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Ambassador Martin remained optimistic that a negotiated settlement could be reached whereby the US would not have to pull out of [[South Vietnam]] and, in an effort to avert defeatism and panic he specifically instructed Major James Kean, Commanding Officer of the [[Marine Security Guard]] Battalion and Ground Support Force Commander United States Embassy Compound, that he could not begin to remove trees and shrubbery which prevented the use of the Embassy parking lot as a helicopter [[Landing Zone]]<ref>[http://http://fallofsaigon.org/final.htm Major James H, Kean SSN/0802 USMC, After Action Report 17 April ~ 7 May 1975 p. 3]</ref>.
Ambassador Martin remained optimistic that a negotiated settlement could be reached whereby the US would not have to pull out of [[South Vietnam]] and, in an effort to avert defeatism and panic he specifically instructed Major James Kean, Commanding Officer of the [[Marine Security Guard]] Battalion and Ground Support Force Commander United States Embassy Compound, that he could not begin to remove trees and shrubbery which prevented the use of the Embassy parking lot as a helicopter [[Landing Zone]]<ref>[http://http://fallofsaigon.org/final.htm Major James H, Kean SSN/0802 USMC, After Action Report 17 April ~ 7 May 1975 p. 3]</ref>.


By the morning of 29 April it was estimated that approximately 10,000 people had gathered around the Embassy, while some 2500 evacuees were in the Embassy and Consular compounds. The crowds prevented the use of buses for transporting evacuees from the Embassy to the DAO Compound for evacuation. From 10:00 to 12:00 Major Kean and his Marines cut down trees and moved vehicles to create an LZ in the Embassy parking lot behind the Chancery building. Two LZs were now available in the Embassy compound, the rooftop for [[UH-1]]s and [[CH-46 Sea Knight]]s and the new parking lot LZ for the heavier [[CH-53]]s<ref name="Kean5">Kean, p. 5.</ref>.
By the morning of 29 April it was estimated that approximately 10,000 people had gathered around the Embassy, while some 2500 evacuees were in the Embassy and Consular compounds. The crowds prevented the use of buses for transporting evacuees from the Embassy to the DAO Compound for evacuation and the Embassy gate swere eventually closed to prevent the crowd from surging through. Eligible evacuees would now have to make themselves known to the Marine Guards or Embassy staff manning the walls and they would then be lifted over the walls and into the Embassy compound.


From 10:00 to 12:00 Major Kean and his Marines cut down trees and moved vehicles to create an LZ in the Embassy parking lot behind the Chancery building. Two LZs were now available in the Embassy compound, the rooftop for [[UH-1]]s and [[CH-46 Sea Knight]]s and the new parking lot LZ for the heavier [[CH-53]]s<ref name="Kean5">Kean, p. 5.</ref>.
⚫
[[Air America]] [[UH-1]]s began ferrying evacuees from other smaller assembly points throughout the city (including the Pittman Building, famously photographed by [[Hubert van Es]]) and dropping them on the Embassy's rooftop LZ.

⚫
[[Air America]] [[UH-1]]s began ferrying evacuees from other smaller assembly points throughout the city and dropping them on the Embassy's rooftop LZ.


At 15:00 the first CH-53s were sighted heading towards the DAO Compound at Tan Son Nhut. Major Kean contacted the [[Seventh Fleet]] to advise them of his airlift requirements, until that time the Fleet believed that all evacuees had been bussed from the Embassy to the DAO Compound and that only 2 helicopters would be required to evacuate the Ambassador and the Marines from the Embassy<ref name="Kean6">Kean, p. 6.</ref>.
At 15:00 the first CH-53s were sighted heading towards the DAO Compound at Tan Son Nhut. Major Kean contacted the [[Seventh Fleet]] to advise them of his airlift requirements, until that time the Fleet believed that all evacuees had been bussed from the Embassy to the DAO Compound and that only 2 helicopters would be required to evacuate the Ambassador and the Marines from the Embassy<ref name="Kean6">Kean, p. 6.</ref>.

The scene inside the Embassy had become surreal. The evacuees had found whatever space was available inside the Embassy compound and evacuees and some Embassy staff proceeded to liberate alcohol from the Embassy's stores. From the billowing incinerator on the embassy roof floated intelligence documents and US currency, most charred; some not. An embassy official said that more than five million dollars were being burned<ref name="Pilger30">Pilger, p. 30.</ref>.


