WI US carpet bomb Hanoi during the Vietnam War

Hecatee

Hecatee

Donor
I was looking at 'Full metal jacket' yesterday when a question came to me : what would happen to the NV had the US decided to carpet bomb Hanoi and proceeded to do so. So two questions :

- when is the best date for such an action ?
- what are the consequences of such an action at various time during the war.

By extension what if the US had carpet-bombed North Korea during that conflict ?
 

MarkA

Hecatee said:
I was looking at 'Full metal jacket' yesterday when a question came to me : what would happen to the NV had the US decided to carpet bomb Hanoi and proceeded to do so. So two questions :

- when is the best date for such an action ?
- what are the consequences of such an action at various time during the war.

By extension what if the US had carpet-bombed North Korea during that conflict ?
Click to expand...

War between the US and the USSR and if your extension happens then with China too.
 

hammo1j

Donor
I think the problems were not in actually carrying out the bombing but the consequences it might have provoked in North Vietnam's commie allies. ie China, USSR and Jane Fonda.

I would suggest this would be used by the Anti war protestors and China would up its covert level of support considerably.
 

Dave Howery

one result would be pretty heavy losses amongst the bombers... IIRC, Hanoi was guarded by the densest wall of AA missiles in the whole world....
 

Timmy811

Hecatee said:
I was looking at 'Full metal jacket' yesterday when a question came to me : what would happen to the NV had the US decided to carpet bomb Hanoi and proceeded to do so. So two questions :

- when is the best date for such an action ?
- what are the consequences of such an action at various time during the war.

By extension what if the US had carpet-bombed North Korea during that conflict ?
Click to expand...

:confused: Didn't B-29s carpet bomb the Industrial sections of Pyonyang during the Korean conflict?
 

Susano

Banned
China gets involved in the war.

You know, contrary tzo popular conservative myth in the USA, the US Armed Forces didnt touch North Vietnam out of niceness (they US Armed Forces were not nice in Vietnam, but atrocious - and so wouldve been a carpet bombing of a city, too!), but for good politcial and military reason.
 

Grimm Reaper

It would be news to Hanoi and the USAF that there was no large-scale bombing of Hanoi in particular and North Vietnam in general by the US during the war.
 

Derek Jackson

I do not know how much Hanoi was bombed but I do believe that the US dropped more bombs in the Vietnam war than were dropped in WW2. The idea that somehow it was America's moderation which caused the defeat that nation suffered is simply false.
 

Hannibal.Caesar

Derek Jackson said:
I do not know how much Hanoi was bombed but I do believe that the US dropped more bombs in the Vietnam war than were dropped in WW2. The idea that somehow it was America's moderation which caused the defeat that nation suffered is simply false.
Click to expand...

Amen to that. The US did indeed carpet bomb Hanoi and North Vietnam during the Vietnam--look up Operation Linebacker and Operation Linebacker II. Although much of the operations were aimed at destroying North Vietnam's infrastructure, there were many B-52 sorties against Hanoi and other large cities. They were very successful, too, for the most part. Operation Linebacker halted a NVA offensive, forced North Vietnam back to the negotiating table, and worked some concessions out of them too. I'm not sure of the particulars, but I know that Operation Linebacker II was very unpopular with US public opinion and therefore it was stopped. In short, we were often our (the USA) own worst enemies.
 

chris N

To begin with the Russians and the Chinese would not have entered the war. Supplying weapons was one thing possbly starting a nuclear war over North Vietnam war a no no. If the US had also destroyed the Red River Damms North Vietnam would have collapsed.
 

Amerigo Vespucci

Hecatee said:
I was looking at 'Full metal jacket' yesterday when a question came to me : what would happen to the NV had the US decided to carpet bomb Hanoi and proceeded to do so. So two questions :

- when is the best date for such an action ?
- what are the consequences of such an action at various time during the war.

By extension what if the US had carpet-bombed North Korea during that conflict ?
Click to expand...

It did happen. See Operation Linebacker and Operation Linebacker II.
 

Tyr

The US would face even worse PR than OTL.
Wouldn't this count as a war crime even?
I'm certain post WW2 laws were put in place outlawing bombing civilian targets.
 

aktarian

Hecatee said:
I was looking at 'Full metal jacket' yesterday when a question came to me : what would happen to the NV had the US decided to carpet bomb Hanoi and proceeded to do so. So two questions :

- when is the best date for such an action ?
- what are the consequences of such an action at various time during the war.

By extension what if the US had carpet-bombed North Korea during that conflict ?
Click to expand...

Define carpet bombing. Does that mean that B-52s unload bombs over Hanoi Warsaw style not caring what they hit or simple intense bombings of military and industrial targets and railroad infrastructure which would result in substantial collateral damage?

If the former I don't think military would be thrileld with it in the first place.
 
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