Operation Gadsden
 | This article relies largely or entirely on a single source. (June 2018) |
| Operation Gadsden | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Vietnam War | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 United States |
 North Vietnam | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| MG Frederick C. Weyand |
| ||||||
| Units involved | |||||||
|
25th Infantry Division 196th Infantry Brigade 3rd Brigade, 4th Infantry Division | 271st Regiment | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 29 killed | 160 killed (per US) | ||||||
Operation Gadsden was an operation conducted by the 25th Infantry Division in Tây Ninh Province, lasting from 2 to 21 February 1967.[1]: 114
Prelude
[edit]Operation Gadsden was planned as a deception operation ahead of Operation Junction City. The 25th Infantry Division would seek to engage the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) 271st Regiment in Base Area 354.[1]
Operation
[edit]The operation commenced on 2 February with the 196th Infantry Brigade and the 3rd Brigade, 4th Infantry Division, each reinforced by an additional battalion deploying into western War Zone C. Following B-52 strikes against suspected base areas of the 271st Regiment, the eight infantry battalions seized two abandoned border villages, Lo Go (11°34′37″N 105°53′53″E / 11.577°N 105.898°E) and Xom Giua, which served as supply depots from the Sihanouk Trail in Cambodia.[1]
Subsequent sweeps confirmed the presence of the PAVN 271st Regiment, 70th Guard Regiment and 680th Training Regiments in the Lo Go area, although they failed to engage them.[1]
Aftermath
[edit]Operation Gadsden officially concluded on 21 February, the US claiming that PAVN losses were 160 killed, U.S. losses were 29 killed.[1]
The 196th Infantry Brigade returned to Tây Ninh Combat Base, while the 3rd Brigade, 4th Infantry Division deployed to blocking positions along Highway 22 for Operation Junction City.[1]
Contrasting the official view of the operation, internal reports by the Pentagon Papers indicate that the operation insignificant results, failing to dislodge or drive out the 271st Regiment.[2]
References
[edit]
This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Army Center of Military History.
- ^ a b c d e f MacGarrigle, George (1998). Combat Operations: Taking the Offensive, October 1966 to October 1967. United States Army Center of Military History. ISBN 9780160495403.
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ "The Pentagon Papers, Gravel Edition, Volume 4, Chapter 2, "US Ground Strategy and Force Deployments, 1965-1968, pp. 277-604, 4th section". www.mtholyoke.edu. Archived from the original on 2019-06-26. Retrieved 2018-06-12.