Tuesday, April 1, 1975. Hurried departures.

The ongoing collapse in South Vietnam was increasingly spreading to neighboring Cambodia, where Neak Leung fell to Khmer Rouge after fierce Cambodian resistance. cutting off a supply route to Phnom Penh from South Vietnam.

Cambodian President Lon Nol went into exile, being succeeded by Saukaum Khoy.  He'd spend the rest of his life in Hawaii.

Qui Nhơn in South Vietnam fell to the NVA giving the communists control of half of South Vietnam's landmass.

South Vietnamese Gen.hú departed Nha Trang secretly by helicopter after having previously refused requests from his men to retreat from the city. The American Consul General in Nha Trang, Moncrieff Spear, ordered the evacuation of American personnel from the city, leaving behind about 100 of the consulate's Vietnamese employees and one of the five Marine Security Guards, Sergeant Michael A. McCormick by accident.

McCormick was later able to leave Nha Trang on a CIA  Air America helicopter.

The bicentennial "Freedom Train" began its tour of the United States starting with a display in Wilmington, Delaware.

Last edition:

Monday, March 31, 1975. Resupply and luck.

Labels: 1970s, 1975, 1976, Army, Atomic Energy Commission, Campaign 275, Catholic, Central Highlands Campaign, Christianity, Easter, Education, North Vietnamese Army, religion, South Vietnam, U.S. Navy, Vietnam War

Monday, March 31, 1975. Resupply and luck.

U.S. Army Chief of Staff Frederick C. Weyand was in South Vietnam and determined that: "It is possible that with abundant resupply and a great deal of luck, the GVN [Government of South Vietnam] could survive...It is extremely doubtful that it could withstand an offensive involving the commitment of three additional Communist divisions...without U.S. strategic air support."

Colonel William Le Gro of the U.S. Embassy said that without U.S. strategic bombing of North Vietnamese forces, South Vietnam would be defeated within 90 days, which proved to be an overestimate of the time the South could hold out.

Gro would later write a book about the fall of South Vietnam.

North Vietnamese General Dung, was instructed to  "liberate Saigon before the rainy season [mid-May]" rather than the original plan of taking the city in 1976.

Technicians from the United States Atomic Energy Commission escorted by Navy SEALS removed the fuel rods from the nuclear research reactor at Dalat University (Đại học Đà Lạt) in Đà Lạt, capital of Lâm Đồng Province, Vietnam. and flew them to Johnston Atoll.  It was a Catholic institution at that time.  It still exists, but of course is no longer a Catholic university.

Last edition:

Easter Sunday, March 30, 1975.

Labels: 1970s, 1975, Catholic, Da Nang, Growing up in the 1970s, Korean War, Pusan Perimeter, religion, South Vietnam, Vietnam, Vietnam War

Saturday, March 29, 1975. NVA takes Da Nang.

World Airlines made its fourth and last refugee evacuation flight from Da Nang.  The flight was designed to take out refugees, but 400 ARVN soldiers forced their way onto the plane.   At the same time, the NVA entered the city center.

Of the ARVN in I Corps, 16,000 of the 160,000 in the area managed to escape.  And of course, while they could not know it, for the most part all of the people escaping would soon simply be further south in the country when the Communist prevailed.

Da Nang had been the site of the first U.S. Marine Corps landings in Vietnam on March 8, 1965.

Last edition:

Friday, March 28, 1975. Managing the defeat.

Labels: 1970s, 1975, Cambodia, Campaign 275, Gerald Ford, Henry Kissinger, Nelson Rockefeller, New Zealand, South Vietnam, U.S. Navy, Vietnam War

Friday, March 28, 1975. Managing the defeat.

President Ford and his National Security Council sit under a portrait of Teddy Roosevelt in the Roosevelt room during which President Ford ordered the final withdrawal of Americans from Vietnam.

A disgrace.

Kissinger later asserted that President Ford needed to decide on a plan to evacuate Americans and some Vietnamese allies within a week. Vice President Rockefeller feared that because the mob would be so unruly during the evacuation, that Marines would have to shoot refugees. 

The situation in Cambodia was also discussed.

Ford authorized the use of U.S. Navy vessels to assist in the evacuation of South Vietnamese cities.

