| Battle of Đồng Hới | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of theVietnam War | |||||||
 MiG-17F (No. 2047) purportedly flown by Nguyen Van Bay in the Battle of Đồng Hới | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 North Vietnam |  United States | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| Vietnamese figure: 2 MiG-17 U.S claimed: 2torpedo boats 3MiG-17 | 1cruiser 2destroyers 1frigate | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Vietnamese figure: none U.S claimed: 2 torpedo boats 1 MiG-17 | 4 wounded 1 destroyer damaged | ||||||
TheBattle of Đồng Hới was a clash betweenUnited States Navy (USN) warships andVietnam People's Air Force (VPAF)MiG-17Ffighter bombers and shore batteries on 19 April 1972, during theVietnam War. This was the second time U.S. warships faced an air attack since the end of World War II, after theUSS Liberty incident, which was officially recorded as an attack by mistake.
The Battle for Đồng Hới Gulf involved fierce firefights when Navy ships attempted to stop North Vietnamese troops and supplies transiting the coast highway in North Vietnam from reaching the battle front inQuảng Trị Province. The air raid described here marked the end of daylight raids by the Navy.
The U.S. warships involved were the 7th Fleetflagship,guided missile cruiserUSS Oklahoma City, the guided missile frigateUSS Sterett, anddestroyersUSS Lloyd Thomas andUSS Higbee.[2]
The American warships operating in theGulf of Tonkin were shelling North Vietnamese coastal targets aroundĐồng Hới,Quảng Bình Province,North Central Coast region near theDMZ along the 17th parallel, the provisional borderline betweenSouth Vietnam andNorth Vietnam when VPAF MiGs attacked them in the first air attack on U.S. naval forces in the Vietnam War.
At approximately 17:00, USSSterett detected three hostile aircraft approaching the navy ships. One of the MiG-17s scored a direct hit on USSHigbee with a BETAB-250 (250 kg; 550 lb) bomb, after failing to hit its target twice on two previous attack runs. The explosion destroyed the aft 5-inch (127 mm) gun mount which was empty, as the 12-man crew had been evacuated following a "hang fire" (a round stuck in one of the barrels).[2] Another MiG-17 simultaneously aimed its bombs at USSOklahoma City but missed the target.[3] The U.S. claims that one of the MiGs was shot down by aTerrier surface-to-air missile from USSSterett. One more MiG disappeared fromSterett'sradar along with a Terrier missile fired at it from the frigate, indicating a probable kill.[2] A North VietnameseStyx anti-ship missile was alleged to have been fired and intercepted, but this was not confirmed by official documentation.[4]
At approximately 18:00 as the US ships withdrew to the northeast, USSSterett detected two surface targets shadowing the US ships; after 30 minutes,Sterett opened fire on the targets with its5-inch (127 mm) gun and reported destroying the two suspected North VietnameseP 6-class torpedo boats.[2] However, the North Vietnamese navy’s documentary show that they had not participated in any engagement until 27 August.[citation needed]
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The North Vietnamese claimed thesortie involved two MiG-17s piloted by Lê Xuân Dị and Nguyễn Văn Bảy, both of which returned safely to their base,.[5] The attack crippledHigbee's 5-inch (127 mm) gun turret, impaired its steering and propulsion, and wounded 4 sailors on deck.[3]Oklahoma City only sustained minor damage on its stern. The U.S. later responded by bombardment againstVinh and Đồng Hới on April 19 and 20, and an air strike by 33 aircraft on 22 April at theKhe Gát Airfield, from which the attacking MiG-17s had taken off. The U.S claimed one destroyed MiG and another damaged on the ground.[1] According to the North Vietnamese, one MiG-17 was damaged.[6]
Although the losses inflicted were superficial, the North Vietnamese attack forced the Americans to employ more of their strength to prevent future incidents against the background of downscaling U.S. military activities in the area.[1]
17°28′59″N106°35′59″E / 17.48306°N 106.59972°E /17.48306; 106.59972