VIETNAM WAR LEGACY BY THE NUMBERS
92,500,000
Vietnam's population in 2014. More than two-thirds of the country was born after the war ended.
54
students from Thomas Edison High School in Philadelphia died -- the most from any U.S. high school.
66
percent of Vietnam vets say they would serve again if called upon.
133
species of snakes in the jungles of Vietnam. All but two are poisonous.
1,641
U.S. servicemembers unaccounted for as POW/MIA.
ABANDONED BY HENRY KISSINGER & US GOVERNMENT
46,852
Australians served in Vietnam from July 1962-December 1972. Officially, 496 died.
700
steel balls inside a Claymore Mine, which was lethal up to 50 yards. Embossed on the outside of the mine: "Front towards Enemy."
1,500
square miles that make up the Mekong Delta, considered ideal guerrilla terrain and a Viet Cong stronghold.
12,000,000
Gallons of the herbicide AGENT ORANGE sprayed by the U.S., over about 10 percent of South Vietnam, from 1961-71.
7,600,000
Number of foreign tourists to Vietnam in 2013.
$65,000,000
Amount of dollars the U.S. has spent cleaning up dioxin in Vietnam.
15
age of the youngest person killed in action in Vietnam. Legal age of enlistment was 18.
5
weeks that "The Ballad of the Green Berets" stayed at the top of the charts in 1966. The songwriter, Staff Sgt. Barry Sadler, was one himself.
$850
a month, made by prostitutes in Saigon, known as Sin City. Vietnamese police made $25 a month.
5-7.8
Weight, in millions of tons, of U.S. bombs dropped on Vietnam.
1,728,344
men were drafted during the Vietnam War era. The last man was drafted June 30, 1973.
58,220
U.S. military deaths, including eight women
35
died in Watts riots in August 1965. More than 900 were hurt and there was $46 million in damage.
17
minutes, the shortest mission on record for an F-4 pilot, who launched, flew the pattern, dropped his bombs and landed.
951
Green Berets arrived in Vietnam in 1964.
1
military photographer to be awarded the Medal of Honor for Vietnam. He was Cpl. William T. Perkins Jr.
9.68
pounds, the weight of the M63 Stoner, made by the man who designed the M16. It was a weapon of choice for Navy SEALS.
77
days, the length of the siege of Khe Sahn, which began Jan. 21, 1968. It was one of the longest and bloodiest battles in Vietnam.
$250,000,000,000
Estimated U.S. spending on the war from 1965 to 1975 — the equivalent of more than $1 trillion in today's dollars.
WHAT THE HELL WAS IT FOR?
667
servicemembers on the Vietnam Wall named "Smith," the most common surname there.
31
sets of dead brothers named on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. There are three sets of fathers and sons.
700+
U.S. remains recovered and identified by joint U.S.-Vietnamese teams since the fall of Saigon.
125,000
anti-war demonstrators showed up in New York. Signs in Central Park read: "Draft beer, not boys" and "I don't give a damn for Uncle Sam."
3000000+
Vietnamese communist fighters and civilians killed. That does not include South Vietnamese forces, whose losses are estimated at up to 250,000.
2,400,000
Estimated number of U.S. servicemembers exposed to AGENT ORANGE.
HOW MANY ARE DEAD NOW from agent orange exposure complications like cancer?
92,500,000
Vietnam's population in 2014. More than two-thirds of the country was born after the war ended.
54
students from Thomas Edison High School in Philadelphia died -- the most from any U.S. high school.
66
percent of Vietnam vets say they would serve again if called upon.
133
species of snakes in the jungles of Vietnam. All but two are poisonous.
1,641
U.S. servicemembers unaccounted for as POW/MIA.
ABANDONED BY HENRY KISSINGER & US GOVERNMENT
46,852
Australians served in Vietnam from July 1962-December 1972. Officially, 496 died.
700
steel balls inside a Claymore Mine, which was lethal up to 50 yards. Embossed on the outside of the mine: "Front towards Enemy."
1,500
square miles that make up the Mekong Delta, considered ideal guerrilla terrain and a Viet Cong stronghold.
12,000,000
Gallons of the herbicide AGENT ORANGE sprayed by the U.S., over about 10 percent of South Vietnam, from 1961-71.
7,600,000
Number of foreign tourists to Vietnam in 2013.
$65,000,000
Amount of dollars the U.S. has spent cleaning up dioxin in Vietnam.
15
age of the youngest person killed in action in Vietnam. Legal age of enlistment was 18.
5
weeks that "The Ballad of the Green Berets" stayed at the top of the charts in 1966. The songwriter, Staff Sgt. Barry Sadler, was one himself.
$850
a month, made by prostitutes in Saigon, known as Sin City. Vietnamese police made $25 a month.
5-7.8
Weight, in millions of tons, of U.S. bombs dropped on Vietnam.
1,728,344
men were drafted during the Vietnam War era. The last man was drafted June 30, 1973.
58,220
U.S. military deaths, including eight women
35
died in Watts riots in August 1965. More than 900 were hurt and there was $46 million in damage.
17
minutes, the shortest mission on record for an F-4 pilot, who launched, flew the pattern, dropped his bombs and landed.
951
Green Berets arrived in Vietnam in 1964.
1
military photographer to be awarded the Medal of Honor for Vietnam. He was Cpl. William T. Perkins Jr.
9.68
pounds, the weight of the M63 Stoner, made by the man who designed the M16. It was a weapon of choice for Navy SEALS.
77
days, the length of the siege of Khe Sahn, which began Jan. 21, 1968. It was one of the longest and bloodiest battles in Vietnam.
$250,000,000,000
Estimated U.S. spending on the war from 1965 to 1975 — the equivalent of more than $1 trillion in today's dollars.
WHAT THE HELL WAS IT FOR?
667
servicemembers on the Vietnam Wall named "Smith," the most common surname there.
31
sets of dead brothers named on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. There are three sets of fathers and sons.
700+
U.S. remains recovered and identified by joint U.S.-Vietnamese teams since the fall of Saigon.
125,000
anti-war demonstrators showed up in New York. Signs in Central Park read: "Draft beer, not boys" and "I don't give a damn for Uncle Sam."
3000000+
Vietnamese communist fighters and civilians killed. That does not include South Vietnamese forces, whose losses are estimated at up to 250,000.
2,400,000
Estimated number of U.S. servicemembers exposed to AGENT ORANGE.
HOW MANY ARE DEAD NOW from agent orange exposure complications like cancer?