Combat· Vietnam War
Fall of Ngok Tavak
The fall of Ngok Tavak was a sharp defeat at a remote outpost near the Laotian border in the rugged country around the Kham Duc Special Forces camp.
The small hilltop position, held by a mixed force that included a Marine artillery detachment supporting indigenous and Special Forces troops, was overrun by a strong North Vietnamese assault in a fierce night and dawn attack. The defenders, cut off and badly outnumbered, fought to hold the perimeter against an enemy who penetrated the position with infantry and sappers, and after heavy fighting the survivors were forced to abandon the outpost and fight their way clear, with helicopters extracting those who could reach the landing zone. The loss of Ngok Tavak preceded the broader decision to evacuate the exposed Kham Duc camp itself. It was a costly small action that demonstrated the vulnerability of isolated border outposts to concentrated North Vietnamese attack.
Record no. 689