The New Zealand surgical team was evacuated from Qui Nhơn ending a twelve year mission there.

Last edition:

Thursday, March 27, 1975. NVA at Chơn Thành Camp reinforced, Construction of Alaska Pipeline comLabels: 1970s, 1972 North Vietnamese Easter Offensive, 1975, Alaska, Alaska Pipeline, Army of the Republic of Vietnam, Campaign 275, Central Highlands Campaign, Music, North Vietnamese Army, Petroleummences.

Thursday, March 27, 1975. NVA at Chơn Thành Camp reinforced, Construction of Alaska Pipeline commences.

Construction began on the Alaska Pipeline.

TAPS Throwback, March 27, 1975: First pipe installed at Tonsina River

I remember this well from grade school. The nation was going to build the pipeline and drill our way out of the Oil Crisis of the 70s.  It was a monumental accomplishment, and it changed Alaska forever.

Map showing location of the camp.  This map depicts attacks in the 1972 Easter Offensive.

The NVA 273d Regiment was sent to reinforce the 9th Division for its ongoing assault on Chơn Thành Camp.  Further attacks on that day, however, failed.

Stacy Ferguson, "Fergie", was born.

Linda Ronstadt appeared on the cover of Rolling Stone and was interviewed in the magazine.

Related threads:

Before the Oil. And after it? The economies of Wyoming and Alaska.

Last edition: 

Wednesday, March 26, 1975. A new king.

Labels: 1970s, 1975, 1975 at the movies, Army of the Republic of Vietnam, Campaign 275, Colorado, Colorado (Boulder), Diplomacy, homosexuality, Marriage, Monarchy, North Vietnamese Army, Saudi Arabia, Vietnam War

Wednesday, March 26, 1975. A new king.

The 9th NVA Division attacked again at Chơn Thành Camp, apparently trying to retrieve disabled tanks, but was repulsed again by ARVN defenders.

Kissinger spoke to the press.

A Henry Kissinger Press Conference – March 26, 1975 – Past Daily Reference Room

Khalid ibn Abd al-Aziz al-Saud, the Crown Prince and the younger half-brother of King Faisal, was crowned as the new King of Saudi Arabia.

Clela Rorex, the County Clerk for Boulder County, Colorado. issued a marriage license to Dave McCord and Dave Zamora who had consulted with the county's District Attorney who decided that there was nothing in Colorado's law that prohibited same sex marriage.

It was the first same sex marriage license issued in the US.

On April 24, Colorado State Attorney General Joyce Murdoch invalidated the license, as well as five others issued by Rorex.

Jaws premiered in an advance screening.

The Biological Weapons Convention banning the production or use of biologcial weapons, entered into force by its own terms.

Last edition:

Tuesday, March 25, 1975. A murdered king and evacuations.

Labels: 1970s, 1975, Air Force of the Republic of Vietnam, Army of the Republic of Vietnam, Campaign 275, Crime, Da Nang, Hue–Da Nang Campaign, Music, Saudi Arabia, Tin-Ngai Campaign, U.S. Air Force, Vietnam War

Tuesday, March 25, 1975. A murdered king and evacuations.

King Faisal of Saudi Arabia was shot and killed by his nephew, Prince Faisal bin Musaid.

The motivation for the murder by the US educated prince has never been determined.

The Tin-Ngai Campaign ended with NVA/VC forces in full control of Quảng Tin and Quảng Ngai Provinces.  Da Nang as the only major city in I Corps still held by the South Vietnamese and it was effectively surrounded.

The U.S Air Force organized an airlift to evacuate 10,000 people a day from Da Nang,

Hué's remaining defenders were evacuated by sea.

All of the events above I can recall, particularly the events surrounding the disaster at Da Nang.

The day prior, the ARVN had successfully held an NVA armored attack back at Chơn Thành Camp, destroying 7 T-54s with antitank rockets, recoilless rifles and RVNAF airstrikes. 

Linda Ronstadt released her cover of the Everly Brothers' 1960 song "When Will I Be Loved".

Last edition:

Monday, March 24, 1975. Huế falls to the NVA.

Labels: actors and actresses, Beavers, boxing, Campaign 275, Canada, Huế Vietnam, South Vietnam, Sports, Vietnam, Vietnam War

Monday, March 24, 1975. Huế falls to the NVA.

