1.
Vietnam War
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It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam and the government of South Vietnam. The war is considered a Cold War-era proxy war. As the war continued, the actions of the Viet Cong decreased as the role. U. S. and South Vietnamese forces relied on air superiority and overwhelming firepower to conduct search and destroy operations, involving ground forces, artillery, in the course of the war, the U. S. conducted a large-scale strategic bombing campaign against North Vietnam. The North Vietnamese government and the Viet Cong were fighting to reunify Vietnam and they viewed the conflict as a colonial war and a continuation of the First Indochina War against forces from France and later on the United States. The U. S. government viewed its involvement in the war as a way to prevent a communist takeover of South Vietnam and this was part the domino theory of a wider containment policy, with the stated aim of stopping the spread of communism. Beginning in 1950, American military advisors arrived in what was then French Indochina, U. S. involvement escalated in the early 1960s, with troop levels tripling in 1961 and again in 1962. Regular U. S. combat units were deployed beginning in 1965, despite the Paris Peace Accord, which was signed by all parties in January 1973, the fighting continued. In the U. S. and the Western world, a large anti-Vietnam War movement developed as part of a larger counterculture, the war changed the dynamics between the Eastern and Western Blocs, and altered North–South relations. Direct U. S. military involvement ended on 15 August 1973, the capture of Saigon by the North Vietnamese Army in April 1975 marked the end of the war, and North and South Vietnam were reunified the following year. The war exacted a huge human cost in terms of fatalities, estimates of the number of Vietnamese soldiers and civilians killed vary from 966,000 to 3.8 million. Some 240, 000–300,000 Cambodians,20, 000–62,000 Laotians, and 58,220 U. S. service members died in the conflict. Various names have applied to the conflict. Vietnam War is the most commonly used name in English and it has also been called the Second Indochina War and the Vietnam Conflict. As there have been several conflicts in Indochina, this conflict is known by the names of its primary protagonists to distinguish it from others. In Vietnamese, the war is known as Kháng chiến chống Mỹ. It is also called Chiến tranh Việt Nam, France began its conquest of Indochina in the late 1850s, and completed pacification by 1893. The 1884 Treaty of Huế formed the basis for French colonial rule in Vietnam for the seven decades
2.
Marine Aircraft Group 16
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The group falls under the command of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing and the I Marine Expeditionary Force. Provide air support to Marine Air-Ground Task Force commanders, prior to its activation helicopter squadrons were considered special units and reported directly to the Air Wing commanding general with no intermediate command. Colonel Harold J. Mitchener was MAG-16s first commanding officer, seven units made up the newly formed MAG, Headquarters Squadron 16, Marine Airbase Squadron 16, Marine Aircraft Maintenance Squadron 16, Marine Helicopter Transport Squadrons 162,163,362, and 363. On the evening of 12–13 August helicopters from MAG-16 participated in the first night helicopter assault of the Vietnam War and they debarked 245 Marines and returned to Da Nang without incident. Through the years, many other helicopter squadrons have made MAG-16 their home, units of MAG-16 have participated in Operation Desert Punch, Operation Seahorse Wind, Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm and many other missions, including Operation Iraqi Freedom. MAG-16 has provided support in Somalia to include operations in many other locations. MAG-16 deploys its units aboard the fleet of the United States Navy to maintain a state of awareness overseas. MAG-16 also provides aircraft and personnel for the MCAS Miramar Air Show, all flying squadrons of MAG-16 have participated in the GWOT in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other locations, but were almost always under the command of other headquarters elements. By the end of deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom the MAG had achieved a milestone 80,000 flight hours in support of Multi-National Forces West. MAG-16 continues to reshape its identity for the current expeditionary environment of the Marine Corps, the CH-46E Sea Knight is currently being replaced with the MV-22B Osprey to augment its heavy lift assault support assets. The MV-22B adds a long-range capability to the MAGTF that will extend its reach well beyond current assault support assets, MAG-16 will continue to refine its identity to respond to todays crisis with todays force
3.
South Vietnam
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South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam, was a state governing the southern half of Vietnam from 1955 to 1975. It received international recognition in 1949 as the State of Vietnam, the term South Vietnam became common usage in 1954, when the Geneva Conference provisionally partitioned Vietnam into communist and non-communist parts. The Republic of Vietnam was proclaimed on 26 October 1955, with Ngô Đình Diệm as its first president and its sovereignty was recognized by the United States and eighty-seven other nations. It had membership in several committees of the United Nations. After the Second World War, the Viet Minh, led by Ho Chi Minh, in 1949, anti-communist Vietnamese politicians formed a rival government in Saigon led by former emperor Bảo Đại. Bảo Đại was deposed by Prime Minister Ngô Đình Diệm in 1955, after Diệm was killed in a military coup led by general Dương Văn Minh in 1963, there was a series of short-lived military governments. General Nguyễn Văn Thiệu led the country from 1967 until 1975, the Vietnam War began in 1959 with an uprising by Viet Cong forces armed and controlled by Democratic Republic of Vietnam. Fighting reached a climax during the Tet Offensive of 1968, when there were over 1.5 million South Vietnamese soldiers and 500,000 U. S. soldiers in South Vietnam. Despite a peace treaty concluded in January 1973, fighting continued until the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong armies overran Saigon on 30 April 1975, the creation of this republic, during the Indochina War, allowed France to evade a promise to recognise Vietnam as independent. This pre-Vietnam government prepared for a unified Vietnamese state, but the countrys full reunification was delayed for a year because of the problems posed by Cochinchinas legal status, Nguyễn Văn Xuân 1949–55 State of Vietnam. Roughly 60% of Vietnamese territory was controlled by the communist Việt Minh. Vietnam was partitioned at the 17th parallel in 1954, once highly lauded by America, he was ousted and assassinated in a U. S. -backed coup. In 1963–65, there were numerous coups and short-lived governments, several of which were headed by Dương Văn Minh or Nguyễn Khánh, Prime Minister Nguyễn Cao Kỳ was the top leader in 1965–67. Surrendered to Communists when others abandoned their posts, 1975–76 Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam. Huỳnh Tấn Phát Before World War II, the third of Vietnam was the concession of Cochinchina. Between Tonkin in the north and Cochinchina in the south was the protectorate of Annam, Cochinchina had been annexed by France in 1862 and even elected a deputy to the French National Assembly. It was more evolved, and French interests were stronger than in parts of Indochina. During World War II, Indochina was administered by Vichy France, japanese troops overthrew the French administration on 9 March 1945, Emperor Bảo Đại proclaimed Vietnam independent
4.
United States
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Forty-eight of the fifty states and the federal district are contiguous and located in North America between Canada and Mexico. The state of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east, the state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U. S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean, the geography, climate and wildlife of the country are extremely diverse. At 3.8 million square miles and with over 324 million people, the United States is the worlds third- or fourth-largest country by area, third-largest by land area. It is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, paleo-Indians migrated from Asia to the North American mainland at least 15,000 years ago. European colonization began in the 16th century, the United States emerged from 13 British colonies along the East Coast. Numerous disputes between Great Britain and the following the Seven Years War led to the American Revolution. On July 4,1776, during the course of the American Revolutionary War, the war ended in 1783 with recognition of the independence of the United States by Great Britain, representing the first successful war of independence against a European power. The current constitution was adopted in 1788, after the Articles of Confederation, the first ten amendments, collectively named the Bill of Rights, were ratified in 1791 and designed to guarantee many fundamental civil liberties. During the second half of the 19th century, the American Civil War led to the end of slavery in the country. By the end of century, the United States extended into the Pacific Ocean. The Spanish–American War and World War I confirmed the status as a global military power. The end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 left the United States as the sole superpower. The U. S. is a member of the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Organization of American States. The United States is a developed country, with the worlds largest economy by nominal GDP. It ranks highly in several measures of performance, including average wage, human development, per capita GDP. While the U. S. economy is considered post-industrial, characterized by the dominance of services and knowledge economy, the United States is a prominent political and cultural force internationally, and a leader in scientific research and technological innovations. In 1507, the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller produced a map on which he named the lands of the Western Hemisphere America after the Italian explorer and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci
5.
