1st Vietnamese Parachute Battalion

The 1st Vietnamese Parachute Battalion (Fr: 1er bataillon de parachutistes vietnamiens) was a French-Vietnamese paratroop battalion formed in Saigon, French Indochina on May 1, 1951.

Operational history

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The 1st Vietnamese Parachute Battalion (1 BPVN) was one of five battalions of Vietnamese paratroopers raised by the French Army between 1951 and 1957 as part of General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny's policy to establish a Vietnamese Army. Its cadre was drawn from two existing Vietnamese parachute companies, including 1st Indochina Parachute Company and 1st Company of the South Vietnamese Defense (1st Escadron Parachutiste Garde du Việt Nam Sud under Lieutenant Haynin)[1] and volunteer soldiers from 1st Guards Company and from 1st Colonial Commando Parachute Battalion (1 BCCP).

The battalion participated in:

  • Operation Pirate - August/September 1951
  • Operation Bretagne - December 1951
  • Operation Chaumière - April 1952
  • Operation Éole - May 1952
  • Operation Cabestan - June 1952
  • Operation Quadrille - July 1952
  • Battle of Nà Sản - end of 1952 / beginning of 1953
  • Operation Atlas : April 1953
  • Operation Quercy : November 1953

References

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  1. ^ "The Mysterious Vietnam War Mary Poppins Platoon HAHO Parachutist Badge". Juleswings Militaria. 28 September 2019. Retrieved 3 December 2024. Two of the first Vietnamese parachutist units. ... 1st Indochinese Parachute Company (1er Compagnie Indochinoise Parachutiste – 1 CIP) which existed between 1947 and 1951. ... Escadron Parachutiste de la Garde Cochinchine, raised in Hanoi in 1949. Both these units became part of the nucleus of the 1st Vietnamese Parachute Battalion (1 BPVN) in August 1951.

General references

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See also

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