Good Morning RallyPoint on this day, 3 January, 2021, thank you for your service. Here is your history for the Vietnam War on this day 3 January through the years of the war. Welcome home all Veterans.. and to those that gave their all, …may you rest in peace...!

Today, 3 January in Vietnam history;

3 January 1957, The International Control Commission reports that neither North Vietnam nor South Vietnam have been fulfilling their obligations under the 1954 Geneva Agreements.

3 January 1962, The first United States Air Force (USAF) military transport aircraft arrived in South Vietnam. The aircraft would be used to transport South Vietnamese soldiers

3 January 1963, A defeat for South Vietnamese and three Americans KIA. A Viet Cong victory in the Battle of Ap Bac makes front page news in America as 350 Viet Cong fighters defeat a large force of American-equipped South Vietnamese troops attempting to seize a radio transmitter. Three American helicopter crew members are killed. The South Vietnamese Army is run by officers personally chosen by President Diem, not for their competence, but for their loyalty to him. Diem has instructed his officers to avoid casualties. Their primary mission, he has told them, is to protect him from any coups in Saigon.

3 January 1964, Buddhist leaders form organization. Buddhist leaders, despite their major role in the anti-Ngo Dinh Diem struggle, did not participate directly in the decision making process of the government. Instead, their new strategy was to develop a cohesive national organization, presumably to assert themselves more effectively in public affairs. They formed a United Buddhist Church of Vietnam.

3 January 1965, Senator Mike Mansfield, considered the U.S. Congress's most knowledgeable person about Vietnam, appeared on television and said that neutralization of South Vietnam through an agreement reached by negotiations between the U.S. and the communist powers might be the best solution to the war. Mansfield was one of several senators who had doubts about the course of U.S. policy in South Vietnam.

3 January 1965, Antigovernment demonstrators clash with police. The political crisis that had been undermining the South Vietnamese government and military for months is aggravated when thousands of antigovernment demonstrators in Saigon clash with government marines and police. There was also rioting in Hue, where students organized strikes against the local government. The main resistance to the Saigon regime came from Buddhists, who were strongly opposed to Tran Van Huong. Huong was a civilian who became premier on November 4, 1964, after a series of military governments had failed in the aftermath of November 1963 coup that resulted in the death of President Ngo Dinh Diem. The Buddhists were alarmed that Huong’s government might pave the way for a return to power of Catholics and those faithful to Diem and his policies. In addition, many Buddhists had become increasingly concerned about American influence in South Vietnam and saw Huong as a puppet of the United States.

3 January 1964, Barry Goldwater announced that he was a candidate for the U.S. Presidency. He lost to Lyndon B. Johnson: 43,126,506 to 27,176,799 Senator Eugene McCarthy (D-Minnesota) announced his candidacy for the Democratic presidential nomination.

3 January 1966, The PAVN bombarded a Special Forces Civilian Irregular Defense Group camp at Khe Sanh Combat Base near the Vietnamese Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) with 120mm mortars, the heaviest weapon they had used in the war. Defending the combat base were American and South Vietnamese Special Forces, Nung and Bru (Montagnard) irregulars, and Ruff-Puff militia.

3 January 1966, Cambodia warned the UN of retaliation unless the U.S. and South Vietnam end intrusions.

3 January 1966 – 4 January 1966, Operation War Bonnet, 2nd Battalion, 9th Marines and 3rd Tank Battalion search and destroy operation, Quảng Nam Province

3 January 1966 – 8 January 1966, Operation Hang Over, 2nd Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment search and destroy operation, Ninh Thuận Province

3 January 1966 – 8 January 1966, Operation Long Lance, 1st Battalion, 1st Marines search and destroy operation, Quảng Nam Province

3 January 1966 – 8 January 1966, Operation Quick Kick, 1st Brigade, 1st Infantry Division search and destroy operation, Bình Dương Province

3 January 1967 – 31 January 1967, Operation Mang Ho VIII, ROK Capital Division search and clear operations, Route 1, Phú Yên Province, 150 PAVN/VC KIA

3 January 1968 - Senator Eugene McCarthy (D-Minnesota) announced his candidacy for the Democratic presidential nomination.

3 January 1968, The VC launched more than 50 122mm rockets at Da Nang Air Base destroying a United States Marine Corps (USMC) F-4B and two United States Air Force (USAF) aircraft and damaging 17 others.

3 January 1968, The PAVN 3rd Regiment, 2nd Division attacked four U.S. firebases in the Quế Sơn Valley southwest of Hội An, launching ground attacks against Landing Zone Leslie and Firebase Ross. Leslie was occupied by D Company and a platoon from A Company, 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry. The PAVN penetrated the base, attacking bunkers with flamethrowers and satchel charges before being pushed out in the afternoon. Losses were 15 U.S and 63 PAVN.

