Battle of Dong Xoai
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Đồng Xoài was a major battle fought during the Communist Summer Offensive of 1965 as part of the Vietnam War
. The battle took place in Phuoc Long Province
, South Vietnam
, between June 9 and 13, 1965. In 1964, General Nguyen Khanh
gained control of the South Vietnamese government after General Duong Van Minh
was overthrown in a military coup. Even though General Khanh was able to gain control of the military junta, he failed to garner support from the civilian population when he implemented various laws which limited the freedoms of the South Vietnamese people. He then had a falling-out with the Catholic
faction within his own government, when he became increasingly reliant on the Buddhist movement to hold on to power. Consequently on February 20, 1965, General Khanh was ousted from power and was forced to leave South Vietnam forever.
The political instability in Saigon gave North Vietnamese leaders in Hanoi
an impetus to step up their military campaign in the south, because they believed the South Vietnamese government were able to survive because they still had a strong military to combat the growing influence of the Viet Cong. Thus, the result was the summer campaign of 1965, in which North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces aimed to inflict significant losses on the South Vietnamese military. In Phuoc Long Province, South Vietnam, the Communist summer offensive culminated in the Dong Xoai campaign. The fight for Dong Xoai began on the evening of June 9, 1965, when the Viet Cong 272nd Regiment attacked the U.S. Special Forces Camp there. In response to the sudden Viet Cong assault, the Army of the Republic of Vietnam
(ARVN) Joint General Staff ordered the ARVN 1st Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, to retake Dong Xoai district. They arrived on the battlefield on June 10, but were quickly overwhelmed by the Viet Cong 271st Regiment near Thuan Loi. Later that day, Dong Xoai was recaptured by the ARVN 52nd Ranger Battalion, who had survived an ambush whilst marching towards the district.
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 ARVN 1st Battalion in the Thuan Loi rubber plantation, were defeated in a deadly ambush by the Viet Cong. On June 13 U.S. Army General William Westmoreland
decided to insert elements of the 173rd Airborne Brigade into a major battle for the first time, because he feared the Viet Cong could secure a major base area in Phuoc Long Province
. By that stage, however, the Viet Cong had already withdrawn from the battlefield, so the U.S. paratroopers were ordered to return to base without a fight.
ousted General Duong Van Minh
as the leader of South Vietnam’s military junta in a bloodless coup. Even though General Khanh had made considerable efforts to consolidate his power, opposition to his rule began to grow as he tightened censorship laws, banned protests and allowed police arbitrary search and imprisonment powers. Khanh also drafted a new constitution, which would have expanded his power within the military junta. In response to General Khanh’s political manoeuvres the South Vietnamese people, predominately Buddhists, held large demonstrations in the cities calling for an end to the draconian laws which had limited the people’s political freedom. Fearing that his power could be weakened by those demonstrations, General Khanh immediately repealed his constitution and new police powers. Furthermore, he also promised to reinstate civilian rule and remove members of the Catholic-based Can Lao Party
from power.
Internally, the concessions made by General Khanh had the effect of unsettling Catholic
officers such as Nguyen Van Thieu
and Tran Thien Khiem
, because they were concerned by what they perceived to be the handing of power to Buddhist leaders. Subsequently, General Khiem fell out with General Khanh over policy issues along religious lines, even though an alliance between both men had enabled Khanh to remove General Minh from power. As military support for his regime diminished, Nguyen Khanh had to rely upon civilian Buddhist activists to maintain power. For the Americans, Khanh’s 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 Nguyen Khanh, in order to continue the military effort against the Communists. On February 20, 1965, Nguyen Khanh 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, it still had a strong army to resist the Viet Cong. 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. During the early stages of the Communist summer campaign, Viet Cong forces in Quang Ngai Province
successfully destroyed a South Vietnamese task force, led by the ARVN 51st Infantry Regiment, in the village of Ba Gia
. Following their victory at Ba Gia, the Viet Cong turned their 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 Phuoc Long
and Binh Long
. For the first time, the newly created Viet Cong 273rd and 274th Regiments was ordered to join the 271st and 272nd Regiments on the battlefield; their objective was to destroy the regular units of the South Vietnamese military, and eliminate the strategic hamlets to enlarge the so-called 'liberated zones'.
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 Phuoc Long, capital of Phuoc Long Province. Simultaneously, the Viet Cong 272nd Regiment overran South Vietnamese government positions in the sub-sector of Phuoc Binh. During their brief occupation of Phuoc Long district, the Viet Cong destroyed several major strategic hamlets in the surrounding areas, such as Ba Ra, Thuan Kiem, Thuan Loi, Phu Rieng, Da Kia, Bu Dop, Duc Bon and Song Be. In response to the Viet Cong occupation of Phuoc Long district, the ARVN 36th Ranger Battalion was ordered by the ARVN Joint General Staff to recapture government positions there. On May 11, two companies from the battalion sustained heavy casualties in battles with Viet Cong units positioned along Inter-Provincial Road 13 and National Highway 14. On May 12, the Viet Cong 271st Regiment and other support units withdrew from Phuoc Long district.