North Vietnam
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North Vietnam, officially the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, was a state in Southeast Asia which existed from 1945 to 1976. Vietnamese revolutionary leader Ho Chi Minh declared independence from France on 2 September 1945, France reasserted its colonial dominance and a war ensued between France and the Viet Minh, led by Ho. The Viet Minh was a coalition of nationalist groups, mostly led by communists, in February 1951, the communists announced the creation of the Lao Động Party, gradually marginalizing non-communists in the Viet Minh. Between 1946 and 1954, the Viet Minh captured and controlled most of the areas of Vietnam. In 1954, after the French were defeated, the negotiation of the Geneva Accords ended the war between France and the Viet Minh and granted Vietnam independence. The Geneva Accords divided the country provisionally into northern and southern zones, the northern zone was commonly called North Vietnam and the southern zone South Vietnam, or, formally, the Republic of Vietnam. Supervision of the implementation of the Geneva Accords was the responsibility of an International Commission consisting of India, Canada, and Poland. In July 1955, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Vietnam, Ngo Dinh Diem and he said that South Vietnam had not signed the Geneva accords and was not bound by it. With the failure to reunify Vietnam by elections, the Democratic Republic of Vietnam attempted to unify the country by force in the Vietnam War, North Vietnam also supported indigenous communist rebels in Cambodia and Laos against their respective U. S, -backed governments. The war ended when Democratic Republic of Vietnam forces and the Viet Cong defeated the Republic of Vietnam, Viet Minh leader Hồ Chí Minh became head of the government. U. S. President Franklin Roosevelt had spoken against French rule in Indochina, the Hanoi government of Ho Chi Minh claimed dominion over all of Vietnam, but during this time South Vietnam was in profound political disorder. The successive collapse of French, then Japanese power, followed by the dissension among the factions in Saigon had been accompanied by widespread violence in the countryside. On September 12,1945, the first British troops arrived in Saigon, on September 23,28 days after the people of Saigon seized political power, French troops occupied the police stations, the post office, and other public buildings. In June 1946, Chinese Nationalist troops evacuated Hanoi, and on the 15th of June, after the departure of the British in 1946, the French controlled a part of Cochinchina, South Central Coast, Central Highlands since the end Southern Resistance War. In January 1946, the Viet Minh held an election to establish a National Assembly, when France declared Cochinchina, the southern third of Vietnam, a separate state as the Autonomous Republic of Cochinchina in June 1946, Vietnamese nationalists reacted with fury. In November, the National Assembly adopted the first Constitution of the Republic, the French reoccupied Hanoi and the First Indochina War followed. Following the Chinese Communist Revolution, Chinese communist forces arrived on the border in 1949, Chinese aid revived the fortunes of the Viet Minh and transformed it from a guerrilla militia into a standing army. The outbreak of the Korean War in June 1950 transformed what had been a struggle into a Cold War battleground
6.
Herbert Beckington
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Herbert L. Beckington was a Lieutenant General who served for 32 years in the United States Marine Corps. He served in combat during World War II and the Vietnam War and he later served as the first Inspector General for the United States Agency for International Development. Herbert Beckington was born in Rockford, Illinois and he graduated from Rockford High School in 1938. He received his B. A. degree upon graduation from The Citadel in 1943, upon graduation from The Citadel, he was commissioned a Marine Corps Reserve second lieutenant on May 29,1943. He completed the Reserve Officers Class, Marine Corps Schools, Quantico, Virginia, in August 1943 and the Officers Base Defense School at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina and he was promoted to first lieutenant in December 1944 and integrated into the regular Marine Corps in 1946. His first duty assignment was as an officer with the 18th Defense Battalion at Camp Lejeune. In April 1944, First Lieutenant Beckington became a commander and, later a battery executive officer. From June 1944 until January 1946, he served with the battalion on Tinian and Saipan in the Pacific, returning to the United States with the battalion in February of that year, he remained with the unit until March 1946. He was promoted to captain in August of that year, captain Beckington next saw duty at the Marine Barracks in Norfolk, Virginia, until August 1950, then became a student, Postgraduate Law Course at Catholic University. While attending Catholic University, he served in the Office of the Judge Advocate General of the Navy and was promoted to major in June 1952. Major Beckington returned to the United States in February 1956, and was assigned as a member, Board For Data Processing Requirements of the Marine Corps, Headquarters Marine Corps until July 1957. This was followed by duty from March 1965 until September 1967 as Military Aide to the Vice President of the United States and he earned his first Legion of Merit during this assignment, and was promoted to colonel in September 1965. For his Vietnam service, he earned his second and third Legion of Merit with Combat V, upon his return to the United States in February 1969, Colonel Beckington served briefly as Chief, Academic Department, Education Center, Quantico. In April, he returned to Headquarters Marine Corps for duty in the Policy Analysis Division, from November 1971 until August 1972, General Beckington was the Assistant Division Commander, 2nd Marine Division, Camp Lejeune. Reporting to Headquarters Marine Corps in August 1972, he was promoted to general and assigned as Assistant Deputy Chief of Staff and Director. On July 1,1973 he assumed the duties as Deputy Chief of Staff and was promoted to lieutenant general, due to a reorganization of Headquarters Marine Corps, he was reassigned as Deputy Chief of Staff Plans and Operations) in October 1973. Beckington retired from duty on September 1,1975 and was awarded the Distinguished Service medal upon his retirement. In 1977, Beckington took the position of Inspector General for the United States Agency for International Development, Beckington died in Alexandria, Virginia, in October 2007
7.
1st Marine Division (United States)
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The 1st Marine Division is a Marine infantry division of the United States Marine Corps headquartered at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. It is the combat element of the I Marine Expeditionary Force. It is the oldest and largest active duty division in the United States Marine Corps and it is one of three active duty divisions in the Marine Corps today and is a multi-role, expeditionary ground combat force. It is nicknamed The Old Breed, the division is employed as the ground combat element of the I Marine Expeditionary Force or may provide task-organized forces for assault operations and such operations as may be directed. The 5th Marines were created in Vera Cruz, Mexico on 13 July 1914 and participated in 15 major engagements during World War I, including Belleau Wood, Chateau Thierry, and St. Mihiel. On 7 August 1917, 7th Marines were activated in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the 11th Marines was formed in January 1918 at Quantico, Va. as a light artillery regiment. The regiment went to France as a unit, providing a machine gun company. Decommissioned and reactivated twice between the wars, the regiment was re-formed in 1940 as a full-fledged artillery unit. The 1st Marine Division was activated aboard the USS Texas on 1 February 1941, the 1st Raider Battalion was on New Caledonia, and the 3rd Defense Battalion was in Pearl Harbor. All of the units, with the 11th Marines and 75mm howitzer armed 10th Marines battalion would rendezvous at Fiji. Also, because the Wellington dock workers were on strike at the time, other things not yet available to this first wave of Marine deployments were insect repellent and mosquito netting. On 31 July the entire Marine task force was placed under the command of Vice Admiral Frank J. Fletchers Task Force 61, the division as a whole would fight in the Guadalcanal Campaign until relieved at 1400 on 9 December 1942 by Alexander Patchs Americal Division. This operation won the Division its first of three World War II Presidential Unit Citations, the battle would cost the division 650 killed in action,1,278 wounded in action with a further 8,580 contracting malaria and 31 missing in action. Others were awarded for the battles of Peleliu and Okinawa, following the Guadalcanal Campaign, the divisions Marines were sent to Melbourne, Australia for rest and refit. It was during this time that the division took the traditional Australian folk song Waltzing Matilda as its battle hymn, to this day, 1st Division Marines still ship out to this song being played. The division would see action during Operation Cartwheel which was the codename for the campaigns in Eastern New Guinea. They came ashore at the Battle of Cape Gloucester on 26 December 1943 and fought on New Britain until March 1944 at such places as Suicide Creek, during the course of the battle the division had 310 killed and 1,083 wounded. Following the battle they were sent to Pavuvu in the Russell Islands for rest, the next battle for the 1st Marine Division would be the bloodiest yet at the Battle of Peleliu
8.
