[30], In early October, the PAVN had intensified battalion-sized ground probes and sustained artillery fire against Con Thien, a hilltop stronghold in the center of the Marines' defensive line south of the DMZ, in northern Qung Tr Province. The fighting was heavy. During the darkness of January 20-21, the NVA launched a series of coordinated attacks against American positions. On April 6, a front-page story in The New York Times declared that the siege of Khe Sanh had been lifted. At dawn on 21 January, it was attacked by a roughly 300-strong PAVN battalion. Since late in 1967, Khe Sanh had depended on airlift for its survival. The presence of the PAVN 1st Division prompted a 22-day battle there and had some of the most intense close-quarters fighting of the entire conflict. The official assessment of the North Vietnamese Army dead is just over 1,600 killed, with two . The last of the American casualties were finally lifted off Hill 861 on March 17. [146] Useful equipment was withdrawn or destroyed, and personnel were evacuated. [81] The sensors were implanted by a special naval squadron, Observation Squadron Sixty-Seven (VO-67). [164] He cited the fact that it would have taken longer to dislodge the North Vietnamese at Hue if the PAVN had committed the three divisions at Khe Sanh to the battle there instead of dividing its forces. Subscribe to our HistoryNet Now! Cushman was appalled by the "implication of a rescue or breaking of the siege by outside forces. A press release prepared on the following day (but never issued), at the height of Tet, showed that he was not about to be distracted. That action prematurely triggered a PAVN offensive aimed at taking Khe Sanh. The Soviet-built PT-76 amphibious tanks of the 203rd Armored Regiment churned over the defenses, backed up by an infantry assault by the 7th Battalion, 66th Regiment and the 4th Battalion of the 24th Regiment, both elements of the 304th Division. Dien Bien Phu would loom large for the rest of the war, especially during the Battle of Khe Sanh. [28], In early December 1967, the PAVN appointed Major General Tran Quy Hai as the local commander for the actions around Khe Sanh, with Le Quang Do as his political commissar. "[155], According to military historian Ronald Spector, to reasonably record the fighting at Khe Sanh as an American victory is impossible. Sunday marked the 50th anniversary of the start of the war's most famous siege, a 77-day struggle for a rain-swept plateau in central Vietnam that riveted the U.S. in 1968, and opened a year of . [105] At 07:40, a relief force from Company A, 2nd Platoon set out from the main base and attacked through the PAVN, pushing them into supporting tank and artillery fire. [171] When Hanoi made the decision to move in around the base, Khe Sanh was held by only one or two American battalions. . Battle of Khe Sanh (21 January - 9 April 1968) Max Hastings wrote a bestseller on Vietnam, and Dan met him to discuss Domino theory, whether it was possible for the US to win the war and the effect the war had on those who fought in it. When an enemy rocket-propelled grenade killed 2nd Lt. Randall Yeary and Corporal Richard John, although these Marines died before the beginning of the siege, their deaths were included in the official statistics. 216217. But only by checking my service record while writing this article did it become evident that I had participated in all three operations. [170][140], One argument that was then leveled by Westmoreland and has since often quoted by historians of the battle is that only two Marine regiments were tied down at Khe Sanh, compared with the several PAVN divisions. The Marines found a solution to the problem in the "Super Gaggle" concept. Operation Pegasus, begun the day after Scotland ended, lasted until April 15. Thirty-three ARVN troops were also killed and 187 were wounded. Journalist Richard Ehrlich writes that according to the report, "in late January, General Westmoreland had warned that if the situation near the DMZ and at Khe Sanh worsened drastically, nuclear or chemical weapons might have to be used." He believed that was proved by the PAVN's actions during Tet. This fighting was heavy, involving South Vietnamese militia as well as U.S. Army MACV advisers and Marines attached to a Combined Action Company platoon. Unlike the official figures, Stubbes database of Khe Sanh casualties includes verifiable names and dates of death. "[103] The Bru were excluded from evacuation from the highlands by an order from the ARVN I Corps commander, who ruled that no Bru be allowed to move into the lowlands. From the Hu site the communication signal was sent to Danang headquarters where it could be sent anywhere in the world. The launching of the largest enemy offensive thus far in the conflict did not shift Westmoreland's focus away from Khe Sanh. Free shipping for many products! New material will be added to that page through the end of 2018. Two days later, US troops detected PAVN trenches running due north to within 25 m of the base perimeter. A platoon from Company D, 1/26 Marines was sent from the base but was withdrawn in the face of the superior PAVN forces. The