USS MULLINNIX DD-944

The Siege of An Loc - 1972



          
          Vietnam Coastline, Picture from Mullinnix                    Military Region III Map                        




Introduction

After mounting massive conventional warfare assaults near the DMZ and in the Central Highlands on 5 April 1972, Hanoi extended the deadly arm of the Nguyen Hue (1972 Easter Offensive), to South Vietnam's Military Region MR III, formerly known as III Corps. North Vietnamese Army (NVA) forces quickly overran Loc Ninh, a tiny district town in Binh Long Province near the Cambodian border. One week later, three NVA divisions, supported by tanks and massive amounts of artillery, launched an all-out attack on An Loc, the capital of Binh Long Province, 60 miles north of Saigon.

The vital role that U.S. and South Vietnamese aerial bombing played in saving An Loc is well known. However, the much less publicized, but equally vital, U.S. Army and Air Force air resupply effort also played a major role in helping the South Vietnamese Army (ARVN) forces and their U.S. Army advisors defending An Loc survive a 70-day siege.

The North Vietnamese could not have picked a better time to attack in MR III. Since the drawdown of American troops began in 1969, the region had seen U.S. combat units dwindle too almost nothing. Between February and April 1972 alone, 58,000 troops and advisors returned to the U.S. This was the single largest troop reduction of the war and it came precisely when the NVA was building up for the Easter Offensive.

Those advisors that did remain in III Corps operated within the Third Regional Assistance Command (TRAC), headquartered at Long Binh outside of Saigon. TRAC, the distilled remains of II Field Force and the former III Corps Advisory Group, was commanded by the flamboyant, Pattonesque, World War II tank commander Major General James F. "Holly" Hollingsworth. In 1966-67 Hollingsworth had served as deputy commander of the 1st Infantry Division, whose area of operations included Binh Long Province, so he was familiar with the territory. In mid-1971 Hollingsworth returned to Vietnam as deputy commander of the U.S. XXIV Corps. By the end of the year, he was on his way to Long Binh to command the last American advisors in III Corps.

Given his reputation as a hands-on fighter, Hollingsworth was not only miscast for this managerial assignment, but he was under pressure from his old World War II friend, Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV) Commander General Creighton W. Abrams to continue the troop drawdown and not endanger American lives. Yet withdrawing advisors from the increasingly dangerous situation in An Loc would send a signal of diminished American support of the South Vietnamese and would certainly weaken their resolve. Hollingsworth chose to defend An Loc but did not order his advisors to remain in the surrounded city. He evacuated those deemed nonessential along with the senior American advisor to select his combat advisory team. Only a handful of Americans remained in the tactical operations center with General Hung and the 5th ARVN Division staff.

By 1972, the advisory system in MR III, and in the rest of South Vietnam, was primarily a skeleton team sprinkled throughout the top of the ARVN officer corps. In combat units, advisors now interacted with their ARVN counterparts only at corps, division, and regimental levels. In elite units, such as airborne, rangers, and marines, advisors were still used down to the battalion level.

At An Loc, the 5th ARVN Division had a U.S. Army senior advisor with a small staff under him. The senior advisor was responsible for "advising" his counterpart on troop movement and deployment, a particularly crucial job during the drawdown because ARVN forces were spread thinly over areas previously covered by both American and South Vietnamese troops. The advisors also gathered intelligence from units in the field and sent it back to TRAC headquarters for analysis. However, as far as the South Vietnamese were concerned, the senior advisor was most valuable in his role as air support provider. As a result, the senior advisor spent much of his time plotting air strikes and coordinating them with TRAC headquarters.

When the 5th Viet Cong Division struck Loc Ninh on 5 April, the magnitude of the artillery barrage that preceded the attack was unprecedented in MR III. Two days later Loc Ninh fell and intelligence reports from the rubber plantations north of An Loc noted large numbers of NVA tanks already in place.

Air Force forward air controllers (FACs) reported heavy troop and truck movement particularly to the north of An Loc. They saw hundreds of civilians were fleeing rubber plantations, attempting to avoid NVA conscription. B-52 strikes were placed wherever a troop concentration was reported. Gathering bomb damage assessment information, however, was difficult because the South Vietnamese would not patrol beyond An Loc's city limits.

The attack in MR III was the second phase of the Easter Offesnive. With the enemy forces arrayed in and around Loc Ninh, they began moving south toward An Loc. Under cover of darkness and moving stealthily through the jungle and rubber plantations, the NVA forces took up positions encircling the provincial capital. Late on 7 April, the VC 9th Division attacked Quan Loi Base Camp, just 3 kilometers north of An Loc. Elements of the ARVN 7th Infantry Regiment defending the area were unable to hold off the VC, so they were ordered to destroy their equipment and join other ARVN units in the provincial capital.

The fall of Loc Ninh suggested that An Loc was the next target, and allied officials were highly concerned. By close of day on 7 April Loc Ninh was no longer a factor in the defense of Binh Long Province. The North Vietnamese were inexorably moving toward An Loc, the focal point of the campaign in III Corps. The next step in the offensive was the Battle of An Loc, 65 miles north of Saigon. For the first time in the war, South Vietnam faced the possibility of losing a provincial capital.

The Battle of An Loc was a major battle of the Vietnam War that lasted for 66 days and culminated in a tactical victory for South Vietnam. In many ways, the struggle for An Loc was an important battle of the war, as South Vietnamese forces halted the North Vietnamese advance towards Saigon. The North Vietnamese could not have picked a better time to attack in MR III. Since the drawdown of American troops began in 1969, the region had seen U.S. combat units dwindle to almost nothing. Between February and April 1972 alone, 58,000 troops and advisors returned to the U.S. This was the single largest troop reduction of the war and it came precisely when the NVA was building up for the Easter Offensive.

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On 7 April, the NVA overran the Quan Loi airstrip located 1 ½ miles east of An Loc. Route 13 was cut, blocking the main road in and out of town. The city was surrounded and isolated from the outside. Only helicopters - those who could make it through the increasingly deadly anti-aircraft ring - could keep An Loc alive.

Command was confident that the VC/NVA would be certain to continue south on QL 13. At 1900 on 7 April, all US elements were ordered to yellow alert and be prepared to withstand heavy attacks by fire and possible direct fire from 75mm tank guns. The ARVN command quickly reorganized ground forces around An Loc, including the 1st and 2nd Battalions of the 8th Regiment on the north and northwest, the 3rd Ranger Group on the NE corner and most of the east side, the 7th Regiment on the west and south of QL 13, and Sector Forces occupying the south and southeaste.

On 8 April, the VC/NVA assaulted the radio relay station on Nui Ba Den (Black Virgin Mountain) in Tay Ninh Province, capturing it the following day. The airborne brigade moving up QL 13 toward An Loc ran into heavy resistance indicationg new concentrations of hostile forces south of An Loc. In addition, NVA AA batteries around Loc Ninh were observed being moved toward An Loc and an increasing numbers of tanks were spotted in the area.

On 8 April, the call was put out for four CRUDESLANT ships to deploy for extended operaitons in Vietnam. One of these units was the Norfolk-based destroyer USS Mullinnix DD-944. A ship's movement is always top secret. This call to CRUDESLANT ships was not known to the press or the public. But by 10 April, rumors had started making the rounds in Norfolk and the surrounding area.

Beginning on 10 April, under the canopy of B-52 strikes, the South Vietnameze frantically reinforced An Loc.

