An act of Congress honoring Vietnam veterans with a day of recognition was signed into law by President Trump on March 29, 2017. As a result, March 29 is now designated as National Vietnam War Veterans Day by the Vietnam War Veterans Recognition Act of 2017. In addition, the U.S. flag will be flown to commemorate those who served in Vietnam.
Many are not aware of the meaning of this day or much of the history of the Vietnam War. Did you know…
The United States became involved in Vietnam because policy-makers believed that if South Vietnam fell to a communist government, communism would spread throughout the rest of Southeast Asia.
Vietnam War Facts
The U.S. Armed Forces began serving in an advisory role to the South Vietnamese in 1961, and in 1965, ground combat troops were sent into Vietnam.
During the official Vietnam era, 9,087,000 military personnel served on active duty from August 5, 1964, to May 7, 1975.
Vietnam Veterans represented 9.7% of their generation.
After many years of combat, all U.S. troops were withdrawn from Vietnam on March 30, 1973, under the terms of the Treaty of Paris.
2,709,918 Americans served in uniform in Vietnam.
More than 58,148 members of the United States Armed Forces lost their lives, 75,000 were severely disabled, 23,214 were 100% disabled, 5,283 lost limbs, 1,081 sustained multiple amputations, and more than 300,000 were wounded in Vietnam.
The first man to die in Vietnam was James Davis in 1961. He was with the 509th Radio Research Station. Davis Station in Saigon was named for him.
Of those killed, the average age was 23.1. 61% were younger than 21. 11,465 of those killed were younger than 20 years old. Of those killed, 17,539 were married, five were only 16 years old, and the oldest killed was 62.
During the Vietnam War, two hundred forty men were awarded the Medal of Honor.
74% of Vietnam Veterans say they would serve again, even knowing the outcome.
DPAA has identified more than 1,573 missing personnel associated with the Vietnam War conflict. This identification effort is called the “Vietnam War Identification Project” or VWIP.
Vietnam: Of the remaining missing personnel still unaccounted for in Vietnam, over 400 are in a “non-recoverable” category. This information means that we have conclusive evidence that the individual perished due to rigorous investigation, but we do not believe it is possible to recover his remains. New leads can arise on rare occasions, returning a case to an active status.
