Campaign Z (17 December 1971 – 30 January 1972) was a military offensive by the
People's Army of Vietnam
The People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN; vi, Quân đội nhân dân Việt Nam, QĐNDVN), also recognized as the Vietnam People's Army (VPA) or the Vietnamese Army (), is the military force of the Vietnam, Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the ...
; it was a
combined arms
Combined arms is an approach to warfare
War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme vio ...
thrust designed to defeat the last
Royal Lao Army
The Royal Lao Army (french: Armée royale du Laos – ARL), also designated by its anglicized title RLA, was the Land Component of the Royal Lao Armed Forces (FAR), the official military of the Kingdom of Laos during the North Vietnamese invasio ...
troops defending the
Kingdom of Laos
The Kingdom of Laos was a landlocked country in Southeast Asia at the heart of the Indochinese Peninsula. It was bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, North Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the southeast, and Thailand to the west and ...
. The Communist assault took Skyline Ridge overlooking the vital Royalist base of
Long Tieng
Long Tieng (also spelled Long Chieng, Long Cheng, or Long Chen) is a Laotian military base in Xaisomboun Province. During the Laotian Civil War, it served as a town and airbase operated by the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States. ...
and forced the restationing of Royalist aviation assets and civilian refugees. However, Communist forces eventually receded back onto their
lines of communication
A line of communication (or communications) is the route that connects an operating military unit with its supply base. Supplies and reinforcements are transported along the line of communication. Therefore, a secure and open line of communicati ...
without capturing the base.
Campaign Z was notable for escalations of the
Laotian Civil War
The Laotian Civil War (1959–1975) was a civil war in Laos which was waged between the Communist Pathet Lao and the Royal Lao Government from 23 May 1959 to 2 December 1975. It is associated with the Cambodian Civil War and the Vietnam War ...
conflict. The Vietnamese Communists brought 130 mm
field gun
A field gun is a field artillery piece. Originally the term referred to smaller guns that could accompany a field army on the march, that when in combat could be moved about the battlefield in response to changing circumstances ( field artille ...
s and
T-34 tank
The T-34 is a Soviet medium tank introduced in 1940. When introduced its 76.2 mm (3 in) tank gun was less powerful than its contemporaries while its 60-degree sloped armour provided good protection against Anti-tank warfare, anti-tan ...
s into action in Laos for the first time. The
Vietnamese People's Air Force
The Vietnam People's Air Force (VPAF, ), formally refers itself as the Air Defence - Air Force (ADAF, ) or the Vietnamese Air Force (VNAF, ), is the aerial warfare service branch of Vietnam. It is the successor of the former North Vietnamese ...
also launched
MiG 21
The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 (russian: Микоян и Гуревич МиГ-21; NATO reporting name: Fishbed) is a supersonic jet fighter and interceptor aircraft, designed by the Mikoyan-Gurevich Design Bureau in the Soviet Union. Its nickna ...
attacks into Lao air space to challenge the Royalist side's
air supremacy
Aerial supremacy (also air superiority) is the degree to which a side in a conflict holds control of air power over opposing forces. There are levels of control of the air in aerial warfare. Control of the air is the aerial equivalent of com ...
. On its side, the
Royal Lao Government
The Royal Lao Government was the ruling authority in the Kingdom of Laos from 1947 until the communist seizure of power in December 1975 and the proclamation of the Lao People's Democratic Republic. The Franco-Lao Treaty of 1953 gave Laos full i ...
and its
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...
backers imported copious numbers of
mercenaries
A mercenary, sometimes also known as a soldier of fortune or hired gun, is a private individual, particularly a soldier, that joins a military conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a member of any o ...
from the
Kingdom of Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 mi ...
as reinforcements, and depended on American air power support, including
Arc Light strikes by
B-52 Stratofortress
The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is an American long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It has been operated by the United States Air ...
es. The Kingdom would narrowly survive Campaign Z.