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Allies Claim Enemy Tank Battalion Destroyed Below DMZ by B52s

By George Esper

Tuesday, April 11, 1972


Saigon (AP) – South Vietnamese forces today claimed major successes on two fronts of the North Vietnamese offensive, including destruction of an entire enemy tank battalion by U.S. B52 bombers below the demilitarized zone and the killing of more than 100 enemy troops on the northern front.

On the southern front north of Saigon, an American general claimed that the North Vietnamese who swept down Highway 13 had been badly battered and “are on the run to Cambodia.”

South Vietnamese forces abandoned a second district town North of Saigon Monday.

Delayed field reports said that several hundred rangers and their families were evacuated by helicopter from the town of Bo Duc because of heavy enemy pressure and shelling attacks.

Bo Duc is 80 miles north of Saigon and about 15 miles northeast of Loc Ninh, which the North Vietnamese captured last week. Bo Duc is deep in largely abandoned rubber plantation country, and its main military function was to monitor enemy infiltration across the Cambodian border five miles away.

Field reports said that pullout was orderly and the rangers took their four 195mm howitzers with them.

There were conflicting reports about North Vietnamese troop movements in the border region north of Saigon, An American general said that enemy forces that swept down Highway 13 had been badly battered and were on the run back to Cambodia. But other field reports said the North Vietnamese were moving reinforcements into South Vietnam.

Enemy troops sweeping down Highway 13 earlier captured the district town of Loc Ninh and surrounded some 10,000 Vietnamese troops in An Loc, the provincial capital 60 miles north of Saigon. About 2,000 more government soldiers were lifted by helicopter today into the town President Nguyen Van Thieu has said must be held at all costs.

The Communists also intensified their shelling attack in the central highlands after a week’s lull, hitting a series of government bases. In the worst attack, rockets slammed into South Vietnamese troops bunched together at the Konturn airfield awaiting transportation; field reports said 23 of the troops were killed and more than a score wounded.

Delayed reports said the tank battalion was wiped out Sunday on one of the most successful B52 strikes of the war. The reports said waves of the giant Stratofortresses destroyed 27 tanks and three artillery pieces and killed 100 North Vietnamese.

Secondary explosions went off for 30 minutes, the reports said.

The target area was five miles northwest of Dong Hxx and seven miles below the DMZ. The reports said South Vietnamese officials confirmed the destruction.

Nearly 60 more B52 strikes were flown today across South Vietnam and the big bombers dropped about 1,800 tons of explosives on North Vietnamese’s troop concentrations threatening the provincial capitals of Quang Tri and Hue in the northernmost provinces, Kontum City in the central highlands and An Loc north of Saigon.

The South Vietnamese command claimed that infantry, artillery and air strikes killed another 442 North Vietnamese troops in 10 battles along the approaches to Quang Tri and objectives of the Communists’ 13-day-old offensive. One fight was within a half mile of Quang Tri, which is 19 miles below the DMZ and nine miles below the government’s northernmost defense line. Hue is 35 miles southeast of Quang Tri.

Ten South Vietnamese troops were killed and 84 wounded, the Saigon command said.

Eight U.S. destroyers and the cruiser USS Oklahoma City CL-91, the 7th Fleet’s flagship, bombarded enemy positions 10 to 18 miles north of Quang Tri. The 7th fleet said two tanks were destroyed.

A battalion of several hundred U.S. troops from the 196th Infantry Brigade was moved today from the Da Nang area to Phu Bai, eight miles south of Huy, to strengthen U.S. security forces already there. Although the 196th is one of the two U.S. ground combat units left in Vietnam, informed sources said the role of the troops was not to help out the South Vietnamese but to augment a company of other 196th Brigade soldiers who are responsible for the protection of American communications unit and other facilities there.

In the Saigon area, a lone Viet Cong sniper slipped into a South Vietnamese ammunition dump eight miles east of the capital before dawn and set off explosive charge. The blast destroyed 25 per cent of the ammunition stores and shook buildings in Saigon. The sniper was killed, and one South Vietnamese soldier was wounded.

The claim of success on Highway 13 north of Saigon came from Maj. Gen. James F. Hollingsworth, the senior U.S. adviser in the capital region. He said lead elements of a 20,000-man government relief column would reach An Loc, the threatened provincial capital 60 miles north of Saigon, by Wednesday.

Associated Press correspondent Lynn C. Newland, with the relief force, said the lead units were moving slowly and as night began falling were within eight miles of An Loc. No major fighting was reported.


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Early in the morning of 11 April, the ARVN 1st Airborne Brigade left neighboring Binh Duong Province by truck for Chon Thanh, the southernmost district in Binh Long Province. It was to dismount just north of Chon Thanh and continue the remaining twelve miles north toward An Loc on foot. Their mission was to sweep the area clean of the enemy patrols that might threaten the vital Route 13 supply line from Saigon. This elite ARVN unit never got close to its objective.

Nine miles south of An Loc, the ARVN troopers met a blocking force made up of a regiment from the 7th NVA Division. During the same period, 10-11 April, the 1st and 2nd battalions, 8th ARVN Regiment, as well as the regimental combat reconnaissance company, were flown into An Loc by the U.S. Army's 1st Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, the last remaining element of the famous airmobile division still in South Vietnam.

The rumors in Norfolk continued on 11 April.

Then, on 12 April, [the day Mullinnix steamed out of Norfolk headed to Vietnam] after another massive Soviet-style artillery barrage, the 7th Viet Cong Division, with T-54 tanks and trucks, launched the initial assault on An Loc. The attack had begun. On the first day, an estimated 1,000 rounds landed within the city.

By that night, the VC/NVA considered An Loc ready for capture. Artillery was heavy all day the throughout most of the evening until it reached a "crescendo" after 0300. At 0530, the indirect fire touched off the ammunitio dump and POL storage areas. At 0730, out of the NE, two dozen tanks led a major ground attack against An Loc. By 0800, the rumble of T-54 tanks was heard in the streets. The tanks rode in "cockily" with turrets open and commanders in view. Led to believe that the VC already occupied the city, they thought their mission was a ceremonial one. They were wrong. Cobra helicopter gunships took a heavy toll. The first attack was blunted.

At 0600 on the morning of 13 April North Vietnamese tanks slammed into the west flank. Fortunately for the South Vietnamese the armor was not follwed closely by infantry, a tactical failure. The results were disastrous. The tanks operated completely on their own with little communication with the infantry units. Armor easily broke through the South Vietnamese defenses, but without infantry could not hold thier gains. Once the intial shock of seeing attaching tanks, the defenders simply knocked out the tanks one by one as they hid behind buildings.

A second ground attack from the NE began at 1015. By 1330 the invading forces, including tanks, controlled the airstrip on the NE in addition to the northern half of An Loc itself. Continued air strikes from the Blue Max Squadron on Cobra gunships equiped with their HEAT (high-explosive anti-tank) rockets kept the VC/NVA from maintaining momentum.









As reported on 14 April, the major buildup was putting stress on Navy planners.

After the first assault, not only were the NVA able to occupy the northern half of the city, but they were able to move an anti-aircraft regiment immediately outside the An Loc defensive perimeter. All CH-47 deliveries were halted, and only fixed wing cargo planes attempted the dangerous flight into An Loc, where the drop zone (DZ) had shrunk to an area 1,000 yards by 750 yards. Thus, the ARVN began airdropping supplies. VNAF crews and transports, primarily C-123's, made their first drops on 12 April. All drops were made during daylight and all were troubled by the enemy fire and small drop zones.

