Dak Seang Camp (also known as Dak Seang Special Forces Camp) is a former US Army and

Army of the Republic of Vietnam The Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN; ; french: Armée de la république du Viêt Nam) composed the ground forces of the Republic of Vietnam Military Forces, South Vietnamese military from its inception in 1955 to the Fall of Saigon in April ...

(ARVN) base northwest of

Kon Tum Kon Tum is the capital city of Kon Tum Province in Vietnam. It is located inland in the Central Highlands region of Vietnam, near the borders of Laos and Cambodia. History After the People's Army of Vietnam invaded South Vietnam on March 30, 1 ...

in the Central Highlands of

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

History

The 5th Special Forces Group and CIDG forces first established a base at here in 1964 to monitor communist infiltration along the Ho Chi Minh Trail. The base was located 10 km from the Laotian border, 23 km northwest of Đắk Tô and approximately 64 km northwest of Kon Tum. 5th Special Forces Detachment A-245 was based here in October 1966. On 18 August 1968 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) 101D Regiment, supported by artillery attacked the camp. The attack was beaten back with small arms and artillery fire. Dak Seang Special Forces Camp, May 1970

On 1 April 1970 the PAVN attacked the camp starting a siege that lasted until 8 May. At the same time the PAVN attacked the

Dak Pek Camp Dak Pek Camp (also known as Dak Pek Special Forces Camp) is a former U.S. Army and Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) base northwest of Kon Tum in the Central Highlands of Vietnam. History The 5th Special Forces Group first established a ba ...

. On 15 April 1970 the 170th Assault Helicopter Company dropped the 3rd Battalion, 42nd ARVN Regiment into a landing zone near Dak Seang, resulting in the loss of two helicopters. Sergeant

Gary B. Beikirch Gary Burnell Beikirch (August 29, 1947 – December 26, 2021) was a United States Army soldier who received the United States military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor, for his actions during the Vietnam War. A combat medic, Beikirch was a ...

a 5th Special Forces Group medic would be awarded the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...

for his actions during the siege. SFC

Gary L. Littrell Gary Lee Littrell (born October 26, 1944) is a retired United States Army command sergeant major who, while serving as an adviser to Army of the Republic of Vietnam's Ranger units during the Vietnam War, acted with extraordinary courage during a ...

would be awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during the siege as an advisor to the ARVN 23rd Battalion, 2nd Ranger Group. On 29 October 1972, following a 1,000+ round artillery barrage, the PAVN attacked the camp forcing its 300 Ranger defenders to abandon it by nightfall.

Shootdowns

* 2 April 1970:

C-7A Caribou The de Havilland Canada DHC-4 Caribou (designated by the United States military as the CV-2 and later C-7 Caribou) is a Canadian specialized cargo aircraft with STOL, short takeoff and landing (STOL) capability. The Caribou was first flown in ...

#61-2406 was shot down while dropping supplies, killing all three crew * 4 April 1970: C-7B Caribou #62-4180 was shot down while dropping supplies, killing all three crew * 6 April 1970: C-7B Caribou #63-9746 was shot down while dropping supplies, killing all three crew * 15 April 1970:

UH-1H The Bell UH-1 Iroquois military helicopter, first introduced in 1959, is the first production member of the prolific Huey family of helicopters, and was itself developed in over twenty variants, which are listed below. XH-40 and YH-40 The firs ...

#68-16203 was shot down while landing ARVN troops, resulting in two US and two ARVN killed * 15 April 1970:

HH-3E The Sikorsky S-61R is a twin-engine helicopter used in transport or search and rescue roles. A developed version of the S-61/SH-3 Sea King, the S-61R was also built under license by Agusta as the AS-61R. The S-61R served in the United States ...

#66-13280 of the

37th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron The 37th Helicopter Squadron is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the 582d Helicopter Group in support of the 90th Missile Wing located at Francis E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming. The unit is tasked with flight operations in support ...

was shot down while trying to rescue the crew of UH-1H #68-16203, resulting in one crewman killed

Current use

The base has been turned over to forest and housing adjacent to the

Ho Chi Minh Highway Ho Chi Minh Road or Ho Chi Minh Highway ( vi, Đường Hồ Chí Minh, links=no) is a highway in Vietnam. It runs from the north to the south of Vietnam, west of National Route 1. The highway was named after Hồ Chí Minh. History The route ro ...

References

{{Use dmy dates, date=February 2021 Installations of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam Installations of the United States Army in South Vietnam Buildings and structures in Kon Tum province