battle of ap bac 1967

(Summary telegram 677 from ARPAC to JCS, January 4; Kennedy Library, National Security Files, Vietnam Although the enemy would have suffered heavy casualties, his defeat would not have been nearly as final as the one which occurred. Heaviest casualties to date Co-A-4th-47th takes severe casualties (28) KIAs. Unit awards, medals and ribbons, and information on applying for and obtaining your medals and ribbons. escaped with minor losses. The Viet Cong machine gun fired five separate bursts before it was destroyed by the Americans. However, if the core of these units, who are irreplaceable, can be captured or killed, the efficiency of these units must begin to wane. discipline in the execution of small-unit tactics. Powered by Creative Circle Media Solutions. Company A, 3/60th, which had been behind but south of Company B, continued to advance along the stream and the road which formed the line of contact farther to the east. One thing that we found out over there, and what we didnt realize until years later, was what a friend was, he said. Neil He adopted a conventional formation of two battalions advancing abreast, the 3rd Battalion, 60th Infantry, on the west, the 3rd Battalion, 47th Infantry on the east, with Highway 4 as a line of departure. distorted both the importance of the action and the damage suffered by Explore points of interest in the US Army section; awards, citations, index, roster and select information related to the mobile riverine force! But one officer, John Paul Vann, saw darker omens for the futureand in the Battle of Ap Bac, the Viet Cong proved him correct. On 28 December 1962, US intelligence detected the presence of a radio transmitter along with a sizable force of Viet Cong (VC) soldiers, reported to number around 120, in the hamlet of Ap Tan Thoi in Dinh Tuong Province, ho At 03:30 the communist fire eased; resupply of the units and evacuation of the wounded was completed during the next 75 minutes while the artillery and air strikes continued. there are days. Chester V. Felt, Admiral Harry So far as the battalion commander of the 3/60th was concerned, all his chips were in the pot. since Ap Bac the complaint has been increasingly heard that the A jet came in to drop a bomb. c. Biggest US operation ever held in the Delta. Even so, it was of little help to the Viet Cong, most of whom had died. are occurring more frequently. (National Defense University, Taylor Papers, T-182-67). %%EOF Instead he continued to fire white phosphorus, some of which by this time, was falling dangerously close to Company A. [3] One tank operator trained his searchlight on the Viet Cong machine gun position and returned fire along with three APCs for around three minutes. However, by this time all elements of the 3/60th had closed the final assault line and were beginning to meet enemy fire. [5], The communists troops on the southwest portion of the base perimeter were mobbing some of the APCs. After dinner, each guy stood up and said a few words; it was a memorable experience, Heller said. [5], Captain Alcala advised his superiors at 00:50 that he felt able to repel the attack, but he asked for a ready reaction force to be put in place. If you are a current print subscriber, you can set up a free web account by clicking here. Americans lost, there is good news which you may not read about in The Washington Post. He pointed to a number of On January 3, Deputy Secretary of Defense Roswell Gilpatric forwarded to the White House a At 23:10, Captain Alcala reported that firing had ended and that infrared equipment was being used to detect the communists. It soon became apparent that the craft would be delayed, and after a wait of more than an hour, the battalion was notified that the helicopters would not arrive because of a tactical emergency elsewhere. Because of a shortage of transportation, the 3/47th was delayed, and did not move until later. Learning that elements of the 3/47th were in contact, and anticipating that his battalion would become involved, the commanding officer of the 3/60th ordered company B to move toward the area of contact, followed by Company A. General Harkins noted that the South 0000008278 00000 n Type Chapter Information Triumph Forsaken telegram 100910Z to the Joint Chiefs of Staff on January 10. They concluded that even more Viet Cong had died because of the existence of blood trails, indicating that dead communists had been taken away by their colleagues. attack. An assessment done in the Department of State on January 15 of %PDF-1.4 % Company A was to move by trucks furnished by the brigade besides organic vehicles form the battalion, and upon arrival would go into battalion reserve near the line of departure. Relations, World Wide Diplomatic Archives This item is available in full to subscribers. Click here to see your options for becoming a subscriber. D. Gilpatric, Roswell Availability of route 4 at Ben Luc for ammo resupply. Please sign the MRFA guestbook! With the help of artillery and air strikes, as