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7 AF . DOAC El:a'Jr:t:It).· _I Mr. MARCH DATE', .

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J'COPY If6 OF;~ C'OPIES .

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'.' .The Project CHE'CO (Contemporary Hi'storical Combat Operations) ISoutheast As'ra' Digest is' a mol\ij~fl-tMtm:eamm-"'-'-' . {) - "'--'" '\. ./. , . . - . whose object is to present developm~nts in air operations in the ':f . 7th Air Force area of 'responsibility of Southeast Asia. The intent, : I .., .. -- -,----, f "~'.' - is top;rov:ideishort sf'Idies· and'i~ems of help.an,~ interest·t,o coni~ '. manders and flight personnel.throughout the command, encompass-ing all facetS of air o~eration,s~' It is hoped, 'by ~ider,distriWut~~n of signifi~ant experience and lessons learned, to, pass on'meaning-, ful1.mowi.~dge about combat operations to those:who m~y put that' . ~' knowledge into use. . - , , '

" 'the reproduction of any imo.rmation in the Digest;, or r'epro-'du~tion of the publication' it its 'entirety, fQr" further' di,ssemination '

to subordinate ,commands'-'isencouraged' provided publication' is , in accordance'with ~ppropriate security dire~cti~es.' Thet'itle of~ . ., .' . .' (. . , each -item is Wlc1assified unless otherwise indicated; the ov~rall classification, of t~e Digest' is Secr'et - 'No Foreign Dissemination.

Contribution.s ~r~~ 'using agenCies and r'ecommendations to im-,p'rove th~ Digest are, stl;':ongly encourag'ed in ord,erto"achieve'the gz:eatest possiblecross-tC111. Experl~ncegained in one area-may·

-b~~of great val~e to personnel in another. ~e~ever' possible foot-~ote s'our'c'emat'erial and forvia~d .supportmg, documeDts throug.h " channels to this headq\larters"attention: DOAC.

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This pubiication contains informatioJi affect~g t4e liational defr~~se'o~'the :!1nited States within 'the meaning' of,thc; Esp~~~~ge

. J' I. , Laws '(':r:itle 18,' U. S. C •• Section" 793 and 794), the transmiSsion., . '.

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FOREWORD.

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\':!"New w~apo~s, ideas and 'tactics ,receive~ne;.f~petus in a~y war, as defenses are updated to cC)~ter ~tand'7

.ard offens~~. Some verge on what would have been c·~.lled, only a few years .ago" science fiction. New'.

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" ... .' ("~ . . . technologies~ (oresight~and thinking have turned a. : .jvhole ~ewspe,Ctruni of w~aponry into~fact. ',A· few ,~, , ye~rs ago, few men would have considered a,. video guided .glideboin:b realistiC", yet such a:.'weaponTa,s UIidergone evaluation in Southeast Asia since the sum·-m~r of 1967 WIth som,e impress~ve ~esults. Af'7~ of

,the highlights' ,aJid less~n~ learned az;e recorded in the ,'_ followiiig' CHECO sUrn.mation. . ,

, ' . ~. . . W ALLEYE~ USE IN ,SOUTHEAST ASIA,

" " Deyelope·d\.af the !'Javal Ordnance T~st Centerat China Lak~,California, the, AGM-62 Walleye is a, glide,air-to .... surj~ce~·w~.tpon with an aut,omatic-tr~cking T\( gtiidanc~ .sYstem for use agaptst targets visually acquired and id,entified. '-The ,bomb. i,tself we~ghs 1, 114 pou:il'd~/ assembled, of ' which 829, . _' : pounds is the high-explosive, linear~shaped charge warhead, giving itex-, ,tremely high-or'der'de.ton~ti~~ in the directioJ? of impaCt. ' It i~ made tip of - three main sections.: gUidci.'nce" warhead ,and 'control •. The most sophisti- -.. cated se'ctiqn is the guidance section~ wh,ich consi~ts ,of.a teiev~~ioncam:e~ .,.\ , with a gyro'-stabUized,vidicon, and "assoCiated circuitry. Once loctred' on to . the'pilot-s~lected target it auto~atically tracks thatsurfCl,ce object andgen-. , I .." . • .• era'tea the cont'r~l. signals re-;;quirrdto guid.e the weapon to a CEl' (Circular ;"'~ : Error of Probabil~ty) of 15 fe~t. .. " " _ I, '. . . ,. . ~y' its make~up the Wall~ye i'smo,t suitable again~t hartL,andse,m.i-h:a.rd targets ,such as -railroad and h~ghway b,ridges,. ,POL stor-age areas,', Jnd sAM "or GCI sites. TCl.rgets which pro'duce heavy shadows or. sharp lines of c,on~ , . trast ,are especially weil-suited fo:r: AGM-62 strikes, arid woUld inClude such targets as 'railroad tunnels o'rcaves with well-defined ent:rances-. The c'on-' , t) .' '" ,. '" '.

• ,1 . ,trol section contains equipment to accept signals from the guidance elements and translates' them ~to commands to wing-fins to 'keep the missile 'on tar-get, and since . the 'guidance is aut~matic,ol\be 'the 'Walleye is'launched, the pilot, is f.reeto, take evasive action. 2 ' : " ' . . i .' 1_ . :'

,Uiider the code.name C~mbat Eagle, Tactical Air Command deployed six F:'4D aircraft al!d ~ight W.alley~'-qua~ified crews to Ubon"RoYal'.Thai Air Base,' Thailand, for ~combat, evalu~tion'of the weapon/alrcraf~ sys_ter,n'in . . ,JUly, 196.7 • It was originally intended -that the evaluation be conducted for a period ¢ 60 da.ysbu~that not less than 50 effectiv~ Bortiett woUld"be flown • .3·: . I 1,1 . ...•. . .' . c::..

