An ammunition dump at Long Binh, Vietnam. Advanced Search | The attack was expected to come on the ground, as opposed to those occasional, more impersonal rocket and mortar shells from the air. Necessarily, more is lost to time than is remembered. At the ceremonies, his son, John L. Levitow Jr., said: I have only one apology to make. The right tire was flat, having been cut by shrapnel, and it was all Carpenter could do, standing on the left brake, to keep control until he brought the airplane to a stop. Quan Loi August 12/13, 1969 by Bill Rubenstein. The idea seemed absurd! For the next six hours, Spooky 71 would fly a combat air patrol circuit over the Saigon/Tan Son Nhut area, ready to respond wherever its fire support was needed. The decision to make the fix to. Thirty-four years after it happened, the story of John L. Levitow has lost none of its power to excite and inspire. Trans primary motivations seem quite similar to our own: eating and getting home. Im very careful what I do, he said in an oral history interview in 1986. DARLENE SUPERVILLE Associated Press. A South . . All of the enlisted got wounded and the officers did not. . United States 2nd Field Force change of command ceremony at Long Binh, Vietnam. This was a bit disconcerting. He did not yet have a five-level as a loadmaster, and without a five-level, he could not be promoted, and if not promoted, he could not re-enlist. (Lt. Cdr. It was thrown out of the aircraft and floated to the ground on a parachute, burning for as long as three minutes with an intensity of two million candlepower and making daylight over a square mile or so. He worked in "The Iron Triangle" included Phu loi, Ton sahn Nut, and Long B. If you like this movie trailer, go to https://militaryvideo.com/ to purchase the entire 60 minute video. On 22 February, elements of the VC 274th Regiment, 5th Division assembled at three hills along Highway 15, approximately three kilometers south of Long Binh. Before the night was over, Levitow would perform an act of astounding bravery for which he would ultimately be awarded the Medal of Honor. Many of the tracers bounced off the ground like rubber balls. SUMMARY: On December 17, 1968, a 39-vehicle convoy from the 48th Transportation Group was moving ammunition and food between Long Binh and Dau Tieng, South Vietnam when the lead vehicles were suddenly hit by mortar fire. Unfortunately, the reporting was delayed and did not reach Long Binh until the morning of 22 February 1969, the day the defector warned the attacks were set to begin. Part 2 nya min . On 23 February 1969, Task Force Privette (A and B Troops, 1st Squadron, 11th Cav and a company of 1st Battalion, 2nd Infantry) reacted to an attack on the Long Binh perimeter, killing 88 NVA. Carpenter set it down in a full shuddering stall. 23 July 1969 - SFC Eddie Hamby escorts Sgt McIntosh to Moc Hoa by boat on first leg of stops heading stateside. With no friendly troops visible between me and the battle, into my M16 went the magazine of tracers in preparation for a confrontation with anyone who might break through that wall of gunfire, something at which the Viet Cong were quite adept. The Viet Cong were no longer in the tunnels around Long Binh, most probably having taken the subway back to the main tunnel complex at Cu Chi. If I got stopped drinking and driving, its going to say, Medal of Honor Drunk. I realize that. The panorama took on an aspect of high noon, the entire battlefield bathed with an eerie golden glow. Flares took away the cover of darkness, on which the Viet Cong depended for their style of warfare. Tet 1969 refers to the attacks mounted by the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) and Viet Cong (VC) in February 1969 in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War, one year after the original Tet Offensive. You can imagine how frightful that was to the mind of a 6-year-old. He was a man that was proud to stand tall. After years of Army training one cannot help but itch for a shot at the enemy, especially when all the advantages are on ones own side. [4]:97 Later that day rockets hit the An Hoa Combat Base destroying 15,000 rounds of artillery ammunition and igniting 40,000 gallons of aviation fuel and 50 rockets were fired at Naval Support Activity Da Nang with more than half going into the sea and the remainder causing minor damage. Levitows Medal of Honor is prominently displayed at Enlisted Heritage Hall. Includes captions and a music soundtrack. Website Terms & Conditions | At approximately 3:30 a.m. on Feb. 23, the battle gradually died out. And that they would already have been shot three or four times before they got there. He will look for photos. Alsoand central to the story of Spooky 71it carried about 50 magnesium flares