Atlas of Battles

battle, major, Cold War

Operation Linebacker II

Operation Linebacker II was a battle fought in 1972 at North Vietnam, in what is now Vietnam. Its exact site is not recorded; the atlas places it at North Vietnam. It was part of the Vietnam War, which ran from 1955 to 1975. The recorded result: Both sides claim victory.

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Fought1972
WhereNorth Vietnam, Vietnam21.033N, 105.850E, placed at the location, approximate
OutcomeBoth sides claim victory
BelligerentsUnited States; United States Air Force; United States Navy; United States Marine CorpsagainstNorth Vietnam; Air Defence – Air Force Service; Naval Service
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, 197519631975Operation Linebacker II, 1972
75 placed engagements of the Vietnam War in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date1972 (year precision)
to 1972
PlaceNorth Vietnam, Vietnam
21.033N, 105.850E
KindBattle, Cold War
Strength197 to 207 strategic bombers B-52,; 14 tactical air groups consisting of 1,077 aircraft of all types from 3 air bases and 6 aircraft carrier14 SA-2 batteries; (266 SA-2 missiles were launched during the operation); 100+ aircraft (including 31 MiG-21s and 16 MiG-17s fighters); AA gun units
Casualties and lossesU.S. claim: 12 tactical aircraft shot down; 15 B-52s shot down; 4 B-52s suffered heavy damage; 5 B-52s suffered medium damage; 43 killed in action; 49 taken prisoner; PAVN claim: 81 aircraft shot down; (including 34 B-52s and 5 F-111s; this includes two B-52s shot down by MiG-21 fighters)U.S. claim: 6 MiG-21s shot down (including 2 MiG-21s shot down by B-52 tail gunners); PAVN claim: 3 MiG-21s shot down; 1,624 civilians killed
Commanders
  • John W. Vogt Jr.
  • John C. Meyer
  • Văn Tiến Dũng
  • Phùng Thế Tài
  • Lê Văn Tri (born 1920)
Operation Linebacker IIOperation Linebacker IIBattle of HanoiSiege of SongpingSiege of Đông QuanBattle of Cầu GiấyOperation Ivory CoastBattle of HanoiBattle of Cầu GiấyOperation Ivory CoastHaiphongThái NguyênNam ĐịnhNinh BìnhHoa BinhBắc GiangPingxiangLạng Sơn100 km21.033N, 105.850E
Placed at North Vietnam; the exact site is not recorded. 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 Operation Linebacker II
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 5 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Operation Linebacker II today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2024-04-27. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2024.

The recorded site stands at about 21 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 0 to 35 m, 35 m of relief, gently rolling country and today it is 55% built-up, 22% water, 19% tree cover.

built-up: 55%water: 22%tree cover: 19%built-up 55%water 22%tree cover 19%
west to east, 10.0 km3 to 27 mnorth to south, 10.0 km0 to 29 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 1972

Operation Linebacker II 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 Q486866, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Operation Linebacker II, revision 1381945556, 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.