At 17:00 the first CH-46 landed at the Embassy.
At 17:00 the first CH-46 landed at the Embassy.

Revision as of 11:42, 16 January 2010

Operation Frequent Wind
Part of Fall of Saigon

Vietnamese refugees disembarking helicopter
DateApril 29, 1975–April 30, 1975
Standort
- Saigon, 17 nautical miles (31 km) from the Vung Tau Peninsula
Result U.S. tactical victory with US forces airlifting over 50,000[citation needed] people to safety
Belligerents
Vereinigte Staaten Vereinigte Staaten
South Vietnam South Vietnam		 - North Vietnamese
- National Liberation Front
Commanders and leaders
Commander Task Force 76
Casualties and losses
2 USMC Killed in Action & 2 USMC Missing at sea

Operation Frequent Wind was the evacuation by helicopter of American civilians and 'at-risk' Vietnamese from Saigon, South Vietnam, on 29-30 April 1975 during the last days of the Vietnam War.

Planning

The operation was based on Operation Eagle Pull, the American evacuation by air of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on April 12, 1975.[1] Operation Eagle Pull had been a huge success in terms of meeting all goals set out by military planners.

"Frequent Wind" was the second code name chosen when the original code name "Talon Vise" was compromised.[2]

Task Force 76

Between 18 and 24 April 1975, with the fall of Saigon imminent, the Navy concentrated off Vung Tau a vast assemblage of ships under Commander Task Force 76 comprising[1]:

Task Force 76 USS Blue Ridge (LCC-19) (command ship)

Task Group 76.4 (Movement Transport Group Alpha)

Task Group 76.5 (Movement Transport Group Bravo)

Task Group 76.9 (Movement Transport Group Charlie)

The task force was joined by:

each carrying Navy, Marine, and Air Force helicopters.

Seventh Fleet flagship USS Oklahoma City (CLG-5).

Amphibious ships:

and eight destroyer types for naval gunfire, escort, and area defense.

The USS Enterprise (CVN-65) and USS Coral Sea (CV-43) carrier attack groups of Task Force 77 in the South China Sea provided air cover while Task Force 73 ensured logistic support.

The Marine evacuation contingent, the 9th Marine Amphibious Brigade (Task Group 79.1), consisted of three battalion landing teams (comprising the 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines (BLT2/4), 2nd Battalion 9th Marines (BLT2/9), 3rd Battalion 9th Marines (BLT3/9) and elements of 5th Battalion 9th Marines (BLT5/9)), four helicopter squadrons (HMH-462, HMH-463, HMM-165 and MAG-39) and support units.

  • USAF CH-53 helicopters on the deck of USS Midway during Operation Frequent Wind, April 1975.
    USAF CH-53 helicopters on the deck of USS Midway during Operation Frequent Wind, April 1975.
  • Marine map of the TF76 fleet deployment in the South China Sea off Vung Tau, Vietnam for Operation Frequent Wind
    Marine map of the TF76 fleet deployment in the South China Sea off Vung Tau, Vietnam for Operation Frequent Wind
  • Ships of TF76 wait off Vung Tau for the start of the operation
    Ships of TF76 wait off Vung Tau for the start of the operation

Preparations on the ground

On 12 April, the 9th Marine Amphibious Brigade (MAB), which was to supply helicopters and a security force for the evacuation, sent a delegation to consult with Ambassador Graham Martin on current plans. Ambassador Martin told them that he would not tolerate any outward signs that the United States intended to abandon South Vietnam. All planning would have to be conducted with the utmost discretion. Brigadier General Richard E. Carey, commander of the 9th Marine Amphibious Brigade (9th MAB), flew to Saigon the next day to see Ambassador Martin, he later said that ‘The visit was cold, non-productive and appeared to be an irritant to the Ambassador’[3].

By late April Air America helicopters were flying several daily shuttles from TF76 to the DAO Compound to enable the 9th MAB to conduct evacuation preparations at the DAO without exceeding the Paris Peace Accords' limit of a maximum of 50 military personnel in South Vietnam, this at a time when the North Vietnamese army was overtly breaching the Peace Accords[4].

The two major evacuation points chosen for Operation Frequent Wind were the DAO Compound adjacent to Tan Son Nhut Airport for American civilian and Vietnamese evacuees and the US Embassy, Saigon for Embassy staff[5].

