Trần Văn Minh (21 July 1932 – 27 August 1997) was a general of the Republic of Vietnam Air Force (RVNAF).

Career

In 1956 Minh was promoted to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

. In 1958 he received jet-training on the Cessna T-37 and was promoted to

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

. In 1960 he attended the

Air Command and Staff School The Air Command and Staff College (ACSC) is located at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama and is the United States Air Force's intermediate-level Professional Military Education (PME) school. It is a subordinate command of the Air Uni ...

Maxwell Air Force Base Maxwell Air Force Base , officially known as Maxwell-Gunter Air Force Base, is a United States Air Force (USAF) installation under the Air Education and Training Command (AETC). The installation is located in Montgomery, Alabama, United States. O ...

, Montgomery, Alabama, United States. On his return to

South Vietnam South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam ( vi, Việt Nam Cộng hòa), was a state in Southeast Asia that existed from 1955 to 1975, the period when the southern portion of Vietnam was a member of the Western Bloc during part of th ...

he served as deputy base commander of Nha Trang Air Base, then deputy commander

Bien Hoa Air Base Bien Hoa Air Base (Vietnamese: ''Sân bay Biên Hòa'') is a Vietnam People's Air Force (VPAF) military airfield located in South-Central southern Vietnam about from Ho Chi Minh City, across the Dong Nai river in the northern ward of Tân Phon ...

, then Command Assistant Deputy at

Danang Air Base Da Nang Air Base ( vi, Căn cứ không quân Đà Nẵng) (1930s–1975) (also known as Da Nang Airfield, Tourane Airfield or Tourane Air Base) was a French Air Force and later Republic of Vietnam Air Force (RVNAF) facility located in the city ...

. In 1964 he was appointed commander of the 62nd Tactical Wing at Pleiku Air Base. In November 1967 Minh was promoted to

brigadier-general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

and

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

of the RVNAF, succeeding Nguyễn Cao Kỳ who was elected as Vice-President of the Republic of Vietnam. Minh would be the longest-serving commander of the RVNAF holding command from 1967 until the Fall of Saigon in April 1975. In 1968 he was promoted to major-general (Thiếu Tướng). At 08:00 on 29 April 1975, Minh and 30 of his staff arrived at the Defense Attaché Office (DAO) compound demanding evacuation, signifying the complete loss of RVNAF command and control.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tran, Van Minh 1932 births 1997 deaths South Vietnamese military personnel of the Vietnam War