Vietnam: The NVA

The North Vietnamese regular Army soldier (NVA)

 

During the Vietnam conflict, the American and South Vietnamese armies fought two forces. One was the infamous civilian militia, the Viet Cong, but they also had to contend with a more official force, the North Vietnamese Army. Supplied largely by the Soviet Union and People's Republic of China, the North Vietnamese Army--or NVA--first clashed with American Air Cavalry at the battle of Ia Drang Valley in 1965.

The NVA didn't wear black like their VC counterparts, but rather, military issue khaki uniforms. They wore both pith helmets and bamboo leaf cone hats, too well suited to the climate to discard.

The Vietcong and NVA could fight side-by-side, like the militia and Continental Army during the American Revolution.

 

The NVA and VC used similar weapons, but the NVA were better equipped, usually carrying Chinese-made SKS rifles and Soviet AK-47's, as seen here. 

 

Over the Top! Trench Combat in World War One

In our last post, we took a look at scenes of trench life in the First World War. Now we'll take a glance at a trench-launched attack by Allied forces against the German trench lines. 

The Allied Plan: dislodge the Germans from their forward trench lines by attacking over the open stretch of ground known as no-mans land. Once a forest, the trees have been leveled by heavy artillery bombardments.

The German Plan: Hold back all allied attacks by raking the empty expanse of no-man's land with machine gun fire the moment the Allied soldiers come out of their trenches. 

Attacks against trenches were often met with failure. Here, French troops in 1916 are mown down by machine gun fire in an attempt to break the German lines in the battle for Verdun, France.

 

Americans also had machine guns. Here, an American in a machine gun nest keep watch for a suspected German attack in 1918.

Launching the attack! In the trench lines of Northern France, Allied soldiers go over the top in an attack against the German trenches across the field. Armed with rifles with attached bayonets, American infantrymen charge in the foreground while French soldiers attack from their lines in the background, recognizable by their bluish wool coats.

Now, as the Allied soldiers launch their attack, a German sentry spots movement from his post and quickly alerts his comrades.

 

                                                                    "Americans!"

This German is armed with a Mauser bolt-action rife. Near his hand rests a hand grenade with a wooden throwing handle, often called a "stick grenade" or "potato masher".

 

The Allies press on through a storm of shot and shell, while the Germans try to thwart their efforts.

 

 

At close range, grenades are thrown between the two contesting armies.

The allies reach the German lines and open fire before jumping in, capturing the trench!

Driving the Germans out, Allied soldiers race down the zig-zagging earth channels to flush out the enemy.

Clearing the trench of the Germans, the Allies have gained a toehold in the German trench system. Even if they only captured twenty-five yards worth of German trench line and hold it, it is considered a tentative victory.

We hope you enjoyed this post!

Counter-Guerrilla Patrol In Action During the Vietnam War.

The Vietnam War was different than any other war America has fought in the way that both sides used guerrilla warfare tactics more than conventional fighting methods. Unlike conventional warfare, where two opposing armies attack each other using infantry, artillery, tanks and planes, guerrilla warfare involves "hit and run" tactics where combat patrols penetrate deep into enemy territory to cause as much damage and havoc behind enemy lines as possible.
To counter the threat of Viet Cong (or "VC") guerrillas--civilians in arms aiding the North Vietnamese Army to expand Communism throughout all of Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos--the U.S. Army sent out counter-guerrilla combat teams to seek out and destroy small but fierce bands of Viet Cong as they conducted sabotage raids deep in U.S./South Vietnamese territory.

There were many contributing factors to why guerrilla warfare was so prevalent; for instance, the geography. Vietnam is made up of jungle-covered mountains, with very little roads connecting the scattered villages throughout the countryside. The staple food crop was rice, grown in water-filled paddies, rather than dry solid farm fields like Europe or North America. Because of the extremely rough terrain, moving large armies on massive campaigns was unthinkable; instead, we would send small units to venture out from an established base camp to slowly gain ground or collect information on enemy troop movements. Because of this, Viet Cong patrols were sent out to ambush and clear the area of our patrols to keep the way open to conduct raids of their own, and the American and South Vietnamese armies sent out counter-patrols to counter these, which turned Vietnam into a constant back-and-forth battlefield of hundreds of small but fierce firefights day and night.


Let's now take a look at a U.S. Combat patrol conducting a mission.


A U.S. Combat patrol usually consisted of of 10-15 men; a 9-man squad plus one medic was the most common arrangement. Being a long-range strike force, all the soldiers were heavily armed and only carried the bare necessities or less to reduce weight and to make room for as much ammunition as possible.


The Mission: local villagers have reported a patrol of Viet Cong moving South through the jungle at around 3:30-4:00 a.m. Note that the Viet Cong wear black uniforms and the soldier in front carries a M1 Springfield leftover from World War II.


Later that morning, a U.S. patrol undertakes a final weapon's check before moving out.
Hours later, a U.S. soldier finds fresh footprints. "They can't be more than half an hour old" he says, and the squad leader is notified immediately.

Two men are sent forward to scout out the location of the Vietcong, but not to engage in combat. Before long, the scouts return with news that the VC patrol is heading their way. The squad leader immediately orders everybody to prepare to ambush the oncoming enemy.

Here we see a heavy machine gunner taking position with his M-60 machine gun.

The VC patrol is wary of U.S. or South Vietnamese movements; they are in enemy territory, and take extra precaution to spread out on their return trip in case they were detected. Silently they move through the jungle, keeping their eyes and ears open for signs of the enemy.
The squad commander takes a look for himself at the surrounding area. "We should ambush them here; if a medivac is needed, the clearing to our rear will be perfect for an airlift."
All the soldiers are ready with guns loaded, waiting for the commander's order to fire.
"Corporal, take position behind that bamboo grove. Fire on sight."
"OPEN FIRE!"
The soldiers open fire on the VC patrol with all their firepower; light and heavy machine guns, grenades, and as pictured here a U.S. Soldier fires his grenade launcher, nicked-named "Blooper" by American soldiers for the noise it made when discharging the grenade.
The M-16 automatic rifle was the most commonly used rifle by U.S. forces in the Vietnam War. It is used by the soldier pictured below.

Three hits are scored on the enemy....
...But one U.S. Soldier is wounded in the fighting.
"Man hit! We need a medic over here!"
The medic rushes over, but has only bad news: the injured soldier is in critical condition, and a medivac (medical evacuation helicopter, the ancestor of today's life-flight) is needed.



A medivac is requested by radio, and soon the sound of whirling rotors beating the air comes close. As the fight draws to a close, all the enemy soldiers having been killed, captured, or escaped, the helicopter hovers over the clearing where the medic is signaling for it to land.

The fight is over, and everybody re-loads before returning to the base camp, or "fire base" as they were called.



The patrol returns to the fire base the following night. A patrol could be out in the jungle for days or even sometimes weeks on end, depending on troop strength, supplies, and proximity to friendly bases and villages.