Operation Fairfax
 | This article's lead section may be too short to adequately summarize the key points. (November 2017) |
| Operation Fairfax | |
|---|---|
| Part of Gia Định Province, South Vietnam | |
| Result | Inconclusive |
United States
South Vietnam
Viet Cong BG Charles Wolcott Ryder Jr. BG John F. Freund BG Robert C. Forbes Gen Lê Nguyên Khang 199th Infantry Brigade 5th Ranger GroupHistory of Ho Chi Minh City |
|
|---|---|
 | |
| Attack on USNS Card (2 May 1964) | |
| 1964 Brinks Hotel bombing (24 December 1964) | |
| 1965 United States embassy bombing (30 March 1965) | |
| 1965 Saigon bombing (25 June 1965) | |
| Operation Jackstay (26 March – 6 April 1966) | |
| Operation Fairfax (November 1966 - 15 December 1967) | |
| Viet Cong attack on Tan Son Nhut Air Base (4–5 December 1966) | |
| Tet offensive battle of Cholon and Phu Tho Racetrack (31 January-11 February 1968) | |
| Tet offensive attack on Joint General Staff Compound (31 January-1 February 1968) | |
| Tet offensive attack on Tan Son Nhut Air Base (31 January 1968) | |
| Tet offensive attack on US Embassy (31 January 1968) | |
| Battle of West Saigon (5–12 May 1968) | |
| Battle of South Saigon (7–12 May 1968) | |
| Hijacking of Pan Am Flight 841 (2 July 1972) | |
| Bombing of Tan Son Nhut Air Base (28 April 1975) | |
| Operation Frequent Wind (29–30 April 1975) | |
| Fall of Saigon (30 April 1975) |
Vietnam portalOperation Fairfax was a joint counterinsurgency/pacification operation conducted by the
Prelude
In October 1966, U.S. intelligence estimated that the
II Field Force, Vietnam would be responsible for the U.S. participation taking a battalion from the 1st Infantry Division and two from the 25th Infantry Division. The ARVN units would come from III Corps.[1]: 157 It was expected that by February 1967 the Vietnamese would be able to take responsibility for the entire operation and U.S. units could be deployed elsewhere.[1]: 158
Operation
The operation commenced in December and by the end of the month had claimed 235 VC killed or captured as compared to 15 in November, however despite a general improvement in security ambushes actually increased during this period.[1]: 157
In January 1967, General Westmoreland ordered that the 199th Infantry Brigade commanded by Brigadier general Charles Ryder take over as the dedicated unit responsible for the operation. In February VC killed or captured increased to over 300.[1]: 158
In March, Ryder was promoted and replaced as commander of the 199th Brigade by Brigadier general John F. Freund, Westmoreland's former assistant and MACV training director who had close relationships with Viên and National Police Chief General Nguyễn Ngọc Loan.[1]: 158–9
In March and April, security in the operational area appeared to improve, but this was regarded as illusory while the South Vietnamese Government continued to delay reforms and public works creating apathy among the populace who were open to the VC political agenda. Intelligence operations were having limited success in identifying and eliminating the VC political infrastructure.[1]: 159
By June, Westmoreland was of the view that the ARVN and National Police had become too dependent on the U.S. to bear the burden of the operation and he advised Viên that by the end of 1967 the 199th Brigade would be withdrawn from Gia Định Province. Viên agreed with this change and was embarrassed that U.S. units had had to be responsible for the defense of the capital for so long. He ordered that the 5th Ranger Group take over ARVN responsibility for the operation.[1]: 160
By July, over 75 U.S./ARVN ambushes were being set up each night and bases had been established to interdict traffic on the
In August, Freund was wounded during an operation and command passed to Brigadier general Robert C. Forbes. Forbes regarded the Rangers as still being too dependent on the U.S. "buddy" units, but given their limited resources this was hardly surprising and he arranged to have more modern equipment delivered and U.S. advisers attached.[1]: 161
On 24 September, the pairing of U.S. and ARVN units was discontinued and the 199th Brigade and ARVN Rangers operated independently in different sectors, occasionally conducting combined operations.[1]: 161
Aftermath
Operation Fairfax officially concluded on 15 December, the US claimed VC losses were over 1,200 killed or captured.[1]: 162 While Westmoreland regarded the operation as a limited success, he concluded that the integration of U.S. and ARVN units was counterproductive, reducing the ARVN to combat auxiliaries.[1]: 162
While the operation had somewhat improved security in Gia Định Province, this was only temporary as the VC infrastructure had not been seriously disrupted and within six weeks of the end of the operation the VC were able to launch their Tet Offensive attacks on Saigon.[2]
References
This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Army Center of Military History.
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