Attack On Camp Holloway - Attack

Attack

Early in 1965, as American and Soviet leaders were cementing their strategy in Vietnam, the Viet Cong 409th Battalion was ordered to begin their part of the Communist spring offensive by attacking the U.S. airfield at Camp Holloway near Pleiku in Gia Lai Province and the South Vietnamese Army base at Gia Huu in Binh Dinh Province. Camp Holloway, which is about 4 kilometers (2.5 mi) west of Pleiku, was opened by the U.S. Army’s 81st Transportation Company in August 1962, and the camp was subsequently named for Chief Warrant Officer Charles E. Holloway, who was killed in action in December 1962. Towards the end of 1964, about 400 members of the U.S. Army 52nd Combat Aviation Battalion—under the command of Lieutenant Colonel John C. Hughes—was deployed to Camp Holloway with the purpose of supporting South Vietnamese and other Free World Military Forces in the regions of I Corps and II Corps Tactical Zones.

Nguyen Thanh Tam, commander of the Viet Cong 409th Battalion, ordered his 30th Company to leave their base area and marched into the Central Highlands, to reconnoitre and attack the U.S. airfield at Camp Holloway and the U.S. advisory compound of Military Assistance Command, Vietnam II Corps. In February 1965, Camp Holloway’s outer perimeter was protected by a South Vietnamese security contingent which included one Ranger battalion, five Regional Force companies and one armored squadron. However, in their reconnaissance of Camp Holloway, the Viet Cong found the security barrier which surrounded the U.S. advisory compound was the real challenge, as it was protected by several layers of concertina wire fences which measured about 10 meters (33 ft) high.

To overcome the U.S. defenses at Camp Holloway, Tam organized the 30th Company into two sections. The first section, under Tam’s direct command, was to destroy U.S. aircraft on the airfield, and establish a route of retreat for the attack force. The second section, lead by Nguyen Trong Dai, was ordered to attack the U.S. advisory compound and the facilities where U.S. pilots and technicians were housed. The 30th Company was issued with four mortars and 70 mortar shells for their attack on Camp Holloway, and were reinforced by one combat engineer platoon, a special operations platoon and a local force company of Gia Lai Province. Viet Cong combat engineers were required to break through the wire fences which protected the U.S. facility at Camp Holloway, and protect the attack forces’ route of retreat using land mines. Meanwhile, the Gia Lai local force company had to set up ambush positions around the U.S. facility, to stop possible reinforcements.

At around 11:00pm on 6 February 1965, about 300 Viet Cong soldiers of the 30th Company assembled at their positions outside Camp Holloway, where they began breaking through the wire fences. However, the Viet Cong’s mission nearly turned into a disaster when their combat engineers accidentally tripped an electrical wire after breaking through the third fence barrier, but the U.S. Military Police, patrolling the area did not detect it. At 1:50am on 7 February 1965, the Viet Cong attackers opened fire with their AK-47 rifles, having successfully penetrated Camp Holloway. Shortly afterwards, the Viet Cong mortared the airfield and the U.S. advisory compound, while the sections of the 30th Company attacked their respective targets with small arms fire. About five minutes later, the Viet Cong began retreating from the facility. Later that morning the Viet Cong claimed victory, having caused the death of eight U.S. soldiers, and another 126 wounded. In addition, ten aircraft were destroyed and 15 more were damaged.