Yes, the site mentioned there was a 20% attrition rate on NVA soldiers travelling down the trial BEFORE they saw any action. That means 1 in 5 NVA troops DIED using the trail before they came in contact with Free World forces.Thanks Oagre, something of interest to me as I have done some study on the War itself.
"One North Vietnamese soldier counted 24 ways you could die on it: malaria and dysentery could ravage you; U.S. aerial bombardments could disintegrate you; tigers could eat you; snakes could poison you; floods and landslides could wash you away. Sheer exhaustion took its toll as well."
From the Smithsonian Mag.
Very interesting thank you ....great pics
Correct. They were more or less parallel to each other, sometimes twisting to intersect and of course heading in the same direction.If memory serves me correctly, it was more than one trail, it was a series of interconnected trails.
Full Metal Jacket?Cool thanks!! "Ho Chi Minh is a son of a bitch, got the blue balls, crabs and the seven year itch!!" Who knows which movie the previous quote is from? :eyebrows:
To echo Dirk, I would guess that it runs on the periphery of the country through out of the way regions that were relatively distant from the US held centres.Before I clicked that link I thought it was going to show maybe some super highway, or high speed rail line, or some really impressive development.
Instead, all it shows is some burned out scrap yard Mad Max like setting.
Sad.
I guess the Commies running Vietnam aren't good for too much. Typical.
For all we know the super-highway is just over the hill.Before I clicked that link I thought it was going to show maybe some super highway, or high speed rail line, or some really impressive development.
Instead, all it shows is some burned out scrap yard Mad Max like setting.
Sad.
I guess the Commies running Vietnam aren't good for too much. Typical.
Pretty much nailed it there Oagre. It exited North Vietnam and ran through Laos and Cambodia, with off ramps into South Vietnam and was used mainly at night. The Trail was blended or camoflaged as best as they could, so as to avoid detection from the air. Large supply dumps were put into hillsides. AA was also employed and a full on division of supply was engaged by the NVA to keep the supplies moving to their destinations. The NVA also used this route to move into the south to build troop strength.To echo Dirk, I would guess that it runs on the periphery of the country through out of the way regions that were relatively distant from the US held centres.
Waging a conventional war would have meant sustaining a large effort far from the major urban supply centres in South VN. While the US in the 60's had infinitely more military ability than the French in the 50's, there was a discouraging precedent re a Western power attempting to sustain forces deep in the periphery of the theatre of war. The French attempt at Dien Bien Phu led to catastrophe and the collapse of their war effort. Any military reverse to the US in the late 60's would have worsened the political situation back Stateside immensely.If the US had waged a conventional war against the trail, instead of a covert one, they may have had better success in Vietnam.
Not to mention possibly provoking all-out war with China and (worse case scenario) the USSR.Waging a conventional war would have meant sustaining a large effort far from the major urban supply centres in South VN.