Armys 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile), with more than 400 helicopters under its control, conducted airmobile operations deeper into enemy-controlled areas. Officer casualties of all branches were overwhelmingly white. The exact number of casualties suffered by both sides during the Khe Sanh battle is very difficult to ascertain, given that in many cases the two warring factions provided their own disparate counts. The base was officially closed on July 5. About two hours later, an NVA artillery barrage scored a hit on the main ammunition dump at Khe Sanh Combat Base, killing Lance Corp. Jerry Stenberg and other Marines. What is the 25th Infantry known for? [88] Westmoreland was so obsessed with the tactical situation that he threatened to resign if his wishes were not obeyed. [57][58] They were assisted in their emplacement efforts by the continuing bad weather of the winter monsoon. The ground troops had been specially equipped for the attack with satchel charges, tear gas, and flame throwers. Ho Chi Minhs oft-quoted admonition to the French applied equally to the Americans: You can kill ten of my men for every one I kill of yours, but even at those odds, you will lose and I will win. The calculation by Stubbe that approximately 1,000 Americans died on the Khe Sanh battlefield is especially compelling, given that Stubbes numbers are accompanied by names and dates of death. [42], In the wake of the hill fights, a lull in PAVN activity occurred around Khe Sanh. [135] The Marines had constantly argued that technically, Khe Sanh had never been under siege, since it had never truly been isolated from resupply or reinforcement. If only it had contaminated the stream, the airlift would not have provided enough water to the Marines. [98] The Marines continued to oppose the operation until Westmoreland actually had to issue an order to Cushman to allow the rescue operation to proceed. [33] Troops of the US 1st Infantry Division were able to respond quickly. [80] Westmoreland insisted for several months that the entire Tet Offensive was a diversion, including, famously, attacks on downtown Saigon and obsessively affirming that the true objective of the North Vietnamese was Khe Sanh. Historian Ronald Spector, in the book After Tet: The Bloodiest Year in Vietnam, noted that American casualties in the 10 weeks after the start of Operation Pegasus were more than twice those officially reported during the siege. How many American soldiers died in the Battle of Ia Drang? The Marines pursued three enemy scouts, who led them into an ambush. The 1968 Battle of Khe Sanh was the longest, deadliest and most controversial of the Vietnam War, pitting the U.S. Marines and their allies against the North Vietnamese Army. January 30 marked the first day of the Vietnamese lunar new year celebration, called Tet. Click to View Online Archive The Battle of Khe Sanh was conducted northwestern Quaag Tri Province, South Vietnam, between January 21 and July 9, 1968 during the Vietnam War. "[168][Note 7], Marine General Rathvon M. Tompkins, the commander of the 3rd Marine Division, pointed out that had the PAVN actually intended to take Khe Sanh, PAVN troops could have cut the base's sole source of water, a stream 500 m outside the perimeter of the base. Battle of Khe Sanh: American Casualties : Showing All Results. For example, I served with a Marine heavy mortar battery at Khe Sanh during the siege. The Marines, fearing an ambush, did not attempt a relief, and after heavy fighting the camp was overrun. The American military presence at Khe Sanh consisted not only of the Marine Corps Khe Sanh Combat Base, but also Forward Operating Base 3, U.S. Army (FOB-3). Rod Andrew, Jr., a history professor at Clemson University and colonel in the Marine Corps Reserve, has written an easily read and thoroughly . The heavy reliance on American airpower was an ominous sign for Vietnamization and . [59], Making matters worse for the defenders, any aircraft that braved the weather and attempted to land was subject to PAVN antiaircraft fire on its way in for a landing. Johnson backed the Marine position due to his concern over protecting the Army's air assets from Air Force co-option. A group of 12 A-4 Skyhawk fighter-bombers provided flak suppression for massed flights of 1216 helicopters, which would resupply the hills simultaneously. The adoption of this concept at the end of February was the turning point in the resupply effort. On that day, Tolson ordered his unit to immediately make preparations for Operation Delaware, an air assault into the A Shau Valley. "[136], Regardless, on 1 April, Operation Pegasus began. To support the Marine base, a massive aerial bombardment campaign (Operation Niagara) was launched by the USAF. [147] The official closure of the base came on 5 July after fighting, which had killed five more Marines. During this time, KSCB and the hilltop outposts around it were subjected to constant PAVN artillery, mortar, and rocket attacks, and several infantry assaults. [145], Author Peter Brush details that an "additional 413 Marines were killed during Scotland II through the end of June 