Battle of A Sau
Battle of A Shau | |
---|---|
Part of the A Shau Valley, South Vietnam
UTM Grid YC 499-837[1] | |
Result | North Vietnamese victory |
South Vietnam
196–288 killed or missing[2][3][4]
The Battle of A Shau (Vietnamese: trận A Sầu) was waged in early 1966 during the Vietnam War between the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) and the forces of the United States and South Vietnam. The battle began on March 9 and lasted until March 10 with the fall of the U.S. Army's Special Forces camp of the same name. The battle was a strategic victory for the PAVN in that they were able to take control of the A Shau Valley and use it as a base area for the rest of the war.
Background
The A Shau Special Forces Camp was located in the
Two South Vietnamese camps at
Based on that information, night patrols were dispatched to confirm the enemy positions but no sightings were made. However, Air Commandos conducting reconnaissance flights observed large build-ups of PAVN troops along with anti-aircraft emplacements. As a result, airstrikes were ordered against enemy positions.
On March 7, the A Shau camp was reinforced with seven U.S. Special Forces personnel, nine interpreters, and a MIKE Force Company in anticipation of the North Vietnamese attack.[5]: 58
Battle
On March 8, the camp was placed on general alert and the camp's defenders had taken up their positions. A PAVN assault was launched during the night, but it was beaten back. Because of poor weather conditions that would hinder tactical air and resupply efforts, the PAVN decided to continue despite their heavy casualties. The second attack began during the early morning hours of March 9 with mortar bombardment, damaging communications and reducing many defensive positions to rubble. At 1300 hours an
Between 1630 and 1700 hours, supplies of ammunition were flown in by
On the morning of March 10, the PAVN launched another attack with
As fighting continued the situation deteriorated as ammunition began running short and the decision was made to evacuate all personnel. At 1700 hours all communication equipment was destroyed. The survivors carried out their evacuation orders and destroyed all abandoned weapons and withdrew further to the north wall. Leading the evacuation effort were fifteen
Aftermath
American control ceased at the camp at 17:45 hours when overrun by PAVN troops. During the battle the U.S. special forces team suffered five killed and twelve wounded (100% casualties). The numbers of South Vietnamese soldiers present at the camp or how many casualties they suffered varies. Only 186 of the garrison of 434 were evacuated, with the others listed as missing, although some of them surfaced later.[5]: 63 [2] Another report stated 231 out of 417 irregulars were lost.[3] According to Sgt. Major Bennie G. Adkins only 122 out of about 410 irregulars survived, with many of them wounded. Adkins was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions in defense of the camp by President Barack Obama in September 2014.[2][4]
In May a Special Forces team entered the abandoned camp to recover the bodies of those killed in the battle, finding the bodies undisturbed and large quantities of ammunition remaining in the camp. The Special Forces team retrieved the bodies and reported back on the camp's status. On 1 June
The PAVN transformed the A Shau Valley into a heavily fortified base area with bunkers, antiaircraft guns, and artillery. US and South Vietnamese forces were never able to re-establish a permanent presence in the valley for the remainder of the war. During the Tet Offensive the A Shau Valley provided Communist troops an important sanctuary from which to launch attacks at South Vietnamese cities and military bases, especially Huế and Phu Bai. Raids were launched into the valley in April 1968 (Operation Delaware), August 1968 (Operation Somerset Plain), March 1969 (Operation Dewey Canyon) and May 1969 (Operation Apache Snow).
References
- ^ ISBN 1555716253.
- ^ a b c d e f THE FALL OF A SHAU Archived November 28, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b Rescue in Death Valley with HHM-163
- ^ a b Despite wounds, Medal of Honor recipient killed up to 175 enemies, saved comrades
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Shulimson, Jack (1982). U.S. Marines in Vietnam: 1966, an Expanding War. History and Museums Division, USMC. p. 56.
- ^ "MAJ. Bernard F. Fisher". National Museum of the U.S. Air Force. 26 April 2010. Archived from the original on 20 December 2014. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
Sources
- An Encyclopedia of Battles: Accounts of Over 1560 Battles from 1479 B.C. to the Present By David Eggenberger - Page 31
- "The Fall of a Fortress". Time. 1966-03-18. Archived from the original on July 4, 2010. Retrieved 2007-04-08.
- Perini, Capt. Michael B. (April 1983). "Uncommon Gallantry". Vol. 66, No. 4. Air Force Magazine. Archived from the original on 2007-02-11. Retrieved 2007-04-08.
- Sams, Kenneth (1966-04-18). "The Fall Of A Shau" (PDF). Project Checo report. USAF. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-11-28. Retrieved 2007-04-08.