the vastly outnumbered South Vietnamese forces, though well supported by American air power, were forced to abandon their positions in Lộc Ninh.
The fight cost both sides dearly. The true extent of Viet Cong and North Vietnamese casualties is largely unknown, but due to their exposure to American firepower, the Communist forces undoubtedly suffered heavy losses.
Nonetheless, the successful capture of Lộc Ninh exceeded Communist expectations, as they had thought that the South Vietnamese would hold out longer.
Lộc Ninh became the seat of the Provisional Revolutionary Government, the capital of Communist-occupied territories in South Vietnam.
The South Vietnamese, in their efforts to hold the district, lost more than three thousand soldiers killed or captured; only about fifty soldiers actually reached An Lộc.
The Viet Cong also captured all seven American advisers and an embedded French journalist, Yves-Michel Dumond, in Lộc Ninh; they were taken to a prison camp in Kratié Province, Cambodia.
Dumond was released on 14 July 1972. On 12 February 1973, the Americans were released in accordance with the Paris Peace Accord.
As Lộc Ninh was succumbing, other Communist formations turned their attention to the provincial capital of An Lộc.
At 9 am on 7 April, Brigadier General Lê Văn Hưng ordered Task Force 52 to abandon its bases, destroy all heavy weapons and vehicles, and withdraw to An Lộc, following their failed attempt at reinforcing the 9th Infantry Regiment.
As Task Force 52 tried to break through National Highway 13, they ran into another large Viet Cong ambush.
It would take the soldiers of Task Force 52 about a week to reach An Lộc, infiltrating through Viet Cong and North Vietnamese positions along the main road.
Late on 7 April, the Viet Cong's 9th Division attacked Quan Loi airfield, just 3 kilometres north of An Lộc.
Elements of the ARVN 7th Infantry Regiment defending the area were unable to hold off the Viet Cong, so they were ordered to destroy their equipment and join other South Vietnamese units in the provincial capital. The next step in the North Vietnamese offensive was the "Battle of An Lộc"
The South Vietnamese Army lost approximately 2000 killed and almost 1900 captured. Only 50 soldiers reached An Loc.
 
Operation Eagle Claw
Operation Eagle Claw (or Operation Evening Light or Operation Rice Bowl), known as Operation Tabas (Persian: عملیات طبس‎) in Iran, was a United States Armed Forces operation ordered by U.S. President Jimmy Carter to attempt to end the Iran hostage crisis by rescuing 52 embassy staff held captive at the Embassy of the United States, Tehran on 24 April 1980.
Its failure, and the humiliating public debacle that ensued, damaged U.S. prestige worldwide. Carter himself blamed his loss in the 1980 U.S. presidential election mainly on his failure to win the release of the hostages.
The operation encountered many obstacles and was eventually aborted. Eight helicopters were sent to the first staging area, Desert One, but only five arrived in operational condition.
One encountered hydraulic problems, another got caught in a haboob (desert sand storm), and the last one showed signs of a cracked rotor blade.
During planning it was decided that the mission would be aborted if fewer than six helicopters remained, despite only four being absolutely necessary.
In a move that is still discussed in military circles, the field commanders advised mission abort, which President Carter accepted and confirmed.
As the U.S. force prepared to leave, one of the helicopters crashed into a transport aircraft which contained both servicemen and jet fuel.
The resulting fire destroyed both aircraft and killed eight servicemen.
Operation Eagle Claw was one of Delta Force's first missions.
 
VP 93 – US NAVY ATTACK Squadron 93
May 1963: Following the military losses of the Lao neutralist to the Pathet Lao in the Plaine de Jarres, Laos, USS Ranger (CV-61) transited to the South China Sea to support possible operations in Laos.
15 Oct 1963: The squadron established a Detachment Q for deployment aboard the anti-submarine carrier USS Bennington (CVS 20) to provide daylight fighter protection for the ASW aircraft. The detachment flew A-4B Skyhawks.
7 Feb 1965: Following a Viet Cong attack against the American advisors compound at Pleiku, South Vietnam, a reprisal strike, named Operation Flaming Dart, was ordered by President Johnson. VA-93 participated in this strike, but upon reaching the target, the military barracks at Vit Thu Lu, the mission was aborted due to the weather.
11 Feb 1965: Participated in Operation Flaming Dart II, retaliatory strikes against the military barracks at Chanh Hoa, North Vietnam.
15 Mar 1965: Participated in Operation Rolling Thunder strikes against ammunition storage area in Phu Qui, North Vietnam.
May–Oct 1972: Participated in Operation Linebacker, heavy air strikes against targets in North Vietnam to reduce that country’s ability to continue the war effort in South Vietnam.
Apr 1975: Participated in Operation Frequent Wind, the evacuation of American personnel from Saigon, South Vietnam as the country fell to the communists.
 
128th Tactical Fighter Squadron – Georgia National Guard
The 128th Airborne Command and Control Squadron (128 ACCS – Previously 128th Tactical Fighter Squadron) is a unit of the Georgia Air National Guard 116th Air Control Wing.
Commencing in February 1953 the 128th began conversion to F-84D Thunderjet, yet most were not received until mid summer.
During the summer of 1955 the 128th was re-designated as the 128th Fighter Interceptor Squadron and converted the swept-wing F-84F Thunderstreak.
Strangely enough, it was not until March 1957 that the surviving D models were dispatched for salvage, with eleven of those aged D models having been lost in accidents while serving with the 128th FBS.
In 1958, the 116th implemented the ADC Runway Alert Program, in which interceptors of the 128th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron were committed to a five-minute runway alert.
In 1960 the F-84s were again replaced by the F-86L Sabre Interceptor, a day/night/all-weather aircraft designed to be integrated into the ADC SAGE interceptor direction and control system.
In 1961, the 116th FIG was reassigned to Military Air Transport Service (MATS), trading in its Sabre interceptors for 4-engines C-97 Stratofreighter transports.
With air transportation recognized as a critical wartime need, the squadron was re-designated the 128th Air Transport Squadron (Heavy). The 116th ATG was assigned to the MATS Eastern Transport Air Force, (EASTAF), and the squadron flew long-distance transport missions in support of Air Force requirements, frequently sending aircraft to the Caribbean, Europe Greenland, and the Middle East in support of Air Force requirements.
In 1966 MATS became the Military Airlift Command (MAC) and EASTAF became the MAC Twenty-First Air Force. The 116th ATG was upgraded to the C-124 Globemaster II strategic heavy airlifter, being the first Air National Guard unit to receive the aircraft. Due to requirements generated by the Vietnam War, missions were flown across the Pacific to Hawaii, Japan, the Philippines, South Vietnam, Okinawa and Thailand.
They were re-designated the 128th Tactical Fighter Squadron on the 4th of April 1973.
 
Bien Hoa
During the Vietnam Wars, French Indochina and the American War (1955–75), the base was used by the Republic of Vietnam Air Force (VNAF).
The United States used it as a major base from 1961 through 1973, stationing Army, Air Force (USAF), US Navy, US Special Forces and US Marine units there.
At all times, between 1967 and 1970, Bien Hoa Air base and Tan Son Nhut Air base (Saigon) were alternated between been the first and second busiest airports in the world.
In December 1960, The U.S. Military Assistance Advisory Group (MAAG) requested the U.S. Navy (the designated contract construction agent for the Dept. of Defense in Southeast Asia) to develop plans for and construct several jet-capable airfields in South Vietnam, including at Bien Hoa.
In December 1961, the American construction company RMK-BRJ was directed by the Navy’s Officer in Charge of Construction RVN to begin construction of a new concrete runway, the first of many projects built by RMK-BRJ at the Bien Hoa Air Base over the following ten years.
Fall of Bien Hoa Airbase
In March 1975 Hanoi made its next seriously aggressive move. In the preceding two years, North Vietnam's army patiently moved into the South enormous quantities of Soviet artillery, surface-to-air missiles, and armored vehicles, along with 100,000 fresh troops.
On 10 March the North Vietnamese Army began a new offensive in South Vietnam. Northern forces isolated the provincial capitol of Buôn Ma Thuột by cutting off or blocking the main highways to it. It was at Ban Me Thuot that the first phenomenon which would increasingly undermine the South's morale occurred. Many of its army officers used helicopters to pick up their families and flee to the south with them.
South Vietnamese civilians then began to flee the countryside, crowding the main roads and the pathways in a mass exodus for the coast, where they ultimately jammed seaports seeking transport to the south. The refugees included not only those civilians who had helped the South's army or the Americans, but also a great mass who expected bad treatment from the communists.
By early April of 1975 the end of South Vietnam was at hand.
North Vietnam's forces had severed the roads around Saigon and had begun shelling Bien Hoa. On 9 April the ARVN engaged the PAVN at Xuan Loc, located on Highway 1 only 37 miles northeast of Saigon.
Xuan Loc fell on 23 April, and there was now little to prevent or slow the Communist advance on Saigon.
The loss of Xuan Loc made Bien Hoa Air base indefensible, although the VNAF continued to fly from the base until PAVN artillery fire forced the evacuation of Bien Hoa on 25 April.
 
Long Binh Post.
Long Binh Post (Tổng kho Long Bình) is a former U.S. Army base located in Long Bình ward between Biên Hòa and Saigon, Vietnam.
Long Binh Post was located on the east of Đồng Nai river, 20 km northeast from Saigon (now called Hồ Chí Minh City).
The base functioned as a U.S. Army base, logistics center, and major command headquarters for United States Army Vietnam (USARV).
Long Binh Post was 7 km southeast from Biên Hòa Air Base. Long Binh Post was also unofficially known as "Long Binh Junction, influenced by the widely used initials of then-President Lyndon B. Johnson.
By mid-1967, United States Army, Vietnam (USARV), 1st Logistical Command and many other Army units dispersed in Saigon were moved to Long Binh Post to resolve centralization, security, and troop billeting issues.
Long Binh Post was a sprawling logistics facility and the largest U.S. Army base in Vietnam, with a peak of 60,000 personnel in 1969.
The base was the target of several attacks, especially during Tet in 1968 as well as 1969.
 