Overview
The
Kingdom of Laos
The Kingdom of Laos was a landlocked country in Southeast Asia at the heart of the Indochinese Peninsula. It was bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, North Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the southeast, and Thailand to the west and ...
was established as a neutral independent
constitutional monarchy
A constitutional monarchy, parliamentary monarchy, or democratic monarchy is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in decision making. Constitutional monarchies dif ...
by the
1954 Geneva Agreement. In 1962, the
International Agreement on the Neutrality of Laos
The International Agreement on the Neutrality of Laos is an international agreement signed in Geneva on July 23, 1962 between 14 states, including Laos, as a result of the International Conference on the Settlement of the Laotian Question, which la ...
reaffirmed the principle that no foreign military personnel could be stationed in Laos except for a French training mission. Despite that international proviso, troops of the
People's Army of Vietnam
The People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN; vi, Quân đội nhân dân Việt Nam, QĐNDVN), also recognized as the Vietnam People's Army (VPA) or the Vietnamese Army (), is the military force of the Vietnam, Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the ...
(PAVN) had occupied
Houaphanh Province
Houaphanh province ( Laotian: ຫົວພັນ ; Romanization of Lao: ''Houaphan'') is a province in eastern Laos. Its capital is Xam Neua.
Houaphanh province covers an area of . The province is bordered by Vietnam to the north, east, and s ...
as early as 1953 while the
Democratic Republic of Vietnam
North Vietnam, officially the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV; vi, Việt Nam Dân chủ Cộng hòa), was a socialist state supported by the Soviet Union (USSR) and the People's Republic of China (PRC) in Southeast Asia that existed f ...
(DRV) denied their presence. In turn, as part of the American assumption of total support of the
Royal Lao Government
The Royal Lao Government was the ruling authority in the Kingdom of Laos from 1947 until the communist seizure of power in December 1975 and the proclamation of the Lao People's Democratic Republic. The Franco-Lao Treaty of 1953 gave Laos full i ...
, the
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...
(CIA)
covertly raised a
Hmong
Hmong may refer to:
* Hmong people, an ethnic group living mainly in Southwest China, Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand
* Hmong cuisine
* Hmong customs and culture
** Hmong music
** Hmong textile art
* Hmong language, a continuum of closely related ton ...
guerrilla army under General
Vang Pao
Vang Pao ( RPA: ''Vaj Pov'' , Lao: ວັງປາວ; 8 December 1929 – 6 January 2011) was a major general in the Royal Lao Army. He was a leader of the Hmong American community in the United States. He was also known as General Vang P ...
around the
Plain of Jars
The Plain of Jars ( Lao: ທົ່ງໄຫຫິນ ''Thong Hai Hin'', ) is a megalithic archaeological landscape in Laos. It consists of thousands of stone jars scattered around the upland valleys and the lower foothills of the central plain of ...
in
Military Region 2 (MR 2).
Background
![Map of Xiangkhoang Province, Laos](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5c/Map_of_Xiangkhoang_Province%2C_Laos.jpg)
While the war on the
Ho Chi Minh Trail in the southern Laotian panhandle was considered an extension of the
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
, the war in northern Laos was the heart of the
Laotian Civil War
The Laotian Civil War (1959–1975) was a civil war in Laos which was waged between the Communist Pathet Lao and the Royal Lao Government from 23 May 1959 to 2 December 1975. It is associated with the Cambodian Civil War and the Vietnam War ...
. It was a seesaw war. In November 1968, Vang Pao and his guerrillas had waged
Operation Pigfat
Operation Pigfat was a crucial guerrilla offensive of the Laotian Civil War; it lasted from 26 November 1968 to 7 January 1969. Launched by Hmong tribal soldiers backed by the Central Intelligence Agency, it was based on the usage of overwhelming ...
and been rather successful with
Operation Raindance
Operation Raindance was a military operation of the Laotian Civil War, staged from 17 March to 7 April 1969. It was launched by the U.S. Air Force (USAF) in support of Hmong guerrillas raised by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). As the guerril ...