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1 00 feet beyond. Since Spitfire One and 'Two had already ac£omplished , the mis'sion,' tJie remain:ing 't\vo aircraft 'returned their 'AGM-62s to , () 5 . , . Ubon. ' 0 \.

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No further flights were made until 17 September when Spitfire. flight agam returned to North Vietnam, this' time to attack the 'FhatKhe 'High-,way Bridge.ove·r the Song Ky- Cung river~ in Route.' Packa'ge, VIA; Viith " some rather 'spectacular results that illust~ate how 'accurat'e and. effect- . ive the. syste~ c~n be. This bridge, .on North Vietnamese highway' .' '.~;: route 4; wasm~Ci.e 'of steel beam' construction and earthabutments,·.'~ ~ and 'was 629 feet rOl;1g bY·24 feet wide: •. 'Spitfire' s ,lea~ ~l~ment·'ln.ade . simultaneous launches froin approximate.lY six' miles out, £lying a ~~ degree"diye angle ~tMach .9; /Both missiles ~itthe firs,t pier north· of the center of the bridge, while a third W·alleye, fired by Spitfir~' " .04, impacted at the pier on the northshore.line." The 'center span of 'the b~ic:Ige dropped, into the'~i'Ver; the no~t~ en~ of the center truss

, .dr.opped '~mediately while :.~,~",~~utn . E;lnd"hu.ng mom~tari1y' and. th~n t~e entire truss fell into 2ie~v.'ater6 ~pitf~re 03 could not mairiti',l~.a . lock-on cni retained his ordnance." ..., .,' . . . ./. . . ~ . .

.On 19 SepteIl)ber H1:1dson.nightstruck the' Lang Con RR Bridge northwest of Hanoi. This'bddge~wa8 of. con~r.eteand steel·truss con- . 'struCtion with concrete piers. and'abutments, ~ppr~xi1nate'~y lSS·by. 14 '- . . . ~ . . . .

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~£~e~, "a,nd:wasr{ttacked dU'~ing relativ'ely .~oor "we~th~~ conditiolls of 'a ,si~ toeig:h.t thouaaJid-foot over~ast~ The first missile exploded in~e truss work a.J;ld app~:ared t9 'po c()n.siderap~e damage. Th.esec~ndim:-' : .• pacted o~,the northwest pier. Although ~6'post strike photography was ., ~ .:" available, and the rails remamed,intact; ,the' strike crews ~s.t~ated -.-that :the. superstructure .and pier.damage ~endered the 'Lang Con bridge' ,unserv,i~eab?,'e. 7 . '. ,~ , " ',' :" \ " 'f' "\, ' " '

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and damaging the other four. A ball.of ~lame, about 100 feet· high flared .. up~ .1astingfo~i' or ~ive seco~dB, 'th~n'it subs·ided. ' Numberlfour,coul~· . not acquire' the target and retained his.ordnance for R TB (Re.turn to Base), , ,as· did Harpoon Lead.' The flight leader reasoned: that becaqs.e of the . , " , ',' ': ' .: 'I . '

extended time, they had spent near the two targets. and 'the .amount of dam~ ag~ ~lictea by Iiarpoon 93' s 'weapon,' it would' not'be neceisarY'!or Nurri- ' ber Four' to expend~ and so' elected·to ,return to base. 11" ' .. '. ;. .' " '.' '. . ,Afew of the deficiencies (;:md e'c~entridtie~),of ~he' AGM·..;62 showed

. . • • 1 , • ..,. " , . upon the'next, mission~ 17 October~ .~gain~t.jhe Larig Son RR Bridge. ' •. NeitherOlds 01' o~ 02 could maintaui a·lock o~' this 240:foot long'. con- , . crete structure~ . Both aircraft' achieved sever,al lock,,:,ons; however, in , ~ach ,~sta~ce the w¢apon lock,-would run ,off the a~ ,poiDt to :o~e .. side 9f the bridge ~r the ~ther., all the way to the sho;re line and ~en lock .onto ,-. , the slio'r~ds Lead stayed on his run until ,sever'al thousand fe'et past . ,his pre-p~ed relea.~e' poi~t, a:nd,'finally pul!ed .off target without- re- ' ·lea,·se because: of these lock,shifts. Oids' 03· andi>~ h!idmuch the same ,difficulties'" They eventlially got lock"-ons 'thatapparently'we:re holding, b~,~fte;:r;t:hey_r,eleas~d, 'both.:weapons broke,: lock and'ran to shore. ,IThis. was' accounted for ollly,by the 'fa~t,-that the bridge ,wastod. symmetrical -b~th in':structureand in l.,ight a:nd dark contrast;..;. and th;" weapons: coul

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. ~ICRIT·NO rOBBI8'1' 'DIS8EM ~ . ~m~ll bridge lOO £e~t north,dest'roying, it~:, Number Two sco~ed ~ direct, hit in the center ofthe',On Bridge .'The.bridge. disintegrated, thZ:~~irlg,' deli:rislOO feet in' the a:irp , 'a,nd the flight'rejofued ,and,eg*,essed.'14 No, losses occur!.'e~ from th.e~h~a'\'-y£1akbtit it'did h'avethe effect'ormaking .' target video acqu.isition: and lock~oh more d~fficult. " ':,"", . ,'. ';. . . ., ,

