Intelligence – November 1968

 

Intelligence

During the month of November, the Battalion continued to participate in Operation SCOTLAND II.

  1. Enemy.  The entire month had been characterized by numerous sightings and scattered contacts.  What contacts there were occurred as the result of our patrolling into certain areas, and these involved no large enemy forces of company size or larger.  Of particular interest to the Battalion during the last two weeks of the month was the reported movement of the 308th and 320th NVA Divisions from the vicinity of XD*761 below the DMZ to somewhere in the northwestern DMZ and Eastern Laos in the vicinity XD6175.  However, the presence of these units could not be confirmed, and no discernable threat materialized from them.

What contacts materialized during the reporting period were confined to either light harassment by small NVA elements or reaction to the Battalion’s search and destroy operations north and east of FSB Argonne.  The reaction by NVA elements took the form of delaying actions.  This was proved by the lucrative cashes uncovered after the initial contact and pursuit of these elements into their bunker complexes and base camps.

  1. Weather.  The month of November has mostly been clear except in early mornings.  Heavy fog lasted for about two weeks.  There was very light rain fall.  In the area of the operation the weather was different due to the high mountains.  It was from cool in the mid mornings too cold at night and early mornings with heavy overcast and light to moderate rain showers.
  2. Terrain.  The terrain in the area of operations vicinity XD 6857 and XD 6959 was mountainous with sharply rising slopes.  In the vicinity of XD 6660-6961 the terrain was flat to slightly rolling hills with savannah ranging from 4-12 foot high.  Most of the area had heavy foliage and thick canopy with many streams.
  3. Enemy Equipment Captured or Destroyed
  4. Small arms ammunition
  5. Chi-com Type 56.7-7.62mm – 2800
  6. Chi-com 12.7mm – 25000
  7. 30/06 rounds – 250
  8. Mortar, Recoilless Rifle and Rocket Ammunition
  9. 100mm rounds – 20
  10. 120mm Mortar rounds – 20
  11. 60mm Mortar rounds – 133
  12. 82mm Mortar rounds – 87
  13. Mixed rocker rounds, large caliber – 40
  14. Weapons
  15. Chi-com 7.62 carbine type 56 (AK-44) – 20
  16. Piston, U   C 1 .45 – 1
  17. 60mm Mortar sights – 2
  18. 60mm Mortar complete – 1
  19. Sword – 1
  20.    Spear – 1
  21. Crossbows – 2
  22. Knives, various – 16
  23.    303 Enfield – 1
  24.   03 Springfield – 2
  25. M-1 – 2
  26.    M-16 – 2
  27. M-14 – 2
  28. .45 pistol – 1
  29. SMG – 6
  30. Mines, Demolitions and Explosives
  31. Chi-com Anti-personnel mines – 50
  32. Claymores – 4
  33. TNT (pounds) – 1900
  34. C-4 (pounds) – 200
  35. Chi-com grenades – 77
  36. Equipment
  37. Medical kits unit ones – 17
  38. Rice (pounds) – 6650
  39. Tobacco (pounds) – 100
  40. Wheat (pounds) – 10
  41. Corn (pounds) – 75
  42. Uniforms NVA type utilities – 601
  43. Medical supplies (pounds) – 27

This page last corrected 2 September 2011