. The PAVN short sharp
riposte
In fencing, a riposte ( French for "retort") is an offensive action with the intent of hitting one's opponent made by the fencer who has just parried an attack. In military usage, a riposte is the strategic device of hitting a vulnerable point o ...
of
Campaign Toan Thang
Campaign Toan Thang (Campaign Total Victory) was the first communist wet season offensive of the Laotian Civil War. Launched on 18 June 1969 and successful by the 27th, the assault by People's Army of Vietnam troops from the 312th Division and ...
during 18–27 June 1969 redressed the balance by capturing the strategic forward air base at
Muang Soui
Muang Soui(In Lao: ເມືອງສຸຍ) (also called Muang Souy or Muong Soui) is a small town in Xiangkhouang Province Laos. It is located on Route 7 of Laos, so east of Phoukhoune district, northwest of Phonsavan, and Ban Phou Pheung Noi, ...
. From 1–15 July, the Royalists hastily struck back with
Operation Off Balance
Operation Off Balance was a hastily planned offensive operation of the Laotian Civil War; it happened between 1 and 15 July 1969 on the Plain of Jars in the Kingdom of Laos. The Royal Lao Government forces in Military Region 1 of Laos had just been ...
. That was followed up by
Kou Kiet
Kou Kiet (translation: Redeem Honor; also called Operation About Face) was a major Laotian Civil War victory for the anti-communist troops of the Kingdom of Laos. Patterned after prior Operation Raindance, it depended upon extensive air strikes b ...
, also called Operation About Face, which in August and September 1970 recaptured the Plain of Jars from the Communists at the cost of excessive Hmong casualties. Stepping on the tail of Kou Kiet, the Communist
combined arms
Combined arms is an approach to warfare
War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme vio ...
offensive of
Campaign 139
Campaign 139 (14 September 1969–25 April 1970) was a major military offensive of the People's Army of Vietnam, launched against its Royalist enemies during the Laotian Civil War. Larger than previous invading forces, Campaign 139 was also a ...
was a gross escalation of the war, waged from September 1969 through April 1970. At its end, the Vietnamese Communists had conquered the Plain and besieged the main guerrilla base at
Long Tieng
Long Tieng (also spelled Long Chieng, Long Cheng, or Long Chen) is a Laotian military base in Xaisomboun Province. During the Laotian Civil War, it served as a town and airbase operated by the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States. ...
, nearly winning the war. The aptly named
Operation Counterpunch
Operation Counterpunch, waged 26 September 1970 to 7 January 1971, was a military offensive of the Laotian Civil War. Royalist General Vang Pao's guerrilla army regained the vital all-weather forward fighter base at Muang Soui on the Plain of Jars ...
by the Royalists, fought during Autumn 1970, succeeded in buying the Hmong some time. In turn,
Campaign 74B
Campaign 74B (2 February–30 April 1971) was a major combined arms offensive by the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) during the Laotian Civil War. The Communist offensive, if successful, would knock the last remaining fighting troops of the ...
was a Communist combined arms offensive during Spring 1971 that once again besieged Long Tieng.
Preliminary activities
As the forces of Campaign 74B receded back upon their
lines of communication
A line of communication (or communications) is the route that connects an operating military unit with its supply base. Supplies and reinforcements are transported along the line of communication. Therefore, a secure and open line of communicati ...
during summer 1971, opening a 20 kilometer gap between the armies, ''L'armée Clandestine'' advanced onto the Plain of Jars and occupied about half of it. Anticipating further attacks by the PAVN, the Royalists set up half a dozen fire support heavy weapons bases networking the Plain with mutually supporting fans of artillery fire. Their CIA supporters arranged for reinforcement by Thai
mercenary
A mercenary, sometimes also known as a soldier of fortune or hired gun, is a private individual, particularly a soldier, that joins a military conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a member of any o ...
battalions from
Operation Unity, as little manpower was available from other military regions. The Royalists were fielding approximately 5,000 troops in 19 battalions. Five of these were Hmong; four were Lao regular army battalions. The remaining ten battalions were Thai mercenaries.
