And the Thai air force was deployed to support the ground forces. This made deception easier, as even crew members aboard the bombers did not have to know what country they were bombing. Glasser, Jeffrey D. (1998). Development Indicators Taiwan vs Thailand: GNP 234/141, Per Capita Electric Power 680/58, Literacy Rate 72/70, Inhabitants per physician 1500/7300, Roads per 1000 square miles 590/40, Population Density 1010/170, Thai Gross National Product (GNP) in constant 1965 millions of dollars: 1961/2925, 1962/3082, 1963/3386, 1964/3590, 1965/3907, 1966/4339, 1967/4551. In the late 1950s and the early 1960s, U.S. leaders in Washington, committed to a containment policy to stop the spread of Soviet-style communism, were deeply concerned about communist expansion in Southeast Asia. Benner served more than 10 years in the U.S. Army. Under Operation Niagara waves of six B-52s, attacking every three hours, dropped bombs as close as 900 feet (270m) from the perimeter of the outpost. Then in November 1961, four RF-101C reconnaissance aircraft of the 45th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron stationed at Misawa AB, Japan and their photo lab arrived at Don Muang. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. They often dressed like and lived with the ethnic Lao and Hmong populations. The Thai government then allowed the United States Air Force in Thailand to use its air and naval bases. The USAF would eventually use 8 airbases in Thailand: Don Muang, Korat, Nakhon Phanom, Nam Phong, Takhli, Ubon, Udorn and U-Tapao. This system, approved by the Department of Defense in February 1966, comprised six links, capable of sixty voice channels each, connected to the major communications sites at DA Nang, Qui Nhon, Nha Trang, Cam Ranh Bay, and Vung Tau in Vietnam, and Sattahip, south of Bangkok in Thailand. The North Vietnamese claimed that almost 1,400 civilians were killed. [28]:263. From Korat, Takhli and Ubon came the Republic F-105 Thunderchiefs and F-4C and F-4D Phantoms that actually delivered the bombs and also General Dynamics F-111s with terrain-following radar from Takhli. [23], In May 1970 USAF tactical airlift C-130s that had been based at Don Muang Air Base moved their operations to U-Tapao and the 6th Aerial Port Squadron followed in July. [28]:1823. The instability on the long eastern border also affected Thailands economy. Prior to 1965, the base at U-Tapao was a small RTN airfield. This shows the difficulties we had at Samae San. To subscribe, clickhere. On 22 November 1972, a B-52D was damaged by an SA-2 SAM in a raid on Vinh, an important rail center in the southern part of North Vietnam. The adjacent parking ramps and grassy areas were being filled to capacity with South Vietnamese helicopters and aircraft. Tight Reign continued until April 29, 1975, a day before the fall of South Vietnam, when the station at Con Son Island discontinued operations. U-Tapao (Thai: ) is a compound of cradle or drydock and trade winds, and derives from the site having once been a shipyard for construction of ruea-tapao (), a type of argosy resembling a Qing Dynasty junk. Along with heavy strikes by USAF and Navy tactical aircraft, 129 B-52s in three waves (approximately four hours apart) from the 307th Strategic Wing at U-Tapao RTNAF and B-52Ds and B52Gs of the 43d Strategic Wing and the 72 Strategic Wing (Provisional) both at Andersen AFB. At this time 51 B-52s were based at U-Tapao. The 9th Logistical Command (B) was inactivated on 12 June 1970 at Camp Samae San, Sattahip. The Thais understood that the only answer to this problem was to join forces with the United States. The Nixon Administration had approved this expansion of the war not long after entering office in the spring of 1969. More. Thai air police controlled access to the bases; U.S. air police who helped them did carry weapons. It was believed these forces were going to take action in Laos. U-Tapao based B-52s flew in support of US Marines in the Battle of Khe Sanh in early-1968. Throughout the 1950s, Laos had been embroiled in civil war, and by the early 1960s, the conflict was threatening to spread to Thailand. Did you know that more than 40,000 Thai military personnel served in Vietnam? [10], In 2015, a Politico article reported that the United States Government rented space at U Tapao from a private contractor for use as a "major logistics hub for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars." With the completion of U-Tapao, most US forces were transferred from Don Muang, and U-Tapao RTNAF became a front-line facility of the United States Air Force in Thailand from 1966 to 1975. Vietnam and Laos were at war for independence against the French, while in Cambodia, an uprising against the Royals was imminent. They hoped to make Thailand an anti-communist stronghold in the region through economic support, military aid and troop training. It is serves as the home of the RTN First Air Wing. Its origins lie in the French withdrawal from Indochina as a result of the 1954 Geneva Agreement, nationalism and the Cold War. Command of the American units, however, remained with U.S. wing commanders and their Seventh Air Force/Thirteenth Air Force headquarters. Particularly disconcerting, Thailand was home to 50,000 ethnic Vietnamese, many of them sympathetic to North Vietnamese leader Ho Chi Minh and his