18 June 1967: Relocate to SOIRAP/VAMCO, Commence Operation CONCORDIA. Neil Then a helicopter came in to pick up the wounded; the second helicopter came in and was shot down.. The gunship immediately attacked this group, killing an estimated 40. Darkness finally came to the rice paddies of Dien Thoung Province in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam, but it came slowly. The letter was translated into Vietnamese, and leaflets were dropped into the communist area. After discussing the pros and cons with the commander of the 3rd Battalion, 60th Infantry, the brigade commander decided to continue the operation, even though the loss of the blocking force did not augur well for success. Learn about the battle, including the cause, the tactics and its impact on the Vietnam War in this lesson. 23 August 4 September 1967: Operations in CAN GIOUC District and GO CONG Province. Vietnamese forces, and concluded: It also hurts here when irresponsible 2 May 1967: Battle of Ap Bac, not riverine, but most significant battle fought to date by 2nd Brigade. characterized them largely as errors of courage rather than cowardice. By 20:00 darkness and enemy fire stopped the assault with Companies B and C, 3/47th Infantry, still some 600 meters west of the ambush site. 0000001118 00000 n
But experience had shown that at best this was an educated guess, one that all too often had proved false. What followed was a classic, coordinated assault such as can be seen only on a movie screen or at a demonstration at Fort Benning, but seldom in live combat. The Viet Cong started their attack ten minutes later, and they were met with artillery fire, cluster bomb units, napalm and 500 pound bombs. Its what happens, unfortunately, Heller said. Losses in the 3/47th were more severe. A relatively small engagement that had major media, political, and policy implications, the Battle of Ap Bac took place between Viet Cong (VC) and Army of the Republic of Viet Nam (ARVN) forces on January 2, 1963. [7] Three American advisers were killed in the 0
They captured a youth riding a water buffalo who admitted that he belonged to the Viet Congs 514th Battalion (a provincial main force unit of excellent reputation), and had been sent to observe the Americans approaching from the west. Afterwards, American advisers were to say that the Viet Cong soldiers at Bac and Tan Thoi were the most determined Communist fighters they had encountered in more than one year. 1 June 1967: MRB arrives at Dong Tam. Many of their large haystacks concealed bunkers. At 23:10, Captain Alcala reported that firing had ended and that infrared equipment was being used to detect the communists. General Earle G. Wheeler to lead Moving into the perimeter, the platoon took up positions between A Troop's vehicles on the western half of the defensive ring. Because of its earlier start and lack of contact, this battalion was already north of the general line of contact, although some three kilometers to the west. However, for the Tigers of the 3rd Battalion, 47th Infantry, and especially for Company A of that unit, what had started out as a routine walk in the sun was rapidly becoming a grim one. Considered small-scale action, Ap Bac was fought on January 2, 1963, in the hamlet (ap in Vietnamese) of Bac. Department, Buildings of the Palm Beach, January 7; ibid.) It could prevent disaster, if necessary, but its chances of successfully attacking south along the stream were slim, since semi-darkness was already covering the area. 2. thus this was not a real and valid test test of operating radius. That was a rarity in the Vietnam era much rarer than people ever realize, Persson said. He gave Alcala permission to recall his 2nd Platoon from the ambush site to the perimeter. 0000000939 00000 n
}else{ [5], At 03:00 another attack began on the southern perimeter. In the first 10 minutes, 95 percent of them were killed. Of the men who participated in this assault, most had been in the Army hardly a year. Information, United States Department of The surviving members of First Platoon Bravo Company gathered, as they have the last several years, at Hellers cabin in the Willwood area to commemorate their service and remember that day. Cc c vn M v phi cng M cht 3 ngi v b thng 8 ngi. adequately report GVN victories which Nearly every member of Hellers platoon was wounded in the battle, including Heller himself. We knew they were there. This placed the battalion in a perfect position to attack the flank of the enemy which was engaging the 3/47th. Series, Other 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. After fighting its way through the houses along the stream, it arrived at a position just short of the enemys main defense line. Later a switch was made and the aircraft attack runs were made from east to west on the south and southwest sides of the perimeter. in misleading colors: It appears that the initial press reports have 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. 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. Three VC were killed and the others fled to the south. At the direction of Alcala, the platoon swept 1.5km south of the defenders along the rubber tree line. The probe was spearheaded by a herd of fifteen belled cattle being driven across Route 13 at a point 150 meters northeast of the perimeter. On 20 June 4/47th Infantry searched south of the ambush area locating a VC force north of the Rach Gion Ong stream at Ap Nam and assisted by a Company from the 2nd Battalion, 60th Infantry, wiped out a VC Platoon. Join us for our 2017 reunion by making a reservation today! In half an hour they had advanced to within 100 meters of the main enemy line, but were held up by intense fire from small arms and mortars. The attacking force was stopped within 15m of the perimeter. D. Gilpatric, Roswell After dinner, each guy stood up and said a few words; it was a memorable experience, Heller said. After knocking past a hastily built communist ambush just north of the perimeter, they moved around to the south. xb```b``Id`a` ed@ Ardf} g!;BCAuK@Fc@``|@A\K/z/upD. The Americans reported their battle losses at 3 killed and 63 wounded. Each infantry Battalion operates one week in RSSZ and trains one week at VAN KEP Training Center at BARIA in PHOUC TUY Province. 