Dating to June 9, 1967, this silent footage shows Operation Akron. In the footage elements of the 75th Cavalry are seen crashing through the jungle on a search and destroy operation. The infantry are supported by tanks that appear to be M-48 Pattons. At 1:13, a landmine has been discovered in the road and sweeps are made with mine detectors for additional devices. At about 2:22 the mine is remotely detonated. At 2:36 the hole left from destroying the mine is examined. At 8:18, a medical clinic run by the 3/5th Cavalry is shown.
The 75th Cavalry Regiment is a United States Army cavalry regiment established in 1941. Currently, only 1st Squadron (1-75 CAV), assigned to the 101st Airborne Division, is active.
Operation Akron was an operation conducted by the 1st Brigade, 9th Infantry Division and the 1st & 3rd Squadrons, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment (11th ACR) in Hát Dịch, lasting from 9 to 29 June 1967. The operation commenced on 9 June and initially met little resistance. On 18 June the 3rd Squadron, 11th ACR located a recently abandoned VC camp on Slope 30 along Highway 2. That evening the 3/11th ACR established 4 separate night defensive positions west of Highway 2. At 01:00 on 19 January, the VC 1st Battalion, 274th Regiment attacked the northernmost defensive position which was the location of the squadron command post. The attack was beaten back after 1 hour by defensive fire, supporting artillery and helicopter gunships. 56 VC bodies were located around the perimeter, U.S. losses were 9 killed.
On 26 June, a VC soldier defected at Tuc Trung on Highway 20, claiming to be from the 3rd Battalion, 275th Regiment and said that his unit was based 10 km northwest of Tuc Trung. On 27 June the ARVN 18th Division commander Gen. Do Ke Giai sent a Ranger unit to probe the campsite which they found to be abandoned, but fell into a VC ambush. A 1/11th ACR task force was dispatched to the scene that evening and the following morning arrived at the site of the battle finding ARVN and VC dead. Meanwhile, an ARVN Battalion had located the VC further east and were heavily engaged and the 1/11th ACR moved to support them, blocking the escape route across the Đồng Nai river with gunship and artillery fire, however the VC were able to disengage as night fell. The following day the ARVN located and overran a VC Company. ARVN losses were 51 killed, but they claimed to have killed 167 VC while U.S. forces claimed a further 49. In a follow up operation the ARVN engaged another VC force killing 40.
Operation Akron officially concluded on 29 June, PAVN/VC losses were 412 killed, U.S. losses were 9 killed and ARVN losses 51 killed.[
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