Vietcong Tactics Flashcards
What was the rules?
The enemy attacks, we retreat;
The enemy camps we raid;
The enemy tires, we attack;
The enemy retreats, we pursue.
Why were the rules so effective?
It kept them safe but also attacked at easy and vulnerable times like when they’re tired so it’s harder to fight back or when they retreat because they’re scared, simple counter tactics, minimal casualties.
What was the battle for hearts and minds?
The Vietcong fighters were courteous and respectful to the veitnam peasants, helping them.
Why was the battle of hearts and minds so effective?
They were able to be together as one, they blended so they couldn’t be telled apart, making it harder to fight them.
What was the VC tunnel system?
The VC dug tunnels to help them get around, protect them from bombings and to help with search and destroy missions.
Why was the VC tunnel system so effective?
It helped them escape unwanted fights, and so protected them, the US didn’t know about them, they thought they just disappeared when actually they went into tunnels.
What were the booby traps?
11% of deaths were caused by booby traps, cheap, easy to make and very effective. Sharp bamboo sticks and leaves, trip wires to let off hand grenades from tin cans.
Why were the booby traps so effective?
They were cheap, easy to make and caused a lot of deaths, they were gard to detect and therfore hard to defend against.
What were mines?
A soldier would trigger a bouncing Betty by standing on it, a mine was fired about 1 metre into the air before exploding in front of the man walking behind.
Why were mines effective?
It was a more sophisticated trap, hard to detect and defend against, also it frustrated the survivors as they have no one to shoot.
What were small arms?
51% of American deaths were caused by this, small arms are pistols, rifles and machine guns, they fought in small groups but if they did fight in a big one they would stick close to or with the enemy.
Why were small arms effective?
If they stock close to the enemy they couldn’t call in airstrikes as they would kill their own troops.
What was the Ho Chi Minh trail?
A network of 150,000 kilometres of roads through jungles and mountains, it ran from the north to the south through Laos and Cambodia.
Why was the Ho Chi Minh trail effective?
They used this route to get supplies to the forces in the south, their were 10 different routes between 2 points so if 1 got bombed they could use the other.