3 January 1968, The PAVN emplaced heavy machine guns around Leslie and over a nine-day period shot down seven 1st Cavalry Division helicopters and damaged a further 26. At Ross the attack was repulsed with losses of 18 U.S. and 331 PAVN killed.

3 January 1969 – 7 January 1969, Operation Water Trap, Mobile Riverine Force 9th Infantry cordon and search operation, Thoi Son Island, Mỹ Tho River, south of Dong Tam Base Camp

3 January 1973, In Beijing, Chinese leader Zhou Enlai told North Vietnam's peace negotiator, Le Duc Tho, that "the U.S. effort to exert pressure through bombing has failed." He advised Tho to be flexible in peace negotiations with the Americans and to "let them leave as quickly as possible" and wait for the situation to change.


3 January 1978, Vietnamese troops Are reported to be occupying 400 square miles in Cambodia. In 1968, North Vietnamese Army (NVA) troops were using Laos and Cambodia as staging areas for attacks against allied forces.


Today is 3 January 2021
Vietnam War Memorial facts
162 Names on the wall were born on 3 January
130 Names on the wall died on 3 January
245 men earned the Medal Of Honor in the Vietnam war and 160 of those men are listed on the wall


Other wall information/quotes;
1Lt. Diane Carlson Evans, ANC RVN (born 1946) served as a nurse in the United States Army during the Vietnam War. Diane Carlson Evans is the Founder of the Vietnam Women’s Memorial Foundation (formerly the Vietnam Women’s Memorial Project), and former President and CEO of the Board of Directors.
Carlson Evans was born and raised on a dairy farm in rural Minnesota and graduated from nursing school in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Upon graduation, she joined the Army Nurse Corps and served in Vietnam from 1968-1969. She served in the burn unit of the 36th Evacuation Hospital in Vung Tau and at Pleiku in the 71st Evacuation Hospital. Including her one year in Vietnam, she completed six years in the Army Nurse Corps.
Evans envisioned the idea for a memorial to honor over 265,000 women who served during the Vietnam war. A former Army combat nurse and Vietnam veteran she led the ten-year struggle to complete the circle of healing with the placement of the Vietnam Women’s Memorial. Although the eloquent wall of names at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. lists the names of eight women nurses who died in Vietnam, Evans felt deeply that the memorial, with its statue of three fighting men, did not acknowledge adequately the women. In her words, “…women are also soldiers. Women also need to heal. Their service is worthy of honor and recognition.” That recognition took place on November 11, 1993, with the dedication of the Vietnam Women’s Memorial.



Of possible interest or Interesting things about Vietnam/Vietnam War;

Dan Bullock is the youngest American service member killed in action in the Vietnam War. When he was just 14 years old, he falsified the date on his birth certificate to read December 21, 1949 in order to enlist in the U.S. Marine Corps. On June 7, 1969, Bullock was killed by small arms fire while on night watch at An Hoa combat base. He had been in-country nearly one month.



Links of interest?

Looking for a Brother or sister you served with? This might help you.
The Viet Nam Veterans Home Page to be quite useful in finding living veterans. They maintain a Lost and Found section http://www.vietvet.org/lostfnd.htm, with listings of people looking for people.

To find information on the availability of U.S. Navy deck logs during the Vietnam war era, check out this link. https://historyhub.history.gov/community/military-records/blog/2020/10/08/update-on-availability-of-vietnam-era-1956-1978-us-navy-deck-logs

Unit Reunions, Homecomings, Gatherings, Newsletters, Etc. can be found at http://www.vietvet.org/unitlist.htm
There are two replica versions of The Vietnam Veterans Memorial that tour the United States regularly. The first of them which is called The Moving Wall, has been traveling the country for almost twenty years. You can find their schedule at http://www.themovingwall.org/
Where can I find the latest information on the status of Prisoners of War and those listed as Missing in Action? A: The Library of Congress maintains POW/MIA information at http://lcweb2.loc.gov/pow/powhome.html


Quotes;
“The Quiet American is anti the people who took them into the Vietnam War”. -Michael Caine

“Hollywood never knew there was a Vietnam War until they made the movie.” -Jerry Stiller

“My opposition to the Vietnam War. I was the first Hollywood actor to speak out against it.” -Robert Vaughn

“I was not able to stop or slow down the Vietnam War.” -Mike Mansfield

“The true lesson of the Vietnam War is: certainty of purpose and ruthlessness of execution win wars.” -Ronald Reagan

“I predict you will sink step by step into a bottomless quagmire, however much you spend in men and money." (On Vietnam War) -Charles de Gaulle

“ if you never risked coming home under the flag, Don’t you dare stand on it! -Unknown author


Medal of Honor recipient for actions in the Vietnam War on this day 3 January; None on this day