Project CHECO Southeast Asia Report. Air Support in Quang Ngai Province

Quang Ngai Province was one of the strongest Viet Cong areas in South Vietnam. Continuous from 1965, the NVA/VC advanced stiff resistance to friendly efforts to gain control of the population. Air support played an Integral part in ground operations against the enemy. Previous CHECO reports often emphasized how air support operated from the Air Force point of view. The purpose of this study is to examine air support from the point of view of the man looking up, to investigate how commanders employed air to support ground operations, to establish its place in the overall tactical situation, and to measure, as far as possible, how air support affected the enemy's ability to operate in Quang Ngai Province. The first chapter outlines the historical setting for air support of friendly ground operations against the enemy. The request systems for obtaining air support are explained in the second chapter, and the final chapter places in context the tactical employment of airpower, the effect of immediate airstrikes, and the often misunderstood impact of preplanned airstrikes on the operational capability of the enemy. Project CHECO was established in 1962 to document and analyze air operations in Southeast Asia. Over the years the meaning of the acronym changed several times to reflect the escalation of operations: Current Historical Evaluation of Counterinsurgency Operations, Contemporary Historical Evaluation of Combat Operations and Contemporary Historical Examination of Current Operations. Project CHECO and other U. S. Air Force Historical study programs provided the Air Force with timely and lasting corporate insights into operational, conceptual and doctrinal lessons from the war in SEA.