| Firebase Delta | |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 14°31′44″N107°47′46″E / 14.529°N 107.796°E |
| Type | Army Base |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1967 |
| In use | 1967-72 |
| Battles/wars |  Vietnam War Battle of Kontum |
| Garrison information | |
| Occupants | Vietnamese Rangers |
Firebase Delta is a former Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) firebase northwest of Kontum in the Central Highlands of Vietnam.
The base was established approximately 25 km northwest of Kontum. [1]
At the start of the Easter Offensive the base was defended by one company of ARVN Airborne and one of Rangers. On 31 March 1972 a CH-47 of the 180th Assault Support Helicopter Company on a resupply mission to the base was shot down, the crew survived and made it to the base. [2] On the morning of 3 April as U.S. forces were attempting to evacuate the CH-47 crew the base came under attack by the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) 52nd Regiment, the assault was repulsed using intensive tactical air strikes and the PAVN suffered 353 killed. [2] : 86
On 21 April the PAVN launched an assault by 3 tanks supported by infantry and by the evening had succeeded in overrunning the base. [3]
The base has reverted to jungle.
The lead-up to the Battle of Kontum began in mid-1971, when North Vietnam decided that its victory in Operation Lam Son 719 indicated that the time had come for large-scale conventional offensives that could end the war quickly. The resulting offensive, planned for the spring of 1972, would be known as the Easter Offensive in the South and the Nguyen Hue Offensive in the North, Nguyen Hue being a hero of Vietnamese resistance against the Chinese in 1789. The Easter Offensive would make use of fourteen divisions and would be the largest in the war.
Operation Carentan and Operation Carentan II were security operations conducted during the Vietnam War by the U.S. 1st and 2nd Brigades, 101st Airborne Division and the 3rd Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division in Thừa Thiên Province, South Vietnam from 18 March to 17 May 1968.
The Vietnamese Rangers (Vietnamese: Biệt Động Quân), commonly known as the ARVN Rangers or Vietnamese Ranger Corp (VNRC), were the light infantry of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam. Trained and assisted by American Special Forces and Ranger advisers, the Vietnamese Rangers infiltrated beyond enemy lines in search and destroy missions. Initially trained as a counter-insurgency light infantry force by removing the fourth company each of the existing infantry battalions, they later expanded into a swing force capable of conventional as well as counter-insurgency operations, and were relied on to retake captured regions. Later during Vietnamization the Civilian Irregular Defense Group program was transferred from MACV and integrated as Border Battalions responsible for manning remote outposts in the Central Highlands.
Operation Texas Star was a military operation of the Vietnam War that took place in Quảng Trị and Thừa Thiên Provinces from 1 April to 5 September 1970.
The 23rd Division of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN)—the army of the nation state of South Vietnam that existed from 1955 to 1975—was part of the II Corps that oversaw the Central Highlands.
The 22nd Division of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) was part of the II Corps that oversaw the region of the Central Highlands north of the capital Saigon. The 22nd Division was based in Ba Gi near the south central coast.
The 1st Division of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN)—the army of the nation state of South Vietnam that existed from 1955 to 1975—was part of the I Corps that oversaw the northernmost region of South Vietnam, the centre of Vietnam.
The Vietnamese Airborne Division or VNAD was one of the earliest components of the Republic of Vietnam Military Forces. The Vietnamese Airborne Division began as companies organized in 1948, prior to any agreement over armed forces in Vietnam. After the partition of Vietnam, it became a part of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam. This division had its distinct origins in French-trained paratrooper battalions, with predecessor battalions participating in major battles including Dien Bien Phu and retained distinct uniforms and regalia. With the formation of an independent republic, the colonial paratroopers were dissolved, however regalia and aesthetics alongside the nickname "Bawouans" would be retained.
1972 in the Vietnam War saw foreign involvement in South Vietnam slowly declining. Three allies, Australia, New Zealand and Thailand, which had each contributed military contingents, left South Vietnam this year. The United States continued to participate in combat, primarily with air power to assist the South Vietnamese, while negotiators in Paris tried to hammer out a peace agreement and withdrawal strategy for the United States.
Đắk Tô Base Camp is a former U.S. Army and Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) base northwest of Kon Tum in the Central Highlands of Vietnam.
Firebase 6 is a former U.S. Army and Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) base southwest of Đắk Tô in the Central Highlands of Vietnam.
Firebase Fuller is a former U.S. Marine Corps, Army and Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) firebase in central Vietnam.
Tân Cảnh Base Camp is a former U.S. Army and Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) base northwest of Kon Tum in the Central Highlands of Vietnam.
Polei Kleng Camp is a former U.S. Army and Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) base west of Kontum in the Central Highlands of Vietnam.
The Battle of Trung Nghia took place from 8 June to 16 September 1973 when North Vietnamese forces captured the village of Trung Nghia in the Central Highlands of South Vietnam. The North Vietnamese were eventually forced out by the South Vietnamese.
Operation Chicago Peak was a joint U.S. Army and Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) military operation during the Vietnam War designed to keep pressure on the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) units in the A Sầu Valley and prevent them from mounting any attacks on the neighboring coastal provinces.
Operation Clinch Valley was a joint U.S. Army and Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) military operation during the Vietnam War to engage People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) units on the Khe Sanh plateau and prevent them from reinforcing PAVN units in the A Sầu Valley.
Operation MacArthur was a United States Army military operation in the Central Highlands of South Vietnam from 12 October 1967 to 31 January 1969. The early phases of the operation encompassed the Battle of Dak To from 3 to 23 November 1967.
Firebase Nancy was a U.S. Army and Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) fire support base located 9 miles (14 km) southeast of Quảng Trị in central Vietnam.
The DMZ Campaign (1969–71) was a military campaign by the United States Army, United States Marine Corps (USMC) and the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) against the People’s Army of Vietnam (PAVN) along the Vietnamese Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) in northern Quảng Trị Province from 1969 to 1971 during the Vietnam War.