Essay on Vietnam - Weapons And Battle Tactics

During the Vietnam War the M42 (Duster) tracked self-propelled anti-aircraft gun (SPAAG) vehicle influenced the future versatility and capabilities of the Air Defense Artillery systems of today’s United States Army. This system put a lasting impression on the minds and confidence of the American Army Soldiers. These Soldiers actively participated in defending the South Vietnamese from the North Vietnamese and its southern allies, known as the Viet Cong (or Vietnamese Communist). Not only did the M42 Duster (SPAAG) raise the moral and boost confidence with the American Soldiers, it instilled fear and discouraged the enemy from attacking positions that were fortified with versatile air defense systems. This

An M16 Assault rifle would be weapon to carry in a warzone as well as the rounds that go with the gun. As a second item a minesweeper would be an essential weapon against the masses of mines that were used in the Vietnam war. A Combat radio would be useful which is better than yelling in the environment where silence is needed. On Average the M16 weighed 7.5 pound whereas the ammo weighs .7 pounds, the radio weighed a staggering 26 pounds.

A pistol, at times, could have decided whether a soldier would live or die in combat depending on the situation. Another factor which made the pistol a very important weapon was the fact that the pistol could be reloaded much faster than a rifle (Slayton 12).

The gun was given the nickname "Potato Digger" because it was so powerful that the arm of dug into the ground while firing. It was also had a gas-operated and air-cooled design. (Colt Browning M1895) This belt-fed gun could fire from a closed bolt with a cyclic rate of 450 rounds per minute. The Colt-Browning M1895 was the first successful gas-operated machine gun to enter the service. Once redesigned by Colt from Browning's ideas, it weighed thirty-five pounds. Along with being the first gas-operated machine gun, it was the first machine gun adopted by the United States military. Colt ceased production of the gun in 1916 after it became obsolete when the US entered World War I. Before entering the war the gun was used for training in the United States. (M1895 Colt-Browning)

The m2 flamethrower was a useful weapon used in the vietnam war. The flamethrower can shoot flames 20-40 meters and the burn time would be about 7 seconds. It was used by the infantrymen and they would carry the gas and nitrogen tanks on their backs. When tanks were full it weight about 68 pounds. During this time tanks with flamethrowers were put into action which reduced the need for manually carrying of the m2 flamethrower. This helped the infantrymen to keep from being exposed to enemy fire and saved lives.

For long-range bombing, both sides used heavy artillery. Before firing these weapons, gunners loaded them with shells that often contained dozens of small lead balls. Soldiers also used big guns to deliver poison gas. A new type of loading, firing, and recoil mechanism made these guns very useful. Gunners used them to blast through barbed wire, knock out enemy machine gun nests, and lob poison gas shells at enemy trenches.

The two different Submachine guns that the US used during WWII would be the Thompson submachine gun and the M3. Both used the exact same type of ammunition and were both ruggedly reliable firearms.

armed forces in Vietnam, and was the heaviest tank at that time to be utilized. Thought to be too heavy and unsuitable for the terrain, senior Army officials did not want to deploy the tank to the region. Against their demands though, the Patton was deployed overseas to enter into its first taste of combat. New shell designs which could unleash over 1,200 pellets or 10,000 darts out of its 90mm and later 105 mm cannon into the jungle proved to be quite effective against the opposing force. Additionally, the M67A1 was added to the arsenal, which consisted of changing out the turret of a M48 and adding a flamethrower vastly increased the capabilities of the tank. Nicknamed the Zippo, this Patton variant conquered fortified enemy positions with relative ease. The Patton still had its own weaknesses however. Lacking in rear armor plating, each tank required its own infantry man to provide constant security to its six o’clock position to prevent a surprise attack from the rear. It was quickly discovered that the Patton held up quite well to land mines and frequently would have the task of clearing roadways for foot patrols and light wheeled vehicles. If the M46 successfully made it down the road, then the road was presumed to be clear. When it would encounter a landmine, at most it would only have one or two damaged wheels, but overall very little damage and never enough to destroy it. Although there

It could only fire in the direction it was facing and the gun was so low that it was exposed before it could fire at a target. The gun that was made combat air attacks were virtually useless. The location of the fuel tanks and the position of the escape hatches made it deadly for the crews. The M4 Sherman tank was a technological improvement over the M3 tank. Most notably, all the faults involved with the M3 except for the use of gas.

The second most common piece was the rifle bored 3 inch Ordnance Rifle, which had a range

In the years around 1944 a handful of assault rifles were created, such as the Sturmgewehr 44 or StG44 (German), The M1 Grand (American) and The SKS (Russian). But the most memorable and arguably the best is the AK-47 or Kalashnikov. The AK-47

The AR-15 was developed originally for the military, and was sold by Colt to the Army which classified the rifle as the M-16. The M-16 saw extensive use in Vietnam. It had some issues which were related to a lack of testing and after updating the rifle with a heavier barrel and a forward bolt assist, the M-16 was renamed the M16A1. The M16A1 was able to

The XM25 has a counter defilade target engagement system that fires the 25 mm air-bursting shells to a range of up to 700 meters. This brings it closest to the grenade launcher. This range is definitely greater that most rifles that are used by the army in Afghanistan (Joshua Norman, 2010).

The M1 rifle was named after its Canadian-American designer, John Garand. It was the first standard-issue semi-automatic military rifle. The M-1 Grand was made out of French Canadian-born Garand went to work at the United States Army's Springfield Armory and began working on a .30 caliber primer actuated blowback Model 1919 prototype. By all accounts the M1 rifle served with distinction. General George S. Patton called it "the greatest battle implement ever devised" The M1 replaced the bolt action M1903 Springfield as the standard U.S. service rifle in the mid 1930s, and was itself replaced by the selective fire M14 rifle in the early 1960s. In 1924, twenty-four rifles, identified as "M1922s", were built at Springfield. This led to a further

There were also armored vehicles that were used in Vietnam. Though not many were used due to the rough terrain and dense rainforest of the country, the most common one would be the M 113. The M-113 is a fully tracked armored personnel carrier. It was known as the Green Dragon by the Viet Cong, due to its capability to break through heavy thickets in the jungle to attack and overrun enemy positions. The next type of armored vehicle is the M-48 Patton. This armored vehicle that could mount tank guns and M60 machine guns. During combat they proved to be quiet powerful when it came to support. Though there were few tank to tank battles, both vehicles proved their worth with infantry support.