From the S&S archives:
NVA forced to ease siege on Dak Seang

TAN CANH, Vietnam — North Vietnamese troops who have pummeled the Dak Seang Special Forces camp northwest of here for eight straight days eased off Wednesday, according to the top Green Beret adviser here, but not enough to let hundreds of persons driven underground come up for a breather.

Four Vietnamese army and two American-led mobile strike force battalions sweeping through part of the Dak Seang Valley, 70 miles southwest of Da Nang, have forced the NVA to slack off harassment of the camp, said Lt. Col. John R. Hennigan, commander of U.S. advisers and senior adviser to Vietnamese Special Forces in the area.

"They can't be everywhere in strength all the time," he said at the 24th Special Tactical Zone forward command post here, "and now they've had to shift some of their strength away from the camp to meet us."

Mortar and recoilless rifle fire continued to pound the already flattened compound Wednesday, he said, but during the 24 hours ending at 5 p.m. Wednesday there were no ground probes.

One NVA attack earlier in the week was so strong that tactical air strikes had to be called in to smash part of the camp's defensive perimeter, it was learned. Helicopter gunship crewmen reported seeing evidence of NVA throwing grenades from positions just outside the perimeter as late as Tuesday.

Allied forces have identified troops from the 28th NVA Regt., 40th NVA Artillery and 66th NVA Regt. in the scarred valley and on "Rocket Ridge" about 20 miles southeast of the camp, it was learned. Those units played a part in similar NVA efforts at Ben Het and Bu Prang-Duc Lap last year.

Vietnamese military sources here claim Allied forces have killed 862 enemy as of Wednesday morning, 580 of those in ground fighting. (Vietnamese military sources in Saigon said 1,055 enemy soldiers have been killed since the fighting began).

Since the siege began on April 1, only three helicopters have touched down within the small camp — the latest on Wednesday to bring in four replacements to the camp's defenders.

Major fighting began after a U.S. helicopter, attempting to evacuate casualties from a rocket attack, received heavy automatic weapons fire as it touched down April 1. Since then the camp has been resupplied by fixed-wing aircraft flying parachute drops.

The camp has been virtually leveled, Hennigan said, but "if Charlie hadn't blown those tin huts down, we would have to in order to get a clear field of fire. Everything of any importance is in bunkers underground."

Military sources noted three possible reasons for the massive attacks on Dak Seang:

• A normal, seasonal increase in enemy activity along the Laotian border, only seven miles from the camp.
• A feint to draw attention and troops from more populated areas of II Corps that grew into an attempted knock-out punch.
• An attempt to win a "psychological" victory by annihilating an isolated outpost.

Hennigan favors the last interpretation. "I think he wanted to get this camp," he said, "and he thought he could."

In the general area of Dak Seang Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, NVA gunners lobbed mortar shells and rockets into Ben Het, Dak To, Tan Canh and Kontum.

In Saigon, Vietnamese military officials reported that 110 enemy troops were killed Tuesday in battles with the ARVN 23rd Ranger Bn. five miles south of Dak Seang. The ARVNs lost two killed and 16 wounded in the battle, spokesmen reported.

Meanwhile, troops of the U.S. 25th Inf. Div. were locked in fighting with a North Vietnamese force a half-mile from the Cambodian border, 50 miles west-northwest of Saigon, AP reported.

Military spokesmen said five Americans were killed and 15 wounded. North Vietnamese gunners shot down a medical evacuation helicopter, killing the pilot and wounding two crewmen.

American fighter-bombers ranged to within a half-mile of the Cambodian border through the night. First reports said at least five Communists were known dead.

The Communist command offensive across South Vietnam entered its second week Wednesday with rocket and mortar attacks on 33 Allied positions. Four Americans were killed and 15 wounded, AP said.

Hardest hit were the Da Nang and Cam Ranh air bases along the coast. About 100 rounds of mortars and rockets slammed into Cam Ranh Bay. Damage was described as light.