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How Did The Vietnam War Affect The Military

1421 Words6 Pages

Maxwell Carr
Mr. Massengale
World History
February 2, 2023
Vietnam’s War Impact on the United States Military's Tactics
Viet Minh leader Ho Chi Minh famously said, "You can kill ten of my men for every one I kill of yours." "But even at those odds, you will lose and I will win." (Karnow) The Vietnam War was a long and costly conflict that took place from 1955 to 1975 in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia between the communist government of North Vietnam and the government of South Vietnam. South Vietnam was supported by the United States. It began as a low-level insurgency in South Vietnam, led by the Viet Cong, and gradually escalated with large numbers of troops and bombing campaigns. The war was characterized by heavy fighting in rural areas and …show more content…

This resulted in more flexible and adaptable warfare strategies in future conflicts.
The United States lost the Vietnam War due to the strategic advantage the Viet Cong had, which resulted in the adaptation of the United States' own military strategies. The Viet Cong had the advantages of surprise, location, and strategy. The United States' encounter with the Viet Cong was the most prominent use of guerilla warfare they had ever encountered ("CHAPTER 28: The U.S. Army in Vietnam"). The most challenging aspect of their approach was that they used Vietnamese citizens from nearby villages as their first line, which the United States couldn't do anything about. Also, a frustrating thing for the military to handle was that their mentality was that it took ten enemy forces to stop one of them, making it very difficult to win ("CHAPTER 28: The U.S. Army in Vietnam"). The Viet Cong had a line-up of "approximately 5,000 at the start of 1959; the Viet Cong's ranks grew to about 100,000 at the end of 1964" ("CHAPTER 28: The U.S. Army in Vietnam"). This made the United States …show more content…

Air to air combat was an important component of the war. The U.S implantation of the F-4 Phantom II fighter secured them the victory in the air, allowing for counter terrorism and insurgency plans to begin in the sky ("Countering MiGs: Air-to-Air Combat Over North Vietnam"). Other pieces of technology blossomed when the air defenses against the U.S. were taken out. Helicopters were one of the most important vehicles used in the war and this was the first time the United States military had ever supplied troops in the air(Bledsoe). The helicopter has since been used heavily within the services. Two other important pieces of technology introduced were the night vision scopes and goggles. These pieces of technology served as advantages for the United States In whole war. When describing night vision, it was said that "The starlight scope’s seemingly miraculous light-amplifying powers made hitherto unseen targets easier to see" (Ruth 64). The introduction of the night vision goggles has since saved many soldiers' lives and given them an advantage in search and destroy missions (Ruth 65). These gadgets and vehicles were not only implemented in the war, but have since become standard equipment in the US military's arsenal. The Vietnam War led to the incorporation of

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