Huế fell to the NVA, with many of its residents, having endured the horror of NVA and VC occupation during the Tet Offensive, having evacuated the city.

Time's cover featured a ARVN soldier with the caption "How Much Longer?"

Chuck Wepner put in a good performance agains tMuhammad Ali in a fight promoted by Sylvester Stallone.

The beaver became the symbol of Canada.

Last edition:

Sunday, March 23, 1975. Advances in the Central Highlands.

Labels: 1970s, 1975, Campaign 275, Central Highlands Campaign, North Vietnamese Army, Somalia, Terrorism, Viet Cong, Vietnam, Vietnam War

Sunday, March 23, 1975. Advances in the Central Highlands.

Gia Nghĩa and the Khiem Duc District were captured by the North Vietnamese Army and the Viet Cong.

French Ambassador to Somalia Jean Gueury was kidnapped as he left Mass.

Last edition:

Friday, March 21, 1975. End of Empire.

Labels: 1970s, 1975, Ethiopia, South Africa

Wednesday, March 19, 1975. Abandoning Huế.

South Vietnamese President Thieu ordered the area around Huế to be evacuated, putting thousands of additional refugees on the roads headed towards Saigon.

The People's Republic of China granted amnesty for 290 Nationalist Chinese convicted of "war crimes" including 219 military officers, 21 government officials and 50 secret agents.

Last edition:

Tuesday, March 18, 1975. An Lộc abandoned.

Labels: 1970s, 1975, Army of the Republic of Vietnam, Native Americans, New Mexico, Rhodesia, South Vietnam, Vietnam War, Zambia

Tuesday, March 18, 1975. An Lộc abandoned.

The South Vietnamese government reported to the US of dire developments in country.  On the same day the ARVN abandoned An Lộc with the 32nd Ranger Group withdrawing along Highway 13 to Chơn Thành Camp.   The withdrawal would be completed the following day.

A Scene Of Chaos – March 18, 1975

Herbert Chitepo, a lawyer by training, and the 51-year old leader of the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU), was assassinated by a bomb that had been wired to his car at his home in Lusaka, Zambia. Robert Mugabe succeeded Chitepo as the leader of ZANU.

Who planted the bomb has never been determined.

Billy Graham, whom I'm not a fan of, addressed Native American Christian leaders in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

The television series M*A*S*H ran the final episode featuring the Henry Blake character, whom the audience was informed was killed off screen when the airplane taking him on the first leg of his trip home was shot down over the Sea of Japan.

Last edition:

Monday, March 17, 1975. "Starkly Bad News From South Vietnam – Burning Secret Papers – Onassis Laid To Rest."

Labels: 1970s, 1975, Blog Mirror, Personalities, South Vietnam, Vietnam, Vietnam War

Monday, March 17, 1975. "Starkly Bad News From South Vietnam – Burning Secret Papers – Onassis Laid To Rest."

 

March 17, 1975 – Starkly Bad News From South Vietnam – Burning Secret Papers – Onassis Laid To Rest.

Sunday, March 16, 1975. Withdrawing from the Central Highlands.

Labels: 1970s, 1975, 1976, Army of the Republic of Vietnam, North Vietnamese Army, Vietnam War

Sunday, March 16, 1975. Withdrawing from the Central Highlands.

The ARVN began to withdraw from the Central Highlands.  Senior officers left by helicopter, leaving combat troops to retreat under fire, with fleeing civilians, on Route 7B.

180,000 ARVN troops began the journey, only 60,000 would complete the retreat.  Vietnamese Rangers rallied to protect those retreating, with only 900 out of 7,000 surviving.  Mass desertions began.

The NVA was surprised by the ARVN collapse and had been planning on the war continuing on inot 1976.

Last edition: 

Saturday, March 15, 1975. Abandoning Buôn Ma Thuột and Huế.

Labels: 1970s, 1975, Growing up in the 1970s, National Geographic, Vietnam (Buôn Ma Thuột), Vietnam (Huế), Vietnam War

Saturday, March 15, 1975. Abandoning Buôn Ma Thuột and Huế.

Gen. Phu gave up on trying to retake Buôn Ma Thuột and ordered his forces to retreat to the coast.

