operation report information
for 83 VNAF TAG
SOG
For date 661231
83 VNAF TAG was a Vietnamese Army unit
SOG was a US Army unit
Primary service involved, US Army
Operation SHINING BRASS
Quang Nam Province, I Corps, South Vietnam
Location, Da Nang
Description: In a section titled 1966 in Review, SOG Volume III by Saal states that a total of 137 SHINING BRASS recon missions were conducted in Laos during the year. This averaged 11 per month. There were 16 American KIAs. One RT was decimated; only one man survived to tell the story. From this man's ordeal grew the phase, "A successful mission is one where, at least one man returns to report the intelligence information."
Phase II, begun on 20 June, conducted about two Hatchet force operations per month.
The section titled Air Support for SHINING BRASS states they were provided six to ten VNAF H-34s with eight crews, four to ten US Army Hueys and crews, and two VNAF U-17 fixed-wing aircraft. Their logistics support came from their USAF C-123s which were supplemented by C-130s beginning on 20 October.
During the period 18 July to 26 September, 83 sorties were flown by US Army gunships and 101 infiltration and exfiltration sorties.
The 83rd VNFA TAG had 18 H-34s in its inventory even though it only provided 10 for SHINING BRASS. One VNAF H-34 was lost and additional US Navy H-34s were scheduled to be assigned to the 83rd TAG in order for them to maintain a constant inventory of 18 H-34s.
The source for this information was SOG V III P:98+
Additional information is available on CD-ROM.
Please send additions or corrections to: Gary Roush Email address: webmaster@vhpa.org
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Date posted on this site:
05/13/2023