In Phuoc Binh sub-sector, the Viet Cong 272nd Regiment were able to overrun South Vietnamese government positions within 25 minutes, and they claimed to have killed 115 South Vietnamese soldiers in the process At 9 am on May 11, the ARVN 34th Ranger Battalion was airlifted into Hieu Phong, a small town located about 14 kilometres away from Phuoc Binh in the south-east. As the ARVN 34th Ranger Battalion marched upward towards Phuoc Binh, the Viet Cong 272nd and 273rd Regiment was ordered to destroy the South Vietnamese Rangers. However, by the time the 272nd Regiment arrived at the South Vietnamese staging area, the Rangers had already pulled out and successfully recaptured Phuoc Binh. Meanwhile, on May 15, the Viet Cong 274th Regiment defeated two South Vietnamese Regional Force companies along Route 20, and destroyed 20 vehicles in the process.
After those operations in Phuoc Long district and Phuoc Binh sub-sector, the Viet Cong 9th Division was ordered to attack Dong Xoai. In 1965, Dong Xoai was a district town situation at a road junction which connected Inter-Inter-Provisional Road 13, National Highway 1 and Highway 14. The district was defended by 200 local Vietnamese soldiers drawn from the 327th and 328th Militia Companies, and the 111th Regional Force Company. They were supported by one armoured squadron (6 armoured vehicles) and two 105mm howitzers. There were also 200 Cambodian soldiers of a Civilian Irregular Defense Group
, 11 U.S. Special Forces personnel, and nine U.S. Navy Seabees. Prior to the battle, the U.S Special Forces had assumed control of Dong Xoai’s defences; they stepped up guard and patrol activities, and ordered the construction of new defensive fortifications around the district headquarters, the Special Forces Camp, and the armoured and artillery positions on the eastern side of the district.
, all flight crews of the 118th Aviation Company were on the flightline preparing for combat assault at first light. By that time, however, the Viet Cong had captured the Special Forces compound, and they began massing for an attack on the district headquarters.
While fighting raged inside the district, all flyable aircraft from the 118th Aviation Company flew out from Bien Hoa
to Phuoc Vinh, a small town about 30 kilometres from Dong Xoai. From Phuoc Vinh the first contingent of the ARVN 1st Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, was airlifted into the battlefield. At around 8 am, the UH-1 formations of the 118th Aviation Company descend on the landing zone near the Thuan Loi rubber plantation, about 4 kilometres north of Dong Xoai; they immediately began to receive fire from bunkers and foxholes surrounding the area. The South Vietnamese command believed the landing zone near Thuan Loi would be ideal to land their troops, because it was distant enough that the Viet Cong would not find and engage them immediately. However, the Viet Cong had anticipated the South Vietnamese would land troops in the area, and had prepared for an ambush. As a result, after U.S. helicopters had departed from the landing zone, soldiers of the Viet Cong 271st Regiment immediately turned their attention on the South Vietnamese. Within 15 minutes the main body of the ARVN 1st Battalion was completely destroyed.
At around 11:55 am the last remaining soldiers of the ARVN 1st Battalion were discharged near the original landing zone in Thuan Loi, and they too were put out of action within three minutes of touching down on the field. During the afternoon, the Viet Cong had managed to destroy parts of the district headquarters building using their 57mm recoilless rifle. Second Lieutenant Williams then ordered 14 Americans inside the building, along with an equal number of Vietnamese women and children, to retreat to the artillery position located east of the town where they continued their resistance. Late in the afternoon on June 10, the U.S. 118th Aviation Company was joined by other elements of the 145th Combat Aviation Battalion in their final sorties for the day; airlifting the ARVN 52nd Ranger Battalion from Phuoc Vinh into Dong Xoai, with the objective of recapturing the road junction and the Special Forces Camp. Following their last mission, the 118th Aviation Company immediately returned to Bien Hoa. During the first day of heavy fighting, every helicopter in the unit had sustained damage, including the loss of one helicopter and its entire crew.
At 3:20 pm the ARVN 52nd Ranger Battalion were discharged on a landing zone about 3 kilometres south of Dong Xoai. As the South Vietnamese Rangers marched towards the town centre, their lead company was decimated in an ambush mounted by elements of the Viet Cong 271st Regiment. Undeterred by the strength of the Viet Cong, they continued their march towards the district. On the night of June 10, the battalion began attacking Viet Cong positions around the Special Forces Camp, and they gradually recaptured the compound and much of the town. The Viet Cong eventually launched a counter-attack in an attempt to win back the loss ground, but they failed to dislodge the soldiers of the ARVN 52nd Ranger Battalion. The next morning, on June 11, the 118th Aviation Company was back at full strength in Phuoc Vinh. Like the previous day, they flew air-support and airlifted further reinforcements from the ARVN 7th Airborne Battalion. After the South Vietnamese paratroopers were dropped off on a soccer field, the 118th Aviation Company started large-scale evacuation of South Vietnamese casualties. In contrast to the previous day, the 118th Aviation Company encountered few hostilities, which was characterised by isolated rear guard actions.
