Campaign 972
Campaign 972 | |||||||||
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Part of Laotian Civil War, Vietnam War | |||||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||||
North Vietnam Pathet Lao |
Kingdom of Laos Supported by: United States | ||||||||
Units involved | |||||||||
Two provincial battalions 4th Battalion of the 270th Regiment PT-76 tanks Three companies |
21st Brigade Infantry Battalion 233 2 SPECOM teams Mobile Group 34 Bataillon Guerrier 308 Bataillon Guerrier 311 Mobile Group 31 1 AC-130 B-52 Stratofortresses |
Campaign 972 (28 October 1972 – 22 February 1973) was the final offensive in the south of the
Overview
The
In 1972, the PAVN took the offensive.[4]
Background
Planning for Campaign 972 began as early as February 1972. The Communist leaders in Hanoi ordered increased assistance to the
Campaign 972
On 25 September 1972, the Pathet Lao political commissar for Borikhane Province arrested his PAVN adviser before deserting to the Royalists. He took over 300 troops of the Pathet Lao 24th Battalion with him. There was a month's delay while PAVN and loyalist Pathet Lao pursued the dissidents, then regrouped for the assault.[5]
On 28 October, the two PAVN columns launched their attacks. In the wake of the defections, the PL contributed just three companies to the offensive. The
On 17 November, two Royalist irregular battalions from Groupement Mobile 34 (GM 34), Bataillon Guerrier 308 (BG 308) and Bataillon Guerrier 311 (BG 311), were airlifted north to Thakhek. They moved southeast along Route 13 on the Mekong riverbank until they ran into the PAVN 42nd Provincial Battalion. The engagement would last until 5 December, when the PAVN broke contact. They then attacked back eastward 20 kilometers, inundating RLA forces on Route 12. BG 311 moved to halt the PAVN thrust 11 kilometers east of Thakhek. When GM 308 showed up, they forced the PAVN troops back another 10 kilometers.[5]
Having quieted that sector, the two irregular battalions returned to Route 13. However, on 22 December, the PAVN again struck. Their infantry now backed up by
On 5 January 1973, the GM 34 irregulars began an anticlockwise sweep back towards Thakhek, searching for any stray Vietnamese units. After some skirmishes, the irregular force dispersed, to rendezvous in Thakhek for further deployment. However, during January, the Royalist held positions at Thateng, Salavan, and
By 6 February, Groupement Mobile 31 (GM 31) with its 1,444 soldiers had returned from duty in Operation Maharat II. They joined the GM 34 battalions in defending Thakhek for the next couple of weeks until the ceasefire ended the war.[5]
On 8 February, six PAVN tanks backed by infantry assaulted Paksong. When the
Aftermath
The ceasefire ending the war came into effect at noon 22 February 1973. U.S. air power was grounded at that time. Fifteen minutes into the truce, a Communist offensive began to retake Paksong from the Royalists.[7] On 23 February 1972, nine B-52s dropped a retaliatory strike on the Communists. These were the last American combat sorties of the war in southern Laos.[7]
Notes
References
- Anthony, Victor B. and Richard R. Sexton (1993). The War in Northern Laos. Command for Air Force History. OCLC 232549943.
- Castle, Timothy N. (1993). At War in the Shadow of Vietnam: U.S. Military Aid to the Royal Lao Government 1955–1975. ISBN 0-231-07977-X.
- Conboy, Kenneth and James Morrison (1995). Shadow War: The CIA's Secret War in Laos. Paladin Press. ISBN 978-1-58160-535-8.
- Nalty, Bernard C. (2005). The War Against Trucks: Aerial Interdiction In Southern Laos 1968–1972. Air Force History and Museums Program. ISBN 978-1-47755-007-6.