Meantime, the PAVN moved
T-34 tank
The T-34 is a Soviet medium tank introduced in 1940. When introduced its 76.2 mm (3 in) tank gun was less powerful than its contemporaries while its 60-degree sloped armour provided good protection against Anti-tank warfare, anti-tan ...
s and 16 130mm
field gun
A field gun is a field artillery piece. Originally the term referred to smaller guns that could accompany a field army on the march, that when in combat could be moved about the battlefield in response to changing circumstances ( field artille ...
s from North Vietnam into Laos to support future offensives. Although a smaller
caliber
In guns, particularly firearms, caliber (or calibre; sometimes abbreviated as "cal") is the specified nominal internal diameter of the gun barrel Gauge (firearms) , bore – regardless of how or where the bore is measured and whether the f ...
than a 155mm
howitzer
A howitzer () is a long- ranged weapon, falling between a cannon (also known as an artillery gun in the United States), which fires shells at flat trajectories, and a mortar, which fires at high angles of ascent and descent. Howitzers, like ot ...
, the 130mm cannon seriously out-ranged the 155mm weapon. According to CIA tribal road watch spy teams, the PAVN also reinforced with at least 6,400 fresh troops. Once again, as in Campaigns 139 and 74B, the PAVN fielded a
combined arms
Combined arms is an approach to warfare
War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme vio ...
force. This time it appeared to contain two full
division
Division or divider may refer to:
Mathematics
*Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication
*Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division
Military
*Division (military), a formation typically consisting ...
s. Major General Le Trong Van, fresh from successfully commanding an
army corps
Corps (; plural ''corps'' ; from French , from the Latin "body") is a term used for several different kinds of organization. A military innovation by Napoleon I, the formation was first named as such in 1805. The size of a corps varies great ...
of PAVN troops in
Operation Lam Son 719
Operation Lam Son 719 or 9th Route – Southern Laos Campaign ( vi, Chiến dịch Lam Sơn 719 or Chiến dịch đường 9 – Nam Lào) was a limited-objective offensive campaign conducted in the southeastern portion of the Kingdom of Laos. T ...
, was picked to command the upcoming Campaign Z. General Vu Lap, who had commanded Campaign 139, was his deputy.
Campaign Z
The initial push
The annual Hmong New Year kicked off on 16 December 1971; many officers found their way rearward from their front-line units to the celebration.
[Conboy, Morrison, p. 323.] There was unseasonable rain on 17 December, grounding aviation. Campaign Z began with a PAVN drive down the Ban Ban Valley. The strike force consisted of the 335th Independent
Regiment
A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation.
In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscripted ...
,
mechanized infantry
Mechanized infantry are infantry units equipped with armored personnel carriers (APCs) or infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) for transport and combat (see also mechanized force).
As defined by the United States Army, mechanized infantry is di ...
of the
316th PAVN Division's 174th Regiment, the 27th
Sapper
A sapper, also called a pioneer (military), pioneer or combat engineer, is a combatant or soldier who performs a variety of military engineering duties, such as breaching fortifications, demolitions, bridge-building, laying or clearing minefie ...
Battalion, and the 195th Armored Battalion. New to the fighting in northern Laos were T34 tanks and
armored personnel carriers
An armoured personnel carrier (APC) is a broad type of armoured military vehicle designed to transport personnel and equipment in combat zones. Since World War I, APCs have become a very common piece of military equipment around the world.
Acc ...
. The PAVN objective was the destruction of two Royalist guerrilla regiments, ''Groupement Mobile 21'' (GM 21) and ''Groupement Mobile 23'' (GM 23).
[Conboy, Morrison, p. 324.]
Simultaneously, the
312th PAVN Division retraced its previous successful line of attack, driving down Route 72 at ''Groupement Mobile 22'' in the southeastern PDJ. Anticipating the PAVN arrival, the guerrillas began to abandon their weapons as they sifted to the rear past the Thai fire bases.
[
With their light infantry screen withdrawn, the Thai fire bases now came under attack. The PAVN used a new tactic of counter-fire on the batteries to coop the Thai gunners in their bunkers. It would lift this fire in bare time for its infantry to overrun the fire bases. Without time to react, many of the Thais were trapped in their bunkers.][Anthony, Sexton, p. 353.]
