Bombing pause ordered for New Year’s Day

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 33112, 30 December 1972, Page 1

Bombing pause ordered for New Year’s Day

f.V.Z. Press Association—Copyright)

SAIGON, December 29.

President Nixon has ordered a brief pause for New Year’s Day in United States air raids over North Vietnam, informed United States sources said today, according to a United Press International report.

The bombing halt would last “about 21 hours,” the sources said, but would definitely be shorter than the 36-hour Christmas pause in the renewed heavy raids north of the 20th parallel ordered by President Nixon „on December 18. /

American sources in Saigon ' said that political develop-! ments between now and New, Year’s Eve could change the| length of the bombing paused But barring such develop-! ments as a sign from Hanoi! that North Vietnam wants to!: return to the peace talks l table, only a one-day haltl

I would be carried out, the I sources said. The halt was ordered as the I United States Command announced the loss of three j more American planes over I North Vietnam on Wednesday night, with at least 10 'more United States airmen 1 missing in action. I Radio Hanoi claimed that’

two more 852 heavy bombers were shot down last night as United States planes battered the Hanoi and Haiphong heartland of North Vietnam with scores more raids—the biggest aerial blitz of the war. This, said Radio Hanoi, raised to 76 the number of aircraft downed since the renewed United States campaign on December 18. Of this number. 33 were 852 bombers, Radio Hanoi said. Earlier, Radio Hanoi identified 10 more newly captured American crewmen, one of whom was quoted as saying that he was shot down by a MiG interceptor. The 10 Americans were shown to the press in Hanoi yesterday, the broadcast said. Six were 852 crewmen, and four, pilots of F 4 Phantom fighterbombers. The United States Com-, mand has acknowledged 23 aircraft lost, including 14 852 bombers, and a total of 81 airmen listed as missing and killed. The Viet Cong have declared a 24-hour cease-fire in South Vietnam beginning on Sunday, but there has been no announcement yet on a similar truce either by the; United States or South Vietnamese commands. Both the Saigon and Viet

i Cong commands announced ,124-hour cease-fires for ChristI mas, which were shattered [ by scores of violations. “KILL” RATIO ; The United States could ‘liun out of 852 bombers in ;about three months time if it :■ maintains its bombing of North Vietnam at the present irate, and the North Vietnam :ese sustain their present air , (craft “kill” ratio, military 'jobservers in Washington esti'mate. I There are 200 Bs2s—giant I eight-engined Superfortresses ’j —in the United States Forces ;| inventory, but only 140 are operational. Many are with (the Strategic Air Command land form part of the United 'States nuclear deterrent force. About half the operational force of the bombers—each iof which cost SUSBm when j built almost 20 years ago (are believed to be based in {Thailand and Guam for air j raids on North and South {Vietnam and on the Ho Chi Minh trail in Laos. Based on a loss-rate of 14 every 10 days—there was a ; 36-hour halt over Christmas —there would be none left in 131 days, or by about May 8. {On Hanoi reckoning—33 in 110 days—the last one would be shot down by the end of February.