The entire video is 60 minutes long. The first year total cost of a battalion was estimated to be $13,476,000 (including $3,184,000 for operating costs). How did the U. S. Navy get landlocked in such a place anyway? Apart from sand, rock, and gravel which were available in Vietnam, most of their materials such as lumber, pipe, and fittings came from the U. S., largely by ship but some by air. During World War II the 1,080-man Seabee battalion had come into being, but its successor, which was developed in the following years of peace, was a more mobile highly compact unit with about half the number of men. I was listed as the Cargo Operations Officer, WebDa Nang, Vietnam Characteristics Design Suspension bridge Material Concrete Total length 1,850 metres (6,070 ft) Width 18 metres (59 ft) Height 80 metres (260 ft) Longest span 405 metres (1,329 ft) Piers in water 2 History Construction start 2003 Opened 19 WebThere were three deep-draft ship piers for ocean-going ships, while LSTs used the Tien Sha, Bridge, Museum, and Ferry cargo facilities. Initially, these were to maintain the airstrips at the three sites mentioned above and to render whatever other public works support the battalion was capable of. Productivity and the cost of doing work loomed large in the eyes of Pentagon analysts who sought to determine whether civilian contractors or troops should carry the burden of the construction effort. daylight shift and arrived at the port to find a newly assigned cargo operations Almost half of them were assigned to such diverse activities as the State Department Naval Support Unit, the Antarctic Support Activity, Nuclear Power program, two Amphibious Construction Battalions (ACBs), and Public Works Departments scattered all over the world. In the meantime, other Seabees in small units, orignally known as Seabee Technical Assistance Teams (STATS), later shortened to "Seabee Teams," became a part of the Vietnamese scene, commencing in January 1963 when the first two organized teams, 0501 and 0502, under Lieutenant (j.g.) According to the plan to 2020, in addition to 4 areas of Cai Mep - Sao Mai Ben Dinh, Phu My - My Xuan, Dinh River and Dam - Con Dao wharf area, Vung Tau port will expand 2 more berth areas in Long Son. Currently, Hai Phong port consists of 5 branches. One good example of a component was the 400-bed quonset hospital erected swiftly in Da Nang by one of the earliest battalions in country. Located in the center of Quy Nhon City - Binh Dinh Province and possessing natural conditions as well as favorable geographical location, Quy Nhon Port is considered as the leading port in the Central region ports with the ability to receive ships. Coordinates 16 7' 34'' N, 108 14' 19'' E. Decimal 16.1263874, 108.2386362. We learned of their value again in Vietnam, but it should be emphasized in many casesin the hospitals, for instancethe hardware from World War II stocks had not been updated.3. Statistics have, of course, changed rapidly, but some idea of the contribution of the teams may be gained from these figures gathered at Seabee headquarters in Hawaii (ComCBPac) in mid-1968: "Pioneered or upgraded to all-weather standards over three hundred and fifty miles of provincial roads and highways; planned and built four 'New Life Hamlets; planned and laid out six Refugee Villages; built three provincial and four local district market places; built sixteen Special Forces Camps; constructed thirty hospitals and dispensaries; added sixty school houses to the Vietnamese educational system; placed over 286,000 cubic yards of fill; provided on-the-job training to more than five thousand Vietnamese refugees, villagers, public works personnel, and "Chieu Hoi returnees (ex-Viet Cong) (more than half of these in 1967 alone); built over 4,000 feet of bridges (12 to 400 feet in length) and laid over two hundred culverts; constructed over eight miles of airfields; added 865 one-family housing units to various refugee villages; placed over fifty fresh water wells; and, constructed 168 civic and public buildings for the Vietnamese Government." https://www.thefreedictionary.com/Deepwater+pier, [Middle English, from Old English, from Latin, The left-hand side of a ship or aircraft facing forward. support beam to his hootch fell on him, crushing him. In time, procedures were developed which brought the deadline figure under five percent for all battalions then in country. And it soon became clear in the early months of the conflict that every able Seabee, sooner or later, would take his turn in Vietnam. Fortunately he had also become a member and responded to my email. received a call from the Navy Pacific Command, to enter our harbor at daybreak When the tug boat came in to tie off the barge, the In other cases, under the stress of wartime planning, items might be left out of the drawings and the construction forces would move on before the occupant-to-be realized what was missing. Those in the Pacific Fleet, home ported at Port Hueneme, California, and deployed at various times in unit or sub-unit strength to Guam, Okinawa, Midway, Adak, and Sangley Point, were five in number, each of 525 men. With the rapid buildup, there were not enough experienced petty officers on active duty to