Planes could only approach An Loc from the south, flying along Route 13. They usually flew in three-aircraft formations at 700 feet. Other airplanes released their loads from 5,000 feet or higher to avoid anti-aircraft fire. The crews used makeshift sighting devices or simply guessed where to drop their cargo. Lacking delayed parachute-opening devices, drops were usually off target and landed outside the defensive perimeter. After 27 C-123 and C-119 drops in the first three days of the siege (12-14 April), only 34 tons of the 135 tons dropped was recovered. Six transports took ground fire and on 15 April, a C-123 was shot down, killing all aboard, including the squadron commander. Four days later a second C-123 was shot down.

On 14 April, Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV), decided to deploy the first USAF C-130s to An Loc. Two of the four-engine aircraft, using the Computerized Aerial Drop System (CARP), made their first run at dawn the following day. They circled the city until a FAC signaled to commence the dangerous run. Initially, no instruments were needed; pilots simply followed Route 13 from the south. As they approached the DZ, a 219 square-yard soccer field in the southern part of An Loc, the computer took over, releasing the supplies at a pre-arranged point. The first airplane roared over the target. As enemy guns opened fire, pallets of food and ammo crashed to the earth and the aircraft climbed up from the 600 foot drop altitude with only slight damage to the rudder.

After talking with the FAC on site, the second crew decided to surprise the enemy with an approach from a different direction. When the C-130 was thirty seconds from the release point, a wall of machine fun fire met the nose of the aircraft. The pilot struggled to control the shuddering transport under the impact of dozens of bullets. Rounds smashed the circuit panel in the flight deck, killing the flight engineer and wounding the navigator and co-pilot. The situation in the cargo hold was even worse. Incendiary rounds ignited some of the pallets of 155mm howitzer and 81mm mortar ammunition. The crippled C-130, flying on 2 engines, limped back to Tan Son Nhut Airbase north of Saigon. U.S. advisors at An Loc later reported that none of the 26 tons of supplies dropped by the two transports were recovered.

On 15 April, the VC/NVA again shelled government positions in An Loc with 155mm howitzer and 122mm rocket fire beginning a new drive on the capital. A second attack at 1000 was more successful. Enemy troops reached the wire to the southeast. Heavy airstrikes appeared to have defused the attack somewhat, destroying nine out of eleven tanks employed in the assault. This attack ended the first phase of the An Loc struggle, thereafter, the battle degenerated into a classic siege.








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By 15 April, Mullinnix was well on its way towards the Panama Canal and beyond...

Although the defenders did not realize it at the time, the determined enemy initial attack phase against the An Loc defenses was over by 16 April. Thus, with the first major attack phase at an end, the siege of An Loc had begun.


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THE SIEGE

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Mullinnix passes through the Panama Canal on 16 April. The war was heating up, and there was no time to loose - the enemy had managed to seize and hold the northern half of An Loc.

The reduced enemy ground force activity in the area around An Loc after 16 April was not the end of the campaign for the provincial capital, but only the beginning of a new phase. On 16 April, an ammunition storage area at Lai Khe, south of An Loc on QL 13, was struck resulting in the destruction of 8,000 rounds of ammunition for 105mm and 155mm howitzers as well as destruction and damage to artillery pieces. With the ARVN artillery quickly silenced by lack of resupply, the steel and explosive hail fell into An Loc at a rate of nearly 1300 rounds per day during the first two weeks of April and then increased. Surrounded by artillery, anti-aircraft weapons, and ground troops, general conditions in the city steadily deteriorated. In addition to the military, approximately 10,000 civilians added to the already serious water, sewerage, food, and shelter problems. Air drops had limited success.


...in station one, USS Sarsfield DD-837 in station two, USS Biddle DLG-34 in station three, this ship in station four.



On 18 April, NVA anti-aircraft fire nearly downed another C-130. With the right wing burning, one engine out, and another on fire, the crew ditched the cargo and managed to crash land near Lai Khe.

Battle of Dong Hoi (19 April): In a desperate attempt to defend its coastline from Navy surface attacks, the North Vietnamese again struck back on 19 April. On that day, USS Oklahoma City CL-91, USS Higbee DD-806, and USS Lloyd Thomas DD-764 shelled targets along the North Vietnamese coast near Dong Hoi while USS Sterett DDG-104 provided air cover and spottign services for the three naval gunfire support ships. At about 1700, USS Sterett's radars pick up three hostile aircraft in the vicinity of Dong Hoi just as the the three naval gunfire suport ships were beginning to withdraw from the area. One of the planes, a MIG-17 flew by Nguyen Van Bay, made a low-level attack on USS Higbee, dropping a 550-pound bomb on the ship's aft 5-inch turret.

Fortunately, the turret had just been evacuated due to a hot round in the chamber, so no one was killed. As the MIG completed it's pass, USS Sterett fired a Terrier missile, which missed. A second Terrier downed the MIG. A second MIG flown by Le Xuan Di executed a 180-degree turn and headed back to the mountains. Sterett fired two more Terriers - assumed a kill as both the missile and MIG disappeared from radar simultaneously.

Ninety minutes later, Sterett ID'd two high-speed surface contacts. They were 9 miles away and paralleling Sterett's course and speed at 32 knots. Sterett fired her 5-inch guns. The contacts, a pair of P-6-type boats, disappeared from radar and were presumed destroyed. This was one of the largest surface engagements by naval ships in the VIetnam War.

That same day, off of Vinh, shrapnel from a 122-mm shell burst above the USS Buchanan DDG-14, killing one sailor and wounding 7 others. At the same time, two Shanghai-class gunboats emerged near Hon Matt Island and were immediately fired upon by USS George K. Mackenzie DD-836. The destroyer may have damaged one of the boats, which retreated soon after the shelling started.









By dawn on 21 April the allies were low on ammunition and the North Vietnamese were still pressing.


...Condition III watch section. 1336 Commenced firing MT52. 1337 ceased firing. 8 rounds VTNF expended. 1400 secured Condition III.



At the end of the day on 22 April the fighting simmered down. With the help from the US, the South Vietnamese had taken everything the enemy could give and still managed to fight to a draw.





After 22 April the North Vietnamese seemed to lose the will to sustain the level of attacks of the previous ten days. Intelligence reported that enemy units had dispersed into the country outside An Loc. But the fight was far from over. The defenders, now numbering less than 4,000, were still trapped in An Loc and the anti-aircraft ring was as deadly as ever. Artillery remained the single largest threat.

The South Vietnamese were unable to retake any lost ground and the enmy seemed to wron out to press its gains.









The Air Force then tried night drops. On 24 April seven C-130s headed for An Loc with lights out. All made it in safely and dropped their loads, but accuracy was marginal, and at night, stray pallets were more difficult to recover.





On 25 April eleven C-130s tried another night mission. The first four aircraft that rolled over the target were met by heavy anti-aircraft fire. One C-130 took several hits, quickly lost altitude, and crashed two miles south of the DZ, killing all onboard. All subsequent missions that night were called off, and ten additional missions were cancelled the following night due to inclement weather. Two drops were made on the 27th and most of the cargo was recovered. Both aircraft, however, suffered damage from enemy ground fire.

As the days slid by, the North Vietnamese dug in deeper and stepped up their shelling of the city. On 25 April enemy artillery targeted and destroyed the city hospital.

For the defenders, there was nothing to do but wait. Supplying the defenders was becoming an ever increasing challenge with a constant ring of fire from the dug-in North Vietnamese.

After 10 solid, hard days of steaming, Mullinnix makes it to Pearl Harbor on 26 April. Leaving the following morning.

On the night of 27 April, four oceangoing junks closed to 8,000 yards and fired at several naval gunfire support ships in the vicinity of Hon Me Island, North Vietnam. USS Richard B. Anderson DD-786 returned fire, sinking three and heavily damagin the fourth (see the Stars and Stripes article below).

