Hell in An Loc: The 1972 Easter Invasion and the Battle That Saved South Viet Nam

5. The First Attack on An Loc

83 While the defenders took advantage of the lull preceding the attack to reinforce the garrison with fresh units, the NVA brought in additional anti-aircraft outfits in an effort to cut off resupply by air. At the time the attack on An Loc began, the NVA had up to nine anti-aircraft battalions positioned around the city. On the morning of April 12, a Chinook helicopter from Bien Hoa-based VNAF 237th Helicopter Squadron, piloted by Maj. Nguyen Huu Nhan, deputy squadron commander, was shot down over An Loc by enemy mortars and anti-aircraft fire while on an ammunition resupply mission. The hovering helicopter burst into a ball of flames over the LZ. All five crewmen were killed. Lt. Col. Nguyen Phu Chinh, the 237th Helicopter Squadron commander, later reported that his squadron had previously received a unit citation by III Corps for outstanding service; it also had received the Chinook pin and many letters of commendation from Boeing Company—which manufactured the Chinook helicopter—for having achieved 25,000 flying hours without accident. Alas, this safety record was shattered at An Loc where the 237th Helicopter Squadron lost ten Chinooks in a two-month period. Eleven officers and eighteen NCOs were killed; four officers and three NCOs were wounded.1 The same day, the provincial RF unit manning the eastern gate of An Loc reported that enemy forces were advancing toward the city behind the civilian population from Quan Loi. Not sure how Five The First Attack on An Loc 84 Hell in An Loc to handle the situation, the RF unit commander requested the province chief’s instructions. Colonel Nhut ordered the RF soldiers to fire overhead and to shoot at the civilians only if the enemy forces moved behind them to assault friendly positions. Nhut also requested U.S. gunships to shoot behind the civilians to stop NVA forces from using them as a human shield for their attack. As a result , the civilians fled in all directions. A great majority raced toward An Loc. Nhut directed the hamlet and village chiefs to identify their respective residents before directing them toward various temporary refugee camps.2 In the meantime, Pastor Dieu Huynh led about 500 Montagnards from neighboring villages to seek refuge at the railroad station at the eastern perimeter of the city. Families of RF and PF units as well as members of provincial territorial units, fleeing their overrun outposts, flocked to military bases to seek protection, food, and medical care. General Hung ordered all unit commanders to carefully screen these arrivals to prevent possible enemy infiltration.3 In anticipation of the enemy attack, III Corps provided uninterrupted tactical and B-52 support during April 11 and 12. U.S. pilots reported numerous secondary explosions. In particular, an air strike at an area five kilometers west of Phu Lo Gate at 5:00 p.m. on April 12 caused a big secondary explosion followed by series of explosions lasting until 10:00 p.m. Division intelligence officers believed that the air strike had hit an NVA advance ammunition depot.4 During the night of April 12, the enemy intensified the shelling of An Loc with all kinds of calibers. One round hit the provincial communication center, killing seven and wounding seven more. Civilian telephone communication with the outside world was completely cut off. The volume of the artillery barrage increased dramatically in the early hours of April 13. “Not a single square meter of An Loc was free of impacts from 82mm mortars, 122mm rockets, 130mm guns, and also from 105mm and 155mm howitzers captured by the enemy in Loc Ninh and from TF-52 at Hung Tam Base,” wrote Gen. Tran Van Nhut in his memoir.5 The original 5th Division Forward CP on the east side of the city was also destroyed . Fortunately, General Hung had decided early on to move his CP to the old Japanese underground compound. The Catholic 85 The First Attack on An Loc church and the railroad station were also hit by artillery fire, causing heavy casualties to the refugees. General Hung ordered the regimental medical teams to go to these places to provide first aid to the wounded civilians.6 About 4:00 a.m., a reconnaissance patrol from the 7th Regiment reported hearing the sounds of tanks moving in the rubber plantations to the west. Trip flares and claymore mines laid by ARVN...