Operation Delaware | |||||
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Part of the Vietnam War | |||||
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Belligerents | |||||
United States South Vietnam | North Vietnam | ||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||
John J. Tolson |
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Units involved | |||||
1st Cavalry Division 1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division Republic of Vietnam Airborne Division |
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Casualties and losses | |||||
142 killed 26 killed PAVN claim:1,000 casualties |
US body count: 869 killed 1 light tank captured 70 trucks captured 2 bulldozers captured |
Operation Delaware/Operation Lam Son 216 was a joint military operation launched during the Vietnam War. It began on 19 April 1968, with troops from the United States and the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) moving into the A Sầu Valley. The A Sầu Valley was a vital corridor for moving military supplies coming from the Ho Chi Minh Trail and was used by the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) as a staging area for numerous attacks in northern I Corps. Other than small, special operations reconnaissance patrols, American and South Vietnamese forces had not been present in the region since the Battle of A Shau in March 1966, when a U.S. Special Forces camp located there was overrun.[1][2]: 182–92