Vĩnh Long Airfield (also known as Vĩnh Long Army Airfield, Gauvin-Upton Airfield or Shannon-Wright Compound) is a former United States Army base west of Vĩnh Long in Vĩnh Long Province, Mekong Delta, Vietnam.
History
The base was originally established in 1963 approximately 3 km west of Vĩnh Long and 48 km southwest of Mỹ Tho. The base was named after Captain Roger Gauvin and SP5 Carleton Upton of the 114th Aviation Company who were killed in action on 15 March 1964.[1]
The base was attacked by Vietcong forces as part of the Tet Offensive on 31 January 1968 resulting in seven U.S. killed and three Bell UH-1 Iroquois helicopters destroyed.
The base is abandoned but still clearly visible on satellite images.
Accidents and incidents
On 18 December 1970 two OH-6 Cayuse light observation helicopters collided shortly after takeoff and crashed destroying both and killing all four crewmen[6]
References
^Kelley, Michael (2002). Where we were in Vietnam. Hellgate Press. p. 539. ISBN978-1555716257.
^Sherwood, John (2015). War in the Shallows: U.S. Navy and Coastal and Riverine Warfare in Vietnam 1965-8. Naval History and Heritage Command. p. 302. ISBN9780945274773.