Just before the ARVN 7th Airborne Battalion landed on the battlefield, the Viet Cong had intercepted a radio conversation between the aforementioned unit and the 52nd Ranger Battalion in the district centre; several months earlier the 7th Airborne Battalion was involved in the battle at Binh Gia
, so they vowed to avenge the loss of their comrades. Thus, from the soccer field, the ARVN 7th Airborne Battalion marched up to Thuan Loi, against only light opposition. The South Vietnamese paratroopers arrived at the area where the first group of the ARVN 1st Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, was dropped off and they collected seven survivors and 55 bodies. In the afternoon, as elements of the 7th Airborne Battalion moved through the Thuan Loi rubber plantation to search for remnants of the second group of the ARVN 1st Battalion, the Viet Cong 271st Regiment started attacking the South Vietnamese paratroopers in a manner which had characterised earlier ambushes. Taking advantage of the poor weather conditions that had limited U.S. air strikes, as well as their numerical superiority, the Viet Cong broke the South Vietnamese formation into small groups and destroyed many of them. On the next day, the strength of the ARVN 7th Airborne Battalion was reduced from 470 to just 159 soldiers.
After the defeat of the ARVN 7th Airborne Battalion, U.S. General William Westmoreland
concluded that the Viet Cong still had the strength to continue the attacks on Dong Xoai. In contrast, South Vietnamese forces within the vicinity of Dong Xoai were severely depleted, and did not have sufficient strength to defeat the Viet Cong. Furthermore, there was only one remaining battalion in South Vietnam’s strategic reserve, and it may not be enough to drive the Communist out from the area if it was committed. However, General Westmoreland was unwilling to leave the Viet Cong with a position from which they could dominate Phuoc Long Province
. So on June 13, General Westmoreland finally made the decision to insert U.S. combat forces. Subsequently, 738 men of the 1/503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade, was flown out to the staging area in Phuoc Vinh. Elements of the 3rd Battalion, U.S. Army 319th Field Artillery Regiment also followed later in the day. Upon arrival at Phuoc Vinh, the U.S. Army task force waited for five days, but it soon became apparent that the Viet Cong had withdrawn from the area and had no intention of holding territory. On June 18, the 1/503rd Infantry Regiment was ordered to return to base.
Even though the Viet Cong had won a clear victory over the regular units of the South Vietnamese army, they did not get away with light casualties. After the battle, a combined total of 126 Viet Cong bodies were recovered within the Special Forces compound and the district headquarters, and several hundred more were strewn all over the battlefield. Indeed, individual Viet Cong soldiers usually spare no efforts to evacuate their dead or wounded comrades; but as military operations were conducted during the rainy season, the Viet Cong struggled to evacuate all their casualties from the battlefield as conditions on the main roads deteriorated. Despite the minor setbacks, the Dong Xoai campaign marked the rapid maturity of the Viet Cong 9th Division as a fighting force. For their efforts during the battle, the Viet Cong 272nd Regiment received the title of ‘Dong Xoai Regiment’, which served to mark their achievements.
Six days after large-scale fighting in Dong Xoai had concluded there was another change of government in Saigon. South Vietnamese Air Marshal Nguyen Cao Ky
was appointed prime minister
and executive chairman of the government by the military junta, and General Nguyen Van Thieu
became a figurehead president
. Unlike previous leaders, Air-Marshal Ky and General Thieu were more interested in fighting the Communists, and they intended to stop the Buddhist factions from interfering with their decision-making processes. However, due to Air Marshal Ky’s lack of experience in civil government, the Americans were not entirely pleased with the formation of a new government with him as the leader. In contrast, General Thieu’s appointment to the office of president was considered to be a positive development by the American Embassy and military command, because he possessed the political skills required by Saigon’s political establishment. Nonetheless, Nguyen Cao Ky’s ascension to the position of prime minister had effectively ended the cycle of military coups which had plagued Saigon since the downfall of Ngo Dinh Diem
.
In a significant contrast to the political scene in South Vietnam, the North Vietnamese government in Hanoi
were far more occupied with their military effort. The North Vietnamese Transportation Group 559, then under the leadership of Major-General Phan Trong Tue, was ordered to open a new transportation and communication lines through southern Laos
and South Vietnam. The purpose was to facilitate the movement of troops and material through the Pathet Lao
-occupied section of the Ho Chi Minh Trail
. They were supported by 1,500 workers from the Ministry of Transportation and 7,600 volunteers. By the end of 1965, the strength of Group 559 had grown to 24,400 personnel organised in six battalions of motor vehicles, one battalion of boats, 18 battalions of combat engineers, four battalions of anti-aircraft artillery and guard units. In addition to the expansion of their logistical abilities, the North Vietnamese also decided to establish five infantry divisions and one artillery in South Vietnam. Thus, the stage was set for a major military struggle with American and other allied forces.