On 18 December 1971, in another first for the northern Lao theater of war, the Vietnam People's Air Force
The Vietnam People's Air Force (VPAF, ), formally refers itself as the Air Defence - Air Force (ADAF, ) or the Vietnamese Air Force (VNAF, ), is the Air force, aerial warfare service branch of Vietnam. It is the successor of the former North V ...
(VPAF) unexpectedly challenged the U.S. Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...
(USAF) and Royal Lao Air Force
The Royal Lao Air Force (french: Aviation Royale Laotiènne – AVRL), best known to the Americans by its English acronym RLAF, was the air force component of the Royal Lao Armed Forces (FAR), the official military of the Royal Lao Government and ...
(RLAF) air supremacy
Aerial supremacy (also air superiority) is the degree to which a side in a conflict holds control of air power over opposing forces. There are levels of control of the air in aerial warfare. Control of the air is the aerial equivalent of com ...
. The VPAF thrust by MiG 21
The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 (russian: Микоян и Гуревич МиГ-21; NATO reporting name: Fishbed) is a supersonic jet fighter and interceptor aircraft, designed by the Mikoyan-Gurevich Design Bureau in the Soviet Union. Its nickna ...
s disrupted the entirety of the air war over the PDJ. All strikes had to be called off; bomb loads had to be jettisoned willy nilly. The propeller driven craft fled due west to escape the MiGs. U.S. Air Force F-4 Phantom II
The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II is an American tandem two-seat, twin-engine, all-weather, long-range supersonic jet interceptor and fighter-bomber originally developed by McDonnell Aircraft for the United States Navy.Swanborough and Bow ...
fighters turned to fight the VPAF. The USAF lost three F-4s that day.[Conboy, Morrison, p. 325.]
Combat Search and Rescue
Combat search and rescue (CSAR) are search and rescue operations that are carried out during war that are within or near combat zones.
A CSAR mission may be carried out by a task force of helicopters, ground-attack aircraft, aerial refuelin ...
(CSAR) for the downed fliers on 19 December absorbed fifty aircraft in its efforts, leading to another day of weak tactical air support for the Royalists. Even after the end of the CSAR, air support was weakened by necessary countermeasures to MiG 21 intrusions, whether real or feinted.[
The end of the Thai fire bases came on 20 December; all six of them were overrun. Nor were the Hmong home free; one battalion of 800 suffered about 200 wounded, and nearly that many killed.][Ahern, p. 437.] Overall, Royalist casualties for the three days combat were 286 killed, 418 wounded, and 1,500 missing. The Royalists also lost 24 howitzers to the Communists.[
]
The battle for Skyline Ridge
On 21 December 1971, the 174th PAVN Regiment, backed by the 14th Antiaircraft Battalion, took Hill 1663. From its summit, they poured plunging fire
Plunging fire is a form of indirect fire, where gunfire is fired at a trajectory to make it fall on its target from above. It is normal at the high trajectories used to attain long range, and can be used deliberately to attack a target not suscep ...
on the nearby Royalist position at Ban Na until it was evacuated.[Conboy, Morrison, p. 327.]
''Groupement Mobile 31'' (GM 31) arrived from Military Region 3 to reinforce the Royalists on 22 December. By 28 December, MR 2 had received six Lao battalions and 11 replacement howitzers; 25 more of the latter were en route. On 30 December, ''Groupement Mobile 30'' (GM 30) arrived as additional reinforcement. By now, half of the 4,000 guerrillas that had succumbed to the initial PAVN attacks were still unaccounted for. The situation was desperate enough that 111 B-52
The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is an American long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It has been operated by the United States Air ...
sorties had struck in support of the Royalists during December. The PAVN shot down six T-28 Trojan
The North American Aviation T-28 Trojan is a radial-engine military trainer aircraft manufactured by North American Aviation and used by the United States Air Force and United States Navy beginning in the 1950s. Besides its use as a trainer, ...
s and three Phantoms during the same period.[Ahern, pp. 437–438.][Conboy, Morrison, pp. 327–328.][Anthony, Sexton, p. 354.]
