Operation Gadsden was an operation conducted by the
25th Infantry Division in
Tây Ninh Province, lasting from 2 to 21 February 1967.
Prelude
Operation
Gadsden was planned as a deception operation ahead of
Operation Junction City. The 25th Infantry Division would seek to engage the
People's Army of Vietnam
The People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN), officially the Vietnam People's Army (VPA; , , ), also recognized as the Vietnamese Army (), the People's Army () or colloquially the Troops ( ), is the national Military, military force of the Vietnam, S ...
(PAVN) 271st Regiment in Base Area 354.
[
]
Operation
The operation commenced on 2 February with the 196th Infantry Brigade and the 3rd Brigade, 4th Infantry Division, each reinforced by an additional battalion deploying into western War Zone C. Following B-52 strikes against suspected base areas of the 271st Regiment, the eight infantry battalions seized two abandoned border villages, Lo Go () and Xom Giua, which served as supply depots from the Sihanouk Trail in Cambodia
Cambodia, officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. It is bordered by Thailand to the northwest, Laos to the north, and Vietnam to the east, and has a coastline ...
.[
Subsequent sweeps confirmed the presence of the PAVN 271st Regiment, 70th Guard Regiment and 680th Training Regiments in the Lo Go area, although they failed to engage them.][
]
Aftermath
Operation Gadsden officially concluded on 21 February, the US claiming that PAVN losses were 160 killed, U.S. losses were 29 killed.[
The 196th Infantry Brigade returned to Tây Ninh Combat Base, while the 3rd Brigade, 4th Infantry Division deployed to blocking positions along Highway 22 for Operation Junction City.][
Contrasting the official view of the operation, internal reports by the ]Pentagon Papers
The ''Pentagon Papers'', officially titled ''Report of the Office of the Secretary of Defense Vietnam Task Force'', is a United States Department of Defense history of the United States in the Vietnam War, United States' political and militar ...
indicate that the operation insignificant results, failing to dislodge or drive out the 271st Regiment.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gadsden, Operation
Battles of the Vietnam War involving the United States
Battles and operations of the Vietnam War in 1967
History of Tây Ninh province