The cause of the crash was never determined. Taken with other categories of Vietnamese, the number quickly passed 200,000. [10] This was the last USAF fixed-wing aircraft to leave Tan Son Nhut. "[15] Frank Snepp later recalled the arrival of helicopters at the embassy while the song was playing over the radio as a "bizarre Kafkaesque time". At 07:00 the AC-119 was firing on PAVN to the east of Tan Son Nhut when it too was hit by an SA-7 and fell in flames to the ground. USAF F-4s, F-111s and A-7s provided air cover during daylight, being replaced by AC-130s from the 16th Special Operations Squadron at night. On 2 May, Task Force 76, carrying the Operation Frequent Wind evacuees and 44,000 seaborne evacuees and the RVN Navy group set sail for reception centers in the Philippines and Guam.[8]. The Marines closed and bolted the chancery door, the elevators were locked by Seabees on the sixth floor and the Marines withdrew up the stairwells locking grill gates behind them. Eventually the ARVN commander controlling the gates agreed to permit the remaining buses to enter the compound. Armitage, a former Navy officer with three combat tours in Vietnam with the Brown Water Navy, later became Deputy Secretary of State in the George W. Bush administration. [36] [37] The building in the photo was the Pittman Apartment building at 22 Gia Long Street (now 22 L T Trng Street), which was used as a residence by various embassy, CIA, and USAID employees. This operation was also the debut combat deployment of the F-14 Tomcat aircraft. Hancock was lovingly called Hanna and Fightin' Hanna by the crew. continue reading , By the middle of April, the South Vietnamese were steadily losing ground and U. S. planners initiated a contingency evacuation plan to fly out government personnel and other imperiled people if South Vietnam collapsed. It's a laundry ship". MSC tugs pulled barges filled with people from Saigon Port out to TF-76. WebTwenty-six ships of Task Force 76, including the Kirk, converged on the South China Sea for Operation Frequent Windthe evacuation of Saigon. With the collapse of South Vietnam, numerous boats and ships, Republic of Vietnam Air Force (RVNAF) helicopters and some fixed-wing aircraft sailed or flew out to the evacuation fleet. [21]:67 From the billowing incinerator on the embassy roof floated intelligence documents and US currency, most charred; some not. In the helicopter evacuation a total of 395 Americans and 4,475 Vietnamese and third-country nationals were evacuated from the DAO compound[10] and a further 978 U.S. and 1,120 Vietnamese and third-country nationals from the embassy,[10] giving a total of 1,373 Americans and 5,595 Vietnamese and third country nationals. [16] Japanese journalists, concerned that they would not recognize the tune, had to get someone to sing it to them. [35], On the afternoon of 29 April 1975, Hubert van Es, a Saigon-based photographer for United Press International, took the iconic photo of Operation Frequent Wind of an Air America UH-1 on a rooftop picking up Vietnamese evacuees. [10] At about 17:30 General Carey ordered the extraction of 3rd Platoon, Company C of BLT 1/9, which had been landed at the DAO Compound on 25 April to assist the Marine Security Guard. The Operations were called "Eagle Pull" and "Frequent Wind". Please click a thumbnail to view the larger image. His helicopter turned and hit the side of Blue Ridge before hitting the sea. [21], At 04:58 Ambassador Martin boarded a USMC CH-46 Sea Knight, call-sign Lady Ace 09 of HMM-165 and was flown to USS Blue Ridge. WebBelow, is a link to photographs taken aboard USS Duluth LPD-6 during Operation Frequent Wind in April 1975. The Kirk, later redesignated as a frigate (FF-1087), continued to serve until she was decommissioned on 6 August 1993. [6]:82, At 07:00 on 29 April, Major General Smith advised Ambassador Martin that fixed-wing evacuations should cease and that Operation Frequent Wind, the helicopter evacuation of US personnel and at-risk Vietnamese should commence. [23], One of the more notable events occurred on Midway when the pilot of an RVNAF Cessna O-1 dropped a note on the deck of the carrier. All planning would have to be conducted with the utmost discretion. [21], Inside the embassy, the evacuees had found whatever space was available inside the embassy compound and evacuees and some staff proceeded to take alcohol from the embassy's stores. But most of all, I will always