RVNS Ky Hoa (HQ-09) – Ho Tong Ham Ky Hoa – PCE 09 – USS SENTRY
On August 28, 1944, under the command of Marines Major Thomas R. Fonick, the USS Sentry crossed the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, California , and headed for the Philippine Islands.
On June 19, 1946, USS Sentry returned to the United State. The following year, the warship was placed on reserve in Orange County, Texas
The ship was transferred to the United States Navy in 1962.
On August 31, 1962, the USS Sentry ship was handed over to the Government of the Republic of Vietnam with the new name of PCE 09 at a ceremony celebrated in the Philadelphia Shipyard.
On October 29, 1962, after thorough training of staff, the USS Sentry departed for Saigon.
On January 17, 1963, the Ky Hoa officially joined the Armed Forces of the Republic of Vietnam.
Operating continuously until 1975, made an attempted escape to the Philippines in mid April 1975. Due to heavy damage returned to Saigon, arrived 11am, 30th of April of 1975.
The crew immediately surrendered to the forces arriving in Saigon. Later that day the ship became HQ-05 of the Vietnamese People’s Navy.
HQ-05 continued operations including combat with the Khmer Rouge. The ship was sunk by the Khmer Rouge in a sea battle on the 7th of January 1979.
 
An Khe – The Golf Course
Camp Radcliff (also known as An Khê Army Airfield, An Khê Base or the Golfcourse) is a former U.S. Army base in the An Khê District in central Vietnam.
Camp Radcliff was established in late August 1965 by the 70th Engineer Battalion as the base camp for the 1st Cavalry Division.
The camp was located on the main highway, QL-19 60 km northwest of Qui Nhơn on the coast and 60 km southeast of Pleiku in the Central Highlands.
The camp was named after 1/9 Cavalry Major Donald Radcliff, the 1st Cavalry's first combat death, who was killed on 18 August 1965 while supporting U.S. Marines in his helicopter gunship during Operation Starlite.
In order to reduce the amount of rotor-blown dust on the landing zone, the men of the 1st Cavalry were instructed to cut back foliage to ground level by hand giving the base its nickname of the Golfcourse.
The 1st Cavalry painted their distinctive insignia on nearby Hon Cong Mountain providing a landmark visible for many miles.
Camp Radcliff was the largest helicopter base in the world at the time of its establishment, capable of accommodating the 1st Cavalry's 400+ helicopters. The base also had an airfield capable of landing C-130 aircraft.
The base had a perimeter of 26 km known as the Green Line with 3-man watchtowers every 50m.
On the night of 3 September 1966 the Vietcong carried out a mortar attack on the Golfcourse.
Starting at 21:50 the base was hit by 119 mortar rounds over a 5-minute period, killing 4 soldiers and wounding a further 76, while 77 helicopters were damaged.
In January 1968 the 1st Cavalry moved to Camp Evans and Camp Radcliff was taken over by the 173rd Airborne Brigade. The 173rd stayed at Camp Radcliff until mid-1969.
The US Army’s, 238th Aviation Company was the last US Unit (officially) stationed at Camp Radcliff departing in December 1971.
Whilst official reports state that Camp Radcliff is now farmland, a visit to the area will see that the runways are well maintained and a considerable military presence in the area.
 
Battle of Phuoc Long
The Battle of Phước Long was a decisive battle of the Vietnam War which began on December 12th, 1974, and concluded on January 6th, 1975.
The battle involved the deployment of the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) 4th Army Corps for the first time, against determined units of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) in Phước Long in Bình Phước Province near the Cambodian border (to be distinguished from the other Phước Long in Bạc Liêu Province, south of Saigon), under the command of Lieutenant General Dư Quốc Đống.[4]
 
On December 12, 1974, the PAVN 4th Army Corps launched their campaign against Phước Long aiming to achieve three key objectives. Firstly, North Vietnamese leaders wanted to test the reaction of the United States Government, to see if they would actually uphold former President Richard Nixon's promises of military retaliation against North Vietnam. Secondly, PAVN field commanders wanted to test the combat readiness of the ARVN. And thirdly, the North Vietnamese wanted to solve their logistical problems once and for all, by capturing the district of Phước Long and the important transportation routes around it.
 
The PAVN campaign proved to be a major success, because the fall of Phước Long showed that the involvement of the United States in the Vietnam War was truly over, especially when the United States Congress repeatedly voted against additional aid for South Vietnam. Militarily, the victory at Phước Long also enabled the North Vietnamese to expand their logistical routes from the Central Highlands of South Vietnam to the Mekong Delta, which placed enormous pressure on the South Vietnamese military.
 
Battle of Duc Co
Battle of Đức Cơ was a major engagement between the North Vietnamese 5th Battalion of the 33rd Regiment and the South Korean 3rd Battalion of the 1st Cavalry Regiment and US Special Forces operatives on August 9, 1966.
The battle resulted from North Vietnamese attempts to infiltrate Đức Cơ from Cambodia.
On the night of August 9, the reinforced North Vietnamese 5th Battalion attacked a Korean tactical base in Đức Cơ.
During several hours of fighting the outnumbered South Koreans defeated their enemies who left more than one hundred bodies on the battlefield. Meanwhile, USAF jet fighters opened fire on a pair of South Vietnamese villages, which they mistakenly believed were Vietcong camps.
The resulting attack left 63 people dead and at least 100 more wounded.
 
The Rose Garden – MCAS – Nam Phong, Thailand.
The Royal Thai Air Base Nam Phong in Nam Phong District, Khon Kaen Province, Thailand in June 1972 became a base of operations for United States Marine Corps air operations by Marine Aircraft Group 15, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing.
 
Elements of squadrons that had previously been located at Da Nang Air Base, South Vietnam were moved to Nam Phong starting in June 1972.
The advance party that first arrived landed to find basically an airfield in the middle of the jungle. At that time the base consisted of a runway, parking apron, and a few wooden buildings. A United States Navy Seabee battalion (MCB 5) was soon clearing the jungle and some 10 man tents were hastily erected to sleep and work in. Since the conditions were rugged, the base soon came to be called "The Rose Garden" after the song by Miss Lynn Anderson and the Marine recruiting campaign based on it saying "We never promised you a Rose Garden", depicting a scary Marine Drill Instructor addressing a mortified recruit.
The squadrons soon in residence included H&MS-15, MABS-15, VMFA-115 and VMFA-232 with F-4 Phantom IIs, VMA(AW)-533 with A-6 Intruders, VMGR-152 with KC-130 Hercules, and H&MS-36, Det "D" with CH-46 Sea Knights.
This group soon was joined by 3rd Battalion 9th Marines who served as the security element. Marine Air Traffic Control Unit 62 (MATCU 62) handled the airport traffic control operations including the airport tower and GCA radar (Ground Controlled Approach). The force occupying "The Rose Garden" was designated Task Force Delta. The base was made up of marines, sailors (medical and construction staff), air force (mostly cargo handing), a six-man United States Army contingent from the 11th Signal Brigade (United States) (providing specialized communications security to the command from June to December 1972), and Thai military elements. The base was in existence until September 1973 when all the units returned to their home bases.
During its operational occupation by U.S. forces the base was used to fly air operations against targets in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. The base was used as a primary divert airbase for battle damaged aircraft and those low on fuel.
Nam Phong also received refugee flights evacuating Hmong from Long Tieng, Laos in May 1975.
 
 
 
972nd / 9th Army Signal Command – Voice of the Army
In August 1965, alerted for overseas duty in South Vietnam. It was attached to the U. S. Army Support Command and located at Qui Nhon.
The unit operated signal depots, supply and maintenance points September 1965 to October 1967. The 972nd was inactivated on 20 October 1967, only to be activated again at Fort Lewis, Washington in May 1968. Its soldiers trained for a five months, culminating in the unit's second deployment to Vietnam in October.
The newly organized 972nd Signal Battalion arrived at Long Binh, Vietnam, on 29 October 1968, assigned to the 2nd Signal Group, 1st Signal Brigade, U.S. Army Strategic Communications Command. It provided contingency communications support throughout the Republic of Vietnam. In November 1968, the 107th Signal Company (Support) was assigned to the battalion. Later that month, the 972nd gained the 267th Signal Company (Cable Construction) and the 327th Signal Company (Radio Relay).
During October 1969, the battalion transferred control of the 267th and 327th Signal Companies to the 39th Signal Battalion, 2nd Signal Group. The command was preparing for another inactivation. In October, the 107th Signal Company was released for redeployment to the United States. In late November 1969, the Army inactivated the 972nd as part of the redeployment of U.S. Army Forces from South Vietnam.
During Vietnam, the battalion earned ten Vietnam campaign streamers. U.S. Army Vietnam also awarded the 972nd with its second Meritorious Unit Commendation.
 
432nd Wing – 432nd Air Reconnaissance Wing
On 18 September 1966, the 432d Tactical Reconnaissance Wing was activated at Udorn Royal Thai Air Force Base, Thailand as an Douglas RF-4C Phantom II wing.
The wing assumed the personnel, aircraft and equipment of the 6234th Tactical Fighter Wing, which was simultaneously discontinued. At Udon, it became one of the most diversified units of its size in the Air Force.
The mission of the wing was to provide intelligence information about hostile forces through tactical reconnaissance and use its fighter elements to destroy the targets earmarked by the intelligence data provided.
The wing had numerous missions in the support area.
The 432d TRW accounted for more than 80 percent of all reconnaissance activity over North Vietnam.
In addition to the reconnaissance mission, the 432d also had a tactical fighter squadron component, with two (13th Tactical Fighter Squadron, 555th Tactical Fighter Squadron) F-4C/D squadrons assigned. The squadrons flew strike missions over North Vietnam and the pilots and weapon systems officers of the 13 TFS and 555 TFS were credited with MiG kills.
 
In the fall of 1970 the wing was phased down as part of the overall American withdrawal from the Vietnam War; however, in 1972 tactical fighter strength was augmented by deployed Tactical Air Command CONUS-based tactical fighter squadrons being attached to the 432d in response to the North Vietnamese invasion of South Vietnam.
In addition, the 421st Tactical Fighter Squadron was reassigned from Takhli Royal Thai Air Force Base. During Operation Linebacker, between May and October 1972, the 432d TRW had seven F-4 tactical fighter squadrons assigned or attached, (13th, 56th, 308th, 414th, 421st, 523d and 555th) making it the largest wing in the USAF. The three Vietnam era Airforce Aces all came from the 432d – two from the 555th and one from the 13th. The CONUS-based squadrons returned to the United States in the fall of 1972.
 
As a result of the Paris Peace Accords of 1973, the numbers of USAF personnel and aircraft at Udorn were reduced. The 421st TFS was inactivated in August and the 555th moved to Luke Air Force Base in 1974. By the spring of 1975, two operational squadrons remained, the 14th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron (RF-4C) and the 13th TFS (F-4D/E).
 
