Operation Neosho was a security operation in northern
Thừa Thiên Province,
South Vietnam
South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam ( vi, Việt Nam Cộng hòa), was a state in Southeast Asia that existed from 1955 to 1975, the period when the southern portion of Vietnam was a member of the Western Bloc during part of th ...
from 1 November 1967 to 25 January 1968.
Background
Operation Neosho was a continuation of
Operation Fremont with the same forces and operational area. The Neosho area of operations was in northern Thừa Thiên Province, northwest of
Huế
Huế () is the capital of Thừa Thiên Huế province in central Vietnam and was the capital of Đàng Trong from 1738 to 1775 and of Vietnam during the Nguyễn dynasty from 1802 to 1945. The city served as the old Imperial City and admi ...
with its northern boundary on the Mỹ Chánh River, the southern boundary on the Bo River, the eastern boundary on
Highway 1
The following highways are numbered 1.
For roads numbered A1, see list of A1 roads.
For roads numbered B1, see list of B1 roads.
For roads numbered M1, see List of M1 roads.
For roads numbered N1, see list of N1 roads.
For roads numbered ...
opposite the
Street Without Joy
Street Without Joy or ''La Rue Sans Joie'' was the name given by troops of the French Far East Expeditionary Corps to the stretch of Route 1 from Huế to Quảng Trị during the First Indochina War.
Situation
The Viet Minh had fortified a stri ...
and the western boundary in the foothills of the highlands. 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) Base Area 114 was located in the CoBi-Than Tan valley in the western foothills.
Col. William L. Dick's
4th Marine Regiment
The 4th Marine Regiment is an infantry regiment of the United States Marine Corps. Based at Camp Schwab in Okinawa, Japan, it is part of the 3rd Marine Division of the III Marine Expeditionary Force.
Mission
Close with and destroy the enemy by fi ...
controlled the
3rd Battalion, 12th Marines arilley and
3rd Battalion, 26th Marines
The 3rd Battalion, 26th Marines (3/26) is an inactive infantry battalion of the United States Marine Corps. They were part of the 26th Marine Regiment and 5th Marine Division and fought during the Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II. They were ac ...
at his command post at
Camp Evans
Camp Evans Historic District is an area of the Camp Evans Formerly Used Defense Site in Wall Township, New Jersey. The site of the military installation () is noted for a 1914 transatlantic radio receiver and various World War II/Cold War labo ...
and
BLT
A BLT is a type of sandwich, named for the initials of its primary ingredients, bacon, lettuce, and tomato. It can be made with varying recipes according to personal preference. Simple variants include using different types of lettuce, toastin ...
1st Battalion, 3rd Marines
1st Battalion, 3rd Marines (1/3) is an infantry battalion in the United States Marine Corps based out of Marine Corps Base Hawaii. Nicknamed the "Lava Dogs", the battalion consists of approximately 800 Marines and sailors and falls under the comm ...
and
1st Battalion, 4th Marines
1st Battalion, 4th Marines (1/4) is an infantry battalion in the United States Marine Corps based out of Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California consisting of approximately 800 Marines and sailors. They fall under the command of the 1st M ...
which were operating near Hill 674 (),
and maintained bases on Hills 51 () and 674 at the northern and southern ends of the CoBi-Than Tan valley.
[
]
Operation
On 25 October under the name Operation Granite the 1/3 Marines and 1/4 Marines attacked Base Area 114 which was believed to be the base of the PAVN 6th Regiment. The Marines engaged elements of the 6th Regiment's 800th and 802nd Battalions, killing 20 PAVN for the loss of 25 Marines. At the end of the operation on 6 November BLT 1/3 Marines was moved north to Quảng Trị Province.[
On 18 November 1/4 Marines was deployed outside the Neosho operational area. On 22 November ]1st Battalion, 9th Marines
The 1st Battalion 9th Marines (1/9) was an infantry battalion of the United States Marine Corps. Formed during World War I, it served until the mid-2000s when it was deactivated to make room for one of three light armor reconnaissance battalions ...
replaced the 3/26th Marines at Camp Evans and 3/26 Marines swept the CoBi-Than Tan valley before being moved to Khe Sanh Combat Base
Khe Sanh Combat Base (also known as Ta Con) was a United States Marine Corps outpost south of the Vietnamese Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) used during the Vietnam War.
