Bien Hoa, the capital city of Bien Hoa Province, is located about 20 miles north of Saigon on the Dong Nai River. Early in the war, the United States
constructed a large airfield and military headquarters just outside Bien Hoa, and on November 1, 1964, the Vietcong attacked the installation. Since
the Gulf of Tonkin incident in August 1964 and the subsequent bombing of North Vietnam, the Indochinese struggle had been consuming increasing
amounts of time and resources in Washington, as well as in the public mind. Vietcong sappers attacked the base, destroying five aircraft, and killing
four American soldiers. Although the administration did not respond at once to the attack, it was becoming more and more clear that if the United
States was going to conduct an air war over North and South Vietnam, with aircraft and personnel stationed in the south, regular ground troops
would be required to defend those installations. Escalation of the conflict became one indirect consequence of the attack on Bien Hoa in 1964.
And Other Vietnam War Short Stories
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