authorized for wear on the suspension ribbon and ribbon bar of [10]:197 At 23:40 Marines destroyed the satellite terminal, the DAO Compound's last means of direct communication with the outside world. On 28 April, Tan Son Nhut Air Base (next to the airport) came under artillery fire and attack from Vietnamese People's Air Force aircraft. participation in Operation FREQUENT WIND, during the period 29 (d) Public Law 107-314 of 2 December 2002 A total of 1,373 Americans and over 5,600 South Vietnamese nationals were . The Marines on the rooftop had sealed the doors and were using Mace to discourage the crowd from trying to break through. Note: (5) Named Campaigns are denoted by a 3/16 silver service star. When Lady Ace 09 transmitted "Tiger is out", those helicopter crews still flying thought the mission was complete, and delayed evacuating the Marines from the embassy rooftop. [10]:188, 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. 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. During the fixed-wing evacuation 50,493 people (including 2,678 Vietnamese orphans) were evacuated from Tan Son Nhut. XVI . They were evacuated to Bangkok on 1 August 1976. authorized, shall remain qualified for the Armed Forces Expeditioanry Medal (AFEM). They quickly established an austere command post in preparation for the arrival of the Marine CH-53s and the ground security force. A C-130 Airborne Command and Control controlled all US air operations over land. Operations. 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. [33], The Cessna O-1 Bird Dog that Major Buang landed on USS Midway is now on display at the National Museum of Naval Aviation at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida. RVNAF Huey is pushed overboard from USS Midway. to 30 April 1975, may elect the Vietnam Service Medal (VSM) in lieu of the Armed Forces Expeditioanry Medal (AFEM) for such It was carried out on 29-30 April 1975, during the last days of the Vietnam War. Operation Frequent Wind - 29 to 30 April 1975 Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal Humanitarian Service Medal Navy Unit Commendation Hancock was also awarded: American Campaign Medal World War II Victory Medal Navy Occupation Medal National Defense Service Medal (2nd) 2. [14], At 03:58, C-130E, #72-1297, flown by a crew from the 776th Tactical Airlift Squadron, was destroyed by a 122mm rocket while taxiing to pick up refugees after offloading a BLU-82 at Tan Son Nhut Air Base. As they approached the helicopters had taken rifle and M-79 grenade fire from ARVN troops but without causing any apparent damage. [10]:195, 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. 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. eligible for the award. This operation was also the debut combat deployment of the F-14 Tomcat aircraft. The Pittman Building was not an approved LZ, but when the agreed pickup point at 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 believed capable of supporting the weight of a Huey. Major Kean was then ordered to withdraw his men into the chancery building and withdraw to the rooftop LZ for evacuation. XIII. This helicopter was one of 15 which landed on board USS Blue Ridge with Vietnamese military personnel and families during the evacuation. OPERATION FREQUENT WIND, 29-30 APRIL 1975, WILL BE REFLECTED AS THE 18TH CAMPAIGN UNDER THE VIETNAM CAMPAIGN. should be submitted to CNO/CMC, via the commander who exercised Vietnam FREQUENT WIND - Evacuation. At the beginning of March, fixed-wing aircraft began evacuating civilians from Tan Son Nhat Airport through neighboring countries. Personnel in clandestine or special operations such as reconnaissance and SEAL teams are eligible when the risk of enemy fire was great and was expected to be encountered. [10]:179181, 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. Members qualified for the AFEM by reason of service between 01Jul1958 and 03Jul1965 (inclusive) in an area for which the Vietnam Service medal (VSM) was subsequently authorized shall remain qualified for that medal. Sporadic gunfire from around the embassy passed over the rooftop. I was present as a Marine attached to the USS Denver during Operation Frequent Wind during April and part of May in 1975. Subsequent awards will be indicated by the use of a Gold Star on the ribbon: (1). Shipmates would fight for that ship. Only one award per operation is authorized. The Military Departments are . Military News and Information Editor http://www.13105320634.com The American War Library, Est. It is so sad that so many of use never received what was due us.. X. Tet 69 Counter-offensive 23 Feb 69 to 08 Jun 69 Squadrons or units embarked in a ship, Operation FREQUENT WIND 29 Apr 75 to 30 Apr 75 XVIII. 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,[10]:195 bringing the total number of Marines at the embassy to 175. The code is: The temperature in Saigon is 105 degrees and rising. Eligible evacuees now had to make themselves known to the Marine guards or embassy staff manning the walls and were then lifted over the walls and into the embassy compound. significant contribution by an individual. limit may be waived for personnel participating in actual combat 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. [20]:22 By 10:30 all of 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. Tet Counter-offensive 30 Jan 68 to 01 Apr 68 New National Museum of the U.S. Navy-October 2020, New National Museum of the U.S. Navy - October 2022, Exhibits: New National Museum of the U.S. Navy, Exhibits: New National Museum of the U.S. Navy - Main, The American Revolution and the French Alliance, The Forgotten Wars of the Nineteenth Century, Civil War: Securing the Seas for Union Victory, Education Resources (Lesson Plans and Class Activities), Education Resources (Lesson Plans and Class Activities) - Main, Sailor's Life at Sea & Poetry (Grades 4-6), DIVE! Around 12:00 five or six RVNAF UH-1Hs and one of the stolen ICCS UH-1Hs, were circling around Blue Ridge. 