Operation Off Balance

Operation Off Balance
Part of Laotian Civil War; Vietnam War
Date 1 – 15 July 1969 Location Plain of Jars in northeastern Laos Result Unsuccessful Royalist attempt to blunt an enemy offensive
Belligerents
Kingdom of Laos	North Vietnam
Commanders and leaders
Vang Pao
Units involved
Bataillon Guerrier 206 Bataillon Commando 208 101 Bataillon de Parachutistes Bataillon Guerrier 201 Bataillon d'Infanterie 15 U.S. Air Force Royal Lao Air Force	19 PAVN battalions with 8+ tanks
Strength
Battalion-size	Battalion-size
Casualties and losses
Unknown	Unknown

Operation Off Balance was a hastily planned offensive operation of the Laotian Civil War; it happened between 1 and 15 July 1969 on the Plain of Jars in the Kingdom of Laos. The Royal Lao Government forces in Military Region 1 of Laos had just been evicted from the crucial all-weather airfield at Muang Soui, as well as most of the Plain, on 28 June 1969. Hmong General Vang Pao planned a quick counter-offensive to recapture the airfield from his communist foe; it would kick off on 1 July, supported by 60 sorties per day of tactical air strikes from Operation Barrel Roll.

In the event, the 1 July offensive ran afoul of its Neutralist allies, who retreated rather than carry out their assault. A constant flow of reinforcements from the attacking People's Army of Vietnam fed their own strength to resist. With the Neutralists' abstention, the remaining forces in Off Balance—two battalions of Hmong guerrillas and a Royalist paratrooper battalion— were defeated by counterattacking communist tanks supported by heavy artillery. During the battle, the Hmong suffered the loss of their only fighter pilot, Lee Lue. The reputation he had gained while flying over 5,000 combat missions had become the symbol of Hmong resistance; his death was a crushing blow to Hmong morale. Operation Off Balance ended the day of Lee Lue's burial. The communists still held the Plain of Jars and Muang Soui.