14276659. It was carried out on 2930 April 1975, during the last days of the Vietnam War. Marine Corps Command and Staff College. [10], In the event that the PAVN or ARVN shot down a helicopter or a mechanical malfunction forced one to make an emergency landing in hostile territory, two orbiting CH-46s of MAG-39 each carrying 15-man, quick-reaction "Sparrow Hawk" teams of Marines from 1st Platoon, Company A, 1st Battalion, 9th Marines, from USS Blue Ridge, were ready to land and provide security enabling a search and rescue helicopter to pick up the crew. [39], The second act of the stage musical Miss Saigon depicts events leading up to, and during Operation Frequent Wind, with the main protagonists (Chris and Kim) becoming separated as a result of the evacuation. The destroyer escort, accompanying the carrier USS Hancock (CVA-19), which had offloaded her combat wing in Pearl Harbor in exchange for the 25 helicopters of Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron (HMH) 463, arrived in the Gulf of Thailand on 11 April to join in the evacuation of Phnom Penh, Cambodia. [21], Major Kean returned to the ground floor of the chancery and ordered his men to withdraw into a large semicircle at the main entrance to the chancery. The crew evacuated the burning aircraft on the taxiway and departed the airfield on another C-130 that had previously landed. [20]:20, At 11:00 the security situation at the Air America compound was deteriorating as General Carey did not wish to risk his Marines by extending his perimeter to cover the Air America compound (LZ 40), so all Air America helicopters from this time operated out of the tennis courts in the DAO Annex (LZ 35). [10] 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. [14]:28, From 10:00 to 12:00 Major Kean and his Marines cut down the tamarind and other trees and moved vehicles to create an LZ in the embassy parking lot behind the chancery building. Once the deck was clear Major Buang approached the deck, bounced once and then touched down and taxied to a halt with room to spare. It was carried out on 2930 April 1975, during the last days of the Vietnam War. Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is Copyright 2009-2022, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Book: Rhodes, J. E.. In addition, Air America helicopters and RVNAF aircraft brought additional evacuees to the TF76 ships. [10] This was the last USAF fixed-wing aircraft to leave Tan Son Nhut. [21] At 21:30 a CH-53 pilot informed Major Kean that Admiral Whitmire, Commander of Task Force 76 had ordered that operations would cease at 23:00. [6] C-130s leaving Tan Son Nhut reported receiving PAVN .51 cal and 37mm anti-aircraft (AAA) fire,[6] while sporadic PAVN rocket and artillery attacks also started to hit the airport and air base. Chambers ordered the flight deck crew to clear the landing area; in the process an estimated US$10 million worth of UH-1 Huey helicopters were pushed overboard into the South China Sea. "[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". [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. [1] [2]. [6]:22 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. [4], Evacuation plans are standard for American embassies. To avert mid-air collisions, the planners chose altitudes which would provide separation of traffic and also a capability to see and avoid the enemy's AAA, SA-2 and SA-7 missile threat (for flights inbound to Saigon and for those outbound from Saigon to the Navy ships). Among those arriving at the embassy were Phan Quang n, former Deputy Prime Minister and Minister responsible for social welfare and refugee resettlement,[14] and Lieutenant-General ng Vn Quang. [3]:86, The two major evacuation points chosen for Operation Frequent Wind were the DAO Compound next to Tan Son Nhut Airport for American and Vietnamese civilian evacuees, and the U.S. Embassy, Saigon for embassy staff. Around 12:00 five or six RVNAF UH-1Hs and one of the stolen ICCS UH-1Hs, were circling around Blue Ridge. [6] Between 04:30 and 08:00 up to 40 artillery rounds and rockets hit around the DAO Compound. During the fixed-wing evacuation 50,493 people (including 2,678 Vietnamese orphans) were evacuated from Tan Son Nhut. [6], Throughout April, the "thinning out" proceeded slowly, largely because the South Vietnamese government was slow to issue papers allowing Americans to take Vietnamese dependents with them, with the result that MAC aircraft were often departing empty. Hancock then took part in Operation Eagle Pull, the evacuation of Phnom Penh on 12 April 1975 and Operation Frequent Wind, the evacuation of Saigon on 2930 April 1975. [27] Forty-nine Americans, including dependents, were also left behind or chose to remain in Saigon. [6]:3031, With the cause of the crash still unknown, the C-5 fleet was grounded and the MAC airlift was reduced to using C-141s and C-130s. The next day, in an orderly operation that took less than 24 hours, all 289 evacuees were flown to safety at U-Tapao Air Base, Thailand. [41][42], The operation was the subject of the 2014 PBS documentary Last Days in Vietnam.