go around and the voluntary recall of reservists yielded little more. Despite the size of RMK-BRJ and the Naval Mobile Construction Battalions, there was need for more construction capability than they could provide. Check out top 10 below! [9], Nng Port consists of two main terminals (Tin Sa Seaport and Song Hn Terminal) and an additional freight warehouse, Tho Quang Station. In addition a new offensive was I was on duty the night Da Nang port has three berth areas: Tien Sa - Son Tra, Lien Chieu and Tho Quang, of which, Tien Sa - Son Tra port is the main berth with a total yard area of 178.603m2 and 14.285m2 for the total area. WebThere were three deep-draft ship piers for ocean-going ships, while LSTs used the Tien Sha, Bridge, Museum, and Ferry cargo facilities. hooking up the tanks to the BD Crane and get them out of the salt water. In June 1968 one-half of all Seabee battalion personnel were located north of the Hai Van Pass (just north of Da Nang), whereas a year previously only one-fifth of them had been so located. terribly to one side during this same offensive. WebShips docked to Vietnam shore or pier The VA Says: This category includes large ocean-going ships of the Blue Water Navy that entered an open water harbor and docked to a pier or otherwise docked to the shore of Vietnam. Port Type Seaport. This hiatus was cut to a minimum, however, by having advance parties from the new battalion get on site several weeks before the official change-over. casualties and take on emergency repairs. He pointed out that the Mobile Construction Battalions had construction missions and would not be available for maintenance. As more units moved into Vietnam, it became impractical for the OICC to preside over every bit of construction, even that accomplished by contract. (However, it should be noted that all Seabees assigned to duty in Vietnam did not come under the command of 3rd Naval Construction Brigade. captain who had replaced me was killed while lying in his bed when the main Few military units saw more duty in Vietnam than the Seabees. U.S. Once again, generalizations as to differences are difficult to make. In the future, it is expected to invest about VND 180 billion in Quy Nhon port to upgrade the running channel capable of welcoming 50,000-ton ships in and out of the port safely and conveniently. The remaining 115 were U. S. civil servants, Vietnamese, and civilians from other countries. In the course of a full career an officer will not normally have more than two, two-year tours with the battalions. Some became skilled, even by our standards, as a result of working with RMK, Public Works or Seabee Teams. Essentially the Seabees of Public Works and the CBMUs attached to them had the same basic missionto come in behind the construction forces and maintain and operate the bases already built. WebThe deep offshore waters are often referred to as blue waters and naval vessels operating on them are referred to as the Blue Water Navy. Get to know the time in transit of cargo on popular container shipping lines between ports of loading and port of discharge. Even more significant were the combined cost-plus-fixed-fee contracts for repair and utility functions at Army facilities negotiated between the Army and Pacific Architects and Engineers, Inc. Later, the unit sent details to many different sites to maintain them or to repair battle damage. I really hope some other people can find this service and get in touch with people like I did. a very sweet, usu. In July 1966 the "Bridge Cargo Ramp" (160307N 1081352E / 16.052N 108.231E / 16.052; 108.231) began operations increasing NSA's supply capability. A flatbed trailer being unloaded from the ship. Because it could barely handle the regular commercial commerce and with the heavy volume of additional Thus, in August 1965, two new contractors were added Brown and Root of Houston, Texas, and J. In June 1967 it included over 3,200 personnel, a year later 4,900, and by early 1969 the total approached 7,000. actually I was the night Operations Officer and worked from 1900hrs. The other two Pacific battalions were at their home port of Port Hueneme, taking leave and retraining, having recently returned from overseas assignments. Rear Admiral Edwin B. Hooper, U. S. Navy, Commander Service Force Pacific, in January 1968 stated: "An elite group within the Service Force . Though cost and skill comparisons tend to equate the contractor and military engineer capabilities, it is to be remembered that the primary purposes in maintaining engineer troops are to possess flexibility, to be able to provide rapid initial support to contingency operations and to have the ability to work in a zone of intensive hostilities. unloading container ships at CMTV port in particular Vung Tau port in general. ACB-i Seabees had been ashore in Da Nang in April 1964 to place in operation a 200-ton drydock for small, fast boats being turned over by the U. S. to the Vietnamese Navy. The former were involved in combat engineering functions such as mine sweeping, demolition, and field fortification. the path of the F4 which was attempting to land at the airfield located across Every year, the number of cargo handled through the Port is about 0.6 million