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
. The battle took place in Phuoc Long Province
Phuoc Long Province
thumb|right|200px|[[Binh Duong Province|Binh Duong]], Phuoc Long and [[Binh Long Province|Binh Long]] in map of South VietnamPhuoc Long is former province of Dong Nam Bo region in South Vietnam...
, South Vietnam
South Vietnam
South Vietnam was a state which governed southern Vietnam until 1975. It received international recognition in 1950 as the "State of Vietnam" and later as the "Republic of Vietnam" . Its capital was Saigon...
, between June 9 and 13, 1965. In 1964, General Nguyen Khanh
Nguyen Khanh
Nguyễn Khánh is a former general in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam who variously served as Head of State and Prime minister of South Vietnam while at the head of a military junta from January 1964 until February 1965. He was involved in or against many coup attempts, failed and successful,...
gained control of the South Vietnamese government after General Duong Van Minh
Duong Van Minh
Minh was born on 16 February 1916 in Mỹ Tho Province in the Mekong Delta, the son of a wealthy landowner who served in a prominent position in the Finance Ministry of the French colonial administration...
was overthrown in a military coup. Even though General Khanh was able to gain control of the military junta, he failed to garner support from the civilian population when he implemented various laws which limited the freedoms of the South Vietnamese people. He then had a falling-out with the Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
faction within his own government, when he became increasingly reliant on the Buddhist movement to hold on to power. Consequently on February 20, 1965, General Khanh was ousted from power and was forced to leave South Vietnam forever.
The political instability in Saigon gave North Vietnamese leaders in Hanoi
Hanoi
Hanoi , is the capital of Vietnam and the country's second largest city. Its population in 2009 was estimated at 2.6 million for urban districts, 6.5 million for the metropolitan jurisdiction. From 1010 until 1802, it was the most important political centre of Vietnam...
an impetus to step up their military campaign in the south, because they believed the South Vietnamese government were able to survive because they still had a strong military to combat the growing influence of the Viet Cong. Thus, the result was the summer campaign of 1965, in which North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces aimed to inflict significant losses on the South Vietnamese military. In Phuoc Long Province, South Vietnam, the Communist summer offensive culminated in the Dong Xoai campaign. The fight for Dong Xoai began on the evening of June 9, 1965, when the Viet Cong 272nd Regiment attacked the U.S. Special Forces Camp there. In response to the sudden Viet Cong assault, the Army of the Republic of Vietnam
Army of the Republic of Vietnam
The Army of the Republic of Viet Nam , sometimes parsimoniously referred to as the South Vietnamese Army , was the land-based military forces of the Republic of Vietnam , which existed from October 26, 1955 until the fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975...
(ARVN) Joint General Staff ordered the ARVN 1st Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, to retake Dong Xoai district. They arrived on the battlefield on June 10, but were quickly overwhelmed by the Viet Cong 271st Regiment near Thuan Loi. Later that day, Dong Xoai was recaptured by the ARVN 52nd Ranger Battalion, who had survived an ambush whilst marching towards the district.
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 ARVN 1st Battalion in the Thuan Loi rubber plantation, were defeated in a deadly ambush by the Viet Cong. On June 13 U.S. Army General William Westmoreland
William Westmoreland
William Childs Westmoreland was a United States Army General, who commanded US military operations in the Vietnam War at its peak , during the Tet Offensive. He adopted a strategy of attrition against the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam and the North Vietnamese Army. He later served as...
decided to insert elements of the 173rd Airborne Brigade into a major battle for the first time, because he feared the Viet Cong could secure a major base area in Phuoc Long Province
Phuoc Long Province
thumb|right|200px|[[Binh Duong Province|Binh Duong]], Phuoc Long and [[Binh Long Province|Binh Long]] in map of South VietnamPhuoc Long is former province of Dong Nam Bo region in South Vietnam...
. By that stage, however, the Viet Cong had already withdrawn from the battlefield, so the U.S. paratroopers were ordered to return to base without a fight.
Background
In January 1964, General Nguyen KhanhNguyen Khanh
Nguyễn Khánh is a former general in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam who variously served as Head of State and Prime minister of South Vietnam while at the head of a military junta from January 1964 until February 1965. He was involved in or against many coup attempts, failed and successful,...
ousted General Duong Van Minh
Duong Van Minh
Minh was born on 16 February 1916 in Mỹ Tho Province in the Mekong Delta, the son of a wealthy landowner who served in a prominent position in the Finance Ministry of the French colonial administration...
as the leader of South Vietnam’s military junta in a bloodless coup. Even though General Khanh had made considerable efforts to consolidate his power, opposition to his rule began to grow as he tightened censorship laws, banned protests and allowed police arbitrary search and imprisonment powers. Khanh also drafted a new constitution, which would have expanded his power within the military junta. In response to General Khanh’s political manoeuvres the South Vietnamese people, predominately Buddhists, held large demonstrations in the cities calling for an end to the draconian laws which had limited the people’s political freedom. Fearing that his power could be weakened by those demonstrations, General Khanh immediately repealed his constitution and new police powers. Furthermore, he also promised to reinstate civilian rule and remove members of the Catholic-based Can Lao Party
Can Lao Party
The Cần lao Nhân vị Cách Mạng Ðảng, or Personalist Labor Revolutionary Party, was a secret party formed to support the Ngô Đình Diệm regime in South Vietnam, and largely operated by his brother, Ngô Đình Nhu...
from power.