to illuminate targets on the ground. His grieving son had no option but to file away those unanswered questions forever. He flew two more AC-47 combat missions and showed up at the flight line for a third when the squadron commander told him he was grounded. The airplane made it over the minefield and onto the overrun, just barely. ATTENTION If you participated in any of the incidents listed on this page or know of some that are not, please contact the History Project Manager via the Email Link at the top of this page. Dad wanted to be buried standing up. YouTube, Investigation reports of the Postal Inspector Division, 1971-73. Over the years, there were numerous other recognitions. It had been flying in Vietnam since 1964, first with the air commandos and after that with the special operations squadrons. TAOR With the enemy still in force south of the Buong River there remained the continuing threat of additional ground, rocket and heavy mortar attacks against Long Binh Post.. Battalion TOC still considered the eastern sector as the weak spot of the TAOR, so they called for a strong-point (outpost) to be constructed on the Finger of Land just to the west of the abandoned tank on the crest of . The pilot, copilot, and navigator were in the forward cabin, and the flight engineer, two gunners, and the loadmaster were in the cargo bay in back. Tet Offensive attack on Long Binh and Bien Hoa 31 January 1968.jpg . It was originally called the FC-47D (for fighter cargo) but subsequently changed to AC-47 (attack cargo) in response to objections from fighter pilots. Supported videos include: The other skid remains upright, as it is unfastened from the crane. Large images may take a few minutes to appear. . The soldiers with old (MPC) currency notes takes the receipt and proceeds towards the next officer. 44th Medical Brigade Headquarters Long Binh 1969.jpeg 2,079 1,716; 209 KB. Some speculate that the attacks were mounted to test the will of the new U.S. President Richard Nixon who retaliated by secretly bombing PAVN/VC sanctuaries in Cambodia the following month. This place is situated in Bien Hoa Town, Dong Nai, Vietnam, its geographical coordinates are 10 54' 0" North, 106 51' 0" East and its original name (with diacritics) is Long Bnh. The soldiers with old (MPC) currency notes takes the receipt and proceeds towards the next officer. Background. 99-08 286 ) DATE ) ) On appeal from the Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in St. Louis, Let us know if you remember Steve as we seek more information and photos to make a MyPage for him. The 228th per DA consolidated orders of 1970 was "confirmed" as being awarded an MUC for time period 15 February 1969 - 15 August 1969, as was the 277th and other units/sections under its command { HHC . One of the MP ambush squads held a position within a kilometer of the VC stronghold. Bruce Stern at his desk in Long Binh, circa 1968-69. . The 64-year-old Army veteran died suddenly of a heart attack. Southeast Asia is a very strange part of the world, where for centuries its leaders have had little or noregard for the lives of their own people. Just after 16:00 US Air Force F-100s and F-4s along with Republic of Vietnam Air Force A-1 Skyraiders were directed against the PAVN/VC positions in the village. While I was in training, my motivation was to get these wings and I wear them today proudly, the airman recalled in 2015. For my personal defense, I relied upon a somewhat rusty M16 kept around the office. His most recent article, Rolling Thunder, appeared in the March issue. Partway through the mission he had come forward and was talking to the flight crew when the action unfolded that night. "Text of Camp Lejeune Committee's Report to Commanding General." Nov. Dec. Others were there, others were wounded, but Levitow being the furthest removed from the flare, recognized the danger, took action when seconds counted, and saved the lives of the entire crew, Carpenter wrote. Things quieted down for a while. Soldiers counting the notes. We were young men in the U.S. Army. At that rate, a three-second burst placed a shot every square foot in an area the size of a football field. It led the way for the more powerful AC-119 and AC-130 gunships that came later. . Textual Records: Correspondence and daily journal, 1972-73. 21 July 1969 - Rheault, Marasco, and others transferred to Long Binh Jail (LBJ). The gunners kept the guns loaded and working during the flight. We had no bunkers. 128 KB. He went back on active duty in 1983 and retired in 1995. 472.6.9 Records of the U.S. Army Garrison, Long Binh Post, Vietnam (Provisional) I heard that five American soldiers were killed and some 30 wounded. Ni bt nht; Gn y; Gi. Answer (1 of 6): Now I can answer that from a very odd perspective. 