Royalist incursion starves PAVN division into retreat. They removed 70, but received battle damage from heavy ground fire to five helicopters, and aborted the mission. [9], White Battalion was now lifted into Vang Tai. In and around the village, NVA arms, supplies, and storage areas had been destroyed. Operation Junction City was an 82-day military operation conducted by United States and Republic of Vietnam forces begun on 22 February 1967 during the Vietnam War. Dommen, Arthur J., Chapter 1. Operation JUNCTION CITY was a large "search-and-destroy" operation of the Vietnam War, starting on February 21, 1967 and lasting for 72 days. Despite the size of the operation, only fifty-four VC were killed versus twenty-eight dead GIs. Given the increasing communist antiaircraft weaponry opposing them, the need for rice to feed local populace, and fear of communist counterattacks in reprisal, only ten percent of the crops were sprayed. Four U.S. divisions, as well as additional brigades, are involved in a massive search and destroy mission, along the Cambodian Border. The offensive began with Operation Junction City, where the American units assigned had destroyed hundreds of tons of rice, killed 720 guerrillas, and captured 213 prisoners. [20] Besides diverting manpower and supplies from North Vietnamese operations to engage the Lao forces, the PAVN was forced to extend its defensive perimeter further west from the Ho Chi Minh Trail and occupy more of the Lao panhandle. A cache of 2,000 small arms and copious documentation were also captured. Operation Junction City Jr. was a major Laotian offensive of the Vietnam War; initially aimed at temporary disruption of the Ho Chi Minh Trail, it was extended into an attempt to isolate the major North Vietnamese communist transshipment point at Tchepone from the units it was supposed to supply. Gerard Forken ©Stars and Stripes South Vietnam, 1967: Soldiers from 3rd Brigade, 4th Infantry Division rest after a battle with the Viet Cong during Operation Junction City… [7] Arrangements were made for RLAF T-28s and U.S. Air Force A-1E Skyraiders to fly air cover for the Royalist forces, amassing only 200 sorties in the month between 28 July and 28 August. When they struck Route 111, Red Battalion headed northeast toward the communist positions at Muong Phine. On 17 September, White Battalion was withdrawn from the operation, to be replaced by Yellow Battalion. On 23 March, two of Red Battalion's companies, with 115 men apiece, were tasked with the Operation Duck raid on an enemy complex housed in a cave southeast of Mahaxay. [14] Tchepone was garrisoned by six PAVN battalions defended by antiaircraft guns. [12], At this point, there was a controversy over whether to spray herbicide on standing rice crops around Moung Phine to deny them to the communists. Then the CIA launched Operation Junction City Jr.[4], The CIA paramilitary agents in MR 3 were unique in the Laotian Civil War in the direct control they were allowed to exert on their irregular operations. On 6 September, Red Battalion joined them. [6] On 26 March, eight CH-3E helicopters of the 20th SOS began evacuating the Red Battalion troops. # OnThisDay: Operation Junction City began February 22, 1967, during the Vietnam War. In early 1969, MR 3 hosted three Royalist guerrilla battalions newly trained by the CIA at its Savannakhet base. Helilifted in by the 20th Special Operations Squadron (20th SOS) and Air America under air cover of U.S. Air Force (USAF) tactical fighter strikes, the guerrillas were heavily engaged by the PAVN. These tactics continued in 1966–67 with operations such as Masher, Thayer, Attleboro, Cedar … As Moung Phine was the only Pathet Lao-held town in the Laotian panhandle, and served as a communist sanctuary, it was a prime target because it had been off limits to air strikes. A total of 6,000 potential porters were eventually evacuated. Operation Junction City was an 82-day military operation conducted by United States and Republic of Vietnam (RVN or South Vietnam) forces begun on 22 February 1967 during the Vietnam War. [2], As the Laotian Civil War flared from 1961 onward, the CIA carried out a paramilitary program designed to foster a guerrilla army to support the Royal Lao Government (RLG). A PAVN counterattack pushed Blue Battalion southwestward into defensive positions on a nearby mountain. After being reduced to using sidearms for defense, the surrounded detachment was rescued at 18:30 by two helicopters swooping in under cover of an airdropped tear gas barrage. Ground action is shown during "Operation Junction City," in South Vietnam. By 17 October, the three battalion attack force had stalled six kilometers shy of the 9/23 intersection. Junction City, a corp-level search and destroy operation in War Zone C, was the largest U.S. military offensie of the war. The renewed operation was facetiously dubbed Junction City Jr. after both the 1967 operation in South Vietnam and the road