Internally, the concessions made by General Khanh had the effect of unsettling Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
officers such as Nguyen Van Thieu
Nguyen Van Thieu
Nguyễn Văn Thiệu was president of South Vietnam from 1965 to 1975. He was a general in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam , became head of a military junta, and then president after winning a fraudulent election...
and Tran Thien Khiem
Tran Thien Khiem
General Trần Thiện Khiêm was an officer in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam during the Vietnam War. During the 1960s he was involved in several coups. He helped President Ngo Dinh Diem put down a November 1960 coup attempt and was rewarded with promotion...
, because they were concerned by what they perceived to be the handing of power to Buddhist leaders. Subsequently, General Khiem fell out with General Khanh over policy issues along religious lines, even though an alliance between both men had enabled Khanh to remove General Minh from power. As military support for his regime diminished, Nguyen Khanh had to rely upon civilian Buddhist activists to maintain power. For the Americans, Khanh’s 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 Nguyen Khanh, in order to continue the military effort against the Communists. On February 20, 1965, Nguyen Khanh 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, it still had a strong army to resist the Viet Cong. So shortly after the Binh Gia campaign
Battle of Binh Gia
The Battle of Bình Gia , which was part of a larger communist campaign, was conducted by the Viet Cong from December 28, 1964, to January 1, 1965, during the Vietnam War in Bình Giã . The battle took place in Phước Tuy Province , South Vietnam.The year of 1964 marked a decisive turning point in the...
, North Vietnamese leaders reached a resolution to launch a summer offensive, to destroy the regular units of the South Vietnamese military. During the early stages of the Communist summer campaign, Viet Cong forces in Quang Ngai Province
Quang Ngai Province
Quảng Ngãi is a province in the South Central Coast region of Vietnam, on the coast of South China Sea. It is located 883 km south of Hanoi and 838 km north of Ho Chi Minh City.-History:...
successfully destroyed a South Vietnamese task force, led by the ARVN 51st Infantry Regiment, in the village of Ba Gia
Battle of Ba Gia
The Battle of Ba Gia was a major battle that marked the beginning of the National Liberation Front's Summer Offensive of 1965, during the early phases of the Vietnam War, which is known in Vietnam as the American War...
. Following their victory at Ba Gia, the Viet Cong turned their attention to the Mekong Delta
Mekong Delta
The Mekong Delta is the region in southwestern Vietnam where the Mekong River approaches and empties into the sea through a network of distributaries. The Mekong delta region encompasses a large portion of southwestern Vietnam of . The size of the area covered by water depends on the season.The...
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 Phuoc Long
Phuoc Long
Phuoc Long may refer to:*Phuoc Long, Bac Lieu, a district in Bac Lieu Province, Vietnam*Phước Long, Bạc Liêu -district seat*Phuoc Long, Binh Phuoc, a district in Binh Phuoc Province in Vietnam...
and Binh Long
Binh Long
Bình Long is a town of Binh Phuoc province in the southeastern region of Vietnam. As of 2003 the district had a population of 25,110. The district covers an area of 756 km². The district capital lies at An Loc....
. For the first time, the newly created Viet Cong 273rd and 274th Regiments was ordered to join the 271st and 272nd Regiments on the battlefield; their objective was to destroy the regular units of the South Vietnamese military, and eliminate the strategic hamlets to enlarge the so-called 'liberated zones'.
Prelude
Since May 1965, the Viet Cong offensive in Phuoc Long ProvincePhuoc Long Province
thumb|right|200px|[[Binh Duong Province|Binh Duong]], Phuoc Long and [[Binh Long Province|Binh Long]] in map of South VietnamPhuoc Long is former province of Dong Nam Bo region in South Vietnam...
had been in full-swing. Beginning on May 10, the Viet Cong 271st Regiment, supported by the 840th Battalion and local sapper
Sapper
A sapper, pioneer or combat engineer is a combatant soldier who performs a wide variety of combat engineering duties, typically including, but not limited to, bridge-building, laying or clearing minefields, demolitions, field defences, general construction and building, as well as road and airfield...
units, attacked the district town of Phuoc Long, capital of Phuoc Long Province. Simultaneously, the Viet Cong 272nd Regiment overran South Vietnamese government positions in the sub-sector of Phuoc Binh. During their brief occupation of Phuoc Long district, the Viet Cong destroyed several major strategic hamlets in the surrounding areas, such as Ba Ra, Thuan Kiem, Thuan Loi, Phu Rieng, Da Kia, Bu Dop, Duc Bon and Song Be. In response to the Viet Cong occupation of Phuoc Long district, the ARVN 36th Ranger Battalion was ordered by the ARVN Joint General Staff to recapture government positions there. On May 11, two companies from the battalion sustained heavy casualties in battles with Viet Cong units positioned along Inter-Provincial Road 13 and National Highway 14. On May 12, the Viet Cong 271st Regiment and other support units withdrew from Phuoc Long district.
