Vietnam War Tactics

Tactics of the Vietnam War

The Vietnam War

1975

1968

1963

1945

Tet offensive and the My lai massacre

Johnson becomes president

Remaining American evacuate Vietnam

Ho-chi-minh declares Vietnam's independence

1965

1973

1956

First American combat troops arrive in Vietnam

Cease fire signed in Paris

French leave Vietnam

01

The Vietnam War and why it started

What was the Vietnam War?

Vietnam War

The Vietnam War was a long, costly and divisive conflict that pitted the communist government of North Vietnam against South Vietnam and its principal ally, the United States. The conflict was intensified by the ongoing Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union. More than 3 million people (including over 58,000 Americans) were killed in the Vietnam War, and more than half of the dead were Vietnamese civilians. Opposition to the war in the United States bitterly divided Americans, even after President Richard Nixon ordered the withdrawal of U.S. forces in 1973. Communist forces ended the war by seizing control of South Vietnam in 1975, and the country was unified as the Socialist Republic of Vietnam the following year.

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Why did the Vietnam War start?

Vietnam War

In general, historians have identified several different causes of the Vietnam War, including: the spread of communism during the Cold War, American containment, and European imperialism in Vietnam. To fight off both Japanese occupiers and the French colonial administration, political leader Ho Chi Minh—inspired by Chinese and Soviet communism—formed the Viet Minh, or the League for the Independence of Vietnam.

02

Vietminh and Vietcong tactics

Guerilla Warfare

Tunnel Systems

The Tet Offensive

Millions of miles of tunnel systems ran underneath Vietnam during this war

A strategic and coordinated attack on the American and South Vietnamese forces

A form of warfare which involves secrecy and tactics

The Tet Offensive

Vietnamese Tactics

In late January, 1968, during the lunar new year (or “Tet”) holiday, North Vietnamese and communist Viet Cong forces launched a coordinated attack against a number of targets in South Vietnam. The U.S. and South Vietnamese militaries sustained heavy losses before finally repelling the communist assault.It was a coordinated series of North Vietnamese attacks on more than 100 cities and outposts in South Vietnam. The offensive was an attempt to stop rebellion among the South Vietnamese population and encourage the United States to scale back its involvement in the Vietnam War. Although a military loss, the Tet Offensive was a stunning propaganda victory for the communists. In fact, it is often credited with turning the war in their favor. The South Vietnamese began to lose influence as Viet Cong guerrillas infiltrated rural areas formerly held by the South Vietnamese government

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Guerilla Warfare

Vietnamese Tactics

Guerrilla warfare is an unusual form of military combat that often utilizes raids, ambushes, sabotage and other irregular tactics. The combat involves small groups of men, at times armed civilians with limited training, attacking traditional and larger groups of military. This is the type of warfare used by the Viet Cong, communist fighters from North Vietnam, during the Vietnam War. The Viet Cong's surprise attacks were often carried out by ambushing American soldiers and then escaping before being captured. This is referred to as a hit-and-run ambush. This was possible because many times those carrying out the warfare would disguise themselves as regular citizens or local farmers. China was a primary source of weaponry and equipment to the Viet Cong. Weapons used during the guerrilla warfare were supervised by Ho Chi Minh, the Vietnamese communist leader and president of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. Different versions of the AK-47, along with various types of machine guns, booby traps, mortars, land mines and grenades, were provided by China. Guerrilla fighters used these weapons to bring down American helicopters and disable other US military equipment.

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Tunnel Systems

Vietnamese War

The original Viet Cong tunnels were dug just after World War II as Vietnamese fighters attempted to throw off French colonial forces. But the tunnel digging exploded when the U.S. arrived and implemented a heavy campaign of airstrikes, making underground tunnels a much safer way to travel. And with the increased size of the tunnel network, new amenities were added. Kitchens, living quarters, even weapon factories and hospitals were moved underground. The Viet Cong now had entire underground cities with hidden entrances. The tight tunnels limited the use of most American weapons. These tunnels were often dug just tall and wide enough for Viet Cong fighters, generally smaller than the average American. soldier, to crawl through. When corn-fed Nebraskans tried to crawl through it, they were typically limited to pistols and knives. Even worse for the Americans, the Viet Cong were great at building traps across the battlefield and in the tunnels. Poisoned bamboo shoots, nails, razor blades, and explosives could all greet an attacker moving too brashly through the tunnel networks. This led to the reluctant rise of the “Tunnel Rats,” American warfighters who specialized in the terrible tasks of moving through the underground bases, collecting intelligence and eliminating resistance. Between the claustrophobia and the physical dangers, this could drive the Tunnel Rats insane.

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03

American Tactics - B.E.A.S.T

Bombing

Escalation

Air and Artillery

Search and Destroy

Technology

Escalation

Bombing

On August 2, 1964, gunboats of North Vietnam allegedly fired on ships of the United States Navy stationed in the Gulf of Tonkin. They had been sailing 10 miles off the coast of North Vietnam in support of the South Vietnamese navy. When reports that further firing occurred on August 4, President Johnson quickly asked Congress to respond. With nearly unanimous consent, members of the Senate and House empowered Johnson to "take all necessary measures" to repel North Vietnamese aggression. The Tonkin Gulf Resolution gave the President a "Blank Check" to wage the war in Vietnam as he saw fit. After Lyndon Johnson was elected President in his own right that November, he chose to escalate the conflict.

U.S. military aircraft attacked targets throughout North Vietnam from March 1965 to October 1968. This massive bombardment was intended to put military pressure on North Vietnam's communist leaders and reduce their capacity to wage war against the U.S.-supported government of South Vietnam. Between 1965 and 1975, the United States and its allies dropped more than 7.5 million tons of bombs on Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia—double the amount dropped on Europe and Asia during World War II. Pound for pound, it remains the largest aerial bombardment in human history.

Search and Destroy

Air and Artillery

From 1965, the American military began a policy of sending soldiers into the jungle and villages of Vietnam to ‘take the war to the enemy’. This often meant soldiers were easy targets for Vietcong guerrilla attacks as the Vietcong were far more at home in the jungle than the American soldiers.From 1965, the American military began a policy of sending soldiers into the jungle and villages of Vietnam to ‘take the war to the enemy’. This often meant soldiers were easy targets for Vietcong guerrilla attacks as the Vietcong were far more at home in the jungle than the American soldiers. The tactics of search and destroy and defoliation were very ineffective in the Vietnam War. There was some element of success to the US tactics, but not enough for them to win the war overall. They were the wrong tactics to use against a guerrilla force, which is what caused them to be ineffective.The tactics of search and destroy and defoliation were very ineffective in the Vietnam War. There was some element of success to the US tactics, but not enough for them to win the war overall. They were the wrong tactics to use against a guerrilla force, which is what caused them to be ineffective.

American troops were sent on patrols, to be supported by air and artillery if attacked by the Vietcong. This demoralised soldiers, who realised they were being used as bait to draw out the enemy. One of the most common infantry weapons used by U.S. troops in Vietnam was the M-60 machine gun, which could also be used as an artillery weapon when mounted or operated from a helicopter or tank.

Technology

The USA relied on high altitude bombers to drop heavy bombs in North Vietnam. They used jets to dump napalm, a chemical that burnt skin down to the bone, on suspected Vietcong strongholds, and Agent Orange, an ultra-strong defoliant, was used to destroy the jungle cover. Helicopters were used to deploy, search for and destroy guerrilla combatants. Television propaganda was used in the USA to report the ‘body count’ of estimated Vietcong casualties. Many generations after Agent Orange have received severe deformities, such as missing eyes and limbs due to this poison used to burn down vietnamese forest.

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