Mines and Booby Traps 

 One of a Combat Infantryman’s worst fears was not of being killed, but of being maimed. Because of mines and booby traps, it happened all too often in Vietnam, with an estimated 60% of Purple Hearts won by mine and booby trap casualties. (Sarlin)

Wikipedia The Free Encyclopedia describes a booby trap as an “antipersonnel device, such as a landmine or grenade, placed in a building or a noncombat area that has a psychological draw for enemy soldiers.” These tactics were used in the Vietnam, which played a big role in the war. They used both mines and booby traps, and were able to hurt American troops physically but mentally too.Not all booby traps were intended to explode and kill, in fact:

They didn’t always kill…, but they were always physical and psychological disablers….The effect mines had on fighting spirit was devastating . Mines clobber morale because they are unseen, and there’s This was the purpose of booby traps, and it worked. The ability that the Vietcong had to disable and wound their enemy psychologically gave them an advantage. They took this advantage and used it full force. The Vietcong were able to divert American troops manpower away from them and towards looking and clearing traps. With this ability booby traps became,“a key component in pre-arranged killing zones” (Coursework).

The main type of mines were anti-personnel and anti-tank; however, they were found in all different types and forms, which depended on the area being covered. Anti-tank mines were made to detonate with a minimum of 125 pounds of pressure or so. However, it was not uncommon to find that they were connected to anti-personnel mines which allowed them to detonate at a much lower pressure (Sarlin). Anti-personnel mines were constructed to kill or wound troops with shrapnel or blast. “In fact, wounding is often the goal, because it takes more men out of combat to look after the victim” (Sarlin). The three main types of anti-personnel mines were bounding mines or Bouncing Betty, directional mines or Claymores, and basic fragmenting mines or Soviet POMZ-2 mine. The Bouncing Betty dates all the way back to the 1930’s when it was first developed, the French named it “the silent soldier.” An aspect that makes this mine so harmful is that it has two charges. The initial explosion shoots it up about three or four feet, and then the second sends shrapnel flying everywhere.

Bruce Weigl, author of Song of Napalm, tells about his experiences as a soldier in Vietnam through his poem entitled “Mines”:

In Vietnam I was always afraid of mines:

North Vietnamese mines, Vietcong mines,            

French mines, American mines,

Whole fields marked with warning signs.  

A Bouncing Betty comes up waist high—

Cuts you in half.       

One man’s legs were laid

Alongside him in the dust-off,

He asked for a chair back, morphine,

He screamed he wanted to give

His eyes away, his kidneys,

His heart……………………(Weigl)

This poem portrays how much fear was put into these young men’s hearts, how they feared the potential destructiveness of the Bouncing Betty and other mines. Another soldier who also fought in Vietnam explains, a “Bouncing Betty can maim as well as kill, and that’s the demoralizing thought that can turn a brave man’s blood cold. Most soldiers become fatalistic about death, but not about losing limbs or, worse. our balls, and surviving. We just had to put that thought to the back of our minds,” says Ray Sarlin who served in the Vietnam War.

Other devices that the NV used were homemade, these included panji sticks, ammo booby trap, spike board, and much more (The American). The basic panji trap consisted of a block of wood with bamboo spikes and barbed metal inserted into the board. A hole of about two feet was dug, then this contraption was placed into the hole and covered with ground litter. The enemy’s foot would collapse the covering, and the spikes would sink into his skin incapacitating him. Another simple device was the ammo booby trap. It was a round of ammunition with a pin or sharp object pressed up against the percussion cap, and then placed into a hollow stalk of bamboo or pipe. When pressure was pressed upon the prepared trap, the bullet would go off in a normal manner. The last type of trap was the spike board. It was a simple trap consisting of a spiked board at one end and a pit at the other. In between was a treadle board. When the treadle board was broken, the weight of the one end of the trap would fall into the pit and the spiked board would fly up and into the chest of the person setting off the trap (The 5th). All of these traps were used repeatedly throughout the war, and were very successful for the North Vietnam.

Although there was no way around these horrible devices, American troops took as many precautions as possible. The army warned and trained soldiers about mines and booby traps as described below.