0' it was appa;;'~nt'that sharp target" ~ont:r.~st'wa~ a critical factor in ,ma~~t'!jning 'a, nigh s.\1ccess, r,ate, with~e AGM-:-62, ~'aJid as a. ,res~t most mis's ions ,were fra'ggedfor late morning, or midday str.ikes, when sun angles were fa,vora,blefor sharp shadows' a:nd good'~co;J.trast. Even this -' was insufficient when there was fuhere~tpoQrcontrast:,belween the tar-, . get and its,ba~lAs, the f1ig~t a'pproached theprirna,ry target (Lang, Bun) if,was apparent~at a 6, 500'overcast obsc'i.;red the target, while; the s,econdary' (Lang Con) ,wasvisibl~.The second ele'ment, Old 03 a,nd' 04, attacked thiS bridge Ob whi1e~the 'first', element perfo:r~,ed C:A~. ,Only one ai:rc:raf~, w~s ~to ,z:e - , lease on this'pa,ss, ,andhis Walleye impacted.dire'ctly infthe cente'r'of,t;h,e . bridge~ ~'T~he c!'ew, estimated the, bridge unseryicable,although,the rails, still appe'ared to cxoss the st:r:eam~' t.1pon rejoiIting, Lead,noticed a hole in th,e C?ve:rcast over, Lang Bung,and:leavmgthe second"eiement'to CAP ,for h~f,.he dl'oppe~ doWn 't6attac!c~it"" The weapon passed over the'bridge ' 'and ilnpacted '\Rpro~irn~tely 20 to 5'0 feet beyond it __ T;hec;r:ew had an, ' excellent plctu!'e,ahd although they. had to press,'in' close because of poor target-background cont:r

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A re-strike on Lang Bun was att~mpted tW9 days'la-!.,er b.yBuick flight, "":still' ~ith~saiisfactol'yresul~8.: 'Number Two',s miss{!e' hit ap),roxbnatelY ten f~etlilhqrt without apparentl,seriousd~mage. Lead's-~qM-6l\ r,~" normaIly,'b?tafter"thr,ee"to flve, se,c~nds it was seen ,to 'pitch up about 15 d'egrees and the~ to begin 'oscillating~and then tumbling. • Abo1it two th,i:z:ods -- of the way·t~ tC;irget it pitc~edd~~ ~ilid-impacted appro~imately 1,000' feet shorf of th~ bridge. 18 The nfghtproc"eeded'to their first alternate, the Ban '::' '.. . . .I, Cho ~ighway Bridge~ , Helle, Buick 03-and 04 rQlled'in, wit11-both, assigned;, to the target. Upon'taking his eyes"~ff the, ele'ment leader on theruniJi, Four " observed a, bridge directly ,ahe'ad,and,sinceit looked like'the assigned,bridge ,he locked o~, and released.' ~ r,eality, the b~idgehe"hit\vas the B~lIl Thai, Ou,.In' Bridge, a causeway bridge over two dam.s, and i,t 'apparently did not. . . .' ., ,: .~, . " suffer signlficant damage. The narrow field of visiOlfin the scope, th,e .. nearness of the: targets to' each other 'Cl;nd ,the similarity of. appearance.be-tween 'them were the cause of the mis";''identification.Numbero.Three made three :~uns at the Ba,n 'Gh~ ~ridge b~t could n~t attain loc'k-on,s s~ ~TB with 4is weCl:p

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hUman eye';and once having·lost its target it may not re:"acquire it. Its guidance function is one' of· discrin-hnating between liglit-dar.k c;on-~ . "., . . .';. tra.st around the aiIn point at ~ock-on; therefore ,it could be ','fooled" . by too much symmetry (if a serie~of b.ridge·trusses.had identical'con-figuration, it might select on.e: after anoth'er until ,it: got to th~ shor.eline), or by n.ot. enough (camouflage ~~ lack of cont~ast)~~· Hig~ contr'a'st decoy: targets' pfacedin the 'v:icinity ofmtended, priniarytaJ:gets c.~uld degrade Walleye e£fe.ctiveness.·23 .,.1 " ....

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.co~ce~t of ~eF~4:q:~consti.tute·s a ~ei~ite' adviintag'e iJl'techniqueooi use for. the W~eye •. The Cl;ircra!t, commander, after vieually ,~cquiring and i4e~tifying 'his· target, places it under his gun&ight pipper.Tljis allows him'to keep his head ,out, of tii~ cockpit and, ,since the-weapon' is ~ 'b~re-', sightmo:de, places . the target' nea~ .'the center of tllE~ video d~'splay~ The , , Gm (Guy.in 'B~ck) then lo~atel:! and identifies 'thet~rget on his display and aligns it in ~e· ligate" :(four intersecting lines constituting.a Z. 6 mil' lo~k-angle'in 'the 'center of th~ display' ~ it is this narrow angle th'~t the' . . , missile ,tracks upon ,release), . and "locks on'.'. ,The A/~ then"verifies' th~ ta'rget, on h-is.displaY,·and if satisfied, assume:s the "lock'" ill the, ',,;!!- '.. . ,'. .' . front seat' •. After lock.-on,' and while the aircraft" is within 'the delivery envelop'e, the pilot launc1i~.s '~~ ril.iEt~il.e and is free' to take, whatever'. . .' evasive .action is necessary. ,The weapon "homes" on the ar.ea of greatest . 'contrast withiD. the' Z. 6 mil trackingg.he., Pod formation can be' flown' ' .' ~-up to '(and even during)s~u1taneout;llaWic~, or'outsid~ SAM threat area,s, Fluid ,Four Inay be flown for· better MIG defense~ 26 . .

