Johnson retailiates - first direct attack by US on North Vietnam
08/05/1964 AD attacked
Johnson publicly orders retaliatory measures in response to Gulf of Tonkin incident stating, "The determination of all Americans to carry out our full commitment to the people and to the government of South Vietnam will be redoubled by this outrage."
One hour and forty minutes after his speech, aircraft launched from U.S. carriers reached North Vietnamese targets. At 10:40, these planes bombed four torpedo boat bases and an oil-storage facility in Vinh.
Two American planes were shot down by anti-aircraft fire from ground batteries. Their pilots were presumed lost.
Besides knocking out a large portion of North Viet-Nam's patrol fleet, the U.S. Navy planes from the carriers Ticonderoga and Constellation blew up an oil depot and other base facilities.
The low-level air attacks were carried out over a period of about five hours, from noon to 5 p.m. Viet-Nam time (midnight to 5 a.m. EDT).
The action, the first against North Viet-Nam itself, was carried out on direct orders of President Johnson as retaliation for two more unprovoked attacks by North Viet-Namese patrol boats on U.S. destroyers patrolling international waters. The attacks occurred yesterday morning but were not announced until last night.
— UPI, U.S. bombs 25 North Vietnamese boats
Subjects Who or What attacked?
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Lyndon B. Johnson (LBJ, Lyndon Baines Johnson) 36th President of the Un...
Objects To Whom or What was attacked?
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Vietnam Country in Southeast Asi...
Events in 1964 MORE