1968". Telfer, Rogers, and Fleming, pp. server. A limited attack was made by a PAVN company on 1 July, falling on a company from the 3rd Battalion, 4th Marines, who were holding a position 3km to the southeast of the base. If a battle tallied a sufficiently favorable body count ratio, American commanders declared victory, as they did after Khe Sanh. They fixed the attention of the American command on the border regions, and they drew American and ARVN forces away from the coastal lowlands and cities in preparation for the Tet Offensive. [121] Casualties from the bombardment were 10 killed and 51 wounded. Additionally, the logistical effort required to support the base once it was isolated demanded the implementation of other tactical innovations to keep the Marines supplied. According to Ray Stubbe, a U.S. Navy chaplain during the siege and since then the most significant Khe Sanh historian, the 205 figure is taken only from the records of the 26th Marine Regiment. Route 9, the only practical overland route from the east, was impassable due to its poor state of repair and the presence of PAVN troops. [22] The camp then became a Special Forces outpost of the Civilian Irregular Defense Groups, which were to keep watch on PAVN infiltration along the border and to protect the local population. Over 100,000 tons of bombs were dropped by US aircraft and over 158,000 artillery rounds were fired in defense of the base. 3% were Asian, 7 or . However, even if Westmoreland believed his statement, his argument never moved on to the next logical level. The PAVN infantry, though bracketed by artillery fire, still managed to penetrate the perimeter of the defenses and were only driven back after severe close-quarters combat. According to this history, originally classified as secret, the battle deaths for all major NVA units participating in the entire Highway 9Khe Sanh Front from January 20 until July 20, 1968, totaled 2,469. [40] The 2nd and 3rd battalions of the 3rd Marine Regiment, under the command of Colonel John P. Lanigan, reinforced KSCB and were given the task of pushing the PAVN off of Hills 861, 881 North, and 881 South. [143][144], On 15 April, the 3rd Marine Division resumed responsibility for KSCB, Operation Pegasus ended, and Operation Scotland II began with the Marines seeking out the PAVN in the surrounding area. If firepower determined the outcome of the fight, it was airlift that allowed the defenders to hold their positions. As far as PAVN casualties were concerned, 1,602 bodies were counted, seven prisoners were taken, and two soldiers defected to allied forces during the operation. That appraisal was later altered when the PAVN was found to be moving major forces into the area. Declassified documents show that in response, Westmoreland considered using nuclear weapons. Many American casualties were caused by the 10,908 rounds of rockets, artillery and mortars the North Vietnamese fired into the base and hill positions. It claimed, however, that only three American advisors were killed during the action. During the course of the siege, the U.S. Air Force dropped five tons of bombs for each of the estimated 20,000 attacking NVA troops. Mobile combat operations continued against the North Vietnamese. [83] Westmoreland later wrote, "Washington so feared that some word of it might reach the press that I was told to desist, ironically answering what those consequences could be: a political disaster. The assault began on 10 May 1969 w ith the 101st Airborne Division and troops of the 9th M arine Regiment, the 5 th Cavalry Regiment, and the 3 rd ARVN Regiment. [25], In the winter of 1964, Khe Sanh became the location of a launch site for the highly-classified Military Assistance Command, Vietnam Studies and Observations Group. [90], The Tet Offensive was launched prematurely in some areas on 30 January. After a ten-day battle, the attackers were pushed back into Cambodia. NVA casualties were more than 200. [45] In December and early January, numerous sightings of PAVN troops and activities were made in the Khe Sanh area, but the sector remained relatively quiet.[46]. [118], On the night of the fall of Lang Vei, three companies of the PAVN 101D Regiment moved into jump-off positions to attack Alpha-1, an outpost west of the Combat Base held by 66 men of Company A, 1st Platoon, 1/9 Marines. Casualties were heavy among the attacking PAVN, who lost over 200 killed, while the defending Marines lost two men. The Marine garrison was also reinforced, and on November 1, 1967, Operation Scotland began. [163] Other theories argued that the forces around Khe Sanh were simply a localized defensive measure in the DMZ area or that they were serving as a reserve in case of an offensive American end run in the mode of the American invasion at Inchon during the Korean War. The battle of Khe Sanh is one of the most well-known battles of the Vietnam War. "[105] There had been a history of distrust between the Special Forces personnel and the Marines, and General Rathvon M. Tompkins, commander of the 3rd Marine Division, described the Special Forces soldiers as "hopped up wretches [who] were a law unto themselves. The 