Article about defense of the Biên Hòa Air Base

Item

derivative filename/jpeg
363-05604 to 363-05611.pdf
Digital Object Identifier
363-05604 to 363-05611
Title
Article about defense of the Biên Hòa Air Base
Description
Original title: "secure", Keever's title: "U.S. Officers at Airbase Where Communists Attacked B-57 Squadron Criticize Security", article about the poor defense of the Biên Hòa Air Base, published by the New York Herald Tribune
Transcript
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URGENT
t/a
D2900
TRIBUNG NEWYORK
01234 proreon prozosenfeld one secure one bien hoe front
american offloors here today wore openly critical inade inadequate defence
measures for this jetlent jetlongth rummy airbase following
twentyminute quote informal unquoteve viotoong mortar shelling but also were
disturbed by sooning impossibi impossibilityvo preventing totally
provonting future attacks stoppara
Borodeope
mote ajoutoos
bota rayo08
beverly doopo carte no. 44
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URGENT
t/a
press
tribune nowyork
01234
TN States
prorosenfeld scoure two the army officer advising base security
complained that the one battalionve vietnamese troops responsible for
socuring airbase perm perimeter was twentypercent understrength seico
semicolon that and that he had recommendedmax mortars for counterfiring be
pizodxommhmmm added to base security measures but these never received
stoppara
on air american airforce officer jet bbb57 Te jet fighter
AIS
bomber pilot said jet bbb555777 ja figher bombers were parked too
REVETM
close together on runway etwere notrptnot sandbagged for Individual
AL
security stoppara moredeepe
mots ajoutes:
mots rayest
beverly deepe carte no. 44
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URGENT
T/a
press
tribune newyork
02002
02020 prorosenfeld secure seven quote we needed countermortar fire
omaunquote he said them mentionamh they
stopquote
but even then we could shot only in the general direction
but notrpnot accurately stop and even if had a divisionve troops in
those hills dasha even aye divisionve emerican marines undash still
could notrptnot guarantee twould stop mortar attacks stop aye static
position is always vulnerable to mortars ettheres so much territory
out there twould take an army to cover it all stopunquote
he said the perimeter around the airbase was ten miles
ettha t etthat patrolling for aye two mile radius beyond that would
be necessary to prevent protect against future attacks by mortars which have
aye range of two miles stoppera
mots ajoutes:
moterayes:
2
bevery deepe carte no. 44
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urgent
t/a
press
tribune newyork
american officers did art
02003 prorosenfeld secure three bienform
notron notrptnot criticize their a vietnamese counterparts etnoted that
two vietnamese were killed etsix
blazing shelling stoppara
Stat
etfive wounded in seti-ettecles
an official/ for unistates airfo
reliable sources in saigon said that eye report made aye
year ago said that all major airbase installations in vietnam were
vulnerable to viet cong mortaring but according source quote nothing was
ever done about it stopunquote bbb.
K+ LEAST
Ligit maste
And Airplane Units Stopper
reliable observers long considered vietcong were capable
overrunning provincial capitals and major installations but would do
so infrequently only when i political and psychological impact was
needed in their campaign to effect an american withdrawal comma to
turn vietnam neutralist first neutralist and eventually communist stoppara
moredeepe
mots ajoutews/7
mots rayess
B
beverly deepe carte no. 44
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URGENT
T/a
press
tribune nowyork
for
02001 prorosenfeld secure three
1tgon william coo weste
westmoreland conta commander america mili unistates military
assistance command dash dash vietnam of comma said however that
quote alotve energy had gone into securing the airbase but obviously
these measures were notrptnot fully successful stopunquote para
he said he was notronot quote notrptnot critical unquote
of vietnamese security efforts and quote was proud unquoteve american
servicemans performance during attack stop airbase had been on special
alert becauseve vietnamese national day celebrations which viet cong
quote celebrate uhq unquote with anevemhemousin spectacular
displays terrorism or attacks stoppara
westmoreland said the airbase was severed protected by arove
vietnamese government artillery fire which he described as being more
after
he said governments artillery counterfired at vietcong ten minut

effective than mortars stop when asked
whether one battalion troops
enough for security aimhase perimeter he replied one patrol was in
area near vietcong mortar squadssalato
H
marixuanambyn and had
fired sixty millimeter mora mortars at them p
began
stop
mots ajoutes:
mots reyest
moredeepe
beverly deope carte no. 44

