Project CHECO Southeast Asia Report. The USAF Response to the Spring 1972 NVN Offensive: Situation and Redeployment
Abstract
On the night of 29-30 March 1972, the NVA launched a major invasion of the RVN. This was the enemy's biggest offensive of the entire Vietnam war to date. The offensive was expected; its scope and intensity were not. This report, the first in a series of five, is meant to set the stage for the 1972 NVA Spring Offensive. It covers first the intelligence estimates of NVN intentions and capabilities. This includes the often contradictory statements attributed to "official sources" by the news media. It also contains classified estimates by intelligence sources in SEAsia. Next* the report covers the military situation to include the enemy and Allied orders of battle as the opposing forces prepared for and finally engaged in actual combat. The main thrust of the report, however, examines the U.S. air response to the enemy buildup and subsequent invasion. The other CHECO reports on the offensive cover actual air operations during the campaign; this study deals primarily with the most extensive air power deployment and buildup, in such a short time period, in history. In the midst of the withdrawal of American ground, naval and air forces, the U.S. reversed itself in the latter two areas and, in approximately 90 days, amassed one of the most powerful air armadas in recent years. There were basically three phases in the air deployments. The first was the pre-offensive buildup designed to deter, delay or weaken any NVA threat to Vietnamization, the RVN or remaining American forces. The second phase fell mainly within a two-month time frame--April and May, 1972. This was when most of the air. resources deployed to SEAsia and centered around the CONSTANT GUARD tacair deployments. The third phase was characterized mainly by supplementary deployments of Strategic Air Command (SAC), Tactical Air Command (TAC), U.S. Navy (USN) and U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) assets and the deployment of tacair assets from Da Nang Air Base, RVN, to newly reactivated or just opened Thailand bases.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Oct 10, 1972
- Accession Number
- ADA486927
Entities
People
- Charles A. Nicholson
Organizations
- Pacific Air Forces