An Australian battalion joined United States paratroops and South Vietnamese forces today in an attack on a Vietcong stronghold about 30 miles north of Saigon. This was the first time US troops were employed in an offensive role.
Shortly after more than 120 US Army and 10 Vietnamese helicopters flew to the area yesterday with troops, guerrillas opened up on the helicopters with small arms and automatic weapons fire, wounding four members of the crews. The helicopters returned the fire, killing an estimated 17 guerrillas.
The paratroops encountered sporadic and inaccurate mortar fire after landing, but moved into the operation zone almost without opposition. There were several US casualties, most of them minor.
In sweeping through the zone, the US forces found three booby-trapped caches containing 200 tons of rice, several tons of wheat and a stock of other foodstuffs.
Saigon request
General Westmoreland, commander of all US forces in Vietnam, approved the commitment of US forces at the request of the Vietnamese Government. This authority had been granted to General Westmoreland earlier this month by President Johnson. US paratroops and marines have clashed many times with the guerrillas, but only as part of defensive patrolling round bases they have been assigned to protect.
US Air Force and carrier-based Navy jets increased the tempo of their attacks against the Communists in North and South Vietnam to offset the increased Communist monsoon offensive. One group of US planes struck 60 miles south of Hanoi today while bombing and strafing guerrilla positions. Three US planes were lost today, one a bomber. Three American airmen apparently were killed.
US bombers also attacked the Thuan Chan barracks and supply depot 65 miles south of the Chinese border. Sixteen planes dropped 30 tons of bombs on the area, destroying 32 buildings and damaging 20 others.
