Battle of Lima Site 85

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Battle of Lima Site 85
Part of the Vietnam War
Date March 10 – March 11, 1968 Location 20°28′5.4″N 103°43′32.2″E / 20.468167°N 103.725611°E / 20.468167; 103.725611 (Lima Site 85)Coordinates: 20°28′5.4″N 103°43′32.2″E / 20.468167°N 103.725611°E / 20.468167; 103.725611 (Lima Site 85) Phou Pha Thi, northeastern Laos UTM Grid UH 68-60[1] Result Communist victory
Belligerents
United States Royal Lao Army (Hmong) Thai "volunteers"	North Vietnam Pathet Lao  Soviet Union[citation needed]
Commanders
Lt. Col. Clarence F. Blanton Richard Secord Vang Pao	Truong Muc
Strength
1,300+	3,000+
Casualties and losses
12 Americans killed and/or captured 42 Thais and Hmongs killed	Unknown

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The Battle of Lima Site 85 was a battle of the Vietnam War. The site was located at Phou Pha Thi—a mountain 15 miles (24 km) from the border of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV or North Vietnam) and 30 miles (48 km) from Sam Neua, capital of the Pathet Lao. The term "Lima Site" was derived from the American acronym for map designations of "Landing Sites" within the Secret War zone of the Second Indochina War, an active covert battleground in the larger Cold War.

Contents 1 Background 2 Battle 3 Aftermath 4 Covert USAF personnel on Phou Pha Thi (LS-85) 11 March 1968 5 See also 6 Notes 7 External links

[edit] Background

In August 1966, to assist ongoing aerial operations against the DRV (Operation Rolling Thunder), the United States Air Force sited a TACAN facility on the peak of Phu Pha Thi to assist American aviators conducting bombing operations in the northwestern region of North Vietnam. In 1967, a portable TSQ 81 COMBAT SKYSPOT ground directed bombing unit was added and operational by the end of November. By early 1968, the site was controlling 55% of Operation Rolling Thunder strikes in the DRV and 20% of air strikes being carried out in northeastern Laos under Operation Barrel Roll.

The first PAVN attack on Lima Site 85 occurred on 12 January 1968, when two Vietnam People's Air Force Antonov An-2 biplanes began dropping 120 mm mortar rounds on the site. An Air America Bell 205 helicopter, lifting off to avoid destruction, began to chase one of the An-2s, which had been damaged by ground fire. While maneuvering to escape, the An-2 crashed and burned. The Bell then gave chase to a second aircraft, which was shot down by the crew chief armed with an AK-47 rifle[1].

By 10 March the communists were ready for another attack, this time utilizing the 41st PAVN Dac Cong (sapper) Battalion and the 923rd PAVN Infantry Battalion, which had the task of capturing and/or destroying the radar equipment and covert USAF personnel at LS-85.

[edit] Battle

On the night of 10 March the 766th PAVN Regiment launched a diversionary attack preceded by an artillery barrage. Lima Site 85 was encircled by the North Vietnamese to trap the American personnel there, while all egress routes were blocked to prevent rescue from Thai "volunteers" and Hmong guerrillas of the Royal Lao Army. During the night, the North Vietnamese scaled the 5,600-foot (1,700 m) mountain, while the infantry units fought their way up the slopes to create a diversion. The Americans were taken by surprise when 33 sappers appeared with submachine guns and RPG-7s. Several Americans were killed.

Throughout the night, U.S. F-4 Phantom fighter-bombers and A-26 bombers repeatedly hit the attackers, while simultaneously, Air America aircraft were ready to evacuate the survivors. By morning, USAF and Air America missions had airlifted out the remaining defenders, including five American survivors and the wounded. The Hmong and Thai troops at the base of the mountain had abandoned the area as Phou Pha Thi fell to communist forces.

[edit] Aftermath

Once the 41st Sapper Battalion had secured the site, they began collecting weapons and documents. Top Secret Tactical Air Navigation was compromised. The sappers allegedly buried the dead Americans, and no admission of captured survivors has yet been made, but air strikes conducted later during the day may have destroyed the corpses. Eleven American personnel were never recovered and carried as missing in action and seven more were wounded. Another 42 Royal Thai Army "volunteers" and Hmong troops were killed during the action. This incident was not declassified until 1983, and it was the largest single ground combat loss of USAF personnel in the entire "Vietnam" war.

Two days after the fall of Lima Site 85, Captain Donald Elliot Westbrook's aircraft was shot down while searching for survivors from the outpost. His body was never recovered. For his efforts during the battle, CMSgt Richard Etchberger was posthumously awarded the Air Force Cross.^[2] In October, 2008, Air Force Secretary Michael B. Donley recommended Etchberger's Air Force Cross be upgraded to the Medal of Honor.

[edit] Covert USAF personnel on Phou Pha Thi (LS-85) 11 March 1968

• Rescued: Capt Stanley J. Sliz, SSgt John Daniel, SSgt Bill Husband, SSgt Jack Starling, Sgt Roger Huffman, Howard Freeman (CIA), John Spence (CIA)
• Killed in action during rescue: CMSgt Richard L. Etchberger
• Killed in action/body recovered: TSgt Patrick L. Shannon
• MIA/Captured? Listed as KIA/body not recovered: Lt Col Clarence F. Blanton, MSgt James H. Calfee, TSgt Melvin A. Holland, SSgt Herbert A. Kirk, SSgt Henry G. Gish, SSgt Willis R. Hall, SSgt James W. Davis, SSgt David S. Price, TSgt Donald K. Springsteadah, SSgt Don F. Worley

[edit] See also

• Project 404
• William H. Sullivan U.S. Ambassador to Laos
• Richard Secord USAF officer in charge of Security at LS-85 (author of Honored & Betrayed)
• Lee Lue Royal Lao Air Force Hmong T-28 fighter-bomber pilot.
• Vang Sue Royal Lao Air Force Hmong T-28 fighter-bomber pilot.
• Royal Thai Army (covert "volunteers")

[edit] Notes

[edit] External links

• Lima Site 85
• Detailed Map of Lima Site 85
• The Fall of Lima Site 85