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DEATH HITS MULLINNIX!

Mullinnix suffered her only loss of the war on 28 April, with the tragic loss of our shipmate Jackie Lee Garrion. RIP Sailor, we've got the watch!

On the same date, the culmination of the MR I battle occurred. During the night, 40,000 NVA troops with 50 tanks made their final advance into Quang Tri against an ARVN of only 13,000. The attack was beaten off and resulted in five tanks destroyed. Still, air power alone could not save Quang Tri.

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On 29 April the NVA fired the first SA-7, a shoulder-fired surface-to-air missile, at U.S. aircraft in Quang Tri Province near the DMZ. With the possibility of SA-7s near An Loc, the return of low-level resupply operations was unthinkable.

Mullinnix is denied permission to tie up to the pier at Midway on the evening of 29 April, due to darkness. She anchors out at night and refuels the following morning. Then heads to Guam.


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Stars & Stripes

Navy Gunners Sink 3 N. Viet Attackers

Saturday, 29 April, 1972


Saigon (AP) – North Vietnamese forces renewed their attack below the demilitarized zone Thursday, U.S. Navy ships battled patrol boats in the Tonkin Gulf and American fighter-bombers flew more strikes inside North Vietnam.

The U.S. Command said three North Vietnamese patrol boats were sunk and a fourth heavily damaged Wednesday after they attacked the cruiser Oklahoma City and the destroyers Richard B. Anderson and Gurke. The U.S. ships were not damaged, the command said.

North Vietnamese tanks, artillery and infantry opened the fifth week of Hanoi's big offensive with attacks on four sides of Quang Tri City, South Vietnam's northernmost provincial capital, 19 miles below the DMZ.

A tank and infantry battle erupted five to six miles northwest of the threatened city. The South Vietnamese command claimed eight North Vietnamese tanks were destroyed and 70 enemy soldiers killed. It reported seven South Vietnamese soldiers killed and 12 wounded but no South Vietnamese tanks were lost.

In the central highlands, the battlefront remained generally quiet for the third day. But on the central coast enemy troops increased pressure on the district town of Bong Son with mortar and rocket attacks and threatened to take over the entire northern sector of Binh Dinh Province, the least pacified in South Vietnam.

Other North Vietnamese forces kept up the 22-day old siege of An Loc, 60 miles north of Saigon, with a 1,500-round artillery attack that killed 10 South Vietnamese and wounded 65. New assaults were launched against the district town of Dau Tieng, 30miles southwest of An Loc.

U.S. military sources said American fighter bombers attacked supply depots, roads and bridges inside North Vietnam, but the raids were below the 20th parallel. The parallel is about 225 miles north of the DMZ and 55 miles south of Haiphong.

The North Vietnamese Foreign Ministry charged that American planes attacked the seven coastal provinces to within 50 miles of Haiphong.

The U.S. Command announced that American fighter-bombers flew 461 strikes against enemy positions in South Vietnam Wednesday and Thursday.

The northern front below the DMZ exploded after several weeks of comparative quiet during which the South Vietnamese forces had been holding a defensive line along the Cua Viet-Dong Ha River 10 miles below the DMZ.


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MAY

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The early part of May was focused on numerous attempts to drop supplies into An Loc, again with limited success. On 1 May, 132 American advisors were evacuated from the besieged city, as allied F-4s deliver every type of ordnance in a desperate bid to stall the VC advance.

May was an extremely busy month for the U.S. Navy in Vietnam. The USS Chicago, a cruiser shot down an enemy aircraft with a Talos surface-to-air missile off the coast of North Vietnam. Dubbed Operation Pocket Money, the operations was the mining of North Vietnam harbors and was a resounding success. From May until December 1972, no large supply ships entered the Communist harbors.

Meanwhile, Mullinnix misses 1 May, as she crosses the International Date Line. WTFO? Nonetheless, she continues to steam towards Guam.

On the night of 2 May a C-130 was lost when it nicked the treetops just beyond the drop zone and cartwheeled into a low ridge east of An Loc.










An advanced high-altitude low-opening (HALO) system had been in the experimental stages but as of yet had not been tired in Vietnam due to a lack of qualified personnel. On 4 May, the first HALO mission to An Loc was attempted with a flight of C-130s dropping 24 bundles at altitudes varing from 6,000 to 9,000 feet. All but one were recovered by the defenders. The next day, 88 tons of supplies were dropped, but only half recovered. By 7 May, the success record had increased to 94%.



...commenced gunnary exercise 1352 secured from GQ set condition II Blue Team. Mr. Filka assumed the deck 1531 Maneuvering to







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Stars & Stripes

Midway, On The Job, Early, Aids Defenders Of An Loc

Sunday, May 7, 1972


Southern Carrier Station – The aircraft carrier Midway, on the firing line for less than a week, has adjusted to its combat role in support of South Vietnamese ground troops even though it was pulled out of port a month and half before schedule to beef up the 7th Fleet Strike Force.

One of five carriers supplying tactical air and bombing sorties for ARVN forces, the Midway steamed from Alameda, Calif., April 10.

It was originally earmarked for departure to the South China Sea on May 26. Even as the carrier was making its way across the Pacific, pilots were practicing for combat missions.

Despite the abrupt departure, Cmdr. Carroll E. Myers, 42, commander of the air wing and head of all fighter-bomber squadrons aboard the ship, feels his men are performing as if they had been on station for a few weeks.

Myers, a resident of Lemoore, Calif., admitted, however, the first night recovery in more than five months will probably make the adrenalin surge as pilots place their plane on a pitching deck with only the help of an electrical spotting device and a few words from the landing safety officer.

Yet, once the squadrons are accustomed to both daylight and night missions, there can be no letup, according to the commander. "A good leader can anticipate a slump and do something about it. You have to stay with it. A carrier pilot can't relax."

To date, strikes from the Midway have been aimed at Military Region III, including targets around the embattled city of An Loc. With its arsenal of F4 Phantoms, A6 Intruders and A7 Corsairs, the Midway has been helping to pound North Vietnamese troop concentrations and supply lines.

Some pilots on the carrier have encountered communist tanks and attacked them with bombs.

"Yes, there are differences between the missions we were flying our last cruise and the ones we're flying this time," says Lt. Charles Hokanson, 26, a Corsair pilot of two years. "But we're professionals and we know the odds. We take pride in knowing what to do and when to do it."

"In a lot of ways," says the pilot, "the earlier departure was easier for us. When you're in port your wife is always looking at the calendar and thinking of the date you're set to leave. Goodbyes this time were easier."

At full strength, there will be six carriers off the coast of Vietnam, as opposed to two which were on station before the NVA offensive last month.

"When the Saratoga arrives, it will be the most amount of naval power put together since World War II," says Rear Adm. John L. Butts, commander of Carrier Div. 1.

Other carriers in the fleet are the Coral Sea, Constellation, Kitty Hawk and Hancock.


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BREAKING THE SIEGE

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Mullinnix continues her long journey (she is in Guam on 7 May), steaming towards Subic Bay, Phillipines @ 20+ knots, still in the company of USS Biddle DLG-34, USS Glennon DD-840, and USS Sarsfield DD-837. Combined, 15 5"-barrels - NO waiting!!!


...between ships is 1,000 yards.









Most of the advisors knew it was only a matter of time before the SA-7 heat-seeking surface-to-air missle - known as the strela - would appear around An Loc. The first Stela was spotted by a FAC just after midnight on 9 May, though TRAC was careful to treat the sighting as "unconfirmed." They knew the missile would change the face of helicpoter tactics.