junction objective. The original plan never intended to hold Muang Phin. It was the largest U.S. airborne operation since Operation Varsity in March 1945, the largest airborne operation of the Vietnam War, and one of the largest U.S. operations of the war. Historical Setting. PLANNING AND PREPARATION 83 IX. American troops overrun much of the … By 23 September, Yellow Battalion occupied a mountaintop position overlooking Moung Phine. However, the destruction of facilities and captured rice and equipment was great. [19] Besides the captured materiel, the operation was credited with killing an estimated 500 enemy troops. They captured 45 Pathet Lao soldiers, freed 165 detained Lao citizens from various jails and another 2,000 villagers from porterage. Operation Junction City (Feb. 22 - April 15, 1967) was the largest single allied operation in the Vietnam War consisting of 30,000 troops. After capturing Moung Phine, the Royalists extended the campaign in an attempt to neutralize Tchepone during September, foreshadowing the future Operation Lam Son 719. Copyright ©2020 16th Infantry Regiment Association - All rights reserved. You are currently browsing articles tagged Operation Junction City. Early on 6 October, not knowing Moung Phine had been abandoned, a company from Red Battalion was airlifted into an ambush on the airstrip. [1] A North Vietnamese-backed communist insurrection began as early as 1949. The hammer, located at the open end of the horseshoe to the south, was composed of the 2nd Brigade, 25th Division, and the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment (ACR). Operation JUNCTION CITY, conducted 22 February to 15 April 1967, was the largest single allied operation in the Vietnam War. The US Army and the South Vietnamese ARVN sought to clear Viet Cong fighters from a stronghold in Tay Ninh Province near Saigon, and they did so in the US' largest airborne operation since Operation Varsity in 1945. On the morning of 22 February, the blocking forces air assaulted into LZs on the perimeter of the horseshoe. When France withdrew most of its military in conformity with the treaty, the United States filled the vacuum with purportedly civilian paramilitary instructors. Conboy, Kenneth and James Morrison (1995). Directed by Adam Taylor. [10][11], On 13 September 1969, BC 203 moved forward to garrison Moung Phine. Two newly raised battalions did not join the Royalist front line formations, which became static. That evening, the Royalist irregulars took Moung Phine. They also planned to cut Route 9 between Tchepone and Vietnam, stranding the North Vietnamese garrison. The Annamese Cordillera in southern Laos became the haven for a communist logistics network, the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Operation Junction Citywas a US-ARVN military operation which lasted from 22 February to 14 May 1967 during the Vietnam War. Green Battalion moved southwards, then turned to the east. In one of the largest air-mobile assaults ever, 240 helicopters sweep over Tay Ninh province, beginning Operation Junction City. Operation Junction City was an 82-day military operation conducted by United States and Republic of Vietnam (RVN or South Vietnam) forces begun on 22 February 1967 during the Vietnam War.It was the largest U.S. airborne operation since Operation Market Garden during World War II, the only major airborne operation of the Vietnam War, and one of the largest U.S. operations of the war. Once all units were positioned for JUNCTION CITY, they formed a giant horseshoe around the target area. Ideally, these two units would drive the enemy north into the guns of the battalions in the blocking positions. After suffering four killed, and having killed 40 of their foe, the raiders noted an incoming thunderstorm that would halt air strikes and fled southwards. Brandon Bruer, 19th Public Affairs Detachment) [16], On 4 October, an approaching crowd of refugees was mistaken for PAVN by BC 203; the Royalist regulars fled to Moung Phalan. Operation Junction City Junior fizzled out a few days later. [3], In Military Region 3 (MR 3) of Laos a tacit nonaggression pact existed between Royalists and Communists. 尋找 Getty Images 帶來的完美Operation Junction City照片檔及編輯新聞圖片。從 項非凡卓絕的優質Operation Junction City檔案當中任意挑選。 