NAMSTOCK: Saigon 1975 – summary

Posted January 24th, 2016 by macv

Recalling the last year events, we want to present the summary of the NAMSTOCK: Saigon 1975 Airsoft scenario. The meeting took place in Mieczewo near Poznań, Poland on May 24, 2015.

NAMSTOCK-2015

NAMSTOCK: Saigon 1975 – communist soldiers wave flags while occupying the Presidential Palace after the end of fighting

Phase I – Checkpoints

The first phase of the battle saw Viet Congu fighters supported by North Vietnam soldiers (NVA) attacking three checkpoints (CPs) adjacent to the Presidential Palace area. Initially, these military posts were evenly staffed by the South Vietnamese soldiers (ARVN).

NAMSTOCK-2015-Mapa

Map of Saigon with checkpoints (CP1 – CP3), Zoo and Botanical Gardens (Zoo), landing zone (LZ), Presidential Palace and U.S. embassy.

Firstly, the CP next to the LZ was quickly overrun and captured. The post was attacked by the main communist forces which cut it off from the outside, thus making any reinforcement attempts futile. Next attacks were launched by the communists towards the Presidential Palace. These strikes resulted in capturing the subsequent CPs one by one after meeting the fierce resistance of the defenders, who were supported by other ARVN units located in the palace and the former U.S. embassy.

The first phase of the battle concluded in the victory of the communist (i.e. NVA and VC) side, which gained 3 points.

Phase II – Zoo

The initial success allowed the communist forces to capture the Saigon Zoo and Botanical Gardens (Zoo), one of the oldest such facilities in the world. The zoo itself had a crucial location in the forthcoming operations in the city and became an area of violent fighting when the ARVN counterattacked.

NAMSTOCK-2015-Briefing

The joint briefing of the NVA regulars and the Viet Cong guerrilla insurgents.

The South Vietnamese forces had completed the turning movement and engaged the enemy, capturing the first part of the zoo swiftly. The second stage of this skirmish lasted longer and was far more intense as the fighting focused on the nearby building (CP2) allowing to control the large part of the zoo area.
Finally, this building was captured and secured by the NVA regulars. Actually, this success came too late as the ARVN entered the second part of the zoo and blew it up, thus rendering it useless to the enemy.

This phase saw the victory of the ARVN which gained 2 points.

Phase III – Landing zone

The third phase of the last accord of the Vietnam War was played around the anding zone (LZ) adjacent to the former U.S. embassy. There were speculations that the object once employed during the American evacuation would be used by South Vietnamese officials during their escape attempt.
The LZ became the stage of ferocious communist attacks launched from the nearby posts (i.e. CP1 and CP2). The ARVN soldiers repelled these strikes for a long time thanks to riflemen placed in the embassy.
The situation started to make South Vietnamese forces victorious even short before the deadline set by the NVA commanders. Finally, a young Viet Cong insurgent, benefiting from covering fire, made his way into the LZ where he set off explosives.

NAMSTOCK-2015-LZ

The LZ after the VC attack.

As the LZ was put out of action, the NVA and Viet Cong forces gained another one point.

Phase IV – Presidential Palace

The Presidential Palace, a symbol of the Republic of Vietnam filled with the South Vietnamese officials, was the final target of the communist advance.
However, the palace wasn’t an easy prey as the NVA and VC troops had to secure the adjacent area. Moreover, the ARVN soldiers focused their efforts on the prestigious building mounting a strong defense from the very beginning.

NAMSTOCK-2015-ARVN

South Vietnamese defenders of Saigon.

At first, the NVA regulars and the Viet Cong fighters captured the buildings in the proximity of the palace starting to provide suppressive fire on the enemy. The ARVN defenders were especially hit hard by a sharp shooter in the nearby building. Simultaneously, squads of the elite North Vietnamese sappers launched a series of attacks trying to overrun the palace entrances. These strikes were successfully defeated by the ARVN defenders who withstood well until the end of the fighting and the Presidential Palace wasn’t technically defeated through force.

The final stage of the fall of Saigon resulted in the ARVN victory which gained another 2 points.

Despite the stalemate, the battle ended in the ultimate communist victory as Gen. Dương Văn Minh, the president of the Republic of Vietnam, announced the surrender of the South Vietnamese government thus ending the fighting and avoiding any additional bloodshed.

The war was over and Hanoi could celebrate the final victory.

Although the meeting ended in a draw 4-4, the most important thing for us was to commemorate dramatic events of April 1975 and to meet with people who share our passion.

NAMSTOCK-2015-Group-photo

Participants of the “NAMSTOCK: Saigon 1975” Airsoft scenario.

At the end we want to thank to all the participants for their commitment as well the Dzikusy ASG Team for supporting the arrangement of this event.

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