Marine Corps History Vietnam War Pages 84-92

Political Unrest [ China & USSR]  North: Socialized Govt. support > [ China & USSR] [USA & others]  South: Democratic Govt. support >[USA & others]  Business Men = were made employees of the State  Land was seized = owners treated as criminals  The people of Vietnam revolted  The North Vietnamese Army restored order

The Revolt  Ho Chi Minh wanted a unified Vietnam  The South did not want to fall under communist rule  The North formed: “The People’s Revolutionary Party for the South”  1965: The North began infiltrating the South

Marines provided transportation to the South Vietnamese Government

15 April 1962 : HMH-362 arrived at Soc Trang to provide mobility to the South Vietnamese forces.

September 1962: Marine Helicopters established an Air Base at DaNang

Feb 1965 : VVVViet Cong : attacked US military installations PPPPresident Johnson : ordered the bombing of North Vietnamese military targets

6 March 1965: Two battalions of Marines sent to South Vietnam at the request of Saigon Government.

1965: Marines had operational control of the 5 northern provinces. (225 miles x 50 miles ) 17 degrees

Marines built another airfield at Chu Lai for Jets (55 miles south of Da Nang)

By the end of 1965:  4 Marine Regiments in country: 3 rd, 4 th, 7 th, & 9 th Infantry Regiments  4 Marine Air Groups in country: 11 th, 12 th, 16 th, & 36 th MAG’s

First ground operation by Marines:  18 August 1965  V.C. were going to attack Chu Lai airbase  Operation Starlite  Marines successfully used “Vertical Envelopment”

Vertical Envelopment:  Inserting Marines behind enemy defensive lines

Pacification Program:  Free villages of V.C. influences  Provide security for villages  Improve quality of life in villages through civic action programs

Combined Action Program  Marines would :  Live and work among villagers  Train south Vietnamese to provide security for themselves  Require the South Vietnamese forces to takeover responsibility of security for their villages

1965  Operation Golden Fleece:  Ensured farmers were able to harvest their crops  Keep the food supply out of V.C. hands

1965  Operation County Fair:  To help the villages with health & sanitation problems  Marines : dug wells, built schools, funded orphanages, supplied hospitals, distributed food, etc…

 V.C. stopped major confrontations with U.S. Marines  Marines were victorious in all major confrontations with V.C. & N.V.A.  V.C. began heavy Guerrilla & Terrorist activity (sniper & ambush)

1968  The “TET” Offensive  A truce was agreed upon for: 27 Jan - 3 Feb in observance of the Lunar Holiday “Tet”  NVA & VC attacked all major military bases

 Hue fell to the V.C.  Khe Sanh under siege was evacuated and “razed” by the Marines (11June 1968)

 1969 : Pacification continued  Republic of Vietnam forces : taking over in the defense of their country  For the Marines : the War was winding down  1970 : Most Marines left Vietnam and their only area of responsibility was the Quang Tri Province  1971 : Only 500 Marine advisors remained in country  1972 : Marine’s role in Vietnam is over

What difficulty did Marines experience while fighting in Vietnam ??? It was difficult distinguishing between enemy & friendly forces

In 1975 Marines returned to Vietnam for evacuation operations

April 1975  Operation Frequent Wind  Marines from HMH-462 evacuated Americans & Vietnamese refugees from Saigon, South Vietnam

April 1975  Operation Eagle Pull  Marines from HMH-362 evacuated the U.S. Embassy in Phnom Penh, Cambodia

 Acronyms:  VC  NVA  ARVN  MEB  MAW  DMZ  HMH  HMM  HML  HMLA

US Marine Casualties: Wounded 88,591 Killed 12,983

Questions ???