bushes and maintained observation posts outside the boundaries of the various installations, and it assisted South Vietnamese security forces guarding strategic bridges.3

Also located in the DVA, the 3d Military Police Bat­talion, under Lieutenant Colonel Charles Fimian, as­sisted the 1st Battalion in security efforts. The 3d Battalion, in addition to furnishing war dogs for the 1st Marine Division, provided guards for the III MAF Correctional Facility, staffed the III MAF Criminal In­vestigation Department (CID), and contributed a 50-man MP contingent to the U.S. Armed forces Police (AFP) in Da Nang. Marines from this AFP detach­ment protected the U.S. Consulate in Da Nang and helped guard the POW ward at the U.S. Army 95th Evacuation Hospital.*4

On 10 August, as the 3d MP Battalion prepared for redeployment in Keystone Robin Alpha, the 1st MP Battalion assumed control of the Marine war dog teams and also took over the 3d Battalion's security respon­sibilities in the DVA. The 1st Battalion, now under Lieutenant Colonel Newell T. Donahoo, who had relieved Lieutenant Colonel Thomaidis on 2 June, fur­nished guards for the former III MAF brig, which passed under Army control on 10 August. Company A of the 1st MP Battalion provided the AFP detach­ments, administered the dog force, and manned the III MAF CID. The 1st MP Battalion initially was sched­uled for redeployment in late 1970, and by mid-August III MAF had completed plans to replace it with a provisional defense battalion consisting of one MP company and a rifle company from the 1st Battalion, 5th Marines. With the delay of Marine redeployments, III MAF scrapped this plan and retained the entire 1st MP Battalion, which in fact became one of the last Marine ground units to stand down.5

Throughout 1970 and early 1971, 1st MP Battalion Marines, who were not detailed to the Armed Forces Police or other special assignments, put in an average of 21 hours per week on day watch and 24 on night watch. They spent another eight hours on patrols and ambushes and manned portions of the Da Nang perimeter for another 48 hours. In July 1970, a typi­cal month, the battalion carried out 280 fire team and 30 squad daytime patrols and 300 fire team and 133 squad night ambushes, made 31 river patrols, and manned 62 squad combat outposts. The battalion also conducted one multi-company operation. Of the to­tal of 836 small-unit activities, the battalion conducted 627 with South Vietnamese forces. None of these oper­ations produced significant enemy contact. The few actions that did occur were confined to brief exchanges of fire or an occasional grenade thrown at a passing Marine patrol.6

Each month elements of the battalion took part in sweeps and cordon and search operations in coopera­tion with Vietnamese Regional and Popular forces, na­tional police, and with reaction forces from other U.S. commands in the DVA. These operations rarely flushed out any NVA or VC, but they produced a steady haul of suspected VCI. RVNAF deserters and American military personnel who were off limits or absent without leave were also frequently taken into custody. During August, for example, companies of the 1st MP Battalion participated in 10 searches, ap­prehending 16 VCI, 35 ARVN deserters, 2 U.S. Army soldiers, a Marine, and a U.S. Navy sailor.

Working with troops and police from Da Nang Spe­cial Sector, the Marine MPs cracked down on the drug peddlers and prostitutes that infested the city. On 12, 13, and 14 October, elements of Company B joined Vietnamese authorities in a series of raids on hideouts in downtown Da Nang. The MPs and police seized caches of drugs, and arrested 21 Marines and five US-Army soldiers, all of whom were turned over to the Armed Forces Police and charged with being in un­authorized areas. They also apprehended 27 prosti­tutes and two VC suspects.

The enemy in the DVA consisted mostly of Viet Cong terrorists, sappers, and political agitators who usually operated in groups of three to five. By effec­tive security measures, III MAF prevented sapper at­tacks on the airfields during 1970 and early 1971, but terrorism still took a steady toll of American and South Vietnamese lives and property. During July 1970, for example, three civilians were killed and 2 U.S. Marines, 11 ARVN soldiers, 6 national policemen, and 14 civilians were injured in 10 separate terrorist incidents. In October, Navy intelligence reported that enemy sappers were planning to attack the U.S. Consulate in

* Until 1 January 1970, the commander of the 3d MP Battalion had the additional duty of III MAF Provost Marshal. As such. he had operational control of the U.S. Armed Forces Police in Da Nang. On 1 January, a separate III MAP Provost Marshal was created on the MAF staff, again with operational control of the AFP. On 9 March 1970, as pan of the III MAF/XXIV Corps exchange of roles, XXIV Corps took operational control of the AFP, to which the Ma­rines continued to contribute a contingent of MPs. Later, on 15 June 1970, the 504th Military Police Battalion, U.S. Army, took opera­tional control of the AFP under XXIV Corps, 3d MP Bn ComdC, Jan70, Mar70, Jun70.