1st Battalion, 1st Marines
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They fall under the command of the 1st Marine Regiment and the 1st Marine Division. 1/1 is an infantry unit composed of infantry Marines and support personnel. The battalion has been organized around fire and maneuver warfare in tropical, woodland, desert, from at least 1989, the units were organized as such, Company A -trained for insertion by Amphibious Assault Vehicles. Company B - trained for insertion by boats, also complimented with mountain warfare and various swimming specialties Company C - trained for insertion by helicopter. Weapons company - usually split into 3 infantry platoons, each vehicle-borne through a variation of the Humvee, Mortar platoon - deploy and deliver 81 mm mortars via a M252 mortar system. Javelin platoon - employ the SMAW and, since its introduction in 2002, CAAT platoon - includes heavy machine gunners and anti-armor missilemen. Headquarter and Service Company - The largest company, H&S includes the Battalion Commander, some of these operations have demanded reconfiguring the battalions organization in order to conduct missions which are not included in traditional maneuver warfare. Military transition teams have used to provide assistance for the transition of power from the coalition forces to the local police. In addition, the companies were redrawn in order to reflect their new duties. Normal training was complemented with responsibilities befitting an urban environment, Rifle companies focused less on fire team rushing, the mortar platoon of the Weapons company has experimented with various vehicle of mortarmen as riflemen. Weapons company utilized Mobile Assault Platoons to provide quick reaction and mobility in urban missions, when trained as a battalion landing team, the battalion can attach to a Marine Expeditionary Unit and become the ground combat element. 1st Battalion 1st Marines was activated on March 1,1941, at Guantanamo Bay, a month later they redeployed to Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, South Carolina, but were quickly deactivated on June 18,1941. 1/1 was reactivated on February 7,1942, at New River, after a few months of training they were deployed to Wellington, New Zealand in July 1942. Following the outbreak of the Korean War, 1/1 was reactivated at MCB Camp Pendleton on August 9,1950, later that month they deployed to Kobe, Japan and from there took part in the amphibious landing during the Battle of Inchon. In October, the Marines were withdrawn from the Seoul area, from there 1st Battalion 1st Marines participated in the Battle of Chosin Reservoir. They pushed as far north as Koto-ri, spending much of the defending their perimeter in this vicinity. The battalion spent much of the remainder of the war defending the thirty-eighth parallel, all told, it fought in the Korean War from September 1950 through July 1953. Following the war, the participated in the defense of the Korean Demilitarized Zone from July 1953 to April 1955
9.
2nd Battalion, 5th Marines
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2nd Battalion 5th Marines is an infantry battalion in the United States Marine Corps consisting of approximately 800 Marines and Sailors. They are based out of Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California and fall under the command of the 5th Marine Regiment, 2/5 is the most highly decorated battalion in the Marine Corps and their motto, Retreat, Hell. Comes from the French trenches of World War I, when a Marine officer named Lloyd W. Williams was advised by a French officer to retreat and replied, Retreat. 2nd Battalion 5th Marines was formed on July 1,1914 and immediately sailed to the Caribbean to quell political turmoil in the Dominican Republic and Haiti. In June 1917, as part of the United States entry into World War I, the sailed for France with the rest of the 5th Marine Regiment. At the time the battalion was composed of four companies, the 18th, 43rd, 51st and they fought during the Battle of Belleau Wood, Soissons, and the Meuse-Argonne campaign and were twice awarded the French Croix de guerre with Palm. To this day, members of the Battalion wear the French Fourragère representing this award, following the armistice of 1918, 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines was assigned to occupation duties in Germany until their return to Quantico, Virginia in August 1919. Beginning in 1920, the Battalion began guarding US Mail trains throughout the United States, in 1927, the Battalion was sent to Nicaragua to fight bandits and to supervise the 1928 Nicaraguan national elections. In 1941, the joined the newly formed 1st Marine Division at New River, North Carolina. During World War II the battalion fought in the Battle of Guadalcanal, Battle of Cape Gloucester, Battle of Peleliu, following the Japanese surrender, the battalion was assigned to occupation duty in Northern China until 1947, at which time they returned to the United States. The Battalion also participated in the landing at Inchon, the liberation of Seoul, the Chosin Reservoir Campaign, and the defense of the East, Central, and Western Fronts before the war was over. From July 1953 to February 1955, 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines assisted in the defense of the Korean Demilitarized Zone, in April 1966, the Battalion deployed to the Republic of Vietnam and served there until 1971. During this time, 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines participated in operations at Huế, Quế Sơn, Phu Bai, Đông Hà. Immediately after their return to Camp Pendleton in 1971, the Battalion joined Operation New Arrivals, for the next fifteen years, the battalion deployed regularly as part of the Marine Corps Unit Deployment Program. In December 1990, 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines sailed for the Persian Gulf in support of Operations Desert Shield / Desert Storm and they were staged in Saudi Arabia and participated in the liberation of Kuwait. During the return transit to the United States, the battalion was diverted to Bangladesh where it provided humanitarian relief as part of Operation Sea Angel. In 1995, the battalion began regular deployments to Okinawa for service as the Battalion Landing Team for the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, on February 2,2003, 2/5 left MCB Camp Pendleton for Kuwait where they staged prior to the beginning of the war in Iraq. On March 20,2003 at approximately 2,30 am local time 2/5, as an element of the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit, for this operation they were attached with Royal Marines from the 3 Commando Brigade crossing into Iraq the first night of the invasion
10.
3rd Battalion, 5th Marines
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3rd Battalion 5th Marines is an infantry battalion in the United States Marine Corps. The battalion, nicknamed Darkhorse, is based out of Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California and consists of approximately 1,000 Marines and they fall under the command of the 5th Marine Regiment and the 1st Marine Division. 3rd Battalion, 5th Marines, along with the 5th Marine Regiment, was first organized on June 8,1917 as the United States prepared for World War I, the battalion was composed of four companies, the 16th, 20th, 45th and 47th. Six days later, manned by Spanish–American War and Boxer Rebellion veterans along with a number of raw recruits. They participated in campaigns and battles such as Bois de Belleau, Vierzy, Château-Thierry, Pont-a-Mousson, Limey Sector, Fleury, Meuse-Argonne, Blanc Mont, St Michiel, Leffincourt and Soissons. In August 1919, the Battalion was deactivated following World War I, for the next several years, men of the 3rd Battalion served in the Caribbean and at home, guarding the U. S. Mail. In March 1927, the 3rd Battalion deployed to Nicaragua to help stabilize the government against overthrow attempts by rebel forces, for the next six years, the Battalion aided the Nicaraguan government until peace was finally restored. The job done, the 3rd Battalion was once disbanded in January 1933. In November 1934, the 3rd Battalion was reactivated for the fourth time, shortly before World War II in April 1940, 3rd Battalion was again reactivated. The fighting in World War II found the Marines of 3/5 at Guadalcanal, New Britain, Peleliu, at Peleliu, they were the last Marine battalion to be shipped out before the army took over. In April 1946, their mission accomplished, 3rd Battalion was disbanded, during October 1949, 3rd Battalion, 5th Marines was reactivated on Guam. During August 1950, the Battalion deployed to fight against the North Korean army invading the Republic of Korea during the Korean War, the 3rd Battalion fought at such places as the Pusan Perimeter, Inchon, Seoul and Chosin Reservoir. At the close of hostilities, the 3rd Battalion returned to the United States, the battalions nickname Darkhorse sprang from the radio call sign of its commander in Korea, Col. Robert Taplett, who was known as Darkhorse Six. From June 1966 to March 1971, the 3rd Battalion, 5th Marines fought in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War, during the Vietnam War, the unit motto was consummate professionals. On December 1,1990, the deployed to the Middle East in support of Operation Desert Shield as a Battalion Landing Team. 3/5 distinguished itself in operations in Al Wafrah, Kuwait during Operation Desert Storm as Mechanized Combined Arms Task Force. En route home from hostilities, 3/5 participated in Operation Sea Angel, delivering food, supplies. 3rd Battalion was deployed for the 2003 invasion of Iraq to oust Saddam Hussein, the Battalion was again deployed in 2004 to capture the city of Fallujah from insurgents control
11.
