A decisive American tactical victory during Operation Junction City, with over 647 Viet Cong killed against 36 American dead.
Key Facts
- VC bodies found
- 647
- VC prisoners captured
- 7
- American fatalities
- 36
- American wounded
- 190
- Fatality ratio (US:VC)
- more than 20:1 in US favour
- Weapons recovered
- 65 crew-served and 94 individual
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
As part of Operation Junction City, American forces air-assaulted two infantry battalions into a clearing near Suoi Tre on 19 March 1967 to establish a fire support base for search and destroy operations against Viet Cong units in Tay Ninh Province, South Vietnam. During the airlift, seven helicopters were damaged.
Before dawn on 21 March 1967, Viet Cong forces attacked the fire support base starting with a mortar barrage and followed by large-scale infantry charges. The VC temporarily breached parts of the American perimeter, forcing defenders to pull inward before American reinforcements broke through the encirclement with artillery and firepower support.
The Viet Cong were ultimately repulsed with severe casualties, losing at least 647 killed and seven captured along with 159 weapons. American losses totaled 36 dead and 190 wounded, yielding a fatality ratio exceeding twenty to one in favor of the Americans and affirming the effectiveness of their combined-arms defensive tactics.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Side B
1 belligerent