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3 days ago

Three American Generals Face Communist Fire in South Vietnam

Mar. 28, 1963 - Three American generals came under Communist fire yesterday during a battle in the Mekong River delta 175 miles south of Saigon. One, Brig. Gen. Joseph W. Stilwell, 51, of Columbus, Ga., dragged several wounded Vietnamese soldiers to safety in the face of heavy automatic weapons fire and the explosion of Communist mortars 25 yards away. He is the son of “Vinegar Joe” Stillwell, who led U.S. and Chinese troops in Burma during World War II. The battle near Thoi

7 days ago

South Vietnamese Government Rebuts Sen. Mansfield’s Report

Mar. 24, 1963 - The South Vietnamese Government today denounced as an unfounded insult a report of a bipartisan U.S. Senate group headed by Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield criticizing the pace with which South Vietnam is moving toward democracy. The report, made in Washington Feb. 24, urged a reassessment of security needs in southeast Asia and an orderly reduction of U.S. grant aid of all kinds except to South Vietnam, where American armed forces are helping the Govern

Mar 17

South Vietnamese Offensive Fails

Mar. 17, 1963 - Another major South Vietnamese Government offensive was described today as a costly failure by U.S. military observers. They said South Vietnamese troops apparently left escape routes open for the Viet Cong to avoid close-in fighting. Despite the reported failure of a 5,000-man assault in the Plain of Reeds south of Saigon, a second sizable operation was launched today against Viet Cong strongholds elsewhere in the Mekong Delta. Several battalions of Governmen

Mar 10

Defense Dept. Denies Use of Poison Gas in Vietnam

Mar. 10, 1963 - Soviet charges that the United States was using poison gas in the war in South Vietnam have been branded “wholly false.” A Defense Department spokesman said yesterday that the charges were “without foundation,” and added: “Of course we’re not using any poison gas.” The State Department said that the accusation, printed in the official Soviet Defense Ministry publican Red Star, was absurd. Officials indicated that the Communists had been making similar charges

Mar 9

Communists Charge U.S. With Using Poison Gas in Vietnam

Mar. 9, 1963 - Communists accused the U.S. today of using “asphyxiation gases” and “noxious chemicals” in South Vietnam, and the Soviet army newspaper charged “hundreds of people perished.” The Pentagon denied the charges, saying, “We have never used poison gas in South Vietnam, and there is no truth in Communist reports we are using it now.” The gas charge coincides with reports from military sources in Saigon that a weed killer used to destroy heavy foliage has begun to hur

Mar 5

General Harkins Remains Optimistic on Vietnam

Mar. 5, 1963 - “This is the key year,” General Paul D. Harkins (pictured right) said in Saigon today in winding up a mostly optimistic appraisal of the present course of fighting in Vietnam. In support of his belief that 1963 will be a year of decision in the long struggle of South Vietnam against the Communist Viet Cong, Gen. Harkins, leader of the U.S. military assistance command in South Vietnam, made the following two points: 1 — Continued expansion of the strategic hamle

Feb 28

U.S. Officials Critical of South Vietnamese Commanders

Feb. 28, 1963 - Commanders of South Vietnam’s military forces in the Mekong River delta have developed a tendency to avoid contact with large concentrations of Viet Cong guerrillas. In addition, U.S. military officials feel that escape routes for the Communists have been left open so that military operations could be evaded. The Americans are also deeply concerned by the tendency of Vietnamese commanders to launch operations where intelligence has shown Communist strength to

Feb 24

Senate Panel Calls for Reassessment of Vietnam War

Feb. 24, 1963 - A Senate study group warned today that the struggle for Vietnamese independence was fast becoming an “American war” that could not be justified by present U.S. security interests in the area. The four-man panel, headed by Senator Mike Mansfield (left), the majority leader, called for “a thorough reassessment of our overall security requirements on the Southeast Asian mainland” with a view to the orderly curtailment of U.S. aid programs. The group questioned wh

Feb 22

Civilian Casualties Mount in South Vietnam

Feb. 22, 1963 - Civilian casualties in South Vietnam are being partially attributed to strikes by T-28 and B-26 planes piloted by Americans. Both Vietnamese and American officials have raised doubts whether the effectiveness of air strikes against the Viet Cong is outweighed by the harmful psychological effect of killing and wounding civilians by accidental strafing, bombing, and dropping of firebombs. Communist agents are telling villagers the “rain of death” from the skies

Feb 20

South Vietnamese Forces Rout Reds at Xom Dinh

Feb. 20, 1963 - South Vietnamese forces, supported by rocket-firing, American-piloted planes, and helicopters, routed a battalion of Communists today and killed at least 50 Viet Cong guerrillas. The battle took place at the hamlet of Xom Dinh, about 140 miles south of Saigon. Vietnamese rangers and infantrymen were reported pursuing the remnants of the Viet Cong force long after nightfall. The Communists had attacked two Government military posts in Chuong Thien province yest

