Why Are Military Tactics Ineffective
Explain why US military tactics were ineffective against guerrilla tactics in the conflict in Vietnam (10)
Air power and chemical warfare was a tactic involving the use of bombs and aircraft as well as chemicals to defoliate the landscape of Vietnam. It aimed to halt the movement of supplies to the Ho Chi Minh trail as well as killing the Viet Cong. This was done using cluster bombs which exploded mid air and released smaller bombs. US also conducted regular air strikes over North Vietnam during Operation Rolling Thunder which involved bombing the North naval bases. They used defoliants such as Agent orange and Napalm to clear the landscape and destroy the jungles and forests to find the Viet Cong’s location. This tactic was ineffective because the Viet Cong would hide and live in the vast tunnels for long periods of time; so avoided the air attacks. Additionally, the Ho Chi Minh trail kept expanding as it wasn’t one trail, there were thousands of trails which made it even more difficult for the US to locate it and destroy it Also, they used the tactic of
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This strategy aimed to completely eliminate the Vietcong threat. US forces simply killed everyone and shot anyone they thought was Vietcong until the Viet Cong surrendered. This tactic proved to be ineffective as the Vietcong were not afraid to die and Ho Chi Minh was determined to send in more troops to fight, "You may kill 10 of my men, for every one I will kill of yours. But even at those odds you will lose and I will win." In addition, body count was unsuccessful because the US could not tell apart normal civillians from the Viet Cong, “What’s a civilian someone who works for us at day and puts on Viet Cong pajamas at night” therefore they did not know whether they were killing the enemy or not. Furthermore, US soldiers often lied about how many people they had killed, resulting in body count being
Dbq Vietnam War
1376 Words | 6 PagesThe period from 1960’s to 1970’s was a hardship time for Americans because of Vietnam invasion. In an attempt to contain and defeat communism, the United States, oblivious of the enemy capability and filled with pride, invaded Vietnam at a cost of large financial expense and human lives. North Vietnamese military supported by forces of China and the Soviet Union fought the American force ferociously and was able to force America to end its invasion in 1975. As with most other third world countries, Vietnam also has a long history of colonization by European powers.
David E Lownds 'The Battle Of Khe Sanh'
600 Words | 3 PagesHistorty.com said the communist thought that they had won the battle. Even though 10,000 to 15,000 Vietnamese died in the battle. Also the marines had to patrol the Ho Chi Minh trail. They also had to patrol 100 to 200 yards off of the perimeter. The enemy fired 1,500 rockets, artillery, and mortar rounds at the marines.
Tirman The Real Cost Of Vietnam Analysis
309 Words | 2 PagesWith this morality in both conflicts plays a role in the bombing of cities and villages that contained a high concentration of civilians, where the United States believed the enemy to be stationed. It is here where the concept of body counts comes into play and supports the argument of an unjust, immoral war that defied the concepts held by American Exceptionalism. Tirman uses the example of Vietnam to point out argument, where the bombing strategy of “harassment and interdiction fire” was practiced, where there was no proof that enemy targets were destroyed and in the end did more harm than good as “killed a lot of innocents” to produce a number of supposed enemy casualties” (Tirman, The Real Cost of Vietnam). As in Vietnam the excessive bombings
The Death Of Pat Tillman, By Jon Krakauer
770 Words | 4 PagesIn fact, “the phrase ‘I don’t recall’ was noted to have been proclaimed 82 times” (The Tillman Story 7) by various Army officials. The reason for so much lying was because had the Army said the actual date it would have proved that the Army was culpable for everything involved in Tillman’s death. The Army just kept proving their guilt more and
Guerilla Battle Tactics
528 Words | 3 PagesThe American Revolution arose from the escalating conflict between the thirteen colonies and their mother country, Great Britain. This uprising took place between 1775 and 1783. By the end of the war, the thirteen colonies, in victory, had gained their independence from Britain and were to be called the United States of America. Some argue that the increasing debt of the British Empire, aided the Americans’ win in the Revolutionary war the most. However the different battle tactics used by the colonial militia and intervention of other countries like France played a role on a much larger scale in the result of America’s victory.
