Marines in Vietnam: The Illustrated History of the American Soldier, His Uniform and His Equipment

By Christopher J. Anderson

This illustrated series presents the uniforms and equipment of the United States Army from the nineteenth century to the present day. Each volume combines detailed and informative captions with over 100 rare and unusual images. These books are a must for anyone interested in American military uniforms and the history of the United States Army.On the morning of March 8th, 1965, the men of the United States Marine Corps prepared to land on Red Beach II in the Republic of Vietnam. The resulting conflict became the most protracted war of the Corps' history. The Marines evolved through early, nervous attempts to fend off the North Vietnamese enemy, to 'hearts and minds' programmes with the local population, and the larger operations Hastings and Dewey Canyon, where fighting resembled some of the worst in the Pacific arena of World War II. This illustrated guide brings together more than 100 rare and unusual photographs to demonstrate the uniforms, insignia and equipment of the U.S.M.C., including the M14 rifle (later replaced by the M16); grenades, mines and flamethrowers; body armor flak jackets, helmets, camouflage and jungle boots; and transports such as the LVTP-5, Sea Knight and Chinook.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: May 24, 2016
• ISBN: 9781784381646

Book preview

MARINES IN VIETNAM

On the morning of March 8, 1965, as tens of thousands of their predecessors had done countless times before during the renowned history of the United States Marine Corps, the 1,400 young men of the 9th Marine Expeditionary Brigade (MEB) made final preparations to their equipment while waiting for the order to board their landing craft and head toward the beach. Finally, everything was in order and the Marines boarded their landing craft and headed toward Red Beach II, which was just a little over a mile away from the air base at Da Nang in the Republic of Vietnam (RVN).

What they found when their landing craft ground ashore at 9.30 in the morning, however, was not a heavily defended beach bristling with enemy fortifications, but scores of beautiful young Vietnamese girls who were soon draping flowers on the battle-ready, but startled, Marines. It was an awkward introduction to what would become a long and very confusing war. Before the last man left in April 1975, more than half a million Marines served in Vietnam. Although the Marines of the 9th MEB could not possibly have imagined it at the time, they were in the vanguard of what would become the longest war in the Corps' history.

The men of Brig. Gen. Frederick Karch's 9th MEB had been deployed in response to North Vietnamese attacks on the vital air base at Da Nang, where the Marine's 362nd Medium Helicopter Battalion had been operating in support of RVN forces since 1962. As the tempo of Communist attacks against American positions intensified during late 1964 and early 1965, the decision had been made to send the 1st Light Anti-Aircraft Missile Battalion to assist in the defense of the airbase. Da Nang airbase was located in the I Corps Tactical Zone (the Republic of Vietnam was divided into four tactical zones) and was the northernmost zone of operations in the Republic of Vietnam. The Corps' northern border was defined by the demilitarized zone (DMZ) that separated North and South Vietnam from one another.

Despite the addition of the missile battalion to Da Nang's defenses, General William C. Westmoreland, the commander of the U.S. Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV), believed that he required additional U.S. troops if he was going to be able to defend U.S. installations in South Vietnam and in February the decision was made to send the 9th MEB to reinforce those Marines already at Da Nang. The assignment of Karch's Marines to the defense of Da Nang airfield meant that I Corps would become the Marine Corp's home during its time in Vietnam and the focus of the majority of its operations.

Although they had arrived ready to enter combat (while one battalion landed at Red Beach, another battalion had been airlifted directly to Da Nang), Karch's men were restricted to maintaining defensive positions around the airfield and, initially, were not allowed to go into the interior of the country in pursuit of Communist units. The sole job of the Marines was perimeter defense of the airfield.

In many respects it was probably just as well. Karche's men needed time to adjust to their new surroundings and improve the airfield's facilities. No real attempt had been made to equip the men who landed at Red Beach II with the clothing and equipment suitable for operations in Vietnam. The men of the 9th MEB landed wearing the heavy Army issue OG107, cotton sateen utility uniform and heavy black leather combat boots. Their M1961 load-carrying equipment (LCE) consisted of a pistol belt and ammunition pouches supported by World War Il-era combat suspenders and the Marines' ubiquitous 782 Gear. First introduced in 1941, the 782 Gear included a haversack and knapsack, both with a tiny carrying capacity.

For the first several months in Vietnam, as North Vietnamese harassing attacks continued and more and more men and equipment arrived, the