Operation Chenla I

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Operation Chenla I

Date	August 1970- February 1971
Location	Cambodia
Result	Cambodian limited strategic success, Destruction of Cambodian air force.

Combatants

Khmer Republic

North Vietnam

Commanders

Brig. Gen. Um Savuth

N/A

Strength

3,000+

VPA 9th Division

Casualties

???

Vietnam War
Ap Bac – Binh Gia – Song Be – Dong Xoai – Ia Drang – Long Tan – Dak To – Tra Binh Dong –Ong Thanh – 1st Tet – Khe Sanh – 1st Saigon – Lang Vei – Hills 881 & 861 – 2nd Tet – Hamburger Hill – Binh Ba – Ripcord – Lam Son 719 – FSB Mary Ann – Easter '72 – An Loc – Kontum – Phuoc Long – Ho Chi Minh – Buon Me Thuot – Xuan Loc – 2nd Saigon – Barrell Roll – Rolling Thunder – Pony Express – Steel Tiger – Commando Hunt – Linebacker I – Linebacker II – *Chenla I* – Tiger Hound – Lima Site 85 – Tailwind – Chenla II – Cambodia

Operation Chenla I was an operation of the Vietnam War. The Cambodian armed forces launched the operation during late August 1970 with limited air-support from the South Vietnamese army and air force. The operation was terminated in February 1971, after the Cambodian High Command made a decision to withdraw some units from Tang Kauk to protect Phnom Penh after Pochentong airbase was attacked.

The objective of the operation was to reconnect Skoun and Kompong Cham along Route 7, which was repeatedly attacked by Communist forces.

1 Chenla I
2 After Chenla I
3 Source
4 External link

[edit] Chenla I

Initially the Cambodian operation went as plan, Tang Kauk was retaken during early September with ease. The Cambodian military helped resettle refugees and setting up local self-defense forces.

In response to Operation Chenla I, the North Vietnamese Army launched a series of attacks on Cambodian positions on Route 7, the areas around Kompong Cham and Prey Totung were scenes of significant fighting during the closing months of 1970. As a result of pressure from the VPA 9th Division, the Cambodian army couldn't advance beyond Tang Kauk.

South Vietnamese forces joined the Cambodian operation east of the Mekong River in December, allowing the Cambodian army to reopen Route 7 without making contacts with enemy troops.

On the night of January 21, 1971, a force of about 100 North Vietnamese special forces armed with explosives and rocket launchers, mounted an attack on the Cambodian air force base of Pochentong. The areas surrounding Pochentong was also under attack. President Lon Nol of the Khmer Republic extended the 'State of Emergency' for another six months as Cambodian units from Tang Kauk were redeployed to protect the capital Phnom Penh, effectively terminating Chenla I.

[edit] After Chenla I

Despite early gains the Cambodian military only achieved a limited strategic success, the VPA 9th Division still control a large portion of territory outside Phnom Penh. The attack on Pochentong airbase during the night of January 21 nearly wiped out the entire Cambodian air force, destroying all MiG jet fighters. Lon Nol was evacuated by U.S aircraft for treatment at Tripler General Hospital after suffering from a severe stroke.