[43]. In addition, two CH-46s would provide medical evacuation capabilities while AH-1J SeaCobras would fly cover for the transport helicopters and for any ground units who requested support. They were evacuated to Bangkok on 1 August 1976. Moments later a RVNAF UH-1H attempted to land on the helipad, locked rotors with the Air America Bell, almost pushing it overboard. [6] In late March, two or three of these MAC aircraft were arriving each day and were used to evacuate civilians and Vietnamese orphans. This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Marine Corps. Most of the Marines were inside the chancery when the crowds outside the embassy broke through the gates into the compound. At this time, the embassy indicated that another 19 lifts would complete the evacuation. More than 7,000 people were evacuated by helicopter from various points in Saigon. The sinking of the Maine in Havana Harbor on 15 February 1898 was the pivotal event initiating the Spanish-American War. The Marines were flying the last helicopter out of Saigon, an AH-1J Cobra gunship that provided aerial coverage for the evacuation force. A third wave of two CH-53s from HMH-463 and eight USAF CH-53Cs and two USAF HH-53s of the 40th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron (all operating from USS Midway) arrived shortly afterwards. : Operation Frequent Wind ship disposition 1975 - Recreated map.svg. [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. The crews would not leave without their families. [6] Other helicopters dropped off their passengers and were then ditched into the sea by their pilots, close to the ships, their pilots bailing out at the last moment to be picked up by rescue boats. RVNAF pilot jumps from his Huey after dropping evacuees on USS Midway, 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. . Harnage boarded an Air America Huey from the Embassy's rooftop heliport and flew the short distance to the Pittman Building. During the course of the operation an unknown number of RVNAF helicopters flew out of what remained of South Vietnam to the fleet. File size is 4x smaller. [10]:192[20]:22 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. April 30, 1975 marks the date of Operation Frequent Wind, one of the largest humanitarian rescues in naval history. [6], At 03:30 on 29 April a PAVN rocket hit Guardpost 1 at the DAO Compound, instantly killing Marine Corporals McMahon and Judge. Evacuation plans already existed as a standard procedure for American embassies. The crowds prevented the use of buses for transporting evacuees from the embassy to the DAO Compound for evacuation, and the embassy gates were closed to prevent the crowd from surging through. [21]:6 At the same time, General Carey met Admiral Whitmire to convince him to resume flights to the embassy despite pilot fatigue and poor visibility caused by darkness, fires and bad weather. Air America helicopters continued to make rooftop pickups until after nightfall by which time navigation became increasingly difficult. [10], As part of the evacuation plan agreed with the DAO, Air America committed 24 of its 28 available helicopters to support the evacuation and 31 pilots agreed to stay in Saigon to support the evacuation; this meant that most helicopters would have only one pilot rather than the usual two. 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. Find ratings and reviews for the newest movie and TV shows. [6]:2021 In late March, two or three of these MAC aircraft were arriving each day and were used to evacuate civilians and Vietnamese orphans. The evacuation of personnel from the DAO compound had lasted nine hours and involved over 50 Marine Corps and Air Force helicopters. [10]:196 Between 19:00 and 21:00 General Carey transferred 3 platoons (130 men) of BLT 2/4 into the embassy compound to provide additional security and assistance for the embassy. [10]:186, "Alpha" command group, two rifle companies, and the 81mm mortar platoon were deployed around the DAO headquarters building (the Alamo) and its adjacent landing zones. This will be followed by the playing of I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas. Homer asks the helicopter pilot if they are being taken to an aircraft carrier and is told that "the closest vessel is the USS Walter Mondale. 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. [10]:198, By 02:15 on 30 April one CH-46 and one CH-53 were landing at the embassy every 10 minutes. The Peoples Army of Vietnam was rapidly advancing and would soon threaten Saigon. Ambassador Martin soon sent word back to Major Kean that sorties would continue to be flown.

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