We want to share your stories and memories from the final days of the war, which came to an end with the fall of Saigon on April 30.
March 29 is recognized as Vietnam War Veterans Day; the date references the day in 1973 when U.S. Military Assistance Command, Vietnam was disestablished and the last U.S. combat troops departed Vietnam. Also on that day, Operation Homecoming was completed, when the last of 591 U.S. prisoners were released and returned to the United States.
But the official end of the Vietnam War is considered to be April 30, 1975, when South Vietnam’s capital, Saigon, fell to North Vietnamese forces. Over the course of April 29-30 and with 800 U.S. Marines providing security, U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Army helicopters evacuated more than 7,000 people from Tân Sơn Nhứt Air Base, the U.S. embassy and other locations via Operation: Frequent Wind. A North Vietnamese rocket attack on the air base killed two Marines – the last American troops to die on the ground in South Vietnam – during the final stages of the operation. Evacuees were taken aboard vessels of the U.S. Seventh Fleet stationed offshore.
If you were there during those final days, we want to know. We’re asking Legionnaires who may have been in-country at the end to share their memories. We also want to hear from American Legion posts who may be hosting or organizing events commemorating the day.
Please share your memories, stories and events by emailing sbrooks@legion.org. And please remember to share your story and photos from those commemoration events afterward at www.legiontown.org.
- Honor & Remembrance