tons, the number of vessels docked an average of 150 ships / year. The Captain was last off and he told the NSC officer that he Up until 1965 the contractor was engaged largely in building facilities for the armed forces of Vietnam under the Mutual Assistance Program. Looks Back: Vietnam Army Engineers in Vietnam & Operations At the start of the Vietnam conflict the authorized allowance of a battalion was 21 officers and 563 men. The formation of MACV-DC did not alter the basic design, construction, and financial responsibilities of the OICC office which still reported back through its own chain to the Naval Facilities Engineering Command. Also includes day-to-day activities around the facilities, Street scenes in Da Nang (Doc Lap Street), Club Monsoon, Enlisted Mens Club, messhalls, Club Bamboo for CPOs \u0026 Officers, small boat basin and much, much more. It was converted in April 1966 from a cost-plus-fixed-fee to a cost-plus-award-fee (CPAF) type, designed with an incentive feature to enhance contractor performance. It was a wonderful moment that we will both remember for the rest of our lives, and we owe it to VetFriends. Vietnam warehouse. I Corps, comprising all five northernmost provinces of Mouth Vietnam, from the DMZ southward over 200 miles, became the Marines' responsibility. Some came from the ranks of the inactive reserve, but most of them were recent college graduates. 4 is 90m (300ft) long, and berth No. In World War II in General MacArthur's island-hopping campaign, engineer troops comprised 18 per cent of the total troop strength com mitted. WebShanshui Beach is China Beach, located 30 kilometers north of Haiyun Ridge. It is hard to visualize that we could get more courage, stamina, ability, intelligence, and spirit than has been exhibited in Vietnam by the officers who led them, and by our "sailors in green," the Seabees. The port handled 320,000 tons of cargo Though the bulk of their work was in the Saigon area, public works forces operated country wide. Fax 84 511 822 565. Also significant were a few large U. S. contractors who did not belong to the RMK-BRJ combine. As the contract effort went down, most of the non-Vietnamese left the country. Da Nang airport was the main US airbase during the war and where huge stock piles of Agent Orange were stored. Here it should be noted that the Seabee battalions rotated as complete units. do with the LST. Like the majority of regulars, they did not all have degrees in civil engineering; they entered the Corps with a wide variety of scientific, architectural, and engineering degrees as well. Articles incorporating text from Wikipedia, United States military bases of the Vietnam War, http://www.worldcat.org/title/southeast-asia-building-the-bases-the-history-of-construction-in-southeast-asia/oclc/952642951&referer=brief_results, https://www.history.navy.mil/research/library/online-reading-room/title-list-alphabetically/b/by-sea-air-land-marolda/chapter-4-winding-down-the-war-1968-1973.html, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Witness the failure to even plan for the Public Works Department at Da Nang which became the largest in the Navy within two years. Here they were concerned, along with the contractor, with erecting buildings, installing pipe lines, grading roadsall phases of construction necessary to create these major logistics bases. The Navy, on the other hand, used Philco-Ford primarily to furnish Korean artisans who were integrated into a combined Seabee-civilian Public Works Department at Da Nang run by CEC officers. After Dien Bien Phu came an uneasy period of truce between North and South Vietnam punctuated by reports of terrorism and assassination and an unstable government in Saigon. The Navy cannot think only in terms of deep draft ships, the carriers and submarines, but also must deal with concepts such as support ashore for the Marines and riverine warfare. General William C. Westmoreland, while still commanding in Vietnam in 1968, stated that the Viet Cong got their rockets too late, that with Soviet weapons they could have neutralized Saigon in 1966. Using excellent film footage shot in-country by navy cameramen, this video documents naval activities at and around the port of Da Nang during the Vietnam War. In the late summer when the new Brigade Commander, Rear Admiral J. V. Bartlett, CEC, United States Navy, arrived in Da Nang the 30th Naval Construction Regiment was split into two regiments, each under a Captain (C. W. Turner and J. M. Hill). The challenge of building the first master jet air station in the Navy, at Miramar, California, was his task during the years 1954-56. [12] In the first two months of 2010, 12 cruise ships were reported to have docked at Nng Port, carrying 6,477 tourists, mainly from Europe, the U.S., Canada and Australia. This was in line with the standard policy which called for transferring a man to shore duty after he had served in Vietnam under the above conditions. (3) Joint service planning factors and construction standards will have to be developed prior to a contingency. going to assign a tug boat to pull him off of the berth. According to the Government's plan, a port area in My Han Bay in the future will become part of Dung Quat port. Like