VIETNAM WAR STATISTICS…Lest We Forget

In Uniform and In Country: 

• Vietnam Vets: 9.7% of their generation.
• 9,087,000 military personnel served on active duty during the Vietnam Era (Aug. 5, 1964-May 7, 1975).
• 8,744,000 GIs were on active duty during the war (Aug 5, 1964 - March 28, 1973).
• 3,403,100 (Including 514,300 offshore) personnel served in the Southeast Asia Theater (Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, flight crews based in Thailand and sailors in adjacent South China Sea waters).
• 2,594,000 personnel served within the borders of South Vietnam (Jan. 1, 1965 - March 28, 1973)
• Another 50,000 men served in Vietnam between 1960 and 1964.
• Of the 2.6 million, between 1 - 1.6 million (40 - 60%) either fought in combat, provided close support or were at least fairly regularly exposed to enemy attack.
• 7,484 women (6,250 or 83.5% were nurses) served in Vietnam.
• Peak troop strength in Vietnam: 543,482 (April 30, 1968)

Casualties: 

• Hostile deaths: 47,378
• Non-hostile deaths: 10,800
• Total: 58,202 (Includes men formerly classified as MIA and Mayaguez casualties). Men who have subsequently died of wounds account for the changing total.
• 8 nurses died -- 1 was KIA.
• Married men killed: 17,539
• 61% of the men killed were 21 or younger.
• Highest state death rate: West Virginia - 84.1% (national average 58.9% for every 100,000 males in 1970).
• Wounded: 303,704 -- 153,329 hospitalized + 150,375 injured requiring no hospital care.
• Severely disabled: 75,000 -- 23,214 - 100% disabled; 5,283 lost limbs; 1,081 sustained multiple amputations.
• Amputation or crippling wounds to the lower extremities were 300% higher than in WWII and 70% higher than Korea. Multiple amputations occurred at the rate of 18.4% compared to 5.7% in WWII.
• Missing in Action: 2,338

POWs: 766 (114 died in captivity)

Draftees vs. Volunteers: 

• 25% (648,500) of total forces in country were draftees. (66% of U.S. armed forces members were drafted during WWII.
• Draftees accounted for 30.4% (17,725) of combat deaths in Vietnam.
• Reservists killed: 5,977
• National Guard: 6,140 served: 101 died.
• Total draftees (1965 - 73): 1,728,344.
• Actually served in Vietnam: 38%
• Marine Corps Draft: 42,633.
• Last man drafted: June 30, 1973.

Race and Ethnic Background: 

• 88.4% of the men who actually served in Vietnam were Caucasian; 10.6% (275,000) were black; 1% belonged to other races.
• 86.3% of the men who died in Vietnam were Caucasian (includes Hispanics); 12.5% (7,241) were black; 1.2% belonged to other races.
• 170,000 Hispanics served in Vietnam; 3,070 (5.2% of total) died there.
• 70% of enlisted men killed were of North-west European descent.
• 86.8% of the men who were killed because of hostile action were Caucasian; 12.1% (5,711) were black; 1.1% belonged to other races.
• 14.6% (1,530) of non-combat deaths were among blacks.
• 34% of blacks who enlisted volunteered for the combat arms.
• Overall, blacks suffered 12.5% of the deaths in Vietnam at a time when the percentage of blacks of military age was 13.5% of the total population.
• Religion of Dead: Protestant -- 64.4%; Catholic -- 28.9%; other/none -- 6.7%

Socio-Economic Status: 

• 76% of the men sent to Vietnam were from lower middle/working class backgrounds.
• Thee-fourths had family incomes above the poverty level; 50% were from middle income backgrounds.
• Some 23% of Vietnam vets had fathers with professional, managerial or technical occupations.
• 79% of the men who served in Vietnam had a high school education or better when they entered the military service. (63% of Korean War vets and only 45% of WWII vets had completed high school upon separation.)
• Deaths by region per 100,000 of population: South -- 31%, West -- 29.9%; Midwest -- 28.4%; Northeast -- 23.5%.

Winning and Losing: 

• 82% of veterans who saw heavy combat strongly believe the war was lost because of lack of political will.
• Nearly 75% of the public agrees it was a failure of political will, not of arms.

Honorable Service: 

• 97% of Vietnam-era veterans were honorably discharged.
• 91% of actual Vietnam War veterans and 90% of those who saw heavy combat are proud to have served their country.
• 66% of Vietnam vets say they would serve again if called upon.
• 87% of the public now holds Vietnam veterans in high esteem!

Courtesy of the VFW Magazine and the Public Information Office,

HQ CP Forward Observer -1st Recon April 12, 1997