by W.S. McCallum
As part of
a provincial search and destroy operation that has been running since January
28th, ROK and ARVN troops are moving northwards up TL 02-07, a few kilometres
south-west of Anh Khé:
Reports
from fleeing civilians are that a withdrawing Viet Cong unit occupied a road
junction along the highway on February 27th. Aerial reconnaissance of the area
was conducted by the USAF shortly before dusk that day:
There are
no signs of VC from the air, yet the absence of any sign of local community
life is indicative that something is up.
What lies
up the road?
At 6 am on
February 28th, a platoon of Tiger Division ROKA troops and a platoon of ARVN
Rangers, with an ARVN tank and armoured car in support, arrive on the scene.
Their
mission is to clear and secure the area as far as the road junction by the Blue
Angel bar by midday....
The Game
While the
armour waits on the start line, behind them the troops begin fanning out to
secure the roadside:
The ROKA
platoon cautiously edges its way through some woods to the left of the highway,
and pushes up to the edge of a rice paddy.
While the
ARVN Rangers deploy to secure the woods to the right of the highway.
The Koreans
then cautiously send out a squad to cross the wide open expanses of an empty
field.
The VC sniper
lurking in a nearby ruined building waits until they are right out in the
middle before taking shots at them with his rifle. The Koreans duck for cover
but the fire is otherwise ineffectual. Seeing another squad advancing, the
sniper decides to head for the hills.
The lead
Korean squad pushes on to the far edge of the field and is about to duck into
the adjacent rice paddy when they receive more fire, from another sniper.
Worse lies
in store: a VC squad lying in wait in the old French farmhouse opens fire with
its LMG.
While
another squad that has hastily moved forward to occupy the ruined house waits
to open up on the squads further back.
The leading
squad loses three men to LMG fire and others are suppressed. In response, the
Koreans call in artillery fire from a US battery of 105mm guns at Anh Khé.
The opening
salvo falls marginally short of the farmhouse but demolishes a VC-requisitioned
2CV parked in the courtyard.
Back on the
highway, the ARVN armoured car decides to move forward and crash through a road
block....
... only to
run into a VC land mine. After the dust has cleared, it becomes apparent there
is no damage, but the shaken crew decides not to push its luck.
With
progress along the road stalled, the ARVN Rangers decide to move up the
right-hand side of the road and start clearing the area to enable to armour to
advance.
Their
resolve shaken, the armoured car crew decides to duck down a side road, only to
expose themselves to fire from a 57mm recoilless rifle.
The result
is a KO and the armoured car is left smoking.
While this
is happening, the ARVN Rangers are cautiously moving through market gardens
behind the houses, stepping carefully for fear of further land mines and
snipers.
The Walker
Bulldog begins by spraying the recoilless rifle team with MG fire.
It is not
long before the threat is eliminated.
The ARVN
Rangers are then stalled when VC 82 mm mortar rounds begin falling on them.
And a VC
squad surges up out of concealment and opens fire. Unfortunately, their aim is
too erratic and they find themselves under a withering hail of LAW, grenade,
M60 and M16 fire.
The whole
squad is wiped out and the VC flank collapses.
A VC
forward observer lurking nearby brings down more 82 mm mortar fire on the
Rangers in an attempt to halt their advance.
A VC squad
makes a dash across the highway in an attempt to plug the collapsing flank.
A couple of
stragglers are pinned down by MG fire from the Walker Bulldog as they attempt
to cross the highway, but most of the unit makes it across the road to a hooch
and sets up to lay down heavy fire on the ARVN Rangers.
Meanwhile,
the view from the Blue Angel bar is not looking good: another ARVN squad is
sneaking through a large paddy field, completely unimpeded.
Another
squad joins it in the cover provided by the tall rice plants: they pivot and
await orders to advance towards the objective.
The clock
is now reading 10.30 am, and although the Free World forces on the right-hand
side of the highway have a couple of squads within striking distance of the
objective, they are out on a limb with no support. The Koreans, who have gone
to ground in the fields on the left-hand side of the highway, are now ordered
to attack.
They sweep
past the sole survivor of the lead squad and press their attack against the
French farmhouse. The bold gamble pays off: no fire comes from the ruined
building to their flank.
The farm
building is subjected to sustained M1 rifle and BAR fire which rips up the
plaster walls and shuttered windows. The VC squad inside is decimated and the 3
survivors run for their lives.
Things then
heat up as the ARVN hiding in the market gardens decide to break cover and move
forward. The VC forward observer brings down more mortar fire on them, and the
VC squad that took up position in the hooch opens up with LMG and RPG fire,
which causes major damage.
An entire
squad is wiped out.
To deter
the Walker Bulldog from joining the assault, a VC RPG team opens up from the
corner news stand. Two rockets miss and one bounces off, but it is enough to
dissuade the tank crew from taking any further chances.
With a rain
of mortar shells coming down on them, the ARVN Rangers are pinned down in the
open and take losses. Unfortunately for the Free World player, the clock
strikes midday at this point and the VC player declares a victory, although
with only 1/3 of his infantry force left, and a mortar unit on the edge of the
board, which ran out of ammo just as the clock struck 12. There is no doubt he
would not be able to hold the road junction for much longer and the ultimate
outcome will be a quick VC withdrawal into the jungle before the Koreans and
South Vietnamese cautiously advance early in the afternoon, only to find the
road junction deserted.
It was a
very close game, with the VC hanging on by a thread and rushing units around
frantically to plug holes, while the Free World forces were too hesitant in the
early stages of the game due to a fear of sniper fire and land mines and should
have pushed their numerical advantage and advanced more boldly. Their final
rush in the closing stages was too little too late.
© W.S. McCallum 1st September 2013
Web site © Wayne Stuart McCallum 2003-2017