Feb 13

Special Forces Soldiers Live in Constant Danger in Vietnam

Feb. 12, 1963 - A team of American special forces soldiers has set up a training camp at the foot of two mountains that are major sanctuaries of Communist guerrillas. The mountain on the west harbors Viet Cong guerrillas, while the mountain on the east is the home base for Cambodian Communists who have some contact with the Viet Cong. The site is about 10 miles from the Cambodian border. Before the team headed by Capt. James Farrington of New York had set off for their new lo

Feb 8

U.S. Bomber Pilot To Be Recommended for Medal of Honor

Feb. 8, 1963 - A U.S. bomber pilot who gave his life in Vietnam to save his two crew members may be recommended for the Medal of Honor, Air Force sources in Saigon said today. He is Major James Raymond O’Neill (pictured), 40, of Huntington Station, L.I., who died Wednesday. The story of Major O’Neill’s heroism was told today by his co-pilot, Lieut. James E. Johnson of Mary Ester, Fla., who was rescued this morning after a 44-hour ordeal in the jungle. Lieut. Johnson said that

Feb 8

Air Force Presence Growing in Vietnam

Feb. 8, 1963 - Air strike activity in South Vietnam has been increasing sharply in the past several weeks with the arrival of new American planes and personnel. It was disclosed today that the U.S. Air Force now has 2,000 men in South Vietnam. A U.S. Air Force co-pilot, missing after a crash last Wednesday, was found alive in the jungles. A South Vietnamese member of the crew also was located. The co-pilot is 1st Lieutenant James E. Johnson, 28, of Winter Haven, Fla. He said

Feb 7

Search Teams Look for Missing American Pilot in South Vietnam

Feb. 7, 1963 - Search teams combed jungles in central Vietnam today for a U.S. Air Force co-pilot missing since the crash of his fighter-bomber. An American military spokesman identified him as 1st Lt. James E. Johnson of Winter Haven, Fla. A Vietnamese air force observer was found alive, and it was thought that the co-pilot, one of two Americans aboard, also may have survived. The body of the plane’s American pilot was found in the wreckage. He was identified in Saigon as Ai

Feb 6

Viet Cong Battalion Launches Major Ambush

Feb. 6, 1963 - A Viet Cong battalion trapped a Government force in thick mangrove forest in the Ca Mau province today and nearly wiped out a company of regular troops. It was one of the worst ambushes in the last year. Government sources put the losses at a minimum of 34 dead, 27 wounded, and 7 missing. At least 18 rifles and 4 automatic weapons were seized by the Communists (pictured). Meanwhile, a B-26 bomber with two Americans and one Vietnamese aboard crashed and burned i

Feb 3

B-26 Crashes in South Vietnam; No Survivors

Feb. 3, 1963 - A B-26 fighter-bomber carrying two U.S. Air Force captains and a Vietnamese observer crashed while strafing Communist guerrillas today. Witnesses said there were no survivors. The death toll of American servicemen in South Vietnam thus rose to 57, of whom 29 have been killed in combat. The twin-engine plane carried Vietnamese markings, part of the effort of South Vietnamese authorities to divert attention from the combat role played by American servicemen in th

Jan 31

U.S. Army Captain Killed in Vietnam Battle

Jan. 31, 1963 - A U.S. Army captain was killed today during a running gun fight between Communist guerrillas and South Vietnamese soldiers in the jungle north of Saigon. The Defense Department identified the dead officer as Capt. Leon J. Kramer (pictured), whose mother, Mrs. Helen Kramer, lives in Trenton, N.J. His death brought to 64 the total of Americans killed in action or by other causes in South Vietnam since the U.S. became involved in the anti-guerrilla war. The capta

Jan 30

Admiral Felt: Vietnam War Will Be Won by 1966

Jan. 30, 1963 - Admiral Harry D. Felt, Pacific commander, predicted today that the American-backed Government of South Vietnam would win its war against the Viet Cong by 1966. He also told a news conference in Washington he did not think Communist China or North Vietnam would plunge into the Southeast Asian war with overt military action. Planners in Peking and Hanoi would “hesitate a long time,” he said, before throwing military forces into South Vietnam because they would r

Jan 27

Opposition to South Vietnamese President Diem Rising

Jan. 27, 1963 - Political opponents of South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem (left) hurled two grenades containing hundreds of propaganda leaflets in Saigon’s streets today. The grenades were not powerful ones, and no one was hurt. Only one of them exploded. It scattered a shower of leaflets, each the size of a theater ticket, among holiday crowds. The leaflets attacked Diem and his brother and political adviser, Ngo Dinh Nhu (right). Printed in Vietnamese and English, the

Jan 25

Gen. Wheeler Praises American Fighting Men in Vietnam

Jan. 25, 1963 - General Earle G. Wheeler (pictured left), U.S. Army chief of staff, praised American fighting men in Vietnam today for their role in the “lonesome war” that South Vietnam is waging against Vietnamese Communist guerrillas. He made a statement during a day in which he awarded 13 medals for bravery to Americans for their participation in the recent battle of Ap Bac, where a cornered Communist regular battalion inflicted heavy losses on Vietnamese regulars before