10 August 1965

From:       Commanding Officer

To:            Commanding Officer, 4^th Marines (-)(rein)

Subj:          Village Searches; Recommendations for

Ref:     (a)            Your ltr 3:RJP:jpc over 1551 of 2 August 1965, Subj: Evaluation of  VC Combat Village proposal.

1.                  The reference, states the proposal to construct a prototype VC combat village to be used as a training facility and requires a report concerning what inexperienced Marines must be taught to effectively search villages.  The following considerations and recommendations are submitted for inclusion in the training syllabus for village searches.

a.     Villages searched within the Chu Lai area cannot be considered VC combat villages.  Those, which have been encountered, are typical villages, which have been used to varying degrees by the VC.  As such, most of the villages that have any indication of VC activities have individual or group fox holes and shelters of varying types and dimensions depending upon the location, surrounding terrain, etc.  In most cases the villages have some sort of fence (cactus, wire, thorns, etc.), which appears to have a dual purpose, i.e., animal control and/or security.  The fences have in most cases shrubbery and or trees, which provide good concealment for snipers in holes some 20-30 feet behind (in the village area) the fence.

b.     Villages having approaches covered with brush possess escape routes leading from ambush sites through the brush. These are typically just large enough for the average Vietnamese but too small to allow rapid pursuit by the average Marines.

c.      The village sweep should be conducted in two closely coordinated actions with the executing unit being divided into an assault element and search element.  The rapid sweep and, if necessary, assault through the village should be followed by a thorough, methodical search.

d.     The language barrier constitutes a definite hindrance to the search and clear of Vietnamese villages, especially in view of the complete lack of sufficient interpreters.  In this light, PF units, when utilized to assist in populace control, have actually hindered questions because of their proclivity to setting fire to huts, their brutal treatment of villagers, and their lack of sufficient military training.

e.     The timing of the movement of the inhabitants of a village should be determined prior to conducting a search to insure proper timing of execution.  The search should be initiated when the majority of the inhabitants are within the village.

f.        ‘Don’ts’ for village searches.

(1)               Don’t manhandle villagers.  Abide by the laws of land warfare.

(2)               Don’t try to disarm booby traps.  Have trained engineers or EOD personnel with search unit.

(3)               Don’t approach village along restricted avenues of approach.

(4)               Don’t destroy needlessly.

(5)               Don’t assume anything is safe/harmless.  VC are experts at booby trapping.

g.     ‘Do’s’ for village searches.

(1)               Have sufficient forces to completely block all escape from villages.

(2)               Remove bipods from AR’s.  VC will select AR men as sniper targets.

(3)               Search everywhere:

(a)   Trees

(b)   Caves, holes

(c)   Under floors

(d)   Roofs

(e)   Individuals

(f)     Dung piles

(g)   Walls

(4)               Use sharpened sticks and/or rods for probing to determine location of caches, hiding holes, spider traps.

(5)               Allow sufficient time for complete and detailed searching.

2.                  Noteworthy of consideration in constructing training facilities of any type is the immediate requirement in the Chu Lai area for a firing range to insure that all newly joining Marines zero their weapons as soon as possible after arrival.

This page last corrected 17 September 2011