Goodbye Vietnam War Story 1975

Name	Age@1975	Relation
Dinh Xuan Hoi	56	Dinh’s family patriarch. Married to Hung, father of 6 children
Tran Thi Hung	43	Married to Hoi, mother of 6 children
Trinh Van Nong	31	Republic of Vietnam Air Force (RVNAF) Captain, married to Vuong
Trinh Thi Vuong	24	Hoi & Hung’s 1st child - daughter, married to Nong
Trinh Thi Tram Anh	4	Nong & Vuong’s 1st child - daughter
Trinh Quoc Doan	2	Nong & Vuong’s 2nd child - son
Trinh Quoc Duan	8 months	Nong & Vuong’s 3rd child - son
Dinh Thi Phuong	23	Hoi & Hung’s 2nd child - daughter
Dinh Bat Son	21	Hoi & Hung’s 3rd child - son
Nguyen Tho	28	Republic of Vietnam Air Force (RVNAF) Lieutenant, married to Thuy
Nguyen Thi Thanh Thuy	19	Hoi & Hung’s 4th child - daughter, married to Tho
Nguyen Thi Quang An	4 months	Tho & Thuy’s daughter
Dinh Thi Doan Trang	17	Hoi & Hung’s 5th child - daughter
Dinh Thi Kim Dung	16	Hoi & Hung’s 6th child - daughter
Trinh Thi Ngoc	12	Nong’s sister
Ho Dinh Sang	24	Republic of Vietnam Air Force (RVNAF) officer, Phuong’s future husband, family friend

*Dinh family

Collective stories from Tho, Thuy, Nong, Vuong, Sang, Phuong, Son, Trang, Dung, and Ngoc point of view. I want to have our family story written down for the present and future generations to know how difficult, daring, fearful, bravery, faith, destiny, and many luck that occurred in this event. It is an incredible story. This is our family history.

Thank you Tram Anh, Duan, and Kim for being my support and capturing the stories with me.

Timeline 1975

Fall of Da Nang

March 28

Tho leaves Da Nang Air Force base. He flies to Nha Trang and then to Tan Son Nhut Air Force base.

Fall of Nha Trang

March 30	Hoi, Hung, Nong, Vuong, Tram Anh, Doan, Duan, Phuong, Thuy, An, Trang, Dung, Ngoc, and Sang leaves Nha Trang.
March 31	Family reunited in Saigon and stayed with Son.
April 28	Family leaves Saigon except for Nong, Sang, Tho, and Son. Trang and Doan left behind from their flight.
March 29	Hoi, Hung, Nong, Vuong, Tram Anh, Duan, Phuong, Thuy, An, Dung, and Ngoc arrived at Con Son Island. Nong, Sang, Tho, Trang, and Doan left Saigon. Traveled to Thailand US Air Force base U-Tapao and transferred to Guam refugee camp.

Journey to United States

Early May	Tho leaves Da Nang Air Force base. He flies to Nha Trang and then to Tan Son Nhut Air Force base.
Mid May	Hoi, Hung, Nong, Vuong, Tram Anh, Duan, Phuong, Thuy, An, Dung, and Ngoc transferred from the Philippines to Guam. Family reunited.
May	Family transferred from Guam to Fort Chaffee, Arkansas.
June	Svea Lutheran Church and Faith Lutheran Church sponsored the families.

Map of Vietnam and South Vietnam Air Forces bases.

Highlighted in yellow are the Air Force base and the family journey.

Introduction

1975 will forever change the future lives of over 100,000 South Vietnamese people that fled their country and millions more over the next several years. North Vietnam Communist also known as Viet Cong (VC) defeated South Vietnam’s government and took over major cities with the help of the Communist party by Russia and China. America was in protest of the Vietnam war for years. President Gerald Ford and other US leaderships started to evacuate the US military and ended the Vietnam war on April 30, 1975.

The 16 South Vietnamese people mentioned in this story never planned to leave their country until the collapse of the Vietnam war. At the time, 12 members of the group were teenagers, young adults, grandparents, and 4 children under the age of five. Three of the men were serving the South Vietnam Air Force. It was a journey they will never forget.

