Operation Overview
Ranch Hand was not the first time that herbicides were used
for warfare. Initial tests were completed in World War
II to determine whether sprayed chemicals could be used to mark
navigation points and defoliate jungle cover (19).
During the 1950s, British forces sprayed isolated jungles of
communist insurgents as part of a food denial program during
the Malayan Emergency, and shortly after this the United States
began developing and improving herbicide delivery techniques
(19).
The United States government officially mentioned the
use of herbicides for warfare in July, 1961 and limited but
successful tests were completed in South Vietnam as a result
(19). In late 1961,
the extensive use of herbicides were proposed with the Department
of Defense acting as a major supporter and finally John F. Kennedy
approved Operation Ranch Hand on November 30th, 1961 (19).
 Ranch
Hand began with 6 C-123 provider planes equipped with the ability
to spray, and early missions were preceded by vocal broadcasts
and leaflets to warn villages below that spraying would occur
(18). The first missions
were met with heavy artillery fire from ground forces below,
and a Ranch Hand crew became the first Air Force casualty of
the war in 1962 (18).
In order to combat the enemy fire, night defoliant missions
were employed in 1963 and planes flew surprise, random missions
(18). In 1964, the planes
were changed to UC-123s and, in 1966, flights over the demilitarized
zone became more frequent (18).
By 1967, Ranch Hand flew 18-27 sorties every day with 3 or 4
aircraft per spray mission and by 1968, over 500 missions had
been flown (18). After
the Tet Offensive, however, Ranch Hand flew 2,866 emergency
missions to contest the largest Viet Cong offensive of the war
(18). In 1969, all planes
used for Ranch Hand were modified K-model versions that flew
with A-1 skyraiders that provided flank protection from ground
fire and F-4 jet fighters that attacked ground forces after
the spray had passed (18).
When Agent Orange, the most widely used herbicide, was banned
in 1970, the Air Force was forced to spray all other available
agents (19) until Operation
Ranch Hand was banned on January 7th, 1971 (18).
President Ford issued an executive order in 1975 renouncing
the use of herbicides in war by the United States, and an operation
like Ranch Hand would never be repeated (18).
The deployment of herbicides was done by planes and truck
mounted sprayers, and the herbicides were categorized as agents
including Agent Orange, Pink, Purple, Green, Blue and White.
Each plane was equipped with a 1,000 gallon herbicide tank and
dispersal spray booms mounted under each wing and tail (18).
Missions were flown at an average of 130 knots as low as possible
and the resulting herbicide path was up to 10 miles long and
80 yards wide. The ecological effects shown today are
numerous and incredible (18).
| TABLE 1: Summary of Herbicides
Used in Vietnam by Year (20) |
|
YEAR
|
TOTAL GALLONS USED
|
TOTAL ACRES EFFECTED
|
TOTAL SQ. MILES EFFECTED
|
|
1962
|
17,171
|
5,724
|
27
|
|
1963
|
74,760
|
24,920
|
117
|
|
1964
|
281,607
|
93,869
|
440
|
|
1965
|
664,657
|
221,552
|
1,039
|
|
1966
|
2,535,788
|
845,263
|
3,962
|
|
1967
|
5,123,353
|
1,707,784
|
8,005
|
|
1968
|
5,089,010
|
1,696,337
|
7,952
|
|
1969
|
4,558,817
|
1,519,606
|
7,123
|
|
1970
|
758,966
|
252,989
|
1,186
|
|
1971
|
10,039
|
3,346
|
16
|
|
Year Unknown
|
281,201
|
93,734
|
439
|
|
TOTAL:
|
19,395,369
|
6,465,123
|
30,305
|
|
