Hòa Lạc Air Base

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Hòa Lạc Air Base
Part of Vietnam People's Air Force
Hòa Lạc Air Base, 1967
Coordinates21°02′16.8″N 105°29′24″E / 21.038000°N 105.49000°E / 21.038000; 105.49000
TypeAir Force Base
Site information
Controlled by Vietnam People's Air Force
Site history
Built1967
In use1967-Present
Battles/warsVietnam War
Airfield information
Summary

Hòa Lạc Airfield is a Vietnam People's Air Force (VPAF) (Không quân Nhân dân Việt Nam) military heliport located approximately 24 km (15 mi) west of Hanoi.

History[edit]

Vietnam War[edit]

The airfield started operation in February 1967.[1] On 26 March 1967 Col Robert Scott flying an F-105 shot down a Hòa Lạc-based MiG-17.[2] In May the base was first attacked by the USAF.[3]

Hòa Lạc, Kép and Phúc Yên were targeted on the first night of Operation Linebacker II on 18 December 1972 to suppress fighters that might otherwise intercept US attack aircraft.[4][5]

Current use[edit]

The VPAF 916th Helicopter Squadron is based at Hòa Lạc.

On 7 July 2014 a VPAF Mi-171 crashed while on a parachute training mission near Hòa Lạc killing 17 passengers and crew.[6]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Vietnam War After Action Reports. BACM Research. p. 35.
  2. ^ Davies, Peter (2014). F-105 Thunderchief MiG Killers of the Vietnam War. Osprey Publishing. p. 64. ISBN 9781782008040.
  3. ^ "Operations Summary, May 1967". National museum of the U.S. Air Force. 6 December 2006. Archived from the original on 12 January 2015. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  4. ^ Lake, Jon (2004). B-52 Stratofortress Units in Combat 1955-73. Osprey Publishing. p. 64. ISBN 9781841766072.
  5. ^ McCarthy, James (1985). USAF Southeast Asia Monograph Series Volume VI Monograph 8 Linebacker II: A View from the Rock (PDF). Office of Air Force History. p. 39. ISBN 978-1477541937. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-02-15. Retrieved 2019-12-09.Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  6. ^ "Military helicopter crash kills 17 near Hanoi". Nhan Dan. 7 July 2014. Retrieved 12 January 2015.