All in Vain CBI (id:#57159)

Critical Hit (Dien Bien Phu ID: DBP10)   [next]   [previous]

Positions at 'Eliane 1', Dien Bien Phu, French Indochina 1954-03-31 (1 other)

Overview:

The morning following the opening of the battle for the ‘Five Hills’ was one of desperation for both sides. The weather temporarily cleared up, allowing both air support and re-supply, but no airborne reinforcements. While E4 and E2 (Champs Elysées) were both secure, the occupation of E1 could not be allowed. It had fallen with barely a fight when its Moroccan garrison deserted. From previous experience, the French knew that they could not allow the enemy to entrench himself on that hill. The 5th Vietnamese Parachute Battalion was selected to retake the lost strongpoint. They were especially determined to make up for a failure at the Gabrielle strongpoint, nearly two weeks earlier. By now, E1 was devastated by bombardments. There were no shelters, no dugouts, no barbed wire—just the pockmarks of shells, shattered corpses, and the stench of rotting human flesh.

Defender: PAVN (Elements of the 316th Division PAVN)  

Errata (source)