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,tailpipe and detonated; :~he 'MIG' cr~shed witn riochut~s ob~~~ved. otter ,. .' ". . () --_.. _., . ..., ~ead, however, ~ damage-din the run,ning fight and tJ:\e crew was

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-.~ . . 9" (8),. Walleye' Launch 'S~niary, and Target 'Photo~ Hq 7/13 DM, 13 ". :Mar 6~. . .... r' '" ~'.. . ~. . .' ." . /10.' (8) Oprep 4,~ BthTFW to'AIG'9f'3:j' D,l 10051~ 030945i 'btlt 67. . . 11.. (8) Oprep 4" .Bth TFW, to AIG 913,'1)1 10186, OBOBOOZ ~!=t 67. \ ". .

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12.. (8) Combat Eagle;RepQ,rt, 8th 'TFW ·to C8AF,-.;.FWT.cM0836,lSlZ00Z'-, . ;',i Oct 67; also (8) Oprep4, 8th TFW, 'DI 1()42 0, 1706S'9Z . Ocf67. 13., (8) Oprep'3 PinnaCle,· 8th TFW, DI '~0570,' 230609Z Oct 67; also' (8)·. -:~

.' ,.Combat E,ag1e 'R~port, 8th T~.W to CSAF, F,W:rCE 1~SS9, Z3l240Z .1' .' r Oct 67.. . . , ' .' 14. Ibid

-1.5 •. '('S') Oprep4, Sth TFW to AIG 9P, DOII06:l4,. 25070QZ Oct 67~ . . 16. (5) Qprep3,. SthTFW'to CINCPAC,'8 TFW'OOZ·, 05074ZZ 'Nov '67; . also, (C) Oprep 4,. ~th TFW,toAIG. 913, DOI·038,.· OS0743Z.· . .. Nov 6'7; al's0'(8)\Valleye L'alinch Summary, 'Hq 7/1~ DM, 13 M~T6S. '17 •. (8) . Combat Eagle- Rep~)rt, . 'Sth TFW to CSAF, ;070621Z Nov 67; also,

·(C) Oprep 4" Bth TFW ,to AiG .913, 0607i iz Nov 67. ' .. ~ .. .' ,~"lS. (8) Oprep 4, 8.thTFW to.AIC i13, D'OI076, OBOS30Z ·N~v67.. "-19. ·Ibid; also, (8) WalleyeLauncli'Summ.~ry, Hq 7 ~3 DM; ~~3' M,~.r 6S.: " ZOo '(8) Walleye Launch8UIllmarYi ~q 7/13 DM, .Y3 Mar 6&. _ .. ":'-" . L '~l •. (8) 'Hq 7A.F to Zen 13AF, 3009~2Z' Nov 67, quoting (5) CINCPACA.F· H; . . , . dig 1B21 .. 47Z Nov, .subj; Walleye.' . ·2Z. ,Ibid . -.

, ?3.! (5) 'Hq 7/13 DI Working Paper:on.AGM-62 Usag~, undtd. 24. Ibid '.- .. 25. (5) ResearcW'ofOprep '4s'a~~ other' Combat E~gl~ messages. . 26. (5) .I:hterviewby· CHECO .personnelwith M~jor'GaryL, ~h9mpson

and Captain Rob.ert C. Ettinger,'. Combat Ea'gle Alrcr~ft Cmdrs, ··· .. -·--435.th·TFS,_Ubon·RTAF~, Thaiiand, 17 Mar 6B~ . ". . . .-. I . , . , .. \

Z·7.· (8) F-4DtWaUeye Lauitch Report, 8TF'Y to' C5AF, 2Z0905.Z·Jap' 68; also, (~) Oprep'3/Pinnacle~' 8th· TFW, lS1430Z JaJi68; also, (8)' Oprep'3'!Pinnacle 8th TFW,' lS1115Z.~an·6S; InGtel BTief for Dep. Comdr 7/1~ ,AF,,,-! 9 Jan 6B.. . 1:.'1. za. 'Ibid. "

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In res~~nse~ t~ theen~~y~s massive' c'ommitnien:t 'in and ar~und,the northern portion of. I,Corps, RVN,and the U.S. expansion of' forces' tQ

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~' meet this threat, CbMU~MACV,establishedla ~,e,w tactical headquarters ' " - ~o provide oper8:tio~al'dire~'tion ,for this ground,forc~; s'tructur~. ,Prov-,' isional Corps Vietnam: was activated and, b-ec~me 'operational, on 10 Mt1rch , " 196'8 un$ier,.the co~andof Army Lieutenant Geneffi William B.Rossen'~ . . -...:." " . ..-:" . -.-~. . , \ ", ,', , ' . Concurrently, to meet the requirement for the necessary

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~,,-.. ~. " ' Appr'o~imately 10 rilinute·safte.r the roc~et attack,' a.t0329, a. . ,. ·1,. .' ground attack was laUnchedGjit--theeaste:r:n perimeteJ:'of the' airfield.' · An enemy fo~ce estimated at 2~O rnenpe-netrated the. base perim~ter at four locations. During th~ir attackj . the ene~y·were. ~orced to' '. bypass and surround an ~ld French bunker~ Bunker Hill JHO, manned by t:he Bien Hoa Security Police. This.placed t)le enemy inan.,i1:·ccu·-'rate crossfire wnich greatly slowed their advanc¢.· Armed lieli;', . cop~ers fro~/t~e 145th C'ornba:!Aviation Battalion also were bro~gh,t to bear on theen,emy. The 'enemy for~e' contipued theirpEmetration

· and capture·d. the engine test stand~J."ea along the eastern taxiway · of·theairba:seand the "de:arming pad inthesanie area.' The Secu-rity' Police and .g~shipsYlere.: a~l~ to contain the . en~r:ny and ha.lt . . . '. 11 . ' any further penetration. '. ;, .. ". ,I '.

