The Search for Tactical Success in Vietnam: An Analysis of Australian Task Force Combat Operations PDF
Preview The Search for Tactical Success in Vietnam: An Analysis of Australian Task Force Combat Operations
T S T S HE EARCH FOR ACTICAL UCCESS V IN IETNAM AN ANALYSIS OF AUSTRALIAN TASK FORCE COMBAT OPERATIONS From1966to1971theFirstAustralianTaskForcewaspartofthe counter-insurgencycampaigninSouthVietnam.Thoughconsideredasmall componentoftheFreeWorldeffortinthewar,thesetroopsfromAustralia andNewZealandwereinfactthebesttrainedandpreparedfor counter-insurgencywarfare.However,untilnow,theirachievementshave beenlargelyoverlookedbymilitaryhistorians. TheSearchforTacticalSuccessinVietnamshedsnewlightonthiscampaign byexaminingthethousandsofsmall-scalebattlesthattheFirstAustralian TaskForcewasengagedin.Thebookdrawsonstatistical,spatialand temporalanalysis,aswellasprimarydata,topresentauniquestudyofthe tacticsandachievementsoftheFirstAustralianTaskForceinPhuocTuy province,SouthVietnam.Further,originalmapsthroughoutthetexthelpto illustratehowtheTaskForce’stacticswereemployed. Thoroughlyresearchedandengaginglywritten,TheSearchforTactical SuccessinVietnamprovidesauniqueinsightintocounter-insurgencyand Australia’sinvolvementintheVietnamWar. AndrewRossisaVisitingFellowattheUniversityofNewSouthWales, Canberra,andaformerOperationsResearchAnalystatCentralStudies Establishment,DefenceScienceandTechnologyOrganisation,Australian DepartmentofDefence. RobertHallisaVisitingFellowattheUniversityofNewSouthWales, Canberra,andleadstheMilitaryOperationsAnalysisTeaminstudiesrelating toAustralia’sinvolvementinpost-1945counter-insurgencyoperations. AmyGriffinisageographerattheUniversityofNewSouthWales, Canberra,wheresheisanexpertinGeographicInformationSystemsandthe visualisationofspatialandtemporaldata. OTHER TITLES IN THE AUSTRALIAN ARMY HISTORY SERIES Serieseditor PeterStanley PhillipBradleyTheBattleforWau:NewGuinea’sFrontline1942–1943 MarkJohnstonTheProud6th:AnIllustratedHistoryofthe6th AustralianDivision1939–1946 GarthPrattenAustralianBattalionCommandersintheSecondWorld War JeanBouLightHorse:AHistoryofAustralia’sMountedArm PhillipBradleyToSalamaua PeterDeanTheArchitectofVictory:TheMilitaryCareerofLieutenant- GeneralSirFrankHortonBerryman AllanConverseArmiesofEmpire:The9thAustralianand50thBritish DivisionsinBattle1939–1945 JohnConnorAnzacandEmpire:GeorgeFosterPearceandthe FoundationsofAustralianDefence PeterWilliamsTheKokodaCampaign1942:MythandReality KarlJamesTheHardSlog:AustraliansintheBougainvilleCampaign, 1944–45 RobertStevensonToWintheBattle:The1stAustralianDivisioninthe GreatWar,1914–1918 JeffreyGreyASoldier’sSoldier:ABiographyofLieutenant-GeneralSir ThomasDaly MarkJohnstonAnzacsintheMiddleEast:AustralianSoldiers,Their AlliesandtheLocalPeopleinWorldWarII MarkJohnstonStretcher-bearers:SavingAustraliansfromGallipolito Kokoda ChristopherWrayPozières:EchoesofaDistantBattle CraigStockingsBritannia’sShield:Lieutenant-GeneralSirEdward HuttonandLateVictorianImperialDefence T S H E E A R C H F O R T S A C T I C A L U C C E S S V I N I E T N A M AN ANALYSIS OF AUSTRALIAN TASK FORCE COMBAT OPERATIONS A N D R E W R O S S R O B E R T H A L L A M Y G R I F F I N 477WilliamstownRoad,PortMelbourne,VIC3207,Australia CambridgeUniversityPressispartoftheUniversityofCambridge. ItfurtherstheUniversity’smissionbydisseminatingknowledgeinthepursuitof education,learningandresearchatthehighestinternationallevelsofexcellence. www.cambridge.org Informationonthistitle:www.cambridge.org/9781107098442 ©CambridgeUniversityPress2015 Thispublicationiscopyright.Subjecttostatutoryexception andtotheprovisionsofrelevantcollectivelicensingagreements, noreproductionofanypartmaytakeplacewithoutthewritten permissionofCambridgeUniversityPress. 