communist ideology. The circumstances surrounding the creation of these bases and the American deployment is a long and complex tale. Those bombers were not allowed to strike North Vietnam directly. Indeed, Thailand emerged as one of the regions strongest and most stable economies. On 30 April the South Vietnamese government surrendered. The 809 th Engineer Battalion (Construction) landed in Southern France on 15 August 1944. Flying out of Takhli, F-105s armed with radar-guided Shrike missiles had the job of knocking out SAM sites. The United States gave both economic and military aid to Thailand, and in return Thailand provided both air and ground bases for the Americans. An alleged attack by North Vietnamese torpedo boats on American destroyer, USS Maddox DD-731]. Billy Waugh, a fabled Special Forces Green Beret and CIA military operative, served in Vietnam and helped hunt for Osama Bin Laden and other terrorists. Military? The most comprehensive and authoritative history site on the Internet. More than 1,100 people participate, including approximately 500 U.S. service members and 600 service members from Thailand and Singapore. At the war's end, Thailand kept all military equipment and infrastructure left by the Americans, aiding in the country's modernization.[2]. (Everett Collection Historical/Alamy). Dana Benner holds a bachelors degree in U.S. history and Native American culture and a master of education degree in heritage studies. Sattahip. In March 1964 American planes flying out of Thai bases started bombing Viet Cong camps and supply routes in Laos. [citation needed] In addition, U-Tapao may be where Al Qaeda operative Abu Zubaydah was interrogated, according to some retired American intelligence officials. U-Tapao was initially more of a forward field than it was a main operating base, with responsibility for scheduling missions still remaining at Andersen AFB. "Why Thailand Takes Pride in the Vietnam War", "Guerrilla Attack Reported on a U.S. Base in Thailand, 2nd in 24 Hours", "Many Thais saddened by U.S. military withdrawals", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Thailand_in_the_Vietnam_War&oldid=1122364262, Military history of Thailand during the Vietnam War, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 17 November 2022, at 05:42. The CIA also began training Hmong tribesmen from the mountains of Laos and Vietnam to fight the communists under an authorization that Eisenhower signed in December 1960. 3 pilots and 5 flight engineers flew RVNAF C-47s with the 415th Squadron; 9 pilots, 7 flight engineers and 3 load masters were flying C-123Ks with the USAF 19th Tactical Airlift Squadron both located at Tan Son Nhut Air Base. By this time, the US was no longer in the forefront of the ground war, with South Vietnamese units taking the lead. But Thailands multifaceted support for U.S. combat operations in IndochinaVietnam, Cambodia and Laoswas a far more important contribution. The RF-101s were sent to assist Royal Thai AF RT-33 aircraft in performing aerial recon flights over Laos. Steadily progressing and adding to the mission, U-Tapao welcomed its first complement of KC-135 tankers in August 1966. In case you didn't know the Ynks built Highway 2 to get fuel up to Udon from Sattahip for the aircraft. The lack of any US response convinced the North Vietnamese leadership that the time was ripe to seize the South and they quickly launched their 1975 Spring Offensive overrunning many of the major cities and defensive positions in South Vietnam during March and April. The bombing raids, codenamed Operation Linebacker II, began on 18 December 1972 involving heavy attacks by almost every strike aircraft the US had in theater, with the B-52 playing a prominent role. HistoryNet.com is brought to you by HistoryNet LLC, the worlds largest publisher of history magazines. A token Thai force of a non-combatant nature was under consideration. 441457 United States Military Spending and the Economy of Thailand, George J. Viksnins, This page was last edited on 17 March 2023, at 08:39. Construction began on 15 October 1965 and was completed on 2 June 1966. With the fall of both Cambodia and South Vietnam in the spring of 1975,[35] the political climate between Washington and the government of PM Sanya soured. Tensions ramped up when the Pathet Lao attacked in spring 1962 and took control of the Nam Tha river valley in northwestern Thailand. On 19 January 1961, PACAF had identified 25 airfields, 49 communications routes, and 19 urban targets. For the next several years, a minimum of four F-102 interceptors were kept on alert at Don Muang. U-Tapao Royal Thai Navy Airfield is a military airfield of the Royal Thai Navy (RTN) approximately 140 kilometres (87 mi) southeast of Bangkok in the Ban Chang District of Rayong Province near Sattahip on the Gulf of Thailand. From Sattahip (south of Bangkok) to Korat and Takhli to the north, the roads were primarily 2 lanes with hard surfaces. At Don Muang Air Base near Bangkok, the USAF had stationed KC-135 tanker aircraft to refuel combat aircraft over the skies of Indochina. The U-Tapao-based B-52Ds were able to carry more bombs and perform more sorties than the other units which operated less capable versions and had to fly much further to reach targets in North Vietnam.

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