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· ... ·-,··:·At dawn-th'Efre"'~irr·~~~:!i!Y~fhre;;-a.reCl;·s ·ofenem.y r~sistance;. the ,'engineJest stand~ 'the de-arming p~~land a reinforced squad in an . ., . . '.' ,'" op~n fi~ld e.ast of the test stan~. AnJassault by th~ USAf Sec.urity'. Potice shortiyafter dawn cleared· the' tes·t 'st~nd . area- o(~llemy resistance •. A 57mm ~ecoil1e~srifle~as then.ti~ed by t\:lei Viet-namese SecurityPolice todestroyoa"shack .at the' d~-a.rming pad 'which 'the ene'my-was usiitk as a st:r'oiig point~ . ~ fol~ow-l1p 'sweep .by the. U:sAF- Security. Force~ gained

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created crater!? about three feet 'deep ~d nine 'feet in .diameter,; .' mentation p~ttern ~as pl'actic~Iiy non~existent. . ,,', .. ,.

" On the 11th Bien Hoa, Air .. Ba,se ag~in came w1de~ rocket attac·k. .The . a:tta~klasted from 0001 to 0006 ·hours with 17 ,rockets impact~g 'on the base. The' fire appeared to .be· conc;=entratedon the' c'entrai ramp. and east can- . tonmenf ~rea •. one rocket made a' direct hit' on'a barracks resultu..Jg in :. , one U. S. killed. 'Jhere wa:s a total of 36, WIA··and 24 Qthe:r personnel . received' .. indirect·lnju~ies·., J\.lsQ, s~ airc·ra.£t were destroyed" and 17 damage,d •. Two rocket launch. position~ 'have"been identified a's beirig , , ~'sed iJi the attack. The first was imme8iatelY'spotted ,by an Army gUnship which expende'dro'ckets and 7. 6Zm,m fire on it~ An airborne'

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. observer.directed artillerY'againstthe~second position;.both positions ". . ~ '. "_" '. were located north of the Dong" Nai Ri~er _~t distances of· 8,1/2 and ~,? .. _ ... _~., .. :_; ____ . _________ .. _,_: ... _~: .. _._,_,-;-,,-;'.~~u ... ".'r.""'M.F.~_''''''''''''''''''''

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r except the sma~l one on the 9th,' tberehave.. '. been at,least tWQ con~entrations· of iinpact' points. Since j;wo laJnch " ~,:' . ., . poSi~!..~~_~:_h~x~._p..e_en~lo.cated· .. ,for..:-all-.of ... t~e·,:~ttQcks'·'exce'pt"tw~~;~·it"·~'i!Er"·""'·"'''''''''·''''''~,."':""""''''''''-:'''''''''~'''''''''~''"''''''''':''''~ -"-·'~"""7,----,-,--,,'--·-"·-·--'-'·-"-4-:--·-.---·'--··-probably that' each site ls' target~d against, a spe'cinc portion '()f the '

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bas~'.. There are three ar,eas where ·rounds from at leasf 'two" of . ·the attacks have la~ded •.. The' s~al( F'-S test cell area has 'received .seven rock;ets. in two at~acks'~ _ The central ranip.are~ in front of the ,base maintenance hangar' has been·struck twice receiving a .--, , " tota:lof e'ight rockets. Finally, the east~rn"portion of th~ base ,'. . ..~ around the Wing Headquarters and, Headquarter's I:or"the. 'S04th .. T ASG has'came under' at'facki·tWice . with a total of s'i" rounds" with-

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. in a 1 l//l. block area., .1 , ~ .'

~~"')i'att~ckS~ ~~ the ·llth ;~~d 18th were prim,,:rllY 9riented toWards· .. . . : . fi the runway and taXiway areas. .Howeve·r, only' 'one,··6fthe rounds struck . . .. " ______ .... '! .. I ___ :,C _~ __ ~'L~~ :_taxiway.-~ During ~he s e-atta ck~cde'ia y'f~zesC,werE(notus-ed ~- ~-beray"~ ._-" _·c- -- .' - .. ~ -~ . fuzes were' utilized irlthesmal1 attack on the 9.th but 'proved of little " s'i'gnWicance-since' all thr~e roundsimpacted'oR sand. ' .

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The ·use of three and 10 rockets in 'separate sma~t scale attacks c ,on' the air b'a.se is ~ new e~emy ta'Ctic. At first this' type.,of, harassmg . fire created 'some~ensions;"-however, it ha'd a lasting effect of bring-. , ..' ;:;, . - .. ing the war' closer t.o,~l1 ,p,ers()nnel oil ~.ase, ,causing a~ increase in. overall'morale and interest in the war as w~l1 as an mcreased du~y performance in all 'areas'.' " .: ~ . • I

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" ' Alsp required to beef '~p"the Se,curity'Polic,e' s "ofi'ensive cap~bility,

are,APC's, recoiless rif1~s. morta,rs and the u~e of artillery on ,pre-'l;elected targets within: 10~" o~tside" the" air base p.~rimeter'. ," H~v.ing- an ~PC platoon stationed on anwo~d add'muchtQ''"the defense, "" ca~a.hility. / '

