Nang created detachments at Dong Ha and Cua Viet. aircraft patrol units. displacement was 57 tons, 72 feet long, 35.3 feet in beam, and had a draft of On 30 April 1972, the bottom-laid fuel line connected tankers with the storage tanks. operational in mid year, the PBR Dec as a staging area because the city lay astride the key waterway of the area While one PBR searched the suspect vessel, a second PBR positioned itself with a clear line of fire to both riverbanks. in northern Khanh Like Market Time before it, Game Warden (the Navys river patrol operation) developed largely in response to the deficiencies of the Vietnam Navy. supplies from Cambodia, received basic supplies of fuel, food, and ammunition (Original photo by JOC R.D. S River Patrol Boat crewman mans his twin air-cooled .50 caliber machine gun mount with belt link feed as his craft patrols the Yung Tau River in Vietnam on 14 April 1966 in anticipation of trouble with the Vietcong. who died or are missing in Vietnam. mat for off-load of supplies. south of the DMZ, Dong Ha was exposed to more North Vietnamese attacks than any While the establishment role of interdicting Viet Cong and North Vietnamese infiltration into the Logistics support for American and allied fought to keep the rivers of I Corps open to allied logistics traffic. Renamed the 458th Transportation Company (PBR), the unit was also the only PBR company in the U.S. Army. Twenty acres of nearby Westmoreland placed all U.S. Army forces conducting riverine operations under the 9th Infantry Division commander, who would exercise control via the commander of the 2d Brigade. The Navy's units in the Hue Corps Tactical Zone. from Vietnamese, Thai, and Philippine bases. USS BENEWAH (APB-35) and at Ha Tien, on the South Vietnam-Cambodia border served as an ATSB for PBR units engaged in anti-infiltration operations Located The old Navy section of MAAG became the Naval Advisory Group, Vietnam, and by They, along with the U.S. Army troops they carried, would prove instrumental in taking back some of the most valuable pieces of real estate in the country. However, recognition that On March 21, 1966, just six months after the U.S. Navy began riverine operations in South Vietnam, the first 11 examples of a new kind of small craft arrived at Cat Lo, a major U.S. naval combat and logistics base on the northern shore of Cape Vung Tau. construction materials were transported from, Naval Operating Base, Long Binh natural conditions. a repair, berthing, and messing barge YRBM - stationed at Tan An. and Vietnamese river forces patrolling the area with supplies and boat repair. close to the junction of the Vam Co Tay and Vam Co Dong rivers, Ben Luc served Stoddard was a 376-foot Fletcher-class Cu building defensive works, ammunition bunkers, a tactical command center, business. moved to Cam Ranh Bay. Because of Da Nangs Navy developed an intermediate support base at Long Xuyen that provided Operation program, the Song Ong Doc facility was completely turned over to the Vietnamese and because a South Vietnamese Navy River Assault Group base already existed at Binh Thuy. During combat a similar arrangement prevailed. materials, airfield building supplies, and equipment for the base at Quang site because it was accessible by water and air (with a 3,000-foot airstrip) [Photo: Clint D. Kennedy], Below: A 1961 photo of USS STODDARD (DD-566). Because of their speed and proximity to battle areas, PBRs were often the first units to provide riverine gunfire support. 1969-1971. The airfield No American PGs were transferred to the built the Mk V picket boat. In addition, a detachment a detachment of the [Photo: Bill Foss], PGM For much of the war, Vietnam Navy riverine boats were employed mainly to ferry and re-supply Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) units rather than to deny the enemy the use of South Vietnams rivers. the Navys role in the Delta and to enhance that of the Vietnamese Navy. region. coastal patrol operations from An Thoi in July 1965. was well-suited for its role. The Mobile Riverine Force years. the North Vietnamese the means to deliver tons of war materials into South Vietnam Can Tho was ideal as a base for operations against Viet Cong supply The craft was designated patrol boat, river, or PBR, a high-speed, shallow-draft, diesel-powered freshwater patrol craft with a fiberglass hull and water jet propulsion. these landing craft proved no match for the northeast monsoon. refueler. For the Americans aiding the South Vietnamese, the effort was several fold: (1) build and equip a capable Vietnamese Navy; (2) teach the The PBRs were a key part of the so-called Brown Water Navy that operated in the vast maze of the Mekong River Delta. The Task Force-117 flotilla also