March 28, 1975

Da Nang

Morning - Tho was with his nephew, Le, that morning riding on the Suzuki bike. All of a sudden, the rockets were falling from the sky. The VC had taken action to attack Da Nang. Tho asked Le to come with him to Da Nang Air Force base. He can fly them out of Da Nang. Le declined the offer and stayed back to be with his family. Tho knew he could not stay. This was the sign that he will not be coming back to this city again. He gave Le his Suzuki bike. Once Tho arrived at Da Nang Air Force base, South Vietnam Air Force high ranking military officers had already abandoned and flew off on larger planes. The few planes left on base were small Cessna. Hoc was Tho’s friend and a plane mechanic. Hoc made a deal with Tho months ago that if something were to happen on base then he was to have a plane ready for them. They would escape and leave together since Tho was a pilot and knew how to operate a plane. That day, Hoc had a Cessna O-1 plane ready for Tho’s arrival. Cessna O-1 seats for 2 people. Hoc and 4 other men crammed into the plane. As Tho was taking off on the runway, he noticed the VC had wired explosives near the area. He had very little runway for the plane to take off. If he hit the explosive, the plane would explode. If he pulled up the plane without enough force, the plane would crash. He was able to gradually lift the plane barely above the explosives and safely flew to Nha Trang.

Photo: Tho next to the Cessna

Nha Trang

Mid-Afternoon – Tho arrived at Nha Trang Air Force base to refuel his plane and went to see his family. He went to his in-law’s house to meet his wife and infant daughter. He was informed that his mother, sister, brother-in-law, nieces, and nephews from Da Lat were in Nha Trang since the VC invaded their town. They were staying at a relative’s home. Tho went to visit his mother and family and took his wife and daughter along. Once he arrived, his mother held his daughter. This was the first and last time she will know her grand-daughter. It was a very short visit. After they said their goodbye, he took his wife and daughter back to his in-laws. He could not stay in Nha Trang for long. He told them he will be heading to Saigon stationed at Tan Son Nhut Air Force base. He could not take his family with him since he was on duty and feared punishment for flying women and children on the aircraft that was unauthorized.

Saigon

Evening - Tho flew and landed at Tan Son Nhut Air Force base. He did not have a permit from Da Nang to station at this location. He was worried he would be punished when he arrived. However, the news about the VC attack at Da Nang Air Force base was approved for him to stay on base.

March 30, 1975

Nha Trang

News about the VC defeating Da Nang and heading to Nha Trang.

Early morning - Nong had mentioned to Vuong to go to her parents house and stay there. He was to head to work at Nha Trang Air Force base. If anything were to happen then he will return with a car and take everyone on base.

Mid-morning – Nong was an Air Force Captain. He arrived at the Air Force base and was on flight duty. Out of nowhere many people ran past the house stating the VCs are here. They witnessed people getting killed by the VC and even suicide for fear of being captured by them. Hoi asked Vuong what was Nong’s plan. She mentioned to stay home, and he will get them. Hoi did not want to wait. He was the police chief of Nha Trang and has 2 sons-in-law in the South Vietnam Air Force. He had a history with the Vietnamese French government. The neighborhood the family lived in was predominantly VC. If the family were to be captured by the VC, he told the family that they would be taking poison and killing themselves. The other option instead of taking the poison, he stated they all must leave Nha Trang immediately. Hoi was able to get 2 cyclo. Cyclo is a three-wheel bicycle taxi. As the cyclists took the family to Nha Trang Air Force base, their pet dog wanted to come along and jumped into one of the cyclo. Someone pushed the dog off and left it behind.

Nong returned from his flight later that morning. He was informed that the VC attacked Nha Trang. He immediately got a vehicle and left to go home to get the family. When he got to the house, everyone was gone. He drove back to the Air Force base. There were crowds of people outside the Air Force base wanting to go in and fly out of Nha Trang. The family just arrived by cyclo. Nong got there in time to bring the family inside the base. When the family were inside, they all crowded to wait for a plane to leave Nha Trang. Nong mentioned to Vuong he was not allowed to leave since he was an Air Force officer. He left them to head to his office to be with his unit.

Sang was at Nha Trang Air Force base. He heard that Saigon was sending planes to Nha Trang to take their family to Saigon. He went out of the base to get his uncle who lived next door to Hoi’s home. He also went over to the Hoi’s house and saw no one was there. When Sang and his uncle arrived at the front entrance of the Air Force base, his uncle was not allowed to enter since he was a police officer. Later, Sang was inside the base and rode his motorcycle. He sees Hoi’s family all together inside the base. He was the family friend at this time.

