3 APR--This Day in US military History

2015-04-03T10:17:27-04:00

1972 – The United States prepares hundreds of B-52s and fighter-bombers for possible air strikes to blunt the recently launched North Vietnamese invasion.

The aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk was sent from the Philippines to join the carriers already off the coast of Vietnam and provide additional air support. This attack was the opening move of the North Vietnamese Nguyen Hue Offensive (later called the “Easter Offensive”), a massive invasion by North Vietnamese forces designed to strike the blow that would win them the war. The attacking force included 14 infantry divisions and 26 separate regiments, with more than 120,000 troops and approximately 1,200 tanks and other armored vehicles.
The main North Vietnamese objectives, in addition to Quang Tri in the north, were Kontum in the Central Highlands, and An Loc farther to the south. North Vietnam had a number of reasons for launching the offensive: impressing the communist world and its own people with its determination; capitalizing on U.S. antiwar sentiment and possibly hurting President Richard Nixon’s chances for re-election; proving that “Vietnamization” was a failure; damaging the South Vietnamese forces and government stability; gaining as much territory as possible before a possible truce; and accelerating negotiations on their own terms.
Initially, the South Vietnamese defenders were almost overwhelmed, particularly in the northernmost provinces, where they abandoned their positions in Quang Tri and fled south in the face of the enemy onslaught. At Kontum and An Loc, the South Vietnamese were more successful in defending against the attacks, but only after weeks of bitter fighting. Although the defenders suffered heavy casualties, they managed to hold their own with the aid of U.S. advisors and American airpower.
Fighting continued all over South Vietnam into the summer months, but eventually the South Vietnamese forces prevailed against the invaders and retook Quang Tri in September. With the communist invasion blunted, President Nixon declared that the South Vietnamese victory proved the viability of his Vietnamization program, instituted in 1969 to increase the combat capability of the South Vietnamese armed forces.

https://thisdayinusmilhist.wordpress.com/2014/04/03/april-3/

April 3

3 April 1776 - George Washington received an honorary doctor of law degree from Harvard College. 1797 - CAPT Thomas Truxtun issued first known American signal book using numerary system. 1817 – The...

Response by Capt Richard I P. made Apr 3 at 2015 10:19 AM

2015-04-03T10:19:56-04:00

Well that worked out well.

Response by MSgt Robert Pellam made Apr 3 at 2015 11:25 AM

2015-04-03T11:25:54-04:00

I think.. and again I will use the THINK/Opinion on this one as I haven't done all the research.

Vietnam was one of the last conflicts/wars of the Containment Policy from the Truman era. We were there because, "Communism is Bad" and "We must fight for democracy" Problem was, most Vietnamese just wanted the Imperialists out of Vietnam. I think from Vietnam we learned to live and let live. We started to move away from Imperialistic tendency of the past 100+ years, and hopefully learned to be just a little bit better. Its sad that it cost us tens of thousands of lives to learn that lesson.