26th Marines were activated in 1944 and fought in the Battle of Iwo Jima during World War II and were activated again on 1 March 1966, and fought in the Battle of Khe Sanh during the Vietnam War . The Tet Offensive was about to begin. On April 5, 1968, MACV prepared an Analysis of the Khe Sanh Battle for General Westmoreland. The fighting around Khe Sanh began January 21, 1968, and concluded around April 8, 1968. According to Gordon Rottman, even the North Vietnamese official history, Victory in Vietnam, is largely silent on the issue. The site linked to another microwave/tropo site in Hu manned by the 513th Signal Detachment. Few areas of the world have been as hotly contested as the India-Pakistan border. After its adoption, Marine helicopters flew in 465 tons of supplies during February. [39], On 24 April 1967, a patrol from Bravo Company became engaged with a PAVN force of an unknown size north of Hill 861. [134], Westmoreland's planned relief effort infuriated the Marines, who had not wanted to hold Khe Sanh in the first place and who had been roundly criticized for not defending it well. [1], The evacuation of Khe Sanh began on 19 June 1968 as Operation Charlie. By late January 1967, the 1/3 returned to Japan and was relieved by Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 9th Marines (1/9 Marines). On April 20, Operation Prairie IV began, with heavy fighting between the Marines and NVA forces. On January 31, while approximately 50,000 U.S. and South Vietnamese troops were occupied in defending or supporting Khe Sanh and other DMZ bases, the communists launched an offensive throughout South Vietnam. [82], By the end of the battle, USAF assets had flown 9,691 tactical sorties and dropped 14,223tons of bombs on targets within the Khe Sanh area. The main US forces defending Khe Sanh Combat Base (KSCB) were two regiments of the United States Marine Corps supported by elements from the United States Army and the United States Air Force (USAF), as well as a small number of Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) troops. The Marines knew that their withdrawal from Khe Sanh would present a propaganda victory for Hanoi. The origin of the combat base lay in the construction by US Army Special Forces of an airfield in August 1962 outside the village at an old French fort. The PAVN forces were in the process of gaining elevated terrain before it launched the main attack. At least 852 PAVN soldiers were killed during the action, as opposed to 50 American and South Vietnamese. During the 66-day siege, U.S. planes, dropping 5,000 bombs daily, exploded the equivalent of five Hiroshima-sized atomic bombs in the area. The attack was to have been supported by armor and artillery. Its main objectives were to inflict casualties on US troops and to isolate them in the remote border regions. Khe Sanh was one of the most remote outposts in Vietnam, but by January 1968, even President Lyndon Johnson had taken a personal interest in the base. The enemy by my count suffered at least 15,000 dead in the area.. Upon closer analysis, the official figure does not accurately portray even what it purports to represent. He subsequently ordered the US military to hold Khe Sanh at all costs. [97] During a meeting at Da Nang at 07:00 the next morning, Westmoreland and Cushman accepted Lownds' decision. [48][Note 4], Not all leading Marine officers, however, had the same opinion. Westmoreland had been forwarding operational plans for an invasion of Laos since 1966. [172], On 30 January 1971, the ARVN and US forces launched Operation Dewey Canyon II, which involved the reopening of Route 9, securing the Khe Sanh area and reoccupying of KSCB as a forward supply base for Operation Lam Son 719. Of the 7877 officer casualties, 7595 or 96.4% were white, 147 or 1.8% were black; 24 or . The Siege of Khe Sanh. In his memoirs, he listed the reasons for a continued effort: Khe Sanh could serve as a patrol base for blocking enemy infiltration from Laos along Route 9; as a base for SOG operations to harass the enemy in Laos; as an airstrip for reconnaissance planes surveying the Ho Chi Minh Trail; as the western anchor for defenses south of the DMZ; and as an eventual jump-off point for ground operations to cut the Ho Chi Minh Trail. At 21:30, the attack came on, but it was stifled by the small arms of the Rangers, who were supported by thousands of artillery rounds and air strikes. Among the dead Marines was 18-year-old Pfc Curtis Bugger. Contribute to chinapedia/wikipedia.en development by creating an account on GitHub. North Vietnamese Army gained control of the Khe Sanh region after the American withdrawal. Military Assistance Command, Vietnam, then began planning for incursion into Laos, and in October, the construction of an airfield at Khe Sanh was completed. This marked the first time that all three battalions of the 26th Marine Regiment had operated together in combat since the Battle of Iwo Jima during the Second World War. For some unknown reason, the PAVN troops did not press their advantage and eliminate the pocket, instead throwing a steady stream of grenades at the Marines. [33], On 27 October, a