Article on the American response to the Bien Hoa airfield attack

Item

derivative filename/jpeg
363-02350 to 363-02352.pdf
Digital Object Identifier
363-02350 to 363-02352
Title
Article on the American response to the Bien Hoa airfield attack
Description
Original title: "airforce." Article by Keever on the American response to the attack on the Bien Hoa airfield
Transcript
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- Page 1
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deepe
airforce--11
SAIGON-THE U. S. AIR FORCE COMMANDER FOR SOUTH EAST ASIA
said this week he knew of no plans for brining in American combat
troops to provide perimeter security for American planes om
Vietnamese airbases.
IN Fm Exclusive interview
Maj. Gen. Joseph H. Moore made the statement following the
November 1st morta Communist mortar attack on the Bien Hoa airfield
Z
im which 4 American B-57 Jet jetfighters jet fighter-bombers were
The blazing
gem destroyed and 14 others damaged.
20-minute attack accounted for the highest number of American
casualties during the war--4 killed and 72 wounded.
Immediately after the attack, American officials im
Washington announced"
President Lyndon B. Johnson had ordered
when asked
replacement aircraft sent to Viet Nam. But Mommy
Hene,
whether the replacement aircraft had yet arrived in Viet Nam Moore said
the information was "classified."
When the B-57's arrived in Viet Nam during the August Tonkin
Gulf crisis, the news was announced and correspondents were allowed to
Floz
take photographs or
fighters which arrived in Saigon.
Jet
(More)
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deepe
airforce--2
Moore, who is concurrently commander of the 2nd Air Division
based in Viet Nam,, said "I know of no plans to bring in American
troops for perimeter security. This is the responsibility of the
host country--Viet Nam. "
He said he thought the Vietnamese armed forces were "taking
steps which would go a long way to prevent such an event happening
again."
Viet Cong
The two-star general said that "realizing the
(Communist guerrillas) had the capability to launch a mortar attack and
not being satisfied with the reduction in of troops for base perimeter
defense, we moved a goodly portion of the jets out of the
country (before the attack) and spread others to the maximum in the
20
parking area. He said this prevented losing more aircraft during the
Been lost.
mortar attack than would have previously.
Iz U. S. Air Force officials, he said, "are now taking steps
to disperse and protect the aircraft in the event of future attacks."
He said that when the B-57s arrived during the August Tonkin
Gulf crisis "we recognized the problem of a crowded base which could not
Ac
effect dispera dispersal-like would normally be done."
Some of the B-57's were parked only 20 feet apart at the time
of the attack, according to American officers at the Bien Hoa airbase,
and there had been little attempt to provide sandbagged revetements
around each aircraft as is the normally done.
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deepe
airforce--3
Moore said the base defense was "beefed up considerably"
after the arrival of the aircraft and "extra precautions on
interior guards were taken becuase in the past we had had only attempted
sabotage." He also said that extra army troops were placed under the
Vietnamese army control for guarding the perimeter outside the base,
but these troops were moved out on operations after the dangers of
retaliation by Hanoi diminished following the August 5th American
bombing of North Viet Nam.
He said that American airforce servicement are "technicians"
and "not combat troops" but they are formed into defense teams
to provide eba se on-base protection for American living quarters,
facilities and- aircraft, while Vietnamese airforce teams
provide on-base security for their own living and operational areas.
Asked whether Americans living on base were "sitting ducks"
if adequate praninnm defenses were not established outside the
bases airbases, he replied "careful preparations areiging made
to prevent Americans from being exposed more than necessary.
the
"
He said however, there was "no guarantee" Vietnamese army would
take strong measures for defense outside the base, but he believed
As we AR
"the Vietnamese are just as anxious this does not recur again."
-30-
Date
1964
Subject
Vietnam War, 1961-1975; Bien Hoa Air Base (Vietnam); United States. Air Force; Defensive (Military science)
Location
Saigon, South Vietnam
Coordinates
10.8231; 106.6297
Size
20 x 26 cm
Container
B58, F4
Format
dispatches
Collection Number
MS 363
Collection Title
Beverly Deepe Keever, Journalism Papers
Creator
Keever, Beverly Deepe
Collector
Keever, Beverly Deepe
Copyright Information
These images are for educational use only. To inquire about usage or publication, please contact Archives & Special Collections.
Publisher
Archives & Special Collections
Language
English