Operation John Paul Jones was an operation conducted by the
1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division in
Phú Yên Province, lasting from 21 July to 5 September 1966.
Prelude
Brigadier General
Willard Pearson sought to use semi-guerilla tactics to locate
Viet Cong
,
, war = the Vietnam War
, image = FNL Flag.svg
, caption = The flag of the Viet Cong, adopted in 1960, is a variation on the flag of North Vietnam. Sometimes the lower stripe was green.
, active ...
and
People's Army of Vietnam
The People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN; vi, Quân đội nhân dân Việt Nam, QĐNDVN), also recognized as the Vietnam People's Army (VPA) or the Vietnamese Army (), is the military force of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the armed wi ...
(PAVN) units and then bring firepower and mobility to bear on enemy units once located. Operation
John Paul Jones
John Paul Jones (born John Paul; July 6, 1747 July 18, 1792) was a Scottish-American naval captain who was the United States' first well-known naval commander in the American Revolutionary War. He made many friends among U.S political elites ( ...
, named after the U.S. Revolutionary war hero, was to proceed in 3 phases.
[
]
Operation
Phase 1 (21-31 July)
On 21 July 1966 the 1st Brigade secured Highway 1
The following highways are numbered 1.
For roads numbered A1, see list of A1 roads.
For roads numbered B1, see list of B1 roads.
For roads numbered M1, see List of M1 roads.
For roads numbered N1, see list of N1 roads.
For roads numbered S ...
and the Vũng Rô Pass to secure the area for the construction of a new port facility in Vũng Rô Bay. As minimal enemy activity was detected at the end of the month General Pearson began to move his forces north to the Tuy Hòa area.[
]
Phase 2 (2-15 August)
On 2 August B-52s
B5, B05, B-5 may refer to:
Biology
* ATC code B05 (''Blood substitutes and perfusion solutions''), a therapeutic subgroup of the Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical Classification System
* Cytochrome ''b''5, ubiquitous electron transport hemoprotein ...
bombed the area west of Sông Cầu and 20 minutes later the 2nd Battalion, 502nd Infantry Regiment was landed by helicopter and proceeded to search the area finding no sign of the enemy and withdrawing the following day.[
On 8 August following another B-52 strike near Dong Tre, 1st Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment was landed by helicopter and captured 8 prisoners including a Captain from the PAVN 5th Division. The prisoners confirmed that the 5th Division headquarters was located in the province and that the 18B and 95th Regiments were operating nearby. On 9 August 2/502nd was deployed further west and moved east in an attempt to trap fleeing PAVN/VC but none were encountered. Both units returned to base by 15 August.][
]
Phase 3 (16 August-5 September)
On 16 August 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment was opconned to the 1st Brigade. On 17 August 2/8 Cavalry and 2/327th were deployed west of Dong Tre but found nothing.[
On 26 August intelligence indicated the presence of enemy forces further west and 2/8 Cavalry and 2/327th were deployed further west to try to pin the enemy force against ]Army of the Republic of Vietnam
The Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN; ; french: Armée de la république du Viêt Nam) composed the ground forces of the South Vietnamese military from its inception in 1955 to the Fall of Saigon in April 1975. It is estimated to have suf ...
blocking forces, but once again they found nothing.[
]
Aftermath
Operation John Paul Jones officially concluded on 5 September, Viet Cong losses were 209 killed by body count and a further 135 estimates killed, U.S. losses were 23 killed.[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:John Paul Jones, Operation
Conflicts in 1966
1966 in Vietnam
Battles involving the United States
Battles involving Vietnam
Battles and operations of the Vietnam War in 1966
Battles and operations of the Vietnam War
History of Phú Yên Province