The lessons of Vietnam are there for those willing to learn. Approximately 2,594,000 US Servicemen served in country during the Vietnam War. The US Marines, in the 25 days between 19 Feb 45 and 16 Mar 45, lost nearly 7,000 men killed in their battle for the tiny island of Iwo Jima. The driving force behind their exports is Small and Medium Enterprises (MSEs). The citizens of South Vietnam, no matter how apathetic they may have appeared toward their own government, turned out to be overwhelmingly anti-Communist. For every 1,000 Americans in Vietnam in 1968, 28 died, a higher ratio than in any other year. Several of those I spoke with were from media outlets that had names containing words such as. Americans would die needlessly and wars would be much extended if U.S. troops failed to perform the essential act of firing on the enemy. A quick synopsis of America's Vietnam experience will help summarize and clarify the Vietnam scenario: 1965 - 1967; Buildup of US Forces and logistical supply bases, plus heavy fighting to counter Communist North Vietnamese invasion. The memorial was then officially dedicated. The question seemed inevitable: Had there been a problem with Americans willingness to engage the enemy in World War II? Because the US Congress had unconditionally guaranteed no military action against North Vietnam, there was no need for them to keep forces in reserve to protect their home bases, flanks or supply lines), and launched a wholly conventional cross-border, frontal-attack. Plus, the majority of these members enter the arena as supporting units. Helicopter crew deaths accounted for 10% of ALL Vietnam deaths. It can light up a dark room, focus on your target far away, or even , When youre hunting or surveying distant objects, it would be ideal to have a good pair of tactical binoculars. Only about 5,000 men assigned to Vietnam deserted and just 249 of those deserted while in Vietnam. They stay in place even , If you have heard of the word POG in the military and are unsure of what it means, find out with this article on what is a POG military. For defending purposes, American soldiers are equipped with the most advanced and premium-quality gear available. General Dung's account of the final battle for South Vietnam reads like it was taken right out of a US Army manual on offensive military operations. Had to drive through a river to get the stuff out of my tracks. He also writes After a while I could tell the difference between mud and bodies, logs and bodies. But first, a few relevant comparisons. How old were most of the soldiers in Vietnam? Anyone who thinks the US lost the Vietnam war should reconsider their definition of "lost". History is who we are and why we are the way we are.. Amputation or crippling wounds to the lower extremities were 300% higher than, in WWII and 70% higher than in Korea. Veterans of the Gulf War share a similar risk, with 12 percent of them developing PTSD, or 660,000 of the 5.5 million American military personnel in that conflict. However, veterans groups estimate that today approximately 9 to 12 million Americans fraudulently claim they served in Vietnam. What percentage of draftees went to vietnam? For years there has been controversy over how many Vietnam veterans suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder -- a psychiatric condition that can result from experiencing a terrifying danger. Vietnams wildlife posed its own dangers. If the 1st Cavalry Division respondents reflect the majority veteran view, such men generally performed their duties well and were often respected for their convictions. The figures for relative strengths assume the following: On January 1, 1969 there were 110 battalions in Vietnam (98 Infantry, 3 tank, and 9 artillery). Since 1988 The War Library has been working to verify the names of all Americans who served in Vietnam, or were authorized the Vietnam War Service Medal. 1968 - 1970; Communist insurgency destroyed to the point where over 90% of the towns and villages in South Vietnam were free from Communist domination. In WWII at the Kasserine Pass in Tunisia, the Germans overran elements of the US Army. In the Philippines, Army Generals Jonathan Wainwright and Edward King surrendered themselves and their troops to the Japanese. At first it was thought the crash may have been attributed to sabotage but later ruled-out by the USAF. Again, the US Army War College Library provides numbers. They included assistant machine-gunners, whose first responsibilities were to load an M-60 and help the gunner to identify targets. Veterans who responded to the survey regarding their months at war passed on many thoughts regarding their performance, expectations, weapons, training, the 12-month tour of duty and the six-month command tour. 7 What were the odds of dying in Vietnam? Three of South Vietnams provinces (Quang Tri, Quang Nam and Thua Thien) accounted for more than 40 percent of American casualties. There were a large number of REMFs in Vietnam. As an example: By 1971 throughout the entire populous Mekong Delta, the monthly rate of Communist insurgency action dropped to an average of 3 incidents per 100,000 population (Many a US city would envy a crime rate that low). Similarly, good tactics at times meant that a soldier did not use his primary weapon, if he engaged at all. Given that everybody in a unit rarely faced such focused attention, men would wait until the enemy pointed their weapons elsewhere before engaging. Marshalls claims did not go unchallenged, but despite the disagreements they were widely accepted as truth both within the nations military and by those writing about the war and its American fighting force. The answer is simple. No detail was too small to bring these American prisoners home. A third of this group engaged the enemy more than 100 times; fewer than half fired on the enemy less than 50 times. Its estimated that tens of thousands of veterans have returned to Vietnam since the 1990s, mostly for short visits to the places where they once served. 