The plan for the evacuation would see convoy buses prestaged throughout metropolitan Saigon at buildings designated as pick-up points with American civilians, fully trained to drive those buses, standing by in town at the way stations. The buses would follow planned evacuation routes from downtown Saigon to the DAO Compound, each route named after a Western Trail so there was Santa Fe, Oregon, Texas etc[6].

Tan Son Nhut under attack

On 28 April at 18:00 Tan Son Nhut Airport was bombed by 3 A-37 Dragonflys piloted by former VNAF pilots who had defected to the Vietnamese People's Air Force at the fall of Danang. Sporadic PAVN rocket and artillery attacks also started to hit the airport, increasing to 40 rounds per hour by 04:00 on 29 April.

At 03:30 a PAVN rocket hit Guardpost 1 at the DAO Compound, instantly killing Marine Corporals McMahon and Judge, they would be the last American ground casualties in Vietnam.

Shortly before 04:00, C-130E, 72-1297, c/n 4519, of the 314th Airlift Wing, out of Clark Air Base, Philippines, which had brought a BLU-82 to Tan Son Nhut Air Base was destroyed by a rocket while taxiing to pick up evacuees. The crew evacuated the burning aircraft on the taxiway and departed the airfield on another C-130 that had previously landed[7].

At 07:00 on 29 April, Major General Homer D Smith Jr, the senior Defence Attache 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. Ambassador Martin refused to accept General Smith's recommendation and instead insisted on visiting Tan Son Nhut to survey the situation for himself. Finally at 10:51 the order was given to commence Operation Frequent Wind, however due to confusion in the chain of command General Carey did not receive the execute order until 12:15[8].

White Christmas in April

In preparation for the evacuation, the American embassy had distributed a 15-page booklet called SAFE, short for "Standard Instruction and Advice to Civilians in an Emergency." The booklet included a map of Saigon pinpointing "assembly areas where a helicopter will pick you up." There was an insert page which read: "Note evacuational signal. Do not disclose to other personnel. When the evacuation is ordered, the code will be read out on Armed Forces Radio. The code is: The temperature in Saigon is 112 degrees and rising. This will be followed by the playing of I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas." Japanese journalists were concerned that they would not recognize the tune and had to get someone to sing it to them)[9].

In the run up to the evacuation, thousands of Vietnamese wanted to escape the encroaching communist forces. With so many desperate people and so many civilians in knowledge of security codes, it is likely that security was broken almost as soon as the code song was given out. In any event the sudden movement of hundreds of Westerners and thousand of high-ranking Vietnamese would not have gone unnoticed for long.

After the evacuation signal was given the buses began to pick up passengers and head to the DAO Compound. The system worked so efficiently that the buses were able to make 3 return journies rather than the expected one. The biggest problem occurred when the ARVN guarding the main gate at Tan Son Nhut refused to allow the last convoy of buses into the DAO Compound. As this was happening, a firefight between two ARVN units broke out and caught the rearmost buses in the crossfire, disabling two of the vehicles. Eventually the ARVN commander controlling the gates agreed to permit the remaining buses to enter the compound. General Carey's threat to use the AH-1J SeaCobras flying overhead may have played a role in the ARVN commander's decision[10].

Security and Air Support for the Operation

It was not known whether the PAVN and/or the ARVN would try to disrupt the evacuation and so the planners had to take all possible contingencies into account to ensure the safety and success of the evacuation.

9th MAB staff prescribed altitudes, routes, and checkpoints for flight safety for the operation. To avert mid-air collisions, the planners chose altitudes which would not only provide separation of traffic but also a capability to see and avoid the enemy's AAA, SA-2 and SA-7 missile threat (6,500 feet for flights inbound to Saigon and 5,500 feet for those outbound from Saigon to the Navy ships). In addition, these altitudes were high enough to avoid small arms and artillery fire[11].

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, 2 orbiting CH-46s of MAG-39 each carried 15-man, quick-reaction "Sparrow Hawk" teams of Marines from Company A, 1st Battalion, 9th Marines, ready to land and provide security enabling a search and rescue (SAR) helicopter to pick up the crew. 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. The Seacobras could also serve as Tactical Air Coordinators (Airborne) or Forward Air Controllers (Airborne)[12].

The air wings of the USS Enterprise and USS Coral Sea, were ready to provide close air support and SEAD if required, and would provide continuous fighter cover over the evacuation route including by VF-1 and VF-2, flying from the Enterprise with the first combat deployment of the new F-14 Tomcat.

