Expendable Warriors: The Battle of Khe Sanh and the Vietnam War

190 Pages·2007·2.38 MB·English

by  Bruce B. G. Clarke

EXPENDABLE WARRIORS
PraegerSecurityInternationalAdvisoryBoard
BoardCochairs
LochK.Johnson,RegentsProfessorofPublicandInternationalAffairs,Schoolof
PublicandInternationalAffairs,UniversityofGeorgia(U.S.A.)
PaulWilkinson,ProfessorofInternationalRelationsandChairmanoftheAdvi-
soryBoard,CentrefortheStudyofTerrorismandPoliticalViolence,Universityof
St.Andrews(U.K.)
Members
EliotA.Cohen,RobertE.OsgoodProfessorofStrategicStudiesandDirector,Philip
MerrillCenterforStrategicStudies,PaulH.NitzeSchoolofAdvancedInternational
Studies,TheJohnsHopkinsUniversity(U.S.A.)
AnthonyH.Cordesman,ArleighA.BurkeChairinStrategy,CenterforStrategicand
InternationalStudies(U.S.A.)
The´re`seDelpech,DirectorofStrategicAffairs,AtomicEnergyCommission,and
SeniorResearchFellow,CERI(FondationNationaledesSciencesPolitiques),Paris
(France)
SirMichaelHoward,formerChicheleProfessoroftheHistoryofWarandRegis
ProfessorofModernHistory,OxfordUniversity,andRobertA.LovettProfessorof
MilitaryandNavalHistory,YaleUniversity(U.K.)
LieutenantGeneralClaudiaJ.Kennedy,USA(Ret.),formerDeputyChiefofStafffor
Intelligence,DepartmentoftheArmy(U.S.A.)
PaulM.Kennedy,J.RichardsonDilworthProfessorofHistoryandDirector,Inter-
nationalSecurityStudies,YaleUniversity(U.S.A.)
RobertJ.O’Neill,formerChicheleProfessoroftheHistoryofWar,AllSoulsCollege,
OxfordUniversity(Australia)
ShibleyTelhami,AnwarSadatChairforPeaceandDevelopment,Departmentof
GovernmentandPolitics,UniversityofMaryland(U.S.A.)
JusufWanandi,co-founderandmember,BoardofTrustees,CentreforStrategicand
InternationalStudies(Indonesia)
FareedZakaria,Editor,NewsweekInternational(U.S.A.)
EXPENDABLE WARRIORS
THE BATTLE OF KHE SANH AND THE
VIETNAM WAR
Bruce B. G. Clarke
Foreword by John W. Vessey
PRAEGERSECURITYINTERNATIONAL
(cid:1)
Westport,Connecticut London
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Clarke,BruceB.G.,1943–
Expendablewarriors:theBattleofKheSanhandtheVietnamWar/Bruce
B.G.Clarke;forewordbyJohnW.Vessey.
p. cm.
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
ISBN-13:978–0–275–99480–8(alk.paper)
ISBN-10:0–275–99480–5(alk.paper)
1.KheSanh,Battleof,Vietnam,1968. I.Title.
DS557.8.K5C56 2007
959.704(cid:1)342—dc22 2006038655
BritishLibraryCataloguinginPublicationDataisavailable.
Copyright©2007BruceClarkeConsultants,Inc.
Allrightsreserved.Noportionofthisbookmaybe
reproduced,byanyprocessortechnique,withoutthe
expresswrittenconsentofthepublisher.
LibraryofCongressCatalogCardNumber:2006038655
ISBN-13:978–0–275–99480–8
ISBN-10:0–275–99480–5
Firstpublishedin2007
PraegerSecurityInternational,88PostRoadWest,Westport,CT06881
AnimprintofGreenwoodPublishingGroup,Inc.
www.praeger.com
PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica
Thepaperusedinthisbookcomplieswiththe
PermanentPaperStandardissuedbytheNational
InformationStandardsOrganization(Z39.48–1984).
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Contents
ForewordbyJohnW.Vessey ix
Preface xi
Acknowledgments xv
Abbreviations xvii
Chapter1 1
Chapter2 6
Vietnam 6
KheSanhbeforetheBattle 8
Chapter3 15
DistrictHeadquarters 15
TheVillageParticipants 20
Chapter4 29
Day-to-DayOperationsoftheAdvisoryTeam 29
Chapter5 39
Giap’sStrategy 39
TheNVATacticalPlan 43
TheAmericanPlan 43
vi Contents
Chapter6 47
TheSituationChanges—ThePreludetotheBattleinKhe
Sanh 47
Chapter7 52
TheBattleIsJoined 52
TheWesternApproachtotheVillage—CAC-OSCAR2’s
Fight 58
AirStrikesTakeTheirToll 60
Chapter8 65
BlackCatstotheRescue 65
TheBlackCats 66
TheCombatAssault 68
TheNVAAwait 73
EnroutetoKheSanh 73
ArrivingattheLandingZoneattheOldFrenchFort 74
Chapter9 83
TheBattleContinues 83
WhatCouldHaveBeenDoneDifferently 89
TheEvacuationoftheDistrictHeadquarters 93
Chapter10 95
TheAdvisoryTeamontheMove 95
LangVeiFalls 97
LifeatFOB-3 99
ACorpsman’sPerspective 100
TheNorthernHalfofFOB-3 101
TheBru 104
TheExtendedSiege 105
TheEndoftheSiege 106
Chapter11 109
ObservationsonaLostWar 109
TheNeedforUnityofCommand 109
TheTensionBetweenSecrecyandOperationalRequirements 111
TheRelationshipofBattlefieldEventsandPoliticalDecisions 112
TheRootsofHistoricalRevisionism/WhyHistoryIsDifficult
toChronicleAccurately 114
Conclusion 115
Epilogue 116
TheParticipantsToday 116
MIA—StillMissing,ButNotForgotten 118
TheBruLeaveKheSanh 121
Contents vii
Appendices 131
Appendix1:JCSAfter-ActionReport 132
Appendix2:WichitaEagle,April4,1968,Article 137
Appendix3:TheParticipants 140
Appendix4:NVAPlan 146
Appendix5:RecentlyUnclassifiedIntelligence 151
Appendix6:InvasionofLaos 153
Appendix7:WichitaEagleArticle—After-ActionReport 155
Appendix8:AwardCitations 157
Appendix9:TerrainMapofAreaAroundKheSanhVillage 160
Index 163