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Geoghegan and Curator, Gordon Calhoun, April 29, 1975 Operation Frequent Wind, April 18, 1906 -- San Francisco, California, December 16, 1922 Rescue of Vinh-Long Passengers, September 6, 1930 Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, December 1948-January 1949-Beirut, Lebanon and Port Said, Egypt, 1954-1955 Vietnam (Operation Passage to Freedom), October 13, 1954 -- Haiti (Hurricane Hazel), February 7, 1955: Evacuation of Chinese from Tachen Islands, October 1955: Tampico, Mexico (Hurricane Janet), October 1959 Nagoya, Japan (Typhoon Vera), November 3, 1961 - Belize, British Honduras (Hurricane Hattie), August 1969 Mississippi (Hurricane Camille), October-December 1973 Colombia and Haiti, February 1975 Mauritius (Cyclone Gervaise), 1980-1989 Rescue of Vietnamese Refugees, September 21, 1981 Rescue of Datu Kalantiaw, January 28, 1986 Space Shuttle Challenger, April-August 1989 - Exxon Valdez Oil Spill, September-October 1989 Charleston, South Carolina, January 1990 Dubai, United Arab Emirates, August 5, 1990 Liberia (Operation Sharp Edge), 1991-1996 - Iraq (Operation Provide Comfort), 1992-1993 Somalia (Operation Restore Hope), 1992-1996 Yugoslavia (Operation Provide Promise), March 1997 - Albania (Operation Silver Wake), January-March 1998 Kenya (Operation Nobel Response). Commander Task Force 76 received the order to execute Operation Frequent Wind (initially Talon Vise), the evacuation of U.S. personnel and Vietnamese who might suffer as a result of their past service to the Allied effort. Please check our Hours of Operation page before planning your visit. No BS, just fact.. [6]:27 By 16 April, Alamo was complete: water, C-rations, petroleum, oil, and lubricants had been stockpiled; backup electricity generators had been installed; sanitary facilities were completed; and concertina wire protected the perimeter. Bronze Arrowhead (Army), For current prices select the image or one of the following links, Military Medals and Military Ribbons links, Official Military Ribbons-- provides information and links for. [16] Japanese journalists, concerned that they would not recognize the tune, had to get someone to sing it to them. It has often been misidentified as the US Embassy. The crew evacuated the burning aircraft on the taxiway and departed the airfield on another C-130 that had previously landed. They were the last American ground casualties in Vietnam. Note: Normal performance of duty or in a large number of combat missions does not in itself justify the award. When the operation ceased on May 2, the Vietnamese Navy group set sail for reception centers in the Philippines and Guam in Operation New Life. The cause of the crash was never determined. The stem of the palm is to the wearer's right." . The medal shall be ,awarded only Evacuation of Phnom Penh and Saigon, April 29, 1975. [6]:9899 USAF aircraft operating out of Nakhon Phanom Air Base, Korat Air Base and U-Tapao Air Base in Thailand were also overhead for the duration of the helicopter evacuation. The Air America pilot shut down his helicopter and left it. space thereof, between 4 July 1965 and 28 March 1973, and [21]:6, 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. (a). (a) Vietnam Service Medal is awarded to all members of the Armed Forces [34] The USS Midway is a museum ship in San Diego. Operation FREQUENT WIND (Evacuation of Saigon), 29 and 30 April 1975, (Note: Other Operations do not pertain to the Vietnam Era), Common questions about the number of campaign stars for the Vietnam Service Medal: [6]:90 Finally at 10:51 the order was given by CINCPAC to commence Option 4; due to confusion in the chain of command, General Carey did not receive the execute order until 12:15. (c) Air Duty. It took 43 years to get my dd214 changed to the dd215. of service between 1 July 1958 and 3 July 1965, inclusive, in an Caption: Operation Frequent Wind, April 29, 1975 A Vietnamese Air Force HU-1 Huey Helicopter is deliberately ditched near USS Blue Ridge (LCC-19), as one of the ship's boats stands by to pick up. (check below for additional Republic of Vietnam unit awards). A South Vietnamese pilot lands his Huey helicopter on the deck of USS Hancock (CV-19). [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. [6]:35, 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 50 U.S. military personnel in South Vietnam. Two Marine CH-53 helicopters set down in a parking lot on the north edge of Saigon during the evacuation. 11. [10]:191 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. [6]:103 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 BLT 2/4. In addition, Air America helicopters and RVNAF aircraft brought additional evacuees to the TF76 ships. (a) Shore Duty. Pay tribute to a Vietnam War Hero past or present and hear the stories of Operation Frequent Wind and the Fall of Saigon from those . The SeaCobras could also serve as Forward Air Controllers. "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. [6]:81 Some RVNAF aircraft stayed to continue to fight the advancing PAVN. In any case this effectively marked the end of the commercial airlift from Tan Son Nhut. member in one or more aerial flights, directly supporting Vietnam Counter-offensive V 01 Jul 68 to 01 Nov 68 (b) Sea Duty. instances where the local commander certifies a particular and SECNAVINST 1650.1F, Dated 8 August 1991. Send the form to: Bureau of Naval Personnel Liaison Office Room 5409, 9700 Page Avenue St. Louis, MO 63132-5100 To obtain information about unit awards earned, contact the Chief of Naval Operations, Awards and Special Projects Branch at the address below. [6]:111 However, one USAF report states that an F-4C Wild Weasel and an F-4D of the 388th Fighter Wing, was patrolling between Tan Son Nhut and Bien Hoa about 16:00 when the Wild Weasel detected SAM radar emissions to the north. Scroll down to commemorate this event. Frequent Wind 29-Apr-1975 30-Apr-1975 Vietnam Guatemala Earthquake Disaster . 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