Despite all the concern over these military threats, the weather presented the gravest danger. At the beginning of the operation, pilots in the first wave reported the weather as 2,000 feet scattered, 20,000 feet overcast with 15 miles visibility, except in haze over Saigon, where visibility decreased to one mile. This meant that scattered clouds existed below their flight path while a solid layer of clouds more than two miles above their heads obscured the sun, additionally, the curtain of haze, suspended over Saigon, so altered the diminished daylight that line of sight visibility was only a mile. The weather conditions would deteriorate as the operation continued[11].

Air America during Operation Frequent Wind

(America Compound, Saigon 10°48′37.81″N 106°39′45.87″E / 10.8105028°N 106.6627417°E / 10.8105028; 106.6627417Invalid arguments have been passed to the {{#coordinates:}} function)

On 7 April, Air America pilot Nikki A. Fillipi, with Marine Lt Robert Twigger, assigned to the DAO as the Marine Corps liaison officer, surveyed 37 buildings in Saigon as possible LZs selecting 13 of them as fit for use. Air America staff then proceeded to visit each of these sites to remove obstructions and paint H's on the LZs[13].

As part of the evacuation plan agreed with the DAO, Air America committed 25 of its 28 available helicopters to support the evacuation.

At 08:30 on 29 April, with the shelling of Tan Son Nhut Airport subsiding, Air America began ferrying its helicopter and fixed wing pilots from their homes in downtown Saigon out to the Air America Compound at Tan Son Nhut, across the road from the DAO Headquarters[14].

During the morning RVNAF personnel stole 5 ICCS UH1-H Hueys and one Air America Bell 204 from the Air America ramp[15].

Air America helicopters started flying to the rooftop LZs in downtown Saigon and either shuttled the evacuees back to the DAO Compound or flew out to the ships of TF76[16].

By 10:30 all Air America's fixed-wing aircraft had departed Tan Son Nhut evacuating all non-essential personnel and as many Vietnamese evacuees as they could carry and headed for Thailand[17].

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)[16][18]. 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 the were refused fuel by the ships of TF76[19].

Acoording to US Naval Archives, at 12:30 an Air America Bell 205 landed Air Vice Marshal Nguyễn Cao Kỳ, Madame Kỳ, Dorothy Martin (wife of Ambassador Martin) and others on the USS Denver, however contemporary reports and photos state that Marshal Kỳ piloted his own UH-1H Huey to the USS Midway[20].

At approximately 14:30, Air America Bell 205 serial number "N47004" landed on the roof of the Pittman Apartment Building at 22 Gia Long Street (Gia Long Street, Saigon 10°46′42.77″N 106°42′4.49″E / 10.7785472°N 106.7012472°E / 10.7785472; 106.7012472Invalid arguments have been passed to the {{#coordinates:}} function) to collect a senior Vietnamese intelligence source and his family. The Pittman Building wasn't an approved LZ, but when the agreed pickup point at the the Lee Hotel at 6 Chien Si Circle was declared unusable, CIA Station Chief Tom Polgar asked Oren B. Harnage, Deputy Chief of the Embassy’s Air Branch to change the pickup to the Pittman Building, which was the home of the Assistant Station Chief and had an elevator shaft that should support the weight of a Huey. Harnage boarded an Air America Huey from the Embassy's rooftop helipad and flew the short distance to the Pittman Building. Harnage leant out of the Huey and helped approxmately 15 evacuees board the Huey from the narrow helipad[21]. The scene was famously captured on film by Hubert van Es (see The Photo below).

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 the USS Midway or the USS Hancock and shut down. All Air America flights had ceased by 21:00[22].

With its available fleet of only 20 Hueys (3 of which were impounded, ditched or damaged at TF76), Air America had moved over 1000 evacuees to the DAO Compound, the Embassy or out to the ships of TF76[23].

The DAO Compound

(Compound, Saigon 10°48′45.62″N 106°39′57.49″E / 10.8126722°N 106.6659694°E / 10.8126722; 106.6659694Invalid arguments have been passed to the {{#coordinates:}} function)

At 13:50, 2 UH-1 Huey helicopters carrying General Carey and Colonel Gray (commander of Regimental landing Team 4 (RLT4))landed at the DAO Compound. During their approach to the compound, they experienced a firsthand view of the PAVN's firepower as they shelled nearby Tan Son Nhut Airport with ground, rocket, and artillery fire. They quickly established an austere command post in preparation for the arrival of the Marine CH-53s and the ground security force[24].