20 July 1969 circa - Mortar attack on base camp A-414 Thanh Tri. Viet Cong sappers infiltrated the base and lay in long grass between the runways for several hours before placing their satchel charges. The brigade was comprised of 2d Battalion, 3d . The deployment, which began March 1, is part of an exercise dubbed Agile Reaper 23-1. By mid-1967, United States Army, Vietnam (USARV), 1st Logistical Command and many other Army units dispersed in Saigon were moved to Long Binh Post to resolve centralization, security, and troop billeting issues. Two of the pockets were destroyed by the next morning resulting in the capture of the acting commander of the 141st Regiment. Long Binh/Bien Hoa. [4]:98, At dawn PAVN sappers attacked the 1st Marine Division headquarters on Hill 327 and the 2/7 Marines command post to the northwest. I try to control what I say, although for the most part, Im very quiet. ), and that the VC suffered heavy casualties that day, with about only 6 VC left after the shooting stopped, and these were taken prisoner. (true?/false? I then looked back to see a flare that had slid up against the cans of 19,000 rounds of ammunition, Platt said. Dennis E Haines, Recipient of the Images Of Bravery Award, Patient at the 24th Evacuation Hospital, December 1968. Perhaps a word of explanation is in order on how I and all the others in our mix of volunteers and draftees ended up in this hot, smelly, unsafe corner of the world. The Geography and Map Division holds a map from the war that was printed and created by the 66 th Engineer Company (known as the "Topo Corps"). Long Binh Post was a sprawling, 3,500 building . South Vietnamese woman 1969 Sep 15, 2017. . These attacks were repulsed for Marines losses of 18 killed and more than 75 PAVN killed. War and peace. A soldier with a typewriter creates a receipt. Hamby advises McIntosh to . M113 armored personnel carriers and M551 Sheridan armored reconnaissance vehicles supported the forces on the ground while AH-1 Cobra gunships and OH-6 helicopters provided air support. Levitow set the timersallowing 10 seconds after the safety pin was pulled before a minor explosion deployed the parachute and another 10 seconds before the flare ignitedthen handed the flare to Owen, who attached a lanyard, which created a little extra distance before the pin was pulled after Owen tossed the flare from the aircraft. 1965 January 1 - February 7, 1965: Vietcong forces mount a series of attacks across South Vietnam. It includes footage shot between 17 Feb and 24 Feb 1. As darkness approached some comfort was provided by the constant sweeps outside the perimeter made at treetop level by the guys in their little OH-6 Loach light observation helicopters. The attack continued into 27 February when the Marines overran the PAVN resulting in a total of more than 200 killed. The flare posed a deadly danger in several ways. When daylight came, I reported to my new duty station in the Engineer Section of USARV HQ, where, from the second floor of the air-conditioned building, we could observe the Post's perimeter wire about 1/4 mile away. On the morning of 26 February following Napalm and Snake Eye air strikes, Company L, reinforced by Company M assaulted the PAVN position making slow progress against determined PAVN resistance. Facebook. Troops lined up on a field. This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Marine Corps. The miniguns fired four rounds of invisible ball bullets followed by one tracer round, but the bullets came so fast they looked like a continuous red stream. It isnt every day one peaceably sets off for work knowing someone is intent on ones personal demise. Later I learned that we were attacked by the 274th Regiment, 5th Viet Cong Division, which was repulsed by the firepower of the 720th Military Police Battalion, the 18th Military Police Brigade and helicopter gunships from the 145th Aviation Battalion, 1st Aviation Brigade. The attacks on Bin Ha, Bien Hoa Air Base and Long Binh Post, occurred during the early hours of 31 January 1968 and continued until 2 February 1968.The attacks by Vietcong (VC) and People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) forces were one of several major attacks around Saigon in the first days of the Tet offensive.The attacks were repulsed with the VC/PAVN suffering heavy losses, having inflicted . It took considerable effort to get Spooky 71 back to base. The retired Green Beret, who was a trailblazer as one of the first Black officers to join the Special Forces, told Military.com on Thursday that he . Spooky 71 had gone as far as it was going. Once my eight-man crew of ammo counters had assembled, we set aside our usual duties and made the best preparations we could to survive the night. I was experiencing