Operation Virginia Ridge
Operation Virginia Ridge | |
---|---|
Part of Quảng Trị Province, South Vietnam 16°51′N 106°50′E / 16.85°N 106.84°E | |
Result | US claims operational success |
Col. Wilbur F. Simlik
36th Regiment
33rd Sapper Battalion
17 captured
141 individual and 34 crew-served weapons recovered[1]
Operation Virginia Ridge was a
Background
In early May 1969, U.S. reconnaissance detected that two
Operation
The operation began on 2 May 1969 with the 1st Battalion, 3rd Marines landed by helicopter at Landing Zone Sparrow (16°52′05″N 106°55′59″E / 16.868°N 106.933°E),[3]: 479 8 km northwest of Cam Lộ Combat Base meeting light resistance. The 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marines secured Firebase Fuller and Firebase Pete (16°48′04″N 106°51′18″E / 16.801°N 106.855°E) north of Elliot Combat Base and then swept towards the DMZ.[3]: 390 The 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marines secured Con Thien and the surrounding area. By 6 May, 1/3 Marines had swept 3 km west of LZ Sparrow along Mutter's Ridge. On the early morning of 10 May an estimated PAVN platoon attacked Company D, 1/4 Marines' night defensive position, killing eight Marines and wounding ten in just ten minutes.[2]: 73
On 16 May, Company M encountered a small entrenched PAVN force killing four and capturing one. For the remainder of May, the 1/3 and 3/3 Marines swept east towards the A-4 Strongpoint (16°54′24″N 106°59′02″E / 16.9067°N 106.984°E) meeting limited resistance.[3]: 1 On 20 May, an estimated force of 20 PAVN attacked Company C's night defensive position losing 15 killed for the loss of three Marine dead and eight wounded. On 22 May Company B ambushed a 30-man PAVN force killing 19 and capturing two.[2]: 74 , On 6–7 June, several B-52 Arclight strikes were made against Mutter's Ridge, Foxtrot Ridge and Helicopter Valley with 2/3 Marines deployed soon after by helicopter to conduct bomb damage assessment. The marines found numerous destroyed bunkers but few enemy dead.[2]: 74
In mid-June, the 3rd Marines received intelligence that a PAVN force was infiltrating from the DMZ near
Lafond was relieved as commanding officer, 3rd Marine Regiment by Colonel Wilbur F. Simlik on 28 June 1969.[2]
Aftermath
Operation Virginia Ridge concluded on 16 July and was followed by Operation Idaho Canyon.[2]: 75 U.S. losses were 106 killed while the PAVN lost 560 killed and 17 captured and 141 individual and 34 crew-served weapons captured.[4]
Notes
This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Marine Corps.
- ^ "Headquarters MACV Monthly Summary July 1969" (PDF). Headquarters United States Military Assistance Command, Vietnam. 28 October 1969. p. 33. Retrieved 23 February 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ .
- ^ ISBN 978-1555716257.
- ^ "Headquarters MACV Monthly Summary July 1969" (PDF). Headquarters United States Military Assistance Command, Vietnam. 28 October 1969. p. 33. Retrieved 23 February 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.