Anti-Helicopter Booby Traps
Aside from making booby traps that focused on harming a soldier or group of soldiers, the Viet Cong were also focused on harming air crafts that could bring supplies or more soldiers into the war.
Desperation of the Viet Cong
Americans using helicopters during the war was a serious threat to the Viet Cong. From being able to drop supplies, to dropping soldiers into hot zones for combat. Helicopters were a huge asset to the American forces, so it soon became necessary for the Viet Cong to arm themselves against the helicopters. Vietnamese forces attempted to harm helicopters by opening fire from below to sticking pointed spikes in the ground for the helicopters to land on. Both means were ineffective.
Explosive Anti-Helicopter Traps
The Viet Cong attempted several different ways to ward against helicopters. For example, using open fire on a helicopter was a common way to try and prevent the helicopter from landing, but was ultimately ineffective. So the Viet Cong turned to explosives. In the image to the right is an example of an explosive trap. Attached to the poles are grenades that will explode when the wire is pulled. When a helicopter would attempt to land the grenades would explode, thus destroying or severely damaging the aircraft.
What Americans Did
In an effort to protect helicopters against the explosive traps below, the American forces took to dropping bombs on an area where they desired to land. As pictured to the left, this created a crater in the ground that was cleared of all debris and explosives, making it a safe landing place. Ultimately, the Viet Cong were widely ineffective in preventing the use of helicopters.