Timeline, April 8th

[David]

FIRST INDOCHINA WAR:
April 8, 1954 (6th day of the 3rd month, Year of the Horse [Giap Ngo]) (Fall): Dien Bien Phu: The garrison on H6 is relieved and the relief company is later reinforced with what troops can be spared. The enemy, however, rather than more frontal attacks, is driving a prong of trenches around either side of H6 to choke off the position. To the west, between Claudine and Huguette, a new strongpoint, called Lily, is being built, with Claudine 1 becoming Lily 1, Lily 2 being an entirely new position, and Huguette 4 becoming Lily 3. In the evening, the fort's commander approves Bigeard's counterattack plan; everything now waits on the arrival of the paratroop battalion from Hanoi. Also this evening, men from the Air Force detachment mount a small commando operation across the airfield in order to retrieve the remains of the pilot of the recently destroyed recon plane.

SECOND INDOCHINA WAR:
April 8, 1962 (4th day of the 3rd month, Year of the Tiger [Nham Dan]) (US Advisory): VC attack the Republican Youth CIDG site at An Chau in I Corps.

April 8, 1965 (7th day of the 3rd month, Year of the Snake [At Ti]) (US Defense): In response to LBJ's speech, North Vietnamese Premier Pham Van Dong states Hanoi's position.

April 8, 1967 (29th day of the 2nd month, Year of the Goat [Dinh Mui]) (US Counteroffensive Phase II): A squad from C/4/503rd, 173rd Airborne, is pinned down by enemy fire while investigating an area of suspected enemy activity.

April 8, 1968 (11th day of the 3rd month, Year of the Monkey [Mau Than]) (US Counteroffensive Phase IV): Operation Toan Thang 1, the largest operation to date, begins in the Capital Military District and six surrounding provinces.

April 8, 1968 (11th day of the 3rd month, Year of the Monkey [Mau Than]) (US Counteroffensive Phase IV): Operation Burlington Trail update.

April 8, 1968 (11th day of the 3rd month, Year of the Monkey [Mau Than]) (US Counteroffensive Phase IV): Khe Sanh/Operation Pegasus: 2/7 Cavalry Squadron links up with 26th Marines and conducts official relief of combat base. 1/26 attacks to the west. 3rd ARVN Airborne Task Force air assaults into LZ Snake west of Khe Sanh and kills 78 North Vietnamese.

April 8, 1968 (11th day of the 3rd month, Year of the Monkey [Mau Than]) (US Counteroffensive Phase IV): The 1st Platoon of the 155th AHC supports the 22nd ARVN Division in Cheo Reo.

April 8, 1968 (11th day of the 3rd month, Year of the Monkey [Mau Than]) (US Counteroffensive Phase IV): A five-man SAS recon-ambush patrol is inserted into the area 12 km north of Nui Thi Vai, Bien Hoa Province , and over the next four days, discovers VC camps and activity. The patrol comes under fire, killing one VC and then extracting.

April 8, 1970 (3rd day of the 3rd month, Year of the Dog {Canh Tuat]) (US Winter-Spring 1970): Cambodia: Government forces are driven back by Viet Cong and North Vietnamese troops in heavy fighting nine miles from the South Vietnamese borders in the Parrot's Beak. By now, in Cambodia there is full-scale war between military forces loyal to Lon Nol and the VC/NVA troops, with other armed factions and paramilitary groups joining in as they see fit. Atrocities by Cambodian troops and civilian mobs against Vietnamese living in the country exacerbate the situation. At first, only Thailand and South Vietnam send arms to Lon Nol, with the US apparently not willing to take hasty action.

April 8, 1970 (3rd day of the 3rd month, Year of the Dog {Canh Tuat]) (US Winter-Spring 1970): Scouts of the A/7/17th Cavalry begin screening for a unit of the 23rd ARVN Rangers.

April 8, 1971 (13th day of the 3rd month, Year of the Boar [Tan Hoi]) (US Counteroffensive, Phase VII): The coastal patrol sinks a Communist trawler in coastal waters off An Xuyen Province, the usual drop-off point for supplies for the VC. Of the 11 ships detected attempting infiltration there during the year, only one lands. The other nine flee after being sighted.

April 8, 1972 (25th day of the 2nd month, Year of the Rat [Nham Ty]) (US Cease-Fire): Nguyen Hue/Easter Offensive: With the fall of Camp Carroll and Mai Loc, Fire Base Pedro is on the front line in the northern offensive. Major Do Huu Tung, whose "Divine Hawks" are stationed at Pedro, anticipating a tank attack, cooperates with the 258th Marine Brigade to set up anti-tank mine fields on the paths leading to Pedro and, on the night of April 8, moves his whole 6th Battalion out of the base and repositions it on well-dug-in vantage points around the base. As expected, the enemy shells the area the entire night in preparation for the next day's assault. The Vietnamese Marine artillery base at Ai Tu also receives more than 3000 130mm rounds during the night. In the south, Loc Ninh has fallen, with few survivors to describe its last moments. Intelligence reports show heavy concentration of enemy units around An Loc, and skirmishing around the city is increasing, but generally it is a slack period and the ARVN corps commander, realizing now that the main Communist advance will be in Binh Long province rather than Tay Ninh, decides to take advantage of the lull to reinforce An Loc, situated on Highway 13 that runs directly into Saigon, with two additional units-the ARVN 21st Division and an airborne brigade from a general reserve-followed by a task force a few days later.

April 8, 1975 (27th day of the 2nd month, Year of the Hare [At Mao]): Ho Chi Minh Campaign: Dissatisfied with the condition of reception facilities on Phu Quoc, armed passengers in Greenville Victory force the ship to sail to Vung Tau. An American guided missile cruiser and escort intercept the ship and stand by to aid the crew, but the voyage and debarkation of passengers proceeds uneventfully. Commander Task Group 76.8 concentrates Dubuque, guided missile destroyer Cochrane, storeship Vega, and the three ships of Amphibious Ready Group Alpha at Phu Quoc to position security detachments on each of the MSC vessels and to resupply the refugees with food, water, and medicines. The Presidential palace in Saigon in bombed by a South Vietnamese pilot; Thieu is uninjured. Enemy troops are shelling and conducting sapper attacks south and east of the city. At Thien Gao, ARVN defenders put up strong resistance but human wave assaults overrun the district capital that night. The UPI reports that civilians have already fled the entire II Corps where possible, with the last remaining government holdings there at Phan Thiet and Phan Rang looking shaky at best. The body of the deputy commander of South Vietnamese troops defending Saigon, Maj. Gen. Nguyen Van Hieu, is found in his office, a gunshot wound to his head.