2nd Battalion, 7th Marines
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The 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines is a light infantry battalion of the United States Marine Corps. They are based at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms and consist of approximately 1,200 Marines, the battalion falls under the command of the 7th Marine Regiment and the 1st Marine Division. As the war progressed, the company was eliminated and the component elements redistributed throughout the headquarters. During the Korean War, the three rifle companies were designated D, E and F. During the Vietnam War, the battalion was organized under a four rifle company order of battle – E, F, G and H, the battalion was activated on 1 January 1940 at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. On 18 September 1942, 2/7 landed on Guadalcanal and they fought the Battle of Guadalcanal for four months until they were relieved by elements of the United States Armys Americal Division. The battalion was sent to Australia along with the rest of the 1st Marine Division for rest. 2/7 landed on Cape Gloucester, New Britain on 26 December 1943 securing an airfield the first day and that night, Japanese Marines counterattacked and 2/7 took the brunt of the assault and the fighting continued throughout the night. By the time the sun began to rise, the entire Japanese force had been wiped out, on 14 January, 2/7 along with the rest of the regiment assaulted and took the last Japanese stronghold on the island, Hill 660. Two days later, the counter-attack came but the Marines held the hilltop often resorting to hand-to-hand fighting, the battalion continued to run patrols around the island to protect against guerrilla attacks from hold-out Japanese soldiers. In March 1943, New Britain were declared secure and on 1 April Marine Division was relieved by the US Army 40th Infantry Division, 2/7, and the rest of the 1st Marine Division again returned to Australia. On 15 September 1944, the 7th Marines landed along with the rest of the 1st Marine Division, note, The 2nd battalion was the only battalion to be held in reserve. They were to go in later in the day in support of the 7th Marines, on the night of 20 September the 2nd battalion went out to the transfer line, but there were not enough LVTs. Instead, they had to wait and go in the next morning directly in support of Chesty Pullers 1st Marines, the 2nd battalion went right into the middle of the fighting of the 1st marine regiment. When they landed they were met by intense artillery and mortar fire from Japanese positions that had not been touched by the pre-invasion bombardment, on 20 September, the 7th Marines broke out of their beachhead and linked up with the 1st Marines. The battalion fought on the island for eight weeks before it was secured. On 1 April 1945, was part of the 80,000 Marines that landed on Okinawa, the 1st Marine Division landed on the southern portion of Okinawa against light resistance. Their beachhead was secured and supplies began flowing in
12.
Body count
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A body count is the total number of people killed in a particular event. In combat, a count is often based on the number of confirmed kills. Often used in reference to combat, the term can also refer to any situation involving a number of deaths. Body count figures have a history in military planning and propaganda. In ancient battles, the penises of killed and dying enemies were collected from the field to count the dead, according to Procopius, when the Persians are about to march to a war, the king sits on the throne and many baskets are set before him. The men of the pass along the baskets one by one, each throwing one arrow in the baskets. When the army returns to Persia, each man takes an arrow, since the goal of the United States in the Vietnam War was not to conquer North Vietnam but rather to ensure the survival of the South Vietnamese government, measuring progress was difficult. All the contested territory was held already. Instead, the US Army used body counts to show that the US was winning the war, the Armys theory was that eventually, the Vietcong and North Vietnamese Army would lose after the attrition warfare. According to historian Christian Appy, search and destroy was the tactic. Search and destroy was coined as a phrase in 1965 to describe missions aimed at flushing the Viet Cong out of hiding, competitions were held between units for the highest number of Vietnamese killed in action, or KIAs. Army and marine officers knew that promotions were based on confirmed kills. The pressure to produce confirmed kills resulted in massive fraud, one study revealed that 61 % of American commanders considered that body counts were grossly exaggerated. In 1946, Ho Chi Minh said, in reference to the French, but even at those odds, you will lose and we will win. Some analysis of war indicated that the US and its allies inflicted roughly a three-to-two ratio of communist combat deaths against allied deaths. Eventually, the US signed the Paris Peace Accords and pulled out, North Vietnam claimed 1.1 million soldiers and noncombatants died during the war due to American actions, while 58,220 Americans and about 313,000 South Vietnamese combatants died in the conflict. The official US Department of Defense figure was 950,765 communist forces killed in Vietnam from 1965 to 1974, Defense Department officials believed that these body count figures need to be deflated by 30 percent. In the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the US military adopted a policy of not counting deaths
13.
North Vietnamese invasion of Laos
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North Vietnam supported the Pathet Lao to fight against the Kingdom of Laos between 1958–1959. Control over Laos allowed for the construction of the Ho Chi Minh Trail that would serve as the main supply route for enhanced NLF. It also helped the Pathet Lao win the Kingdom of Laos, phoui, less scrupulous about preserving Laoss neutrality than his predecessor, angered Moscow and Hanoi by admitting diplomats from Taipei and Saigon. The Soviet Union and North Vietnam, already upset by the departure of the ICC, the Laos government immediately protested the flying of the North Vietnamese flag on Laotian territory. Hanoi claimed the villages had historically been part of Vietnam, phoui received extraordinary powers from the National Assembly to deal with the crisis. But the failure to regain their lost territory rankled the Laotian nationalists, one of Washingtons major preoccupations was the danger that the Royal Lao Army would integrate the Pathet Lao troops without the safeguard of screening and reindoctrinating them. The embassy was instructed to tell the government that it would be difficult to obtain approval of aid to Laos with communists in the Royal Lao Army. Before the final integration of 1,500 Pathet Lao troops into the Royal Lao Army could take place as planned in May 1959, the Pathet Lao used a quibble about officer ranks to delay the final ceremony. As monsoon rains swept over the Plain of Jars one night, the event signaled a resumption of hostilities. Fighting broke out all along the border with North Vietnam, North Vietnamese Army regular units participated in attacks on July 28–31,1959. The tactic had the advantage of concealing the North Vietnamese presence from view, rumors of North Vietnamese in the vicinity often had a terrifying effect. Among the men who heard rumors in the mountains of Houaphan Province that summer was a young Royal Lao Army captain named Kong Le. Kong Le had two companies of the Second Paratroop Battalion out on patrol almost on the North Vietnamese border, when they returned to Xam Nua without encountering the enemy, they found that the garrison had decamped, leaving the town undefended. Direct North Vietnamese involvement in Laos began taking another form wherein aggression was difficult to prove, two months after the 1954 Geneva Conference on Indochina, the North Vietnamese established a small support group known as Group 100, on the Thanh Hoa-Houaphan border at Ban Namèo. This unit provided logistical and other support to Pathet Lao forces, in view of the reversion to a fighting strategy, the North Vietnamese and Lao parties decided to establish an upgraded unit. The new unit, known as Group 959, headquartered at Na Kai, just inside the Houaphan border and its establishment coincided with a major effort to expand the hitherto small Pathet Lao forces. These actions were in violation of the obligation Ho Chi Minhs government had assumed as a participant in the 1954 Geneva Conference to refrain from any interference in the affairs of Laos. The Vietnamese partys strategy was by now decided with regard to South Vietnam, at the same time, the party outlined a role for the LPP that was supportive of North Vietnam, in addition to the LPPs role as leader of the revolution in Laos
14.
