Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Navy Base: Difference between revisions

Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Air Force Base (NKP) is a Royal Thai Navy facility. During the Vietnam War it was a front-line base of the United States Air Force. It is located nine miles west of Nakhon Phanom city in Nakhon Phanom Province, on the banks of the Mekong River 365 miles (584 kilometers) north-northeast of Bangkok.

The Air Base at Nakhon Phanom, was fundamentally different than the other Thai Air Bases used by the United States Air Force in Thailand. The other bases had host organizations such as Tactical Fighter Wing or Strategic Wing, however Nakhon Phanom was the home of the 56th Special Operations Wing.

There were no tactical fighters at NKP, nor strategic bombers. Only old propeller driven aircraft.. some going back to World War II. Some of the aircraft at NKP had civilian markings, some had no markings. This was because the mission of Nakhon Phanom RTAFB was that of an Air Commando Unit. Operations from the base were to support ground personnel, with the support of indigenous personnel in Laos. In addition, the 556h SOW also worked closely with the U.S. embassies in Laos and Thailand to provide training for special air warfare units.

The first American military personnel to arrive at NKP in 1963 were the U.S. Navy's Mobile Construction Battalion Three (Seabees) who undertook the task of constructing the runways and raising the first buildings as part of a United States commitment under SEATO. In early 1964 the 507th Tactical Control Squadron became the first USAF unit assigned to the base, with the 5th Tactical Control Group being the host unit.

Nakhon Phanom originally housed search and rescue forces and maintained a communications capability in support of U.S. Air Force objectives in Southeast Asia.

In May 1965 the 6235th Air Base Squadron was formed and assumed host command responsibilities. On 8 April 1966 the 6235th Air Base Squadron was discontinued and the 634th Combat Support Group along with its subordinate squadrons was activated.

The Thai government approved the establishment of an Air Commando unit in Thailand on 2 Feburary 1966. Using the existing USAF facilities at NKP would make it appear that the United States was not introducing another unit into Thailand. Also, irregular warfare operations were already being conducted from the base and NKP was physically in a known subversive area.

The 56th SOW was activated on 8 April 1967 and sent about 40 to 50 pilots and maintence teams a month to the Air Attache office in Laos to work as Raven Forward Air Controlers (FACS). Their mission was to support friendly fores in northern Laos - known as the Barrel Roll area. The Ravens wore civilian clothing and were not addressed by military rank.

Attached to the 56th SOW was the 602nd Figher Squadron, whose mission was to provide armed escort for Search and Rescue (SAR) operations. The 602nd kept Korean War era Douglas A-1E "Skyraiders" on call for immediate departure as needed. Other missions flown by the 602nd was providing armed reconnaissance along enemy lines of communication in Laos and along Route Package III (RP III) in central North Vietnam, FAC and strike missions and to provide helicopter escort for missions involving the clandestine insertion and extraction of personnel in Laos and North Vietnam.

The A-1E "Skyraider" was heavily armed and could carry a combination of conventional bombs, rocket pods, cluster bomb units and market rockets, enabling it to perform the various missions called upon.

The other aircraft squadron assinged to the 56th SOW was the 606th Air Commando Squadron, which flew the T-28 "Trojan", the C-123 transport and World War II vintage Douglas A-26 Invaders. Its mission was to serve as an irregular aerial strike force with a rapid reaction capability that could hold the the communist Pathet Lao elements in check and develop and improve special aerial warfare and air commando tactics.

The concept of a rescue mission inside North Vietnam began in May 1970 with the identification of several small POW compounds including Son Tay. General Earle G. Wheeler, then Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, on June 10, 1970 authorized a 15-member planning group under the code-name "Polar Circle" to study the feasibility of a raid, one of whom would fly one of the rescue helicopters on the raid.

The objective was the rescue of approximatley 90 American Prisoners of War from the Son Tay prison camp.

At 2325 of 20 November 20 the helicopters launched from Udorn RTAFB. Shortly after midnight the A-1 Sandies and Combat Talons lifted off from NKP. As the force approached from the west, Navy aircraft launched at 0123 from the carriers USS Oriskany, USS Ranger, and USS Hancock and approached the North Vietnamese coast from the east, setting off a frantic air defense reaction at 0217 and providing a highly effective diversion for the raiders.

The Blueboy assault team, in the Jolly Green HH-3, crashlanded on time at 0218 and as planned into the center of Son Tay prison, the only casualty a crew member with a broken ankle. Army Captain Richard J. Meadows led his force on a violent assault of the prison guards and began a cell by cell search.

The Greenleaf command group, led by Col. Simons, at 0221 landed 400 meters off its objective outside a similar-looking structure previously labeled a "secondary school" but which was actually the administrative barracks for the North Vietnamese guards. The Greenleaf group immediately attacked the location, detonating charges on its walls and buildings, and set off a 5-minute firefight in which Col. Simons estimated it killed 100 to 200 NVA. At 0226 the command group reboarded its helicopter and moved to the correct landing area.

