XA MAT

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP84-00825R000300420001-4
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 10
• Document Creation Date: December 9, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 31, 2000
• Sequence Number: 1
• Content Type: REPORT

Approved For Release 2000/09/03 : CIA-RDP84-00825R000300420001-4
XA MAT
The site of the village of Xa Mat is in northern Tay Ninh
Province adjacent to the South Vietnam - Cambodia border, at a
road junction about 30 miles north of Tay Ninh city. The principal
road, QL 22, extends from Tay Ninh city to the Xa Mat location
where it connects with the Cambodian route leading to Kampong
Cham, a major port on the Mekong River (see 1:250,000 map).
The village of Xa Mat has been destroyed and there are
presently no villages in South Vietnam within a 10 to 12 mile
radius of its former location. The only signs of possible
habitation are the numerous sites of military encampments and
fortifications found at strategic locations along Route QL 22.
In April 1972 ARVN forces abandoned this key border entry point
and the area now is under NVA control. Most of the civilian
population of northern Tay Ninh Province has been relocated to
refugee camps around Tay Ninh city; those who remain are Viet
Cong or Communist sympathizers.
As there are no villages or significant agricultural areas
in northern Tay Ninh, supplies will probably have to be brought
in from Tay Ninh city. The 30-mile drive from the city to Xa
Mat is along an all-weather, natural surface road -- highway
QL 22. (The road is subject to flooding during the rainy
season, but its surface drains rapidly and resupply should not
be hindered significantly.) Driving time could take as much
as 2 hours, however, depending upon the status of the road since
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the heavy fighting of 1972. In the immediate area north of Ap
Trai Bi the road was bombed extensively, but repairs are easy
in this area and the NVA may have the road in operable condition.
More serious problems may occur if the bridge over the Suoi Ky
is out; passage across the river appears to be difficult even
during the dry season. The road has been cleared of all forest
for several hundred feet on either side; in some areas the route
passes through high elephant grass (see Sketch Map). QL 22 is
lined with circular strongpoints or evacuated military encampments
from about 8 miles north of Tay Ninh city to the Cambodian border.
East-west roads that connect with QL 22 near Xa Mat such as
246, LTL 20, and 247 are all partly fair-weather roads of varying
trafficability. Route 246 linking Xa Mat and Katum is fair-weather
a few miles northeast of Xa Mat; then it becomes a trail that has
been extensively damaged. Route LTL 20 is probably jeepable to
the Cambodian border during the dry season. Route 247 was
extensively damaged and may be "rough going" for anything but
tracked vehicles even during the dry season (see 1:100,000 map).
An airfield has been carved out of QL 22 about 5 miles south
of Xa Mat, near the area of the former Special Forces camp. The
strip is natural surface but probably well-drained; its service-
ability is unknown. Another airstrip at Ap Trai Bi is almost
certainly unserviceable. Resupply by helicopter seems to be the
most logical alternative unless the airstrip at the former Special
Forces camp has been maintained by the North Vietnamese Army.
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Helicopter use of the roads and airstrip is possible during the
wet season. A number of low-lying open areas are available as
helicopter landing zones; some, however, would be inundated
during the rainy season.
Northern Tay Ninh Province is an area of flat to undulating
terrain, lying at a general elevation of 65 to 70 feet above sea
level. The location of Xa Mat, at higher elevations than the
Mekong lowlands to the south, permits sufficient drainage to
allow relatively easy movement on foot during all seasons.
Vegetation in the Xa Mat area varies from grasslands to multi-
storied forests (see Sketch Map). In general, the grasslands
exist as clearings interspersed through the forests, but there
are extensive areas of elephant grass, which may grown as high
as 10 feet, with scattered trees. (Personnel moving through a
thick stand of tall elephant grass will not be observable from
ground level.) The forests are a combination of deciduous and
broadleaf evergreen trees. The forest canopy formed by the
crowns of broadleaf evergreen trees of different heights is
often so dense as to prevent any aerial observation of ground
activity. The marshes and swamps in the general area of Xa
Mat tend to "dry up" during the winter dry season.
Xa Mat receives most of its rainfall between the months of
May and October when monsoon winds bring rain from the southwest.
Precipitation, which occurs principally as showers from early
afternoon to late evening, amounts from 65 to 85 inches in this
season. The combination of high relative humidity and high
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temperatures that characterizes the summer months can be
extremely oppressive; afternoon temperatures average near 90
and the mean relative humidity for these months averages around
80 percent. As maximum cloud cover occurs during the rainy
season, the area may be "socked in" for several days at a time,
prohibiting resupply by air.
The dry season in Xa Mat occurs from December through
March when the area receives less than 3 inches of rainfall.
Although temperatures decrease only a few degrees in this
period, the climate becomes more tolerable as relative humidity
levels normally drop to 50 percent during the afternoon hours.
Temperatures sharply rise and may reach 100?F, however, during
the 2 months (March and April) preceding the onset of the
monsoon. Dust on the natural surface roads, airstrips, and in
the base camps is considerable during the dry season.
In early 1973 northern Tay Ninh Province was a Communist
stronghold with NVA headquarters reported at Xa Mat and Katum.
Supplies were floated down the Mekong River to drop off points
south of Kampong Cham, Cambodia. From here they were trans-
shipped across Cambodia to large base areas along the South
Vietnam - Cambodia border. One of these base areas was in
Cambodia immediately adjacent to Xa Mat (see 1:250,000 scale
map). A larger area lies 20 miles northwest of Tay Ninh city,
around Kampong Trach, Cambodia. From Kampong Trach men and
supplies were infiltrated down the Vam Co Dong River, through
the Straight Edge Woods to south of Tay Ninh city (see
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1:250,000 scale map). Other staging areas were along the
border northeast and northwest of Katum. Numerous infiltration
trails and one possible fair-weather road extend south from
route 246 between Xa Mat and Katum. Other networks cross the
Cambodian border southwest of Xa Mat and link with QL 22.
Live North Vietnamese booby traps and possible ARVN mine-
fields are scattered throughout the northern Tay Ninh region.
An extensively booby-trapped area lies north of Nui Ba Den
(mountain), located about 7 miles northeast of Tay Ninh city
(see 1:250,000 scale map). Grenades, artillery shells and
unexploded B-52 bombs can be found in this minefield. Trails
through the minefield are known only to the NVA.
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BEST COPY
Available
6/17/98
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82514'000300424001 -4
Special ForcesCamp/Thien Ngon
STATINTL
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CONTENTS
1. 1:16,000 sketch map
2. 1:100,000 scale map
3. 1:250,000 scale map
4. Aerial photo of Thien Ngon
Special Forces Camp
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