Timeline, May 15th

[David]

SECOND INDOCHINA WAR:
May 15, 1964 (4th day of the 4th month, Year of the Dragon [Giap Thin]) (US Advisory): Operation (program?) Leaping Lena starts.

May 15, 1964 (4th day of the 4th month, Year of the Dragon [Giap Thin]) (US Advisory): MAAG is disestablished and its resources are absorbed by MACV.

May 15, 1966 (25th day of the 3rd month, supplemental, Year of the Horse [Binh Ngo]) (US Counteroffensive): The arrival of four more battalions of government forces in Da Nang triggers a week of civil strife from the Buddhist protestors.

May 15, 1967 (7th day of the 4th month, Year of the Goat [Dinh Mui]) (US Counteroffensive Phase II): South Vietnamese Fleet Command units begin to take over sectors of the Market Time outer barrier from U.S. ships; by the end of the year vessels will be stationed in each of the coastal zones.

May 15, 1968 (19th day of the 4th month, Year of the Monkey [Mau Than]) (US Counteroffensive Phase IV): Rocket attack on Camp Coryell in Darlac Province.

May 15, 1968 (19th day of the 4th month, Year of the Monkey [Mau Than]) (US Counteroffensive Phase IV): Battle for FSB Coral update: During the night of the 15th/16th, under a barrage of mortars and RPGs, the Communists launch another battalion-sized ground assault on the defenders but the perimeter holds, except for the position of 3 Platoon A Company 1 RAR, which is recaptured after 3 Platoon counterattacks.

May 15, 1969 (29th day of the 3rd month, Year of the Rooster [Ky Dau]) (US Tet69/Counteroffensive) (Zaffiri): Battle on Ap Bia/Hill 937: At 0200, two of Bravo Company's ambush patrols report NVA troops moving down the mountain into a draw (the same draw the delayed 1/506th is supposed to use during the attack, if it ever reaches the mountain). Col. Honeycutt brings the decimated Charlie Company in to hold his CP, relieving the fresh troops of Alpha, who now go out on the mountain.

In the morning, after the usual prep with artillery and airstrikes, Alpha and Bravo are ordered to advance, but to go very very slowly; when they're about halfway to their assault positions, Honeycutt has them stop and take positions along the ridge facing the draw. After a few minutes, the NVA troops start moving out into what they expect to be the rear of the American positions, but instead walk into a wall of rifle and MG fire. With the enemy trapped in the draw, fighter bombers, artillery and finally a pair of Cobra gunships are brought in; when it's over, an entire NVA company has been wiped out. At 1320, Alpha and Bravo companies start up the mountain again while artillery and naval gunfire work over the area ahead of them. The NVA have reset the claymore ambushes, but these are set off with bombs. The Americans know where the snipers are now and advance firing into the treetops. Bravo gets to within 130 meters of the top, but then is pinned down by fire from enemy bunkers and calls in gunships, one of which comes in from the wrong direction - down the ridge from the mountain top - and rockets Bravo Four. NVA troops now attack all along the length of Bravo's column. Alpha Company in the meantime has been advancing under heavy sniper fire and reaches within 30 meters of Charlie Company's position the previous day before being forced to withdraw. As the Americans start heading back, the NVA climb out of their bunkers and attack. At 1600, Bravo is ordered to attack again - it's over in minutes, failing in the face of more claymore ambushes. Bravo and Alpha are ordered to pull back 400 meters and form a combined NDP where replacements will reach them: in the day's action, Alpha has lost 17 men, Bravo 19.

At 2300, the CP is attacked by an NVA company led by a platoon of sappers. Even though Charlie Company has spotted them and they walk into an ambush, the attack continues through the night, with the North Vietnamese throwing satchel charges and the GIs answering with grenades and M79 rounds in order to avoid giving away their locations.