The Redwine support group, led by LTC Eliott P. "Bud" Sydnor, had landed at 0221 outside Son Tay prison and immediately executed the tasks assigned to Greenleaf, a contingency that had been previously planned for and rehearsed.

After a thorough search Meadows found that the prison held no POWs and radioed "Negative Items" to the command group. At 0236 the first helicopter extraction was made, followed by the second at 0245. The JCTG had been on the ground only 27 minutes. Though at first it was feared one raider had been left behind, all the troopers were accounted for. One had been wounded in the leg and was the only casualty to enemy action on the raid. By 0315 the force was out of North Vietnam, and landed back at Udorn at 0428, five hours after launch.

The Son Tay Raid is one of the more nebulous aspects of the Vietnam War. There is no concensus as to exactly why the POWs were moved out of the camp, why they were moved out, or wheter or not the raid was a success. There had not been any POW's at Son Tay since July but at the time of the raid, intelligence did not know this fact. About 20 hours before the raid a reliable intelligence source informed American officials that all the POW's from Son Tay had been moved to Dong Hoi, however the mission was still carried out.

By 1970 there were five operational squadrons attached to NKP. They are: 1st, 21st., 18th Special Operations Squadrons, 23rd Tactical Air Support Squadron and the 554th Reconnaissance Squadron.

The major operational associate units stationed at NKP were the 1987th Communications Squadron (AFCS), Det 5, 621st Tactical Control Squadron, 40th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron and Task Force Alpha (PACAF).

By 1971 communist forces in Laos were fighting conventional battles as mobile, regular battalions rather than insurgent guerrilla units. The Laotian armed forces numbered about 95,000 and military expenses amounted to about 75% of the country's national budget. It's military forces were weak, hampered by corruption, with no real incentive for prospective recruits to join the army.

Eighty percent of the total number of strike sorties by the USAF were allocated for Laos. For both political and financial reasons, the Nixon administration reduced all air power assets in Southeast Asia to 10,000 tactial sorties and 1,000 B-52 Arc Light sorties monthly. This is about half of what is was in 1970.

Making matters even more complex was that on 4 March 1971 the first Surfac-To-Air (SAM) site was confirmed in Laos, and on 26 April a USAF 0-2 Skymaster was the first aircraft to be shot down in Laos by a SAM.

The United States was also reaprasing their overall objectives in Laos. Officials at MACV felt that the North Vietnamese could take over the country at any time they wished. The Pentagon placed greater emphasis on preventing the loss of Cambodia to the Khmer Rouge, as this would give the enemy easier access to the southern population areas of Thailand. It was believed that even if Laos was lost to the communists, the combined forces of Thailand, Cambodia and South Vietnam could still halt the North Vietnamese from taking over the three remaining countries.

The US pulled out of Laos in 1973 as part of an overall peace and disengagement plan. As on every previous occasion, North Vietnam ignored the agreement and retained its army in Laos. The national government was forced to accept the Pathet Lao into the government. In 1975, Vietnamese and Pathet Lao forces began attacking government strongholds. A deal was eventually brokered that gave power to the Pathet Lao to save the government from total destruction. Once in power, the Pathet Lao economically cut its ties to all its neighbors (including China) with the exception of Vietnam and signed a treaty of friendship with Vietnam. The treaty allowed Vietnam to station soldiers within Laos and to place advisors throughout the government and economy. For many years after, Laos was effectively ruled by Vietnam.

The communist's 1975 victory in Laos was pale compared to their victories in Cambodia and South Vietnam. Pathet Lao troops marched into Vientiane on 1 May and simply took over the government. There was no opposition by government defenders and no large use of force by the rebels.

Nakhon Phanom had come a long way since the first American personnel arrived in the early 1960's. With the fall of both Cambodia and South Vietnam in the spring of 1975, the political climate between Washington and Bangkok had become very sour. Royal Thai Government wanted the USAF out of Thailand by the end of the year. Palace Lightning was the plan which the USAF would withdrawl it's aircraft and personnel from Thailand.

On 30 June 1975 the USAAF / 7th Air Force was deactivated in place. The Search and Rescue people were amoung the last to leave the country. The 3rd Air Rescue and Recovery Group lowered its flag on 31 January 1976 and NKP was turned over to the Thai government.

• 40th ARRS
• 361st TEWS
• Task Force Alpha
• 6994th Security Squadron
• 6908th Security Squadron
• 56th Combat Support Group
• 56th Special Operations Wing
• 1st Special Operations Squadron
• 554th Reconnaissance Squadron
• 18th Special Operations Squadron
• 1987th Communications Squadron
• 21st Special Operations Squadron
• 23rd Tactical Air Support Squadron
• Det 4, 6 Aerial Port Squadron (MAC)
• Det 5, 621st Tactical Control Squadron

The Royal Thai Navy uses the facilities at NKP today for riverine patrols along the Mekong River.

• United States Air Force In Thailand

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