In Phuoc Binh sub-sector, the Viet Cong 272nd Regiment were able to overrun South Vietnamese government positions within 25 minutes, and they claimed to have killed 115 South Vietnamese soldiers in the process At 9 am on May 11, the ARVN 34th Ranger Battalion was airlifted into Hieu Phong, a small town located about 14 kilometres away from Phuoc Binh in the south-east. As the ARVN 34th Ranger Battalion marched upward towards Phuoc Binh, the Viet Cong 272nd and 273rd Regiment was ordered to destroy the South Vietnamese Rangers. However, by the time the 272nd Regiment arrived at the South Vietnamese staging area, the Rangers had already pulled out and successfully recaptured Phuoc Binh. Meanwhile, on May 15, the Viet Cong 274th Regiment defeated two South Vietnamese Regional Force companies along Route 20, and destroyed 20 vehicles in the process.
After those operations in Phuoc Long district and Phuoc Binh sub-sector, the Viet Cong 9th Division was ordered to attack Dong Xoai. In 1965, Dong Xoai was a district town situation at a road junction which connected Inter-Inter-Provisional Road 13, National Highway 1 and Highway 14. The district was defended by 200 local Vietnamese soldiers drawn from the 327th and 328th Militia Companies, and the 111th Regional Force Company. They were supported by one armoured squadron (6 armoured vehicles) and two 105mm howitzers. There were also 200 Cambodian soldiers of a Civilian Irregular Defense Group
Civilian Irregular Defense Group
Civilian Irregular Defense Group program was a program developed by the U.S. government in the Vietnam War to develop South Vietnamese irregular military units from minority populations.-Purpose:...
, 11 U.S. Special Forces personnel, and nine U.S. Navy Seabees. Prior to the battle, the U.S Special Forces had assumed control of Dong Xoai’s defences; they stepped up guard and patrol activities, and ordered the construction of new defensive fortifications around the district headquarters, the Special Forces Camp, and the armoured and artillery positions on the eastern side of the district.
Battle
On the evening of June 9, 1965, the Viet Cong made final preparations for their assault on Dong Xoai. While the Viet Cong assembled their formations, U.S.-led forces inside the Special Forces Camp were suddenly placed on alert, forcing the Viet Cong to commence their attack 70 minutes earlier than scheduled. At 11:30 pm Viet Cong heavy mortar rounds began to fall on South Vietnamese and American positions around Dong Xoai, soon followed by an infantry assault led by the 272nd Regiment. During the initial assault, the Viet Cong sustained heavy casualties as they tried to navigate through the surrounding minefields and barb wire fences, which they had failed to pick up during previous reconnaissance missions. At about 1:30 am, two helicopter gunships from the U.S. Army 118th Aviation Company were dispatched to support the Special Forces Camp, they fired on Viet Congs around the compound, and returned to base only after their weapons load was emptied. At around 2:30 am, the Americans and a few of the Cambodian soldiers retreated to the district headquarters, where other local troops were holding out. Meanwhile, at Bien Hoa Air BaseBien Hoa Air Base
Bien Hoa Air Base is a Vietnam People's Air Force military airfield located in South-Central southern Vietnam about 20 miles from Saigon near the city of Bien Hoa within Dong Nai Province....
, all flight crews of the 118th Aviation Company were on the flightline preparing for combat assault at first light. By that time, however, the Viet Cong had captured the Special Forces compound, and they began massing for an attack on the district headquarters.
While fighting raged inside the district, all flyable aircraft from the 118th Aviation Company flew out from Bien Hoa
Bien Hoa
Biên Hòa is a city in Dong Nai province, Vietnam, about east of Ho Chi Minh City , to which Bien Hoa is linked by Vietnam Highway 1.- Demographics :In 1989 the estimated population was over 300,000. In 2005, the population wss 541,495...
to Phuoc Vinh, a small town about 30 kilometres from Dong Xoai. From Phuoc Vinh the first contingent of the ARVN 1st Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, was airlifted into the battlefield. At around 8 am, the UH-1 formations of the 118th Aviation Company descend on the landing zone near the Thuan Loi rubber plantation, about 4 kilometres north of Dong Xoai; they immediately began to receive fire from bunkers and foxholes surrounding the area. The South Vietnamese command believed the landing zone near Thuan Loi would be ideal to land their troops, because it was distant enough that the Viet Cong would not find and engage them immediately. However, the Viet Cong had anticipated the South Vietnamese would land troops in the area, and had prepared for an ambush. As a result, after U.S. helicopters had departed from the landing zone, soldiers of the Viet Cong 271st Regiment immediately turned their attention on the South Vietnamese. Within 15 minutes the main body of the ARVN 1st Battalion was completely destroyed.
