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8 March 1965 - 24 December 1965
8 Mar 65
The first U.S. combat troops arrive in Vietnam as 3,500 Marines land at China Beach to defend the American air base at Da Nang. They join 23,000 American military advisors already in Vietnam.
8 Mar 65
3,500 Marines Ordered to Viet    
8 Mar 65
Dockers Go Back to Work    
8 Mar 65
Exercise Points Up Gun Gap    
9 Mar 65
President Johnson authorizes the use of Napalm, a petroleum based anti-personnel bomb that showers hundreds of explosive pellets upon impact.
11 Mar 65
Operation Market Time, a joint effort between the U.S. Navy and South Vietnamese Navy, commences to disrupt North Vietnamese sea routes used to funnel supplies into the South. The operation is highly successful in cutting off coastal supply lines and results in the North Vietnamese shifting to the more difficult land route along the Ho Chi Minh trail.
20 Mar 65
Russ Takes 'Walk' From Orbiting Ship    
20 Mar 65
Wallace Asks U.S. Officers to Shield Marchers
20 Mar 65
U.S.-Thai Units Begin Push on Foe    
20 Mar 65
20 Pupils Killed in Bombing of Red Cave    
29 Mar 65
Viet Cong terrorists bomb the U.S. embassy in Saigon.
31 Mar 65
Embassy Hit; Saigon Building Ripped By Bomb; Americans Amongst Heavy Casualties
31 Mar 65
Wallace to Meet Marchers    
31 Mar 65
Navy Jets Attack Red Radar Base    
1 Apr 65
President Johnson authorizes two more Marine battalions and up to 20,000 logistical personnel. The President authorized American combat troops to conduct patrols in the countryside. His decision to allow offensive operations is kept secret from the American press and public for two months.
7 Apr 65
President Johnson delivers his "Peace Without Conquest" Speech at Johns Hopkins University offering Hanoi "unconditional discussions" to stop the war in return for massive economic assistance in modernizing Vietnam. "Old Ho can't turn that down," Johnson privately tells his aides. But Johnson's peace overture is quickly rejected.
9 Apr 65
Ready For Viet Talks - Johnson Proposes $1 Bill. S.E. Asia Aid
15 Apr 65
A thousand tons of bombs are dropped on Viet Cong positions by U.S. and South Vietnamese fighter-bombers
17 Apr 65
In Washington, 15,000 students gather to protest U.S. bombing.
20 Apr 65
Johnson's top military and civilian aides meet in Honolulu and agree to recommend to the President sending 40,000 more troops to Vietnam.
24 Apr 65
President Johnson announces Americans in Vietnam are eligible for combat pay.
3 May 65
The first U.S. Army combat troops, the 3,500 strong 173rd Airborne Brigade, arrive in Vietnam from their base in Okinawa.
11 May 65
Viet Cong over-run ARVN troops in Phuoc Long Province north of Saigon and also attack in central South Vietnam.
13 May 65
The U.S. calls the first unilateral bombing pause in the hope that Hanoi will now negotiate. There will be six more pauses during the Rolling Thunder bombing campaign, all with same intention. However, each time, the North Vietnamese ignore the peace overtures and instead use the pause to repair air defenses and send more troops and supplies down the Ho Chi Minh trail.
13 May 65
Viet Cong attack the U.S. special forces camp in Phuoc Long. During the fighting, 2nd Lt. Charles Williams, although wounded four times, knocks out a Viet Cong machine-gun and then guiding rescue helicopters, earning the Congressional Medal of Honor.
19 May 65
U.S. bombing of North Vietnam resumes.
28 May 65
Russian Missile Sites Going Up in North: Rusk    
28 May 65
American Dies, 1 Lost in Ambush    
29 May 65
Pound Vietnam Coast - Navy Guns Open Fire
29 May 65
Kill 85 VC Near Danang    
29 May 65
New Strife in Bolivia    
2 Jun 65
2 Hanoi Battalions Reported in South    
2 Jun 65
Gemini-4 Gets A Green Light    
2 Jun 65
8 M.I.G.S Flee U.S. F-105s    
10 Jun 65
Finest U.S. Space Hour - Astronauts Feel Fine
10 Jun 65
U.S. Steps Up Combat Role    
10 Jun 65
Stock Market Tumbles in U.S.    
15 Jun 65
Dong Xoai Area - U.S. Troops Move in    
15 Jun 65
Off Australia - U.S. Skipper, All-Girl Crew Rescued As Ship Rams Ketch
15 Jun 65
3 Marines Die, 19 Hurt in Blast    
18 Jun 65
Nguyen Cao Ky takes power in South Vietnam as the new prime minister with Nguyen Van Thieu functioning as official chief of state. They lead the 10th government in 20 months.
27 Jun 65
Terror Bombs Rip Saigon Restaurant; 25 Killed, 33 Hurt
27 Jun 65
84 Killed in MATS Crash    
27 Jun 65
Viet Cong Execute U.S. Army Sergeant    
27 Jun 65
L.B.J. Calls on U.N. For Peace Efforts    
1 Jul 65
Viet Cong destroy three aircraft in a mortar attack on Danang air base.