On 30 December 1971, Communist forces attacked Sala Phou Khoun, a strategic intersection in the Royalist rear; the counter for this would become Operation Maharat
Operation Maharat (30 December 1971–16 March 1972) was a military offensive of the Royal Lao Government aimed at Communist insurrectionists. At stake was the sole road junction in northern Laos well in the rear of Royalist troops fighting i ...
.[ The next day, the first Communist 130mm shells fell on Long Tieng. They blew up the main ammo dump, including its RLAF facilities. Vang Pao unexpectedly left his headquarters at the vital guerrilla base. His CIA advisers followed him to a smoky hut in Ban Song Sai, 21 kilometers to the southwest. There they found him ill, depressed, weeping, and cursing the lack of air support. He returned to Long Tieng with them. They took him to hospital on 4 January, to be admitted for treatment of viral pneumonia.][Ahern, p. 438.][Conboy, Morrison, p. 329.]
By 5 January 1972, about 600 rounds of 130mm explosives had hit Long Tieng. Radio intercepts of PAVN messages revealed 24 PAVN battalions were poised to attack the Royalists. On the Royalist side, both GM 21 and GM 23 had been mauled into uselessness. Eight of the Royalist infantry battalions had been relieved for refitting. Given the gravity of the PAVN threat to the Long Tieng base, its aviation operations were dispersed away from Communist reach. The TACAN
A tactical air navigation system, commonly referred to by the acronym TACAN, is a navigation system used by military aircraft. It provides the user with bearing and distance (slant-range or hypotenuse) to a ground or ship-borne station. It is a mor ...
air navigation system on Skyline Ridge was moved 20 kilometers further south to another mountaintop. Flight operations—whether RLAF, Air America, or Continental Air Services, Inc
Continental Air Services, Inc, better known as CASI, was a subsidiary airline of Continental Airlines
Continental Airlines, simply known as Continental, was a major United States airline founded in 1934 and eventually headquartered in Houst ...
—followed the refugee relief effort, which had been transferred from Sam Thong to nearby Ban Son. In Vang Pao's absence, discipline slipped; there was some looting by both Thais and Hmong.[Conboy, Morrison, pp. 329–330.]
On both 7 and 9 January 1972, PAVN sappers penetrated Long Tieng's defenses in raids against the 20 Alternate airfield there. On 11 January, CIA case agents began construction of hardened bunker
A bunker is a defensive military fortification designed to protect people and valued materials from falling bombs, artillery, or other attacks. Bunkers are almost always underground, in contrast to blockhouses which are mostly above ground. ...
s for protection from shell fire. That same day, PAVN troops from the 335th Independent Regiment, the 148th Regiment, and 14th Antiaircraft Battalion overran a Royalist guerrilla battalion, pushed GM 23 out of the way, and attacked Long Tieng from the north, northeast, and east. They pushed a Thai mercenary battalion from the Charlie Alpha helicopter landing zone, the highest point on Skyline Ridge overlooking Long Tieng. Meanwhile, down south in Bangkok, the deputy chairman of the National Executive Council floated the idea that the Hmong could relocate to Thailand to escape the war.[Conboy, Morrison, p. 330.]
On 12 January, GM 30 was lifted back to the base of Skyline Ridge and ascended to the Charlie Echo landing pad on its western end. On 14 January, two Thai battalions were brought in to seize both ends of the Ridge. The subsequent eastward assault along the ridgeline on 17 January by GM 30 was supported by the Thais, artillery fire, and B-52 strikes. By 18 January, the Hmong irregulars had reclaimed all but the eastern end of the ridge at a cost of 35 killed and 69 wounded.
Media reaction
On 14 January, the PAVN's daily newspaper, ''Quan Doi Nhan Dan
The ''People's Army Newspaper'' () is a Vietnamese newspaper headquartered in Hanoi. It is under the authority of the Central Military Commission of the Communist Party of Vietnam and the Ministry of National Defense, and it is practically the off ...
'', proclaimed victory at Long Tieng. On 16 January, they ran a detailed account of the "victory", complete with campaign map.
