Why Were the Marines at Cam Ne?
After the August 1964 incident in the Gulf of Tonkin between North Vietnamese torpedo boats and U.S. Navy destroyers, President Lyndon B. Johnson ordered airstrikes against North Vietnamese military bases and storage areas. Those attacks were conducted by carrier-based aircraft of the U.S. Navy Seventh Fleet. At the same time, the U.S. Pacific Command activated the 9th Marine Expeditionary Brigade (MEB), making it a force in readiness, capable of landing as needed on short notice.
The beginning of 1965 was a period of political instability for the government of South Vietnam. Buddhists led anti-government riots in Saigon and Hue. In February, the Viet Cong launched a major attack on the U.S. military base at Pleiku in the Central Highlands. Again the United States launched retaliatory airstrikes against North Vietnam. In this round the United States would launch attacks from the air base at Da Nang to ensure the participation of the South Vietnamese air force. The possibility existed that North Vietnam might respond by launching air attacks against Da Nang. On February 7, the Marine Corps 1st Light Anti-aircraft Missile Battalion was ordered to protect the airfield there. More VC attacks led to more airstrikes against North Vietnam. On March 7, the Joint Chiefs of Staff ordered the 9th MEB, which had been off the coast of Da Nang, to come ashore to further protect the airfield. A new phase of the war had begun.
