Firebase Sarge (also known as Firebase Dong Toan or Hill 552) is a former U.S. Army and Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) firebase in Quang Tri Province, central Vietnam.
| Firebase Sarge | |
|---|---|
 Firebase Sarge, 6 March 1970 | |
| Coordinates | 16°42′25″N 106°53′53″E / 16.707°N 106.898°E |
| Type | Army |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1971 |
| In use | 1971–1972 |
| Battles/wars |  Vietnam War Easter Offensive |
| Garrison information | |
| Occupants | 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment 4th Vietnamese Marine Corps Battalion |
History
editThe base was established on Dong Toan Mountain east of Highway 9 overlooking the site of the former Vandegrift Combat Base.[1]
1971
editThe 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment, part of the 101st Airborne Division, occupied Sarge during 1971.
On 30 March 1971 Hughes OH-6A Cayuse #67-16433 crashed near the landing pad at Sarge killing an artillery observer.[2]
Following the loss of Hill 950 in June 1971, the Army Security Agency (ASA) searched for a replacement site for its Explorer III signals interception system and Sarge and Con Thien were selected, with the units installed by December 1971.[3] The top-secret Explorer equipment was contained in purpose-built bunkers constructed by the 27th Combat Engineer Battalion and operated by U.S. Army technicians from the 407th Radio Research Detachment, Detachment A, 8th Radio Research Field Station (8th RRFS).[3]: 402
At 02:00 on 6 June People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) forces attacked South Vietnamese Marines 1.5 miles (2.4 km) northwest of Sarge losing 83 killed for the loss of two Marines.[4] On 18 June approximately 400 PAVN attacked Sarge, they were forced back by the 200 Marine defenders with U.S. air support with 95 PAVN and 13 Marines killed.[5]
On 15 August the PAVN attacked Sarge again, losing 29 killed for the loss of four Marines.[6] On 19 August Marines killed 11 PAVN in an ambush near Sarge.[7] On 21 August the South Vietnamese withdrew all artillery and most of the Marines from Firebase Sarge, leaving only approximately 200 Marines at the base.[8]
1972
editBy January 1972 the ARVN 3rd Division had assumed responsibility for the area north of Highway 9.[9] Sarge was occupied by the 4th Vietnamese Marine Corps Battalion (4th VNMC).[9]: 36
During March 1972, then Major Walter E. Boomer, adviser to the 4th VNMC reported to the 3rd Division headquarters that the PAVN appeared to be building up their forces west of Sarge and the 8th RRFS reported that the PAVN had established an artillery headquarters 6 km southwest of Sarge.[9]: 34 [3]: 413
The PAVN launched their Easter Offensive on 30 March 1972 and PAVN artillery fire killed 15 Marines at Sarge that day. A direct hit of the 8th RRFS bunker ignited Thermite demolition charges, incinerating the two U.S. Army operators inside.[9]: 42 [3]: 415 The artillery fire was followed by a ground attack by the PAVN 66th Regiment which by 02:00 on 1 April had succeeded in penetrating the base's defense perimeter. At 03:45 Major Boomer and the 4th VNMC command group abandoned the base and escaped through PAVN lines into the surrounding jungle.[9]: 45 By 2 April Major Boomer and 8 Vietnamese Marines had made it to the relative safety of Mai Loc Camp.[9]: 50 4th VNMC losses were 347 out of an initial strength of 632 Marines.[9]: 60
Current use
editThe base has reverted to jungle.
References
edit- ^ Kelley, Michael (2002). Where we were in Vietnam. Hellgate Press. p. 459. ISBN 978-1555716257.
- ^ "MAJ David Frank Nidever". The Virtual Wall. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
- ^ a b c d Long, Lonnie (2013). Unlikely Warriors: The Army Security Agency's Secret War in Vietnam 1961–1973. iUniverse. p. 363. ISBN 9781475990591.
- ^ "Saigon reports 83 of foe slain; clashes continue near border". The New York Times. 7 June 1971. p. 4.
- ^ "Saigon's Marines said to repel attack on outpost near DMZ". The New York Times. 18 June 1971. p. 2.
- ^ "Foe attacks village near DMZ after strikes on Allied positions". The New York Times. 15 August 1971. p. 2.
- ^ "7th Fleet shells positions in DMZ". The New York Times. 20 August 1971. p. 1.
- ^ "B-52s join drive to slow enemy". The New York Times. 21 August 1971. p. 5.
- ^ a b c d e f g Melson, Charles (1991). U.S. Marines In Vietnam: The War That Would Not End, 1971–1973. History and Museums Division, Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps. p. 32. ISBN 978-1482384055.