The battle of khe sanh
U.S. military started to take camp at Khe Sanh in 1962. Khe Sanh held a lot of the army's artillery and was placed near the Ho Chi Minh Trail, a series of trails that ran from North Vietnam to South Vietnam through other neighboring kingdoms. In 1967 the Northern Vietnamese started to build up their army strength in the region. The U.S. and Vietnam were afraid that North Vietnam was targeting Khe Sanh because it was the western end base of the demilitarized zone between the North and South. If they were able to take control of Khe Sanh, North Vietnam would have full control of the northwestern region of South Vietnam and use the Ho Chi Minh trail and use it to attack South Vietnam.
North Vietnam had used this tactic before in order to defeat the French at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. The U.S. and South Vietnam did not want them to use the tactic against them so they built up forces at Khe Sanh, even though they had a much stronger position then the French did. General Westmoreland brought in reinforcements and extra artillery in order to prepare for any possible attacks on Khe Sanh, including cargo planes and helicopters in order to resupply Khe Sanh, and heavy fighter planes which could drop explosives on the surroundings of Khe Sanh.
The attack that started the Battle of Khe Sanh came on January 21, 1968. The Battle of Khe Sanh was one of the bloodiest and longest battles of the Vietnam War. The Northern Vietnamese led a massive bombardment on the U.S. Marine garrison at Khe Sanh. The bombs hit the base and destroyed most of the artillery in Khe Sanh. Westmoreland and After the attack, Westmoreland and South Vietnam believed that Khe Sanh had to be defended at all costs so that they would not have the same results as the French at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. They started to bomb wherever they believed that North Vietnam held their artillery. U.S. marines and the Southern Vietnamese fought off the siege by launching Operation Pegasus. Operation Pegasus was a joint army of the Marine and the South Vietnamese army to advance on the ground and relieve Khe Sanh, ending the battle after about 77 days. Focusing on protecting Khe Sanh proved to be a great mistake. By focusing on Khe Sanh, it caused them to use many resources in protecting it and ignore signs that North Vietnam was building up their armies in urban areas of South Vietnam. The attacks that they were expecting at Khe Sanh never came. The North Vietnam army would later attack and launch the Tet Offensive.
The attack that started the Battle of Khe Sanh came on January 21, 1968. The Battle of Khe Sanh was one of the bloodiest and longest battles of the Vietnam War. The Northern Vietnamese led a massive bombardment on the U.S. Marine garrison at Khe Sanh. The bombs hit the base and destroyed most of the artillery in Khe Sanh. Westmoreland and After the attack, Westmoreland and South Vietnam believed that Khe Sanh had to be defended at all costs so that they would not have the same results as the French at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. They started to bomb wherever they believed that North Vietnam held their artillery. U.S. marines and the Southern Vietnamese fought off the siege by launching Operation Pegasus. Operation Pegasus was a joint army of the Marine and the South Vietnamese army to advance on the ground and relieve Khe Sanh, ending the battle after about 77 days. Focusing on protecting Khe Sanh proved to be a great mistake. By focusing on Khe Sanh, it caused them to use many resources in protecting it and ignore signs that North Vietnam was building up their armies in urban areas of South Vietnam. The attacks that they were expecting at Khe Sanh never came. The North Vietnam army would later attack and launch the Tet Offensive.