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~hat coUld 'well hav,e~be~n_ on~of the/most significant b~ttl~s , of the-'war wa-s~~£c,>ught 'at Tan Son Nhut 011 31 ;Jantiary when an , _ ,_ , , _, , - "I _ ,'\ ' ,\estimat~d foux enemy ',reinioI,oced ba~ta1ions attacked;the_bi;l.~e I s "west p~,rirneteJ:.. When the 15-hour,Jjattle £o!, this critiCal in-·

stallation ended, 962 en~~y a'ttacke-rs, .many of-t.llem North _' -'Yietriall1~s~, 'had t>-een killed. - U. S. losses 'were 23, killed and 86' wouii"ded. Damage to the ~ase, ,wa's 'Ught, withorilY 13 air,~ . . '>.. :. .'. " '. . . craft '.lightly damaged;, The str,ength of the enemy commitment, his tactics,.· an~l p'ost-battle int~lligence," indicated' that Tan Son

,Nhut was;meant to be overrun _and occupied. The' occupation 'of the headq{1.arters base~ in conjunction. with other' attacks in the _

'capita! complex; inclutling the. ~adio station,c-ou1d well have -Q,een'the key to the fakeovei" of Viet.names~ seat of- government.

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Tp~ impHcations of such a comm'unist success would have' been , ino~e -serious i~ana' ~o~~'u.t:list success at Kh~,Sanh b,ased on, ' their patter,.nof behayiorin the· past, an.

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, . ,from several gates.' The main thrust, came againsf"the 051 bu.rike~ on the 's~uthwest ,peruneter fence 'line. ,Grenades and ffi'o:rtar rounds 'we're comi,ng,from the ~est'and guards reported en'em:y troops·~ould be seen ,a 'l~OI?iete:rs ~way. ,The Q,~l,~uriker t~ok a ~irect hit., At ,0334 hotir's, men in the 051 bunker, reported the west,p'~:Hmeter' (en:ce ,was being -, ,'~reached near the, 051 Gate,- aboU:t7S mete~~rno':tth' of the bunker. ' ~ Element~ of ~~ 'vi~t C~ng"~~l-O Sa~pe~ Batt~al~o:n approa~ed the 'fenc~ n,n .e 'us~g a ~am, bl"l~tta 'taxi ~n~ati~~al'HighW,' ay #1.' Th~ ~e. n: go':t:'()U~'t 0 , ' the vehlc1e~and detonated a Banglore torpedo on,the fence hne~ rlpp " 'open a section ~f fence which'was used continu,Dusly by follow-up un s '.' • .,'.' • • ..--. .'

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as an entry into Tan Son Nhut.' ,'~' " " , • • •

• •••• .' ".." • '.. • ~ , :' - • • • • - 1:1. ': .' "The 267th,VC·Battalion with 500 m~n, about ZS% of them, NVA, was • •

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, th.e ~eada;ssault force intq,the breach'and, joined, by; members of .the.c-lO , Sap"per Battalion, it m,ade the deepest penetration into the base,~ Be'hin.d ',D , 'them wa~ the 16th VC Batta,lion, com..,P'Q.!?_~,~ xnain1y ,ofN'y A per-sonnel.! The , : 267th was s~opped ju~t in side-o~>imniediaJely outside ~,peruneter fenc~~," , The 269th Battalion wa,~ the rear unit in line' but it w~s ~gagedby elements, , of the S3rdBattalion before it reached the:perhneter.fences. Another battalion, the 90th'NVA, was'locatedinthe'-VrNATEXCO factory northwest of the, breached fen

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'. ,-;--!~ank the bl0,cking 'force~ ~ the'area~ . ~Y 053;(}, .th«: ene~y had,pe~etr.ated , '0 bO()'m'eters ~to the base man area about 300(~f!~ers 'wlde. Flghhng .. :was· ·.~Q·ing on' outs~de 'tI:te base's west,:r;n 'per~eter, ~ we~l as inside lthe . fe~c~ . as daylight appr.oach~d and reinforcements arrived to bac::kup t,p,e-pasE:! .d~fense force.. I . ", • . . ...,

i' Around 0630,· a' troop fro~'the4th Cavalry '(U. S. ) arrived in the area after fighting it~ :way down highway '/11 fr.om: its base 'campat 'eu Chi;' 20 .. 'l ( . miles NNW of Ta;n Son Nhut.' Wit~. ~a

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',Alth9ugh the .vCsuffered~a· consid~rabl~, setback~. th~ir plan~'~o taJ~e , ,the 1?ase, they did make obsolete the concept that ' only small scale opera-' I . ' \'" 'ti~ns c'ould be launched against,the bas'e, A larges'cale pEmetration ~as made ,"!-nd the~ coiit.in,u~d l>resence ofe~erriy .~its~r,o~nd, the ~figori'a'rea . left open the posslblhty that') another try would beo made.' ' r~ ,

. D' '. . ." '- ., ;,. . . \ , There were sev~ralle'ssons learned,during the 31 January' attack which could'be- applied'-to tile base' defense' ~nsJorpossible,futJU"e attacks. 'The' · 'base secu,ritypoHceneeded heavier'.crew serv~9 we,~pons" . includi~g mor-tars, :rocket launc:;heors, r~coilless rifles and M';'79~gi'enad~ launchers,. '-'4 review of the empha,sis on close-in protection of'resources was suggested - . . ...... 4-1 . . &."1 • • • • , • with the"goal of puttil].g more forces ;on the' periIl\et¢r with, a capability to react to threatened areas with' ,Quick Reaction Teams .. A free fire zone • '.. >" I • l, ." .' a:ro\lnd the base was, also r,ecomm.ended of a:el~as~ 1, 000 ~eters to pre-v~nt the, enemy from setting up cr,~vy. served weapons and mllnit10ns th~s . close, to the perimeter. ,It was learned that non-security personI\el in '_ 'possesslon of. weaiions hampered the . Security Police, effor't,' 011 some " . ,occ'asions being nea~ly, mistalc~n ft-r ilOStil~ for'ces. ~ 0 . . ~ ,

