Operation Trail Dust
Operation Ranch Hand
1961-1963
Initial consideration of herbicide operations in the Republic of Vietnam (RVN; South Vietnam) came in July 1961 with a Chief, Military Assistance Advisory Group, Vietnam (CHMAAGV) recommendation that chemicals be used to destroy the forest cover along communications routes and to deny the enemy his sources of food. The recommendation followed a similar inquiry and request for assistance from President Ngo Dinh Diem of South Vietnam. From these suggestions, Chemical Division Test Center/Republic of Vietnam Armed Forces (CDTC/RVNAF) was formed and research initiated on the practicability of crop destruction and defoliation operations.
The request launched a debate in the White House and the State and Defense Departments. On one side were those who viewed herbicides as an economical and efficient means of stripping the Viet Cong jungle of cover and food. Others doubted the effectiveness of such a tactic and worried that such operations would both alienate friendly Vietnamese and expose the United States to charges of barbarism for waging a form of chemical warfare. Both sides agreed upon the propaganda risks of the issue. The first field test of the concept was conducted in August 1961 along Route 13 in the district of Chon.Thanh, Bien Hoa province.
The Special Aerial Spray Flight (SASF), Tactical Air Command (TAC), out of Langley Air Force Base, Virginia, was queried on the capabilities of the C-123 as a spray aircraft for herbicide operations following successful completion of the August 1961 test. Prior to this time, Langley's SASF had been engaged in insecticide operations in the United States.
In November 1961, President Kennedy approved the use of herbicides in Vietnam, but only as a limited experiment requiring South Vietnamese participation and the mission-by-mission approval of the United States Embassy, the Military Assistance Command Vietnam, and South Vietnam's government. Following a favorable response from SASF (TAC), 6 C-123 aircraft were modified to accept MC-1 spray modules and sent on temporary duty (TDY) to Clark Air Base, Philippines. They were in place by 6 December 1961. Deployment of 3 of these aircraft and their crews to Tan Son Nhut Airfield, RVN, was included under Project Farmgate, the first USAF deployment to RVN. They arrived on 7 January 1962 to carry out the specific operations plan published the previous month, code named "Ranch Hand." The all-volunteer aircrews flying these first Providers were solicited from the top of the list of nonselected volunteers for the original 4400th Combat Crew Training Squadron (codenamed Jungle Jim), which had been activated in April 1961. Only after their arrival in the Philippines were the aircraft separated from the rest of the Farm Gate.
The first 3 of the 6 defoliant airplanes flew into Saigon's Tan Son Nhut airport on 7 January 1962, on what was forecast as only a 120-day-long field test of the aerial spray concept. The first Ranch Hand aircraft flew missions from 12 January 1962 through 20 March 1962. These missions were conducted along Route 15 northwest of Saigon and in the Ca Mau Peninsula. These first missions were designed to test the feasibility of large-scale herbicide operations. Testing was completed on 20 March 1962, and further operations were not undertaken pending evaluation of the chemical effects on the foliage.
In April 1962, an Army evaluation team concluded that spray operations "were effective in improving roadside and jungle visibility as an aid in aerial and ground surveillance of routes of enemy movement and supply, to reduce ambush opportunities for the enemy, and to aid in exposing enemy jungle areas." However, the team recommended larger concentrations of the spray be used (up to one and one-half gallons per acre).
Upon completion of this evaluation, the Ambassador and Commander, United States Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (COMUSMACV) were delegated authority to conduct defoliation missions following certain guidelines, e.g., "such operations would not include crop destruction and would be limited to clearing roadsides, powerlines, railroads, and other lines of communication, and the areas adjacent to depots, airfields, and other field installations."
In August 1962 following modification of Ranch Hand aircraft to spray one and one-half gallons per acre, defoliation requests were approved for canals in six areas of the Ca Mau Peninsula These areas were sprayed and provided additional test data for the period 3 September 1962 to 11 October 1962.
In December 1962, targets were sprayed along roads located in the mountains near the city of Qui Nhon. Following these missions, operations were teminated until June 1963, as defoliation chemicals were found to be most effective during the wet season when the vegetation was growing. Therefore, during the period January to May 1963, Ranch Hand aircraft were used for logistical support, navigational aid testing, and radar target missions.
Originally there was a natural aversion to destruction of food resources. However, at the request of the Government of Vietnam (GVN) and following extensive evaluation a decision was made to fly limited crop destruction missions. The first crop denial missions were flown between 21 and 23 November 1962, in Phuoc Long Province, with significant success. Several more crop targets were sprayed between November 1962 and March 1963.
On 20 March 1963, the US Embassy, with MACV concurrence, requested that crop destruction and defoliation missions be continued where their employment would hurt VC military efforts. Also requested was authority for the Ambassador and COMUSMACV to approve crop destruction missions. Crop destruction missions were approved for areas outside of RVN government control by the Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern affairs and the Department of Defense (DOD) from March 1963 to July 1964. Delegation of authority for crop destruction missions to the Ambassador and COMUSMACV did not come until 29 July 1964. The total area of foodstuffs sprayed up to that time was 1,325 hectares, (approximately 3,274 acres).
In June and July 1963, defoliation missions were resumed in the Ca Mau Peninsula and along the powerline from Dalat to Saigon. Vietnamese Air Force (VNAF) H-34 helicopters aided in the second operation, where mountainous terrain made low-level flying extremely hazardous.
From 31 August 1963 to 16 September 1963, Ranch Hand aircraft were diverted for use in insect control in Thailand. During October-November 1963 the defoliation missions in RVN were resumed.
In September 1963, MACV evaluated herbicide operations in RVN, examining operations between September 1962 to September 1963. This evaluation, requested by the Department of Defense (DOD), concluded that defoliation operations were of definite military value in counterinsurgency operations and recommended that the program be continued.
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