Historical Coop Battle of Dak To

DATE: 11/11/2021

TIME (GMT): 19:00

ERA: Vietnam

MAP(S): Khe Sanh

TYPE: COOP

GAME: Arma 3

EVENT: Official

AUTHOR(S): Aris for Brothers in Arms

SLOTS: 93 / 96

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RATING: (21)

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The battle of Dak To in Vietnam was a series of major engagements of the Vietnam War that took place between 3 and 23 November 1967,in Kon Tum Province, in the Central Highlands of the South Vietnam.
By late October U.S. intelligence indicated that local communist units had been reinforced and combined into the PAVN 1st Division, which was to capture Đắk Tô and destroy a brigade-size U.S. unit. Information provided by a PAVN defector provided the allies a good indication of the locations of PAVN forces. This intelligence prompted the launching of Operation MacArthur and brought the units back to the area along with more reinforcements from the ARVN Airborne Division. The battles on the hill masses south and southeast of Đắk Tô became some of the hardest-fought and bloodiest battles of the Vietnam War.

During the early stages of the U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War, several U.S. Special Forces Civilian Irregular Defense Group camps were established along the borders of South Vietnam in order both to maintain surveillance of PAVN and Viet Cong infiltration and to provide support and training to isolated Montagnard villagers, who bore the brunt of the fighting in the area. One of these camps was built near the village and airstrip at Đắk Tô.
On 3 November, Sergeant Vu Hong, an artillery specialist with the PAVN 6th Regiment, defected to the South Vietnamese and was able to provide U.S. forces with detailed information on the disposition of PAVN forces and their objectives, both at Đắk Tô and at Ben Het, 18 kilometers to the west.
On the night of 12 November, the PAVN launched the first of many rocket attacks against the Đắk Tô airfield, firing 44 missiles. By 08:00 on 15 November, three C-130 Hercules transport aircraft were in the turnaround area as a PAVN mortar barrage landed. Two of them were destroyed. The resulting fires and additional incoming mortars set the ammunition dump and fuel storage areas ablaze. Explosions continued all day and into the night. During that night's incoming shelling, a mortar round landed on two steel containers of C-4 plastic explosive. They detonated simultaneously, sending a fireball and mushroom cloud high above the valley and leaving two craters 12m deep. This was said to be the largest explosion to occur in the Vietnam War, knocking men off their feet over a mile away.
To prevent a repetition of the artillery attack against its base camp 173^rd Airborne Brigade to take hill 875 and hill 1338 which had an excellent overview of Đắk Tô, only six kilometers away.

The 173rd Airborne Brigade attempts to occupy important but heavily fortified hills around the Dak To Airbase.