Twenty-five USAF personnel who were killed are also not included. Dien Bien Phu would loom large for the rest of the war, especially during the Battle of Khe Sanh. 129131. Due to severe losses, however, the NVA abandoned its plan for a massive ground attack. Army Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Ladd (commander, 5th Special Forces Group), who had just flown in from Khe Sanh, was reportedly, "astounded that the Marines, who prided themselves on leaving no man behind, were willing to write off all of the Green Berets and simply ignore the fall of Lang Vei. Consequently, and unknown at the time, Operation Scotland became the starting point of the Battle of Khe Sanh in terms of Marine casualty reporting. The Battle of Khe Sanh took place between January 21 and July 9, 1968; however, most of the official statistics provided pertain only to Operation Scotland, which ended on March 31, or to the 77-day period beginning what is classified as the Siege of Khe Sanh, where the 26th Marines were pinned down until Operations Niagara, and Pegasus freed [145], Author Peter Brush details that an "additional 413 Marines were killed during Scotland II through the end of June 1968". Even so, Westmoreland insisted for it not only to be occupied by the Marines but also for it to be reinforced. 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. They were not included in the official Khe Sanh counts. [75], Niagara I was completed during the third week of January, and the next phase, Niagara II, was launched on the 21st,[76] the day of the first PAVN artillery barrage. Early in the war US forces had established a garrison at Khe Sanh in Quang Tri province, in the . [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. Historians have observed that the Battle of Khe Sanh may have distracted American and South Vietnamese attention from the buildup of Viet Cong (VC) forces in the south before the early 1968 Tet Offensive. On the morning of 22 January Lownds decided to evacuate the remaining forces in the village with most of the Americans evacuated by helicopter while two advisers led the surviving local forces overland to the combat base. At least 852 PAVN soldiers were killed during the action, as opposed to 50 American and South Vietnamese. Thirty-three ARVN troops were also killed and 187 were wounded. [109], The resupply of the numerous, isolated hill outposts was fraught with the same difficulties and dangers. [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. The Marines found a solution to the problem in the "Super Gaggle" concept. Lownds feared that PAVN infiltrators were mixed up in the crowd of more than 6,000, and lacked sufficient resources to sustain them. January 30 marked the first day of the Vietnamese lunar new year celebration, called Tet. Reinforcements from the ARVN 256th Regional Force (RF) company were dispatched aboard nine UH-1 helicopters of the 282nd Assault Helicopter Company, but they were landed near the abandoned French fort/former FOB-3 which was occupied by the PAVN who killed many of the RF troops and 4 Americans, including Lieutenant colonel Joseph Seymoe the deputy adviser for Quang Tri Province and forcing the remaining helicopters to abandon the mission. The site was first established near the village and later moved to the French fort. [70] The Marines and ARVN dug in and hoped that the approaching Tt truce (scheduled for 2931 January) would provide some respite. [173][174], After the ARVN defeat in Laos, the newly-reopened KSCB came under attack by PAVN sappers and artillery and the base was abandoned once again on 6 April 1971.[175][176]. Those 10 deaths were also left out of the official statistics. Stubbe examined the command chronologies of the 1st and 2nd battalions, 26th Marines, plus the after-action reports of the 3rd Battalion, 26th Marines; 1st Battalion, 9th Marines; 1st Battalion, 13th Marines; and more than one dozen other units, all present at Khe Sanh under 26th Marine operational control. today! [26] From there, reconnaissance teams were launched into Laos to explore and gather intelligence on the PAVN logistical system known as the Ho Chi Minh Trail, also known as "Truong Son Strategic Supply Route" to the North Vietnamese soldiers. The most controversial statistic in Vietnam was the number of killed in action (KIA) claimed by each side. . That was superseded by the smaller contingency plans. That action prematurely triggered a PAVN offensive aimed at taking Khe Sanh. [137] Opposition from the North Vietnamese was light and the primary problem that hampered the advance was continual heavy morning cloud cover that slowed the pace of helicopter operations. As a result of this intelligence, KSCB was reinforced on 22 January 1968 by the 1st Battalion, 9th Marine Regiment. Marines stayed in the area, conducting operations to recover the bodies of Marines killed previously. The opportunity to engage and destroy a formerly elusive enemy that was moving toward a fixed position promised a victory of unprecedented proportions. [70] Regardless, the SOG reconnaissance teams kept patrolling, providing the only human intelligence available in the battle area. [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. For seven weeks, American aircraft dropped from 35,000 to 40,000 tons of bombs in nearly 4,000 airstrikes. The PAVN, however, were not through with the ARVN troops. The Twenty-fifth United States Infantry Regiment was one of the racially segregated units of the United States Army known as Buffalo Soldiers.The 25th served from 1866 to 1957, seeing action in the American Indian Wars, Spanish-American War, Philippine-American War and World War II. Five Marines were killed on January 19 and 20, while on reconnaissance patrols. On June 28, a Communist spokesman claimed the Americans had been forced to retreat and that Khe Sanh was the gravest tactical and strategic defeat for the U.S. in the war. 3% were Asian, 7 or . While climbing, the C-123 was struck by several bursts of heavy machine gun and recoilless rifle fire. 