Action of 23 August 1967

Action of 23 August 1967
Part of Vietnam War Operation Rolling Thunder
VPAF Captain Nguyen Van Coc scored his second kill during the action of 23 August 1967. In this photograph, he was congratulated by North Vietnamese President, Ho Chi Minh, for his exploits.
Date 23 August 1967 Location North Vietnam Result North Vietnamese victory
Belligerents
United States	North Vietnam
Commanders and leaders
Nicholas J. Donelson Robin Olds	Nguyễn Nhật Chiêu Cao Thanh Tinh Nguyen Van Tho
Units involved
8th Tactical Fighter Wing 355th Tactical Fighter Wing 388th Tactical Fighter Wing	921st Fighter Regiment 923rd Fighter Regiment
Strength
16 F-4 Phantoms 36 F-105 Thunderchiefs	2 MiG-21 Fishbeds 8 MiG-17 Frescos
Casualties and losses
2 killed and 3 captured 3 aircraft confirmed lost	No confirmed losses, one aircraft damaged

The Action of 23 August 1967 was a major air battle which involved elements of the Vietnam People's Air Force (VPAF) and the United States Air Force (USAF). The air battle took place over the skies of North Vietnam as part of Operation Rolling Thunder, during the Vietnam War.

On 2 January 1967, the United States Air Force launched Operation Bolo with the aim of luring North Vietnamese MiG fighters into an air battle, where they could be destroyed in an ambush. The operation, led by Colonel Robin Olds, turned out to be a major success after five North Vietnamese MiG-21 fighters of the VPAF 921st Fighter Regiment were shot down.

Stung by that devastating defeat, the North Vietnamese Air Force grounded their fighter force several times between June and August 1967, in order to work on their training and tactics. On 23 August 1967, the North Vietnamese Air Force employed their newly devised tactic against a U.S. strike formation, while it was conducting raids against a rail yard. The air battle concluded with the USAF losing three F-4D fighters.

On 2 March 1965, the United States Government launched Operation Rolling Thunder, a major bombing campaign, with several objectives. Firstly, the operation was supposed to retaliate against North Vietnam for their military activities inside South Vietnam, thereby raising the morale of the South Vietnamese people, especially the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN). Secondly, it aimed to impede North Vietnam’s ability to wage war by reducing, if not stopping, the flow of men and material into South Vietnam. Thirdly, the overall objective was to persuade the North Vietnamese Government to find a compromise through negotiations. Originally the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff submitted a list of 94 targets to be hit over a period of 16 days, but U.S. President Lyndon Johnson decided to include military targets in order to gradually apply pressure on the North Vietnamese Government, so the list of targets grew to 427 by the end of the campaign. In the first phase of the operation, which lasted from spring to summer of 1965, American airpower mainly targeted the North Vietnamese capital of Hanoi and its limited industrial base.

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