what soldiers for more than half a century referred to as the empty battlefield. Modern battlefield weapons had become so lethal that to expose oneself, even for an instant, to their fire was tantamount to suicide. More than 100 individual and crew-served weapons were captured. He was the center of much attention but also the victim of bureaucracy. Thus, Spooky 71 was leaking two highly inflammable substances. As usual, I initially took refuge under my desk, then ordered everyone to rush downstairs on the assumption that any direct hits would likely riddle the upper floor. Hide. Remember: Using others' images on the web without their permission may be bad manners, or worse, copyright infringement. Shot up and near stalling, Spooky approached Bien Hoa in the dark. The battle area had been cleared for at least 500 to 1,000 yards from the perimeterall foliage and any source of cover had been bulldozed flat. They tell me I ended up jumping on it, finally getting control and dragging myself and the flare back to the rear cargo door which was open and just managed to push it outside the door as it ejected and ignited simultaneously., Later, the citation to accompany the Medal of Honor put it this way: Unable to grasp the rolling flare with his hands, he threw himself bodily upon the burning flare. Featured Collections | Aerial view of (USARV) United States Army Republic of Vietnam Headquarters Complex at Long Binh, Vietnam. I am compiling a history of our Regiment's service in the war. The award-winning exhibit, designed by curator William I. Chivalette, includes a lifelike mannequin of Levitow, paintings, photographs, uniform items, and artifacts. With no friendly troops visible between me and the battle, into my M16 went the magazine of tracers in preparation for a confrontation with anyone who might break through that wall of gunfire, something at which the Viet Cong were quite adept. The attacks were repulsed with the VC/PAVN suffering heavy losses, having inflicted . The most comprehensive and authoritative history site on the Internet. The attack lifted momentarily, and the gunship began dropping flares to provide illumination requested by a nearby ground unit. Aerial view of Long Binh Post in Vietnam. He is remembered at the Walk of Fame at Hurlburt Field, Fla. Levitow died Nov. 8, 2000, at his home in Connecticut after a lengthy battle with cancer. Date: 1969, August 11. Jim Van Eldik, who kept count of ammunition from an office at the Long Binh logistics complex, spent the battle in a defensive position along the edge of the building, far from the fighting. An ambush platoon reaction team that was held in ready reserve was assigned to conduct a sweep of the tree line where the post perimeter had received heavy enemy fire from during the early morning attack. The prisoners revealed that their mission had been to attack Bien Hoa city and the Bien Hoa Air Base. . Nearly 60 years after he was first recommended for the nation's highest military award for his bravery during the Vietnam War, retired Col. Paris Davis, one of the first Black officers to lead a Special Forces team in combat, received the Medal of Honor on Friday. After the massive casualties it suffered during the vicious battles in 1966 and 1967, and especially due to the division's disastrous . The three guns were mounted in window ports, just forward of the open cargo door. Opportunity knocks. The attack was expected to come on the ground, as opposed to those . The paperwork for advancement in skill level (from three to five) in his original specialty had been lost. This site uses cookies to improve your experience and to help show content that is more relevant to your interests. It weighed 27 pounds. The last major battle occurred along the berm of the rifle range on Highway 317 in the early morning just after daylight. Levitow declined to board the helicopter until he was finally ordered to do so by Carpenter. Vit Trinh thng hiu tht l trn Vit Trinh, sinh ngy 27 mon 11 nm 1972, l con gi din vin nng lng in nh, tn dn chng trnh, o din vi gim kho ngi vit Nam. Members of the 1st Squadron 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, surround their M551, Air Droppable Assault Vehicle as they wait for the word to move out, 23 February 1969 Overview; The North Vietnamese and Viet Cong launch artillery attacks on over 100 population centers and military . These ingredientswhen mixed with the C-ration Beef, Spiced with Sauce or the Beans w/ Frankfurter Chunks in Tomato Saucewould have provided the Viet Cong a feast for the ages. The spilled ammunition19,000 rounds of it by Platts estimatewould start cooking off in seconds. SSG Richard E, Slaven died from his wounds the next day. Despite his wounds, Levitow helped secure the airplane on the