Battle for Buon Me Thuot
Part of Vietnam War
Date March 10-March 12, 1975 Location Buon Ma Thuot, Vietnam Result • Decisive North Vietnamese Victory • Evacuation of the Central Highlands • Deterioration of South Vietnamese defences
Combatants
Army of the Republic of Vietnam	Vietnam People's Army
Commanders
Maj. Gen. Pham Van Phu	Gen. Van Tien Dung
Strength
4,000	25,000+
Casualties
Unknown	Unknown

The Battle for Buon Me Thuot was part of the North Vietnamese campaign to capture the Central Highlands following the victory at Phuoc Long on January 6, 1975. Combatants Republic of Vietnam United States Republic of Korea Thailand Australia New Zealand The Philippines National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam Democratic Republic of Vietnam People’s Republic of China Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea Strength US 1,000,000 South Korea 300,000 Australia 48,000... March 10 is the 69th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (70th in leap years). ... March 12 is the 71st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (72nd in leap years). ... 1975 (MCMLXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday. ... Buon Ma Thuot is a capital city of Dak Lak Province, Vietnam. ... Municipality of Central Highlands The Municipality of Central Highlands is a local government area of Tasmania. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_South_Vietnam. ... The Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) was a military component of the armed forces of the Republic of Vietnam (commonly known as South Vietnam). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_North_Vietnam. ... 40th anniversary of Vietnam Peoples Army, commemorated on 1984 Vietnam postage stamp block The Vietnam Peoples Army (VPA) is official name for the armed forces of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. ... Văn Tiến DÅ©ng (May 2, 1917 – March 17, 2002) was Chief of the General Staff for the Peoples Army of Vietnam from 1953 to 1978 and Minister of Defense of Vietnam from December, 1980 to 1986. ... Combatants Republic of Vietnam United States Republic of Korea Thailand Australia New Zealand The Philippines National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam Democratic Republic of Vietnam People’s Republic of China Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea Strength US 1,000,000 South Korea 300,000 Australia 48,000... Combatants Viet Cong South Vietnam United States Commanders unknown battalion commander Bui Dinh Dam John Paul Vann Strength 350 1,400 Casualties 18 dead 39 wounded 83 dead 108 wounded The Battle of Ap Bac was a small-scale action early in the Vietnam War that resulted in the first... Combatants Viet Cong South Vietnam United States Commanders Gen. ... Combatants Viet Cong South Vietnam United States Commanders Gen. ... Combatants North Vietnam United States Commanders Nguyen Huu An Col. ... Combatants Australia New Zealand United States North Vietnam Commanders Maj Harry Smith Nguyen Thanh Hong Strength 108 (not including supporting personnel/reinforcements) 2,500 (Disputed) Casualties 18 dead 24 wounded At least 245 dead 750 wounded (Captured documents and prisoner interrogations suggest there were 500-800 dead and around 1... The battle of Dak To was a major battle of the Vietnam war that took place between November 3 and November 22, 1967. ... Combatants United States Viet Cong Commanders Lt. ... Combatants Republic of Viet Nam United States of America Republic of Korea Commonwealth of New Zealand Commonwealth of Australia National Front for the Liberation of South Viet Nam (Viet Cong) Democratic Republic of Viet Nam Commanders William Westmoreland Võ Nguyên Giáp Strength 50,000+ (estimate) 85,000+ (estimate... Combatants United States North Vietnam Commanders William Westmoreland Vo Nguyen Giap Strength 6,000 20,000 Casualties 205 dead 443 wounded 2 missing 9,000+ {{{notes}}} The Battle of Khe Sanh was a Vietnam War battle between the United States Marine Corps and the Peoples Army of Vietnam at... Combatants South Vietnam United States North Vietnam Viet Cong Commanders William Westmoreland Vo Nguyen Giap Strength  ? 35 Battlions Casualties  ?  ? The First Battle of Saigon fought during the Tet Offensive was the coordinated attack by the NVA and VC, by which they attacked South Vietnams Capital Saigon from all sides. ... Combatants North Vietnam United States Commanders Unknown Capt. ... Tet 1969 refers to the attacks mounted by principally North Vietnamese forces in February 1969 in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War. ... Combatants United States North Vietnam Commanders Melvin Zais Uncertain Strength est. ... Combatants North Vietnam United States Commanders Gen. ... Combatants United States Viet Cong Commanders Lt. ... The Eastertide Offensive was a military campaign in the Vietnam War. ... Combatants North Vietnam Viet Cong South Vietnam United States Commanders Gen. ... Combatants South Vietnam North Vietnam Commanders Col. ... Combatants Vietnam Peoples Army Army of the Republic of Vietnam Commanders Gen. ... Combatants Vietnam Peoples Army National Liberation Front Army of the Republic of Vietnam Commanders General Van Tien Dung President Nguyen Van Thieu (Until April 5) Strength 300,000+ (est. ... Combatants Vietnam Peoples Army Army of the Republic of Vietnam Commanders General Van Tien Dung General Hieu Strength 40,000 5,000 Casualties 3 Divisions destroyed 30% of total strength The Battle of Xuan Loc was the last major battle of the Vietnam War. ... pwtha This iconic image shows South Vietnamese civilians scrambling to board a United States military helicopter during the U.S. evacuation of Saigon. ... Operation Barrell Roll was a limited, covert US Navy/2nd Air Division, US Air Force aerial interdiction campaign in northern and southern Laos that began on 14 December 1964 and lasted for the duration of the Vietnam Conflict. ... Operation Rolling Thunder (also known as the Rolling Thunder Program, in terminology of the McNamara Department of Defense) was the code name for a U.S. military campaign during the Vietnam War, the bombing of North Vietnam by air units of the U.S. Seventh Air Force, Task Force 77... Operation Steel Tiger was a covert US Air Force aerial interdiction effort targeted against North Vietnamese infiltration through southeastern Laos during the Vietnam Conflict. ... Combatants United States, Republic of Vietnam Democratic Republic of Vietnam Operation Commando Hunt was a covert Seventh/Thirteenth United States Air Force offensive initiative that took place during the Vietnam Conflict. ... Operation Linebacker was the name of a United States military operation during the Vietnam War. ... Operation Linebacker II was a United States military operation during the Vietnam War. ... Combatants Khmer Republic North Vietnam Commanders Brig. ... Barrell Roll/Steel Tiger/Tiger Hound Areas of Operations, 1965. ... Combatants United States Thailand Hmong guerillas North Vietnam Pathet Lao Commanders Vang Pao Vo Nguyen Giap Strength 1,300+ 3,000+ Casualties 8 Americans dead 42 Thai and Hmong Unknown The Battle of Lima Site 85 was a battle of the Vietnam War. ... Operation Tailwind was a covert incursion into southeastern Laos by a company-size element (Hatchet Force) of the Military Assistance Command, Vietnam Studies and Observations Group (MACSOG or SOG) on 11 September 1970, during the Vietnam Conflict. ... Combatants North Vietnam Khmer Republic Commanders Unknown Brigadier General Hou Hang Sin Strength VPA 9th Division 10 FANK Battalions Casualties Unknown Decimation of the FANK Battalions Operation Chenla II was launched on August 20, 1971 by the Cambodian military (or FANK) as an attempt to regain territories lost to the... Tay Nguyen, translated as Central Highlands is one of the regions of Vietnam. ... January 6 is the 6th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1975 (MCMLXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday. ...

Buon Ma Thuot was selected as the first objective during the Central Military Party Committee session on January 9. In order to achieve their objectives, General Vo Nguyen Giap put emphasis on secrecy and surprise to force the South Vietnamese army to defend the northern areas of the Central Highlands, as major North Vietnamese units would launch diversionery attacks elsewhere. January 9 is the 9th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Vo Nguyen Giap General Vo Nguyen Giap (born 1912) is a Vietnamese four-star general, who was the military leader of the Viet Minh guerrilla group under Ho Chi Minhs political leadership, and of the Peoples Army of Vietnam (PAVN) in the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. ...

