| Operation Quyet Thang | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of theVietnam War | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 United States South Vietnam |  Viet Cong | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| LTGFrederick C. Weyand LTGLê Nguyên Khang | Unknown | ||||||
| Units involved | |||||||
| 2nd and 3rd Brigades, 1st Infantry Division 3rd Brigade, 9th Infantry Division 2nd and 3rd Brigades, 25th Infantry Division 3rd Squadron, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment 199th Light Infantry Brigade Marine BrigadeAirborne Division 7th and 8th Regiments, 5th Infantry Division 25th Infantry Division | 20 battalions | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Unknown | US/South Vietnamesebody count: 2,658 killed 427 captured | ||||||
Operation Quyet Thang (transl. "Resolved to win"), was a United States Army andArmy of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) security operation to reestablish South Vietnamese control over the areas immediately aroundSaigon in the aftermath of theTet Offensive. The operation started on 11 March 1968 and ended on 7 April 1968.
While their Tet Offensive attacks on Saigon had been quickly repulsed, in early March, more than 20Vietcong (VC) battalions remained nearGia Định Province, threatening the city. The 101st Regiment, theĐồng Nai Regiment and elements of the 165th Regiment were in southernBình Dương Province, north of Saigon. Several battalions were inThủ Đức District northeast of Saigon. Five or 6 unidentified battalions were inLong An Province southwest of Saigon. The 271st and 272nd Regiments of the9th Division, the D16, 267th, and 269th Main Force Battalions were in easternHậu Nghĩa Province northwest of Saigon. While most of these units had suffered heavy losses in the Tet Offensive, their continued presence applied pressure on Saigon and prevented the reestablishment of South Vietnamese Government control.[1]: 460–1
COMUSMACV GeneralWilliam Westmoreland instructedII Field Force commander LTGFrederick C. Weyand and ARVNIII Corps commander LTGLê Nguyên Khang to sweep the districts surrounding Saigon. The1st,9th and25th Infantry Divisions supported by the11th Armored Cavalry Regiment (11th ACR) would provide most of the maneuver battalions, with subordinate units in many cases pairing up with ARVN units. The199th Light Infantry Brigade, worked with the elite South VietnameseMarine Brigade and theAirborne Division in Gia Định Province. The 2nd and 3rd Brigades, 1st Infantry Division partnered with the ARVN 7th and 8th Regiments,5th Infantry Division in Bình Dương Province. The 3rd Brigade, 9th Infantry Division partnered with the ARVN 50th Regiment in Long An Province. The 3rd Squadron, 11th ACR moved into southeastern Hậu Nghĩa Province to support the ARVN 49th Regiment,25th Infantry Division. The 2nd and 3rd Brigades, 25th Infantry Division worked with a cavalry squadron from the ARVN 25th Infantry Division and territorial units in northern and western Hậu Nghĩa Province.[1]: 460–1
The operation commenced on 11 March. On 12 March, Troop M, 3rd Squadron, 11th Armored Cavalry and an ARVNRegional Force company engaged more than 100 VC from the 267th and 269th Battalions in forest 6 km north ofĐức Hòa in eastern Hậu Nghĩa Province. The Allied force killed 36 VC and captured 10.[1]: 462
From 15–17 March the 3rd Squadron, 11th ACR and ARVN forces engaged the 272nd Regiment between Đức Hòa andCủ Chi, killing 273 VC before losing contact. On 20 March Troops L and M and an ARVN Battalion regained contact with the 272nd Regiment killing 142 VC that day and 57 more in the same area six days later. Following these losses the 272nd Regiment withdrew intoWar zone C.[1]: 462
On 24 March the 1st Brigade, 25th Division engaged the 7thCu Chi Battalion nearTrảng Bàng in northern Hậu Nghĩa Province killing 243 VC for the loss of 10 U.S. killed.[1]: 463
In late March, Allied intelligence detected VC troop movements south from War Zone C to camps along theSaigon River. On the morning of 25 March, a VC unit attacked two Regional Forces outposts near Trảng Bàng. The ARVN43rd Ranger Battalion and a U.S. mechanized force from the 4th Battalion, 25th Infantry Division and the2nd Battalion, 34th Armor Regiment rushed to the area killing at least 287 VC in the ten-hour battle for the loss of 23 ARVN/U.S. killed.[1]: 462
On 26 March, east ofHóc Môn ARVN Airborne forces found 128 dead VC who had apparently been killed by air and artillery strikes while moving south towards Saigon. On 27 March the 2nd Battalion, 34th Armor, and two companies from the2nd Battalion, 14th Infantry Regiment, killed some 97 VC 5 km northeast of Trảng Bàng.[1]: 462–3
On 28 March Weyand moved the 199th Light Infantry Brigade fromBiên Hòa Province toTây Ninh Province to help the 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division patrol the area betweenTây Ninh andDầu Tiếng to close the communist infiltration routes from Cambodia into central III Corps. This new operation was named Operation Wilderness.[1]: 463
The first week of April saw a sharp drop in enemy contact in the Quyet Thang operational area. Allied intelligence indicated that the VC had withdrawn to more remote areas. Rocket attacks on Saigon had become less frequent as the VC had been pushed back and ARVN forces were now able to reestablish control of the areas around the capital.[1]: 463–4
The operation was considered a success and the U.S. claimed 2,658 VC killed. It was followed immediately byOperation Toan Thang I which expanded the security operation across III Corps.[1]: 464
The official PAVN history described the operation and Operation Toan Thang I as "causing a great many difficulties for our units trying to approach their targets" for theMay Offensive.[2]
This article incorporatespublic domain material from websites or documents of theUnited States Army Center of Military History.
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.