way back. History is not a fixed set of facts. Tran Van Thiet, 19, had been left behind. Ahead of the release of Pentagons 2024 budget release in the coming weeks, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin touted major investments by the DOD across a broad array of portfolios, including the nuclear triad, space, and next-generation fighter aircraftwhile promising once-in-a-generation expenditures for shipyards and munitions manufacturing in particular. The idea seemed absurd! We're weird, he said. [4]:100, After dawn on 23 February a VC unit was detected near the Ha Vang District and the Marine security force killed 6 and captured 2 and forced the rest of the unit to retreat into a cemetery where they were attacked by the ARVN 21st Ranger Battalion the next day losing a further 57 killed. The Space Development Agency has added another batch of missile-tracking satellites to its expansive constellation, awarding Raytheon a $250 million contract March 2 to build seven spacecraft. It was situated between Bien Hoa, the location of a large American airbase, and Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam. Mini-Tet 1969 Begins February 23, 1969. My Account | Jim Van Eldik is a retired Army lieutenant colonel. Long Binh Jail was a prison for American soldiers on the outskirts of Saigon with notoriously harsh conditions. Amazingly five or six Viet Cong actually did sneak into the compound, but, luckily or unluckily for my sake, depending on the outcome, not in my area. A change of command at 2nd Field Force Artillery Headquarters at Long Binh, Vietnam. Binh chng c cng c nhim v tp trung nghin cu, tham mu cho B Quc phng Vit Nam xy dng v pht trin cc lc lng . . Soldiers of the 221st Signal Company Vietnam have military payment certificates (MPC) exchanged at their headquarters in Long Binh Vietnam as part of a country wide general order. Dedicated to those who were there. They could'nt tell how big the post was, for the post's perimeter lighting had not yet been installed. As Ole-Luk-Oie, the pen name for British officer Ernest Swinton, wrote in the 1915 book. Edward Fuzie, the flight engineer] were knocked to the floor and the flare was knocked out of my hands. On 7 February Company D, 1st Battalion, 26th Marines found a PAVN/VC base area near the Nam O bridge northwest of the Red Beach Base Area, leaving the base untouched, they returned at night setting up a series of ambushes that killed 18 PAVN and captured 2. Tet 1969 refers to the attacks mounted by the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) and Viet Cong (VC) in February 1969 in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War, one year after the original Tet Offensive.. 1971 serving with the 95th Military Police Battalion. Spookys operators had successfully resisted pressure to change the call sign. Long Binh/Bien Hoa; Da Nang; References; External links; Most attacks centered on military targets near Saigon and Da Nang and were quickly beaten off. 25/26 January 1969. On the other hand, one is left to ponder what affect seeding the battlefield or, even better, seeding the Ho Chi Minh Trail itself with C-ration packets of the despicable Ham and Lima Beans might have had. Surely neither the. By Richard E. Killblane - Transportation Branch Historian September 15, 2008. The idea was quite unsettling. Day scenes show soldiers defending positions and firing at the enemy. Week of December 12-18, 2021: Heroism Amidst an Ambush, December 17, 1968. OVER 30 POUNDS IN WEIGHT MUST BE LOWERED BY ROPE. With no clear idea of what to do in combat, I would have to improvise. Thought to be in retaliation for Chuyen's disappearance. ATTACK ON LONG BINH POST. When we were hit, all of us [Owen, Levitow, Sgt. I stay away from publicity and things like that. He was discharged from active duty after his Vietnam tour and shortly afterward was assigned to an Army Reserve unit. CRITICALPAST.COM: hightForP2 = 330 Contribute to chinapedia/wikipedia.en development by creating an account on GitHub. Some speculate that the attacks . Other members of the squad have yet to be identified. The two huge U.S. bases dripped firepowerdozens of batteries of field artillery, large calibers and small, rows and rows of helicopter gunships and jet fighters loaded to the gills with the most lethal ordnance the world has ever seen, dozens of M113 armored personnel carriers with powerful .50-caliber machine guns manned by surly military police, and, of course, hundreds of trigger-happy clerks and truck drivers, not necessarily eager, but most definitely ready, for action. Three B Company ambush squads were positioned along the eastern end of the TAOR on the "Finger Of Land," and a reinforced squad of twelve MP's, including two Scout Dog handlers from the 212th