At around 11:55 am the last remaining soldiers of the ARVN 1st Battalion were discharged near the original landing zone in Thuan Loi, and they too were put out of action within three minutes of touching down on the field. During the afternoon, the Viet Cong had managed to destroy parts of the district headquarters building using their 57mm recoilless rifle. Second Lieutenant Williams then ordered 14 Americans inside the building, along with an equal number of Vietnamese women and children, to retreat to the artillery position located east of the town where they continued their resistance. Late in the afternoon on June 10, the U.S. 118th Aviation Company was joined by other elements of the 145th Combat Aviation Battalion in their final sorties for the day; airlifting the ARVN 52nd Ranger Battalion from Phuoc Vinh into Dong Xoai, with the objective of recapturing the road junction and the Special Forces Camp. Following their last mission, the 118th Aviation Company immediately returned to Bien Hoa. During the first day of heavy fighting, every helicopter in the unit had sustained damage, including the loss of one helicopter and its entire crew.
At 3:20 pm the ARVN 52nd Ranger Battalion were discharged on a landing zone about 3 kilometres south of Dong Xoai. As the South Vietnamese Rangers marched towards the town centre, their lead company was decimated in an ambush mounted by elements of the Viet Cong 271st Regiment. Undeterred by the strength of the Viet Cong, they continued their march towards the district. On the night of June 10, the battalion began attacking Viet Cong positions around the Special Forces Camp, and they gradually recaptured the compound and much of the town. The Viet Cong eventually launched a counter-attack in an attempt to win back the loss ground, but they failed to dislodge the soldiers of the ARVN 52nd Ranger Battalion. The next morning, on June 11, the 118th Aviation Company was back at full strength in Phuoc Vinh. Like the previous day, they flew air-support and airlifted further reinforcements from the ARVN 7th Airborne Battalion. After the South Vietnamese paratroopers were dropped off on a soccer field, the 118th Aviation Company started large-scale evacuation of South Vietnamese casualties. In contrast to the previous day, the 118th Aviation Company encountered few hostilities, which was characterised by isolated rear guard actions.
Just before the ARVN 7th Airborne Battalion landed on the battlefield, the Viet Cong had intercepted a radio conversation between the aforementioned unit and the 52nd Ranger Battalion in the district centre; several months earlier the 7th Airborne Battalion was involved in the battle at Binh Gia
Battle of Binh Gia
The Battle of Bình Gia , which was part of a larger communist campaign, was conducted by the Viet Cong from December 28, 1964, to January 1, 1965, during the Vietnam War in Bình Giã . The battle took place in Phước Tuy Province , South Vietnam.The year of 1964 marked a decisive turning point in the...
, so they vowed to avenge the loss of their comrades. Thus, from the soccer field, the ARVN 7th Airborne Battalion marched up to Thuan Loi, against only light opposition. The South Vietnamese paratroopers arrived at the area where the first group of the ARVN 1st Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, was dropped off and they collected seven survivors and 55 bodies. In the afternoon, as elements of the 7th Airborne Battalion moved through the Thuan Loi rubber plantation to search for remnants of the second group of the ARVN 1st Battalion, the Viet Cong 271st Regiment started attacking the South Vietnamese paratroopers in a manner which had characterised earlier ambushes. Taking advantage of the poor weather conditions that had limited U.S. air strikes, as well as their numerical superiority, the Viet Cong broke the South Vietnamese formation into small groups and destroyed many of them. On the next day, the strength of the ARVN 7th Airborne Battalion was reduced from 470 to just 159 soldiers.
After the defeat of the ARVN 7th Airborne Battalion, U.S. General William Westmoreland
William Westmoreland
William Childs Westmoreland was a United States Army General, who commanded US military operations in the Vietnam War at its peak , during the Tet Offensive. He adopted a strategy of attrition against the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam and the North Vietnamese Army. He later served as...
concluded that the Viet Cong still had the strength to continue the attacks on Dong Xoai. In contrast, South Vietnamese forces within the vicinity of Dong Xoai were severely depleted, and did not have sufficient strength to defeat the Viet Cong. Furthermore, there was only one remaining battalion in South Vietnam’s strategic reserve, and it may not be enough to drive the Communist out from the area if it was committed. However, General Westmoreland was unwilling to leave the Viet Cong with a position from which they could dominate Phuoc Long Province
Phuoc Long Province
thumb|right|200px|[[Binh Duong Province|Binh Duong]], Phuoc Long and [[Binh Long Province|Binh Long]] in map of South VietnamPhuoc Long is former province of Dong Nam Bo region in South Vietnam...
. So on June 13, General Westmoreland finally made the decision to insert U.S. combat forces. Subsequently, 738 men of the 1/503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade, was flown out to the staging area in Phuoc Vinh. Elements of the 3rd Battalion, U.S. Army 319th Field Artillery Regiment also followed later in the day. Upon arrival at Phuoc Vinh, the U.S. Army task force waited for five days, but it soon became apparent that the Viet Cong had withdrawn from the area and had no intention of holding territory. On June 18, the 1/503rd Infantry Regiment was ordered to return to base.
