 The VC, protected by a network of makeshift bunkers and trenches they had constructed since the previous day, shrugged off the suppressive fire that the US vehicle crews attempted to lay down to cover the advance of the Rangers.Realizing the gap could not be closed without taking excessive casualties, Otis and the Ranger commander pulled their men back.Unwilling to let the VC hold a position so near to Tan Son Nhut Air Base, General Khang authorized the use of air strikes and artillery to evict the Cuu Long II Regiment from Ap Binh Long and Ap Hoa Thanh.