Operation Custom Tailor was an American

cruiser A cruiser is a type of warship. Modern cruisers are generally the largest ships in a fleet after aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and can usually perform several operational roles from search-and-destroy to ocean escort to sea ...

and

destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, maneuverable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy, or carrier battle group and defend them against a wide range of general threats. They were conceived i ...

strike force that conducted a raid on Haiphong,

North Vietnam North Vietnam, officially the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV; ; VNDCCH), was a country in Southeast Asia from 1945 to 1976, with sovereignty fully recognized in 1954 Geneva Conference, 1954. A member of the communist Eastern Bloc, it o ...

, in 10 May 1972. It was a history-making strike that involved the most formidable cruiser/destroyer fleet in the Western Pacific since

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. During the strike, military targets within four miles of Haiphong were hit and enemy opposition was heavy.

Operation

The ships participating were , , , and . During the raid, USS ''Hanson'' entered Haiphong Harbor to suppress North Vietnamese shore batteries while enabling other

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

forces to mine the Haiphong Harbor entrance. This made USS ''Hanson'' the last American warship to enter Haiphong Harbor during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

and the last one out.

References

Campaigns of the Vietnam War Battles and operations of the Vietnam War in 1972 Naval battles of the Vietnam War involving the United States Naval battles of the Vietnam War May 1972 in Asia History of Haiphong {{VietnamWar-stub