History
US Army Special Forces (Detachment A-101, Company C, 5th Special Forces Gr ...
on 13 December, leaving 1/9 Marines as the only infantry battalion in the area.[
Despite the limited results from Operation Granite and subsequent operations, the ]3rd Marine Division
The 3rd Marine Division is a division of the United States Marine Corps based at Camp Courtney, Marine Corps Base Camp Smedley D. Butler in Okinawa, Japan. It is one of three active duty infantry divisions in the Marine Corps and together with th ...
MG Rathvon M. Tompkins
Rathvon McClure Tompkins (August 23, 1912 – September 17, 1999) was a highly decorated United States Marine Corps major general. He saw combat in World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and led Marine units during the Dominican Civil War ...
was concerned about the PAVN's intentions in the Neosho and Street without Joy areas, but lacked the necessary forces to neutralize Base Area 114.[ Col. Dick continued to screen the CoBi-Than Tan valley with the limited forces available to him. On the morning of 2 January, an 8-man patrol from Company A ]3rd Reconnaissance Battalion
The 3rd Reconnaissance Battalion (3rd Recon) conducts amphibious and ground reconnaissance in support of the 3rd Marine Division and Marine Forces Pacific (MarForPac), operating in the commander's areas of influence. The Battalion is based o ...
was landed on a hill 8 km southeast of Camp Evans to observe PAVN movement in the CoBi-Than Tan valley, the reconnaissance Marines did not move from their landing zone and failed to set out claymore mines
The Claymore mine is a directional anti-personnel mine developed for the United States Armed Forces. Its inventor, Norman MacLeod, named the mine after a large medieval Scottish sword. Unlike a conventional land mine, the Claymore is command-de ...
around their perimeter in the belief that they couldn't be observed. At 17:15 the patrol was attacked by the PAVN, with 6 Marines killed and the 2 survivors escaping overland, arriving at the Marine outpost on Hill 51 the following morning. Later that day Company D deployed by helicopters to recover the dead reconnaissance Marines, meeting no opposition.[
On 7 January marine air and artillery strikes on PAVN bunkers south of Hill 51 resulted in large secondary explosions. After midnight on 8 January, a Marine night ambush 5 km east of Hill 51 killed five ]Viet Cong
,
, war = the Vietnam War
, image = FNL Flag.svg
, caption = The flag of the Viet Cong, adopted in 1960, is a variation on the flag of North Vietnam. Sometimes the lower stripe was green.
, active ...
and captured two. On 15 January airstrikes against PAVN bunkers killed seven PAVN and caused two secondary explosions. On 19 January a company ambush site observed 36 PAVN moving along Route 554; they were reinforced and called in artillery strikes and then advanced, forcing the PAVN to flee, leaving six dead. On 20 January the Marines captured one PAVN and two VC soldiers.[
]
Operation Neosho II
As part of Operation Checkers, control of the Neosho area of operations and 1/9 Marines transferred to the 1st Marine Regiment
The 1st Marine Regiment is an infantry regiment of the United States Marine Corps based at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. The regiment is under the command of the 1st Marine Division and the I Marine Expeditionary Force. The 1st ...
which established its headquarters at Camp Evans on 20 January and began Operation Neosho II.[ On 22 January BLT ]2nd Battalion, 4th Marines
2nd Battalion, 4th Marines (2/4th Marines) is an infantry battalion of the United States Marine Corps. The battalion, nicknamed the ''Magnificent Bastards'' from the Vietnam War, is based out of Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California and ...
was landed at Camp Evans and 1/9 Marines was moved to Khe Sanh. On 23 January 1st Marine Regiment commander Col. Stanley S. Hughes
Stanley Smith Hughes (29 October 1918 – 5 January 2001) was raised in Tioga County, Pennsylvania. He joined the Marines in 1940 as an enlisted man and at the start of World War II was selected for officer training. He was assigned as a weapons ...
received orders to close down Operation Neosho II the following day and hand over Camp Evans to the 1st Cavalry Division.
Aftermath
Operation Neosho concluded on 20 January 1968. Marine losses were 12 killed, PAVN losses were 77 killed and nine captured.[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Neosho, Operation
Battles and operations of the Vietnam War
Battles and operations of the Vietnam War in 1967
Battles and operations of the Vietnam War in 1968
United States Marine Corps in the Vietnam War
History of Thừa Thiên Huế province