Yen Bai Airfield – where Hero Pham Tuan took off to down ‘flying fortress’ B-52

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Yen Bai Airfield – where Hero Pham Tuan took off to down ‘flying fortress’ B-52

Thursday, December 22, 2022

YBO - Yen Bai Airfield, put into use in 1968, was one of the important air bases in keeping combat readiness for units of the Vietnam People’s Air Force.

Lt. Gen. Hero Pham Tuan (second from left) and provincial leaders visit Yen Bai Airfield.

During the struggle against the US Air Force’s bombardments in the North (1965 - 1972), officers and soldiers of Yen Bai Airfield coordinated with the regular troops, along with soldiers and people of Yen Bai province, to shoot down 115 US aircraft, including the 800th to have been downed in the North, and received a letter of commendation from President Ho Chi Minh.

In 1972, Regiment 925 took off at Yen Bai Airfield in a fighting mission and won victories right in their first battle as well as many fierce air combats. Pilots of Yen Bai Airfield directly shot down eight US aircraft.

One of the feats of arms that went down to history of the Vietnam People’s Air Force was that on December 27, 1972, from this airfield, pilot Pham Tuan operated a strategic sortie and shot down a B-52, dubbed the "flying fortress”, of the US in the 12-day-and-night campaign of "Hanoi - Dien Bien Phu in the air”.

Thủ tướng Phạm Minh Chính và các đồng chí lãnh đạo tỉnh Yên Bái thăm, động viên cán bộ, chiến sĩ Trung đoàn không quân 921 –trung đoàn không quân tiêm kích đầu tiên thuộc Sư đoàn 371.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and leaders of Yen Bai province visited and encouraged officers and soldiers of the 921st Air Force Regiment

Recalling the fight, the Hero of the People’s Armed Forces said that at 10:20pm, having got an order from the Command and received support from his comrades, he quickly flew his fighter. After reaching the sky above Son La province, he was informed that a B-52 squadron was 200, 150, 100km, and then 70km away. He sped up and when the distance was about 3,000m, Tuan was ordered to fire his missiles but he refused and said: "Wait a moment.”

It was not until the order was repeated for the third time that he decided to open fire. As soon as the distance was appropriate, seizing the opportunity, he aimed at a B-52 and fired two missiles at the bomber. The missiles exploded and lit up the sky. He quickly turned left, lowered to an altitude of 2,000m, and then landed at Yen Bai Airfield – where he had taken off 20 minutes before that. Seeing the "flying fortress” blazing up, its escort frenziedly rummaged but to no avail. The remaining B-52s rashly dropped bombs and then returned to their base, Tuan said.

The "Hanoi – Dien Bien Phu in the air” victory demonstrated an unyielding fighting spirit, wisdom, bravery, and creativity of Vietnam’s air defence - air force as well as the soldiers and people of the North, including people of all ethnic groups in Yen Bai province.

The MIG-21 fighter Pham Tuan piloted to shoot down a B-52 bomber in the evening of December 27, 1972.

Le Phien

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