May 15, 1972 (3rd day of the 4th month, Year of the Rat [Nham Ty]) (US Cease-Fire): Nguyen Hue/Easter Offensive update: In the Hue region, the ARVN 1st Infantry Division airlifts troops into FSB Bastogne, catching the enemy off guard, and retakes the firebase while elements of its two regiments clear the high ground south of the base and FSB Birmingham.

In Kontum city, ARVN commanders realize the night's success in fending off the NVA was a close shave and depended on the B-52 strikes. Defending units were stretched too thin around the perimeter, leaving gaps in between, and there was a problem with coordination of firepower. The defensive perimeter is drawn in and some depth is added by moving the 44th Regiment back into a reserve position and replacing it with the 45th. Meanwhile, the NVA continues to probe the perimeter and hold Kontum under indirect fire, with special attention to the division HQ, artillery emplacements, and the airfield. They also use fifth column techniques, combining the "noi cong" or inside force with the "ngoai nhap" or outside attackers as they prepare to renew the attack. Sapper elements begin slipping into the city through the southern defense sector, which is manned by a mixture of territorial forces, some of them from Tan Canh and Dak To. At the same time, other enemy reconnaissance elements and artillery forward observers enter the city disguised as civilian refugees and ARVN troops.

Additional artillery support is needed for both An Loc and Tau O, where the ARVN 21st Division is still battling the well-dug-in troops of the 209th Regiment of the 7th NVA Division. To achieve this, III Corps has decided to establish a strong fire support base at Tan Khai on Route QL-13, 10 km south of An Loc and 4 km north of the battle zone at Tau O, using a task force composed of the 15th Regiment, 9th ARVN Division, which has arrived from the Mekong Delta as reinforcement, and the 9th Armored Cavalry Squadron. On the 15th, one battalion of the task force begins attacking north, staying east of Route QL-13 to bypass enemy positions. At the same time, another battalion and the task force command group make a heliborne assault into Tan Khai where, the next day, the fire support base is established. This effort does not go unnoticed by the enemy and as a result, by nightfall on the 15th, the enemy has all but withdrawn from An Loc.

BORDER CLASHES - MAYAGUEZ INCIDENT:
May 15, 1975 (5th day of the 4th month, Year of the Hare [At Mao]): Mayaguez update: In the morning, 175 Marines of a planned 600-man force are flown by helicopters of the 3rd Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Group and the 21st Special Operations Squadron from U Tapao, in Thailand, to Kho Tang island. Expecting only light resistance, they instead encounter 150-200 heavily armed Khmer Rouge. Because the whereabouts of the Mayaguez' crew is unknown, prelanding air and naval gunfire strikes aren't used. The first chopper comes under small arms, rocket and mortar fire. After discharging his Marines, the pilot manages a single-engine take-off but falls into the sea just offshore. The second helicopter takes many hits while attempting to land and barely manages to return to the Thai coast, with its Marines still on board. The third chopper, attempting a similar escape, loses an engine and comes down on the beach, while the fourth bursts into flames while still inbound - 13 of the total of 18 Americans killed in the day's operation die in the wreckage at the water's edge. The fifth chopper manages to unload at Koh Tang, but returns to Thailand too badly damaged to undertake another mission. The last three choppers wait offshore until, over a period of several hours, each is able to set its troops down on the island. Three more CH-53s lift Marines to the destroyer escort USS Holt, where they form a boarding party and quickly seize the abandoned Mayaguez.

Meanwhile, a fishing boat approaches the destroyer Wilson with white flags flying. Aboard are the 39 crewmen of the Mayaguez. The Marines on Kho Tang are ordered to disengage and withdraw. However, Khmer Rouge troops, perhaps directed by a local commander, continue the battle on Koh Tang, turning from defense to attack as Air Force helicopters move through heavy fire to withdraw the US forces. With the Mayaguez crew safe, American FACs, gunships and strike aircraft now hit the island, and a C-130 drops a 15,000-pound bomb there. The last Marine is evacuated after dark.