1962 South Vietnamese Independence Palace bombing
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Cử and Quốc hoped that the airstrike would expose Diệms vulnerability and trigger a general uprising, but this failed to materialise. One bomb penetrated a room in the wing where Diệm was reading but failed to detonate. With the exception of Diệms sister-in-law Madame Nhu, who suffered minor injuries, however, three palace staff died and 30 were injured. Afterwards, Cử escaped to Cambodia, but Quốc was arrested and imprisoned, in the wake of the airstrike, Diệm became hostile towards the American presence in South Vietnam. Diệm claimed that the American media was seeking to bring him down and he introduced new restrictions on press freedom and political association. The media speculated that the United States would use the incident to justify the deployment of troops to South Vietnam in the event the U. S. remained circumspect. Domestically, the incident was reported to have increased plotting against Diệm by his officers, Cử was the second son of Nguyễn Văn Lực, a leader of the VNQDD, which opposed the Diệm regime. In 1960, Diệm had jailed Lực for one month for engaging in anti-government activities, the VNQDD planned that Cử and Quốc, another pilot from the same squadron, would attack the Independence Palace on 27 February. Quốc had recently been personally commended by Diệm for his achievements in combat, Quốc had relatives who were involved with the VNQDD. Cử recruited Quốc by claiming the Vietnamese armed services and the United States were aware of the plot, Quốc had more subordinates but was not sure of their loyalty, so he did not try to recruit them for the attack on the palace. Years later, Cử blamed Diệms treatment of opposition parties as the motivation for his attack and he believed that Diệm had prioritised remaining in power over fighting the VC and that, for six years, Cử had been denied promotion because of Diệms obsession with hindering political opponents. Cử criticised the Americans for having supported Diệm, saying, the Americans had slammed the door on those of us who wanted the fight against the communists. The communists had been involved in attacks on Army of the Republic of Vietnam units 60 km south of the capital and had inflicted heavy damage, instead of proceeding south as ordered, they changed course to attack the Independence Palace, the official presidential residence. This meant that two companies of communist guerrillas were able to retreat after their attack without counter-attack, on their second run, they dropped bombs and napalm before firing rockets and strafing the presidential compound with machine-gun fire. The two continued their runs for 30 minutes before units loyal to the president arrived and launched a counter-attack. Taking advantage of weather and low cloud cover, the two pilots circled the palace at altitudes of around 150 m, periodically diving out of the clouds to re-attack before darting back into them. The airstrike caught the Saigon garrison off guard and, in the confusion, two tanks and a number of jeeps armed with 50-calibre machine guns patrolled the smoke-filled streets as a precaution. The first 500 lb bomb penetrated a room in the wing where Diệm was reading a biography of George Washington
15.
Battle of Ap Bac
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The Battle of Ấp Bắc was a major battle fought on 2 January 1963 during the Vietnam War. It was fought in Định Tường Province, South Vietnam, the infantry units would be supported by artillery, M113 armored personnel carriers, and helicopters. In addition to the intelligence he provided, An also devised the NLF battle strategy ahead of time to defeat the South Vietnamese forces, for his winning strategy, after the battle, An was decorated with North Vietnam’s highest military-exploit medal. On the morning of 2 January 1963, unaware that their plans had been leaked to the enemy. However, when reached the hamlet of Ap Bac, southeast of Ap Tan Thoi. Just before midday, further reinforcements were flown in from Tan Hiep, the 15 US helicopters ferrying the troops were riddled by NLF gunfire and five helicopters were lost as a result. Ultimately, their presence made little difference as the NLF stood its ground, under the cover of darkness the Viet Cong withdrew from the battlefield, having won their first major victory. At that time, North Vietnam was hoping for an election, promised under the Geneva Accords of 1954 and it was also worried about inciting the United States into directly supporting South Vietnam, and had recommended a policy of avoiding battle at all costs. However, Diems campaign was too successful to allow them to do nothing, North Vietnam remained worried about US involvement and refused any sort of military support, forcing the remaining Viet Minh to retreat into inaccessible areas in the hills and river estuaries. A stalemate of sorts followed, as South Vietnamese forces took so long to reach areas that the guerrilla fighters were able to retreat with little difficulty. Large-scale American support began during the Kennedy Administration in the early 1960s, the arrival of helicopters changed the nature of the battle considerably. Helicopters enabled South Vietnamese soldiers to fly to almost any point in the country. Throughout 1962, the forces were increasingly effective in routing the Viet Cong. These tactics, combined with the use of armored personnel carriers, the lightly armed Viet Cong had no weaponry capable of stopping the armored carriers and inevitably were forced to flee, taking heavy casualties. The most successful South Vietnamese force had been the 7th Infantry Division and his US adviser was Lieutenant Colonel John Paul Vann, who directed much of the units activity in concert with his planner, Captain Richard Ziegler. However, South Vietnamese officers were reluctant to absorb heavy casualties. This behavior initially mystified Vann, who was attempting to build Cao into an aggressive commander, unknown to Vann, Diem would reprimand or demote any officer who lost too many men, no matter how successful the operation. Diem was more interested in using the military to protect his regime than to take on the Viet Cong, after a skirmish on a highway that resulted in a small number of South Vietnamese casualties along with several trucks destroyed, Cao was called to Saigon and reprimanded by Diem
16.
Attack on Camp Holloway
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The attack on Camp Holloway occurred during the early hours of February 7,1965, in the early stages of the Vietnam War. Camp Holloway was a facility constructed by the United States Army near Pleiku in 1962. It was built to support the operations of Free World Military Forces in the Central Highlands of Vietnam, in August 1964, the United States Navy reported they were attacked by torpedo boats of the North Vietnamese Navy in what became known as the Tonkin Gulf Incident. However, the Viet Cong forces in South Vietnam were not deterred by the threat of U. S. retaliation, the Soviet Union, on the other hand, were experiencing political changes of their own as Nikita Khrushchev was removed from power. As leader of the Soviet Union, Khrushchev had begun the process of disengagement from Vietnam by reducing economic, in February 1965 Soviet Premier Alexei Kosygin travelled to Hanoi to rebuild Soviet ties with North Vietnam, and the formation of a military alliance was on the agenda. Coincidentally, senior security adviser to the U. S. President McGeorge Bundy was also in Saigon to report on the chaos in South Vietnam. In the shadow of those events, the Viet Cong 409th Battalion staged an attack on Camp Holloway on 7 February 1965 and this time, with his victory in the 1964 presidential election secured, Johnson decided to launch Operation Flaming Dart which entailed strikes on North Vietnamese military targets. On 2 August 1964, while operating off the North Vietnamese coast in the Gulf of Tonkin, on 4 August 1964, the United States Navy claimed that a second attack occurred when North Vietnamese Navy vessels fired torpedoes at the USS Maddox and USS Turner Joy. Towards the end of 1964, Johnson was in the midst of a presidential election, therefore, Johnson decided to wait until after the election, when his presidency was assured, that he would decide on other military moves. However, on 20 December 1964, Khánh formed a new junta with Kỳ and Thi. Thus, the South Vietnamese Government was once again plunged into chaos, two days later on 6 February 1965, Soviet Premier Alexei Kosygin arrived in Hanoi for a historic visit to North Vietnam, included in his entourage was a team of Soviet missile experts. S. Airfield at Camp Holloway near Pleiku in Gia Lai Province and the South Vietnamese Army base at Gia Huu in Bình Định Province, towards the end of 1964, about 400 members of the U. S. Army 52nd Combat Aviation Battalion—under the command of Lieutenant Colonel John C. Hughes—was deployed to Camp Holloway with the purpose of supporting South Vietnamese and other Free World Military Forces in the regions of I Corps and II Corps Tactical Zones. In February 1965, Camp Holloways outer perimeter was protected by a South Vietnamese security contingent which included one Ranger battalion, five Regional Force companies, to overcome the U. S. defenses at Camp Holloway, Tam organized the 30th Company into two sections. The first section, under Tams direct command, was to destroy U. S. aircraft on the airfield, and establish a route of retreat for the attack force. The second section, led by Nguyen Trong Dai, was ordered to attack the U. S. advisory compound and the facilities where U. S. pilots and technicians were housed. Viet Cong combat engineers were required to break through the fences which protected the U. S. facility at Camp Holloway. Meanwhile, the Gia Lai local force company had to set up positions around the U. S. facility
17.