MP Company, were positioned on Hill-15 along the Buong River. Each one of the guns could fire two speeds, Levitow said. Intelligence had indicators of the pending attacks. Tran, who was from the Haiphong area of North Vietnam, had high expectations for a victory in the attack, according to an interview in Stars and Stripes. Citation Nr: 0307323 Decision Date: 04/16/03 Archive Date: 04/24/03 DOCKET NO. Grabbing my helmet and flak jacket (and finding that, after sitting on the shelf for several months, neither would fit properly), I departed with my Jeep driver for the Logistics Commands large yellow headquarters building. There are some night scenes of the base under attack showing mostly flares, explosions and gunships firing on enemy targets. Dense blue smoke was pouring out of the burning flare fuze.. Visitors can also watch a videotape of Carpenter and John Levitow Jr. talking about the Medal of Honor mission. Levitow had joined the Air Force in June 1966, some 20 days ahead of being drafted into the Army. About 85 per cent of the force was estimated to be PAVN soldiers. It was nothing like what I saw in my imagination or what is shown in movie theaters or on television. Photo courtesy of Tom Lefavour and taken around October 1969. I must add, though, that from a different perspective the battle I witnessed in Vietnam was exactly the same as those I had seen in movies: One was just as unreal as the other. It was presented in ceremonies in February 2002 by his son to CMSgt. The AC-47 was the first of the Air Forces side-firing gunships. By 15:00 the 36th Ranger Battalion moved into the village attacking the PAVN/VC force. Since my finger was through the safety pin ring the safety pin was pulled.. As of 1969 Lieutenant General Do Cao Tri's III CTZ . Viet Cong attack on Tan Son Nhut Air Base (1966) Part of the Vietnam War: Date: 4-5 December 1966: Location: Tan Son Nhut Air Base, South Vietnam. On July 1, an article titled "Libya and Syria: When Anti-Imperialism Goes Wrong" was published on the North Star website, signed by "Pham Binh of Occupy Wall Street, Class War Camp." The article argues that imperialist interventions in Libya and Syria are justified because they are demanded by forces the author calls revolutionary. Sound: No. --- and so it went for lots of the fighting in Vietnam. FAQs - How to Order | It was used as a base of operation for the increased ambush and reconnaissance patrols conducted in the uninhabited eastern end of the TAOR. This article was written by John E. Gross and originally published in the February 2008 issue of Vietnam Magazine. Easily create a Forum Website with Website Toolbox. By 01:00 the next morning, the bodies of 264 PAVN/VC soldiers lay in the village, and 87 had been captured or surrendered. If you like this movie trailer, go to https://militaryvideo.com/ to purchase the entire 60 minute video. In 1998, Air Mobility Command named a C-17 Globemaster, The Spirit of Sgt. On 29 October the Viet Cong attacked the South Vietnamese district capital of Loc Ninh, ran up the flag of the National Liberation Front, and tried to hold the city. Spooky was flying at about 3,500 feet. In early 1969, the 277th was re-assigned from Long Binh to Tay Ninh West Base Camp, where it became the superior command of the 228th. Carpenter rolled the gunship wings level and began his run on the mortar positions. The enemy would occasionally probe us, rocket us, mortar us and more than likely sometimes even shop at our PXs, but a ground attack? The attacks on Bin Ha, Bien Hoa Air Base and Long Binh Post, occurred during the early hours of 31 January 1968 and continued until 2 February 1968. Dailymotion, The gunship carried about 150,000 rounds of ammunition on each flight, Levitow said. aring, as AH-1 Cobra helicopter gunships began strafing the battlefield with 7.62 mm minigun bullets fired at the rate of about 4,000 rounds per minute. A U.S. 2nd Field Force soldier poses. As far as political considerations go, he hardly seemed interested in building a communist utopia at all. So proficient had I become at this task that I had acquired the nickname Lieutenant Bullets. Officially, however, I was an ammunition stock control officer in the Army Ordnance Corps. John L. Levitow. My Lightboxes | The video has no narration. Battle At The Rifle Range. The basic course at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland allocated one week in the field for brushing up on combat skills. Most estimates put the Viet Cong deaths at over 100. Binh chng c cng l binh chng chin u c bit tinh nhu ca Qun i nhn dn Vit Nam, do B Tng tham mu Qun i nhn dn Vit Nam trc tip qun l v ch o. He delivered the keynote address. Most attacks centered on military targets near Saigon and Da Nang and were quickly beaten off.