Kien An Airport
Kien An Airport Cảng hàng không Kien An | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | military | ||||||||||
| Operator | Vietnam Airforce | ||||||||||
| Location | Hai Phong | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 50 ft / 15 m | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 20°48′12″N 106°36′17″E / 20.80333°N 106.60472°E | ||||||||||
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Kien An Airport (Vietnamese language: Sân bay Kiến An) is a military airport, a standby airport for Cat Bi Airport in Hai Phong, northern Vietnam. The single runway is 2,400 m, concrete surface. Its ICAO code is VV03.[1]
Kien An Airport is located in Kiến An District, Hải Phòng, 10 km from Cat Bi Airport to the west.
History
First Indochina War
The airfield was constructed during the French colonial period.[2]: 105 The airfield was reportedly constructed over a 2 year period with large amounts of crushed rock being used to build foundations on the marshy land. The first French aircraft to land at Kien An apparently buckled the runway and the project was abandoned by the French.[3]
Vietnam War
The base was put into service by the Vietnam People's Air Force (VPAF). In July 1966 the National Photographic Interpretation Center reported that Kien An Airfield comprised "a 5900 ft x 150 ft, NE/SW, serviceable runway, resurfaced since October 1965. The airfield has a parallel taxiway with two end-connecting links, and a parking apron. An aircraft dispersal area contains seventeen revetted hardstands and eighteen hardstands recessed into the base of a hill at the southeast section of the airfield. Support facilities include one large probable maintenance building (where Hook helicopters are being assembled) and numerous support buildings. A probable ILS is located off the southwest end of the runway. Defenses in the immediate area include at least three eight-gun AAA sites. Aircraft at the airfield include four Hook helicopters without rotors in the process of being assembled, one probable Fresco (this is the first time a jet-type aircraft has been observed at this airfield), three Colt and one Hound."[4]
On 14 April 1966 the VPAF deployed MiG-15/17s and at least 4 MiG-21s to Kien An and on 17 April these aircraft engaged United States' aircraft.[5]
During Operation Linebacker II in December 1972 the base was repeatedly struck by United States Navy aircraft causing extensive damage.[6]
Notes
- ^ Haiphong Kien An Airport
- ^ Williams, Kenneth (2019). The US Air Force in Southeast Asia and the Vietnam War A Narrative Chronology Volume I: The Early Years through 1959 (PDF). Air Force History and Museums Program.
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ Fall, Bernard (1976). Street Without Joy. Schocken Books. p. 181. ISBN 9780805203301.
- ^ "Hook helicopters Haiphong/Kien An Airfield, North Vietnam" (PDF). Central Intelligence Agency. 13 July 1966. Retrieved 8 May 2019. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ "Intelligence Memorandum Implications of the recent jet fighter clashes over North Vietnam" (PDF). Central Intelligence Agency. 26 April 1966. Retrieved 8 May 2019. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ "Text of U.S. Communique Listing Targets of Raids in North Vietnam". The New York Times. 27 December 1972.
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