At 15:06, a first wave of 12 CH-53s from HMH-462 loaded with the BLT 2/4 command groups "Alpha" and "Bravo," and Company F and reinforced Company H arrived in the DAO Compound and the Marines quickly moved to reinforce the perimeter defences. The second wave of 12 CH-53s from HMH-463 landed in the DAO Compound at 15:15 bringing in the rest of the BLT. A third wave of 2 CH-53s from HMH-463 and 8 USAF CH-53Cs and 2 USAF HH-53s (operating from the USS Midway) arrived shortly afterwards[25].

"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. Companies E and F respectively occuppied the northern and southern sections between the DAO Headquarters and the DAO Annex. "Bravo" command group, consisting of two rifle companies and the 106mm recoilless rifle platoon, assumed responsibility for security of the DAO Annex and its adjoining landing zones. Company G occuppied the eastern section of the Annex, while Company H assumed control of the western section[26].

The HMH-462 CH-53s loaded with evacuees and left the compound they unloaded the first refugees delivered by Operation Frequent Wind at 15:40[27].

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[5].

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[28].

At 19:30 General Carey directed that the remaining elements guarding the Annex be withdrawn to DAO Headquarters (the Alamo) where the last of the evacuees would await their flight. Once completed, the new defensive perimeter encompassed only LZ 36 and the Alamo. By 20:30 the last evacuees had been loaded onto helicopters[29].

At 22:50, with the evacuation of the landing control teams from the Annex and Alamo completed, General Carey ordered the withdrawal of the ground security forces from the DAO Compound[29].

At 00:30 on 30 April, thermite grenades, having been previously placed in selected buildings, ignited as two CH-53s left the DAO parking lot carrying the last elements of 2nd Battalion 4th Marines[29].

  • 9th MAB intelligence photo of the DAO Compound with LZs marked
    9th MAB intelligence photo of the DAO Compound with LZs marked
  • 9th MAB post-operation map of the DAO Compound and Air America Compound with LZs marked
    9th MAB post-operation map of the DAO Compound and Air America Compound with LZs marked
  • A Marine provides security as helicopters land at the DAO Compound
    A Marine provides security as helicopters land at the DAO Compound
  • USMC CH-53s at LZ 38
    USMC CH-53s at LZ 38
  • Vietnamese evacuees board a CH-53 at LZ 39
    Vietnamese evacuees board a CH-53 at LZ 39
  • Aerial reconnaissance photos of the destroyed DAO Headquarters building with Air America Compound in the foreground
    Aerial reconnaissance photos of the destroyed DAO Headquarters building with Air America Compound in the foreground

The Embassy

(US Embassy, Saigon 10°46′58.12″N 106°42′3.66″E / 10.7828111°N 106.7010167°E / 10.7828111; 106.7010167Invalid arguments have been passed to the {{#coordinates:}} function)

On 25 April 40 Marines from the 9th MAB on the USS Hancock (CV-19) was flown in by Air America helicopters in civilian clothes to the DAO Compound to augment the 18 Marine Security Guards assigned to defend the Embassy, an additional 6 Marines were assigned to protect Ambassador Martin.

Ambassador Martin remained optimistic that a negotiated settlement could be reached whereby the US would not have to pull out of South Vietnam and, in an effort to avert defeatism and panic he specifically instructed Major James Kean, Commanding Officer of the Marine Security Guard Battalion and Ground Support Force Commander United States Embassy Compound, that he could not begin to remove trees and shrubbery which prevented the use of the Embassy parking lot as a helicopter Landing Zone[30].

By the morning of 29 April it was estimated that approximately 10,000 people had gathered around the Embassy, while some 2500 evacuees were in the Embassy and Consular compounds. The crowds prevented the use of buses for transporting evacuees from the Embassy to the DAO Compound for evacuation and the Embassy gate swere eventually closed to prevent the crowd from surging through. Eligible evacuees would now have to make themselves known to the Marine Guards or Embassy staff manning the walls and they would then be lifted over the walls and into the Embassy compound.

From 10:00 to 12:00 Major Kean and his Marines cut down trees and moved vehicles to create an LZ in the Embassy parking lot behind the Chancery building. Two LZs were now available in the Embassy compound, the rooftop for UH-1s and CH-46 Sea Knights and the new parking lot LZ for the heavier CH-53s[31].

