 In September 1962 , U.S. military forces constructed an airstrip outside the town of Khe Sanh which became known as the Khe Sanh Combat Base . In 1965 the U.S. Special Forces constructed a base next to it . The base 's defense was codenamed Operation Scotland and manned by the 2nd Battalion , 9th Marines from 1967 . It was used as a staging ground for a number of attacks on North Vietnamese ( <unk> ) troop movements down the Ho Chi Minh Trail . 