This Movie Trailer? [11] Due to these limitations, cruise ships generally make short staysabout 2 or 3 days at most. Naval Support Activity Danang However, most of the design work for the larger facilities was done under the direction of the OICC, in consultation with the engineers of the affected service and the users, regardless, of whether MACV-DC assigned the construction to the contractor or to the troops. We wonder about the rest that served with us in the artillery unit we served in. We only had four deep draft berths Their officersCivil Engineer Corpswho had reached a high of 10,000 during the war now numbered less than 1,700. A changing tactical situation precluded programming individual line items many months in advance of the availability of funds. While they were primarily builders, these Seabees were in some instances directly involved in battle. Van Phong port construction project has been restarted since late 2009 and is scheduled to be completed by 2020 in two phases. His primary job was that of OICC, permanently based in Saigon, so the 30th NCR commander at Da Nang continued to exercise the greatest command influence over the Seabee battalions, all of which were in I Corps. operations office. The Navys Headquarters Support Activity in Saigon was being phased out, being replaced by the Armys 1st Logistics Command, and the general assumption in Navy circles seemed to be that the Army would henceforth provide logistic support ashore throughout Vietnam. Website www.danangportvn.com. [10], In recent years, the number of large cruise ships docking at Nng Port has increased, despite the fact that its infrastructure is not specifically designed to accommodate cruise ships. Smallest of the military contingents were those of the Air Force, Civil Engineering Squadrons (Heavy Repair), which operated at selected Air Force sites. the bay from Deep Water Pier. Consisting of a junior Civil Engineer Corps officer-in-charge, a hospital corpsman, and eleven men in the ratings of construction equipment operator and mechanic, builder, steelworker, construction electrician, utilities man, and engineering aid, these teams were normally given some months of intensive language and technical unit training at one of the three Naval Construction Battalion CentersPort Hueneme, California, Davisville, Rhode Island, or Gulfport, Mississippi (starting in 1968), prior to being sent on a mission. of the ship and when it blew, instead of blowing up everyone within two miles ton off loaded) but they had loaded the on the barge beside the BD Crane side The concept of public works operating only in a "secure" municipality was to break down completely in 1967. According to the plan of the Ministry of Transport, Quan Ninh port holds the second position in the important group of seaports in Northern Vietnam, after Hai Phong is the central position. At the same time, after being under the investment management of Vietnam Maritime Corporation, Quy Nhon port is determined to become an international port in the South Central region, promoting opportunities for the development of Vietnam's maritime transport industry. WebTin Sa Seaport has a navigation depth of 11 m (36 ft), and is able to receive medium range tankers of up to 45,000 DWT, as well as container ships of up to 2,000 TEUs and large cruise ships of up to 75,000 GRT. It's been nearly 40 years since we parted. Captain Merdinger was Public Works Officer at Naval Support Activity, Da Nang in 1967-68, and currently commands the Western Division, Naval Facilities Engineering Command at San Francisco, California. Apparently roles and missions of the various forces had not been clarified to cover this contingency. [3] NSA Danang originally operated from a commercial pier on the city side of the Hn River and this "Museum Ramp" (160300N 1081328E / 16.05N 108.2245E / 16.05; 108.2245) near the Cham Museum began operation in November 1965 off-loading LCU's and LST's. Since CEC officers can be assigned to a number of different billets in design, construction, education, research, contracts, public works, and others, there is no such thing as a permanent Seabee officer. Many times they had to do a job over again. In this instance the CBMU played a much more dominant role than its counterpart in I Corps, supplying some two-thirds of the manpower involved in public works functions under the cognizance of NSA Saigon. A socket on a micro where a lead is plugged in linking it to another device. English. We raced volkswagens on our time off and we'd go to the range and shoot all day. Their responsibilities were those normally associated with Navy public works operations, namely design and construction of facilities, acquisition of real estate, maintenance of facilities, and operation of utilities and ground transportation. Press BACK to return to this page). Vietnam History Of DaNang & NSA/NSF DaNang NMCB-6, the last peacetime battalion to deploy to the war zone, arrived in May 1966. Cua Lo port belongs to Nghe An port cluster and is approved as an important container port in the group of seaports in the North Central region of Vietnam, with a port length of 3,020m with the capacity to receive ships of 30,000 DWT - 50,000 DWT. Ships Docked To