Tan Son Nhut Air Base - VNAF Use of Tan Son Nhut Air Base

VNAF Use of Tan Son Nhut Air Base

In 1953, Tan Son Nhut started being used as a military air base for the fledgling Vietnamese Armée de l'Air (VALA) (Air Department). However, it was not until 1956 that the headquarters for the VALA was moved from the center of Saigon to Tan Son Nhut Air Base. But even before that time, French and Vietnamese military aircraft were always in evidence at Tan Son Nhut.

On 1 July 1955, the VNAF was established as a separate and distinct military unit. The VNAF consisted of 58 aircraft and about 1,300 personnel. The French had made no effort to expand the SVNAF to a force able to defend South Vietnam. Aircraft consisted primarily of C-47 Skytrains, and Grumman F8F Bearcats. In May 1956, by agreement with the South Vietnamese government, the United States Air Force assumed some training and administrative roles of the VNAF. Teams from Clark Air Force Base began in 1957 to organize the VNAF into a model of the USAF when the French training contracts expired.

By 1960, Tan Son Nhut Air Base was growing with more and more VNAF aircraft arriving from the United States such as North American T-6 Texans, Douglas A-1 Skyraiders, Cessna L-19 (O-1) Bird Dogs, and Sikorsky H-19 Helicopters.

Starting in the early 1960s, the build-up of the VNAF caused air units to became very visible on the base. On 4 January 1964, the VNAF 3311th Wing was organized at Tan Son Nhut, and the number of air units grew rapidly. By the mid-1960s, Tan Son Nhut Airport was reported as the busiest airport in the world, with a mix of air traffic that approached chaotic proportions.