Forces from the 432d participated in the SS Mayaguez action in May 1975, sinking two Cambodian Khmer Rouge ships.
The 423nd TFW was inactivated on 23 December 1975.
The last USAF personnel departed Udorn RTAFB on 8 January 1976
 
Battle of Dak To
The Battle of Đắk Tô, also known as the Battle of Đắk Tô - Tân Cảnh, was a series of major engagements of the Vietnam War that took place between November 3 to 23, 1967,in Kon Tum (Kontum) Province, in the Central Highlands of the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam).
The action at Đắk Tô was one of a series of People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) offensive initiatives that began during the second half of the year.
North Vietnamese attacks at Lộc Ninh (in Bình Long Province), Song Be (in Phước Long Province), and at Con Thien and Khe Sanh, (in Quảng Trị Province), were other actions which, combined with Đắk Tô, became known as "the border battles."
The objective of the PAVN forces was to distract American and South Vietnamese forces away from cities towards the borders in preparation for the Tet Offensive.
The North Vietnamese lost upwards of 1,000 operatives during this battle. The United States lost 361 killed and 15 missing in addition to 40 helicopters, an F4 fighter jet and two Hercules transport aircraft. The South Vietnamese lost 73 KIA and 18 missing.
The North Vietnamese withdrew from Dak To in late November.
 
48th Assault Helicopter Company.
Blue Star Slicks, Joker Gunships,  - The 48th AHC arrived in Vietnam in 1965 and were initially based at Phan Rang. During their stay in Vietnam they were variously based at;
Phan Rang, Tuy Hoa, Duc To (In support of US Special Forces Missions into Laos and Cambodia) Phu Hiep, Ninh Hao, Marble Mountain and Dong Ha.
They did not depart Vietnam until 1972. They operated throughout the mid 1960's with the Elite Korean Marines.
One of their last Vietnam missions was the Invasion of Laos, Operation Lam Son 719.
During stay in Vietnam missions included, DMZ, Khe Sanh, Hue, Da Nang, Nha Trang in support of US Special Forces ground operations.
 
Captured Vietnam War Map
Viet Cong Overprint Map
Original compiled and printed by the US Corps of Engineers and / or the National Geographic Map Service, Dalat, South Vietnam.
The red X across the front of the US Engineers Map was standard on maps captured and reused by the Viet Cong. These maps were either captured during operations or 'left-behind' by departing US Forces and captured by the Viet Cong on the fall of South Vietnam in 1975.
Due to numerous contributing factors the Viet Cong re-used these maps. Before reuse the red-cross noting 'Captured' was marked on the front. Just some of these factors were;
Severe shortage of raw and processed materials in the new Vietnam including ink and paper. The backs of the maps were blank allowing the VC to print their own required maps to the rear resulting in; two maps for the weight of one. US Printed maps were of a higher quality than the inks, paper and processes used by the VC. Troop operative moral improved using a captured, departed enemy piece.
 
Guantanamera – Cuban Patriot Song
"Guantanamera" (Spanish: "from Guantánamo, feminine" indicating a woman from Guantánamo) is perhaps the best known Cuban song and that country's most noted patriotic song, especially when using a poem by the Cuban poet José Martí for the lyrics.
In 1966, a version by American vocal group The Sandpipers, based on an arrangement by The Weavers from their May 1963 Carnegie Hall Reunion concert, became an international hit.
It has been recorded by many other solo artists, notably by Julio Iglesias, Joan Baez, Jimmy Buffett, Celia Cruz, Bobby Darin, Joe Dassin, Muslim Magomayev, José Feliciano, Biser Kirov, Wyclef Jean, Puerto Plata, Trini Lopez, La Lupe, Nana Mouskouri, Tito Puente, Andy Russell, Gloria Estefan and Pete Seeger, and by such groups as Buena Vista Social Club, Los Lobos, and the Gipsy Kings.
José Julián Martí Pérez (January 28, 1853 – May 19, 1895) was a Cuban National Hero and an important figure in Latin American literature.
During his life, he wo-rked as a poet, essayist, journalist, translator, professor, and publisher.
He was very politically active and is considered an important revolutionary philosopher and political theorist.
 
179th Assault Helicopter Company – Hooks
179th Assault Support Helicopter Company - "Hook's" Patch (2nd Design) - The 179th Assault Support Helicopter Company was activated on 25 June 1966 and deployed to South Viet Nam arriving in June 1966 at Dong Ba Thin.
The 179th ASHC were assigned to the 1st Aviation Brigade, 17th Combat Aviation Group "Freedom Eagles, 52nd Combat Aviation Battalion "Flying Dragons". They made their base of operations at (Dragon Mountain) Camp Holloway near Pleiku in the western area of II Corps Tactical Zone.
The 179th operated as an Assault Support CH-47 Chinook Helicopter Company transporting Infantry Troops and moving Cargo and Supplies to units including Field Artillery, Ammo and other heavy loads to remote firebases, some of them at 5,000 feet elevation.
The 179th supported as many as five separate locations, Dong Ba Thin, An Son, Tuy Hoa, Kontum and Pleiku simultaneous and were a major contributing force in battle for the Central Highland in II Corps Tactical Zone until they stood-down in late 1971.
 
Australian 161st Recce
The 161st (Independent) Reconnaissance Flight was an Australian Army aviation unit of fixed wing and rotary aircraft.
In June 1965, the 161st Reconnaissance Flight was raised as part of the 16th Army Light Aircraft Squadron based at RAAF Base Amberley for deployment to Vietnam.
In September that year the flight deployed to South Vietnam with two Cessna 180 planes and two Sioux light observation helicopters in support of the 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment based at Bien Hoa airbase.
The Flight was re-designated the 161st (Independent) Reconnaissance Flight.
The Flight continued to serve in this role as part of the 1st Australian Task Force, operating out of Vung Tau and Nui Dat until the end of 1971 when it was withdrawn to Australia.
 
Nguyen Van Thieu
Nguyễn Văn Thiệu - 5 April 1923 – 29 September 2001) was the president of South Vietnam from 1965 to 1975.
 He was a general in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN), became head of a military junta, and then president after winning a scheduled election.
He established rule over South Vietnam until he resigned and left the nation a few days before the fall of Saigon and the ultimate North Vietnamese victory.
 
502nd Aviation Battalion – 62nd Aviation Company = 175th Outlaws / Professionals – Vinh Long Outlaws
The 62nd Aviation Company Outlaws was formed on 6th of August 1964 from assets assigned to the 11th Air Assault Division (Airmobile) at Fort Benning, Georgia.
After arriving at Vinh Long in September 1964, the Outlaws and its armed platoon Mavericks immediately conducted 30 days of in-country training prior to release for full combat operations throughout the IV Corps Tactical Zone, essentially responding to request throughout the Vietnam’s Delta Region. 
The 150th Transportation Detachment Roadrunners provided aircraft maintenance and technical supply support.  The 28th Signal Detachment provided maintenance on communications equipment, and the 25th Infantry Division attached infantrymen to the Outlaws/Mavericks/Roadrunners as Door Gunners.
In December 1964, the 62nd was redesignated as A Company 502nd Aviation Battalion, and retained all equipment, personnel, and call signs previously assigned to the 62nd.
A Company 502nd Aviation Battalion was deactivated in September 1966 and the 175th Aviation Company activated in its place, from personnel and equipment formerly assigned to A/502nd and retained their call signs. 
On 2 November 1967, the 175th Aviation Company was redesignated as the 175th Assault Helicopter Company and retained that designation until deactivation in February 1972 in Vietnam, but the armed platoon Mavericks were designated as the Bushwhackers in January 1971 on deployment of AH-1G Cobra helicopter.
 
Dear John Letter
A Dear John letter is a letter written to a man by his wife or romantic partner to inform him their relationship is over because she has found another lover.
The man is often a soldier stationed overseas, although the letter may be used in other ways, including being left for him to discover when he returns from work to an emptied house.
While the exact origins of the phrase are unknown, it is commonly believed to have been coined by Americans during World War II.
"John" was the most popular and common baby name for boys in America every single year from 1880 through 1923, making it a reasonable 'placeholder' name when denoting those of age for military service.
Large numbers of American troops were stationed overseas for many months or years, and as time passed many of their wives or girlfriends decided to begin a relationship with a new man rather than to wait for the original one to return.
As letters to servicemen from wives or girlfriends back home would typically contain affectionate language (such as "Dear Johnny", "My dearest John", or simply "Darling"), a serviceman receiving a note beginning with a curt "Dear John" would instantly be aware of the letter's purpose.
It has been claimed that the Vietnam War inspired more Dear John letters than any other US conflict.
 
1st Squadron, 9th Cavalry, Delta Troop, Real Cav – Ground Cavalry.
Delta Troop – 1st / 9th Cavalry – Real Cav. The 9th Squadron, Aerial Reconnaissance contains six troops, A thru F.
Five of these troops were Air Cavalry. Troop D, Delta Troop were Ground Cavalry.
Troop D arrived in Vietnam in September 1965 and were to remain in Vietnam until June 1971. The 1st Squadron served as the Recon Unit for the 1st Cavalry Division, Airmobile.
The 9th would be inserted into ‘hot zones’ to perform recon duties and engage the enemy prior to the arrival of other elements of the 1st Cavalry Division.
Known as the Head Hunters, they often operated independently of the rest of the 9th Cavalry.
Wound down in Vietnam with equipment assets moving to the 1st Aviation Brigade the Unit ended its tour in Vietnam in late June 1971.
 
MANCHU SCOUTS – Mekong Delta – My Tho
Manchu Scouts - 9th Infantry Division - My Tho
Elite, LRRP, Recon - Manchu Scouts – Recon.
US RANGERS – Long Range Recon Patrol.
The 1st Battalion, 9th Infantry Division's, MANCHU SCOUTS, were the Forward Recon and Long Range Recon Element of the 9th Infantry Division at My Tho.
Recondo Trained and Special Forces Qualified this unit operated in conjunction with the US Special Forces and Navy Seals throughout the Mekong Delta.
 
 
 
 
9th Infantry Division – US ARMY
With a magnificent WWII History that saw combat successful combat operations as part of the invading forces in North Africa, Sicily and later Normandy and eventually to cross the Rhine in March of 1945 the 9th Infantry Division was stood down in 1947.
In February 1966 the division was reactivated at Fort Riley and by March of 1967 it's history as an invading force was again coming to the fore as it destoryed Viet Cong forces across Dinh Tuong Province in Operation Palm Beach.
A brigade of the 9th Inf Div became the first US Army Unit since the Civil War to operate entirely afloat when they joined with the Naval Task Force at My Tho to enlarge the Mobile Riverine Force. It served with Naval Seals, Navy and Marines throughout the Mekong from their Dong Tam Base (My Tho) until their departure from Vietnam, almost one thousand days after arrival on the 27th of August 1969.
 