well as flares and aerial searchlights to spot their enemies, the Americans repelled the communists with ease. La bataille de Coral-Balmoral (12 mai - 6 juin 1968), est un engagement entre la Premire force oprationnelle australienne et la 7e division d'infanterie nord-vietnamienne soutenue par le Viet Cong , qui se droule prs de Lai Kh (en) 40 kilomtres au nord-est de Sagon . Chaplain Charlie Zies, 1st Platoon Bravo Company, 4/47 9th Infantry Division, delivers a short service to the surviving members of his platoon, the Tornados, at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Cody. Thus, the battle ended. Despite the disparity of numbers and weapons, the Viet Early on 2 May, elements of the Wild Ones composed of Company B and Company C, 3/60th, plus the characterized them largely as errors of courage rather than cowardice. At 22:50 that night a Viet Cong probe signaled the start of the battle. 0000000016 00000 n newsmen spread the word to American public that GVN forces wont fight and, on the other hand, do not 5-17 August 1967: RSSZ operations. Its a good family of vets, and its always a joy to see them.. Keeping low, the squad moved across a short space of open grassland to a small dike, where it prepared to cover the crossing of the rest of the platoon. The brigade commander quickly approved the action taken by the 3/60th, and at the same time directed that Company B, 3/60th, which was closest to the scene of combat, be placed under the operational control of the 3/47th and moved to a position to block the enemys escape to the north. We continued to pour fire into his position and to inch forward, taking best advantage of the cover. TF-117 supports 2nd Bde operations, initially with RAS boats borrowed from the Vietnamese Navy, crewed by US Crews, as TF-117 boats arrived in country, they were phased into RSSZ operations. '&charset='+document.charset : (document.characterSet ? Many of their large haystacks concealed bunkers. 7-8 September 1967: Operations in NHON TRACH against elements of 54th Viet Cong rear service group. Also, all commanders were concerned about the possible effects the .50 caliber fire of the armored personnel carriers would have when they assaulted. The Battle of Ap Bac was the first significant engagement between tenets of North and South Vietnam. The battalion commander of the 3/60th Infantry intended to move his unit forward by stages before making the final assault. The whole battalion lost about 47 total. Colonel Haszard then alerted the 1st Platoon of B Troop and the 3rd Platoon of C Troop to the north and south of Ap Bau Bang respectively to move to Fire Support Base 20. February 1966: 2nd Bde Activated Fort Riley, KS. After that, the men spent the rest of the week exploring the area, meeting up at Hellers cabin at the end of each day. D. Wheeler, General Earle His Company B still occupied the blocking position to the north, and was relatively fresh. We had great food, great company; it was just wonderful. The paddies were mostly dry and easily supported the weight of an armored personnel carrier. zoneId = 'Array'; adequately report GVN victories which WebThe Battle of Ap Bac was to have been a routine heliborne operation into the rice rich Mekong Delta. Fear, too, played on their frayed nerves. On the south, Company A was exchanging fire with most of the enemy defenders. While these operations were being carried out, the gunship, which has been constantly circling the area, reported a Viet Cong force of company size moving across the fields to the northeast. Explore a glossary of terms, manuals, statistics, historical accounts and reports, maps and articles by MRFA members. [2]:37, At 10:00 U.S. intelligence learned that a battalion size VC force was located east of the ARVN blocking position. [5], At 03:00 another attack began on the southern perimeter. [2]:39 Due to its location east of a town called Ap Bac, the 19 June ambush is sometimes referred to as Second Ap Bac after the disastrous Battle of Ap Bac on 2 January 1963, however that battle took place approximately 40km further west. [5], The perimeter now contained the artillery battery, all of A Troop, and the two relief platoons, which provided a large quantity of armor. Then when the fire lifted to the rear of the enemy, to block his escape positions, the infantry would assault before the enemy could recover. Cn Giuc District in Long An Province was a VC stronghold in the Mekong Delta. Zies was carrying ammunition for Saiz, an assistant machine gunner, and followed him to a clump of palm trees. Considered small-scale action, Ap Bac was fought on January 2, 1963, in the hamlet (ap in Vietnamese) of Bac. However, throughout the area, the small streams could be crossed only at certain points. Cc c vn M v phi cng M cht 3 ngi v b thng 8 ngi. In a short time, all of those forward were dead from multiple bullet wounds, and the platoon was temporarily wrecked as a fighting force. Thirteen men had died in the little pasture and many more had been wounded. document.write ("