Richard Nixon Operation Linebacker Speech Analysis
715 Words | 3 PagesIt was a conventional military assault, designed to inflict a crippling blow against the army of the Republic of Vietnam; which lasted for six months. Nixon was determined not to repeat LBJ's mistakes. What followed, starting in May, was the most successful use of airpower during the Vietnam War and one of the largest aerial bombardments in world history—Operation Linebacker. Targeting roads, bridges, rail lines, troops, bases, and supply depots, the attack was the first large-scale use of precision-guided laser bombs in modern aerial warfare. In the short term, the offensive was clearly a military defeat for the North Vietnamese and would cost General Vo Nguyen Giap his job as chief strategist.
My Lai Massacre Research Paper
1185 Words | 5 PagesThe My Lai Massacre is one example of what is wrong with the US Government. The men of Charlie Company had been told that an local enemy force
How Did The Vietnam War Affect Society
460 Words | 2 PagesDuring World War II, Japan had invaded Vietnam. The Viet Minh was created by Ho Chi Minh in order to combat against Japan and French colonial administration. While Japan pulled back their forces in 1945, the French were still in control of Vietnam. In the 1950s, the United States became involved due to fear that the Vietnamese rebellion would lead to a spread in global Communism. This domino effect theory was the belief that if a country became communist, surrounding countries would follow suit.
A Summary Of Philip Caputo's A Rumor Of War
1500 Words | 6 PagesThe two Viet Cong men were found and killed. Caputo and his men would go to court to possibly be put in prison for murder. They were not found guilty and were
The Holocaust: Other Victims Of The Holocaust
1196 Words | 5 PagesThis death toll was no accident or result of war. In comparison, of the 231,000 British and American POWs only an estimated 8,300 or 3.6% died in German custody. The British and Americans were thought of as racial equals while the Russians were
Weapons In Vietnam War
1164 Words | 5 PagesIn using artillery and air power of weapons like the M163 Vulcan, M42A1 Skysweeper, and the MIM23 Hawk we were able to take down our enemies. There was 2.7 million soldiers that served in the Vietnam War. In this being said there were 58,000 that died or remained missing, and 300,000 that were wounded. More than one hundred forty billion dollars was spent on this war. The U.S failed to overcome its objective of preserving an independent, noncommunist state in Vietnam, now no one knows how or why we fought this war or weather the military outcome was possible for the United States.
Guerrilla Warfare: Alexander The Great And Napoleon Bonaparte
936 Words | 4 PagesGuerrilla Warfare Throughout history there have been many great war strategies and amazing commanders such as Alexander the Great and Napoleon Bonaparte. There was an incredible amount of tactics for war ones were perfect to annihilate the enemy but other would only make the people afraid of them. There were also great commanders such as Alexander the Great and Ignazio Zaragoza, for example the ideology of Ignazio Zaragoza’s plan on the battle of Puebla in 1862 and likewise there were terrible also terrible commanders such as Napoleon Bonaparte and Hitler whom both attempted to attack Russia during the middle of the winter. These strategies led to the creation of guerrilla warfare which then in turn evolved into different uses.
We Were Soldiers Historical Analysis
1142 Words | 5 PagesElijah Fox Dragos Global 2 Due: 1/7/16 Historical Accuracy of “We Were Soldiers” In 1955 a profusely nervous America feared the global spread of communism. This raging fear led them to interfere and attempt to stop Viet Cong’s attempt of a communist takeover of South Vietnam.
Irregular Warfare During WWII And The Vietnam War
1085 Words | 5 PagesIrregular warfare is broken down to five activities; counterinsurgency, foreign internal defense, stability operations, unconventional warfare, and counterterrorism. History traces U.S. involvement with irregular warfare activities in seemingly every conflict it has been involved with. Regardless to the use of irregular warfare, most consider these conflicts conventional wars. Since WWII and the Korean War, conventional wars have no longer remained the norm for conflicts which the U.S. gets involved. It can be widely considered the Vietnam War is the first time U.S. forces engaged in full scale irregular warfare due to the tactics used by both sides.
Importance Of Military Discipline
907 Words | 4 PagesNot committing to the task could potentially suggest that they were incompetent or lack the capacity as a military personnel so facing ‘dangers’ was a much preferred option. Additionally, discipline in the military can be seen when an officer makes his salutes appropriately, their conduct, to the state of their uniform and even how they present themselves in public. While discipline in military is rewarded as it is a sign of respect and duty, misconduct on the other hand is punishable. When discipline is lacking in an army personnel, it not only affects their own performance but also the team as a whole. It is therefore important to instil discipline early and effectively.
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