614th USAF – Tactical Fighter Squadron
Allocated to Tactical Air command, 1953 and reactivated as a Fighter-Bomber, later Tactical Fighter squadron. Performed routine deployments and exercises 1954-1966. Deployed to South Vietnam as part of USAF buildup of forces in 1966, engaging in tactical bombing of enemy targets in South Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and North Vietnam.
Deployed to NATO operations in 1971.
 
VMF 115 – Joes Jokers – Silver Eagles
Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 115 (VMFA-115) is a United States Marine Corps F/A-18 Hornet squadron.
Officially nicknamed the "Silver Eagles" and Joe's Jokers after their first commanding officer Major Joe Foss.
The squadron is based at Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, South Carolina and falls under the command of Marine Aircraft Group 31 (MAG-31) and the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing (2nd MAW).
The squadron has seen combat during World War II, the Korean and Vietnam Wars and has deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom with a final deployment in 2008 to Al Asad Airbase in western Iraq.
The Squadron radio callsign is "Blade".
Vietnam War Service. In 1964/65 the squadron transitioned to the McDonnell F-4B Phantom II and was redesignated VMFA-115.
They were deployed to Da Nang Air Base, Vietnam on October 14, 1965.
During the Vietnam War, VMFA-115 flew more than 34,000 combat sorties, providing close air support for Marines during such battles as the Tet Offensive, Battle of Hue, Battle of Khe Sahn, and Task Force Delta.
In March 1971 VMFA-115 was relocated to Iwakuni, Japan.
In April 1972, the squadron moved its operations to Royal Thai Air Base Nam Phong, Thailand.
Here they continued to fly air to ground sorties in addition to playing a key fighter role in Operation Linebacker missions over North Vietnam. They left Thailand in July 1977.
 
Civil Operations and Revolutionary Development Support – MAC CORDS – Military Assistance Command.
CORDS (Civil Operations and Rural Development Support) was a pacification program of the governments of South Vietnam and the United States during the Vietnam War.
The program was created on 9 May 1967, and included military and civilian components of both governments.
The objective of CORDS was to gain support for the government of South Vietnam from its rural population which was largely under the influence or controlled by the insurgent communist forces of the Viet Cong and the North Vietnamese People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN).
 
Unlike earlier pacification programs in Vietnam, CORDS is seen by many authorities as a "successful integration of civilian and military efforts" to combat the insurgency.
By 1970, 93 percent of the rural population of South Vietnam was believed by the United States to be living in "relatively secure" villages.
CORDS had been extended to all 44 provinces of South Vietnam, and the communist insurgency was much reduced.
Critics, however, have described the pacification programs and CORDS in terms such as "the illusion of progress".
CORDS was, in the estimation of its first leader, Robert W. Komer, "too little, too late."
With the withdrawal of U.S. military forces and many civilian personnel, CORDS was abolished in February 1973.
CORDS temporary successes were eroded in the 1970s, as the war became primarily a struggle between the conventional military forces of South and North Vietnam rather than an insurgency. North Vietnam prevailed in 1975.
 
USS Liberty – AGTR-5 – US Spy Ship.
USS Liberty (AGTR-5) was a Belmont-class technical research ship (electronic spy ship) that was attacked by Israel Defense Forces during the 1967 Six-Day War. She was built and served in World War II as SS Simmons Victory, a Victory cargo ship.
Post War she was a commercial ship.
In February 1963, the U.S. Navy acquired Simmons Victory and converted her to a "Miscellaneous Auxiliary" ship at Willamette Iron and Steel of Portland.
On 8 June the vessel was renamed USS Liberty and given the hull classification symbol AG-168.
On 1 April 1964, she was reclassified a Technical Research Ship (AGTR-5).
The USS Liberty went to the Mediterranean Sea in 1967.
During the Six-Day War between Israel and several Arab nations, she was sent to collect electronic intelligence in the eastern Mediterranean.
Attack by Israeli Forces.
On the afternoon of 8 June 1967, while in international waters off the northern coast of the Sinai Peninsula, Liberty was attacked and damaged by the Israel Defense Forces; 34 crewmen were killed and 174 wounded.
Although severely damaged with a 39-by-24-foot (11.9m × 7.3m) hole amidships and a twisted keel, Liberty's crew kept her afloat, and she was able to leave the area under her own power.
After the attack she was escorted to Valletta, Malta, by units of the Sixth Fleet and was given temporary repairs. After the repairs were completed, Liberty returned to the United States on 27 July 1967.
She was decommissioned and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 28 June 1968.
She was laid up in the Atlantic Reserve Fleet of Norfolk until December 1970, when she was transferred to the Maritime Administration for disposal. In 1973, she was sold for scrapping to the Boston Metals Company of Baltimore, Maryland.
Later, Israel apologized for the attack, stating it had mistaken the Liberty for an Egyptian ship, as the incident occurred during the Six-Day War.
In total Israel gave close to $13 million to the U.S. in compensation for the incident. This includes compensation to the families of those killed, the wounded and to cover damage of the ship.
 
Operation Junction City
Operation Junction City was an 82-day military operation conducted by United States and ARVN forces.
The Operation commenced on 22 February 1967.
It was the largest U.S. airborne operation since Operation Varsity in March 1945, the only major airborne operation of the Vietnam War, and one of the largest U.S. operations of the war.
The operation was named after Junction City, Kansas, home of the operation's commanding officer.
The stated aim of the almost three-month engagement involving the equivalent of nearly three divisions of U.S. troops was to locate the elusive 'headquarters' of the Communist uprising in South Vietnam, the Central Office of South Vietnam (COSVN).
By some accounts of U.S. analysts at the time, such a headquarters was believed to be almost a "mini-Pentagon," complete with typists, file cabinets, and staff workers possibly guarded by layers of bureaucracy. In truth, after the end of the war, the actual headquarters was revealed by Viet Cong (VC) archives to be a small and mobile group of people, often sheltering in ad hoc facilities and at one point escaping an errant bombing by some hundreds of meters.
Junction City's grand tactical plan was a "hammer and anvil" tactic, whereupon airborne forces would "flush out" the VC headquarters, sending them to retreat against a prepared "anvil" of other forces.
The U.S. forces included most of the 1st Infantry Division and the 25th Infantry Division including the 196th Light Infantry Brigade, the airborne troops of the 173rd Airborne Brigade and large armored elements of the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment (11th ACR).
Although the objective of the Operation was never achieved it was still considered a success by Allied Forces.
Results of the battle as claimed by US Forces was - Allied Forces sustained, 282 killed, 1576 wounded,3 tanks destroyed, 21 AFVs destroyed, 5 howitzers destroyed and 11 trucks destroyed.
The Viet Cong claimed considerably different results of, 13,500 U.S./ARVN Killed or Wounded, 800 armored vehicles destroyed, 119 howitzers destroyed.
The Viet Cong released no figures on their own losses with the US claiming they had killed more that 2,700 Viet Cong.
Both the Viet Cong and the United States claimed Operation Junction City as a Victory.
The Viet Cong adopted the name Operation Junction City for their part in the battle (The only time they did this during the war and in April 1967 awarded a Badge to participants of the campaign, the only badge they ever issued in English. The badge is bannered across the top ‘Chien Thang’ – Triumph.)
 
VMF 224 – VMFA 224 – Marine Attack Squadron 224
Mission: Attack and destroy surface targets, day or night, under the weather; conduct multi-sensor imagery reconnaissance; provide supporting arms coordination; and intercept and destroy enemy aircraft under all-weather conditions.
VMFA 224 – Marine All Weather Attack Squadron 224 entered the jet era in 1951 with the acceptance of the McDonnell F2H-2 Banshee.
In 1952, after completing a Mediterranean Cruise aboard the USS Roosevelt, the squadron accepted the Grumman F9F Panther.
On September 29, 1956, the squadron became the first Marine unit to field the Douglas A4D Skyhawk aircraft.
In 1965, the Bengals deployed to South Vietnam as part of the United States' buildup during the Vietnam War.
For nearly a year the Bengals operated their “Scooters” from the expeditionary field at Chu Lai.
On November 1, 1966, the squadron acquired the Grumman A-6 Intruder and was re-designated as Marine All Weather Attack Squadron 224 (VMA(AW)-224).
In 1971, the Bengals deployed to the South China Sea aboard the USS Coral Sea (CV-43).
As part of Carrier Air Wing 15, the squadron completed six line periods on Yankee Station and participated in numerous operations including the historic Operation Pocket Money mining of Hai Phong Harbor.
 
2nd Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment – Blackhawks
On 8 August 1967 the unit left Fort Hood for Vietnam where they were attached to the 4th Infantry Division, headquarters in Plieku. During their service in the Central Highlands, troopers saw action in Plieku, Dak To, Suoi Doi, Kontum, An Khe.
 
In May of 1969 the squadron was transferred to Task Force South in Phan Thiet and attached to the 1st Field Force, Vietnam.
Now operating in the rice paddies and rubber plantations of Vietnam, the Blackhawks further distinguished themselves in actions around Phan Thiet, Song Mao, Phan Rang and their environs.
 
The 2nd Squadron, 1st Cavalry departed Vietnam in October 1970, leaving Cam Ranh Bay for reassignment to the 2nd Armored Division at Fort Hood, Texas.
 
VMF 214 – VMFA 214 – Swashbucklers – Blacksheep. Marine Air Attack Squadron 214
In May 1965, the Black Sheep were reassigned to Marine Aircraft Group 12, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, Fleet Marine Force, Pacific, and relocated to MCAS Iwakuni, Japan.
On June 21, 1965, the first Black Sheep division flew into Chu Lai, Republic of Vietnam, landing on 4,000 feet of SATS runway.
The black Sheep rotated out of Vietnam in February 1966 to pick up new pilots and personnel.
In April 1966, the Black Sheep deployed back to Chu Lai where combat missions were again flown in support of the Republic of Vietnam.
The Black Sheep Squadron flew 14,000 hours in combat, 13,000 sorties, and dropped more than 10,000 tons of ordnance. For their service VMA-214 was awarded the Navy Unit Commendation with Bronze Star.
 
VMA-214 returned from Vietnam in April 1967, relocated to El Toro, and was reassigned to Marine Aircraft Group 33, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, Fleet Marine Force, Pacific. Once in El Toro, the unit became recognized as an operational training squadron for attack pilots, many of whom were replacement pilots bound for Vietnam.
During December 1970, the Black Sheep were reassigned to Marine Aircraft Group 13.
 