remember their human decency and the deep compassion., Armitage said he envied the officers and men of the Kirk. [10] The air wings of USS Enterprise and USS Coral Sea, were ready to provide close air support and anti-aircraft suppression if required with their A-6 and A-7 attack aircraft, and would provide continuous fighter cover the evacuation route including by VF-1 and VF-2, flying from Enterprise with the first combat deployment of the new F-14A Tomcat. Web*Vietnam Evacuation (Operation Frequent Wind) 29 to 30 April 1975: Decommissioned, 5 October 2002 Laid up at the Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility, Pearl Harbor Photo by Peter E. Skoutas EN1 (SW) USS Frederick A-Division: 107k: USS Frederick (LST-1184), decommissioning cake, last night underway, 20 June 2002. Do not disclose to other personnel. Welcome to Karls Korner, a historical blog written by myself, Karl Zingheim Ship Historian of the USS Midway Museum. At 07:00 the AC-119 was firing on PAVN to the east of Tan Son Nhut when it too was hit by an SA-7 and fell in flames to the ground. Quisque ac eleifend tortor, vitae mattis leo. The Kirk was one of 46 Knox-class destroyer escorts. [3] The total number of Vietnamese evacuated by Frequent Wind or self-evacuated and ending up in the custody of the United States for processing as refugees to enter the United States totalled 138,869.[2]. By 22 April, 20 C-141 and 20 C-130s flights a day were flying evacuees out of Tan Son Nhut to Clark Air Base,[6]:60 some 1,000 miles away in the Philippines. Available for both RF and RM licensing. During Operation Frequent Wind, 71 helicopters flew over 650 sorties between Saigon and elements of the Seventh Fleet off shore. Air America helicopters continued to make rooftop pickups until after nightfall by which time navigation became increasingly difficult. Helicopters overflew the designated LZs to check no Americans had been left behind and then the last helicopters (many low on fuel) headed out to TF76, located USS Midway or USS Hancock and shut down. During the course of the operation an unknown number of RVNAF helicopters flew out of what remained of South Vietnam to the fleet. [10]:201, During the demolition of the embassy, the metal staircase leading from the rooftop to the helipad was removed and sent back to the United States, where it is now on display at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum. USS Midway Museum File size is 4x smaller. He has worked as lead editor of scholarly publications for the Naval History and Heritage Command, senior editor ofProceedingsandNaval Historymagazines, and writer-editor for the U.S. Marine Corps History Division. The SeaCobras could also serve as Forward Air Controllers. [41][42], The operation was the subject of the 2014 PBS documentary Last Days in Vietnam.[43]. The staff of 9th MAB prescribed altitudes, routes, and checkpoints for flight safety for the operation. The two enlisted crewmen survived, but the bodies of the pilots were not recovered. Strategic Air Command KC-135 tankers provided air-to-air refueling. The U.S. Embassy in Saigon was intended to only be a secondary evacuation point for embassy staff, but it was soon overwhelmed with evacuees and desperate South Vietnamese. No BS, just fact.. Pilots of other helicopters were told to drop off their passengers and then take off and ditch in the sea, from where they would be rescued. Hello, Midway Family! An embassy official said that more than five million dollars were being burned. Hancock would be involved in both operations. [10] [20] This move created fuel problems for Air America as they no longer had access to the fuel supplies in their compound and at least initially they were refused fuel by the ships of TF76. Two LZs were now available in the embassy compound, the rooftop for UH-1s and CH-46s and the new parking lot LZ for the heavier CH-53s. Major Buang, Wife and 5 child." Then the F-4D was cleared to destroy the 57 mm battery and did so with two CBU-71 and two CBU-58 Cluster bombs, neutralizing the site, northeast of Saigon, without damage to either aircraft. each carrying Marine, and Air Force (eight 21st Special Operations Squadron CH-53s and two 40th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron HH-53s[11]) helicopters. In the event, air support was not needed as the North Vietnamese paused for a week at the outskirts of Saigon, possibly waiting for the South Vietnamese government