. . ". ...., . .. ~ . A!..seriou8 shortcoming ,was the revelation after the battle-that some

· P9s~nneiofthe 2~d Set:viC,es)~~ttallon (ARVN)deser-t:ed~t~eir stati~de~., Mense posts for reasons which were ·notestablished. An investigation. was being' cQf1ducted by theVietnameA~.~~.u~horities" but .. it wa~ ~believedtJu,Lt' . "t~ere wa8~ an absolute neeciif9r joint U. S:;-/ AR.V'N mannin'g of'defensive positions throughout th~ perimet_er: ' ' " '. . .'- ,,:' ' " \' - -~ ~-~-~- ~-~ ~ .. ~ ---- - "---. --···1·----·-:;------~,.........--~·--··--. . ".-;--- " ._. -.-.--.- ... -----~-- -- '. . . . . 'Other. problems were lack ofa saJe rne~ns to transport se~urity ~r7. . sonnel to areas of attack, pointing up'the Iu-!ed for armored'pet80nnei-carders. \ More-c'powerfui and : portab~.e, comm~nications sYste~s·werae·· 'needed, to 'alli~'va~the prob(~m of ~i~fj cutti~g.;:~jLch '~the~, out b.ecause · "they. did not hear ,other .unitStransmitting ... ~so, dir~ct conirnunicatio.ris with supporting unit.s (LFTs" AC:47s,-~flareshipsrwas' considere~ an im-: mediate requirement .. Time-lags' in requests ma~e, the'8upporti~g fire

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" , The preceding two articles, 'from separatesoul"ces,

, agree in many ~espe¢ts re~a;ding lessons-,~earned, , friendly and enemy tactics inv~lved, and. numerous ~, requir'ements needed in 'aCtiv~ defense of air 'bases.

'I··~· .

": " • .' . 1''" . ••. .' Unstressed,' however, was the loss in 'aircraft and e'qiiipmEmt beca'use of a theatre-wide lack of adequate pas~~iy.e, defen~e measures - re~etmEmts and aircraft

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,I sh~.l'te~~~i' The monetary loss alone, in aircra# de~ , s,t~'6yec(or, damaged ,by enemy 'roc~et-and 'mortar fire, , may' ~e'll have paid for the shelters which w.olildhq.ve , protected them. Thissituation'ha-s: been s,tudied and

steps t~~en to, rectify it, as sho~n 'i~the follo:w'ing, ' ,paper., •

; ..

PROTECTIVE SHELTERS FOR--STRIKE/RECCE AC IN SEA ". ;.' . .. . .

'. i

, The U~ S.has built, u~' a ~u~be~~~ ~ajo;" ~~r bases inSEA',~i~~'1;li:e sup-port:offhe'in'-coun,try ~ar and 'to ca'\!FYthe conflict ~o the ene~y in ~he 'north. / The rapid, build up ,and cqIl'\pression >b-f air' installations has proven to be a , lucrative and irresistibl~ targ~t~ol-:the-Commun'ists:, The~ aUacks on air,

'bases 'rang~ ,from ininorsabotage efforts ~::-iil'aJor,_incursi~ns'infficting , " , " : ' ., 0, ' .' " ',~-~ ,,' ' .-

large.lc;>sses ,of ~i~'~ and materiaL" The recent Tet offensive~h,~s highlighted ,-' ~ serious deficiency in' ~b:'craft prot'e,cti~n ag~inst conv~ntional' ~eapons_., "

-'-'" .'. . .~ .' ", . ., The~ol'tar and. ro~ket t~reat._to USAF a,frcraftbecame 'a reality on 30

, . h, .... /. " ". I" January 1968.,' T!te ever in'cr.easing terppo of rocket fire which began fo:-(

, the first'time on 27 :Februa~y 1967 at Danang AB reached an unacceptable levet'lessth~n ~ -year . later,: 1- " .: --';' ,

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" This, pr,onounced rocket capability sf:lould not'h.~ve, corneas. a s':1rp,rise.,~' as intellig'enc::eestimates continually assessed a:nd subsequent1i-~a~iled' of newer ~nd more ,sophisticat~d, rockets .being infiltrated to"South V~etnam,' . . Also. ref~ecting,le~son's le~rned in WW II, the Cor,ps Qf Engineers in 1946 wrote "R ockets have bee~, 'particula.:r~Y ,eff;ectiv:e againstunprote~te~ound targets •.. further d~v~lopment'and, utilization of this weapon may be ex~ , _ pec~ed".2,' "

, ' ,.,,' I ,,,','" ' , ' '-' , ' " From 30 Jan until 29 Feb 68, enemy, r,ocket··and mortar. fir,e destroyed

nine USAF Strike/.R e'cce aircraft~ , ~\lrther;'-~13 Strike/Reece aircraft s'us.,., . • ". . •.

