What kind of traps did the Viet Cong use?
A cartridge trap is a type of booby trap devised by the Viet Cong and subsequently used against American and other anti-Communist forces supporting South Vietnam during the Vietnam War. It derives its name from the fact that the wounding component of the trap is a small arms cartridge.
How many US soldiers died from traps in Vietnam?
According to the report, Army research shows that nearly 90 percent of the mines and booby traps used against American troops in Vietnam were either American-made or were manufactured by enemy troops with captured American components. About 64,000 American troops were killed or injured by mines in the Vietnam War.
How many people died to Viet Cong booby traps?
In the costliest incident, 14 Americans were killed and 32 wounded in the explosion of a United States artillery shell rigged by the Vietcong as a booby trap.
Why is it called a booby trap?
The term “booby trap” gives rise to the idea that an individual with the misfortune to be caught in the trap does so because the individual is a “booby”, or that an individual who is caught in the trap thereby becomes a “booby”.
What does the bird booby look like?
A large seabird with a fairly long neck, heavy pointed bill, long wings, and a rather long, pointed tail. It has stout, short legs with large webbed feet.
What were booby traps made out of?
Punji sticks were the most infamous of the booby traps used, said to account for 2% of wounds to American soldiers. They were mostly made out of bamboo (though sometimes metal) in varying lengths and width, and had a simple sharpened spike on one end to impale its victim.
What kind of traps did the retreating Vietnamese use?
The retreating Vietnamese would fashion traps from crude spikes, grenades, wires, and even memorabilia. 1. Punji Sticks These are traps made with sharpened bamboo stakes, often smeared with urine, feces, or another substance that would cause infection in the victim.
How common were booby traps in the Vietnam War?
A booby trap with bamboo spikes – Cu Chi tunnels. According to statistics compiled by the Australian Ministry of Defence (Australia had men in Vietnam for almost the entire conflict), 11% of all deaths and 15% of all wounds in Vietnam were due to booby traps (this is for all Allied troops, including US armed forces).
How effective were the snakes in the Vietnam War?
Left in old weapons caches, or tied and left around corners in the various tunnel complexes dug by the Viet Cong, the snakes were not necessarily the most effective booby trap of the war but ranked high in terms of the fear the thought of finding one instilled. During the course of the war, the Vietnamese perfected the “art” of the booby trap.
What kind of traps did the NVA put on US troops?
This is similar to a “keepsake, lose hand” trap, where the NVA would intentionally rig anything a U.S. troop would consider a war trophy with an explosive. 5. Cartridge Trap This trap was an awful one because it was very difficult to detect.