Video the Battle of An Lộc

The Battle of An Lộc was a major battle of the Vietnam War that lasted for 66 days and culminated in a decisive victory for South Vietnam. In many ways, the struggle for An Lộc in 1972, was an important battle of the war, as South Vietnamese forces halted the North Vietnamese advance towards Saigon.
The 6000 men of the 5th ARVN Division had reinforcements consisting of the 21st ARVN Division which was plagued by a very slow move from the Delta area in the south of the country and as such did not arrive in time to make a significant attempt at breaking the siege. The 1st Airborne brigade also had a tough time tracking up route 13 due to resistance from the NVA 7th and managed to fight their way in around the 13th of April. Two Airborne brigades were rushed in to reinforce the defenders when Loc Ninh fell and as such were the only meaningful reinforcements to the beleaguered ARVN 5th Division.
The ARVN defenders did have one card to play throughout the battle, the immense power of US air support. The use of B-52 Stratofortress bombers (a strategic strike craft capable of carrying one hundred and eight MK82 (500 pound) bombs on one run) in a close support tactical role, as well as AC-119 Stinger and AC-130E Spectre gunships, fixed wing cargo aircraft of varying sizes, Cobra attack helicopters and M72 LAW's. These methods worked to blunt the offensive from the North Vietnamese Army. At this stage in the war the NVA often attacked with PT-76 light and T-54/55 medium tanks spearheading the advance, usually preceded by a massive artillery barrage. These tactics reflected Soviet doctrine, as the NVA had been supplied with Soviet (and Chicom-Chinese Communist) equipment; including jets, artillery, and Surface to Air Missiles (SAMs) since the beginning of the war.The battle eventually stagnated and became a periodic trade of artillery barrages, most probably as a result of casualties sustained in frustrated attacks on heavily entrenched enemy positions that could call in a withering array of supporting fire power.
On the 11th of May 1972 the North Vietnamese Army launched a massive all-out infantry and armor (T-54/55 medium tanks) assault on the town. This attack was thwarted in a now-familiar fashion. Almost every B-52 in South East Asia was called in to strike the massing enemy tanks and infantry. The commander of the defending forces had placed a grid around the town creating many "boxes" each measuring 1km by 3km in size which were given a number and could be called by ground forces at any time, the B52 Arclight cells (groups of 3 Aircraft) were guided onto these boxes by ground based radar. During the 11th and 12th of May, the US Air Force managed an "Arc Light" mission every 55 minutes for 30 hours straight, using 170 B-52's and smashing regiments of NVA in the process.
Two more offensives by the (NVA) PAVN took place on 12th and 14th of May; but these did not have the same venom as the attack of 11 May, and the NVA directed its main efforts to cutting off any more relief columns. However, by the 9th of June this had proven ineffective, and the defenders were able to receive the injection of manpower and supplies needed to sweep the surrounding area of North Vietnamese forces. By the 18th of June 1972 the battle had been declared over.
The victory, however, was not complete, as route 13 still was not closed, and South Vietnamese bases from An Lộc to Chon Thanh were abandoned.