Army Reporter information
for 3 BDE 9 INF
For date 680309
3 BDE 9 INF was a US Army unit
Primary service involved, US Army
An Xuyen Province, IV Corps, South Vietnam
Location, Tan An
Description: The following is an edited version of an article titled "Air Controller Directs 9th Div To VC Supplies" dated 9 Mar 1968.
A UASF FAC helped 9th Inf Div units wreck an apparent enemy supply mission to aid VC units in Saigon. The FAC was flying a night reconnaissance mission over the Plain of Reeds when he sighted a fleet of sampans moving southeast down the BoBo Canal in Long An Province. When the pilot swooped low for a closer look, the sampan lights were extinguished. Locating them again by moonlight, the FAC called for a helicopter fire team from the 3rd Bde, 9th Inf Div based at Tan An. Using searchlights, the gunships discovered approximately 100 sampans loaded with supplies evidently bound for enemy forces in the capital city. The gunships swiftly opened fire and were aided by Air Force air strikes. At dawn, a unit from the 2/60th Inf airmobiled into the area to assess the damage and search for any VC who might have escaped. A systematic search of the area disclosed that the helicopter and Air Force F-100s had destroyed 93 sampans along the canal, about 27 miles west of Saigon and only eight miles from the Cambodian border. Before the search was halted by darkness the infantry had confiscated four 7.62mm heavy AA machineguns mounted on carrier wheels, along with four extra barrels; ??? rocket grenade rounds, ??? 82mm mortar rounds; 98 60mm mortar rounds, 29 75mm recoilless rifle rounds; more than 200,000 rounds of 7.62-cal. ammunition; communication wire; demolition block; clothing and a sack of flashlights.
The source for this information was 6803AR.AVN supplied by Les Hines
Additional information is available on CD-ROM.
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Date posted on this site:
05/13/2023