The fighting had garnered the attention of foreign correspondent
A correspondent or on-the-scene reporter is usually a journalist or commentator for a magazine, or an agent who contributes reports to a newspaper, or radio or television news, or another type of company, from a remote, often distant, locati ...
s, who now deemed it "the most important battleground of the Indochina war". Previously denied access to the secretive base at Long Tieng, on 19 January the journalists were finally granted entry. Two helicopter loads of reporters from United Press International
United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th ...
, ''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', Associated Press
The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...
, and other media outlets were flown in after swearing not to reveal the identity of any CIA personnel on site. They were shuttled about the battlefield, with a doughty few electing to be convoyed in to the GM 30 positions. While there, a few mortar shells dropped in nearby.[ When a ]medevac
Medical evacuation, often shortened to medevac or medivac, is the timely and efficient movement and en route care provided by medical personnel to wounded being evacuated from a battlefield, to injured patients being evacuated from the scene of a ...
helicopter came in, the unhurt journalists barged aboard before a wounded Thai officer could be loaded. A later medevac had to be called in for the wounded major after the reporters departed.[Conboy, Morrison, p. 331.] The journalists changed their mind about an overnight stay at Long Tieng, and were flown back to Vientiane later that day.[Ahern, pp. 444–445.]
Retreat of PAVN
On 20 January 1972, two PAVN battalions attacked Skyline Ridge, inflicting 45 casualties on GM 30. After their retreat, their position was occupied by a Royalist guerrilla battalion advised by CIA case agent George Bacon, call sign Kayak. Also, by 24 January, GM 30 and two Royalist guerrilla battalions swept the remaining PAVN from Skyline Ridge. By then, four supporting Thai artillery positions had been set up in an arc about nine kilometers south of Long Tieng. That same day, two fresh battalions of Thais arrived as Royalist reinforcements. On 25 January, four more battalions of Thais arrived; on 27 January, two more. On 30 January 1972, GM 30 was relieved and flown home to Military Region 3. Vang Pao shuffled his troops into the best possible defensive positions. Once again, the PAVN had come up short on capturing Long Tieng.
Result
As in Campaign 139, the PAVN pulled up just short of overrunning Long Tieng and ending the Laotian Civil War. The Royalists were battered and in questionable shape to undertake an offensive. With further North Vietnamese offensives in the offing, the American government found itself presented with a double-edged dilemma. ''L'Armee Clandestine'' was the only Lao military force still ready to fight in northern Laos—but barely ready. Continued defense of Long Tieng could lead to their defeat and loss of the war. On the other hand, removing the Hmong from their traditional homeland might irretrievably break their fighting spirit, and lose the war. However, Ambassador G. McMurtrie Godley, who actually directed the war, believed that with the PAVN being attrited by air strikes, the Hmong could endure. Besides, Vang Pao had returned from hospital, and Hmong morale consequently perked up. On the other hand, CIA Chief of Station
A station chief is a government official who is the head of a team, post or function usually in a foreign country. Historically it commonly referred to the head of a defensible structure such as an ambassador's residence or colonial outpost. In ...
Hugh Tovar believed that the Lao were becoming disgusted with the Americans risking only money and supplies while Lao were being killed.[Castle, p. 111.]
Notes
External links
CIA spook recalls Thailand's role in secret war
References
* Ahern, Thomas L. Jr. (2006), ''Undercover Armies: CIA and Surrogate Warfare in Laos''. Center for the Study of Intelligence. Classified control no. C05303949.
* Anthony, Victor B. and Richard R. Sexton (1993). ''The War in Northern Laos''. Command for Air Force History. .
* Castle, Timothy N. (1993). ''At War in the Shadow of Vietnam: U.S. Military Aid to the Royal Lao Government 1955–1975''. .
* Conboy, Kenneth and James Morrison (1995). ''Shadow War: The CIA's Secret War in Laos''. Paladin Press. .
* Dommen, Arthur J., Chapter 1. Historical Setting. Savada, Andrea Matles, ed. (1995). ''Laos a country study''. Federal Research Division, Library of Congress. {{ISBN, 0-8444-0832-8.
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