Battle of Ba Gia
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The battle took place in Quảng Ngãi Province, South Vietnam, between May 28–31,1965. In the days followed, the National Liberation Front destroyed an entire ARVN Task Force to mark a successful start to their summer campaign. During the first half of 1965 the war in Vietnam sharply escalated, in January 1965, while on a visit to China, a North Vietnamese military delegation met with Chinese Prime Minister Zhou Enlai to discuss the situation. However, Hanoi privately informed Moscow that the National Liberation Front only wanted to gain international support, in addition, Soviet pilots and other specialists were dispatched to North Vietnam to train North Vietnamese military personnel in the use of advanced military hardware. China, not to be outdone by its Soviet rival, increased the delivery of armaments to North Vietnam at rates which surpassed their commitments in 1964, China also offered logistical assistance to the North Vietnamese military by providing seven divisions of Chinese soldiers for road construction and other projects. Lê Duẩn, Secretary of the Communist Party, believed that the South Vietnamese regime was able to survive because they still had an army to rely upon. Therefore, to win the war and reunite the country, the South Vietnamese military had to be destroyed completely, the operation was aimed at regular South Vietnamese military units based in the provinces of Gia Lai, Kon Tum and Quảng Ngãi. Huynh Huu Anh, Deputy Chief of the NLF Chief of Staff in Military Region 5, was responsible for conducting reconnaissance missions, North Vietnamese Major General Chu Huy Man was sent to South Vietnam to take command of military operations. Prior to the NLF Summer Offensive of 1965, Quang Ngai, on February 6,1965, the Viet Cong 409th Sapper Battalion attacked the U. S airbase at Pleiku, injuring more than a hundred American personnel and damaging about 20 aircraft. The United States retaliated by launching Operation Flaming Dart, bombing selected targets in North Vietnam. On May 28, local Viet Cong units in Nui Thanh attacked a company of U. S. Marines, in May 1965, the Viet Cong 271st Regiment moved into northern Quảng Ngãi from the neighbouring province of Quảng Nam. The Viet Cong 271st Regiment had three battalions, and was placed under the command of Le Huu Tru, in northern Quảng Ngãi, the 271st Regiment joined the 45th Independent Battalion and the 83rd Local Force Battalion. On the other side, South Vietnamese military units in Quảng Ngãi Province formed part of the ARVN 1st Brigade, I Corps Tactical Zone, commanded by General Nguyễn Chánh Thi. The 271st Regimental Headquarters set up camp at Nui Thanh, while the 83rd Local Force Battalion was ordered to encircle the administrative centre at Nghia Hanh. Precisely at 5.45 am on May 29, elements of the Viet Cong 271st Regiment launched an attack on Phuoc Loc. Within 10 minutes of fighting, the two platoons of South Vietnamese Regional Force defending Phuoc Loc were subdued, and the Viet Cong quickly consolidated the battlefield around the area. Caught by the element of surprise, the South Vietnamese 1st Battalion descended into chaos and was unable to mount an effective counter-attack, in less than one hour of fighting, the battalion was completely destroyed with 270 soldiers either killed or wounded. Captain Nguyen Van Ngoc was amongst the 217 men who were captured, only 65 South Vietnamese soldiers and three American advisors managed to return to government lines
18.
Battle of Dong Xoai
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The Battle of Đồng Xoài was a major battle fought during the National Liberation Front Summer Offensive of 1965 as part of the Vietnam War. The battle took place in Phước Long Province, South Vietnam, in 1964, General Nguyễn Khánh gained control of the South Vietnamese government after General Dương Văn Minh was overthrown in a military coup. He then had a falling-out with the Catholic faction within his own government, consequently, on February 20,1965, General Khánh was ousted from power and was forced to leave South Vietnam forever. The political instability in Saigon gave North Vietnamese leaders in Hanoi an opportunity to step up their campaign in the south. They believed the South Vietnamese government was able to survive because it still had a military to combat the growing influence of the Viet Cong. With the summer campaign of 1965, North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces aimed to inflict significant losses on the South Vietnamese military, in Phước Long Province, the Communist summer offensive culminated in the Đồng Xoài campaign. The fight for Đồng Xoài began on the evening of June 9,1965, in response to the sudden Viet Cong assault, the Army of the Republic of Vietnam Joint General Staff ordered the ARVN 1st Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, to retake Đồng Xoài district. They arrived on the battlefield on June 10, but were overwhelmed by the Viet Cong 271st Regiment near Thuận Lợi. Later that day, Đồng Xoài was recaptured by the ARVN 52nd Ranger Battalion, on June 11, further South Vietnamese reinforcements arrived in the form of the ARVN 7th Airborne Battalion. The South Vietnamese paratroopers, while searching for survivors of the 1st Battalion in the Thuận Lợi rubber plantation, were defeated in an ambush by the Viet Cong. By that time, however, the Viet Cong had already withdrawn from the battlefield, in January 1964, General Khánh ousted General Dương Văn Minh as the leader of South Vietnams military junta in a bloodless coup. Khánh drafted a new constitution, which would have expanded his power within the military junta, fearing that his power could be weakened by those demonstrations, General Khánh immediately repealed his constitution and new police powers. He promised to reinstate civilian rule and remove members of the Catholic-based Cần lao from power, subsequently, General Khiêm fell out with General Khánh over policy issues along religious lines, even though an alliance between both men had enabled Khánh to remove General Minh from power. As military support for his regime diminished, Khánh had to rely upon civilian Buddhist activists to maintain power, for the Americans, Khánhs increased reliance on the Buddhists was a cause for concern, because the Buddhists favoured a political resolution to the conflict with the Communists. Thus, by the end of 1964 the Americans looked for someone to overthrow Khánh, on February 20,1965, Khánh was finally removed from power, and he was forced to leave South Vietnam. From the Communist perspective, even though South Vietnam was plagued by political instability, so shortly after the Binh Gia campaign, North Vietnamese leaders reached a resolution to launch a summer offensive, to destroy the regular units of the South Vietnamese military. Following their victory at Ba Gia, the National Liberation Front turned its attention to the Mekong Delta region, to prepare for their next offensive, Major-General Le Trong Tan was given the task of directing Viet Cong military operations in the provinces of Phước Long, Bình Phước. Since May 1965, the Viet Cong offensive in Phước Long Province had been in full-swing, beginning on May 10, the Viet Cong 271st Regiment, supported by the 840th Battalion and local sapper units, attacked the district town of Phước Long, capital of the province
19.
Operation Starlite
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Operation Starlite was the first major offensive regimental size action conducted by a purely U. S. military unit during the Vietnam War. The operation was launched based on intelligence provided by Major General Nguyen Chanh Thi, the operation was conducted as a combined arms assault involving ground, air and naval units. Marines were deployed by helicopter insertion into the landing zone while an amphibious landing was used to deploy other Marines. The operation was originally called Satellite, but a power blackout led to a clerical error and it was launched on D-Day August 18,1965, involving 5,500 Marines. The United States Navys USS Galveston and USS Cabildo were available for naval gunfire support, Viet Cong forces comprised the 1st VC Regiment made up of the 60th and 80th VC Battalions, the 52nd VC Company, and a company of the 45th VC Weapons Battalion. The total Viet Cong strength was around 1,500 men, 3/3 Marines was designated the blocking force and deployed on August 18,1965 using LVTP-5s to the operational area. When it landed on the beach, it marched 4 miles to establish their blocking positions, 3/3 made an amphibious landing and were tasked with driving the Viet Cong towards the 2/4 Marines who were to be lifted by helicopter into three landing zones west of Van Tuong. Secrecy was paramount, and no ARVN commander or units were informed of the impending operation, the Marines met light resistance moving into the attack, using their M14 semi-automatic rifles to repulse occasional Viet Cong raiders. Echo Company, 2/4 spotted Viet Cong in the open and called in fire from 3rd Battalion 12th Marines. The artillery barrage was reported to have killed 90 Viet Cong, including crippling several of their mortar units. Hotel Company, 2/4 assaulted the 60th VC Battalion who put up a fight, only being overwhelmed when attack helicopters swooped on their position, peppering it with rocket. One prisoner was taken and 40 weapons were captured, India Company, 3/3 attacked An Cuong after receiving heavy fire from the hamlet and losing their company commander in the engagement. India Company was ordered to join Kilo and Hotel companies and clean up any opposition but was caught in a crossfire from Nam Yen Dan Hill 30, Hotel Company established a defensive perimeter and were told to await reinforcements. The expected reinforcements, were diverted to assist the supply column that was ambushed west of their position, 37mm recoilless rifle fire from the VC positions tore into the 5 LVTs and 3 flame tanks, forcing the Marines to mount a rescue. The Marines were hit by mortar and rifle fire and suffered 5 dead and 17 wounded. The developing engagement necessitated the deployment of Lima Company, 3/7 from the USS Iwo Jima to join India Company to assist the supply column. Part of Lima Company was caught in an ambush in their attempt to rescue LVT personnel,4 marines were killed and 10 wounded. Come nightfall, the Marines hunkered down into defensive positions, scout units of 3/7 Marines came ashore during the night and the battalion got ready for a morning assault on the Vietnamese positions
20.