American G.I.’s were issued a small wallet-sized card with warnings about VietCong/North Vietnamese Army and booby traps. Below is the text from that card:

“Mines and Booby Traps” card

TIPS ON VC/NVA MINES

AND BOOBY TRAPS

BE ALERT—STAY ALIVE

USARV GTA 20-1 August 1967

DISTRIBUTION-1 TO EACH US ARMY MEMBER

IN VIETNAM

MINES AND BOOBY TRAPS CAN KILL SO BE ALERT-STAY ALIVE.

IF POSSIBLE, DON’T BE IN TOO MUCH OF A HURRY.

NEVER TAKE ANYTHING FOR GRANTED, IT MIGHT LOOK HARMLESS BUT IT MIGHT BE A KILLER.

EVIDENCE OF OLD CAMOUFLAGE MAY INDICATE MINES AND BOOBY TRAPS.

SUSPECT ALL OBJECTS THAT APPEAR LOOSE OR OUT OF PLACE.  

ALWAYS LOOK FOR TRIP WIRES.

NEVER BUNCH UP AND BECOME A GOOD TARGET FOR COMMAND DETONATEDMINES.

DESTROY MINES AND BOOBY TRAPS IN PLACE OR MARK, REPORT, AND LEAVE THEM ALONE.  

BEFORE CUTTING TRIP WIRES, CHECKBOTH ENDS FOR BOOBY TRAPS.

OBJECTS SHOULD NOT BE DISTURBED WITHOUT CHECKING FOR BOOBY TRAPS.

ONLY THE ENEMT’S IMAGINATION LIMITS HIS USE OF MINES AND BOOBY TRAPS-REMEMBER THAT.

BE ESPACIALLY CAREFUL IN AREAS WHERE YOU ARE EXPECTED TO SLOW DOWN, BUNCH UP OR BECOME A GOOD TARGET.

YOU CAN LEARN A LOT FROM THE LOCAL PEOPLE, SEEK THEIR HELP IN LOCATING MINES AND BOOBY TRAPS.  

TRAILS AND RAODS SHOULD BE SUSPECTED. CHECK REFILLED HOLES, AREAS COVERED WITH STRAW OR GRASS, LITTERED WITH DUNG. PAVEMENT REPAIRS, AND OTHER SUSPICIOUS SPOTS.

REPORT MINES AND BOOBY TRAPS IMMEDIATELY.

ALWAYS CHECK YOUR AREA FOR EVIDENCE OF MINES AND BOOBY TRAPS WHEN YOU SET UP YOUR DEFENSE.

PROBE GINGERLY WHEN MINES ARE SUSPECTED; DON’T DEPEND SOLELY ON MINE DETECTORS.

SINCE THERE WAS NOTHING IN THE AREA YESTERDAY, DON’T ASSUME THERE IS NOTHING THERE TODAY.  

KNOWLEDGE INSPIRES CONFIDENCE

REMEMBER

MINES AND BOOBY TRAPS ARE FAVORITE DEVICES OF THE VC/NVA. GRENADES, SPIKE TRAPS, AP AND AT MINES AND A VARIETY OF OTHER MEANS ARE EMPLOYED TO HARASS, SLOW DOWN, CONFUSE AND KILL FRIENDLY FORCES. THE FORMS OF THESE WEAPONS ARE LIMITED ONLY BY THE IMAGINATION OF THE DESIGNER. YOUR BEST DEFENSE AGAINST MINES AND BOOBY TRAPS IS……..

ALERTNESS

&

CAUTION (Official)

This shows just how incredibly dangerous it was in Vietnam, due to these mines and booby traps. And the special training that took place to keep the fighting soldiers as safe as possible.

So, as we see, the Viet Cong had quite an impact on the opposing soldiers. With their mines, and their wide array of booby traps, they, in fact, placed fear into American troops, and thus, psychologically won the war. The Viet Cong booby traps were deadly. They worked well at slowing down their enemies. And as we ultimately see now and experienced then, their booby traps helped them to push the United States’ Armed Forces out and win the war over South Vietnam. 

 

        

 

Another example of a homemade booby-trap.                                                                                                               Picture of men who found a booby trap

                                                                                                                                                                                         and are removing it .