In the spring of 1968, the Tank soldiers set up an outstanding victory in the first battle (Ta May - Lang Vay), to contribute to the tradition of “Winning every battle”. Promoting that glorious tradition, the Corps Party Committee and High Command have been synchronously implementing multiple solutions to improve the overall quality and combat power to meet the requirements and tasks of defending the Fatherland.

One of the tanks engaging in the Lang Vay battle in 1968

After 1954, in order to meet the requirements of building and defending the North, liberating the South, and reuniting the country, our Party advocated strengthening and building the revolutionary, regular, and relatively modern Army with the direction of building a number of arms and corps. Following that policy, on October 5^th, 1959, Tank Regiment 202 was established and then gradually developed into the Tank and Armored Corps.

After nearly 10 years of construction and development, at the end of 1967, the Tank and Armored Corps was assigned to coordinate with Division 304, Division 325, and a number of corpses to join the Road 9 - Khe Sanh Campaign ( 1968), directly attacked Ta May base in Huoi San stronghold and Lang Vay base in Ta Con stronghold. This was the first joint battle of the Tank and Armored soldiers in attacking the enemies defending in solid fortifications, and they won a resounding victory in this battle, marking the great growth of the Corps. At the same time, it was a practical - scientific basis for the art of using armored vehicles in the next campaigns and battles, opening up a new possibility of joint combat using armored vehicles and starting the first page of the heroic history of “Winning every battles” of  the Tank and Armored Corps.

The first victory of Ta May - Lang Vay has entered the history of the Tank and Armored troop as a golden page - an inevitable result after nearly ten years of “training and fostering” with the spirit of directing to the frontline and battlefields to be determined to defeat the American invaders. The victory has left multiple valuable lessons about the art of using armored vehicles in combat, such as: the art of marching thousands of kilometers from the North to Quang Tri; maneuver to deploy camouflage and diversionary forces to keep secrets and surprises; selection of directions, targets, and combat methods; and logistics assurance, especially in terms of technical assurance in marching, troop encamping, and practice of joint combat, etc.

Sr Col Do Dinh Thanh (fourth from left) commands an exercise of the Corps

At present, facing the requirements of building the Army, strengthening national defense, defending the Fatherland, and gradually modernizing the Tank and Armored Force,  generations of cadres and soldiers of the Corps are constantly striving to overcome difficulties to solidify and be self-reliant, ... and promoting the tradition of “Winning the first battle” to continue to promote training, combat readiness, and construction of the Corps with high overall quality and  combat power to complete all assigned tasks.

First of all, the Corps has focused on the education work to raise awareness and sense responsibility for cadres and soldiers against the tasks of training and combat readiness. The Corps Party Committee and High Command have identified that training and combat readiness are the most important contents, determining the offensive power of armored vehicles, thereby, to focus on leading and directing agencies and units to well perform the political and ideological education for the subjects. In order for the education work to be effective, the Corps has paid attention to the strong and comprehensive innovation of contents, forms, and methods to ensure the conformity with the characteristics and tasks of each unit and level of awareness of each subject. The education contents are comprehensive, which focus on the position, the meaning, and the need for innovating and improving the quality of training and the level of combat readiness in the current period. The soldiers have been educated to firmly grasp the Party's military and defense views and policies; the undertakings to adjust the organizational structure and modernize the Army; conspiracies and tricks of the enemies; and training targets and requirements to be achieved for each unit in accordance with Resolution No.438-NQ/ĐUBC issued by the Corps Party Committee on “Improving the training quality in the period of 2013-2020 and the subsequent years”. At the same time, the soldiers have also been educated about the infinite loyalty to the Fatherland, the Party, the State, and the People; the tradition of fighting with intrigue, bravery, creativity, and promotion of the raiding power to win the first battle, ... to arouse the spirit of proactive overcoming of difficulties, passion, enthusiasm, and creativity to incessantly research, improve, and master weapons and technical equipment.

In order to enhance the raiding power, the Corps has attached importance to innovating and improving the quality of training and level of combat readiness. It continues to conduct breakthrough researches in comprehensive renovation of training activities from leadership, direction, management, administration, inspection, and assurance to preliminary review, summary, and experience drawing and adhere to the motto of being “Basic, practical, and firm” and attaching importance to comprehensive and intensive training for squadrons and crews to master weapons and technical equipment on new and improved vehicles. To train the soldiers to master technical, tactical, and professional skills; strengthen training according to the situation and close to actual combat practice and training of joint combat with other arms, corpses, and local armed forces in the defense areas. At the same time, to promote the inspection and evaluation of results, competitions, and contests to improve the capacity of training practice for cadres and training results of the units; and to participate in international military contests and achieve high results. In addition, to train the units in the Corps and the military-level training agencies to strengthen the inspection of the training and combat readiness of the tank and armored forces of the entire Army as a basis for reorganizing and timely drawing experience from weak stages and aspects.

In training and performing the task of combat readiness, the Corps has attached importance to sufficiently and timely ensuring aspects with focus on technical assurance. At present, the Tank and Armored force is training and using both relatively modern and modern vehicles, so the task of assurance is placing high and complex requirements. From that fact, the Corps has directed agencies and units to promote research, innovation, and implementation of several assurance measures. At the same time, to adequate and timely ensure reserve supplies for combat readiness, especially fuel and uniform equipment according to the provisions of the tasks, prioritizing the tasks of training, drills, and handling violent situations, riot, search and rescue, disaster prevention and control, etc. To continue to advise the Central Military Commission and the Ministry of Defense to deploy improvement, production and procurement of armored vehicles under the Project of “Ensuring infantry weapons and equipment by 2025 and beyond”. In addition, the Corps has also directed agencies, especially the Military Science Department to coordinate with units and schools to focus on the research and development of the art of tank and armored combat, especially practical issues. The Corps has concentrated on studying the art of diversion and noise reduction; measures for maneuver of armored tanks in the urban area during protests and riots; assurance of communication and joint combat between armored vehicles and combat forces in the provincial and city defense areas, military region defense operations in the event that the enemy carries out strong information war and electronic coercion, ... to put into training. In particular, to continue researching and advising the Central Military Commission and the Ministry of Defense to adjust the arrangement of tank armored units to suit with the determination of strategic defense combat on the battlefields and strategic directions and be ready to timely and effectively cooperate with other forces in the campaigns opened by the Ministry and Military Region (in the war time).

During the research process, to pay attention to inheriting, developing, and creatively applying the lessons of combat experience in “Winning the first battle” to the training and combat readiness and improving the overall quality and raiding power to meet the requirements of the task of defending the Fatherland in the new situation.

Senior Colonel Do Dinh Thanh, Commander of the Corps