The fleet's surface combatants also helped deny the enemy unhindered use of the inland coastal areas. On 10 May the 8-inch guns of heavy cruiser Newport News bombarded targets near Hanoi from a position off Do Son while guided missile cruisers Oklahoma City and Providence and three destroyers suppressed the enemy's counter-battery fire from the peninsula. Normally three or four U.S. ships made up the surface action group that cruised along the coast ready to provide air-spotted or direct fire.

By the morning of 11 May the reports became "confirmed" and the Strela lived up to expectations. Anything flying below 10,000 feet - the outside range of the SA-7 - was fair game. The missile left a telltale trail of white smoke as it spiraled up toward its intended victim so an alert pilot could dodge the thing before it flew up his tailpipe.

The NVA launched their last major ground assault on 10 May. At 0030 on 11 May heavy artillery fire directed against An Loc removed all doubt about VC/NVA intentions. Over 8,300 rounds of artillery slammed into An Loc on 11 May. The barrage was so heavy that to leave your bunker was "certain death". The sound of exploding rounds melted together in a single rolling roar. At about 0430 it all stopped, abruptly. The defenders knew that the dreaded ground attack was about to begin. At 0500 a combined tank and infantry attack struck with furyf from all sides. The forceful attack was met by a spirited and effective defense. A 500-man battalion was threatening to overrun the 36th Ranger Battalion, and was hit by "Daisy Cutters" dropped 200 meters in front of them. The resulting blasts halted the attack and turned back the hostile troops.

B-52 strikes were scheduled every 55 minutes. Finally, ARVN troops began tearing apart enemy tanks with their M-72 light antitank weapons (LAWs), destroying seven of these large tanks. Army Cobras equipped with 2.75-inch rockets took out another four. A flight of four F-4s put 22 out of 28 bombs on an NVA concentration, killing 150 enemy troops in the process. At 1630, the battle for An Loc was still raging.





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Somewhat wore out but ready to get into the fight ASAP, Mullinnix pulls into Subic Bay on 11 May. Several days are planned to make final preparations for spending many days on the gunline. The crew wat fully aware of the number of US ships that had been attached, hit, and the resultant deaths. A heightened awareness, concern, and worry was evident on their faces.

Going on liberty to get drunk before going to war? What’s that all about? I felt like I would go mad. When I drank, my dreams went to a place where dreams go and wait two or three days before they bloomed again. Cold sweat dripped down the small of my back. Dirt the color of bright rust. God help me, I missed NEBRASKA.






1972 - Mullinnix in Subic Bay, PI. MT52 is Ready!!!

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On 11 May, as the 32nd Regiment of the 21st Division was launching a new offensive north of Chon Thanh, the 9th Division's 15th Regiment, reinforced with the 9th Armored Squadron, arrived.

On the morning of 12 May, a maximum amount of aerial strike support worked to blunt intensified ground attacks and to reduce the two enemy held salients. That night, heavy attacks continued, spearheaded by tanks.

On 14 May, the 15th was ordered to send one company from the 2nd Bataliion into An Loc to reinforce the garrison. However, due to heavy anti-aircraft fire, the helicopters wer unable to land and had to return to Lai Khe. That afternoon, by order of the 21st Division, the 15th Regiment became Task Force 15 (TF-15) consisting of 1/15, 2/15, 3/15 Battalions, 15th Reconnaisance Company, 9th Armored Squadron, one 105mm battery and one 155mm platoon.

Also on 14 May, a USAF 0-2 aircrat over An Loc was shot down by an SA-7, STRELA missile, the 2nd confirmed hit on a USAF aircraft in 3 days. New procedures had to be instituted in the SA-7 threat area.

While the shelling of An Loc continued at an extradordinary rate -- 3025 rounds on 13 May, 2038 on 14 May, 2690 on 15 May, 1980 on 16 May --- the VC/NVA ground attacks on the city decreased in frequency, intensity, and duration. Fortunately, with the arrival of USS Saratoga CV-3 and Marine Aircraft Group 12, additional air resources began flying over MR III in early May.

The next day, 15 May, the 1st Battalion of the 15th ARVN Regiment (1/15), reinforced with the 9th Armored Squadron and Battery 95C, launched an eastern envelopment by seizing Ngoc Lau, east of Route 13, and reached Tan Khai without incident.

Hang on boys, the "Mighty Mux" is almost there...







The USS Mullinnix DD-944 arrived off the coast of South Vietnam on Tuesday, 16 May (16 May Deck Log is Here). She had been steaming since leaving Norfolk on 12 April. At times, it seemed to the crew the closer they got to Vietnam the more U.S. ships were being attacked. It was a relief in someways to finally be on the gun-line to see first hand what they had been reading about in Stars and Stripes for over 3 weeks. 35 days of steaming!!! Finally, it was time to get to work.

On 16 May, 2/15 Battalion air assaulted into Bau Nat village, 1,500 meters east of Tan Khai, then linked up with the 1/15. Afterward, TF-15 headquarters, plus one combined 105mm and 155mm battery, were heliborne into Tan Khai to establish FSB Long Phi. The situation in An Loc began to look much brighter. Despite the continued shelling, the defenders had beaten back yet another desperate attack by the NVA. The aerial resupply effort had hit its stride. An effot was made to reestablish artillery support in the area. The NVA attack launched on 11 May had finally ground to a stop.

On 17 May, The 33rd Regiment column was repeatedly engaged by the enemy forces and sustained heavy casualties. In a period of only fifteen days, the regiment suffered 50 KIA and 300 WIA. Meanwhile, Marine Air Group 12 began to arrive at Bien Hoa Air Base. From 20-23 May, tank and infantry attacks tended to move south of An Loc, but heavy artillery continued to fall on the town itself.





On 18 May, TF-15, reinforced with the 9th Armored Squadron on the est and the 33rd Regiment minus the 21st Division, on the east, using Tan Khai as the line of departure, began to move northward in an effort to link up with the besieged captal city of Binh Long. NVA had started shelling FSB Long Phi.

On 18 May, Mullinnix hosted 5 news reporters to record the fire-power of the "Mighty Mux"! On a personal note, I'm in the video - just saying... Did she show off? Oh...just 420 rounds fired! But, they hadn't seen nothing yet...


(Unknown Date) Courtesy FTG3 Dennis "Ski" Wenske

On 19 May, TF-15 made contact with the enemy as it was about to enter Duc Vinh 2 hamlet. In the next few days, the enemy tried to close in on the untis of TF-15, staying within 50 memers of ARVN positions, while pounding them with mortars and rockets (the Communists called this the "grab the belts" tactic). At the same time, NVA forces started to surround and bombard FSB Long Phi with increasing intensity. Faced with this new threat to its rear, the 1/15 Battalion was dispatched to reinforce the defense of the strategic Long Phi base, which not only provided fire support to the attacking forces, but also served as the logistical and medical evacuation base for the defenders of An Loc.

Due to strong anti-aircraft fire, TF-15 had to be supplied by parachute drops. On 22 May, when the task forece reached an area about one kilometer south of Thanh Binh, it was surrounded and attacked by NVA forces. The situation became very critical as the number of wounded and dead kept mounting. The lightly wounded soldiers stayed at their positions to fight off the enemy assaults while the dead had to be buried on the spot.

As a result of mounting casualties on both sides, a tacit agreement was reached. It called for a cease-fire at the end of each day to allow for the dead to be buried and the wounded to be evacuated to the rear.

On 23 May, the NVA launched a tank attack with 6 to 8 tank, moving slowly north in column without infantry or artillery support. At 0600, they managed to break through the friendly lines. They were engaged by F-4 fighter aircraft with 500-pound bombs, and several of the tanks were destroyed. ARVN soldiers knocked out the rest.

