Takhli RTAFB
Takhli Royal Thai Air Force Base
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| Part of Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) | |
| Coordinates | 15°16′05″N 100°17′32″E / 15.26806°N 100.29222°E |
| Type | Air Force Base |
| Site information | |
| Condition | Military Air Force Base |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1955 |
| In use | 1955-Present |
| Battles/wars |
 Vietnam War |
| Airfield information | |||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||
| Coordinates | 15°16′05″N 100°17′32″E / 15.26806°N 100.29222°ECoordinates: 15°16′05″N 100°17′32″E / 15.26806°N 100.29222°E | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
 VTPI
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Takhli Royal Thai Air Force Base (TRTAFB) (IATA: TKH, ICAO: VTPI) is a Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) facility in central Thailand, approximately 144 miles (240 km) northwest of Bangkok in Takhli district, Nakhon Sawan Province, near the city of Nakhon Sawan.
Takhli is the home of the Royal Thai Air Force Wing 4, 3d air division. Squadrons assigned are:
Takhli Royal Thai Air Force Base was established in the 1950s as a RTAF base. In the late 1950s, the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) used Takhli as operating base for CIA resupply of Tibetan freedom fighters. CIA-operated C-130A Hercules transports flew men and supplies over Indian airspace, with the consent of Prime Minister Nehru, for parachute drops into Communist Chinese-occupied Tibet.
Political considerations with regards to Communist forces engaging in a civil war inside Laos and fears of the civil war spreading into Thailand led the Thai government to allow the United States to covertly use five Thai bases beginning in 1961 for the air defense of Thailand and to fly reconnaissance flights over Laos.
Under Thailand's "gentleman's agreement" with the United States, Royal Thai Air Force Bases used by the USAF were commanded by Thai officers. Thai air police controlled access to the bases, along with USAF Security Police, who assisted them in base defense using sentry dogs, observation towers, and machine gun bunkers. All United States Air Force personnel were fully armed after 1965.
The USAF airmen at Takhli were under the command of the United States Pacific Air Forces (PACAF). Takhli was the location for TACAN station Channel 43 and was referenced by that identifier in voice communications during air missions.
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Wikipedia