The Vietnam War, also known as the Second Indochina War (called the Vietnam War), was fought from 1964 (events in the Gulf of Tonkin) or from 1965 (the landing of the first, larger American forces in Vietnam) until 1975, i.e. until the occupation of South Vietnam through North Vietnam. The opponents in this war were, on the one hand, the United States, supporting its ally, i.e. South Vietnam and North Vietnam, along with the communist Vietcong guerrillas, supported (in one way or another) by the PRC and the USSR. Assume that at one time, at the maximum, North Vietnam involved about 690,000 soldiers in the conflict, Vietcong - about 200,000 people, while the United States reached the peak of its involvement in 1969, when Vietnam had about 540,000 American soldiers. The immediate cause of the conflict was the claims and ambitions of North Vietnam to take power and control over its southern neighbor, which the United States could not and did not want to agree to. The Vietnam War was an excellent example of a guerrilla war, in which the highly advanced technological armed forces of the USA suffered considerable losses and finally lost in the clash with the armed forces incomparably worse. It is worth adding that from a purely military point of view, the US troops were able to inflict huge losses on their opponent (e.g. the Tet offensive of 1968), but on the so-called The "home front" completely lost it. It is often assumed that the Vietnam War was lost by the US primarily because of tensions in American society, its reluctance to do so, and the inability of the US establishment to provide a convincing justification for it. The Vietnam War finally ended in 1975 with a complete defeat of the United States, which was forced to withdraw from Vietnam and come to terms with the unification of Vietnam by the communist government in Hanoi. The prestige of this country in the international arena has also decreased significantly for some time.The AH-1 Cobra helicopter (Bell 209) is an attack helicopter in the classic layout, using many components of its "big brother" UH-1 Huey. The first flight of the AH-1 prototype took place on September 7, 1965 and the helicopter entered mass production in the same year. During the Vietnam War, 1,126 machines of the G model were produced, of which 279 were lost in combat. Due to the very high reliability of the structure, small side profile and good performance, the helicopter remains in service to this day in the US Marine Corps. The AH-1 allowed the US Army to fully implement the theoretical assumption of airmobile infantry ("air cavalry") through the fire support of landing infantry units. Today, the AH-1 Cobra is primarily used against an armored celon. From 1965, several versions of this successful helicopter were created, including: AH-1G (basic version), AH-1J (two-engine version), AH-1Q (version armed with TOW missiles). Technical data: Top speed: 333 km / h; maximum range (depending on version): 507-574km, armament: fixed-1 20mm M197 three-barrel cannon, slung rockets, guided missiles, unguided missiles and cannon pods.The Rockwell International OV-10 Bronco was the winner of the Light Armed Reconnaissance (LARA) competition for the US Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps. The first planes were delivered in 1969 and the OV-10 had already taken part in the Vietnam War. The plane was very versatile. It could operate from short runways as the length of the run-up run was approximately 225 meters. Moreover, if necessary, it was possible to install skids and even floats! The range of weapons that could be carried was also wide, although most often, however, equipment for air reconnaissance was installed. The D version was distinguished mainly by a modernized avionics, a laser target marking system and a 20mm cannon mounted in the nose. These aircraft were still in service during the 1991 Gulf War, although mainly in night missions and as the last version in service with the US Air Force, they were finally withdrawn in 1995, although it should be mentioned that they are still in service, among others Thailand, Venezuela or Indonesia. Although the OV-10 Bronco had an unusual shape and unusual for a modern combat aircraft, and generally rather average performance, the simple design and low price made it an attractive aircraft for many users. Technical data (OV-10A version): length: 12.67 m, wingspan: 12.19 m, height: 4.62 m, maximum speed: 452 km / h, maximum range: 920 km, practical ceiling: 7315 m, armament: fixed - 4 7.62m M60C machine guns, suspended - up to 1600 kg load.The Vietnam War (1964 / 1965-1975) is a conflict fought between the government of South Vietnam, supported very intensively (economically, politically, militarily) by the United States, and North Vietnam, supported by the USSR and the PRC. On the American side, aviation played a huge role in this conflict - both helicopters and jets. The latter entered action as early as 1964, when it began bombing Laos, and a year later (1965) as part of Operation Rolling Thunder - it also began bombing North Vietnam. Initially, machines such as the F-105 D Thuderchief or the F-4 Phantom II participated in this operation. However, the B-52 strategic bombers were quickly put into action. The operation lasted until 1968. Aviation also played a huge role in 1972, when it launched the strategic bombing of Hanoi and Haifong, which was instrumental in accelerating the peace talks. During the Vietnam War, the American air force - both operating within the USAF and the US Navy - used many types of aircraft, including: A-7 Corsair II, A-6 Intruder, F-101 Voodoo or the aforementioned F-4 Phantom. It is worth adding that in the course of that war, the American armed forces had several fighter aces, including Captains Steven Ritchie, Jeffrey Feinstien and Colonel Charles DeBellevue.The Vietnam War (1964 / 1965-1975) is a conflict fought between the government of South Vietnam, supported very intensively (economically, politically, militarily) by the United States, and North Vietnam, supported by the USSR and the PRC. On the American side, in the course of this conflict, aviation played a gigantic role, and great changes in the approach of the American armed forces to helicopter warfare. Even during the war in Korea (1950-1953), helicopters were treated primarily as a very mobile means of transport, and their role in supporting the battlefield was relatively small. This point of view changed considerably during the course of the Vietnam War. On the one hand, helicopter transport capabilities were developed (e.g. by introducing UH-1 Huey helicopters into service a few before the Vietnam War), which was very important in the unfavorable terrain of Vietnam (jungle, numerous hills), and on the other - strictly attack machines, such as AH-1 Cobra. It is worth adding that the USA engaged about 12,000 helicopters in this conflict, of which about 5,600 were irretrievably lost. It is also worth adding that during the Vietnam War, for the first time in history, an airmobile division using helicopters was used on such a scale - of course, we are talking about the 1st Cavalry Division[ang. 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile)] .
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