Inside An Loc: The Battle to Save Saigon, April-May 1972

Van Nguyen Duong · Nghia M. Vo

Nov 2015 · McFarland

About this ebook

The Battle of An Loc was one of the bloodiest battles in the Vietnam War and a defining moment in the history of the Republic of South Vietnam. A few square blocks tucked among vast rubber tree plantations, the provincial town was thought to be of little strategic value to the North Vietnamese. Yet for 66 days in 1972, it was the scene of savage house-to-house street fighting as artillery and mortar fire pounded the town daily until almost nothing was left standing. Facing three North Vietnamese infantry divisions, General Le Van Hưng defended the town with 7,500 men, vowing to "die with An Loc." A decisive victory for the South Vietnamese, the battle came at a time when the United States had begun pulling out of Vietnam and few American troops were on the ground. No foreign reporters were on hand and the action was ignored or misreported by the world press. This book tells the story of An Loc from the unique perspective of an officer who shared a bunker with the general during the fight.

About the author

After the fall of Saigon, Lt. Col. Van Nguyen Duong (RVNAF) was imprisoned for 13 years for “re-education.” He immigrated to the United States in 1991 and lives in Honolulu. He has contributed to several Vietnamese magazines in the United States, Canada, Australia and Europe. Nghia M. Vo, a Vietnamese-American, has written multiple books on Vietnamese culture. He helped found the nonprofit Saigon Arts, Culture & Education Institute and works to document Vietnamese-American culture through conferences, publications and a website.