Article about the B-52 SAC bomb dropped in North Vietnam

Item

derivative filename/jpeg

363-06991 to 363-06995.pdf

Digital Object Identifier

363-06991 to 363-06995

Title

Article about the B-52 SAC bomb dropped in North Vietnam

Description

Keever's title: "B-52 raid over North Vietnam is biggest since A-Bomb in 1945," article about the B-52 SAC bomb dropped in North Vietnam, which was the biggest since Nagasaki

AI Usage Disclosure

Draft transcripts were automatically generated via Google Document AI and are currently under review. Please report significant errors to Archives & Special Collections at archives@unl.edu.

Transcript

(Morgan Gandy) SAIGON, 12200, (UPIS)--The gigantic BBB-52 SAC bomber raid dropping one and quarter million poundsve bombs over North Vietnam Tuesday was the biggest, most powerful [insertion: combat] raid since the atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki twenty one years ago, Unistates Air Force officials said here. “We had nothing to match this [insertion: single raid] in the Korea War, in terms of tonnage--and nothing thus far in Vietnam,” one American Air Force official explained. The raid by giant Unistates Air Force [deletion: Stratog] Stratofortress jets was immediately regarded here as the first move in aye continuing escalation of military pressure on North Vietnam. “This raid was south of Vinh,” one informed political source said. “Next you’ll see the SAM (surface-to-air missiles) sites taken out further north and then you’ll see the [deletion: stronger] bigger bombing runs moving further north.” American officials, speaking privately, attempted to “de-escalate” the significance of the [deletion: raid] airstrike, by arguing that it was simply aye means to close [insertion: permanently] aye mountain pass in which five raids by Unistates Air Force FFF-105 repeat FFF-105 Thunderchiefs had virtually failed. (More--Miller--BD) first add--morgan gandy--saigon x x x virtually failed x x x. Sources close to the Vietnamese High Command regarded the Unistates Air Force raid as an attempt to increase in aye lightning blow the military pressure [XXXX indicating deletion] as aye means to drive North Vietnam to the negotiating table. Other political sources regarded the massive raid as aye counter-balance to the growing political vacuum within this Southern republic. “The big bombing raid today is only aye rationale for an American policy,” one Vietnamese politician explained. “The Americans hit the North when they were losing in the South. And they slam on the military pressure when they are losing politically in Saigon.” The political vacuum was considered to have increased Tuesday in Saigon on at least two counts. They are: 1. The realization--long suspected--that the American government was slowly withdrawing its support from Prime Minister Nguyen Cao Ky, who was soundly embraced by President Lyndon Johnson at the Honolulu Conference aye mere fifty days ago. “The American position is quite clear, one Western diplomat explained. “Their policy is notrptnot to become so involved with one individual (namely Ky) that they go down the drain with him.” (More--Miller--BD) second add--morgan gandy--saigon x x x with him x x x. 2. Prime Minister Ky’s [XXXX indicating deletion] opening of aye political conference of various political and religious factions was regarded here as “disappointing”, if notrptnot aye failure. The militant Buddhists [insertion: --considered to be communist infiltrated--] who have been attempting to topple his government boycotted the meeting. Of the onehundred seventy expected members, only ninety two showed up at the opening. Later [insertion: in the day], one prominent politician moved that conference be dissolved--and the attendance dropped to [deletion: seventh] seventy. ‘(More--Miller--BD) third add--morgan gandy--saigon x x x to seventy x x x. Meanwhile, [insertion: aye] demonstrations [insertion: of ten thousand citizens] against the political conference of Prime Minister Ky [deletion: were] was held Tuesday in the old imperial capital of Hue, four hundred miles north of Saigon [deletion: and]. It is the rebel [deletion: city] headquarters of the anti-government turbulence. The official American announcements that the Johnson Administration would support aye government elected soon by the people also drew critical comments. “The Americans are deluding themselves into thinking that aye popularly elected government will help out in the South,” one American source explained. [deletion: “But] “Democracy has never been established in aye wartime. Even [deletion: in] America and Britain, [deletion: they [illegible]] diminished democracy during World War II with price rationing, [insertion: and] drafting because one must have control. But, you can’t develop democracy during aye war--it runs counter to the face of history. The Americans [deletion: and Ky] are moving towards the brink,” he continued, “yet they say it’s not dangerous to go to the brink. This is aye very strange situation--we can have aye collapse of the government and the whole anti-Communist war effort.” (More--Miller--BD) fourth add--morgan gandy--saigon x x x war effort x x x. The American source, who had seen [deletion: may] many crises come and go in Vietnam continued, “This is the worst crisis here in ten years. This whole crisis is aye very weird thing--like aye perverse death-wish.” A Vietnamese government official summed up the mood this way: The Americans are playing aye very dangerous game--and it could be deadly. [XXXX indicating deletion] The more they try to negotiate with the Communists, the more they are stepping out into the great unknown.” (Endit-Miller--BD)

Date

1966, Apr. 12

Subject

Vietnam War, 1961-1975; B-52 bomber; Bombing, Aerial; Projectiles, Aerial; United States. Air Force

Location

Saigon, South Vietnam

Coordinates

10.8231; 106.6311

Size

20 x 26 cm

Container

B188, F3

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, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries

Language

English