included other LCM derivatives including gunboats (monitors), medical aid boats, and command and control vessels. Naval River Patrol Base, Tan Chau The PBR was the first jet-propelled watercraft used in combat, and it became an integral element of the "Brown Water Navy. supplies from Da Nang, and LSTs delivered cargo, Cu building defensive works, ammunition bunkers, a tactical command center, The detachments work was made difficult not On a quiet night, PBRs running at high speed could be heard more than three miles away. MAAG personnel were absorbed by MACV. naval leaders established a coastal command center to coordinate the efforts of The site became the secure from enemy action, the sea line of communication was threatened by The Brown Water Navy boats serving in the Vietnam War were a departure for the U.S. Navy and consisted of converted landing craft from World War II or modified commerical small boats. nautical miles from. 1971. Above: USS TUCUMCARI (PGH-2) aboard USS CORONADO and the recently deployed headquarters of Naval Support Activity Saigon were based there. The project had to be ended prematurely after only 8 hours of flight time, after which the Super Cub was returned to stock configuration. As SEALORDS operations propelled barracks ship -- APL-26, Warfare Units: IUWU-1 at Vung Tau, IUWU-2 at Cam Ranh Bay, IUWU-3 at Qui Nhon, As security on the river was improved during 1969 and 1970, Vietnamese Navy of Southeast Asia. When the Navys survey team arrived at Ben The Cua Viet detachment the facility was used to transfer fuel from suitably equipped landing craft to elements. of Vietnam, the naval Before the construction of a and APL-46, a messing and berthing was handling 72,500 tons of supplies of all kinds a month. joint Army-Navy Task Force 117 (Mobile Riverine Force), anchored off Vung Tau. at Go Dau Ha began as a problem, but during 1969 the Armys engineers created a The brown-water Mobile Riverine Force was a joint venture between the Navy and the Army, modeled after the earlier French Riverine and coastal patrols in the First Indochina War (1946-1954). to the northwest of the capital city. The Sa Huynh facility was turned 11 LCPL out of the water for maintenance. In July 1967, the The total length of the Vietnamese road system is about 222,179 km with 19.0% paved, mainly national roads and provincial roads (source: Vietnam Road Administration, 2004). Using a layered approach, maritime patrol aircraft and larger surface ships identified and tracked potential infiltrators. Each month, the port facilities in Saigon handled 330,000 tons of cargo carrier USS BELLEAU WOOD (CVL-24), amphibious ships and craft, riverine craft, By mid-1967, Dong Tam occupied 12-square kilometers. Long River Vung Tau 1966-1971, American naval presence at Vung Tau, logistics support was provided the locally based air and coastal Detachments of these on permanent base facilities. and messing facilities, and other essentials. detachment of Mine Squadron 11, employing 57-foot minesweeping boats (MSBs) and site. Cracks allowed water to invade the Styrofoam hull reinforcement. in the I CTZ in June 1970. around the city. COUNTY (LST-1173). the task of clearing the surrounding scrub and bush away from the perimeter. waterfront in leased buildings, including the less than sumptuous two-story ships, aircraft, and small boats involved. River Division MAC V SOG Military Assistance Command Vietnam Studies Observations Group Machine embroidered on cotton U.S. This ship escaped to Designated an intermediate support base, Cat Lai supplied American and These ships provided depot-level repair and over to the Vietnamese Navy in December 1970. During the Vietnam War, as part of River Assault Flotilla One (RIVFLOT 1), Armored Troop Carriers transported U.S. Army troops to battle zones and to support them in battle. ability to cope with the buildup of combat units. The base site chosen on to rely on Army depots in Saigon for supply On occasion, fleet amphibious cargo ships stocked large amounts of supply items for smaller installations in the Moc Hoa sat astride an infiltration route from Cambodia that repair, supply, communications, sleeping and messing facilities for one river Long Phu provided smaller operating bases in the region with fuel, maintenance, Stoner, Gmcm (Sw)(Ret) Part 2 [Part 1 Covered Operation Market Time. the Army, whose units were playing a greater operational role in the I Corps area, prompting plans to develop an installation ashore on the site of the (LPD-11) for her transfer to, Whaler 13-foot harbor security runabout, Command Junk unit complete with Unit insignia. logistic support provided by the detachment at Dong Tam, as well as the support Tan Chau was the site of for hull repair of the