1972 in Vietnam - Operation Barrel Roll, Easter Offensive, Operation Linebacker II, Operation Shed Light, Operation Igloo White (Paperback)

Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Pages: 57. Chapters: Operation Barrel Roll, Easter Offensive, Operation Linebacker II, Operation Shed Light, Operation Igloo White, Operation Commando Hunt, Vietnamization, Phan Th Kim Phuc, Battle of An L c, Operation Freedom Deal, Operation Popeye, 1972 in the Vietnam War, List of allied military operations of the Vietnam War, Operation Thunderhead, Operation Arc Light, Battle of ng H i, USS Kitty Hawk riot, Battle of Haiphong Harbor, Second Battle of Qu ng Tr, Cathay Pacific Flight 700Z, Vietnam at the 1972 Summer Olympics, Operation Prek Ta. Excerpt: Operation Barrel Roll was a covert U.S. Air Force 2nd Air Division (later the Seventh Air Force) and U.S. Navy Task Force 77, interdiction and close air support campaign conducted in the Kingdom of Laos between 14 December 1964 and 29 March 1973 concurrent with the Vietnam War. The original purpose of the operation was to serve as a signal to the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam) to cease its support for the insurgency then taking place in the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam). This action was taken within Laos due to the location of North Vietnam's expanding logistical corridor known as the Ho Chi Minh Trail (the Truong Son Road to the North Vietnamese), which ran from southwestern North Vietnam, through southeastern Laos, and into South Vietnam. The campaign then centered on the interdiction of that logistical system. Beginning during the same time frame (and expanding throughout the conflict) the operation became increasingly involved in providing close air support missions for Royal Lao Armed Forces, CIA-backed tribal mercenaries, and Thai "volunteers" in a covert ground war in northern and northeastern Laos. Barrel Roll and the "Secret Army" attempted to stem an increasing tide of People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) and Pathet Lao offensives. Barrel Roll was one of t...