Dĩ An Base Camp (also known as Dĩ An Army Airfield or Sóng Thần Base Camp; named after the "Tsunami" (''Sóng thần'') nickname of the division) is a former U.S. Army and

Republic of Vietnam Marine Division The Republic of Vietnam Marine Division (RVNMD, or '; ) was part of the armed forces of South Vietnam. It was established by Ngo Dinh Diem in 1954 when he was Prime Minister of the State of Vietnam, which became the Republic of Vietnam in 1955. ...

base in

Dĩ An Dĩ An is a Provincial city (Vietnam), city of Bình Dương Province in the Southeast (Vietnam), Southeast region of Vietnam, about 20 km north of central Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon). It is 1,706 km by rail from Hanoi. At the 2 ...

and part of Bình Hòa, Lái Thiêu (now is

Thuận An Thuận An is a city of Bình Dương province in the Southeast region of Vietnam. It is situated about 18 kilometres (11 mi) northeast of the centre of Ho Chi Minh City. As of November 3rd, 2021 the city had a population of 618,984. Thuận An ...

), northeast of

Saigon Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) ('','' TP.HCM; ), commonly known as Saigon (; ), is the most populous city in Vietnam with a population of around 14 million in 2025. The city's geography is defined by rivers and canals, of which the largest is Saigo ...

in southern

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

. It remains in use by the

People's Army of Vietnam The People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN), officially the Vietnam People's Army (VPA; , , ), also recognized as the Vietnamese Army (), the People's Army () or colloquially the Troops ( ), is the national Military, military force of the Vietnam, S ...

History

1966–72

Dĩ An Base Camp was established at Dĩ An, 13 km northeast of

Tan Son Nhut Air Base Tan Son Nhut Air Base () (1955–1975) was a Republic of Vietnam Air Force (RVNAF) facility. It was located near the city of Saigon in southern Vietnam. The United States used it as a major base during the Vietnam War (1959–1975), stationing ...

and 12 km southwest of

Biên Hòa Biên Hòa (Northern accent: , Southern accent: ) is the capital city of Đồng Nai Province, Vietnam, and is part of the Ho Chi Minh City metropolitan area. Situated northeast of Ho Chi Minh City (also known as Saigon), Biên Hòa is connect ...

. The 1st Infantry Division had its headquarters at Dĩ An from February 1966 until September 1967 and from November 1969 until April 1970. Other units stationed at Dĩ An included: * 1st Battalion, 7th Artillery (1967-April 1970) * 12th Aviation Group comprising: ** 7th Squadron, 1st Cavalry (February–June 1968) ** 3rd Squadron, 17th Cavalry (October 1967-April 1972) *

11th Armored Cavalry Regiment The 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment ("Blackhorse Regiment") is a unit of the United States Army garrisoned at the Fort Irwin National Training Center in California. The regiment has served in the Philippine–American War, the Pancho Villa Expedi ...

(July 1970-March 1971) * 1st Squadron, 9th Cavalry ** Headquarters Troop ** Alpha Troop ** Charlie Troop The airfield was capable of accommodating

C-7 Caribou The de Havilland Canada DHC-4 Caribou (designated by the United States military as the CV-2 and later C-7 Caribou) is a Canadian specialized cargo aircraft with STOL, short takeoff and landing (STOL) capability. The Caribou was first flown in 1 ...

and

C-123 The Fairchild C-123 Provider is an American military transport aircraft designed by Chase Aircraft and built by Fairchild Aircraft for the U.S. Air Force. In addition to its USAF service, which included later service with the Air Force Reserve an ...

aircraft. The

Mobile Advisory Teams The Mobile Advisory Teams (MATs) were small units of United States Army military advisors that operated during the Vietnam War. The teams provided training to the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) territorial units: the Regional and Popular F ...

advisor school operated at the base from 1969 until September 1971. On 30 July 1969, US President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...

visited the base on his only Presidential visit to South Vietnam, meeting US military personnel. On 13 October 1971

Vietcong The Viet Cong (VC) was an epithet and umbrella term to refer to the Communism, communist-driven armed movement and united front organization in South Vietnam. It was formally organized as and led by the National Liberation Front of South Vi ...

sappers destroyed two U.S. helicopters at the camp. On 8 September 1972 the

established a training center, ranges, hospital, recruit depot and

LVT LVT may refer to: * Land value tax, a levy on the value of land * Landing Vehicle Tracked The Amphibious Vehicle, Tracked (LVT or AMTRAC) is an amphibious warfare vehicle and Amphibious vehicle, amphibious landing craft, introduced by the ...

base on part of the former camp and named it Song Than Camp.

Current use

The base remains in use by the 4th Corps of

, while the logistics base has transformed into Sóng Thần Industrial Park I, II and residential area.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Di An Base Camp Military installations of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam Installations of the United States Army in South Vietnam Buildings and structures in Bình Dương province