On 24 May, the 9th Armored was ambushed by NVA 141st REgiment, 7th Division. Suffering heavy losses, they had to return to Long Phi Base to be reeequiped and reorganized.

On 25 May, after having consolidated a new base about one kilomeeter south of Thanh Binh, TF-15 continued its northward progression. It was attacked by the enemy and had to stop and defend in place. In the meantime, the 33rd Regiment moving towards An Loc, was stopped by furious resistance from NVA blocking forces.

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Stars & Stripes

Stilwell Predicts Hue, An Loc Will Not Fall

Saturday, May 27, 1972


Augusta, GA (AP) – Hue will not fall, nor will An Loc, Lt. Gen. Richard G. Stilwell, deputy chief of staff for military operations, said Thursday.

Stilwell, addressing a civic club luncheon during Armed Forces Day, said he doubted "if even Kontum will ever be taken."

"There will be battles won and lost during the long hot summer ahead, but we have already witnessed, in my estimate, the high tide of Communist advance in South Vietnam," said Stilwell.

Stilwell, the senior Army member of the military staff committee of the United Nations, pointed to the "staggering battle losses of the North Vietnamese army, the destruction of his war-fighting infrastructure, his isolation from external supplies and the uncertainties in Hanoi..."

He said this led him to the conclusion that the offensive, once its course has been run, "will not reoccur and that Vietnamization will have passed its final test."

Stilwell was chief of staff in Vietnam in 1964 under Gen. William C. Westmoreland, chief of staff of the U.S. Army, and was in Vietnam in 1968 as deputy commanding general of the 12th Marine amphibious force.



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Stars & Stripes

Lt. Bags MIG19 On 1st Mission, Cures Nervousness

Saturday, May 27, 1972

by Donald Bremner


Aboard The USS Midway Off North Vietnam – Lt. Pat Arwood told how he cured his nervousness on his first mission over North Vietnam by bagging a MIG19 that was about to draw a bead on his wingman.

"I have no qualms about going back now," Arwood said. "I've seen that you don't instantly die when somebody starts shooting at you. You just use your training."

A few seconds after his Sidewinder heat-seeking missile exploded in the tailpipe of the North Vietnamese MIG, another MIG19 was downed by his wingman, Lt. Bart Bartholomay, 27, of Winnetka, Ill.

The two pilots described the "classic two-on-two dogfight" near Haiphong in an interview aboard the Midway, one of the American carriers on the line launching air strikes against North Vietnam from the Gulf of Tonkin.

"I'm on my first cruise, and it was my first time across the beach (into North Vietnam)," said Arwood, 26 of Lynchburg, VA. "It was in support of a pretty big operation. I was nervous before I took off."

In their F4 Phantoms Arwood and Bartholomay were flying cover against enemy MIGs for a large attack by planes from the Midway on strikes in the Haiphong area.

They spotted two MIG19s northwest of Haiphong and engaged them in a five-minute dogfight ...countered, and everything they did, we countered," Bartholomay said. "It was a question of who would make the first mistake.

"We turned behind them, and finally Pat got a pretty good shot at one, but his missile missed. For the next few minutes, we were in the 6 o"clock position (straight behind the MIGs)."

Bartholomay was chasing one MIG, while Arwood, above and behind his wingman, was chasing the other.

In a sort of one-fish-about-to-swallow-the-other sequence, the rearmost MIG was drawing within range of Bartholomay's Phantom getting ready to launch a heat-seeking missile. But when he leveled out to fire, he was a good target for Arwood's Sidewinder.

The tail of the MIG exploded, and the pilot bailed out.

"I thought, "that's really neat,"" Arwood said. "It was more a matter-of-fact thing, because that's the way you expect it to turn out. I had a sense of relief when my missile hit because he was after Bart."

A few seconds later, Bartholomay got a good shot, fired a Sidewinder, and saw it blow up the tail of the second MIG.

"I broke off to rejoin Pat and I didn't see any chute," Bartholomay said.

The two pilots refused to discuss aerial tactics in detail. They said the MIG pilots were good.

"We happened to come up against two good pilots who knew their planes fairly well," Bartholomay said. "They were afraid of us, but they fought well. I respect them highly.

"They made some mistakes, some pretty gross ones, but recovered from those in time. But then they both made mistakes at the same time.

"Once we got engaged, our training paid off. We knew just what to do and how to do it. It was a classic two-on-two dogfight, and it turned out just as advertised.""

With him in the two-seat ... Oran Brown 29, of Flagstaff, Ariz. Arwood"s radarman was Lt. Michael Bell, 25 of Sacramento, Calif.

The two MIGs were the first shop down by Midway planes during the current stepped-up air attacks. But the score is not one-sided. One of the Midway's A7 bombers was shot down the next day over North Vietnam. A parachute was seen, but the pilot was out of range of would-be rescuers. Other planes on the hangar deck showed damage from antiaircraft fire.


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Stars & Stripes

Jets Rain Death On Attackers

Tuesday, May 30, 1972

by Spec. 4 Ken Schultz


My Chanh, Vietnam – U.S. Air Force fighter bombers reacted quickly to a North Vietnamese ground attack here early Saturday and halted the Communist advance less than 300 yards from the South Vietnamese Marine defenders.

The jets streaked in only 15 minutes after the Communist attack started, and broke the back of the assault with their deadly accurate bombing.

Two battalions from the North Vietnamese Army's 66th and 88th Regiments, driving from the west, pushed within the Marines' primary defenses as jets placed a protective shield of ordnance between the ARVN and Red troops.

One jet dropped a 750-pound bomb so close to South Vietnamese troop positions that it was feared several Marines had been killed. Field reconnaissance later in the day confirmed that only NVA soldiers had been hit, and that their casualties were heavy.

The ARVN division command estimated that at least 40 NVA soldiers were killed in the close-in fighting Saturday and that many more dead as a result of air strikes. Marine casualties were listed as light.

There was some mortar and artillery fire leveled against the Marines before the attack began, but it was not a real threat, according to the American adviser to the Marines here.

"They just tip us off that an attack is coming by the artillery. The heavy stuff goes on while the troops are getting into position," said the American Marine captain.

As the tide of the battle turned against the Communists, spotter planes detected troops carrying antiaircraft guns and heavy equipment northward about a mile from the battle on Highway 1, the adviser said.

The ARVN command reported that four tanks were knocked out in a skirmish in the area of My Chanh. Four South Vietnamese troops were killed and 12 wounded in the action.

But the fighting that has been raging near this village 20 miles northwest of Hue for the past week, although not giving much ground to the South Vietnamese, has been chopping up Communist forces.


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Stars & Stripes

Navy Takes Viet War Ball And Runs With It

Tuesday, May 30, 1972

by Patrick J. Killen


Saigon (UPI) – The change was apparent after a day at sea.

We were a few miles off the coast of North Vietnam aboard the cruiser Oklahoma City, flagship of the 7th Fleet.

"You know," a correspondent said, "it is sort of like the Army-Navy football game. It was the Army's game for a long time. But now the Navy has the ball. You can feel it."

The mood was indeed different. Professionals were on the job. Rotation schedules were junked. Ships recalled. Minor repairs forgotten.

The "new Navy began to get its sea legs shortly after the March 30 attack by Communist troops across the demilitarized zone (DMZ), dividing the two Vietnams.

By April 6, Navy fighter bombers were hitting targets in North Vietnam and destroyers were bombarding installations which had been "off limits" for more than three years.

