Nui Dat | |
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Coordinates | 10°33′25″N 107°13′20″E / 10.55694°N 107.22222°E |
Site information | |
Condition | Abandoned |
Site history | |
Built | 1966 |
In use | 1966–72 |
Battles/wars |
Vietnam War |
Garrison information | |
Occupants | 1st Australian Task Force |
Luscombe Airfield | |||||||||||
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Summary | |||||||||||
Elevation AMSL | 115 ft / 35 m | ||||||||||
Runways | |||||||||||
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Nui Dat (Núi Đất) is a former 1st Australian Task Force (1 ATF) base now part of Ba Ria city in Ba Ria–Vung Tau province, Vietnam. It is not the name of an official ward, it just means "clay hill" ( ).
In 1966, when the area was part of the then Phuoc Tuy Province it was the location of a prominent 1 ATF military base in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War. The site was chosen by Lieutenant General John Wilton in 1966 and was built mainly by men from the 6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment. The occupation of Nui Dat required the removal of all inhabitants from within a 4,000-metre (2.5 mi) radius of the base in order to ensure the security of the facility. Ultimately this policy—which was an unusual step among allied bases in Vietnam—required the resettlement of the villages of Long Tan, with a population of 1000, and Long Phuoc, with a population of 3000. Both villages were subsequently destroyed; a task which was complete by July 1966. After the withdrawal of Australian forces in December 1972, the base was "stripped bare".