# Operation Junction City

Operation Junction City was an 82-day military operation conducted by United States (US) and South Vietnam forces against Viet Cong (VC) forces begun on 22 February 1967 during the Vietnam War. It was the first US combat airborne operation since the Korean War and one of the largest Airmobile operations of the war.

## Background

The stated aim of the almost three-month operation involving the equivalent of nearly three divisions of US troops was to locate the elusive 'headquarters' of the VC in South Vietnam, the Central Office of South Vietnam (COSVN). By some accounts of US analysts at the time, such a headquarters was believed to be almost a "mini-Pentagon", complete with typists, file cabinets, and staff workers with a large guard force. After the end of the war, the actual headquarters was revealed by VC archives to be a small and mobile group of people, often sheltering in ad hoc facilities and at one point escaping an errant bombing by some hundreds of meters.
Junction City's grand tactical plan was a "hammer and anvil" tactic, with airborne forces "flushing out" the VC headquarters, driving it against a prepared "anvil" of other forces. The US forces included most of the 1st Infantry Division, the 25th Infantry Division, the 3rd Brigade of the 4th Infantry Division, the 196th Light Infantry Brigade, the airborne troops of the 173rd Airborne Brigade and large armored elements of the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment (11th ACR).$^{:115–7}$
COSVN side had only four regiments for the immediate defense of War Zone C: its own guard unit – the 70th Guard, the 101st Infantry Regiment, plus two of the 9th Infantry Division – the 271st and 272nd Regiments. The third unit of the 9th Division – the 273rd Regiment stayed at War Zone D was the reserve.$^{:113–4}$

## Operation

II Field Force, Vietnam started the operation on 22 February 1967 (while Operation Cedar Falls was winding down). The initial operation was carried out by the 1st (commanded by Major general John H. Hay) and the 25th (commanded by Major general Frederick C. Weyand) infantry divisions, who led their forces to the north of the operational area to build the "anvil" on which the VC 9th Division would be crushed.$^{:101}$$^{:116}$ At the same time as the movement of eight infantry battalions with 249 helicopters,$^{:115}$$^{:117}$ 845 paratroopers of the 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment (2/503rd) and Battery A of 3rd Battalion, 319th Field Artillery Regiment (3/319th) were air-dropped by 13 C-130s.$^{:121}$
At first, the operations appeared to be succeeding, objectives were reached without encountering great resistance and on 23 February, the mechanized 11th ACR and the 2nd Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, the "hammer" of armor struck against the '"anvil" of the infantry and airborne positioned north and west, giving the VC forces seemingly no chance to escape. The VC claim that on the first day of the operation they killed almost 200 US troops, destroyed 16 armored vehicles and shot down 16 aircraft.$^{:198}$ The VC, highly mobile and elusive, with information sources deep in the South Vietnamese bureaucracy, had already moved their headquarters to Cambodia and launched several attacks to inflict losses and wear down the Americans. The US claim that their losses were 28 killed against the VC's 54 killed, after the first five days of campaigning.$^{:122–3}$
On 28 February, the first major battle of the operation took place at Prek Klok. In the morning, a patrolling company of the US 3rd Brigade, 1st Division was ambushed by a battalion of the VC 101st Regiment. With effective air and artillery support, the ambushed company held its line for over six hours till reinforced by three other companies also from the 3rd Brigade. In the evening, the VC was forced to withdraw, leaving 167 dead while the US losses were 25 dead and 28 wounded.$^{:123}$$^{:113–6}$
The second major battle started on the evening of 10 March. Two battalions of the VC 272nd Regiment attacked Fire Support Base II at Prek Klok with prior heavy mortar bombardment, then RPG-2, recoilless rifle fires and infantry charges through the night. Assisted by powerful air strikes and massive artillery support from the US 3rd Brigade's nearby bases, the base's battalion-size garrison repulsed the VC attacks after six hours of fighting. The US losses were 3 killed and 38 wounded against the VC's 197 killed but only 12 personal weapons captured.$^{:125}$$^{:118–121}$
On 18 March 1967, General Bruce Palmer Jr., new commander of II Field Force, Vietnam, after General Seaman, launched the second phase of Junction City, this time directly to the east by the mechanized divisions, the 1st Infantry Division and 11th ACR, reinforced this time from the 1st Brigade of the 9th Infantry Division. This maneuver gave rise to the toughest battle of the operation, the 19 March Battle of Ap Bau Bang II, where the VC 273rd Regiment put into difficulties the American armored cavalry, before being forced to retire by a huge amount of firepower.
The VC launched two more attacks in force, on 21 March and in Ap Gu on 1 April, against the 1st and the 25th Infantry Division, both assaults were bloodily repulsed and the VC 9th Division came out seriously weakened, though still able to fight or retreat to safety in areas adjacent to the Cambodian border. On 16 April, the US command of II Field Force, in agreement with the MACV, decided to continue operations with a third phase of Operation Junction City. Until 14 May, certain units of the 25th Infantry Division undertook long and exhausting searches, advancing in the bush, raking villages, and retrieving large amounts of materiel, but with little contact with VC units, which had cautiously moved to a defensive footing.

## Aftermath

Tay Ninh Province was picked over thoroughly and VC forces suffered significant losses, including large amounts of material captured: 810 tonnes of rice, 600 tonnes of small arms, 500,000 pages of documents. The American losses were not negligible, however, amounting to nearly 300 dead and over 1,500 injured.
According to calculations by the American command, the VC 9th Division was seriously weakened by the operations, suffering the loss of 2,728 killed, 34 captured men and 139 deserters. 100 crew-served weapons and 491 individual weapons were captured. The Vietnam Ministry of Defense in April 2017 claimed that they had suffered casualties of 10.2% (1275) of their total strength (15,000 men), with 1.7% (255) of total strength killed.
After the operations, the American forces were recalled to other areas of operation, and the country which was supposed to be in the firm control of the South Vietnamese government soon fell prey again to infiltration by the VC forces when they returned from their sanctuaries in Cambodia.
Allied intelligence later learned that, as a result of the operation, the VC moved most of their main force units across the border into Cambodia, rather than stationing them in South Vietnam where they were more vulnerable to attack. The border sanctuaries in Cambodia which had previously been logistical areas were expanded dramatically, creating further tension between Cambodia and South Vietnam and its Allies.
When American troops found, in some stores, 120 reels of film and logistical equipment for the printing of documents, the command of MACV believed they had finally found the famous COSVN. However, the reality was very different. The mobile headquarters had quickly retreated to Cambodia, maintaining its operations and confounding the hopes of the US strategic planners.
With a huge consumption of resources and equipment, including 366,000 rounds of artillery and 3,235 tons of bombs, the American forces had inflicted losses on the VC and demonstrated the ability of airborne forces and even mechanized forces (also useful in impervious territory). Despite the tactical results, Junction City on an operational level didn't accomplish the most important objective, and failed to yield any long-term strategic leverage.$^{:105}$