Foreword
ColonelBruceClarkeisknownforhisstrategicacumenandtacticalability.
ExpendableWarriors:TheBattleofKheSanhandtheVietnamWardemon-
strates this acumen and the roots of his tactical ability. Using a masterful
blend of oral history and research, he interweaves first-hand recollections
offellowKheSanhveteranswithrigorouslyresearchedmaterialandsound
tacticalandstrategicanalysis.
ColonelClarkehadauniqueperspectiveonthebattlesthatragedonthe
Khe Sanh plateau in early 1968. He had been there since August of 1967.
As a young captain and district advisor he led the valiant defense of the
District Headquarters against an enemy force of possibly regimental size.
Actual participants—the advisory team medic, Jim Perry and Corpsman
John Roberts describe this defense. The aviators of the 282nd Helicopter
Companytelltheirstoryofbeingambushedandhavingseveraloftheirown
menbecomepossibleprisonersofwar(POWs).
The fight around the village, in my opinion, ranks among the most re-
soundingvictoriesatKheSanh,andhasneverbeenadequatelyorcorrectly
reported in extant histories. Though statistically a small action, the com-
pleteness of the victory against overwhelming odds is in itself enough to
merit notice. However, at the strategic level, it illustrates General C. West-
moreland’s(commanderofU.S.forcesinVietnam)goalofenticingtheNorth
VietnameseintoafightaroundKheSanh.Inthiseffort,themenwithColonel
Clarke were expendable. To evacuate them would have tipped Westmore-
land’shandandcompromisedhisintelligencesources.ExpendableWarriors