Battle of Cửa Việt
Battle of Cửa Việt | |
---|---|
Part of the Quảng Trị Province, Vietnam | |
Result | North Vietnamese victory |
United States (until 28 January)
Cao Van Khanh
Nguyen Thanh Tri
40 killed, 20 armored vehicles destroyed (between 28–31 January)
2 aircraft shotdown[2]
3 killed
2 aircraft shotdown
North Vietnamese claim: 2,330 killed and wounded, 200 captured
113 tanks and APCs destroyed
12 tanks and APCs captured[3]
Battle of Cửa Việt took place during the
Background
In late October 1972 as part of the counteroffensive to the Easter Offensive launched by the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN), the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) began attacks north of Quảng Trị to try to regain positions along the south bank of the Cam Lộ/Cửa Việt River. The attacks were met with stiff PAVN resistance and were stopped at the Thạch Hãn River. A further attack from the coast by the Vietnamese Marines in November made limited gains. By the end of 1972 the Marines and ARVN occupied positions 5 km south of the river.[2]: 129–31 As the ongoing peace negotiations would soon lead to a ceasefire, the South Vietnamese Joint General Staff sought the most advantageous battlefield positions possible and so ordered a further effort to regain the south bank of the Cam Lộ/Cửa Việt River.[2]: 134
Opposing forces
Since March 1972, the Cửa Việt base had been controlled by PAVN, particularly the 5th Regiment of the People's Navy of Vietnam.
On 15 January 1973 planning began for a final assault on Cửa Việt . A special combined unit called Task Force Tango was organized, consisting of the 3rd, 4th and 5th Marine Battalions and elements of the 1st Armored Brigade. The task force was put under the command of Colonel Nguyen Thanh Tri, Deputy Commander of the Republic of Vietnam Marine Division.[2]: 134 [5]
Battle
The operation began at 06:55 on 26 January with Task Force Tango advancing in two columns.
On 27 January an
At 01:45 on 28 January the Marines made a final assault and by 07:00 had broken through the PAVN lines to recapture the base. At 07:45 the
Aftermath
South Vietnamese losses were recorded as 40 killed and 20 armored vehicles destroyed in the battle between 28–31 January.[2]: 136
References
This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Marine Corps.
- ISBN 9781786258694.
- ^ .
- ^ Phạm Phán, "Bẻ gãy cuộc hành quân 'Tango Xi-ty'" Archived 2014-11-29 at the Wayback Machine (in Vietnamese), People's Army newspaper, retrieved on November 23, 2014
- ^ Oral History Interview of Enemy Proselyting Department Colonel Luu Dinh Mien, 13 June 2007, Hanoi" Archived 9 December 2014 at the Wayback Machine, Vietnam Interviews Project, retrieved on December 8, 2014.
- ^ ISBN 1574411438.
- ^ "U.S. Accounted-For from the Vietnam War" (PDF). Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency. Retrieved 22 December 2015.
- ^ "Service Member Capt Mark Allan Peterson". Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
- ^ "Service Member Capt George William Morris Jr". Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency. Retrieved 16 July 2021.