Aftermath
In this battle both sides of the conflict had paid a heavy price to achieve their objectives. In their efforts to recapture the district town of Dong Xoai, the South Vietnamese military lost 416 soldiers killed in action, 174 wounded and 233 missing. In addition, over one hundred South Vietnamese civilians were believed to have been massacred by the Viet Cong during their brief occupation of the area. Total casualties sustained by U.S. military personnel included 20 soldiers killed or wounded, and 13 missing. According to Vietnam’s official account of the Dong Xoai campaign, the Communists claimed to have put 4,459 enemy soldiers (including 73 Americans) out of action. Furthermore, 1,652 weapons of various kinds were captured, 390 weapons and 60 vehicles were destroyed, 34 aircraft and 3 helicopters were shot down.Even though the Viet Cong had won a clear victory over the regular units of the South Vietnamese army, they did not get away with light casualties. After the battle, a combined total of 126 Viet Cong bodies were recovered within the Special Forces compound and the district headquarters, and several hundred more were strewn all over the battlefield. Indeed, individual Viet Cong soldiers usually spare no efforts to evacuate their dead or wounded comrades; but as military operations were conducted during the rainy season, the Viet Cong struggled to evacuate all their casualties from the battlefield as conditions on the main roads deteriorated. Despite the minor setbacks, the Dong Xoai campaign marked the rapid maturity of the Viet Cong 9th Division as a fighting force. For their efforts during the battle, the Viet Cong 272nd Regiment received the title of ‘Dong Xoai Regiment’, which served to mark their achievements.
Six days after large-scale fighting in Dong Xoai had concluded there was another change of government in Saigon. South Vietnamese Air Marshal Nguyen Cao Ky
Nguyen Cao Ky
Nguyễn Cao Kỳ served as the chief of the Vietnam Air Force in the 1960s, before leading the nation as the prime minister of South Vietnam in a military junta from 1965 to 1967...
was appointed prime minister
Prime minister
A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
and executive chairman of the government by the military junta, and General Nguyen Van Thieu
Nguyen Van Thieu
Nguyễn Văn Thiệu was president of South Vietnam from 1965 to 1975. He was a general in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam , became head of a military junta, and then president after winning a fraudulent election...
became a figurehead president
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
. Unlike previous leaders, Air-Marshal Ky and General Thieu were more interested in fighting the Communists, and they intended to stop the Buddhist factions from interfering with their decision-making processes. However, due to Air Marshal Ky’s lack of experience in civil government, the Americans were not entirely pleased with the formation of a new government with him as the leader. In contrast, General Thieu’s appointment to the office of president was considered to be a positive development by the American Embassy and military command, because he possessed the political skills required by Saigon’s political establishment. Nonetheless, Nguyen Cao Ky’s ascension to the position of prime minister had effectively ended the cycle of military coups which had plagued Saigon since the downfall of Ngo Dinh Diem
Ngo Dinh Diem
Ngô Đình Diệm was the first president of South Vietnam . In the wake of the French withdrawal from Indochina as a result of the 1954 Geneva Accords, Diệm led the effort to create the Republic of Vietnam. Accruing considerable U.S. support due to his staunch anti-Communism, he achieved victory in a...
.
In a significant contrast to the political scene in South Vietnam, the North Vietnamese government in Hanoi
Hanoi
Hanoi , is the capital of Vietnam and the country's second largest city. Its population in 2009 was estimated at 2.6 million for urban districts, 6.5 million for the metropolitan jurisdiction. From 1010 until 1802, it was the most important political centre of Vietnam...
were far more occupied with their military effort. The North Vietnamese Transportation Group 559, then under the leadership of Major-General Phan Trong Tue, was ordered to open a new transportation and communication lines through southern Laos
Laos
Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
and South Vietnam. The purpose was to facilitate the movement of troops and material through the Pathet Lao
Pathet Lao
The Pathet Lao was a communist political movement and organization in Laos, formed in the mid-20th century. The group was ultimately successful in assuming political power after the Laotian Civil War. The Pathet Lao were always closely associated with Vietnamese communists...
-occupied section of the Ho Chi Minh Trail
Ho Chi Minh trail
The Ho Chi Minh trail was a logistical system that ran from the Democratic Republic of Vietnam to the Republic of Vietnam through the neighboring kingdoms of Laos and Cambodia...
. They were supported by 1,500 workers from the Ministry of Transportation and 7,600 volunteers. By the end of 1965, the strength of Group 559 had grown to 24,400 personnel organised in six battalions of motor vehicles, one battalion of boats, 18 battalions of combat engineers, four battalions of anti-aircraft artillery and guard units. In addition to the expansion of their logistical abilities, the North Vietnamese also decided to establish five infantry divisions and one artillery in South Vietnam. Thus, the stage was set for a major military struggle with American and other allied forces.