Operation JUNCTION CITY was a three phased military combat operation executed by United States Army forces and forces of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) against forces of the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army Early on 7 September, four USAF A-1E Skyraiders bombed the town; that afternoon, four more repeated the attack. As Tang Vai lay 31 kilometers from friendly forces, on the edge of the Ho Chi Minh Trail, the lack of opposition was surprising. Air support for the government forces would come from the numerous tactical air sorties already directed at the Trail, and would be directed by Nail FACs and Raven FACs. This page was last edited on 27 January 2020, at 07:17. The Royalist stronghold at Savannakhet could threaten the Trail. [8][10][11], USAF fighter-bombers seeded all routes into Moung Phine with Mk-36 area denial ordnance to block traffic—Routes 9, 23, and the combined 9/23. That same day, Green and White Battalions were halted by high water in the Se Thamouak River. (Video by Spc. In turn, the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) forces guarding the Trail were strong enough to launch serious attacks against the Savannakhet Plains and the Mekong Valley if they wished. [15], Blue Battalion marched toward the 9/91 intersection and occupied the intermediate junction of Routes 9/914, five kilometers short of 9/91. [22], https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Operation_Junction_City_Jr.&oldid=937794249, Battles and operations of the Laotian Civil War, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, No lasting change in territory. On completion of the initial drive, HQ, III Corps directed all units to conduct thorough S&D sweeps in their respective areas of operation beginning 25 February. Following the French defeat at Dien Ben Phu and the subsequent 1954 Geneva Agreements a neutral Laos gained its independence. Lacking both an overall operational commander to coordinate maneuvers, as well as support from CIA handlers distracted by Kou Kiet, the operation was terminated. The communists had regained all their lost ground. [5] Four times the communist headquarters was struck by U.S. Air Force jets depositing napalm, cluster bomb units, and 2,000 pound bombs. Charles Joseph Watters. Operation Junction City Jr. was a major Laotian offensive of the Vietnam War; initially aimed at temporary disruption of the Ho Chi Minh Trail, it was extended into an attempt to isolate the major North Vietnamese communist transshipment point at Tchepone from the units it was supposed to supply. Most believe the operation was a success. The objective now became cutting the Ho Chi Minh Trail near the transshipment point of Tchepone. [13], Based on success to date, the decision was made to once again extend the offensive. [16] Nearby Yellow Battalion followed suit, abandoning its hilltop stronghold. The communist war effort in South Vietnam depended on that supply route. Operation Junction City. After an initial blooding from 23–27 March 1969 during Operation Duck, three Royal Lao Army irregular battalions trained by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) were launched on Operation Junction City Jr. On 28 July 1969, a Royalist force occupied the airfield at Vang Tai, to begin the offensive. The Chaplain Was a Sky Soldier . A battered Brown Battalion returned from operations in Military Region 2 and was assigned as security guards at Prince Boun Oum's personal tin mine. A. By 17 October 1969, Operation Junction City Jr. had been pushed back to its point of departure; however, it had destroyed supplies sufficient to have kept a communist division in the field. [17][18], Green, White, and Blue Battalions staged an eastward assault from Muong Phalane toward Moung Phine, while Red Battalion moved toward the 9/914 junction. THE WARM-UP TOSSES: GADSDEN AND TUCSON 91 Operation Gadsden 91 Operation Tucson 94 X. PHASEE I-TH HORSESHOE IS PITCHED 97 Combat Forces 97 D-Day, 22 February 1967 101 D Plus 1, 23 February 103 D Plus 2, 24 February 104 End of Phase I, 25 February-17 March 106 XI. Forcing a crossing two days later, they peacefully occupied the 9/23 intersection. Select from premium Operation Junction City of the highest quality. Anthony, Victor B. and Richard R. Sexton (1993). In Operation Junction City, Vietnam War's biggest operation, Feb. 21-May 14, 1967, including the largest paratroop jump since World War II, Gen. William Westmoreland won his big-unit campaign but lost confidence that the war could be won Despite these disappointing results, the new guerrilla force was deemed ready for further action. By the time it ended, the operation involved twenty-two US infantry battalions, four ARVN infantry battalions, seventeen artillery battalions, 4,000 Air Force sorties, and 249 helicopters, also making it the largest air assault operation in history. Moving out in August under tactical air cover directed by Raven FACs and Nail FACs, elements of the Royalist force captured the Route 9/23 road junction near Pathet Lao-held Moung Phine on 4 September. As of 1 September 1969, air support was limited to 12 A-1 sorties daily, supported by a flareship by night and two forward air controllers (FACs) by day. Operation Junction City was a U.S. strategy to eliminate the NLF from Vietnam, and this quiz/worksheet combo will help you test your understanding of it. Paralleling that, the U.S. Department of Defense covertly supported the Royal Lao Army and other Lao armed forces through a sub rosa supply system, as the U.S. picked up the entire budget of Laos.
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