What was the name of the 1972 US bombing campaign against Hanoi and Haiphong?

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What was the name of the 1972 US bombing campaign against Hanoi and Haiphong? It was Operation Linebacker II.

The United States conducted Operation Linebacker II from December 18 to 29, 1972, striking military and industrial targets around Hanoi, Haiphong, and nearby areas of North Vietnam. The campaign relied heavily on B-52 Stratofortress bombers and became known as the “Christmas bombings” or the “Twelve Days and Nights.”

The operation followed a breakdown in Paris peace negotiations and was intended to pressure North Vietnam back to the negotiating table. More than 20,000 tons of ordnance were dropped, though the campaign remains controversial because of its civilian casualties and disputed claims about its military and political effects.

A common mix-up is Operation Rolling Thunder, the earlier, much longer U.S. air campaign conducted from 1965 to 1968. Operation Linebacker II was a distinct late-1972 campaign and the final major U.S. military operation of the Vietnam War.

Source: Wikipedia · fact-checked Sept. 2026

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