Photo: Sang, student pilot at Williams Air Force Base, Arizona in 1972

Afternoon/evening - More planes from Saigon arrived at Nha Trang. Women, children, and elderly people were told to enter the plane in this order. No Air Force officers were allowed on the plane. The family made the decision earlier that if there was an airplane to get on it even if they had to split up the family. When the planes arrived, the organization to enter the plane was no longer followed. It was total chaos, people cramming and pushing. Sang went over to the Hoi’s family. He told them to follow him to get on a plane to leave. He got Dung, Phuong, and Hung on the plane. As soon as Sang lifted Hung to enter into the plane, she turned around and did not see the remaining family boarding. Hung refused to board the plane to be with the other family. Sang could not force her, but he saw Ngoc was already on the plane. Other Air Force officers got on the plane to leave with their family. Hoi told Vuong to go find Nong. It was getting late in the day and many planes were already gone. Vuong was informed Nong was in the building on the other side of the base in which they had to walk on the runway. She found out later the runway was a booby trap with mine bombs. By the time she found Nong, his team left Nha Trang and all of South Vietnam aircrafts had left the base except for a PamAM plane. At this time, PanAM was only used for US military, CIA staff, and high ranking Vietnamese Air Force officials. Nong led the remaining family to the PanAM plane. The remaining family and anyone on base rushed and crammed into the PanAM. Vuong brought a personal blue luggage but had to leave it behind since she was carrying her children. Nong told her to get on the plane and he will get the luggage. Once inside the aircraft, you cannot go out since there is no guarantee of return. Vuong was upset and told him if he did not get on the plane then she would leave to be with him and take the children. Nong agreed to be on the plane with the family. Thuy was climbing the ladder with one arm and the other arm carrying her daughter, An, to get on the plane. Suddenly her hand slipped and lost hold of An. There were many people underneath her, she was able to catch An between her legs. Thuy yelled for help. Vuong was in front of Thuy. Vuong turned around and grabbed An. An was saved. The rest of the family boarded the PanAM and left for Saigon.

Night – Tho heard people from Nha Trang arriving in Saigon. He waited on base to find his family. Sang, Phuong, Dung, and Ngoc arrived at Tan Son Nhut Air Force base and reunited with Tho. They waited all night for the remaining family to arrive. The girls were all scared and cried for fear of losing their family. The remaining family on the PamAM plane arrived at another entrance for foreign passengers so they never landed on the Vietnamese entry side of the airbase. This was the reason the group did not see each other at the airport in Saigon. Family on the PanAM flight went directly to Son’s apartment.

March 31, 1975

Morning – Son was living in Saigon. The family went to Son’s apartment and reunited. The family was full of emotions and very happy they were all together.

Early April, 1975

Saigon

VC took victory on Nha Trang, Da Nang, and multiple coastal towns off of South Vietnam.

The family settled in Saigon. At this time, Son was third year in law school at Saigon University and rented a studio apartment upstairs. When the family arrived, they rented the lower-level space below Son’s apartment.

One day, Nong was walking along the Air Force base. There were people selling various items and clothing. He noticed his Air Force jacket with his name on it, and his family blue luggage with all their belongings was being sold on the street. He got the person to give back his personal belongings to him.

Tho had opened a bank account years ago when he started working and saving. He knew there was a plan to leave the city again, and his money would be useless. He decided to close his bank account. He came out of the bank with fat pockets of VN dong. He gave the money to his wife and family to spend. The family was grateful to spend his money. They did not go hungry during this time.

April 28, 1975

Morning: Tho and Nong met a female Air Force Captain named Hoa at Tan Son Nhut Air Force base. Hoa was living on base. They were called barracks or military housing units. It was free for military staff and their family. Tho and Nong asked her how they can apply for it since it was a better chance to escape if and when VC will attack Saigon. Hoa was able to assist and got approval for a room in the women’s barrack location for their family to move in that same day.

12:00 PM: Tho and Nong went back to Son’s apartment. Tho picked up Trang and Ngoc and took them to the military barrack immediately to have someone in the room. Rooms were easily taken when empty.