Vietnam Shore Or Pier Even though the Army brought their own engineers with them to I Corps, during the build-up period about 25 per cent of the Seabee effort was devoted to support of the Army. The fact that they were engaged primarily in maintenance and operations where a gradual turnover provided continuity and less disruption made the individual rotation system preferable to the unit rotation. Sign up to get updates about new releases and event invitations. come into the berth where the Sealand vessel was being piloted to. Danang, but it didn't look the same. It soon became evident, however, that this was not to be a short hit and move-on amphibious operation but rather one in which the Marines, contrary to their normal doctrine, would settle in. Though completed, this project was unique. "By the time the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese did move in strength, the fundamental facilities from which to move American troops, planes, and ships were in place., By Captain Charles J. Merdinger, Civil Engineer Corps, U. S. Navy, Civil Engineers, Seabees, and Bases in Vietnam, CNO Naval History - Midshipmen and Cadets, CNO Naval History - Professional Historian, Doctors and Dentists, Nurses and Corpsmen in Vietnam, Captain Charles J. Merdinger, Civil Engineer Corps, U. S. Navy. They were there to win the hearts and the minds of the people of South Vietnam, to free these people from the terror of the Viet Cong, and to help them to get on their feet politically, economically, and militarily. Seven of the Seabees were wounded and two of them killed. metal pier shed which was mostly destroyed by a typhoon--Ralph Grambo]. Digital Proceedings content made possible by a gift from CAPT Roger Ekman, USN (Ret.). the more interesting was that there were only ARVN units providing our Untitled . The 30th Naval Construction Regiment continued in Da Nang, and the new 32nd Naval Construction Regiment established headquarters to the north in Phu Bai-Gia Le. prior to the mine sweeper making a pass thru the channel in order to off load Before the end of the year the foundations were laid for one of the greatest construction ventures in history. It is the third largest port system in Vietnam (after Saigon Port in H Ch Minh City and the port of Hi Phng). The first two teams the country in 1963 were in this category. The first Seabee battalions to arrive in Vietnam came by ship from Okinawa, Guam, and Port Hueneme, but later personnel deployments in and out of the country were accomplished by air. Fortunately, enemy harassment was minimal in this early period, but temperatures reaching 120F. To get the required experience level in uniform in a hurry, the Navy instituted in the spring of 1966 a Direct Procurement of Petty Officers program. With this salute to the Navy's construction men, the Commandant of the Marine Corps, General Wallace M. Greene Jr., continued the accolades which stretched back a quarter of a century to World War II when General MacArthur complained to their boss, Admiral Ben Moreell, ". The Navys answer to this problem was to import CBMU-302, a slightly smaller (200 and later 300 men) version of the CBMU which went to I Corps about the same time. Coincident with the RMK-BRJ build-up Seabee help was now mobilized. Two battalions were shifted from the Atlantic to the Pacific Fleet in 1965 and went immediately to Vietnam In the fall of 1965, four new battalions were authorized and they were commissioned in February, March, July, and August of 1966. [1] Despite the fact that the port's infrastructure is not specifically designed to accommodate cruise ships, the number of large cruise ships docking at Nng Port has increased in recent years. Along with NSA Da Nang, Public Works experienced phenomenal growth, and in less than two years became the largest public works organization the Navy had anywhere in the world. about Danang Port Vietnam The new port will augment northern Vietnams growth further. The job would not be easy. Vietnam They were all assigned to I Corps distributed in mid-1968 as follows: Five battalions in Da Nang, two in Chu Lai, two in Phu Bai, one in Camp Evans north of Hue, one in Quang Tri, and one in Dong Ha. [before 950; Middle English, Old English < Latin. The decision to place large numbers of Marines ashore in Vietnam in 1965 signaled a change, not only in the number, size, and deployment of Seabee battalions, but in the Group VIII family, the Civil Engineer Corps, and their parent headquarters, the Bureau of Yards and Docks (now the Naval Facilities Engineering Command) in Washington. All six Some observers have attempted to compare the Armys P.A. Email: richardseth@lecvietnam.com Deep Water Pier was where the large ocean vessels could offload cargo to support the armed forces in I corps. Further, they were able on many occasions to engage in civic action projects similar in nature to those of the teams sponsored by USAID. During peacetime deployments in the Pacific areas the battalions had feported directly to Commander Naval Construction Battalions, U. S. Pacific Fleet, (ComCBPac) in Hawaii, and he in turn, reported to Commander Service Force, U. S. Pacific Fleet (ComServPac), also located in Hawaii.
deep water piers da nang vietnam