TEXAN – T-6 – Aircraft
The North American Aviation T-6 Texan is an American single-engined advanced trainer aircraft used to train pilots of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF), United States Navy, Royal Air Force, and other air forces of the British Commonwealth during World War II and into the 1970s.
Designed by North American Aviation, the T-6 is known by a variety of designations depending on the model and operating air force.
The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) and USAAF designated it as the AT-6, the United States Navy the SNJ.
Starting in 1948, the new United States Air Force (USAF) designated it the T-6, with the USN following in 1962.
It remains a popular warbird aircraft used for airshow demonstrations and static displays. It has also been used many times to simulate various Japanese aircraft, including the Mitsubishi A6M Zero, in movies depicting World War II in the Pacific.
A total of 15,495 T-6s of all variants were built.
 
VNAF – South Vietnam Air Force.
The South Vietnam Air Force (Vietnamese: Không lực Việt Nam Cộng hòa – KLVNCH), officially the Republic of Vietnam Air Force (sometimes Vietnam Air Force – VNAF) was the aerial branch of the Republic of Vietnam Military Forces, the official military of the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam) from 1955 to 1975.
The VNAF began with a few hand-picked men chosen to fly alongside French pilots.
It eventually grew into the world's sixth largest air force at the height of its power, in 1974. It is an often neglected chapter of the history of the Vietnam War as they operated in the shadow of the United States Air Force.
It was dissolved in 1975 after the Fall of Saigon; many of its members emigrated to the United States.
Unlike the ARVN, the VNAF was an all-volunteer service, remaining so until its demise in 1975.
The VNAF recruiting center was located at Tan Son Nhut Air Base. Recruits were given a screening test, followed by a physical examination.
Basic requirements for service in the VNAF was to be a Vietnamese citizen; at least age 17; minimum age 25 for flight training; no criminal record; the equivalent of a U.S. 9th grade education for airmen; 11th grade for those entering pilot training or a 12th grade for non-rated officer.
If a volunteer met all the qualifications, the recruit was then sent to basic training at the ARVN training base at Lam Song.
Non-commissioned officer (NCO) training was held at Bien Hoa Air Base. After two months of training, or four months for aviation cadets, the recruit was given an aptitude test and progressed to specialized technical training.
From there, he was sent to one of the ARVN wings for journeymen training. Aviation cadets pursued three additional months of specialized training after completing their initial four-month training course.
Some were sent to the United States for advanced pilot training while non-rated officers pursued training in South Vietnam for their non-flying assignments.
This training lasted about nine months, whereupon a cadet served in an operational unit for about a year before receiving a commission as a second lieutenant.
 
Women also served in the VNAF.
The Women's Armed Forces Corps (WAFC) was formed to fill non-combat duties beginning in December 1965. Women were assigned to VNAF wings, Headquarters, the Air Logistics Wing, performing duties as personnel specialists, secretaries and other administrative roles.
 
Troop F – 9th Cavalry (Air Cavalry) – Recon
Raised in Vietnam on the 30th of June 1971 – Formed as a Recon unit of the 3rd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division. It was formed after the bulk of the 1st Cavalry Division had already left Vietnam.
It served under the 229th Aviation Battalion.
The troop was de-activated on the 26th of February 1973. The unit served for less than 20 months and had a strength of 260 operatives on their formation.
For the first 12 months of operations the unit was known as, Troop H, 16th Cavalry. This designation was never approved however and in May 1972 it was officially designated Troop F, 9th Air Cavalry.
They were involved in numerous DMZ Operations including the US Invasion of Laos.
 
Battle of Ia Drang – Ia Drang Valley
The Battle of Ia Drang was the first major battle between the United States Army and the North Vietnamese Army-NVA (People's Army of Vietnam-PAVN), part of the Pleiku Campaign conducted early in the Vietnam War.
It comprised two main engagements. The first involved the 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment and supporting units, and took place between November 14th and November 16th, 1965 at LZ X-Ray, located at the eastern foot of the Chu Pong massif in the central highlands of Vietnam.
The second engagement involved the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment plus supporting units, and took place on November 17 at LZ Albany, farther north in the Ia Drang Valley.
It is notable for being the first large scale helicopter air assault and also the first use of B-52 strategic bombers in a tactical support role.
The size of the clearing at LZ X-Ray meant that troops had to be shuttled in, the first lift landing at 10:48. The last troops of the battalion were landed at 15:20, by which time the troops on the ground were already heavily engaged, with one platoon cut off.
Faced with heavy casualties and unexpected opposition, 1st Battalion was reinforced by B Company 2nd Battalion 7th Cavalry. Fighting continued the following day when the LZ was further reinforced by A Company 2/7 and also by 2nd Battalion 5th Cavalry, and the lost platoon was rescued.
The last Vietnamese assaults on the position were repulsed on the morning of 16th. As the Vietnamese forces melted away, the remainder of 2/7 and A Company of 1st Battalion 5th Cavalry arrived. By mid-afternoon 1/7 and B Company 2/7 had been airlifted to LZ Falcon, and on the 17th November 2/5 marched out towards LZ Columbus while the remaining 2/7 and 1/5 companies marched towards LZ Albany.
The latter force became strung out and, in the early afternoon, were badly mauled in an ambush before they could be reinforced and extricated.
The battle at LZ X-Ray was documented in the CBS special report Battle of Ia Drang Valley by Morley Safer and the critically acclaimed book We Were Soldiers Once... And Young by Harold G. Moore and Joseph L. Galloway.
Between the Battles at LZ X-Ray, LZ Albany and LZ Columbus, US Forces lost 237 Men Killed in Acition.
 
F Troop – 4th Cavalry – (Air Cavalry)
Formed in Vietnam on the 10th of February 1971 – Strength at Formation of 266 operatives. Organized from assets of Troop D, 3rd Squadron 4th Cavalry.
Served with both the 11th and 12th Aviation Groups and was based at Lai Khe and later Loc Ninh and then in late 1972 Da Nang and later Tan My (1973).
The Unit was deactivated on the 26th of February 1973 having served just over 2 years. Operatives rotated back to the United States.
 
CUA VIET COMBAT BASE – Quang Tri
Cửa Việt Base (also known as Cửa Việt Combat Base, Cửa Việt Naval Support Activity, Camp Kistler or simply Cửa Việt) is a former U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Navy, U.S. Army and Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) base north of Quảng Trị.
The base was located at the mouth of the Cửa Việt/Thạch Hãn River approximately 16 km north of Quảng Trị and only approximately 10 km south of the Vietnamese Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).
The base was first established by the 3rd Marine Division in 1966 as a logistics and support base for Marine units along the DMZ and particularly the Đông Hà Combat Base once the Cửa Việt/Thạch Hãn River had been dredged to allow passage for LCUs (Landing Craft Utility Ships).
 
Recon Team Connecticut – Command Notyh
US Special Forces - Joint, US - Montagnard Recon Unit
Recon Team Connecticut operated from the US Special Forces Command and Control North at Da Nang and throughout CTZ I into Laos and North Vietnam.
 
Unit was a joint US Special Forces and Montagnard Special Forces Team and was assigned Classified Unconventional Warfare Mission in South Vietnam, across the DMZ into North Vietnam and into Laos. The Montagnard Element of RT Connecticut were derived from Meo Tribesmen (laos) under the command of the Mercenary General, Vang Pao.
The unit ceased operations in early 1971 after Operational Lam Son 719.
 
64th Fighter Interceptor Squadron – FIS – Aggressors.
Was deployed by Air Defense Command to Clark Air Base, Philippines in 1966 as part of Pacific Air Forces to provide air defense of Luzon and northern Philippines.
Flew F-102s from Clark, and rotated flights to bases in South Vietnam (including Da Nang Air Base) and Thailand to provide air defense against the unlikely event that North Vietnamese aircraft would attack, July 1966 – December 1969.
Deployed temporarily to South Korea during the Pueblo crisis in January–June 1968. Inactivated in 1969 as part of the retirement of the F-102.
 
U-Tapao – Royal Thai Navy Air Base.
In 1961 the Royal Thai Navy won budget approval to build an airfield near U-Tapao village, Rayong Province.
In 1965 the US government gained the assent of the Thai government to allow US to upgrade the airfield and use it to support combat operations in Vietnam.
 Expansion of U-Tapao began in October 1965. The completed new facility opened at the end of 1967.
The 11,000-foot (3,355 m) runway became operational on 6 July 1966 and U-Tapao received its first complement of USAF Strategic Air Command (SAC) KC-135 tankers in August 1966.
The US had been flying B-52 bombing missions from Kadena AFB in Okinawa, but Okinawa was judged to be too far from Vietnam to meet mission requirements.
An optimal solution was to base the B-52s in South Vietnam or Thailand.
The cost to upgrade an existing Vietnamese air base was prohibitive, however, and base security was problematic. U-Tapao had an existing runway suitable for the bombers and the cost for upgrades to the base was minimal.
In January 1967, negotiations between the US and Thai government started to base them at U-Tapao.
The agreement, reached on 2 March 1967, allowed 15 bombers and their support personnel to be based at U-Tapao, with the provision that missions flown from Thailand would not over-fly Laos or Cambodia on their way to targets in Vietnam.
The first B-52's arrived on 10 April 1967.
The next day, B-52 sorties were flown from U-Tapao. By 1972 there were 54 B-52 aircraft stationed in Thailand.
Current Use - For several years, beginning in 1981, U-Tapao has hosted parts of Cobra Gold, the largest US military peacetime exercise in the Pacific, jointly involving US, Singaporean, and Thai armed forces, and designed to build ties between the nations and promote interoperability between their military components.
 
362nd SIGNALS Company.
The 362nd Signal Company was deployed in Vietnam from March 23, 1962, to March 15, 1973, as part of the 39th Signal Battalion.
The 362nd was deployed from the Delta to the DMZ, providing long range Tropo-Scatter radio telephone communications throughout South Vietnam, with one site in Udorn Air Force Base in Thailand.
In early 1964, the site in Ubon was no longer part of the 362nd Signal.
By mid 1964, the 362nd operated Microwave Communications sites in Soc Trang, Vinh Long, Phu Lam (near Saigon), Nha Trang, Qui Nhon, Da Nang, Hue, Quang Ngai, Pleiku, Ban Me Thuot and Gia Nghia.
In July, 1964, the 362nd Signal Company had 216 Enlisted Men and 12 Officers.
Operation Back Porch was the use of AN/MRC-85 Troposphere Scatter Microwave Communications Systems linking Saigon, Nha Trang, Quinhon and Danang, and linking Nha Trang to Pleiku and Ubon.
The 362nd Signal also operated TRC-90 Microwave links joining Soc Trang to Vinh Long and Phulan, linking Phu Lam with Gia Nghia, Ban Me Thuot and Pleiku, linking Da Nang with Hue and Quang Ngai.
The 362nd Signal was just about the first in and the last out of regular US Army company sized units deployed to South Vietnam.
The final mission was turning over the communications sites to the International Control Commission following the signing of the Paris Peace Agreement.
The motto during that period was "Hang Loose With the Deuce."
 
