The Last Plane Out of Saigon, 1975

The Scuttlebutt: Understanding Military Culture

Tonight, we share the story of the last plane to leave Saigon, a C-130, which departed Tan Son Nhut Air Base just before North Vietnamese forces took over on April 29, 1975.

The C-130, missing its cargo door, was filled with hundreds of Vietnamese refugees, including the Nguyen family. Among them was three-year-old Truc Nguyen. Her father, Chau Tan Nguyen, a 40-year-old lieutenant colonel and C-130 pilot in the South Vietnamese Air Force, was determined to fly his family and others to safety. Despite the chaos and rockets firing past the aircraft, the plane took off successfully. Tragically, Chau Tan Nguyen was not on board, as his seat was notably empty.

Truc–now called Eva– joins us to talk about her new book Uncommon Cargo: Sacrifice. Survival. Hope., written with Jason Nulton, a retired lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Air Force.

The book details the Nguyen family’s harrowing escape and their gratitude towards the United States for providing refuge and assistance during their desperate time of need. Nulton, moved by Eva’s story, emphasized the family’s incredible journey against overwhelming odds and their fight for freedom.

Uncommon Cargo dramatizes the real events leading to Saigon’s fall and Chau Tan Nguyen’s plan to evacuate his family. The narrative begins on April 29, 1975, detailing the frantic preparations of the Nguyen family as North Vietnamese forces closed in on Saigon.

The book also recounts the broader context of the Fall of Saigon, including the North Vietnamese offensive in Quang Tri province, the resignation of South Vietnam’s President Nguyen Van Thieu, and the surrounding of Saigon by 100,000 North Vietnamese soldiers. The Nguyen family had long rented their home to Americans, assumed to be CIA agents, placing them in immediate danger when the communists took over. Many who had collaborated with the Americans faced execution or re-education camps.

Following their escape, the Nguyen family settled in Northern Virginia, sponsored by a member of the Falls Church Presbyterian Church. They lived next to the church, where Eva learned to ride a bike. Hong Van Nguyen, the family patriarch, stayed behind in Vietnam to salvage his business but eventually escaped as one of the first boat people, reuniting with his family in 1977. He passed away in 1990.

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We’re grateful to UPMC for Life and Tobacco Free Adagio Health for sponsoring this event!