On May 9, President Nixon announced his plan to mine the entrances to the harbors and waters of the Communist north. It was an all Navy show and top brass in Washington and on "Yankee Station" insist it has been effective.

Vice Adm. William P. Mack, outgoing commander of the 7th Fleet, told newsmen May 22 daily reconnaissance flights and photograph of Haiphong Harbor had convinced him "no ship is going in or out to our knowledge, and certainly the ones claimed by the North Vietnamese to have gone in or out, have not."

May 10 was a day of spectaculars for the new Navy.

Three cruisers, led by the Newport News with her eight-inch guns, and two destroyers pulled close to North Vietnamese coast and hit targets only four miles from Haiphong in what the Navy called "the first multi-cruiser gunfire action since World War II."

Navy publicists began calling the Newport News "the fastest gun in the West" and the Oklahoma City "the gray ghost of the Vietnam Coast."

On the same day, Navy Lt. Randy Cunningham (of San Diego) and his radar intercept officer, Lt. (J.G.) William Driscoll (of Framingham, Mass.) flying an F4 Phantom from the carrier Constellation, shot down three Communist MIGs to become the first "aces" of the war with a total of five Communist planes.

On May 13 and May 24, Navy Amphibious units landed South Vietnamese Marines in two commando raids on Communist-held Quang Tri Province while cruisers and destroyers softened up the defenses.

Capt. J.D. Ward, skipper of the carrier Constellation which was recalled to the Tonkin Gulf while en route home to San Diego, summed up the thinking of the fleet's senior officers this way:

"We are fighting to win now."

Ward stepped out of his captain's chair on the bridge, took off his blue baseball cap and said, "I can't overemphasize how pleased I am personally, as I think the ship and the air wing are, about the turn of the war up here. The president's recent action impresses me as an attempt to win the war."

According to a 7th Fleet handbook, "in August, 1964, two fleet destroyers (C. Turner Joy and Maddox) were attacked by gunboats in the Tonkin Gulf…that act triggered involvement in the Vietnam War."

During the next four years, the fleet grew to 200 ships, including five carriers which regularly sent pilots over North and South Vietnam.

But the fighting was on the ground, in the Ia Drang Valley, at Khe Sanh and Hamburger Hill. With more than 500,000 American militarymen inside South Vietnam, the Navy played a supporting role.

The Nixon doctrine and Vietnamization and the withdrawal of American combat soldiers has now thrust the Air Force and the Navy into key roles.

Vice Admiral James L. "Jim" Holloway III is the son of the admiral who developed the "Holloway Plan," an educational program which provided college education for hundreds of Naval officers.

A young destroyer officer during World War II and a Navy flier during the Korean War, Holloway assumed command of the 7th Fleet on May 23. Only 50, he stands a good chance of eventually making it to the top as chief of naval operations.

He told newsmen his men felt they now had "the authority to do the real job instead of just plugging holes in the dike."

Holloway said, "I just think that what is indicative is that we've never been able to mine before and now we are mining. There is a determination to be more aggressive in a total package.

"If you mine and don't destroy the stocks, you've only got half a loaf. But if you mine and interdict and destroy supply dumps, than you have got a total approach to the problem. That, to me, is really the sense. The mining is the real indicator."

Since March 30, the 7th Fleet has grown to 130 ships with half of them on station off Vietnam. The fleet has six attack carriers (Constellation, Coral Sea, Midway, Hancock, Saratoga and Kitty Hawk) and a seventh, the Ticonderoga, is en route to the Western Pacific. There are about 700 aircraft, five cruisers (Oklahoma City, Newport News, Providence, Chicago and Long Beach and 45 destroyers.

On a day-to-day basis, the Navy keeps some 65 ships on "Yankee Station" off Vietnam. That usually includes three to five cruisers, four to five carriers and 35 destroyers. The total manpower involved in approximately 41,000 including 5,000 Marines. For the entire fleet there are 83,000 men of whom 27,000 are Marines.

Adm. Bernard A. Clarey, the commander-in-chief of the Pacific Fleet termed the 7th Fleet "the most powerful of its kind since the end of World War II and surely the most versatile in the history of naval warfare."

Speaking to the officers and men, Clarey said, "There has got to be a feeling of pride and outstanding achievement touching anyone who has anything to do with this incomparable 7th Fleet. In fact it is hard to recall a time where or when the meaning of total sea power, its responsiveness, versatility, flexibility and most of all, its purely unique dependability, has been demonstrated so clearly and so courageously as here in the Tonkin Gulf these past few weeks.


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Stars & Stripes

Radarman Helps Slay MIGs

Wednesday, May 31, 1972


USS Biddle, Yankee Station – Although he works hunched over a radar screen in the darkened war room aboard this destroyer in the Gulf of Tonkin, Radarman 1.C. Gerald Kronvall has played as important a role in downing MIGs over North Vietnam as the pilots who fly the missions.

Only six days after the Biddle joined 7th Fleet operations in the gulf Kronvall, a native of Pasadena, Tex., directed Navy aircraft to score their third and fourth successful intercepts of Communist jets.

On May 17 the Biddle's first full day on Yankee Station, the radarman guided two Navy fighters from the carrier USS Midway into an intercept position that resulted in the destruction of two MIG 19s approximately 30 miles northeast of Hanoi, when they threatened a bombing mission over the north.

Last Wednesday, air patrol planes from the Midway, assisted by Kronvall, shot down two MIG17s after an aerial duel and pursuit by U.S. jets.

When the American aircraft had gained visual contact with the enemy they reported four to six MIGs in the dogfight.

Two of the Russian-made jets were downed, strengthening Kronvall's bid to become an "ace" intercept controller.



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JUNE

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Fighting Is Heavy Near Site of My Lai Killings

Communist Tank Massacres 100 Women, Children

Saturday, June 3, 1972


Saigon (UPI) – U.S. pilots in raids over North Vietnam Friday downed a Communist MIG19 jet near Hanoi, destroyed ground installations and bridges and damaged scores of vehicles, military spokesmen said Saturday. On the ground in South Vietnam, spokesmen said government troops killed nearly 360 Communist forces in heavy fighting along the central coast that included a major battle near the site of the 1968 My Lai massacre.

U.S. spokesmen said American airmen flew 250 missions over the North and that an Air Force F4 Phantom fighter-bomber shot down the MIG as it rose to challenge them 40 miles north of Hanoi. It was the 146th MIG downed over the north and the 35th this year, sources said. Navy pilots reported destroying 6 buildings and 5 railroad cars in a storage area 28 miles northwest of Vinh, about 190 miles above the demilitarized zone (DMZ). Navy pilots reported destroying or damaging 31 trucks in a strike 12 miles from the southernmost major port of Dong Hoi, 38 miles above the DMZ and spokesmen said Phantom bombs cut both approaches to the Phu Ly highway bridge 30 miles southeast of Hanoi.

U.S. pilots also reported destroying or damaging 9 bridges, 41 trucks and 36 ‘surface craft’. Meanwhile, an U.S. adviser back from An Loc said he witnessed a Communist tank massacre 100 women and children inside a church in the besieged city. Later that day, he said, North Vietnamese artillery opened up on a hospital and killed all its occupants.

One Day in April

Army Capt. Harold Moffett, Nashville, Tenn., who spent 53 days in the battered provincial capital, told UPI correspondent Barney Seibert that one day in mid-April, “I personally saw a Russian-built tank go into a church where services were being held and kill 100 people – women and children.” That night, Moffett said, wounded soldiers and civilians were moved into a “clearly marked hospital. The North Vietnamese blew it away with mortar and artillery fire and killed every last one of the people inside.”