MACS 4 – Marine Air Control Squadron 4
Marine Air Control Squadron 4 (MACS-4) is a United States Marine Corps aviation command and control squadron.
The squadron provides aerial surveillance and air traffic control for the III Marine Expeditionary Force.
Their first deployment was to Thailand during May–July 1962 in connection with communist threat to that country.
The squadron again relocated during October 1965 to Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California.
They deployed during 1967 to Danang, Republic of Vietnam and assigned to 1st Marine Aircraft Wing.
The squadron was reassigned during August 1967 to Marine Air Control Group 18, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing.
They were the first unit in the Marine Corps to utilize the Marine Tactical Data System (MTDS) which they operated from Monkey Mountain west of Da Nang from June 1967 to January 1971.
The squadron departed Vietnam embarking on the USS Alamo (LSD-33) on 31 January 1971 to head back to MCAS Santa Ana, California.
On that same day MACS-4 was officially deactivated.
 
2nd Battalion – 8th Marines
Seeing service during the Vietnam War the Battalion was deactivated in 1947. The battalion was reactivated on 1 December 1950 at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina and assigned to 2nd Marine Division.
From July to September 1958 they took part in the United States intervention in during the Lebanon crisis.
This was followed by a deployment to Guantanamo Bay Naval Base as part of the Cuban Missile Crisis from October to December 1962. During the Vietnam War they were located at Guantanamo Bay.
 
ATKRON 86 – VFA 86 – US NAVY – Strike Fighter Squadron 86.
On 1 July 1965, the squadron conducted its first combat missions, flying from the USS Independence against targets in South Vietnam.
In 1966-67, VA-86 was back in the Mediterranean Sea aboard Independence.
 
On 1 June 1967, VA-86 became the Navy's first operational Atlantic Fleet squadron to fly the A-7A Corsair II. VA-86 was reassigned to Carrier Air Wing Six and made another deployment to Vietnam aboard USS America.
The squadron conducted its third South East Asia combat deployment aboard USS Coral Sea from September 1969 to July 1970 while being assigned to Carrier Air Wing Fifteen. In October 1970, VA-86 transitioned to the E model of the A-7.
From 1971 to 1987, VA-86 was again assigned to CVW-8.
In late spring of 1972, VA-86 was forced to transition to the A-7C due to unexpected problems with the A-7E's TF-41 engines.
The squadron then deployed from June 1972 to March 1973 aboard USS America for a ten-month combat cruise, participating in several intense and lengthy bombing campaigns, including Operation Linebacker and Linebacker II in late-1972.
The squadron remained on station until the Paris Peace Accords were signed in late January 1973.
This was the squadron’s fourth combat deployment to Southeast Asia, more than any other East Coast attack squadron and resulted in the receipt of the Meritorious Unit Commendation.
 
EB-66 - Douglas B-66 Destroyer – Specialized Electronic Surveillance – USAF
Deliveries to the Air Force began in 1956, with 145 of this model produced.
RB-66s were used as the primary night photo-reconnaissance aircraft of the USAF during this time.
A total of 72 of the B-66B bomber version were built, 69 fewer than originally planned.
A total of 13 B-66B aircraft later were modified into EB-66B electronic countermeasures (ECM) aircraft for the cold war with Russia and were stationed at RAF Chelveston with the 42nd Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron who did the conversion in the early 1960s.
They would rotate out of an alert pad in Spain during the time that the 42nd had them.
These and the RB-66Cs that the 42nd had would eventually be sent to Vietnam. Unlike the U.S. Navy's A-3 Skywarrior, which performed some bombing missions, the Destroyer was not used as a bomber in Vietnam.
The RB-66C was a specialized electronic reconnaissance and ECM aircraft with an expanded crew of seven, including the additional electronics warfare experts.
A total of 36 of these aircraft were built with the additional crew members housed in what was the camera/bomb bay of other variants.
RB-66C aircraft had distinctive wingtip pods and were used in the vicinity of Cuba during the Cuban Missile Crisis and later over Vietnam. In 1966, these planes were renamed into EB-66C.
 
Unarmed EB-66B, EB-66C and EB-66E aircraft flew numerous missions during the Vietnam War.
They helped gather electronic intelligence about North Vietnamese defenses, and provided protection for bombing missions of the F-105s by jamming North Vietnamese radar systems.
Early on, B-66s flew oval "racetrack" patterns over North Vietnam, but after one B-66 was shot down by a MiG, the vulnerable flights were ordered back, just outside North Vietnam.
 
US AIR FORCE – 334th Fighter Squadron – Eagles
In August 1966, 334th TFS exchanged their F105Fs for F-105Ds, and flew non-stop to Hickam Air Force Base, then on to Anderson Air Force Base, Guam, and on to Takhli Royal Thai Air Force Base, Thailand.
From Takhli combat missions were flown to North Vietnam and Laos.
Being on temporary duty, the 334th left their Thuds to be part of the developing 355th Tactical Fighter Wing, and in February 1966 returned to Seymour-Johnson.
In January 1968 the 334th went to Korea to support operations during the Pueblo incident. The 334th then returned to Seymour Johnson.
 
From February 1968 through June 1969, 4TFW Commander Colonel Chuck Yeager flew with the 334th as an 'attached' pilot.
In April 1972, 334th TFS was deployed to Ubon AB, Thailand after which the squadron was attached to the 25th TFS.
The unit began combat operations almost immediately. Soon after the deployment to SEA, the operations officer, Maj Tokanel, lobbied for missions specifically flagged for the 334th TFS.
The unit was deployed through Linebacker I and Linebacker II, flying air-to-ground and air-to-air combat missions. The squadron was redeployed back to Seymour Johnson AFB in March 1973.
 
VMA 223 – BULLDOGS – Marine Air Attack Squadron 223
In December 1965, the "Bulldogs" were called upon for combat duty in Vietnam, based at Chu Lai, South Vietnam.
Supporting allied ground forces, they flew more than 32,000 flight hours.
In May 1967, the squadron flew a record 1,234 combat sorties, by far the greatest monthly total for any attack squadron operating in Vietnam.
In February 1970, after nearly 5 and a half years in the Far East, the "Bulldogs" were reassigned to the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing and returned to MCAS El Toro.
 
Ryans Raiders – 34th Tactical Fighter Squadron
Ryan's Raider aircrews were assigned to the 34th TFS from April 22, 1967, to June 1, 1967.
In an attempt to meet the success of the Navy's A-6 aircraft with their superior radar, the Air Force developed a training program for twenty-five F-105 pilots, which would qualify them to fly all-weather combat missions in North Vietnam.
The missions would be flown by the 388th TFW.
The program was originally called "Project Northscope", then "Operation Commando Probe" and finally "Commando Nail".
Initial crews, however, referred to the program as "Ryan's Raiders".
Under project "Northscope", technicians modified four F-105F aircraft.
The first ten students were instructor pilots assigned who had previously volunteered for SEA duty. These pilots completed the training on March 17, 1967, in time to serve as the front seat pilots for eight F-105 replacement strike pilots that had been diverted from their assignments to Korat and Takhli in Thailand.
 
Moonlighters – VMA (AW) 332 –
VMA-332 continued its yearly rotation to Japan until 1962. In 1962, VMA-332 was deployed to Thailand to support a Marine Expeditionary Force quelling unrest in that country.
Later in 1962, the squadron would redeploy back home. It was during this time that the squadron's nickname was mysteriously changed to the "Moonlighters”. It is speculated that ‘Moonlighting’ was a reference to some pilot’s association with Air America.
 
Fighting Bengals – VMA 224 (AW) – Marine All Weather Attack Squadron 224
In 1965, the Bengals deployed to South Vietnam as part of the United States' build-up during the Vietnam War.
For nearly a year the Bengals operated their “Scooters” from the expeditionary field at Chu Lai.
On November 1, 1966, the squadron acquired the Grumman A-6 Intruder and was re-designated as Marine All Weather Attack Squadron 224 (VMA(AW)-224).
In 1971, the Bengals deployed to the South China Sea aboard the USS Coral Sea (CV-43).
As part of Carrier Air Wing 15, the squadron completed six line periods on Yankee Station (Vietnam War, South China Sea) and participated in numerous operations including the historic Operation Pocket Money mining of Hai Phong Harbor.
Easter Offensive 1972 - Mùa Hè Đỏ Lửa – Red Fire Offensive.
Chiến dịch Xuân - Hè 1972 - Việt Nam Cộng hòa gọi là Mùa hè đỏ lửa, Mỹ gọi là Easter Offensive - Operation Spring - Summer 1972 (the NLF called Red Fire, called Easter Offensive.
The Spring-Summer 1972 campaign , known as the Easter Offensive, was part of the 1972 War in Vietnam , which took place from March 30, 1972 to January 31, 1973. In the Vietnam War , was a group of campaigns conducted by the South Vietnamese Liberation Army (QGP) with the logistical support of the Vietnam People's Army (PLA), against the US military. and the Armed Forces of the Republic of Vietnam (VNCH). This is a strategic offensive by large-scale offensive operations, military cooperation, deep penetration into the defensive system in important strategic directions: Quang Tri - Thua Thien Hue , North Central Highlands , eastern region , delta zone V and zone VIII (southern region). The attack began on March 30, 1972 and lasted until January 31, 1973.
 
