World War II, the Cold War, and the First Indochina War (1940-1955), Part 1

Question 1: Describe Operations Condor and Vulture during the Battle of Dien Bien Phu.

Answer 1: Operation Condor was a French military action undertaken for the purpose of relieving the Dien Bien Phu outpost from some of its relentless artillery bombardment from the Viet Minh. The plan was to drop paratrooper commandos behind the Viet Minh lines, at which point the commandos would sneak up on the Viet Minh and take them out. It was launched on April 30, 1954. Their first target was the Viet Minh detachment attacking the fort known as Eliane. Unfortunately, Eliane fell on April 31, making Operation Condor a failure before it could begin. Operation Vulture was a proposed U.S. military action to aid the French following Condor’s failure. It would have involved a substantial American air fleet attacking the Viet Minh positions around Dien Bien Phu, and even included an option to use nuclear weapons. Ultimately, however, President Dwight D. Eisenhower decided against Operation Vulture, citing lack of British support and potential political fallout as reasons.

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Question 2: Discuss the problem the French faced with supplies during the Battle of Dien Bien Phu.

Answer 2: One of the key reasons Dien Bien Phu was selected for a French installation during the First Indochina War was that it had an airstrip, making it an easy destination for supply deliveries. Unfortunately, the airstrip was taken out of commission on only the second day of the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, making it inaccessible by plane and thus requiring all supplies to be subsequently delivered by parachute. The problem with parachute deliveries was that the Viet Minh were in possession of anti-aircraft guns, which French planes could avoid only by flying exceptionally high, making their parachute deliveries very inaccurate, sometimes to the point that they would fall near the Viet Minh instead of the French. A major blow to French forces came in the final weeks of the two-month battle, when the Viet Minh succeeded in capturing almost all of the area around the airstrip, making later air drops impossible and effectively cutting Dien Bien Phu off from any further supplies for the French.

Question 3: Discuss the end of the Battle of Dien Bien Phu.

Answer 3: By the beginning of May, seven weeks after it began, it had become clear that the French would not win the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. They had repelled numerous assaults and inflicted more casualties than they took, but they were outnumbered, their supplies were dwindling, and the Viet Minh had captured almost all of their positions. Viet Minh general Vo Nguyen Giap ordered an attack on May 7, 1954, overrunning the last of the defenders and ending the battle with a decisive Viet Minh victory. On May 8, the Viet Minh captured over 11,000 prisoners, over 4,000 wounded among them. Healthy prisoners were forced to march up to 250 miles to prison camps. Less than 3,300 prisoners were repatriated to France four months later.

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