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Rest After a Hard Day of Battle

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On 6 June, the 6th Airborne Battalion - reinforced with the remaining 1,000 replacements for the units defending An Loc - was heavily engaged by the enemy just north of Due Vinh. They succeeded in destroying the enemy blocking positions with relatively limited casualties. The following day, they renewed their progression toward An Loc.

On 8 June, in probably the most spectacular action of the rescuing operation, the 6th Airborne Battalion cleared the remaining 2 kilometers to Thanh Binh and finally linked up when the 62nd Company of the 6th BGattalion shook hands with the 81st Company of the 8th Battalion at 1745. That historic handshake marked the beginning of the end of the siege of An Loc.

Strong communist forces remained around An Loc during June, but ARVN relief forces were making a slow approach toward the city along Route 13. On 11 June VNAF helicopters began bringing replacements into An Loc, and between 13-14 June, U.S. Army choppers lifted 1,400 fresh troops into the besieged city. Beginning on 18 June, the defenders slowly pushed out of the rubble that had once been An Loc and the South Vietnamese Command declared the siege over, despite the fact that Highway 13 remained closed. The South Vietnamese and their U.S. allies were able to withstand a massive assault by the NVA and save the city of An Loc.

On 8 June, 1st Battalion, 48th Regiment, from TF 52 succesfully eliminated enemy forces from the northeast salient. On 12 June, the 7th Regiment wa successful in driving enemy forces from the western salient.

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9 June (Friday) 1972 (South Vietnam gunline)

Dear Mom, Dad, Sue
Sorry I haven’t written for so long. But the longer you’re out here the less you feel like doing. We haven’t shot for about 3 days. We just sit and watch B52s and Phantoms bomb the beach. We leave the gunline the 20th and get into Subic on 22 June. Only 11 more days on the line. I’ll be glad to leave. We’ll be back in for 6 days then come back here for another month or so. I’ll have about $800 this time in. I’m buying everything except my speakers. My set up will be quadasonic instead of stereo (4-way instead of 2-way). I belong to the “Record Club of American”. The album average about $2.50 apiece. That’s a little better than $5 or $6 apiece. Haven’t heard from Larry for awhile. Still no word on when we’ll be back. Anywhere from September to January. We’ve shot about 6,000 rounds already. I wish I had a glass of milk. Write soon! Love, Frank

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By the Associated Press

U.S. Raiders Start Fires in Oil, Coal

Wednesday, June 11, 1972


Smoke and flame towered over North Vietnam’s coast from exploded oil and coal storage after raids by American planes over a 300-mile strip, U.S. officials in Saigon said Saturday.

Fighter-bombers struck more than 300 times Friday from the demilitarized zone north to Haiphong, dropping bridges, demolishing warehouses, sinking barges and crippling other targets, spokesmen reported.

In addition, the U.S. Command said B52s bombed both sides of Dong Joi, 40 miles north of the DMZ, where war materials were stored.

Carrier-based Navy pilots reported a bright orange fire ball, followed by 6 secondary explosions and 6 fires, engulfed much of the Hong Gai coal storage area, 23 miles northeast of Haiphong.

Oil Dept Hit


A mile from the port of Thanh Hoa, Navy fliers said an oil depot was rocked with 10 secondary blasts.

B52s also struck near Saigon, where a series of clashes has occurred.

Military sources said North Vietnamese troops fought government units Friday a t Moc Hoa, south of the Cambodian border about 50 miles west of Saigon.

A top Vietnamese military source predicted that if the weather holds a 64-day siege at An Loc, 60 miles north of Saigon, will be broken by Monday. Government troops are pressing up Highway 13 toward An Loc.

On the northern front government spokesmen reported two clashes 8 miles south of Hue east of Fire Base Bastogne. They said attacking North Vietnamese suffered 128 killed, including 68 dead from air strikes.

They said major arms caches were found, including 30,000 rifle and machine-gun rounds.

Push Continues


Associated Press correspondent Richard Blystone reported that a push over the My Chanh River by South Vietnamese marines and another advance by paratroops northwest of Hue were continuing, but both operations had slowed.

A communiqué listed casualties Friday and Saturday along the Hue northern line as 227 enemy killed, eight tanks destroyed, two SA7 heat-seeking missiles captured, seven South Vietnamese killed and 27 wounded.

U.S. military sources confirmed reports of a week-old crash of a chartered Nationalist Chinese aircraft, with 14 Americans, 11 Vietnamese and 6 Chinese missing. It was learned that the troops were engage in clandestine operations in the central highlands.

In a political development, the South Vietnamese lower house rejected a bill to give President Nguyen Van Thieu far-reaching emergency powers.



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On 12 June, the last of the VC/NVA were driven from the town itself and on 14 June, reinforcement of An Loc with 1650 fresh troops by US helicopter was completed. With things seemingly under control, the siege was declared "over" on 18 June.

By mid-June, An Loc was secure enough for visits from VIPs. However, the battle of An Loc was not over yet, the city was still cut off from the south. On 23 June, the 46th Regiment had made it through to An Loc along QL-13. ARVN sources reported that the enemy had anticipated an ARVN force coming south from An Loc to aid the relief force. Two B-52 strikes, 15 minutes apart, had been planned for the area and the results were devastating. Caught in the open and without warning, the NVA force simply dissolved. Over 700 AR LIGHT missions were flown in April and May, primarily in support of An Loc.

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14 June, 1972 (South Vietnam gunline)

Dear Mom, Dad, Sue
I got your letters dated the 5th and 6th day before yesterday. And the one dated the 8th today. That’s not to bad. We got shot at twice night before last (12 June) [Deck Logs say 13 June]. The 1st one missed our stack by a few feet, went right over us. Too close for comfort.

We pull into Subic the 18th instead of the 22nd (June). And stay for 3 weeks (Untrue on my part). That will be a much-needed break for everybody. Then back out here. We’re supposed to go to Japan for sure and maybe Hong Kong and Australia on the way back. That will be good liberty.

It doesn’t rain very often, but when it rains it pours. You wouldn’t believe it, you can’ t even see the other side of the ship. To bad about Andy, but that’s the way the service treats you, he’d better get use to it. I hope Nebraska can pull #1 one more time then I’ll be satisfied. Everybody on the ship is against me of course, but I’m use to that. I’ll get Mom a present (for birthday) & Dad one for Father’s day. They’ll be a little late, but they will be there. Write soon and take care. Love, Frank

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JULY

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2 July Saigon (UPI) - ar to the South, Viet Cong guerrillas closed in on a provincial capital within a 3-hour drive of Saigon and government forces reported a 24-hour artillery-ground battle near An Loc, 60 miles north of Saigon.

On 17 July, the 3rd Battalion, 48th Regiment, was ordered to capture Hill 169. On the way to the objective, they saw many foxholes and bunkers that had been recently abandoned by the enemy. As they arrived at the edge of a rubber plantaion, they came under heavy artillery fire from the NW and 82mm mortar fire from the east. By 27 July, the enemy was eliminated rom Hill 169, the only survivor raised his hands in surrender.

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After the ARVN's victory in Kontum in May, the recapture of Quang Tri and the liberation of An Loc in September, Hanoi finally realized they had lost the 1972 Easter Offensive. Their best divisions had been convincingly defeated - some of them badly mauled - by the South Vietnamese Army. The debacle of the NVA's Nguyen Hue campaign pushed Hanoi to sign the Paris Peace Agreement in January 1973 to save what was left of its invading army from attacks by ARVN units and bombardments by the USAF and VNAF. However, peace was only considered 'breathing space' to be used to prepare for a new invasion.



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