PAVN regiment attacked an Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) battalion at Song Be, capital of Phc Long Province. [138], On the following day, the 2nd Brigade captured the old French fort near Khe Sanh village after a three-day battle. As a result, 65% of all supplies were delivered by paradrops delivered by C-130 aircraft, mostly by the USAF, whose crews had significantly more experience in airdrop tactics than Marine air crews. It was a bad beginning to a long 77-day siege. The lossesindicating that the enemy suffered a major defeatwere estimated at 3,550 KIA inflicted by delivered fires (i.e., aerial and artillery bombardment) and 2,000 KIA from ground action, for a total of 5,550 estimated North Vietnamese killed in action as of March 31. [123][124], Nevertheless, the same day that the trenches were detected, 25 February, 3rd Platoon from Bravo Company 1st Battalion, 26th Marines was ambushed on a short patrol outside the base's perimeter to test the PAVN strength. [79] On an average day, 350 tactical fighter-bombers, 60 B-52s, and 30 light observation or reconnaissance aircraft operated in the skies near the base. [27][28] The Marines' defensive system stretched below the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) from the coast, along Route 9, to Khe Sanh. Beginning in October 1967, the Communists greatly increased their forces in the Khe Sanh area to total two infantry divisions, two artillery regiments and an armored regiment. They attacked 36 of 44 provincial capitals, 64 district capitals, five of the six major cities, and more than two dozen airfields and bases. On 22 March, over 1,000 North Vietnamese rounds fell on the base, and once again, the ammunition dump was detonated. [69] The Marine Direct Air Support Center (DASC), located at KSCB, was responsible for the coordination of air strikes with artillery fire. [80] Westmoreland had already ordered the nascent Igloo White operation to assist in the Marine defense. [141] Because of the close proximity of the enemy and their high concentration, the massive B-52 bombings, tactical airstrikes, and vast use of artillery, PAVN casualties were estimated by MACV as being between 10,000 and 15,000 men. It was a two-part battle which took place from November 14 to 18, 1965 at the la Drang Valley, South Vietnam. Senior Marine Corps General Victor Krulak agreed, noting on May 13 that the Marines had defeated the North Vietnamese and won the battle of Khe Sanh. Over time, these KIA figures have been accepted by historians. [31] Mortar rounds, artillery shells, and 122mm rockets fell randomly but incessantly upon the base. [43] Lieutenant General Robert E. Cushman Jr. relieved Walt as commander of III MAF in June. With Khe Sanh facing a full-scale. "[84], Meanwhile, an interservice political struggle took place in the headquarters at Phu Bai Combat Base, Saigon, and the Pentagon over who should control aviation assets supporting the entire American effort in Southeast Asia. [15], Unknown (1,602 bodies were counted, US official public estimated 10,00015,000 KIA,[19][20] but MACV's secret report estimated 5,550 killed as of 31 March 1968)[1]. [23][Note 2], James Marino wrote that in 1964, General William Westmoreland, the US commander in Vietnam, had determined, "Khe Sanh could serve as a patrol base blocking enemy infiltration from Laos; a base for operations to harass the enemy in Laos; an airstrip for reconnaissance to survey the Ho Chi Minh Trail; a western anchor for the defenses south of the DMZ; and an eventual jumping-off point for ground operations to cut the Ho Chi Minh Trail. The figures of 5,500 NVA dead and 1,000 U.S. dead yield a ratio of 5.5:1. The Americans had forewarning of PAVN armor in the area from Laotian refugees from camp BV-33. And it had accomplished its purpose magnificently. Listen Now. At around 10:00, the fire ignited a large quantity of explosives, rocking the base with another series of detonations. Throughout the campaign, US forces used the latest technology to locate PAVN forces for targeting. During the 1968 Tet Offensive, as many as 30,000 Communist Vietnamese forces surrounded roughly 6,000 U.S. marines defending a combat base on .. Week of February 21 528 of them include images. At 00:30 on 21 January, Hill 861 was attacked by about 300 PAVN troops, the Marines, however, were prepared. However, the PAVN committed three regiments to the fighting from the Khe Sanh sector. 1st Marine Aircraft Wing records claim that the unit delivered 4,661 tons of cargo into KSCB. The link-up between the relief force and the Marines at KSCB took place at 08:00 on 8 April, when the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment entered the camp. While I was in training, my motivation was to get these wings and I wear them today proudly, the airman recalled in 2015. Operation Pegasus forces, however, were highly mobile and did not attack en masse down Route 9 far enough west of Khe Sanh for the NVA, by then dispersed, to implement their plan. [34] The heaviest action took place near Dak To, in the Central Highlands province of Kon Tum.
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