to collapse and avoiding a possible confrontation with the U.S. by allowing the mostly-unopposed evacuation of Americans from Saigon. The sinking of the Maine in Havana Harbor on 15 February 1898 was the pivotal event initiating the Spanish-American War. Some 400 evacuees were left behind at the embassy including over 100 South Korean citizens; among them was Brigadier General Dai Yong Rhee, the intelligence chief at the South Korean Embassy in Saigon. Ambassador Martin refused to accept General Smith's recommendation and instead insisted on visiting Tan Son Nhut to survey the situation for himself. [10]:182 This was the last USAF fixed-wing aircraft to leave Tan Son Nhut. Some 400 evacuees were left behind at the embassy including over 100 South Korean citizens; among them was Brigadier General Dai Yong Rhee, the intelligence chief at the South Korean Embassy in Saigon. It immediately turned toward the threatening radar and fifteen to twenty anti-aircraft weapons opened up on it and the F-4D. [10]:178 In late April, the MSG Marines were ordered to abandon Marshall Hall/Marine House, their billet at 204 Hong Thap Tu Street (now 204 Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Street), and move into the recreation area in the embassy compound. View a collection of Operation Frequent Wind related videos to commemorate this historic event. The four crew members estimated they received more than 500 rounds of 23-mm, 37-mm, and 57-mm fire in the space of one minute. Major Kean was then ordered to withdraw his men into the chancery building and withdraw to the rooftop LZ for evacuation. [7], By 1975, the Frequent Wind plan aimed to evacuate about 8,000 U.S. citizens and third-country nationals, but it was never able to estimate the number of South Vietnamese to include. Evacuation plans already existed as a standard procedure for American embassies. Sporadic gunfire from around the embassy passed over the rooftop. It has often been misidentified as the US Embassy. [21], By the morning of 29 April, it was estimated that approximately 10,000 people had gathered around the embassy, while some 2,500 evacuees were in the embassy and consular compounds. The USN formed a 48 ship task force to evacuate Americans and other from these countries. The RVNN was no more. WebThe final evacuation was Operation Frequent Wind which resulted in 7,000 people being evacuated from Saigon by helicopter. [10]:201 CH-46F Swift 1-4 of HMM-164 from USS Hancock flown by Captain William C. Nystul[31] and First Lieutenant Michael J. Shea[32] crashed into the sea on its approach to the ship after having flown a night sea and air rescue mission. Despite receiving sporadic PAVN AAA fire, USAF and USN aircraft made no attacks on AAA or SAM sites during the evacuation. Shipmates would fight for that ship. Ambassador Martin soon sent word back to Major Kean that sorties would continue to be flown. Aircraft flying air cover for the evacuation reported being tracked with surface to air radar in the vicinity of Bin Ha Air Base (which had fallen to the PAVN on 25 April), but there were no missile launches. The timestamp is only as accurate as the clock in the camera, and it may be completely wrong. Over the next two days, 7,000 official evacuees were flown from the embassy in Saigon and Tan Son Nhut Air Base outside the city to ships offshore. [6] Also on 1 April, Plan Alamo was implemented to defend the DAO compound and its annex so it could serve as a holding area for 1,500 evacuees for five days. At 15:00 the first CH-53s were sighted heading towards the DAO Compound at Tan Son Nhut. Events in South Vietnam were approaching a crescendo of panic. [35], On the afternoon of 29 April 1975, Hubert van Es, a Saigon-based photographer for United Press International, took the iconic photo of Operation Frequent Wind of an Air America UH-1 on a rooftop picking up Vietnamese evacuees. [27] Forty-nine Americans, including dependents, were also left behind or chose to remain in Saigon. In addition, a flotilla of Military Sealift Command (MSC) ships were assembled and these carried out seaborne evacuations from Saigon Port, this fleet comprised: On 28 April at 18:06, three A-37 Dragonflies piloted by former RVNAF pilots, who had defected to the Vietnamese People's Air Force at the fall of Da Nang, dropped six Mk81 250lb bombs on Tan Son Nhut Air Base destroying several aircraft.

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