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Harry Truman
US President Harry Truman extends military assistance in the battle against the communists in Indochina. This signaled the beginning of US involvement in Vietnam. Naval, Air Force, and Army attaches were assigned during the same time. -
Dien Bien Phu
US General Douglas McArthur loans the French 12 Fairchild C119 airplanes to begin Operation Castor. The planes flew over Dien Bien Phu in the northwest of Vietnam. -
Geneva Conference
In an attempt to maintain peace in Indochina and to unify Korea, the US, UK, China, and the Soviet Union meet in what is known as the Geneva Conference. One of the consequences of the conference was the separation of North and South Vietnam from each other. -
French Defeated at Dien Bien Phu
The French are defeated in the Battle of Dien Bien Phu by the Viet Minh which ended the involvement of the French in Vietnam. -
US Involvement
US President Dwight Eisenhower sends the Military Assistance Advisory Group to help in the training of the South Vietnam Army. This was considered the official involvement by the United States. -
John F. Kennedy A President
John F. Kennedy is elected president of the United States. Eisenhower gives his successor a warning regarding Vietnam and Laos. A failed coup attempt by the ARVN (Army of the Republic of Vietnam) keeps President Ngo Dinh Diem in power.
In an attempt to better fight the South Vietnam government and the US, the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam, the Viet Cong, was formed. This was an organization used by the Communist in later years to fight the US forces. -
Begining of War
After a visit by Lyndon B Johnson, President Kennedy sends US Army Special forces to assist in the training of South Vietnam soldiers. President Kennedy meets with Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev in Vienna to discuss the attacks made by North Vietnam in Laos. Because of the growing successful attacks by the NLF, Robert McNamara, the US Defense Secretary, deploys 200,000 US soldiers to Vietnam.The first casualty in the American forces dies in Vietnam, for many this marked the beg -
Operation Chopper
In Operation Chopper, helicopters flown by U.S. Army pilots ferry 1,000 South Vietnamese soldiers to sweep a NLF stronghold near Saigon. It marks America's first combat missions against the Vietcong. -
Air Power
American air power in Southeast Asia is massively reinforced. Two aircraft carriers arrive off the Vietnamese coast prompted by a North Vietnamese offensive in Laos. -
Retalliation by South Vietnam
The captain of the U.S.S. Maddox reports that his vessel has been fired on and that an attack is imminent. Though he later says that no attack took place, six hours after the initial report, a retaliation against North Vietnam is ordered by President Johnson. American jets bomb two naval bases, and destroy a major oil facility. Two U.S. planes are downed in the attack -
Operation Rolling Thunder
President Johnson authorizes Operation Rolling Thunder, a limited but long lasting bombing offensive. Its aim is to force North Vietnam to stop supporting Vietcong guerrillas in the South. -
International Support
The U.S. offers North Vietnam economic aid in exchange for peace, but the offer is summarily rejected. Two weeks later, President Johnson raises America's combat strength in Vietnam to more than 60,000 troops. Allied forces from Korea and Australia are added as a sign of international support. -
Largest American Operation - Crimp
U.S. forces launch Operation Crimp. Deploying nearly 8,000 troops, it is the largest American operation of the war. The goal of the campaign is to capture the Vietcong's headquarters for the Saigon area, which is believed to be located in the district of Chu Chi. Though the area in Chu Chi is razed and repeatedly patrolled, American forces fail to locate any significant Vietcong base. -
End of Rolling Thunder
After three-and-a-half years, Operation Rolling Thunder comes to an end. In total, the campaign had cost more than 900 American aircraft. Eight hundred and eighteen pilots are dead or missing, and hundreds are in captivity. Nearly 120 Vietnamese planes have been destroyed in air combat or accidents, or by friendly fire. According to U.S. estimates, 182,000 North Vietnamese civilians have been killed. Twenty thousand Chinese support personnel also have been casualties of the bombing. -
Cambodia
South Vietnamese troops attack into Cambodia, pushing toward Vietcong bases. Two days later, a U.S. force of 30,000 -- including three U.S. divisions -- mount a second attack. Operations in Cambodia last for 60 days, and uncover vast North Vietnamese jungle supply depots. They capture 28,500 weapons, as well as over 16 million rounds of small arms ammunition, and 14 million pounds of rice. Although most Vietcong manage to escape across the Mekong, there are over 10,000 casualties. -
Peace Talks
North Vietnam and the United States resume peace talks in Paris. All warring parties in the Vietnam War sign a cease fire -
Last American Death
At 4:03 a.m., two U.S. Marines are killed in a rocket attack at Saigon's Tan Son Nhut airport. They are the last Americans to die in the Vietnam War. At dawn, the last Marines of the force guarding the U.S. embassy lift off. Only hours later, looters ransack the embassy, and North Vietnamese tanks role into Saigon, ending the war. In 15 years, nearly a million NVA and Vietcong troops and a quarter of a million South Vietnamese soldiers have died. Hundreds of thousands of civilians had been kille