1 Jul 65
U.S., Aussie Troops Join Viet Cong Hunt    
1 Jul 65
4 Marines Killed, 9 Injured in Chu Lai, Danang Action
1 Jul 65
Okinawa Payroll Looted    
8 Jul 65
Henry Cabot Lodge is reappointed as U.S. ambassador to South Vietnam.
28 Jul 65
President Johnson announces to the press he will send 44 combat battalions to Vietnam increasing the U.S. military presence to 125,000 men. Monthly draft calls are doubled to 35,000.
30 Jul 65
Add 50,000 Troops, Double Draft Call    
30 Jul 65
L.B.J. Picks Fortas For High Court    
31 Jul 65
3,700 Paratroops Arrive in Vietnam    
31 Jul 65
Combat Pay Hike Proposed    
31 Jul 65
Marine Assault Kills 552 VC, Wounds 1,000    
3 Aug 65
After seven Marines were killed nearby, film crews record a Marine company destroying suspected Viet Cong villages near Danang. CBS TV shows the film and generates controversy in America.
4 Aug 65
President Johnson asks Congress for an additional $1.7 billion for the war.
5 Aug 65
Viet Cong destroy two million gallons of fuel in storage tanks near Danang.
8 Aug 65
Major air strikes are conducted against the VC.
18-24 Aug 65
Marines conduct Operation Starlight as a preemptive strike against 1,500 VC planning to assault the American airfield at Chu Lai. 614 VC are killed and 9 captured, with 45 Marines killed and 120 wounded.
21 Aug 65
VC Batter Armored Supply Column    
31 Aug 65
A law is signed making draft card burning a criminal act subject to a five year prison sentence and $1,000 fine.
28 Sep 65
Paratroops Find Russ Rifles - Marines Sweep Peninsula
28 Sep 65
Twins Win The Pennant    
28 Sep 65
Report 2 Advisers Executed    
28 Sep 65
New Fighting Erupts Over Kashmir    
7 Oct 65
Viet Cong Hide Behind Children, Then Shoot Them  
7 Oct 65
Senate Okays $3 Billion For Foreign Aid    
7 Oct 65
U.S. Plane Shot Down, Peking Says    
16 Oct 65
Anti-war rallies occur in 40 American cities and in international cities including London and Rome.
19 Oct 65
North Vietnamese Army troops attack the U.S. Special Forces camp at Plei Me in a prelude to the Battle of Ia Drang Valley.
27 Oct 65
Plei Me Siege Broken By Viet, 1st Cav. Troops  
27 Oct 65
No Joy, No Joy,' Gemini Fails    
27 Oct 65
Hershey Calls Pacifist Program A Flop    
30 Oct 65
Led by five Medal of Honor winners, 25,000 march in Washington in support of U.S. involvement in Vietnam.
13 Nov 65
Johnson Okays Hike in Vietnam Troops    
13 Nov 65
Rhodesia Pulls Out, Britain Retaliate    
13 Nov 65
Air Strikes Batter VC Force    
14-16 Nov 65
The Battle of Ia Drang Valley marks the first major battle between U.S. troops and North Vietnamese Army regulars (NVA) inside South Vietnam. American Army troops of the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) respond to the NVA threat by using helicopters to fly directly into the battle zone. Upon landing, the troops quickly disembark then engage in fierce fire fights, supported by heavy artillery and B-52 air strikes, marking the first use of B-52s to assist combat troops. The two-day battle ends with some 2,000 NVA KIA and the NVA retreating. 79 Americans are killed and 121 wounded.
17 Nov 65
400 soldiers of the U.S. 7th Cavalry moving to Landing Zone 'Albany' for extraction are ambushed by NVA troops who survived the Ia Drang battle. 155 Americans are kiled and 124 wounded.
18 Nov 65
Cav. Kills 869 Reds    
18 Nov 65
Rice, Foodstuffs - Cambodians Aid VC, 3 P.W.'S Say
18 Nov 65
L.B.J. to Seek Law For Negro Justice    
18 Nov 65
Rome Council Backs Ban on Birth Control    
27 Nov 65
35,000 anti-war protesters circle the White House then march on to the Washington Monument for a rally.
30 Nov 65
"Was Fight to Finish" - VC, Viet Toll High in Fiercest Battle
30 Nov 65
McNamara Opens Talks in Saigon    
30 Nov 65
Fare' Play, U.S. Style P.I. to Send Troops to Vietnam
1 Dec 65
Tide Has Turned But End Not Near, McNamara Says
1 Dec 65
Humphrey Urges U.N. Peace Force    
1 Dec 65
U.S. Patrol Fired on Near DMZ    
1 Dec 65
Blast Wrecks Negro Grocery    
4 Dec 65
Viet Cong terrorists bomb a Saigon hotel used by U.S. military personnel, killing eight and wounding 137.
4 Dec 65
U.S. Backs Bid on Peace Talks    
4 Dec 65
N-Carrier Jets in 1st Strike; 2 Lost    
4 Dec 65
Gemini-7 Ready, Astronauts to Get Day's Grace in Space
4 Dec 65
SAM Sites Blasted    
9 Dec 65
The New York Times reports the U.S. is unable to stop the flow of North Vietnamese soldiers and supplies into the South despite extensive bombing.
 
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