INTRUDER – Gruman A-6
A-6 Intruders first saw action during the Vietnam War, where the craft were used extensively against targets in Vietnam.
The aircraft's long range and heavy payload (18,000 pounds or 8,200 kilograms) coupled with its ability to fly in all weather made it invaluable during the war. However, its typical mission profile of flying low to deliver its payload made it especially vulnerable to anti-aircraft fire, and in the eight years the Intruder was used during the Vietnam War, the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps lost a total of 84 A-6 aircraft of various series.
The first loss occurred on 14 July 1965 when an Intruder from VA-75 operating from USS Independence, flown by LT Donald Boecker and LT Donald Eaton, commenced a dive on a target near Laos.
An explosion under the starboard wing damaged the starboard engine, causing the aircraft to catch fire and the hydraulics to fail. Seconds later the port engine failed, the controls froze, and the two crewmen ejected. Both crewmen survived.
Of the 84 Intruders lost to all causes during the war, ten were shot down by surface-to-air missiles (SAMs), two were shot down by MiGs, 16 were lost to operational causes, and 56 were lost to conventional ground fire and AAA.
The last Intruder to be lost during the war was from VA-35, flown by LT C. M. Graf and LT S. H. Hatfield, operating from USS America; they were shot down by ground fire on 24 January 1973 while providing close air support.
The airmen ejected and were rescued by a Navy helicopter.
Twenty U.S. Navy aircraft carriers rotated through the waters of Southeast Asia, providing air strikes, from the early 1960s through the early 1970s. Nine of those carriers lost A-6 Intruders: USS Constellation lost 11, USS Ranger lost eight, USS Coral Sea lost six, USS Midway lost two, USS Independence lost four, USS Kitty Hawk lost 14, USS Saratoga lost three, USS Enterprise lost eight, and USS America lost two.
Although capable of embarking aboard aircraft carriers, most U.S. Marine Corps A-6 Intruders were shore based in South Vietnam at Chu Lai and Da Nang and in Nam Phong, Thailand.
 
The Burma Railway – Death Railway.
The Burma Railway, also known as the Death Railway, the Siam–Burma Railway, the Thai–Burma Railway and similar names, was a 415-kilometre (258 mi) railway between Ban Pong, Thailand, and Thanbyuzayat, Burma, built by the Empire of Japan in 1943 to support its forces in the Burma campaign of World War II.
This railway completed the rail link between Bangkok, Thailand, and Rangoon, Burma (now Yangon).
The name used by the Japanese Government is 泰緬連接鉄道 (Thai–Men-Rensetsu-Tetsudow), which means Thailand-Myanmar-Link-Railway.
The line was closed in 1947, but the section between Nong Pla Duk and Nam Tok was reopened ten years later.
 
Between 180,000 and 250,000 Southeast Asian civilian labourers (rōmusha) and about 61,000 Allied prisoners of war were subjected to forced labour during its construction.
About 90,000 civilian labourers and more than 12,000 Allied prisoners died.
One of the most notable portions of the entire railway line is Bridge 277, the so-called Bridge on the River Kwai, which was built over a stretch of a river that was then known as part of the Mae Klong River. The greater part of the Thai section of the river's route followed the valley of the Khwae Noi River (Khwae, stream/river or tributary; Noi, small; Khwae being frequently mispronounced by non-Thai speakers as Kwai, or the buffalo in the Thai language). This thus gave rise to the name of "River Kwai" in English.
 
Battle of Khe Sanh – Siege of Khe Sanh.
The Battle of Khe Sanh (21 January – 9 July 1968) was conducted in the Khe Sanh area of northwestern Quảng Trị Province, Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam), during the Vietnam War.
The main US forces defending Khe Sanh Combat Base (KSCB) were two regiments of US Marines supported by elements from the United States Army, US Special Forces, and the United States Air Force.
There were also a small number of South Vietnamese Army (ARVN) troops. These were pitted against two to three divisional-size elements of the North Vietnamese Army.
MACV command in Saigon initially believed that combat operations around Khe Sanh Combat Base during and in late 1967 were part of a series of minor North Vietnamese offensives in the border regions.
That appraisal was later altered when it was discovered that the NVA was moving major forces into the area.
In response, US forces were built up before the NVA isolated the Marine base.
Once the base came under siege a series of actions were fought over a period of five months. During this time, Khe Sanh and the hilltop outposts around it were subjected to constant North Vietnamese artillery, mortar, and rocket attacks, and several infantry assaults.
To support the Marine base, a massive aerial bombardment campaign (Operation Niagara) was launched by the United States Air Force.
Over 100,000 tons of bombs were dropped by US aircraft and over 158,000 artillery rounds were fired in defense of the base.
In March 1968, an overland relief expedition (Operation Pegasus) was launched by a combined Marine–Army/South Vietnamese task force that eventually broke through to the Marines at Khe Sanh.
In the aftermath, the North Vietnamese proclaimed a victory at Khe Sanh, while US forces claimed that they had withdrawn as the base was no longer required. Historians have observed that the Battle of Khe Sanh may have distracted American and South Vietnamese attention from the buildup of Viet Cong forces in the south before the early 1968 Tet Offensive.
Nevertheless, the US commander during the battle, General William Westmoreland, maintained that the true intention of Tet was to distract forces from Khe Sanh.
It should also be noted that although US Forces moved out of the main base at Khe Sanh after the Tet Offensive, the surrounding area was still under US Control to the extent that Khe Sanh wasre-opened for use by US Forces on numerous occasions. The latest re-opening was for use as a Forward Operating Base, Dustoff Medevac and MASH base in the Lam Son Operations (US invasion of Laos 1970 – 1972).
 
CSDC – Canh Sat Da Chien.
The Republic of Vietnam National Police Field Force (Vietnamese: Cãnh Sát Dã Chiên – CSDC), also designated Police de Campagne by the French and variously as National Police Field Force (NPFF), Field Police or Field Force for short by the Americans, was a paramilitary élite branch of the Republic of Vietnam National Police (Vietnamese: Cãnh Sát Quốc Gia – CSQG).
Active during the Vietnam War, the CSDC operated closely with the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) and the American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) from 1966 to 1975.
Plain of Jars, Laos.
Vietnamese - Cánh Đồng Chum.
The struggle for the Plain of Jars in Laos in the 1960s and 1970s was a mysterious and tragic affair, wrapped up in confusion and obscured by years of falsehoods and half-truths. – US Air Force Magazine, June 1999.
The Plain of Jars (Lao: ທົ່ງໄຫຫິນ) is a megalithic archaeological landscape in Laos. It consists of thousands of stone jars scattered around the upland valleys and the lower foothills of the central plain of the Xiangkhoang Plateau. The jars are mostly arranged in clusters ranging in number from one to several hundred.
Between 1964 and 1973, the Plain of Jars was heavily bombed by the U.S. Air Force (see Secret War) operating against North Vietnamese and Pathet Lao communist forces.
The U.S. Air Force dropped more bombs on Laos, primarily the Plain of Jars, than it dropped during the whole of World War II.
This included 262 million anti-personnel cluster bombs. An estimated 80 million of these did not explode and remain a deadly threat to the population.
The Plain of Jars was generally held by both Viet Cong, NVA and Pathet Lao forces. These forces were under constant attack by the Army of General Vang Pao, employed and funded by the CIA, the US 7th Special Forces Group and the USAF.
 
86th Engineer Battalion – US Army.
Combat Engineers – Out of Fort Dix, 16th of October 1966 – Initially served with the 79th Engineer Group at Phu Loi, then with the 34th at Bear Cat. Was sent to My Tho during the Tet Offensive of 1968 (March 1968) where it remained with th45th Group until departure from Vietnam on the 15th of August 1969. All of the bases of the 86th were in the Mekong Delta forming their motto, “Best in the Delta”.
 
Operation Giant Slingshot
In early November 1968, US NAVY SEAL, PBRs and riverine assault craft opened two canals between the Gulf of Siam at Rach Gia and the Bassac River at Long Xuyen.
South Vietnamese paramilitary ground troops helped naval patrol units secure the transportation routes in this operational area, soon named Search Turn.
Later in the month, Swift boats, PBRs, riverine assault craft, and Vietnamese naval vessels penetrated the Giang Thanh-Vinh Te canal system and established patrols along the waterway from Ha Tien on the gulf to Chau Doc on the upper Bassac.
As a symbol of the Vietnamese contribution to the combined effort, the allied command changed the name of this operation from Foul Deck to Tran Hung Dao I.
Then in December American naval forces pushed up the Vam Co Dong and Vam Co Tay Rivers west of Saigon, against heavy enemy opposition, to cut infiltration routes from the "Parrot's Beak" area of Cambodia.
Operation Giant Slingshot, so named for the configuration of the two rivers, severely hampered Communist resupply in the region near the capital and in the Plain of Reeds.
 
Rhade Hill Tribe – Ban Me Thuot Revolt 1964
During the Vietnam War, American and South Vietnamese military advisers feared that the Viet Cong would convert Rhade tribesman in the Đắk Lắk Province to their support.
They instituted a program by which American Special Forces sought to train the Rhade in "village self-defense programs." These self-defense programs were highly controversial.
According to William Duiker, United States Foreign Officer and East-Asian professor, the training efforts, called "Civilian Irregular Defense Groups" (CIDG), were plagued with problems of arbitrary authority on the part of Vietnamese authorities and officers.
During the summer of 1964, "...Vietnamese arrogance led immediately to problems, and in September a serious revolt broke out among the Rhadé tribesmen in Ban Me Thout. Only with the aid of U.S. advisers was the crisis defused."
 
The Rhade made up a portion of the United States' Montagnard allies, and after the war some fled to the United States, mainly residing in North Carolina.
 
F-104 Lockheed – STARFIGHTERS
The Lockheed F-104 Starfighter is a single-engine, supersonic interceptor aircraft which later became widely used as an attack aircraft.
It was originally developed by Lockheed for the United States Air Force in 1956.
Starfighter squadrons made two deployments to Vietnam.
Commencing with Operation Rolling Thunder, the Starfighter was used both in the air-superiority role and in the air support mission, and although it saw little aerial combat and scored no air-to-air kills, F-104s were successful in deterring MiG interceptors.
During the first F-104 deployment from April to October 1965, Starfighters flew a total of 2,937 combat sorties.
These sorties resulted in the loss of five aircraft: the 476th Tactical Fighter Squadron deployed from April to July 1965, losing one Starfighter, and the 436th Tactical Fighter Squadron deployed from July through October 1965, losing four.
Two Starfighters were shot down by ground fire, one was shot down by a Shenyang J-6 when Capt. Philip E. Smith strayed into Chinese airspace, and two were lost to a mid-air collision while searching for Smith's missing jet.
Starfighters returned to Vietnam when the 435th Tactical Fighter Squadron deployed from June 1966 until July 1967.
During this time F-104s flew a further 2,269 combat sorties, for a total of 5,206.
During the second deployment, an additional nine aircraft were lost for a total of 14 F-104s lost to all causes in Vietnam.
In July 1967, the Starfighter units transitioned to the McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II.
 