The Battle

To keep all military operations secret, radio signals were kept silent and the only radio broadcasts made were misleading messages intended to suggest that General Van Tien Dung would attack Pleiku. During March 8-March 9, the VPA 9th Regiment, 10th and 320th Divisions launched simultaneous attacks throughout Darlac and Quang Duc. In Quang Duc the ARVN were forced to withdraw as artillery bombardment pushed the ARVN 53rd Infantry Regiment and 2nd Battalion from their defences. Văn Tiến Dũng (May 2, 1917 – March 17, 2002) was Chief of the General Staff for the Peoples Army of Vietnam from 1953 to 1978 and Minister of Defense of Vietnam from December, 1980 to 1986. ... Pleiku is a town in central Vietnam seated in the central highland region. ... March 8 is the 67th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (68th in Leap years). ... March 9 is the 68th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (69th in Leap years). ... 40th anniversary of Vietnam Peoples Army, commemorated on 1984 Vietnam postage stamp block The Vietnam Peoples Army (VPA) is official name for the armed forces of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. ...

Finally at 1:55AM on March 10, the Vietnam People's Army launched a violent artillery barrage on the city and at Phung Duc airfield. March 10 is the 69th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (70th in leap years). ... 40th anniversary of Vietnam Peoples Army, commemorated on 1984 Vietnam postage stamp block The Vietnam Peoples Army (VPA) is official name for the armed forces of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. ...

By morning the 320th VPA Division had penetrated the city. General Phu's attempt to reinforce Buon Ma Thuot with two Regional Force Battalions from Ban Don failed under heavy enemy fire. Heavy fighting at the airfield destroyed twelve aircrafts belonging to the 2nd and 6th Air Divisions, and only three helicopters were managed to be piloted out.

The 23rd ARVN Division continued their resistance along with the 2nd Company, 4th Company, 8th Armoured Cavalry, 1st Battalion, 53rd Infantry, 243rd and 242nd Regional Forces around Buon Ma Thuot. On March 11, the North Vietnamese consolidated their control over the city. March 11 is the 70th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (71st in Leap year). ...

On March 12, General Phu announced the end of all resistance, and the worn down ARVN soldiers and their families were evacuated. March 12 is the 71st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (72nd in leap years). ...

Aftermath

The Central Highlands consists of Dac Lac, Gia Lai, Kontum and Lam Dong Provinces has always been an important strategic military staging area and whoever control the Central Highlands will have the advantage. For that reason, the South Vietnamese military had always maintained a heavy military presence there. After the fall of Buon Ma Thuot, South Vietnamese President Nguyen Van Thieu ordered the northern provinces to be abandoned to 'lighten the top and keep the bottom'. The South Vietnamese army went into panic as soldiers and their families flooded the main roads in a mass exodus towards the coast. There was total collapse of South Vietnamese morale. Municipality of Central Highlands The Municipality of Central Highlands is a local government area of Tasmania. ... Gia Lai Province is a province in Vietnam. ... There is a historical website that is nonprofit dedicated to the 1972 Easter Offensive in the Kontum area. ... Lam Dong (Vietnamese Lâm Đồng ) is one of the fifty-nine Provinces of Vietnam located in the Central Highlands (Tây Nguyên) region. ... Municipality of Central Highlands The Municipality of Central Highlands is a local government area of Tasmania. ... Buon Ma Thuot is a capital city of Dak Lak Province, Vietnam. ... President Nguyen Van Thieu Nguyen Van Thieu, (April 5, 1923 – September 29, 2001) was a former General and President of South Vietnam. ...

References

Caputo, Philip (2005) 10,000 Days of Thunder: A History of the Vietnam War. Atheneum Books, USA.

Dougan.C, Doyle.E, Lipsman.S, Martland.T, Weiss.S (1983) The Vietnam Experience: Setting the Stage. Boston Publishing Company, USA.