Vĩnh Long Airfield

Vĩnh Long Airfield (also known as Vĩnh Long Army Airfield, Gauvin-Upton Airfield or Shannon-Wright Compound) is a former United States Army base west of Vĩnh Long in Vĩnh Long Province, Mekong Delta, Vietnam.

Vĩnh Long Airfield
25 September 1967
Coordinates10.251°N 105.947°E / 10.251; 105.947 (Vĩnh Long Airfield)
Site history
Built1963
In use1963-75
Battles/wars
Vietnam War
Vĩnh Long Airfield
Summary
Elevation AMSL10 ft / 3 m
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
3,000 914 asphalt

History
CH-21s at Vĩnh Long, February 1963
Airfield facilities, October 1964.jpg

The base was originally established in 1963 approximately 3 km west of Vĩnh Long and 48 km southwest of Mỹ Tho. The base was named after Captain Roger Gauvin and SP5 Carleton Upton of the 114th Aviation Company who were killed in action on 15 March 1964.[1]

The base was attacked by Vietcong forces as part of the Tet Offensive on 31 January 1968 resulting in 7 U.S. killed and 3 Bell UH-1 Iroquois helicopters destroyed.

The 2nd Brigade, 9th Infantry Division comprising:

was based here from April–May 1968.

Other units stationed at Vĩnh Long at various times included:

  • 7th Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment (June 1968-April 1972)[2]:125
  • 62nd Aviation Company (October–December 1964)[2]:121
  • 114th Assault Helicopter Company (May 1963-February 1972)[2]:121
  • 175th Assault Helicopter Company (September 1966-February 1972)[2]:122
  • 199th Assault Helicopter Company (July 1967-October 1970)[2]:122
  • 502nd Aviation Battalion (December 1964-September 1966)[2]:123
  • HA(L)-3 Detachment 3 (January 1968)[3]
  • 28th and 96th Avionics Signal Detachment[4]
  • A Company, 501st Aviation Battalion arrived during December 1964[5]

Current use

The base is abandoned but still clearly visible on satellite images.

Accidents and incidents
  • On 18 December 1970 two OH-6 Cayuse light observation helicopters collided shortly after takeoff and crashed destroying both and killing all four crewmen[6]
gollark: `374777 apiogollarioforms` you.
gollark: Well, it could be a salted hash, yes.
gollark: Okay, this still fits with absolutely none of my models.
gollark: 19 fountains is commented because I don't know if it actually happened.
gollark: ```pythonbids = [ "larger cat", "coliseum",# "19 fountains", "39 declinations", "agitated", "374777 apiogollarioforms"]```

References
  1. Kelley, Michael (2002). Where we were in Vietnam. Hellgate Press. p. 5–539. ISBN 978-1555716257.
  2. Stanton, Shelby (2003). Vietnam Order of Battle. Stackpole Books. ISBN 9780811700719.
  3. Sherwood, John (2015). War in the Shallows: U.S. Navy and Coastal and Riverine Warfare in Vietnam 1965-8. Naval History and Heritage Command. p. 302. ISBN 9780945274773.
  4. "96th and 28th Avionics Signal Detachment Vinh Long Vietnam". testequipland.com. May 2016. Retrieved 2016-05-19.
  5. Dunstan, S (1988). Vietnam Choppers. Osprey Publishing Ltd. p. 33. ISBN 0-85045-572-3.
  6. "Headquarters MACV Monthly Summary December 1970" (PDF). Headquarters United States Military Assistance Command, Vietnam. p. 14. Retrieved 26 March 2020. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.

Modern photos and video of the area

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.