Falling For Natasha INDO (id:#65755)

(View From the Trenches #114 ID: V27)   [next]   [previous]

Muong Thanh, French Indochina 1953-11-20 (2 others)

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Overview:

:General Henri Navarre, leader of the French forces in Indochina, had made the decision to occupy the valley of Dien Bien Phu so as to interdict and harass the Viet Minh supply lines into northern Laos. Operation ‘Castor’ was set in motion to assault the valley from the air, utilizing the cream of the French forces to capture the objective by surprise, in the largest airborne operation since WWII. First to land on Drop Zone ‘Natasha’ was Commander Bigeard’s 6th BPC, tasked to capture an old Japanese airstrip just north of Muong Thanh village and assault the enemy’s H.Q. units in the settlement. Unbeknownst to the French, a company of Viet Minh from the 320th Division was training near the old Japanese airstrip, resulting in a surprise for both sides. The Vietnamese Nationalists fought staunchly against the attacking French, but were instructed by their commander to break contact and withdraw to the south. The French were left holding the field, with all their objectives captured, and very light casualties for a parachute operation. The French now faced the difficult task of holding the broad, hill-ringed valley.

Defender: PAVN (910th Battalion, 148th Independent Infantry Regiment)  

Errata (source)