Operation Piranha
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Operation Piranha was a US Marine Corps operation that took place on the Batangan Peninsula southeast of Chu Lai, lasting from 7 to 10 September 1965. Following the conclusion of Operation Starlite, on 24 August 1965, reconnaissance photos of the Peninsula showed a V of older field fortifications pointing inland with the open end to the sea and a new second V further inland under construction. 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marines would remain available as a floating reserve, the Army of the Republic of Vietnam 2nd Battalion, 4th Regiment and the 3rd Vietnamese Marine Battalion would be helilifted into the south of 3/7 Marines to clear and search the An Ky Peninsula. The operation was launched on 7 September 1965, the landing was unopposed. On 8 September, Company B 1/7 Marines discovered a VC field hospital in a cave near the center of the Peninsula. The Marines captured four prisoners, but then came under fire from other VC in the cave, the Marines returned the fire and attempted to convince the VC to surrender. Marine engineers then placed explosives in the cave, after the detonation, the Marines counted 66 VC dead inside. Operation Piranha concluded on 10 September,178 VC had been killed and 360 enemy, allied losses were two Marines and five South Vietnamese killed. The operation failed to wipe out the 1st VC Regiment, villagers told the Marines that Vietcong units had been in the area but had left, some less than 24 hours before Operation Piranha had commenced. Intelligence reports later indicated that the 1st VC Regiment began leaving the peninsula on 4 September and this article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Marine Corps
21.
Battle of An Ninh
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The Battle of An Ninh, was fought during the Vietnam War between regulars of the United States Army and regulars of the Peoples Army of Vietnam of North Vietnam. It occurred during an operation codenamed Operation Gibraltar, developed by MACV to clear the area around the 1st Cavalry Divisions base at An Khe, South Vietnam. When the second wave arrived on the zone, the Vietnamese troops started an intense fire forcing the commander officer. Smith to call back the wave without dropping the soldiers. The lack of artillery support posed dire difficulties for the American defence perimeter, only shortly after 9,00 the requests for air support was answered with the first mission flown by F100 bombers. The continuous effort to reinforce the besieged paratroopers and evacuate the wounded, under enemy fire, after a night of fighting under the flares light, at dawn the Vietcong retreated. U. S. casualties were 13 dead and 44 wounded, for the Vietnamese side, the result of the engagement was discordantly evaluated, some greeted it as a great victory for the U. S. Army, between those, General Westmoreland. Subsequent valuation, put out how the zone was in the middle of a training camp of a Vietnamese infantry battalion. Airmobility 1961-1971 Battaglia di An Ninh, American casualities
22.
Siege of Plei Me
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The Siege of Plei Me was the beginning phase of the first major confrontation between soldiers of the communist North Vietnamese Army and the U. S. army during the Vietnam War. Plei Me was an isolated U. S. Army Special Forces, in 1965 the camp was manned by more than 400 CIDG soldiers—local Montagnard irregulars, mostly members of the Jarai ethnic group. Many of them had families living just outside the camp,12 American soldiers from the 5th Special Forces Group and 14 Army of the Republic of Vietnam Special Forces assisted and advised the Montagnards. At the time of the attack on Plei Me, about 300 Montagnards, the 14 Vietnamese, and 10 Americans were inside the camp, the camp itself was under the control and command of II Corps Command. The ARVN had 9 battalions of troops stationed in Pleiku. Anticipating a PAVN offensive to capture Pleiku and Highway 19, the United States had stationed the 1st Cavalry Division at Camp Radcliff near the town of An Khe in September 1965, the 1st Cavalry Division was composed of three brigades with at total complement of eight battalions. The 1st Cavalry utilized the new tactic of relying on helicopters to transport soldiers and supplies, for medical evacuations, and aerial rocket artillery. General Man had under his command the 32nd and 33rd Regiments of the PAVN army, comprising about 4,200 men, with another regiment, the 66th, becoming available by early November. The 32nd Regiment had been operating in II Corps since January 1965, the 33rd Regiment had arrived in September, General Mans offensive was to be launched by December 1965 with all the three regiments. The staging areas were located in the Chu Pong massif on the Vietnam-Cambodian border, however, General Man decided to launch the attack earlier on October 19,1965, with only two Regiments, apparently before the 1st Cavalry troops became combat ready. The first indication of an attack was about 19,00 hours on October 19 when a Montagnard patrol was attacked near Plei Me. The American commander at Plei Me, Captain Harold M. Moore, called in airstrikes which arrived about 0400 on October 20 and continued throughout the day and the next night. The relief group, transported by helicopter, landed about 5 kilometres northeast of Plei Me on the morning of October 21, some of the air drops landed outside the camp, while two defenders were killed when a pallet of supplies fell on them. Plei Me became, up until then, the largest air operation of the Vietnam War with 696 sorties and more than 1.5 million pounds of bombs, napalm. Several U. S. planes and helicopters were damaged or shot down by ground fire. At Plei Me, the PAVN plan was not to overrun the camp, Air strikes were called in to hit the attackers only a few meters outside the defensive perimeter of the camp. This was the grab them by the belt buckle tactic that would be employed by the communist forces throughout the Vietnam War. General Vĩnh Lộc, II Corps Commander, decided to accept the PAVNs challenge, a relief task force was established in the afternoon of October 20
23.
Operation Hump
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Operation Hump was a search and destroy operation initiated on 8 November,1965, by the 173rd Airborne Brigade, in an area about 17.5 miles north of Bien Hoa. The objective was to drive out Vietcong fighters who had taken position in several key hills, little contact was made through 7 November, when B and C Companies settled into a night defensive position southeast of Hill 65, on a triple-canopied jungle hill. At about 06,00 on 8 November C Company began a move northwest toward Hill 65, shortly before 08,00, C Company was engaged by a sizeable enemy force, well dug in to the southern face of Hill 65, armed with machine guns and shotguns. B Company reached the foot of Hill 65 at about 09,30 and it became obvious that there was a large enemy force in place on the hill, C Company was suffering heavy casualties, and by chance, B Company was forcing the enemys right flank. The shells scorched the foliage and caught many rebel fighters ablaze, exploding the ammunition, B Company halted in place in an effort to locate and consolidate with C Companys platoons. Together they managed to establish a coherent defensive line, running around the hilltop from southeast to northwest, meanwhile, the Vietcong commander realized that his best chance was to close with the US forces so that the 173rds air and artillery fire could not be effectively employed. Vietcong troops attempted to out-flank the US position atop the hill from both the east and the southwest, moving his troops closer to the Americans. The result was shoulder-to-shoulder attacks up the hillside, hand-to-hand fighting, and isolation of parts of B and C Companies, the Americans held against two such attacks. By late afternoon it seemed that contact had been broken, allowing the two companies to prepare a defensive position and collect their dead and wounded in the center of the position. The result of the battle was heavy losses on both sides—49 Paratroopers dead, many wounded, and 403 dead Vietcong troops as an estimate by the US troops, operation Hump is memorialized in a song by Big and Rich named 8th of November. The introduction, as read by Kris Kristofferson, is, The final sentence is a reference to John 15,13 in the Christian Bible
24.