Air America UH-1s began ferrying evacuees from other smaller assembly points throughout the city and dropping them on the Embassy's rooftop LZ.

At 15:00 the first CH-53s were sighted heading towards the DAO Compound at Tan Son Nhut. Major Kean contacted the Seventh Fleet to advise them of his airlift requirements, until that time the Fleet believed that all evacuees had been bussed from the Embassy to the DAO Compound and that only 2 helicopters would be required to evacuate the Ambassador and the Marines from the Embassy[32].

The scene inside the Embassy had become surreal. The evacuees had found whatever space was available inside the Embassy compound and evacuees and some Embassy staff proceeded to liberate alcohol from the Embassy's stores. From the billowing incinerator on the embassy roof floated intelligence documents and US currency, most charred; some not. An embassy official said that more than five million dollars were being burned[33].

At 17:00 the first CH-46 landed at the Embassy.

Between 19:00 and 21:00 on 29 April approximately 130 additional Marines from 2nd Battalion 4th Marines were lifted from the DAO Compound to reinforce perimeter security at the Embassy[28], bringing the total number of Marines at the Embassy to 175[5].

The evacuation from the DAO Compound was completed by about 19:00 after which all helicopters would be routed to the Embassy, however Major Kean was informed that operations would cease at dark. Major Kean advised that the LZ would be well lit and had vehicles moved around the parking lot LZ with their engines running and headlights on to illuminate the LZ[32].

At 21:30 a CH-53 pilot informed Major Kean that the Admiral Whitmire, Commander of Task Force 76 had ordered that operations would cease at 23:00. Major Kean saw Ambassador Martin to request that he contact the Oval Office to ensure that the airlift continued. Ambassador Martin soon sent word back to Major Kean that sorties would continue to be flown[32]. At the same time, General Carey met with Admiral Whitmire to convince him to resume flights to the Embassy despite pilot weariness and poor visibility caused by darkness, fires and bad weather. [34].

By 02:15 one CH-46 and one CH-53 were landing at the Embassy every 10 minutes at this timethe Embassy indicated that another 19 lifts would complete the evacuation[35]. At that time Major Kean estimated that there were still some 850 non-American evacuees and 225 Americans (including the Marines), Ambassador Martin told Major Kean to do the best he could[36].

At 03:00 on 30 April, Ambassador Martin ordered Major Kean to move all the remaining evacuees into the parking lot LZ which was the Marines final perimeter[36].

At 03:27 President Ford ordered that no more that no more than 19 additional lifts would be allowed to complete the evacuation[37].

At 04:30 with the 19 lift limit already exceeded, Major Kean went to the rootop LZ and spoke over a helicopter radio with General Carey who advised that President Ford had ordered that the airlift be limited to US personnel and General Carey, Commanding General, 9th MAB, ordered Major Kean to withdraw his men into the Chancery building and withdraw to the rooftop LZ for evacuation[36].

Major Kean returned to the ground floor of the Chancery and ordered his men to withdraw into a large semi-circle at the main entrance to the Chancery. Most of the Marines were inside the Chancery when the crowds outside the Embassy broke through the gates into the compound. The Marines closed and bolted the Chancery door, the elevators were locked by Seabees on the 6th floor and the Marines withdrew up the stairwells locking grill gates behind them. On the ground floor a water tanker was driven through the Chancery door and the crowd began to surge up through the building toward the rooftop. The Marines on the rootop had sealed the doors to the rooftop and were using mace to discourage the crowd from trying to break through. Sporadic gunfire from around the Embassy passed over the rooftop[38].

At 04:58 Ambassador Graham Martin boarded a USMC CH-46 Sea Knight, call-sign "Lady Ace 09" of HMM-165 and was flown to the USS Blue Ridge (LCC-19). When Lady Ace 09 transmitted "Tiger is out," those helicopters still flying, thought the mission was complete, thereby delaying the evacuation to the Marines from the Embassy rooftop[37].

CH-46s evacuated the Battalion Landing Team by 07:00 and after an anxious wait a lone CH-46 "Swift 2-2" of HMM-164[37] arrived to evacuate Major Kean and the 10 remaining men of the Marine Security Guards, this last helicopter took off at 07:53 on 30 April and landed on USS Okinawa (LPH-3) at 09:30[39].