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URGENT
PRESS
T/a
TRIBUNE NEWYORK
)
02003 prorosenfeld secure four he also said one marine battalion et
and one vietnamese airborne battalion were in bien hoa dash only eighteen
miles northeastve saigon undash in reserve but when asked why it took
seven hours for the two battalions to counterattack he replied quote it
was aye question of communications and locationve minefileds minefields
stopunquote
ACRVAL
assist
he also said that after arrival jet aire american jet bombers
august fifth he had assigned an emerican captain atlieutenanta
advising base security stoppara
when questioned about quote counterfiring devices unquote
which calibrate positionve attacking mortars omma comma westmoreland
effectivenessve
said the quote radartype devices if pretty good if fire is sustained
so can get this data stopunguate /
0411-being tested atop
e notrpnot such devid devices known to exit have been supplied to
vietnam sto moredeepe
mots ajoutess
mots rayes*
beverly deepe ca rte no. 44
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URGENT
T/a
press
tribune newyork
02020 prorosenfeld secure six eightone millimeter mortars dash
perhaps usmade undash used by vistoong have eye rangve two miles stop
aubrianminho northve airbase where from where they attacked
is heavily wooded hills quote which we own sometimes etthey own sometimes
stop tis nomans land xxx omaunquote according an officer stoppara
quote only thing that can stop aye mortar attack is more men
or countermortar attack omaunquote american officer advising on base
security seid quote eteven then theres notrptnot total defense against it stop
its eye leathal lethal etaccurate weapon if used by experts dash etvietoong
are exports stopunquote
he said perimeter outside airbase scoured by one battalionve
regional forces dash provion provincial troops paid ets ettrained less
than regular army dash eteven that battaion understrength by twenty
per cent moredeope
mots reyes
beverly deepe oarte no. 44 mots ajoutess
8
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URGENT
T/a
press
tribune newyork
02030 prozosenfeld secure eight while american advisors didnot criticize
their vietnamese counterparts there appeared to be an exceptionally
complex chaimve responsibility for securityve base stop the ba tt
kinnamoginnalxforexpating the airfro vietnamese
airforce was responsible for onbane security desh assisted by american
azmy advisor stop this onbase security consisted of vietnamese airforce
enlisted men plus american enlisted men around emerican aircraft according
general westmoreland stop however outside the base etaround its perimeter
security delegated to the regional force battalion responsible to the
chief of province dash both civilian etmilitery stofz headve the fortyfive
subdivisions ± of vietnom stoppara
the one airborne battalion living onbase an reserve but
tis unknown who gave them final authority to move into counterattack semicolon
the one marine battalion was sommendam temporarily attached to
third corps command comma which had moved to bien hoa in recent weeks
while oneve its divisions had moved s elsewhere stop fina 1
VETNAMESE
hoyover both airborne and marine brigades operated directly under joint
eve both ar
chiefve staff in saigon stop inmenomm
bermusevenpodobnmgmm in att
in addition to change of third corps headquarters third corps also given
new assigned now commander after september thirteen coup and fiften
fifth division commandors change several months earlier enditdeepe
mots ajoutes / 2 mots rayess
beverly deepe oarte no. 44
Date
1964, Nov. 1
Subject
Vietnam War, 1961-1975; Bien Hoa Air Base (Vietnam); United States. Air Force; Defensive (Military science)
Location
Biên Hòa, South Vietnam
Coordinates
10.9574; 106.8427
Size
20 x 26 cm
Container
B187, F1
Format
dispatches
Collection Number
MS 363
Collection Title
Beverly Deepe Keever, Journalism Papers
Creator
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, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries
Language
English