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 . 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. As the second group, under the platoon sergeant, began moving down the dike, the lead man, a squad leader, was killed by fire form a foxhole along the dike. On the north and south was a line of dense coconut trees and undergrowth. For the Wild Ones of the 3rd Battalion, 60th Infantry, and the attached troops, the action had confirmed what they believed all along: that given the opportunity, they could whip anybody. For text [4], At 00:30, 20 March 1967, the Viet Cong resumed their attack, hitting Fire Support Base 20 with mortar rounds, rifle grenades, rockets, and recoilless rifle fire. 11-12 June 1967: Relocate to NHA Be. Who was the American commander at Ap Bac? But one officer, John Paul Vann, saw darker omens for the futureand in the Battle of Ap Bac, the Viet Cong proved him correct. Due to a misunderstanding, the artillery battalion commander refused to relinquish control of his batteries to the forward observers on the ground. [5] Later Wolfe's track was directly hit for a second time by an RPG-2 rocket. Alcala sent his 2nd Platoon commanded by First Lieutenant Harlan E. Short to establish an ambush along the trail at a point 1.5km north of the fire support base and approximately 350 meters west of Route 13. Explore points of interest in the US Army section; awards, citations, index, roster and select information related to the mobile riverine force! While they crawled, they replenished their dwindling ammunition supply from the fallen. d. 7th ARVN took all area North of route 4. [6] fighting and five helicopters were shot down. At one point, the VC sought to overcome the advantage of US mechanization by swarming over the actual vehicles. 0000004946 00000 n
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Dinh Tuong province, 35 miles southwest of Saigon in the Mekong Delta. zoneId = 'Array'; The company commander reported that his unit was in a state of chaos and he was extremely pessimistic about its ability to attack. [1]:106, On the morning of 19 June 3 Companies of the 4/47th Infantry were landed 4km southeast of Cn Giuc, 2 Companies of the 3/47th Infantry were landed 1.6km south of Cn Giuc while the ARVN 2/46th Infantry was landed near Ap Bac. However, if the core of these units, who are irreplaceable, can be captured or killed, the efficiency of these units must begin to wane. Saigon, January 7; Department of State, Central Files, 951K.6211/1-763) One enemy soldier was beaten to death by a soldier who used his steel helmet, and another was stabbed to death, thus indicating the ferocity of the assault. The positions were located by radar from Lai Khe, although one officer thought that airborne artillery observers seeing the flashes were more effective. preparation, motivation, and [Page 2] This article incorporatespublic domain material from websites or documents of the United States Army Center of Military History. The last battle for which two living service members received the Medal of Honor was the 1967 Battle of Ap Bac in Vietnam, a spokeswoman for the Congressional Now the brigade commander faced a serious problem. Explore historical photos, gripping stories, poetry and song submitted by MRFA members. 0000008029 00000 n
document.write ("'><\/scr"+"ipt>"); Originally, our 2nd Brigade, 9th Infantry Division, had been promised two helicopter companies for the operation; however, late on the day before the operation began, one of these was withdrawn. 0000005303 00000 n
Of the 63 wounded, 26 were evacuated. Thus, the battle ended. Explore our Navy section: awards, stories, points of interest, origin of navy terminology and much, much more! 7th ARVN Division, on own initiative, started on 26 July the most ambitious campaign for years. of the Wheeler report, submitted of the Secretaries of State, Travels of Become a member of MRFA! Wiki User. If you already have a web account, but need to reset it, you can do so by clicking here. %PDF-1.4
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A full archive of past and present "River Currents" newsletters from your friends at MRFA. An abandoned railway ran parallel to and thirty meters east of the highway. There was no way to avoid some of this fire falling into positions held by elements of the 3/47th and even as far back as the fire support base. The command track, and its communications equipment, was safely pulled into the perimeter without losses to the communists. 3. Shortly after it moved into position, a six-man Viet Cong force was engaged. [5], The elements of B and C Troops move in from afar to assist their colleagues. They crossed to the southern half of the perimeter under the heaviest communist attack. The 261st Battalion was among the best Viet Cong units in the country, a fact attributable to its fine leadership. at the White House to General Godfrey T. McHugh with the President at Explore a glossary of terms, manuals, statistics, historical accounts and reports, maps and articles by MRFA members. Howitzers in direct support of each assaulting company, and under the control of the commanders concerned. 10 January 1967: 2nd Bde departed Oakland, CA. Suddenly, a concealed automatic weapon opened fire at a range of 50 meters, completely enfilading the line of troops. [1]:108. As the men worked their way toward the enemy, they were forced to crawl over the dead of the other unit. Thank you for stopping by. Vietnamese forces at Ap Bac had made a number of errors, but he [3], Fire Support Base 20 was located in relatively flat terrain 1.5km north of the village of Ap Bau Bang and immediately west of Route 13. [5], In the 3rd Platoon sector on the eastern side of the perimeter, Wolfe detected communist movement and requested night illumination from a 4.2-inch mortar, which revealed Viet Cong troops crossing the highway from east to west. C vn M v phi cng M cht 3 ngi v b thng 8 ngi in Vietnamese of... 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