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Health & Fitness

45th Anniversary of Hamburger Hill, Vietnam

 A Senseless Battle?

 

On May 10, 1969, members of the 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry and 101st Airborne Division, 2nd Battalion, 501st Infantry, after 10 days and 10 bloody assaults, Hill 937 in South Vietnam was finally captured. The Americans who fought there cynically dubbed the hill "Hamburger Hill" because the battle and its high casualty rate reminded them of a meat grinder.

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Located one mile east of the Laotian border, Hill 937 was ordered taken as part of Operation Apache Snow, a mission intended to limit enemy infiltration from Laos that threatened Hue to the northeast and Da Nang to the southeast. On May 10, following air and artillery strikes, a U.S.-led infantry force launched its first assault on the North Vietnamese stronghold but suffered a high proportion of casualties and fell back. Ten more infantry assaults came during the next 10 days, but Hill 937's North Vietnamese defenders did not give up their position until May 20. Almost 100 Americans were killed and more than 400 wounded in taking the hill, amounting to a shocking 70 percent casualty rate.

The same day that Hamburger Hill was finally captured, Senator Edward Kennedy of   Massachusetts called the operation "senseless and irresponsible" and attacked the military tactics of President Nixon's administration. His speech before the Senate was seen as part of a growing public outcry over the U.S. military policy in Vietnam. U.S. military command had ordered Hill 937 taken primarily as a diversionary tactic, and on May 28 it was abandoned. This led to further outrage in America over what seemed a senseless loss of American lives. North Vietnamese forces eventually returned and re-fortified their original position.

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This assault was part of the 101st Airborne’s Operation Apache Snow. The goal was to clear the People's Army of Vietnam from the A Shau Valley in South Vietnam. Located near the border with Laos, the valley had become an infiltration route into South Vietnam and a haven for PAVN forces. A three-part operation, the second phase commenced on May 10, 1969, as elements of the 3rd Brigade of the 101st Airborne moved into the valley.

The units were supported by the 9th Marines and the 3rd Battalion, 5th Cavalry, as well as elements of the Army of Vietnam. The A Shau Valley was covered in thick jungle and dominated by Ap Bia Mountain, which had been designated Hill 937. Unconnected to the surrounding ridges, Hill 937 stood alone and, like the surrounding valley, it was heavily forested.

Contact was light on May 10, but it intensified the following day when the 3/187th approached the base of Hill 937.  Two companies were sent to search the north and northwest ridges of the hill. Late in the day, B Company met stiff PAVN resistance and helicopter gunships were brought in for support. These mistook the 3/187th's landing zone for PAVN camp and opened fire killing two and wounding thirty-five. This was the first of several friendly fire incidents during the battle as the thick jungle made identifying targets difficult.

The North Vietnamese had constructed an elaborate system of bunkers and trenches on the hill. The 1/506th shifted to the south side of the hill. B Company was airlifted to the area, but the remainder of the battalion traveled by foot and did not arrive in force until May 19.

On May 14 and 15, attacks were launched against PAVN positions with little success. The next two days saw elements of the 1/506th scoping out the southern slope. American efforts were frequently hindered by the thick jungle which made air-lifting forces around the hill impractical. As the battle raged, much of the foliage around the summit of the hill was eliminated by napalm and artillery fire which was used to reduce the PAVN bunkers. On May 18, a coordinated assault was ordered with the 3/187th attacking from the north and the 1/506th attacking from the south.

Finally, storming forward, Delta Company of the 3/187th almost took the summit but was beaten back with heavy casualties. The 1/506th was able to take the southern crest, Hill 900, but met heavy resistance during the fighting. On May 18, the commander of the 101st Airborne, Major General Melvin Zais, arrived and decided to commit three additional battalions to the battle as well as ordered that the 3/187th, which had suffered 60% casualties, be relieved. Landing two battalions on the northeast and southeast slopes, an all-out assault was launched on the hill at 10:00 AM on May 20. Overwhelming the defenders, the 3/187th took the summit around noon and operations began to reduce the remaining PAVN bunkers. By 5:00 PM, Hill 937 had been secured.

In the fighting, US and ARVN forces suffered 70 killed and 372 wounded. Total PAVN casualties are unknown, but 630 bodies were found on the hill after the battle. Heavily covered by the press, the necessity of the fighting on Hill 937 was questioned by the public and stirred controversy in Washington. This was worsened by the 101st's abandonment of the hill on June 5. As a result of this public and political pressure, General Creighton Abrams altered US strategy in Vietnam from one of "maximum pressure" to "protective reaction" in an effort to lower casualties.

The movie depicting the battle is graphic and captures in reality, many of the written events of the battle.  I met a survivor of “Hamburger Hill” several years ago.  He received a head wound and was brought back to the states while still in a coma. 

The war in Vietnam was covered like no other war by the media and the intensity of the battle of Hill 937 along with the abandonment of the hill after securing it did little to improve the public’s view of the war.  The war went on for several more years before the US withdrawal. 






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