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PleasebeawarethatthispublicationmaycontainseveralvariationsofAboriginal andTorresStraitIslandertermsandspellings;nodisrespectisintended.Please notethattheterms‘IndigenousAustralians’and‘AboriginalandTorresStrait Islanderpeoples’maybeusedinterchangeablyinthispublication. C ONTENTS Figures pagevii Maps x Tables xi Abouttheauthors xiii Acknowledgements xiv Authors’note xv Abbreviations xvi Introduction 1 1 Balanceofcapability 7 2 Thelandmarkbattles 33 3 Thejunglepatrol 63 4 Patrolcontacts 81 5 Theambushbattle 100 6 Bunkerbusting 136 7 Securitycontacts 166 8 Minewarfare 178 9 Comparisons:1ATFinfantry,SASandother FreeWorldforces 190 10 Thecombateffectivenessof1ATF 214 11 ClearingtheVC/PAVNfromPhuocTuy 231 Conclusion 252 v vi CONTENTS Annex: Thecomputerdatabasesbehindthisstudy 257 Notes 263 Bibliography 291 Index 298 F IGURES 1 UrbanwarfareinVietnam page55 2 1ATFcontactsandassociatedcasualties(excluding ‘landmark’battles) 66 3 Layoutoftroopsadvancingonpatrol 71 4 Cumulativefrequency:1ATFcontactsaccordingto VC/PAVNforcestrengths 83 5 Cumulativefrequency:rangeofengagement–1ATF patrols 86 6 Onpatrol 90 7 Cumulativefrequency:1ATFpatrolcontactswithout support,withartillery/mortarsupport,andwithair supportaccordingtoVC/PAVNforcestrength 96 8 Patrolcontactsandassociatedcasualties 99 9 Claymoremine 106 10 Typical‘triangular’ambush 108 11 Typical‘killinggroupforward’ambush 109 12 Typical‘astridethetrack’ambush 111 13 Cumulativefrequency:1ATFambushesaccordingto VC/PAVNforcestrength 113 14 Cumulativefrequency:1ATFambushesaccordingtorange ofengagement 113 15 Theambushbattle 133 16 Contactsandassociatedcasualtiesfor1ATFambushes 134 17 TypicalVC/PAVNbunkerdesign 137 18 TypicalVC/PAVNbunkersystemlayout 138 19 Bunkersystem 139 vii viii FIGURES 20 Cumulativefrequency:1ATFbunkercontactsbyrangeof engagement 143 21 Indirectfiresupport 154 22 1ATFbunkercontactsandassociatedcasualties 162 23 Cumulativefrequency:1ATFsecuritycontactsaccording toVC/PAVNforcestrength 168 24 Cumulativefrequency:1ATFsecuritycontactsaccording torangeofengagement 168 25 1ATFsecuritycontactsandassociatedcasualties 175 26 VC/PAVN-and1ATF-initiatedcontactsand1ATFmine incidents 179 27 VC/PAVN-initiatedmineincidentsandVC/PAVN- initiatedcontactsinPhuocTuyprovince 180 28 1ATFmineincidentsandassociatedcasualtiesinPhuoc Tuyprovince 182 29 Enemyminecampaign 188 30 Casualties:1ATFinfantrycontacts(excluding‘landmark’ battles,mineincidentsandSAScontacts)comparedwith SAScontacts 193 31 NumberofVC/PAVNattacks–onebattalionorlarger 201 32 Enemy-initiatedincidentsinthelow-intensitywar 204 33 USArmyand1ATFcontactscompared 208 34 Percentagedistributionofcategoriesoflow-intensity contactfortheUSArmyand1ATF 210 35 ContactswithinfivekilometresofNuiDat,1966–71 217 36 EnemyattackonthePhuocTuyroadsystem 219 37 Averageweight(kg)offoodcapturedinPhuocTuyper enemybunkersystemorbasecampseized 226 38 6RARsoldiersfillsandbagswithricefromacaptured enemyricecache 227 39 1ATFpatrolandambushcontactswithin2.5kilometresof PhuocTuyvillages 229 40 Contacts,PhuocTuyprovinceandfivekilometresbeyond theprovinceborder,accordingtoinitiatingforce 232
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