The Vietnam War was defined by a stark technological disparity, pitting the conventional might of the United States and its allies against the highly adaptive, asymmetric tactics of the North Vietnamese Army (NVA) and the Viet Cong (VC). The conflict utilized weaponry ranging from advanced air assets to simple, ingenious guerrilla traps. The weapons used reflected this contrast, shaping the battlefield from the dense jungle floor to high-altitude bombing campaigns.
Infantry Standard Issue Weapons
The personal firearms carried by infantrymen were the most common tools of the conflict, and their performance was heavily influenced by the tropical environment. For American and Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) forces, the M16 rifle became the standard, replacing the older M14. The M16 was a lightweight, 5.56mm caliber weapon designed for high rates of fire, allowing soldiers to carry more ammunition, but early models faced reliability issues in the humid jungle.
The original M16 frequently jammed due to heavy carbon fouling caused by a change in propellant powder. This led to the rapid introduction of the M16A1, which incorporated a chrome-plated chamber and bore to resist corrosion, along with a forward assist mechanism. The M14 rifle, firing the heavier 7.62mm round, remained in use as a designated marksman rifle for its greater range and ability to penetrate dense foliage. The M60 machine gun provided squad-level automatic fire for US forces; this 7.62mm belt-fed weapon weighed over 23 pounds.
The NVA and Viet Cong relied heavily on Soviet and Chinese-supplied weapons, most notably the 7.62x39mm AK-47 assault rifle and the SKS carbine. The AK-47 was known for its rugged reliability and tolerance for mud and dirt, requiring less maintenance than the early M16 models. Its larger 7.62mm round was effective at cutting through the jungle undergrowth. The SKS, a semi-automatic carbine, was also widely used for its simplicity and accuracy. For fire support, the RPD light machine gun, also chambered in 7.62x39mm, offered a lighter alternative to the M60, feeding from a 100-round drum.
Crew-Served and Heavy Ground Support
The conflict utilized larger crew-served weapons systems for concentrated fire support, base defense, and anti-armor capability. The American M101 and the later M102 105mm towed howitzers were the backbone of US firebases. They were capable of firing high-explosive, white phosphorus, and the specialized “Beehive” anti-personnel round that scattered thousands of small darts. The M102 was a lightweight design using aluminum alloys, allowing it to be rapidly transported by helicopter in airmobile operations.
The US deployed the M72 Light Anti-Tank Weapon (LAW), a disposable, shoulder-fired tube containing a 66mm high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT) rocket. Weighing only 5.5 pounds, the LAW provided infantry with a single-shot anti-armor capability. The NVA and VC countered with the Soviet-designed RPG-2 and the more powerful RPG-7 rocket-propelled grenade launchers. The RPG-7 fired a fin-stabilized rocket with a shaped-charge warhead, proving effective against light armor and fortifications.
Mortars were a key component for both sides, offering an indirect fire capability useful for striking targets behind cover. US forces primarily used the 60mm M2 and M19 mortars for light infantry support. The NVA and VC frequently employed the Soviet-pattern 82mm mortar, which was easily broken down for transport along jungle trails. The ability of NVA/VC forces to quickly set up and fire these mortars, a tactic known as “shoot-and-scoot,” made them a constant threat to static US firebases.
Air Power and Rotary Wing Assets
The extensive use of air power was a defining feature of the American strategy for rapid troop movement and fire support. The Bell UH-1 Iroquois, known as the Huey, was the ubiquitous rotary-wing asset. It served as a troop transport, medical evacuation platform, and a gunship. Early Huey gunships were armed with door-mounted M60 machine guns and external pods carrying 7.62mm miniguns and 2.75-inch Hydra 70 rockets.
The need for a dedicated attack helicopter led to the AH-1 Cobra, the world’s first true gunship, which entered service in 1967. The Cobra featured a narrow fuselage and tandem seating, mounting a chin turret that could hold a 7.62mm minigun, a 40mm grenade launcher, or a 20mm cannon. Its stub wings carried a mix of 2.75-inch rockets and, in later models, the TOW anti-tank missile. The Cobra often escorted slower Huey transport helicopters, providing suppressive fire for troop insertion and extraction.
Fixed-wing aircraft delivered the conflict’s heaviest ordnance, notably the B-52 Stratofortress strategic bomber. Initially designed to carry nuclear weapons, the B-52 was adapted for conventional saturation bombing, carrying a payload of up to 70,000 pounds of mixed ordnance. The F-4 Phantom II fighter-bomber was a multi-role aircraft capable of carrying over 18,000 pounds of weapons on nine external hardpoints, including bombs and napalm. Napalm, a jellied gasoline incendiary, was delivered in large canisters and used to clear large areas of vegetation. Agent Orange, one of the “Rainbow Herbicides,” was sprayed from C-123 Provider aircraft to strip the dense jungle canopy and deny the enemy cover, a program codenamed Operation Ranch Hand.
Unique and Asymmetric Warfare Tools
To counter the technological superiority of the US, the NVA and Viet Cong relied on low-tech, asymmetric weapons and ingenious booby traps designed to inflict casualties. These weapons were often improvised using readily available materials, making them difficult to detect. It is estimated that mines and booby traps accounted for a significant percentage of US Army casualties.
The most infamous of these were Punji sticks, sharpened stakes of wood or bamboo placed in camouflaged pits along trails. They were often coated with feces or poison to guarantee infection. These traps were designed not necessarily to kill, but to wound, requiring multiple personnel to evacuate the injured soldier and slowing the unit’s advance. Cartridge traps were another simple, improvised explosive device, consisting of a small-arms cartridge fixed over a nail in a buried bamboo tube.
The extensive tunnel networks, such as those at Củ Chi, necessitated specialized close-quarters weapons for the US “tunnel rats” who cleared them. The standard M1911 .45-caliber pistol was often too loud in the confined space, causing temporary deafness and disorientation. Consequently, some tunnel rats preferred the .38 Special revolver, sometimes equipped with a sound suppressor. The NVA and VC often defended their tunnels with booby traps like grenades and venomous snakes, utilizing narrow passages that forced intruders into vulnerable positions.