Wild Weasel – US Air Force.
Wild Weasel is a code name given by the United States Armed Forces, specifically the US Air Force, to an aircraft, of any type, equipped with radar-seeking missiles and tasked with destroying the radars and SAM installations of enemy air defense systems.
"The first Wild Weasel success came soon after the first Wild Weasel mission 20 December 1965 when Captains Al Lamb and Jack Donovan took out a site during a Rolling Thunder strike on the railyard at Yen Bai, some 75 miles northwest of Hanoi."
The Wild Weasel concept was developed by the United States Air Force in 1965, after the introduction of Soviet SAM missiles and their downing of U.S. strike aircraft over the skies of North Vietnam.
 
Wild Weasel tactics and techniques began their development in 1965 following the commencement of Operation Rolling Thunder.
In brief, the task of a Wild Weasel aircraft is to bait enemy anti-aircraft defenses into targeting it with their radars, whereupon the radar waves are traced back to their source, allowing the Weasel or its teammates to precisely target it for destruction.
The modern term used in the U.S. Armed Forces for this mission profile is "Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses", or SEAD.
A change in aircraft design theory to stress versatile multi-role aircraft meant that the F-4G was the last aircraft in the USAF inventory specifically outfitted for the SEAD role. The Wild Weasel mission is now assigned to the F-16 Fighting Falcon, using the Block 50 and Block 52, with production beginning in 1991. The single-seat Block 50/52 F-16C is specifically tasked with this mission. The pilot now performs both the role of flying the airplane and targeting and employing against ground threats. Other aircraft, while capable of taking out anti-air emplacements, are typically tasked with other primary missions; the A-10 Thunderbolt II "Warthog", primarily tasked with CAS missions, lacks the avionics to perform a true SEAD mission in its original "A" variant, and the newer "C" variant, with conversions beginning in 2005, has yet to meet an enemy force possessing significant air defenses beyond man-portable SAMs. The F-15E, possessing advanced air-to-ground avionics but also high speed and long range, is typically tasked with "deep strike" missions, which can include SAM installations but typically focuses on high-value targets such as enemy command & control, infrastructure and production.
 
Northrop F-5 Test Force
The Northrop F-5A and F-5B Freedom Fighter and the F-5E and F-5F Tiger II are part of a supersonic light fighter family, initially designed in the late 1950s by Northrop Corporation.
Being smaller and simpler than contemporaries such as the McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II, the F-5 cost less to both procure and operate, making it a popular export aircraft.
The F-5 started life as a privately funded light fighter program by Northrop in the 1950s. The design team wrapped a small, highly aerodynamic fighter around two compact and high-thrust General Electric J85 engines, focusing on performance and low cost of maintenance.
Though primarily designed for the day air superiority role, the aircraft is also a capable ground-attack platform.
The F-5A entered service in the early 1960s. During the Cold War, over 800 were produced through 1972 for U.S. allies.
Though the USAF had no acknowledged need for a light fighter, it did procure roughly 1,200 Northrop T-38 Talon trainer aircraft, which were directly based on the F-5A.
After winning the International Fighter Aircraft competition in 1970, a program aimed at providing effective low-cost fighters to American allies, Northrop introduced the second-generation F-5E Tiger II in 1972.
This upgrade included more powerful engines, higher fuel capacity, greater wing area and improved leading edge extensions for a better turn rate, optional air-to-air refueling, and improved avionics including air-to-air radar.
Primarily used by American allies, it remains in US service to support training exercises. It has served in a wide array of roles, being able to perform both air and ground attack duties; the type was used extensively in the Vietnam War.
In view of the performance, agility and size of the F-5, it might have appeared to be a good match against the similar MiG-21 in air combat; however, U.S. doctrine was to use heavy, faster and longer-range aircraft like the Republic F-105 Thunderchief and McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II over North Vietnam.
41 F-5s were captured by the NVA when they defeated South Vietnam on 30 April 1975 and the USSR received a complete F-5E, along with various spare parts and support equipment. A number were utilised by the Vietnamese in the war with the Khmer Rouge.
 
VMFA 513 – The Flying Nightmares
Marine Attack Squadron 513 (VMA-513) was a United States Marine Corps attack squadron consisting of AV-8B Harrier (V/STOL) jets.
Known as the "Flying Nightmares", the squadron was last based at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona and fell under the command of Marine Aircraft Group 13 (MAG-13) and the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing (3rd MAW). VMA-513 was decommissioned on 12 July 2013.
On August 1, 1963, the squadron was re-designated VMFA-513 and by the end of the year, the Nightmares were exclusively flying F-4's, the third Phantom II squadron in the Marine Corps.
They trained in the F-4B at MCAS El Toro through October 1964, when they deployed once again to NAS Atsugi, Japan. In June 1965, the Nightmares replaced VMFA-531 at Da Nang Air Base, South Vietnam for five months of combat and, for a while, were the only Marine jet fighters in country.
In August 1965, VMFA-513 supported the 7th Marine Regiment in Operation Starlite—the first major American operation of the war.
This one-year overseas deployment ended in October 1965 and the squadron executed another wholesale personnel rotation, this time reforming at MCAS Cherry Point, North Carolina.
 
 
US RANGER – 75th Infantry – Field Force 1 – FFI – Elite US Special Forces – LRRP – Company C
Previous of Field Force 1 – Large Elite Company, twice the size of normal company with over 220 operatives – Transferred to 75th Infantry Regiment, 1st of February 1969 – Long Range Recon Patrol – LRRP – Recondo – Recon Commando – Airborne Recon, Special Forces. Merrills Marauders, organized under CARS (Combat Arms Regimental System) specifically to combat Long Range Recon Missions.
 
Operation Bright Light – Project Sigma
Operation Sigma - Road Runners
Project Sigma, Special Recon was initiated under orders from General Westmoreland in August of 1966 was initially set up to achieve the task of rescuing US Military Operatives held prisoner in Cambodia.
Over the following years the Project was to grow to Eight Recon Teams (Special Recon) and three Commando Companies and in late 1967, under the command of MACV undertook additional Long Range Intelligence Gathering activities in conjunction with the POW search missions.
B-56, (US Special Forces Detachment B-56) was homed at Ho Ngoc Tau and was the base of numerous Montagnard Operatives attached to the Bright Light Operational Teams. (POW RESCUE).
 
Project Sigma Unit was singled out by the North Vietnamese as been one of the most agressive Special Forces units involved in Operation Phoenix Missions.
The Road Runners of the US Special Forces were Long Range Recon Patrol Units, otherwise known as Recon Teams. They made up the entire force of Operation Sigma.
 
MIBARS – Military Intelligence Battalion – Air Support Unit – 1st MIBARS
Mission to process, interpret, annotate, reproduce and deliver imagery obtained from tactical Air Force Recon elements; provide air recon liaison officers; distribute intelligence (from Visual sighting as well as imagery obtained):
Located in Saigon (with a forward element at Di An) – Numbered 280 operatives in 1966, over 300 in 1968 and reduced to 130 in 1971.
Out of Fort Bragg 23rd of December 1965 – Departed Vietnam, 19 April 1971 (Forward element out of Fort Riley,20 October 1965).
 
US Special Forces – Maroon Beret
In 1943, during the Second World War, Lieutenant-General Sir Frederick Browning, commander of the British 1st Airborne Corps, granted a battalion of the US Army's 509th Parachute Infantry Regiment honorary membership in the British Parachute Regiment and authorized them to wear British-style maroon berets.
US Army advisers to Vietnamese airborne forces wore the Vietnamese French-style red beret during the Vietnam War.
Headquarters, Department of the Army (HQDA) policy from 1973 through 1979 permitted local commanders to encourage morale-enhancing distinctions.
Airborne forces chose to wear the maroon international parachute beret as a mark of distinction.
However, due to the variety to headgear utilized at unit level, such as the Stetson being used in cavalry units, this permission was rescinded in 1979 when the army introduced a policy of standardized headgear.
Exceptions were allowed for the continued wearing of the black beret (changed to tan in 2001) for the 75th Ranger Regiment & Ranger Training Brigade, and the Green Beret for Special Forces.
On 28 November 1980 permission was given for airborne organizations to resume wearing the maroon beret. Most American paratroopers refer to it as a red beret, which history and tradition mandates, out of respect for their World War II British allies.
 
USAF 132nd Fighter Wing – Super Sabres – F-100
Re-designated: 132nd Fighter-Interceptor Group on 1st of July 1958
Re-designated: 132nd Tactical Fighter Group on 2nd Aug 1969
F-100 Super Sabre, 1971-1977.
 
Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt - WARTHOG - Close Air Support
The Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II is a single-seat, twin turbofan engine, straight wing jet aircraft developed by Fairchild-Republic for the United States Air Force (USAF).
Commonly referred to by the nicknames "Warthog" or "Hog", its official name comes from the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, a World War II fighter-bomber effective at attacking ground targets.
The A-10 was designed for close air support (CAS) of friendly ground troops, attacking armored vehicles and tanks, and providing quick-action support against enemy ground forces.
It entered service in 1976 and is the only production-built aircraft that has served in the USAF that was designed solely for CAS.
Its secondary mission is to provide forward air controller – airborne (FAC-A) support, by directing other aircraft in attacks on ground targets. Aircraft used primarily in this role are designated OA-10.
 
334th Assault Helicopter Company. Armed. First With Guns.
Activated on the 25th of July 1962 at Okinawa, the Utility Tactical Transport (UTT) Helicopter company became the first and at that time, the only armed helicopter company in the U.S. Army.
Throughout 1963 the 334th UTT was used as a test unit for the Army to determine the effectiveness of armed helicopters.
It was demonstrated that armed helicopters employing the tactics and techniques developed by the UTT could provide adequate protection for airmobile operations against an insurgent force like the Viet Cong.
The company adopted permanant call signs that became well known by all ground elements in Viet Nam. The headquarters section was known as the "Sabers"; the 1st platoon, the "Playboys"; 2nd platoon, the "Raiders"; and the 3rd platoon, the "Dragons".
 
Candlestick – C-123 – FAC – Forward Air Control.
Fairchild C-123 - Truck Killer
 
The first C-123s to reach South Vietnam were part of the USAF's Special Aerial Spray Flight, as part of Operation Ranch Hand (Spraying of Agent Orange ) tasked with defoliating the jungle in order to deny the Viet Cong their traditional hiding places.
 
These aircraft began their operations at the end of 1961.
Aircraft fitted with spraying equipment were given the U prefix as a role modifier, with the most common types being the UC-123B and the UC-123K . Aircraft configured for this use were the last