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the prime faCtor in ·the loss of' the~e val4'able re.s:oQurce.~. ,. . . " ~. . . . . , ' " , .' :', ' '/ ... '. ", '" ' . The' present ARMCO metal bin· revetn.1_ent in ext,ensive use ~ ~EA .' serve,d. the 'purpos~ for-'expediency; Thesel2 feet high ea·rth':filled.-bins . ---'can be rapidly assembled ;~d are·rel.atively. inexpensive. ->rhey,c1annot. 0 .' . ~ \. -'" be perfo.rated·by smaHarms and will protect against'mortar and rocket , . fir.e ~hich falls . outside the,teve'tment .. 3, ,~: ',-' ,

" ' . • .. . . '.' • '~. , -, .' '." " ''f - The threat however, has pr'ogressed fr·om. the 82mm :r;nortar to a 14'Omm rocket c;»r larger: with,delay~d .fuzing.·.' Also~ the pos~ibility of ancenem~ air attack ca~not be discoUnte~ .. The ·di~ast,rous· results of a , lightning ~ir att~cku.i~g CBU s, napalp1 and strafing~s ~ell docUmented by the recent Arab-Israeli co.,nfli.ct. 'The .present No:r:t,h yiet~me~e a~!'":' , . threat is real~though minimal. ' During Tet, six IL 28 (BEAGLE) light. " bombers .er~ repo:r;ted Jnthe southern 'area of North Vietna~ - well.' within, striking range- of Tan' Son Nbut. ,At that time there was coilc~rn: . in ~the'inte,iligence 'community tpat a successful air attack w.ould ~e con-

. ~';'''V''''' j

. ~idered ofsufficfent ad:vantage, by Hanoi, that 'an attempt would be riiade':' . rega'rdless of't~e hig~ ~isk .. The ARMCO bln reyetmentdo~s not,prov~d~~,e", adequate protedion"'ag&inst,122mm rocket fire. CB,U'type munitions, air~ . ..,...-,0 craft cannon, 'napalnior'other'air deJivered'area type'or~ance. ,With the basfc assumption tpat US presence will contbiue iIi SEA., an' immediate' and ~long term solution, is requ,ired. :, '/ . ,~

., ',-.c;... "1_ I _.' . The ALI' Force',We.apons Labo~tor'y"(AFW'Lrhas r~cently 'completed a 4S day study ~n "Prc;»tective Co~~tr,ucj:.ion_fo~_,SEA __ 'I."4·Theyconclu~ed

" that ;d~eto ~-~":high),e~etration'~£,'ro~ket~ ~~~~ons 'and' aerial deliver,~d. ! ,munItions, protechve' stru~tures should b~ co~ered-and should lise hIgh ~ streIlgthmaterials such' as s,teel a.,mor or high compressive str.en!,th . . "., ' ... '.,co.!l~~ete. ~.,Project .Concr~te . SkY' (Hq/USAF) in~tiated a ~rogra:rn in sup,:" . port of~EAalrcreJt shelter requirements .. This project p~ocured several, types an',co~iguration·. 9£ shel~'~~,s: for stati~, ~d o~dnance tgstin~, with' follow-oDshipments programmed to SEA for. theatre testing. " ..... ~'

Pre1im'in~rY.,r~~o~tsili.dic~te· that a'covered ~teel.arch shelter i~ t~e most feasible •. It 'provides .the best·lev~lof "protecUon for the cost and is . easily c.on.tr~cted •. The test .shelter, was ~ '4~ .foot·long, , S6' foot wide steel ' arch structure., .Each of the arch section .. was form~d f.rom 'cqrrugated steel -;approxirnately O. linch (10 gage) thick.· ,staat dajilage evaluation 'was .". . , '. accomplished by . static' detonation of 4.' 2 inch (l'07mm eq'-Uivalent) mortar . .hell.i;va~i~U. '*;;~;:~; .cor~a;~a;~~i~.~(UllY 26 i,

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, FOOTNOTES. . . 1. (S), Charader 'ofAttacks on Air Bases in'SEA. Foreign' Technology

e~'-- Di~ision, ~ 'Fehruary i 968. . " , 2. (S)Fund~ment'a~of ?rotective Design, C~rps ~f Engiri.~rs, 1946

page.2-4:. ..' . , ..

. 3. ,.(S) Protective construction for SEA, . a 45 ,day study, Air Force, Weapons Laboratory, December 196 7.

~4. (S). Protective 'Construction for SEA • . ' 5. (S)o' Ibid •. '-6~. (S) Ibid. , ,;

7. (Sf PACAF Msg, 28 0519H Feb 68 DCE 0688: " , ,,' b '. •

8. (C) Interview, Major G. D. Sjaaeltad AFRCE D~puty for C;:>perations, ' 1l.Ma~ch 1968./ Intervie~ CaptainL. N~Gilbert, "Red Hor'se, 12

.. ¥,a'i'czh 1968.' , .. " , 9. (S), Protective Construction. fo!' 'SEA •.

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'.pssible cross-

~ ,tell of material of 'operational interest~ we re-',' : ,~, , .. ,:

quest: you pass on these copies to those who have a ,need. to l¢ow! ",

:An~s'¥e, th~ Digest .. ca~ .be o~Y ,!!S .. g~od as its mputs, we also strongly urge'Y9u to SIt down and write 'about your area ,of operations~ empha-"siiiIig.lessons-learn~d. 'Perhap~ your experi:' . ,ence c.an_be of great,vaiue to others engage~d in a similar;actiV,ity. It ·need npt be iong'~ five' or' , six pages - :-o~for that matter, one page i1~hat ' is wha't it take s. We need, your he'ip if we' are ,to .. ;'~ 1 I . . be of most benefit to you, to others, an.d to the Air Force.

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