Kép Air Base

Kép Air Base is a Vietnam People's Air Force (VPAF) (Không quân Nhân dân Việt Nam) military airfield located near the town of Kép, Bắc Giang province approximately 60 km (37 mi) northeast of Hanoi.

Kép Air Base
Part of Vietnam People's Air Force
A USAF RF-101C overflies Kep in 1966
Coordinates21°23′23″N 106°15′09″E
TypeAir Force Base
Site information
Controlled by Vietnam People's Air Force
Site history
Built1965
In use1965-Present
Battles/warsVietnam War
Airfield information
Summary
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
07L/25R 6,000 1,829 Concrete
07R/25L 6,000 1,829 Concrete

History

Vietnam War

A September 1965 CIA intelligence briefing stated that Kép airfield had been extensively improved with the runway lengthened to 6000 ft allowing for jet fighter operations and photo-reconnaissance indicated that 8 aircraft, identified as MiG-15s or MiG-17s were at the airfield.[1] In April 1966 the CIA concluded that a small number of MiG-21s had possibly deployed to Kép from Phúc Yên Air Base.[2]

On 24 April 1967, jets from VA-112 and VA-144 attacked Kép in the first U.S. airstrike on a VPAF airfield of the Vietnam War.[3]

On 1 May 1967 during a sortie against Kép a Douglas A-4 Skyhawk of VA-76, shot down a MiG-17 with Zuni rockets, this was the only MiG kill by an A-4 during the Vietnam War.[4]

A Regiment-sized unit of Korean People's Air Force MiG pilots known as Doan Z (Group Z) flew from Kép from late 1967 through 1968.[5]

On 15 June 1972 during Operation Linebacker U.S. fighter-bombers attacked the base cratering the runway.[6] The base was attacked again on 18 June with further damage to the runway.[7]

Kép, Phúc Yên and Hòa Lạc were targeted on the first night of Operation Linebacker II on 18 December 1972 to suppress fighters that might otherwise intercept US attack aircraft.[8]

Current use

The VPAF 927th Fighter Regiment operating MiG-21s and Su-30MK2s is based at Kép.

References
  1. "Weekly Report the situation in South Vietnam" (PDF). Central Intelligence Agency. 22 September 1965. p. 12. Retrieved 4 January 2015.Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  2. "Implications of the recent jet fighter clashes over North Vietnam" (PDF). Central Intelligence Agency. 1966. p. 5. Retrieved 4 January 2015.Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  3. Nichols, John (1987). On Yankee Station: The Naval Air War Over Vietnam. United States Naval Institute. p. 155. ISBN 978-0-87021-559-9.
  4. Grossnick, R (1997). United States Naval Aviation, 1910–1995. Naval Historical Center. ISBN 0-16-049124-X.Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  5. "North Korean Pilots in the Skies over Vietnam" (PDF). Woodrow Wilson Center for International Scholars. November 2011. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
  6. Joseph Treaster (17 June 1972). "U.S. planes raid MIG bases in North but shun Hanoi". The New York Times. p. 6.
  7. Malcolm Browne (18 June 1972). "Airfields are hit as heavy strikes continue in North". The New York Times. p. 1.
  8. McCarthy, James (1985). USAF Southeast Asia Monograph Series Volume VI Monograph 8 Linebacker II: A View from the Rock (PDF). Office of Air Force History. p. 39. ISBN 978-1477541937.Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
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