Bach Mai Airfield
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Bach Mai Airfield Sân bay Bach Mai |
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Bach Mai Airfield in 1967.
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Military | ||||||||||
| Location | Hanoi | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 50 ft ft / 15.24 m m | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 20°59′48″N 105°49′55″E / 20.99667°N 105.83194°E | ||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||
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Bach Mai Airfield (Vietnamese: Sân bay Bach Mai) is a disused military airport in Thanh Xuan District, Hanoi, Vietnam, located along modern-day Le Trong Tan street. It was constructed by the French in 1917 and used by French forces until 1954; along with Gia Lam Airbase, it was one of the major logistics bases supporting French operations at Dien Bien Phu. After 1954, it was used by the Vietnamese People's Air Force and served as their air defense command and control center during the Second Indochina War, playing a part in the Cambodian–Vietnamese War as well. It is now the site of the Vietnam People's Air Force Museum, where a number of period military aircraft are on display.
In 1918 the 1st Escadrille d'Indochine moved to Bach Mai.
In 1939 the unit was redesignated le Groupe Mixte Aérien 595 formed of L'escadrille d'observation 1/595 with the Potez 25 and an escadrille de chasse 2/595 with the Morane-Saulnier M.S.406.
These units saw action in the Franco-Thai War of 1940-41.
Following the Japanese Invasion of French Indochina in September 1940 the remaining aircraft were formed into the Groupement Aérien Nord Indochine, but this was dissolved in March 1943 due to wear and tear and lack of spare parts. During the Japanese coup d'état in French Indochina all remaining French aircraft were destroyed.
The following units were based at Bach Mai between 1945 and 1954:
Bach Mai and Gia Lam Airbase were the major logistics bases supporting French operations at Dien Bien Phu.
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