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. [63] Hills 881 South, 861, and the main base itself would be simultaneously attacked that same evening. All of the attacks were conducted by regimental-size PAVN/VC units, but unlike most of the previous usual hit-and-run tactics, they were sustained and bloody affairs. [147] The official closure of the base came on 5 July after fighting, which had killed five more Marines. 1st Marine Aircraft Wing records claim that the unit delivered 4,661 tons of cargo into KSCB. Its main objectives were to inflict casualties on US troops and to isolate them in the remote border regions. "[155], According to military historian Ronald Spector, to reasonably record the fighting at Khe Sanh as an American victory is impossible. Making the prospect even more enticing was that the base was in an unpopulated area in which American firepower could be fully employed without civilian casualties. 216217. According to the official Marine Corps history of the battle, total fatalities for Operation Scotland were 205 friendly KIA. The Marines recorded an actual body count of 1,602 NVA killed but estimated the total NVA dead at between 10,000 and 15,000. The official assessment of the North Vietnamese Army dead is just over 1,600 killed, with two . History is a guide to navigation in perilous times. 535 Results : page 1 of 54. [34] The heaviest action took place near Dak To, in the Central Highlands province of Kon Tum. [21], PAVN artillery fell on the main base for the first time on 21 January. TBKQS / Trung tm TBKQS - BQP - H Ni: QND, 2004. Taking place between March and July 1970, the Battle of Fire. Five more attacks against their sector were launched during March. A closer look at the Khe Sanh body count, however, reveals anything but a straightforward matter of numbers. "[149], While KSCB was abandoned, the Marines continued to patrol the Khe Sanh plateau, including reoccupying the area with ARVN forces from 519 October 1968 with minimal opposition. It was a bad beginning to a long 77-day siege. New material will be added to that page through the end of 2018. Its mission was to destroy the Special Forces and their Vietnamese allies and to ambush any reinforcements coming from Khe Sanh. Many of the artillery and mortar rounds stored in the dump were thrown into the air and detonated on impact within the base. "[52], Brigadier General Lowell English (assistant commander 3rd Marine Division) complained that the defense of the isolated outpost was ludicrous: "When you're at Khe Sanh, you're not really anywhere. 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. Due to the nature of these activities, and the threat that they posed to KSCB, Westmoreland ordered Operation Niagara I, an intense intelligence collection effort on PAVN activities in the vicinity of the Khe Sanh Valley. Since late in 1967, Khe Sanh had depended on airlift for its survival. . Westmoreland had been forwarding operational plans for an invasion of Laos since 1966. 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. That was accomplished, but the casualties absorbed by the North Vietnamese seemed to negate any direct gains they might have obtained. The new anchor base was established at Ca Lu, a few miles down Route 9 to the east. Site will be misbehaving during our migration to new (better!) 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. From the Hu site the communication signal was sent to Danang headquarters where it could be sent anywhere in the world. 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. [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. The adoption of this concept at the end of February was the turning point in the resupply effort. The strike wounded two more Strike Force soldiers and damaged two bunkers. [35], American intelligence analysts were quite baffled by the series of enemy actions. [77] When weather conditions precluded FAC-directed strikes, the bombers were directed to their targets by either a Marine AN/TPQ-10 radar installation at KSCB or by Air Force Combat Skyspot MSQ-77 stations. If firepower determined the outcome of the fight, it was airlift that allowed the defenders to hold their positions. The official North Vietnamese history claimed that 400 South Vietnamese troops had been killed and 253 captured. This, however, did not prevent the Marine tanks within the perimeter from training their guns on the SOG camp. [36], Things remained quiet in the Khe Sanh area through 1966. North Vietnamese Army gained control of the Khe Sanh region after the American withdrawal. American commanders considered the defense of Khe Sanh a success, but shortly after the siege was lifted, the decision was made to dismantle the base rather than risk similar battles in the future. Over 100,000 tons of bombs were dropped by US aircraft and over 158,000 artillery rounds were fired in defense of the base. Setting out from Ca Lu, 10 