The Artillery and War Tactics Used by the United States During the Vietnam War
The Vietnam War is one of the United State’s more infamous wars; also called The Helicopter War, the war was technologically advanced for its time due to its inclusion and prominence of helicopters, napalm, and Agent Orange.(1) The United States military primarily used the tactics of both search and destroy and carpet bombings. The war today is considered a failure in our nation’s history and Henry Kissinger described the failure of the war best: “To me, the tragedy of the Vietnam war was not that there were disagreements . . . but that the faith of Americans in each other became destroyed in the process.”(2) The tactics and weaponry used by the US in Vietnam did more harm than good and lead to the deaths of many innocent people.
The Vietnam War took place during the Cold War, a period in which the United States believed a “domino theory” of Communism in which a victory for a Communist country like Russia could lead to a rapid spread of Communism to neighboring states.(3) In order to prevent this “chain reaction,” the United States employed various military tactics to combat the Viet Cong. The most notable of these tactics was search and destroy, in which the United States would offensively destroy enemy soldiers and their bases. Search and destroy missions began in 1964 and were used primarily to locate and attack both the North Vietnamese Army and Viet Cong’s main forces in and around their established base areas.(4) This tactic, while grossly offensive, lead to the deaths of many civilians, as it was hard to truly distinguish between the foe and the innocent civilians in densely populated areas.
Another tactic that was used was carpet bombing, in which napalm and Agent Orange were used to clear away any foliage the Viet Cong may be using as camouflage. This tactic was particularly devastating as not only did it cause awful injuries to people but it also destroyed the crops and livestock of the more rural farmers.(5)
In addition to the aggressive tactics employed by the United States in the war, advanced technology was also utilized to help guarantee victory. One such piece of weaponry used in the war were B-52 bombers, which were used often to drop thousands of pounds of explosives on North Vietnam. Napalm, a chemical compound, was perhaps even more dangerous than the aforementioned bombings. When mixed with gasoline, napalm caused great explosions over large distances while simultaneously poisoning the air.(6)
Not only did the US utilize air and chemical warfare, but they equipped their soldiers with M-60 machine guns. These guns could shoot up to 550 bullets at a range of about two thousand yards. Another common gun used was the M-16, which fired .223 caliber bullets at seven to nine hundred rounds per minute if shot on the automatic setting. It goes without saying that the US was well equipped weapon-wise. But even so, the Viet Cong’s guerrilla tactics lessened the impact of their abundant fire arms.
The United States often prides itself above all else with its Democratic infrastructure. However, the Vietnam War proved that even Democratic governments can be just as bad in attempting to control and influence the governments of other countries. The use of aggressive tactics and weaponry hurt the civilians of Vietnam more-so than the Viet Cong. War for any reason will always cause strife, no matter the ideal that is being fought for.
Footnotes:
(1) "The Vietnam Center and Archive: Exhibits - Vietnam: The Helicopter War." The Vietnam Center and Archive: Exhibits - Vietnam: The Helicopter War. http://www.vietnam.ttu.edu/exhibits/helicopter/
(2) Muskus, Jeff. "Henry Kissinger: Vietnam Failures 'We Did To Ourselves'." The Huffington Post. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/09/29/henry-kissinger-vietnam-we-did-to-ourselves_n_744337.html
(3) A&E Television Networks. "Domino Theory." History.com. http://www.history.com/topics/cold-war/domino-theory
(4) "Military." Vietnam War. http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops/vietnam2-search-and-destroy.htm
(5) BBC. "American Tactics." BBC News. http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/intermediate2/history/cold_war/cold_war_international_conflict/vietnam_war/revision/2/
(6) A&E Television Networks. "Weapons of the Vietnam War." History.com. http://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/weapons-of-the-vietnam-war
Word count: 574
Angelique Rosenquist
The Vietnam War is one of the United State’s more infamous wars; also called The Helicopter War, the war was technologically advanced for its time due to its inclusion and prominence of helicopters, napalm, and Agent Orange.(1) The United States military primarily used the tactics of both search and destroy and carpet bombings. The war today is considered a failure in our nation’s history and Henry Kissinger described the failure of the war best: “To me, the tragedy of the Vietnam war was not that there were disagreements . . . but that the faith of Americans in each other became destroyed in the process.”(2) The tactics and weaponry used by the US in Vietnam did more harm than good and lead to the deaths of many innocent people.
The Vietnam War took place during the Cold War, a period in which the United States believed a “domino theory” of Communism in which a victory for a Communist country like Russia could lead to a rapid spread of Communism to neighboring states.(3) In order to prevent this “chain reaction,” the United States employed various military tactics to combat the Viet Cong. The most notable of these tactics was search and destroy, in which the United States would offensively destroy enemy soldiers and their bases. Search and destroy missions began in 1964 and were used primarily to locate and attack both the North Vietnamese Army and Viet Cong’s main forces in and around their established base areas.(4) This tactic, while grossly offensive, lead to the deaths of many civilians, as it was hard to truly distinguish between the foe and the innocent civilians in densely populated areas.
Another tactic that was used was carpet bombing, in which napalm and Agent Orange were used to clear away any foliage the Viet Cong may be using as camouflage. This tactic was particularly devastating as not only did it cause awful injuries to people but it also destroyed the crops and livestock of the more rural farmers.(5)
In addition to the aggressive tactics employed by the United States in the war, advanced technology was also utilized to help guarantee victory. One such piece of weaponry used in the war were B-52 bombers, which were used often to drop thousands of pounds of explosives on North Vietnam. Napalm, a chemical compound, was perhaps even more dangerous than the aforementioned bombings. When mixed with gasoline, napalm caused great explosions over large distances while simultaneously poisoning the air.(6)
Not only did the US utilize air and chemical warfare, but they equipped their soldiers with M-60 machine guns. These guns could shoot up to 550 bullets at a range of about two thousand yards. Another common gun used was the M-16, which fired .223 caliber bullets at seven to nine hundred rounds per minute if shot on the automatic setting. It goes without saying that the US was well equipped weapon-wise. But even so, the Viet Cong’s guerrilla tactics lessened the impact of their abundant fire arms.
The United States often prides itself above all else with its Democratic infrastructure. However, the Vietnam War proved that even Democratic governments can be just as bad in attempting to control and influence the governments of other countries. The use of aggressive tactics and weaponry hurt the civilians of Vietnam more-so than the Viet Cong. War for any reason will always cause strife, no matter the ideal that is being fought for.
Footnotes:
(1) "The Vietnam Center and Archive: Exhibits - Vietnam: The Helicopter War." The Vietnam Center and Archive: Exhibits - Vietnam: The Helicopter War. http://www.vietnam.ttu.edu/exhibits/helicopter/
(2) Muskus, Jeff. "Henry Kissinger: Vietnam Failures 'We Did To Ourselves'." The Huffington Post. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/09/29/henry-kissinger-vietnam-we-did-to-ourselves_n_744337.html
(3) A&E Television Networks. "Domino Theory." History.com. http://www.history.com/topics/cold-war/domino-theory
(4) "Military." Vietnam War. http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops/vietnam2-search-and-destroy.htm
(5) BBC. "American Tactics." BBC News. http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/intermediate2/history/cold_war/cold_war_international_conflict/vietnam_war/revision/2/
(6) A&E Television Networks. "Weapons of the Vietnam War." History.com. http://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/weapons-of-the-vietnam-war
Word count: 574
Angelique Rosenquist