82% of veterans who saw heavy combat strongly believe the war was lost. An amazing 92 percent of U.S. troops wounded on the battlefield will survive their injuries. By comparison, the South Vietnamese had only 352 US supplied tanks and they were committed to guarding the entire country, and because of US Congressional action, were critically short of fuel, ammo and spare parts with which to support those tanks. Yes! Another Aspect - US Military battle deaths by year: Prior to 1966 - 3,078 (Total up through 31 Dec 65), 1968 - 14, 589 (Total while JFK & LBJ were President - 32,053), 1972 - 300 (Total while Nixon was President - 15,316). The American War Library (amervets.com) | CherriesWriter, Your email address will not be published. Were there factors that made it more likely for some men to fire than others? But, Vietnam is catching up. rate for males in 1970 was 58.9 per 100,000). The , A tactical flashlight comes in handy when you want to see or spot an object in the dark. Time influenced fatalities in another way, too. But what some people may not be aware of is the purpose , A tactical flashlight comes in handy for doing missions or outdoor activities in the dark. Why Do Cross Country Runners Have Skinny Legs? Note: NVA casualty data was provided by North Vietnam in a press release to Agence France Presse (AFP) on April 3, 1995, on the 20th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War. 7,484 women (6,250 or 83.5% were nurses) served in Vietnam. How did American soldiers treat the Vietnamese? 87% of the public now holds Viet vets in high esteem. It is also obvious that this increase is being driven by consumer demand. There are about to be a WHOLE lot less veterans and posts as the Vietnam-era generation dies. The single most lethal day of the war for American troops was Jan. 31, 1968, when 246 personnel were killed or mortally wounded as the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army regulars launched the Tet Offensive. volunteered or even re-enlisted to remain in or return to the combat zone. Roughly eight-in-ten (79%) say they would advise a . These men managed to virtually destroy 3 NVA Divisions, but on 17 Apr 75 sheer numbers and the weight of the Mass overwhelmed them. Lt. Col. Peter Dewey, a U.S. Army officer with the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) in Vietnam, is shot and killed in Saigon. The Hanoi government revealed on April 3 that the true civilian casualties of the Vietnam War were 2,000,000 in the north, and 2,000,000 in the south. This was true despite the fact that the parent divisions reported being at, or slightly over, authorized strength. How many black soldiers were killed in Vietnam? We compiled these facts from AP & UPI articles that appeared in the Seattle Times, Seattle P-I and New York Times from 4 April to 8 April of 1975. Aug 1973; US Congress passes the Case - Church law which forbids, US naval forces from sailing on the seas surrounding, US ground forces from operating on the land of, and US air forces from flying in the air over South Vietnam, North Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. As he was dying, he kept saying, `I couldnt find a hole. He was hit about 10 to 15 seconds after we received the first shots and was standing up looking confused. 5,283 lost. Although studies vary widely in terms of methods used, estimates of depression in returning troops range from 3% to 25%. According to statistics, around 60 million people in the United States suffer from being flat-footed. A total of 5,086 choppers, about 42%, were destroyed by enemy fire, bad weather, mechanical snafus and the other bad hands war routinely deals those sent to fight it. The Battle of Xuan Loc; Mar 17 - Apr 17, 1975 & The End. Only one other B-52 tail gunner had scored a successful kill against a Vietnamese fighter, though more than 30 B-52s had been shot down throughout the conflict. West Virginia 51,764 2,905 Location was a second factor that determined whether a man pulled, or should have pulled, the trigger of his weapon. M. James Littig Principal, Congressional Strategies It sits astride Q. L. (National Road) #1, some 40 odd miles to the northeast of Saigon (on the road to Phan Thiet), and was the capitol of South Vietnam's Long Khanh province. Without a doubt, you will more likely be going into combat if there is a war involving your country. When was the last person drafted for Vietnam? As of this date The American War Library estimates that approximately 610,000 Americans who served on land in Vietnam or in the air over Vietnam between 1954 and 1975 are alive today. Whether he carried an M-16 or some other weapon, a soldier was fortunate if a rapid reaction drill corrected the problem. . By service period, Post-9/11 veterans were the youngest with a median age of about 37; Vietnam Era veterans had a median age of about 71; and World War II veterans were the oldest with a median age of about 93. Operation Rolling Thunder, a sustained bombing campaign conducted by the United States and the Republic of Vietnam during the Vietnam War, ended in November 1968. How to play rising storm 2 vietnam with friends? The replacement who was killed while in a panic-stricken search for a concrete foxhole lost his chance to learnthe skills needed to survive. Usually, the Army has the most members responsible for land-based operations. Do Men Still Wear Button Holes At Weddings? An MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) study of Vietnam death rates, conducted by Professor Arnold Barnett, revealed that servicemen from the richest 10 percent of the nations communities had the same distribution of deaths as the rest of the nation. Dissertation. Soviet armor, burning Soviet gas and firing Soviet ammunition. The Viet Cong had been bludgeoned to death (During Tet 1968) on the streets of the cities, towns, and hamlets of South Vietnam. Then again, perhaps it was good judgment on the part of an experienced lieutenant. (Vietnam veterans are dying at about the same rate as their WW2 fathers.) 86.8% of the men who were KIA were Caucasian. 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