At 11:30 PAVN tanks smashed through the gates of the Presidential Palace (now the Reunification Palace) less than 1km from the Embassy and raised the National Liberation Front for South Vietnam (NLF) flag over the building; the Vietnam War was over.

  • Aerial view of the US Embassy, Saigon, showing Chancery building (left), parking lot (center) and Consulate compound and French Embassy (top).
    Aerial view of the US Embassy, Saigon, showing Chancery building (left), parking lot (center) and Consulate compound and French Embassy (top).

Chaos at sea

During the course of the operation an unknown number of VNAF helicopters flew out of what remained of South Vietnam to the Fleet.

Around 12:00 5 or 6 VNAF UH-1Hs and one of the stolen ICCS UH-1Hs, serial number “69-16715” were circling around the USS Blue Ridge. The VNAF pilots had been instructed after dropping off their passengers to ditch their helicopters and they would then be picked up by the ship's boat. The pilot of the stolen ICCS Huey had been told to ditch off the aft left side of the ship, but seemed reluctant to do so, flying around the ship to the front right side he leapt from his helicopter at a height of 40ft. His helicopter turned and hit the side of the USS Blue Ridge before hitting the sea. The tail rotor sheared off and embedded itself in the engine of an Air America Bell 205 that was doing a hot refueling on the helipad at the rear of the ship. The Air America pilot shut down his helicopter and left it and moments later a VNAF UH-1H attempted to land on the helipad, locked rotors with the Air America Bell almost pushing it overboard[40].

The stolen Air America Bell 204, serial number N1305X landed on the USS Kirk, from where it was flown to the USS Okinawa by US Navy pilots[15].

So many South Vietnamese helicopters landed on the TF76 ships that some 45 UH-1 Hueys and at least one CH-47 Chinook were pushed overboard to make room for more helicopters to land. Other helicopters, having nowhere to land, were deliberately crash landed into the sea, close to the ships, their pilots bailing out at the last moment to be picked up by rescue boats.[41]

Results of the evacuation

Marine pilots accumulated 1,054 flight hours and flew 682 sorties throughout Operation Frequent Wind.

The evacuation of personnel from the DAO Compound had lasted nine hours and involved over 50 Marine Corps and Air Force helicopters.

A total of 395 Americans and 4,475 Vietnamese and third-country nationals were evacuated from the DAO Compound[29] and a further 978 U.S. and 1,120 Vietnamese and third-country nationals from the Embassy[42], giving a total of 1,373 Americans and 5,595 Vietnamese and third country nationals.

In addition, Air America helicopters and RVNAF aircraft brought additional evacuees to the TF76 ships.

Many of the Vietnamese evacuees were allowed to enter the United States under the Indochina Migration and Refugee Assistance Act.

Some 400 evacuees were left behind at the Embassy including over 100 South Korean citizens.

Casualties

For an operation of the size and complexity of Frequent Wind, casualties were relatively light.

Marine Corporals McMahon and Judge killed at the DAO Compound were the only KIAs of the operation and were the last US ground casualties in Vietnam.

A Marine AH-1J SeaCobra's engines flamed out from fuel starvation while searching for the USS Okinawa and ditched at sea. The two crew members were rescued by a boat from USS Kirk (FF-1087)[42].

A CH-46F from the USS Hancock flown by Captain William C Nystul[43] and First Lieutenant Michael J. Shea[44] crashed into the sea on its approach to the ship after having flown a long and exhausting night sea and air rescue mission (SAR). The two enlisted crewmembers survived, but the bodies of the pilots were not recovered. The cause of the crash was never determined[42].

Memorials

Lady Ace 09, CH-46 serial number 154803 is now on display at the Flying Leatherneck Aviation Museum in San Diego, California.

During the demolition of the US Embassy, Saigon the ladder leading from the Embassy 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[45] [46].

The Photo

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, a Air America UH-1 Huey on a rooftop picking up Vietnamese evacuees.

The building in the photo, has often been incorrectly identified as the US Embassy, but was in fact the Pittman Apartment building at 22 Gia Long Street (now 22 Lý Tự Trọng Street), which was used as a residence by various Embassy employees including the CIA[47].

