Atlas of Battles

battle, major, Cold War

Battle of Hamburger Hill

Battle of Hamburger Hill was a battle fought on 10 May 1969 at Dong Ap Bia, in what is now Vietnam; it lasted 10 days. It was part of the Vietnam War, which ran from 1955 to 1975. The recorded result: Inconclusive. Recorded strength: ~1,800 infantry; Artillery and air-strike support against 2 battalions, ~800 infantry.

See it on the globe Read the article

ELEPHANT GRASS by Roger A. Blum, CAT I, 1966, Courtesy of the National Museum of the U.S. Army
ELEPHANT GRASS by Roger A. Blum, CAT I, 1966, Courtesy of the National Museum of the U.S. Army. Roger Blum, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought10 May 1969lasted 10 days
WhereDong Ap Bia, Vietnam16.253N, 107.175E
OutcomeInconclusive
BelligerentsUnited States; South VietnamagainstNorth Vietnam
Part ofVietnam War1955 to 1975

Where it sits in the Vietnam War

Battle of Ap Bac, 1963Battle of Go Cong, 1963Battle of Nam Dong, 1964Battle of An Lao, 1964Gulf of Tonkin incident, 1964Battle of Binh Gia, 1964Operation Starlite, 1965Battle of Dong Xoai, 1965Battle of Ba Gia, 1965Battle of Song Be, 1965Battle of Dương Liễu–Nhông Pass, 1965Attack on Camp Holloway, 1965Battle of Núi Thành, 1965Siege of Plei Me, 1965Battle of Gang Toi, 1965Battle of Ap Bau Bang, 1965Battle of Ia Drang, 1965Battle of Xa Cam My, 1966Battle of A Shau, 1966Operation Crimp, 1966Battle of Bong Son, 1966Battle of Suoi Bong Trang, 1966Battle of Long Tan, 1966Battle of Tra Binh Dong, 1967Battle of Tam Quan, 1967Operation Cedar Falls, 1967Operation Bribie, 1967Battle of Hill 881, 1967Battle of Suoi Chau Pha, 1967Operation Francis Marion, 1967Battle of Ong Thanh, 1967First Battle of Loc Ninh, 1967Battle of Dak To, 1967Battle of Saigon, 1968New Year's Day Battle of 1968, 1968Battle of Khe Sanh, 1968Battle of Ban Houei Sane, 1968Battle of Quang Tri, 1968Battle of Lang Vei, 1968Tet Offensive battle of Cholon and Phu Tho Racetrack, 1968Action of 1 March 1968, 1968Battle of Hue, 1968Battle of Lima Site 85, 1968Battle of An Bao, 1968Battle of Kham Duc, 1968Battle of Coral–Balmoral, 1968Operation Speedy Express, 1968Battle of Hat Dich, 1968Operation Dewey Canyon, 1969Battle of Hamburger Hill, 1969Battle of Binh Ba, 1969Battle of Kompong Speu, 1970Battle of Prey Veng, 1970Battle of Fire Support Base Ripcord, 1970Operation Ivory Coast, 1970Operation Lam Son 719, 1971Battle of FSB Mary Ann, 1971Battle of Snuol, 1971Battle of Long Khanh, 1971Battle of Nui Le, 1971First Battle of Quảng Trị, 1972Battle of Loc Ninh, 1972Battle of Đồng Hới, 1972Battle of Kontum, 1972Second Battle of Quảng Trị, 1972Operation Linebacker II, 1972Battle of Cửa Việt, 1973Battle of the Paracel Islands, 1974Battle of Kampot, 1974Battle of Svay Rieng, 1974Battle of the Iron Triangle, 1974Battle of Phuoc Long, 1974Battle of Ban Me Thuot, 1975Battle of Xuan Loc, 1975Fall of Saigon, 197519631975Battle of Hamburger Hill, 1969
75 placed engagements of the Vietnam War in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date10 May 1969
to 20 May 1969
PlaceDong Ap Bia, Vietnam
16.253N, 107.175E
KindBattle, Cold War
Strength~1,800 infantry; Artillery and air-strike support2 battalions, ~800 infantry
Casualties and losses56 killed; 367 wounded; 7 missing; 31 killed; PAVN Claim: 1,500 killed and woundedUS Claim: 630 killed (body count); 3 captured; 89 individual and 22 crew-served weapons recovered
Commanders
  • Melvin Zais
Battle of Hamburger HillBattle of Hamburger HillBattle of A ShauBattle of Signal Hill VietnamBattle of Fire Support Base RipcordBattle of HueBattle of Quang TriBattle of HueBattle of Quang TriDa NangQuảng NgãiPakxeĐông HàSaravan100 km16.253N, 107.175E
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

The ground today

Relief of the ground around the site of Battle of Hamburger Hill
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 50 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Battle of Hamburger Hill today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2024-04-04. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2024.

The recorded site stands at about 964 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 519 to 1,128 m, 609 m of relief, steep country and today it is 89% tree cover, 10% grassland.

tree cover: 89%grassland: 10%tree cover 89%grassland 10%
west to east, 10.0 km539 to 978 mnorth to south, 10.0 km603 to 985 m
Elevation from the Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (ESA, Airbus); land cover from ESA WorldCover 2021 (CC BY 4.0), within about 5 km of the recorded site. Computed, not recorded.

Nearest engagements

In the same war

Elsewhere in 1969

Battle of Hamburger Hill is one of 2,997 engagements of the 20th century in the atlas and one of 140 in present-day Vietnam.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q247395, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Hamburger Hill, revision 1380874158, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.