Battle of Gang Toi
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The Battle of Gang Toi was fought during the Vietnam War between Australian troops and the Viet Cong. It occurred during a major joint US-Australian operation codenamed Operation Hump, involving the US 173rd Airborne Brigade, during the latter part of the operation an Australian rifle company clashed with an entrenched company-sized Viet Cong force in well-prepared defensive positions. Meanwhile, an American paratroop battalion was heavily engaged in fighting on the other side of the Song Dong Nai. The bodies of the two missing Australian soldiers were subsequently recovered more than 40 years later, and were returned to Australia for burial. Although the initial American commitment to the war in Vietnam had been limited to advice and materiel support, at first the Americans had adopted a cautious strategy, applied to the strictly limited role of base defence by US Marine units. This was abandoned in April 1965, and replaced by a new strategy of defending key coastal population centres. This strategy required the introduction of nine additional US battalions, or 14,000 troops, allied nations of the Free World Military Forces were expected to contribute another four battalions. Such areas included Di An which was intended to become the headquarters of the US 1st Infantry Division, however, large-scale military operations to clear the intended base areas had to wait until the dry season. Yet the allied enclave strategy proved only transitory and further led to additional troop increases to halt the losing trend. Australias growing involvement in Vietnam reflected the American build-up, in 1963, the Australian government had committed a small advisory team, known as the Australian Army Training Team Vietnam, to help train the South Vietnamese forces. However, in June 1965 the decision to ground troops was made. Although logistics and resupply were primarily provided by the Americans, a small logistic unit—1st Australian Logistics Company—was situated at Bien Hoa airbase, unlike later Australian units that served in Vietnam, which included conscripts,1 RAR was manned by regular personnel only. The battalion commenced operations in late June 1965 and initially focussed on defeating the Viet Congs wet season offensive. By late-1965 the junction of the Song Be and Song Dong Nai rivers had become a major communist staging area for men, equipment, and supplies for units based around Saigon and the Mekong Delta. Communist communications and resupply routes between War Zone C and D also met the Ho Chi Minh Trail in this area, Operation Hump marked the half-way point in the twelve-month tour of duty of the US 173rd Airborne Brigade and was named accordingly. Meanwhile, the US 173rd Airborne Brigades second battalion—2nd Battalion, US 503rd Infantry Regiment—would be left to defend Bien Hoa airbase, the area was thought to be a Viet Cong stronghold and American intelligence initially identified Q762 Main Force Regiment and D800 Main Force Battalion as being nearby. Yet having relocated to the rainforest two months earlier, its presence was unknown to the Australians and Americans. Regardless, A Company 1 RAR was scheduled to conduct a search of the plateau on the day of the operation
25.
Battle of Ia Drang
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It was the first major battle between the United States Army and the North Vietnamese Army-NVA during the Vietnam War as part of the U. S. airmobile offensive code-named Operation Silver Bayonet I. The battle was part of the phase of a search-and-destroy operation code-named Operation Long Reach that took place from October 23 to November 26 during the Pleiku Campaign. The battle derives its name from the Drang River which runs through the valley west of Plei Me, where the engagement took place. Representing the American forces were elements of the 3rd and 2nd Brigades, 1st Cavalry Division, the 1st and 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry, representing the North Vietnam forces were elements of the B3 Front of the NVA. The battle involved close air support by U. S. Army helicopter gunships and U. S. Air Force and U. S. Navy tactical jet aircraft, and a bombing attack by Air Force B-52s. General Knowles, Forward CP Commander, 1st Cavalry Division, did not see the engagement as an ambush, 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, in 1994, Moore, Galloway and men who fought on both the American and North Vietnamese sides, traveled back to the remote jungle clearings where the battle took place. At the time the U. S. did not have relations with Vietnam. The risky trip which took a year to arrange was part of an award-winning ABC News documentary, They Were Young, in 2002, Randall Wallace depicted the battle at LZ X-Ray in the movie We Were Soldiers starring Mel Gibson and Barry Pepper as Moore and Galloway, respectively. Galloway later described this battle that he calls Ia Drang as The battle that convinced Ho Chi Minh he could win, in 1963 and 1964, a series of political and military mishaps had seriously affected the capabilities of the South Vietnamese Armys main forces in South Vietnam. After Diems overthrow in a 1963 coup, the new military leadership largely consisted of commanders put in place by Diem prior to the coup and they showed equal lack of interest in fighting the NLF, spending their time in a series of coups and counter-coups. In this unstable climate, the NLF units were able to mount increasingly larger military operations. At first these were limited to building up larger formations, but by late 1964 they had evolved into a war against ARVN units. At the end of 1964, Chairman Mao Zedong of the Peoples Republic of China turned on the light for the Viet Cong to upgrade attacking forces to division size in its conquest of South VietNam. In the meeting dated October 5,1964, Mao Zedong told Pham Van Dong, According to Comrade Le Duan, probably you have not dispatched that division yet. When should you dispatch it, the timing is important, American advisers in the field had long been pushing for South Vietnamese Army forces to be taken over by U. S. commanders. In addition to getting the men to fight, the U. S. commands better training. By early 1965, Westmoreland had secured the commitment of upward of 300,000 U. S. regulars from Lyndon B. Johnson and a build-up of forces took place in the summer of 1965
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Operation Crimp
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Heavy fighting resulted in significant casualties on both sides, but the combined American and Australian force was able to uncover an extensive tunnel network covering more than 200 kilometres. The operation was the largest allied military action mounted during the war in South Vietnam to that point, despite some success, the allied force was only able to partially clear the area and it remained a key communist transit and supply base throughout the war. Although the initial American commitment to the war in Vietnam had been limited to advice and materiel support, at first the Americans had adopted a cautious strategy, applied to the strictly limited role of base defence by US Marine units. This was abandoned in April 1965, and replaced by a new strategy of defending key coastal population centres. This strategy required the introduction of nine additional US battalions, or 14,000 troops, allied nations of the Free World Military Forces were expected to contribute another four battalions. Such areas included Di An which was intended to become the headquarters of the US 1st Infantry Division, however, large-scale military operations to clear the intended base areas had to wait until the dry season. Yet the allied enclave strategy proved only transitory and further led to additional troop increases to halt the losing trend. Australias growing involvement in Vietnam reflected the American build up, in 1963, the Australian government had committed a small advisory team, known as the Australian Army Training Team Vietnam, to help train the South Vietnamese forces. However, in June 1965 the decision to ground troops was made. Although logistics and resupply were primarily provided by the Americans, a small logistic unit—1st Australian Logistics Company—was situated at Bien Hoa airbase, unlike later Australian units that served in Vietnam, which included conscripts,1 RAR was manned by regular personnel only. The battalion commenced operations in late June 1965 and initially focussed on defeating the Viet Congs wet season offensive, meanwhile, Brumfield was replaced by Lieutenant Colonel Alex Preece, after an old football injury forced his evacuation to Australia in mid-November. On 24 November D Company,1 RAR carried out an attack on the fortified village of Duc Hanh which had been occupied by the Viet Cong, killing 10. Operation Marauder on the Plain of Reeds in the Mekong Delta was subsequently launched on New Years Day 1966, although its precise position was unknown, it was believed to be concealed in an extensive underground bunker system. Agents reports, the interrogation of prisoners, and aerial surveillance all pointed to the presence of this vital communist facility, communist units detected in the Ho Bo Woods by allied intelligence included the C306 Local Force Company, 3rd Quyet Thang Battalion and 7th Cu Chi Battalion. The commander of the Cu Chi Battalion was later identified after the war as Captain Nguyen Thanh Linh, in total, local communist defensive strength was believed to include 1,000 men. In response, a large American search-and-destroy operation was launched in January 1966, at the time it was the largest military operation mounted in South Vietnam, being the first divisional offensive to date. 1 RARs role was to establish a position in a village beside the river on the northern flank of the brigades area of operations. In order to achieve surprise, the operation was launched immediately following Operation Marauder
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This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Marine Corps.