At the time of the attack on Plei Me, about 300 Montagnards, the 14 South Vietnamese and 10 Americans were inside the camp, the others were on patrol or stationed at nearby listening posts.

[citation needed] Major General Chu Huy Mân of the PAVN was tasked with destroying special forces outposts as a prelude to capturing Pleiku city, the headquarters of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) in the II Corps region, and gaining control of Highway 19, which led from Pleiku to the coast of South Vietnam.

Anticipating a PAVN offensive to capture Pleiku and Highway 19, the United States had stationed the 1st Cavalry Division at Camp Radcliff near the town of An Khe in September 1965.

The 1st Cavalry utilized the new tactic of relying on helicopters to transport soldiers and supplies, for medical evacuations and aerial rocket artillery.

"[8] However, Mân decided to launch the attack earlier on October 19, 1965, with only two Regiments (the 32nd and the 33rd), apparently before the 1st Cavalry troops became combat ready.

The American commander at Plei Me, Captain Harold M. Moore, called in airstrikes which arrived about 04:00 on October 20 and continued throughout the day and the next night.

[3] Plei Me became, up until then, the largest air support operation of the war with 696 sorties and more than 1.5 million pounds of bombs, napalm, and rockets dropped on the attackers.

[7]: 55 The 1,400 man armored Task Force, led by Lieutenant Colonel Nguyễn Trọng Luật, moved out to Phú Mỹ, 20 kilometers south of Pleiku on October 21.

Luật was expressly given orders by II Corps Command to simulate the imminent approach of a relief column to the Plei Me camp by lingering around Phú Mỹ to counter the enemy's mobile ambush tactics.

[citation needed] The ARVN armored column proceeded down Provincial Road 6C toward Plei Me, and was ambushed at two places at 17:30 on 23 October.

The 1st Cavalry Division made the main effort with the Long Reach Operations and the ARVN Airborne Brigade acted as reserve, ready to participate on Corps order.

[12] The 1st Brigade, 1st Cavalry under Colonel Harlow Clark undertook the search and destroy operation over an area of 1,500 square miles (3,900 km2) north and west of Plei Me.

[13] On 1 November elements of the 1st Brigade, 1st Cavalry located a PAVN hospital area and killed 99 or more soldiers at a cost of 11 Americans dead and 47 wounded.

[18] On November 12, the 3rd Brigade was given orders to prepare for "...an air assault near the foot of the Chu Pongs,"[14]: 196  at 14 miles (23 km) northwest of Plei Me.

The PAVN B3 Field Front Command decided to postpone the renewed attack on Plei Me camp and met the new threat with its 7th and 9th Battalions.