Sunday, March 24, 2019
Mines in Vietnam
During the Vietnam War, the Vietcong were not only outnumbered but out-geared as well by American troops. Therefore, they had to resort to using guerilla tactics in order to put up a fight. One of these tactics involved the strategic placement of mines. The use of mines was devastating to US troops, as they could be easily concealed and were effective against the troops who were frequently on offense. One of the most infamous and common mines used in Vietnam was the German S-Mine, also known as the "Bouncing Betty". The Bouncing Betty got its nickname from the way it bounces in the air and explodes at chest height. The Vietcong would also use mortar shells as mines, such a case being with the 105 mm round. The tip of the round would protrude slightly from the Earth, and stepping on it was enough to trigger it and cause the victim's foot to be shattered. Mines were effective to the extent where they resulted in more than a quarter of all American deaths. Mines also caused the death of about 40,000 Vietnamese civilians since the war ended.
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4 comments:
This is very interesting because I did not know what the nickname was until I read it on here this gave me a very well insight of what you are talking about.
Even today, there are many uncovered active mines in poor communities in Vietnam. They are a danger to the Vietnamese farmers and are hard to locate.
Even though the Vietnamese soldiers used mines, they weren't the only ones. The United States dropped gravel mines, which were basically little cloth pouches with dozens of lead balls and ground glass. They were dropped with cluster bombs and dispersed over hundreds of yards.
The mines were astoundingly effective, to the point that they made up a quarter of American deaths. Not only were they devastating, but they must have made Americans more afraid to venture out into unknown territory.
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