miles east of Khe Sanh, Pegasus opened the highway, linked up with the Marines at Khe Sanh, and engaged NVA in the surrounding area. What is the 25th Infantry known for? The PAVN forces were in the process of gaining elevated terrain before it launched the main attack. A Look at the Damage from the Secret War in Laos, How Operation Homecoming Was Sprung into Action to Repatriate American POWs, The Viet Cong Were Shooting Down Americans From a Cave Until This GI Stopped Them, https://www.historynet.com/recounting-the-casualties-at-the-deadly-battle-of-khe-sanh/, Jerrie Mock: Record-Breaking American Female Pilot, When 21 Sikh Soldiers Fought the Odds Against 10,000 Pashtun Warriors, Few Red Tails Remain: Tuskegee Airman Dies at 96. [81] The sensors were implanted by a special naval squadron, Observation Squadron Sixty-Seven (VO-67). It was the only time Americans abandoned a major combat base because of enemy pressure. [59], During the rainy night of 2 January 1968, six men dressed in black uniforms were seen outside the defensive wire of the main base by members of a listening post. A smaller slice of the action saw Americans on the receiving end, defending some firebase or outpost. 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. [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. On the following night, a massive wave of PAVN/VC attacks swept throughout South Vietnam, everywhere except Khe Sanh. The withdrawal of the last Marines under the cover of darkness was hampered by the shelling of a bridge along Route 9, which had to be repaired before the withdrawal could be completed. [93], The situation changed radically during the early morning hours of 7 February. [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. 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). On July 11, the Marines finally left Khe Sanh. 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 U.S. Marines and their allies killed thousands of NVA, but to solve the riddle of Khe Sanh, you have to recount the numbers. [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. Both sides suffered major casualties with both claiming victory of their own. Two days later, US troops detected PAVN trenches running due north to within 25 m of the base perimeter. [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]. I suspect he is also trying to draw everyone's attention away from the greatest area of threat, the northern part of I Corps. Westmoreland planned on Khe Sanh being relieved and then used as the jump-off point for a "hot pursuit" of enemy forces into Laos. The Battle of Khe Sanh (21 January 9 July 1968) was conducted in the Khe Sanh area of northwestern Qung Tr Province, Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam), during the Vietnam War. Cushman was appalled by the "implication of a rescue or breaking of the siege by outside forces. After failing to respond to a challenge, they were fired upon and five were killed outright while the sixth, although wounded, escaped. [110], As more infantry units had been assigned to defend KSCB, artillery reinforcement kept pace. [139] The 11th Engineers proclaimed Route 9 open to traffic on 11 April. By the middle of January 1968, some 6,000 Marines and Army troops occupied the Khe Sanh Combat Base and its surrounding positions. [69] The Marine Direct Air Support Center (DASC), located at KSCB, was responsible for the coordination of air strikes with artillery fire. The relief of Khe Sanh, called Operation Pegasus, began . "[24] In November 1964, the Special Forces moved their camp to the Xom Cham Plateau, the future site of Khe Sanh Combat Base. During the darkness of January 20-21, the NVA launched a series of coordinated attacks against American positions. Military History Institute of Vietnam, pp. The fire of PAVN antiaircraft units took its toll of helicopters that made the attempt. The low figure often cited for US casualties (205 killed in action, 443 wounded, 2 missing) does not take into account U.S. Army or Air Force casualties or those incurred during Operation Pegasus. By comparison, according to another Army general, a 10:1 ratio was considered average and 25:1 was considered very good. Just days before, as the Army of the . [21], The fighting at Khe Sanh was so volatile that the Joint Chiefs and MACV commanders were uncertain that the base could be held by the Marines. 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. The PAVN would try to take Khe Sanh, but if could not, it would occupy the attention of as many American and South Vietnamese forces in I Corps as it could, which would facilitate the Tet Offensive. "[28], As far as Westmoreland was concerned, however, all that he needed to know was that the PAVN had massed large numbers of troops for a set-piece battle. And it had accomplished its purpose magnificently. Several rounds also landed on Hill 881. Throughout the campaign, US forces used the latest technology to locate PAVN forces for targeting. On April 20, Operation Prairie IV began, with heavy fighting between the Marines and NVA forces. The most comprehensive and authoritative history site on the Internet. The PAVN claimed that Khe Sanh was "a stinging defeat from both the military and political points of view." On 22 March, over 1,000 North Vietnamese rounds fell on the base, and once again, the ammunition dump was detonated. Minor attacks continued before the base was officially closed on 5 July. [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.