  • Rooftop of 22 Gia Long Street in 2002
    Rooftop of 22 Gia Long Street in 2002
  • 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. In the second act, during Kim's nightmare sequence depicts the landing of the final helicopter, Lady Ace 09, on the US Embassy.
  • In The Simpsons at the end of Episode 16 of Season 6, Bart vs. Australia, the Simpsons are evacuated from the American Embassy as angry Australians gather outside in a scene reminiscent of Hubert van Es's famous photo. Homer asks the helicopter pilot if they are being taken to an aircraft carrier and is told that "the closest vessel in the USS Walter Mondale. It's a laundry ship"[48]
  • In episode 11 of Hey Arnold!, Arnold learns that Mr. Hyunh was fortunate enough to have his infant daughter evacuated in Operation Frequent Wind, but without him. He later immigrated to the United States alone. Arnold tries to give Mr. Hyunh the best Christmas gift by reuniting them.[49]

References

  1. ^ a b history.navy.mil (2000). "Chapter 5: The Final Curtain, 1973 - 1975" (HTML). history.navy.mil. Retrieved 2007-07-24. {{cite web}}: External link in |last= (help)
  2. ^ Butler, David (1985). The Fall of Saigon: Scenes from the Sudden End of a Long War. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 0-671-46675-5.
  3. ^ History Net: Air America: Played a Crucial Part of the Emergency Helicopter Evacuation of Saigon
  4. ^ Dunham, George R (1990). U.S. Marines in Vietnam: The Bitter End, 1973-1975 (Marine Corps Vietnam Operational Historical Series). Marine Corps Association. ISBN 978-0160264559. {{cite book}}: Text "p. 178" ignored (help)
  5. ^ a b c Dunham, p. 196.
  6. ^ Dunham, p. 178-179.
  7. ^ Dunham, p. 182.
  8. ^ Dunham, p. 183.
  9. ^ Pilger, John (1975). The Last Day. Mirror Group Books. ISBN 978-0859390514.
  10. ^ Dunham, p. 179-181.
  11. ^ a b Dunham, p. 188.
  12. ^ Dunham, p. 187.
  13. ^ History Net: Air America: Played a Crucial Part of the Emergency Helicopter Evacuation of Saigon p.1
  14. ^ Template:Cite article
  15. ^ a b Leeker, p. 20.
  16. ^ a b Leeker, p. 22.
  17. ^ Leeker, p. 21.
  18. ^ Dunham, p. 192.
  19. ^ Leeker, p. 22-24.
  20. ^ Leeker, p. 29.
  21. ^ Leeker, p. 27-28.
  22. ^ Leeker, p. 28-29.
  23. ^ Leeker, p. 30.
  24. ^ Dunham, p. 189.
  25. ^ Dunham, p. 186.
  26. ^ Dunham, p. 191-192.
  27. ^ Dunham, p. 191.
  28. ^ a b Dunham, p. 195.
  29. ^ a b c d Dunham, p. 197.
  30. ^ Major James H, Kean SSN/0802 USMC, After Action Report 17 April ~ 7 May 1975 p. 3
  31. ^ Kean, p. 5.
  32. ^ a b c Kean, p. 6.
  33. ^ Pilger, p. 30.
  34. ^ Dunham, p. 198.
  35. ^ Dunham, p. 199.
  36. ^ a b c Kean, p. 7.
  37. ^ a b c Dunham, p. 200.
  38. ^ Kean, p. 7-8.
  39. ^ Kean, p. 8.
  40. ^ Leeker, p. 24-25.
  41. ^ Bowman, John S. (1985). The Vietnam War: An Almanac. Pharos Books. ISBN 0-911818-85-5. p434. (Cited at Rombough, Julia. "Frequent Wind: The Last Days of the Vietnam War". Retrieved 2006-07-01.)
  42. ^ a b c Dunham, p. 201.
  43. ^ "Capt William C Nystul". The Virtual Wall.
  44. ^ "1LT Michael J Shea". The Virtual Wall.
  45. ^ Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum Leadership in Diplomacy exhibit
  46. ^ Gerald R. Ford's Remarks at the Opening of the Ford Museum's Saigon Staircase Exhibit April 1999
  47. ^ "Getting it wrong in a photo". New York Times. April 23, 2000.
  48. ^ "[2F13] Bart vs. Australia". The Simpsons Archive. 2009-06-14.
  49. ^ "Hey Arnold! Character and Episode Guide". hey-arnold.com. 2008-06-06. Retrieved 2008-06-11.

Further reading

  • Snepp, Frank. Decent Interval: An Insider's Account of Saigon's Indecent End Told by the CIA's Chief Strategy Analyst in Vietnam. University Press of Kansas, 1977. ISBN 0-7006-1213-0
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