President Nguyen Van Thieu ordered the ARVN to abandon the defense of Huế, and to retreat southward to defend Saigon. The decision led to a mass civilian exodus.

The war was, effectively, over.  The tragedy was not.

It's about this point that eleven year old me really began to take notice of the unfolding drama, although it might have been before that.  A National Geographic map of Vietnam was up on my wall, with my color pencil notations of how things were progressing.

Last edition:

Friday, March 14, 1975. Desperate measures.

Labels: 1970s, 1975, Army of the Republic of Vietnam, North Vietnamese Army, South Vietnam, Vietnam (Buôn Ma Thuột), Vietnam War

Friday, March 14, 1975. Desperate measures.

President Nguyễn Văn Thiệu met with his military commanders and ordered General Phú to retake Buôn Ma Thuột.

Regarded as an unrealistic order, the tactical situation was such that if the situation was not capable of being reversed, the Vietnam War was effectively over, save for American reentry in the conflict.  The order resulted in the withdrawal of ARVN forces from other parts of the Central Highlands in order to supply the effort, and also to defend the South Vietnamese coast.  US  and South Vietnamese provincial authorities were not informed, and Montagnard highland forces were left to their fate.

Effectively Thieu was abandoning the upper half of the country in order to try to save Saigon.

Last edition:

Thursday, March 13, 1975. Chili's and other red things.

Labels: 1970s, 1975, Cambodia, Distributism, Donald Trump, Food, Hubert Humphrey, Khemr Rouge, restaurants and bars

Wednesday, March 12, 1975. Reporting the grim news.

ARVN II Corps Commander General Phạm Văn Phú, reported to his government that the PAVN were firmly in control of Buôn Ma Thuột, a disaster of epic proportions as half the ARVN now lay behind NVA lines to the north, save for the coast, which really depended upon the reaction of the United States and the willingness to deploy its Navy for evacuation, or its Naval air arm for combat advantage.

Gen. Phú began his military career as an interpreter for the French Army and moved on to officer status during the French Indochinese War.  He was captured by the Viet Minh at Dien Bien Phu and thereafter went into the ARVN.  He was relieved of command in 1972 due to exhaustion, but recovered and returned to service.  He committed suicide on April 30, 1975, the day of the fall of Saigon.

Fourteen foreign citizens including American missionaries (who frankly should have left the task of evangelization to the Catholic Church) were taken by the NVA.  They were taken north and would be released in October, including a six year old.

Interesting, in 2025, Vietnam has a sufficient surplus of Priests such that it now sends Priests to the United States, thereby giving an example of a land betrayed seeking to save the souls of those who betrayed it.  We can, probably, look forward to Ukrainian Catholic Priests in the future.

The last full draft lotter took place.  Nobody was called to service.  Lil' Donny Trump was free from any danger.  Not just him, of course, but Joe Biden, and Bill Clinton, as well.

In a sign of more to come, an Air Vietnam DC-4 crashed 25 km southwest of Pleiku killing twenty six on board, including New Zealand Red Cross team leader Malcolm Riding.

The Dubai Islamic Bank was established in the United Arab Emirates, becoming the first private institution to operate under the principles of Islamic banking.

Last edition:

Monday, March 10, 1975. Buôn Ma Thuột city center taken.

Labels: 1970s, 1975, Army of the Republic of Vietnam, Campaign 275, Central Highlands Campaign, North Vietnamese Army, South Vietnam, Vietnam (Buôn Ma Thuột), Vietnam War

Monday, March 10, 1975. Buôn Ma Thuột city center taken.

The North Vietnamese Army attacked Buôn Ma Thuột, gaining the city center by nightfall, while the ARVN held out on the outskirts.  NVA forces outnumbered ARVN forces 5.5 to 1, showing how massive a violation of the Paris Peace Accords the North Vietnamese offensive was.

It also shows, however, that even at this stage, which was turning disastrous, the ARVN was fighting.

Buôn Ma Thuột is dead center in the Central Highlands of what was the the Republic of Vietnam.

Ibrahim Nasir, the President of the Maldives, fired Premier Ahmed Zalti and imposed presidential rule.

Last edition:

Tuesday, March 4, 1975 (posted late). The last North Vietnamese Offensive.

Labels: 1970s, 1975, Campaign 275, South Vietnam, Vietnam, Vietnam War