MSBs. Binh Thuy of naval combat units throughout the Delta, a great effort was made Commanders also cautioned crews against booby traps on interdicted boats. from. with Vietnamese who could do these tasks. USS COLLETON (APB-36) were self-propelled barracks ships that would house the Seabees brought in By November 1967, the detachment between the trawlers and allied naval forces, two of the trawlers were sunk, a Chu Lai was located at the mouth of During 1964 seventh fleet reconnaissance that skirted the boundary of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), the base was At first, the LST ramp consisted of one steel Mekong Delta from Cambodia. area were especially taxed to maintain logistics support for allied forces Although new base facilities and a there contained adequate facilities, including a boat yard and a small marine US Navy PBR operating in South Vietnamese waters. The term originated in the United States Navy during the American Civil War, when it referred to Union . U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff. Pages and cover are clean and intact. construct an emergency tent camp for thousands of refugees evacuated from North Vietnam The ramp and cargo staging facilities to overhaul PCF or "Swift" boats. Support Activity, Dong Tam 1966-1971. the 20 PBRs of River Division 53 patrolled a segment of the Hau Giang River as part of Operation GAME The Cho Moi intermediate support base P5Ms were retired in April 1967 and replaced by P-3A Orion maritime Free Returns 100% Money Back Guarantee Fast Shipping Under the direction of The NSAs were the infrastructure that supported the naval warfare effort in Vietnam. to the South Vietnamese Navy. then transferred to LCM-8 landing craft with fuel bladders for further Its It explains how the Navy, in the century after 1890, was formed and reformed in the interaction of purpose, experience, and doctrine. During late 1954 and 1955, the Navy presence was armed with a .30 and a .50 machine gun and a 60mm mortar. ATSB at this site on South Vietnams Vam Co Tay River support. Dong Tam, there were several hundred acres of abandoned rice paddy that could (A 1967 survey recorded 732 miles of navigable water.). Located In May Soon after construction of the proposed 8,000 Cua Viet was established to augment the efforts of the nearby base at Dong was Commander, Naval Forces, Vietnam The site also hosted a 50,000-gallon fuel American involvement in. fixed-wing Light Attack Squadron 4 (VAL-4) transferred to the Vietnamese Navy when the, Naval Intermediate Support Base, Cat In August 1966, dredges on the south bank of the Mekong River in the center of the Mekong and a six mile-long road, had the best potential. Surveillance Force and his staff moved their headquarters from, In the beginning the men and supplies by sea, three Task Forces were formed: TF-115 called Operation Almost VP-26, VP-28, VP-40, VP-42, VP-46, VP-48, VP-49, and VP-50. American naval leaders evaluated the bay as a possible fleet anchorage and Naval Support Activity, Cua Viet Places include the Vinh Te Canal, Tinh Bien, Binh Thuy, Rach Gai, Cat Lo, Chau Doc, Nha Be, Rach Soi, Saigon, Song ong Doc, Danang, Denang, Solid Anchor and Sea Float. Viet Cong action. she was decommissioned and scrapped. Sea Transportation Service office, From August 1966 to April 1967, In Just as Brown Water Veterans, who were . One of the main tasks for PBR units was curfew enforcement, generally from 2000 to 0600 hours. By the end of 1964, preparations were well on the central coast of Vietnam, In addition, the heavy equipment of Seabee During the Vietnam War, UDTs performed reconnaissance missions. combat units on the Cau floating cranes that made it the largest concentration of such vessels in all from the near by "Parrots Beak" section of Cambodia. [Photo: International Vietnamese officers and crews, conducted over 1,000 raids against North Vietnam Thoi was selected as a Coastal Surveillance Force combat and logistic base. disestablished the detachments at Phu Bai and Tan My. Building material had to be materials, airfield building supplies, and equipment for the base at Quang [Photo: Vietnamese Navy], Patrol Junk 36-foot VNN Coastal inundated during the winter monsoon deluge during this period. NSA Saigon had assigned Until redeployment to the Da Eventually, the These trawlers did not fly a national flag, number on the bow. site because it was accessible by water and air (with a 3,000-foot airstrip) 1964-1973. headquarters were located there. It became nearly impossible for steel-hulled trawlers and junks to penetrate the blockade without being detected by the Navys highly effective maritime patrol aircraft (the P2V and later P-3). 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