On 28 March 1966, 7 AF was designated a combat command at Ton Son Nhut AB, Republic of Vietnam. It was the Air Component Command of the Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV). From April 1966 until 1973, the command assumed responsibility for most Air Force operations in Vietnam and shared responsibility with the Thirteenth Air Force for operations conducted from Thailand as 7/13 Air Force. In June 1966, the first US air attacks near Hanoi and Haiphong occurred when 7 AF planes bombed oil installations near these two cities. The following month, US aircraft struck North Vietnamese forces inside the DMZ following the North's violations of agreements not to locate military forces there..  

One of the most publicized battles of the war was the siege of Khe Sanh in early 1968, known as "Operation Niagra." More than 24,000 tactical and 2700 B-52 strike dropped 110,000 tons of ordnance in attacks that averaged over 300 sorties per day. At night, AC-47 gunships kept up a constant chatter of fire against enemy troops. In August 1968, General George S. Brown began to oversee the "Vietnamization" of the air war. By 1970, this effort was successful enough that General Brown released the first USAF units to leave Vietnam. On 29 March 1973, the command transferred to Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai AB, Thailand, where it accepted dual responsibility as the US Support Activities Group and 7 AF. As a result, 7 AF controlled air assets and operations in Thailand. It served this role until its deactivation on 30 June 1975agreements not to put military forces there.

Flying the first mission of Operation Babylift, the evacuation of Vietnamese orphans, a C5-A had its controls damaged after the accidental loss of part of the rear doors shortly after take-off from Tan Son Nhut AB on April 4th, 1975. Attempting to make an emergency landing, the aircraft crashed, killing 155 of the 314 people on board. Tragically, many were infants. An explosive detector dog team was sent TDY from Clark AB, Republic of the Philippines to exam the wreckage of the C5A .      

Below Are Non-VSPA Links of Interest 

                    377th SPS Website          Fall of Saigon      Saigon Now (Ho Chi Minh City)

                  Map of Tan Son Nhut Area     Tan Son Nhut Association   

                                                           Contributors

James A. Stewart       Brian Rueger 

 Note: Jim Stewart is the Unit Director for the 377 SPS K-9 for the Vietnam Dog Handler Assoc. He is looking for anyone who was in the K-9 section at Tan Son Nhut from 1965-1973. Please contact him, he has a list of over 500 handlers but only has about 150 with addresses. 

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