1:00 PM: Tho and Nong transferred everyone except for Son to the barracks. Son was a tutor for high school kids. He was informed his students were leaving from Saigon. He wanted to meet them to say good-bye and return back later. Hung for a while resisted leaving without Son. Tho volunteered to go back to Son’s apartment to get him. Son will need an Air Force staff to escort him on base since civilians were not allowed to enter alone. Hung felt better since Son was her only son.

3:30 PM: Son arrived at the apartment, but he was not ready to go right away.

4:00 PM: Tho and Son took the bus heading to Tan Son Nhut Air Force base. As soon as they arrived, bombs were dropped from the sky. They rode back to the apartment.

Nong and Sang worked on the electrical wiring inside the military room. At the same time, they heard VC pilots arrived in Saigon from Phan Rang Air Force base and captured South VN Air Force pilots. VC flew the South VN planes and started bombing over Tan Son Nhut Air Force base. It was a surprise attack.

Evening: Once the bombing stopped, Sang rode a motorcycle around base and noticed some of his friends and other officers were gathering in front of the main terminal waiting for a flight to leave Saigon. Sang met ong Thinh (family relative). Ong Thinh just sent off his family on a plane. Sang learned that those that left on the plane all had permits (su vu lenh). Note: only members of high-ranking Air Force officials and their family could board the plane to leave. Sang went back to the room and took Nong along to find the office that granted the su vu lenh in order for the family to leave Saigon. After several attempts, they found a place with many women and children. An Air Force General and his staff were handing out su vu lenh. The problem in this situation was they were handing su vu lenh to women, children, and elderly people. Sang and Nong had no time to go back to get the family. They were able to persuade a couple of women to pretend they were their husbands. The plan worked. Nong got one and Sang got two su vu lenh. Once they returned to the military room, they told the family they would board a plane that night to leave Saigon. Hung resisted since Son was not there. Note: a first born son is highly praised in Asian culture. After much convincing with the help of Ong Thinh, she reluctantly agreed to go. Family had to split into 2 groups for legal purposes. Vuong and Phuong’s mother’s name on their birth certificate is Tran Thi Hung. Thuy, Trang, and Dung had another mother’s name on birth certificate, Tran Thi Dieu. Same mother but different names. After filling out the paperwork, the family got their boarding passes. Everyone except for Sang and Nong got on the bus to transfer to the plane. The bus disappeared into the darkness as the sun was setting.

Night: Sang and Nong went back to the room tired, sad, and went to sleep.

Hoi, Hung, Vuong, Tram Anh, Doan, Duan, Phuong, Thuy, An, Trang, Dung, and Ngoc stepped off the bus and boarded a military cargo plane. Since Vuong could not carry her 3 children together, she delegated family to help. Vuong carried Duan since he was the youngest. Hoi took care of Tram Anh. Ngoc carried Doan. They were later told to get off and on board another plane since there were Air Force officers on board. The officers were not allowed. The family immediately got off, waited, and immediately boarded the next plane. Instead of Ngoc carrying Doan. Trang carried him during this change. They finally flew out of Saigon. While on the plane, Vuong did not see her son, Doan. The plane was packed and people were sitting on the floor. She was terrified. Her father tried to console her. He mentioned he saw Trang carrying Doan on the plane sitting further away from them and not to worry. She will see him when they land.

April 29, 1975

Middle of the night: Sang and Nong heard a knock at the door. Trang and Doan were at the door. They were both crying so hard. Trang mentioned the family boarded the plane and took off. A situation happened prior to the family leaving. They boarded the plane and were told to get off. There were Air Force officers on board and not allowed. As they waited for the next plane, she met some friends there. When the family rushed to the next plane and she was not far behind, the authority crew stopped her and she was carrying Doan. They told her the plane was full at capacity. She desperately needed to board the next plane to be with her family. Trang and Doan were able to get on another plane. The plane had more Air Force officers inside. The authority crew told everyone to get out and re-register to board the plane. She did not have a su vu lenh to get a new boarding pass. She met a lady with her 4 children that helped her family earlier. She begged her to add her and Doan so they can board the next flight. The lady refused. As the passenger boarded the next plane, a bomb hit it and exploded. People on board were killed or injured. That scared her even more. Air Force officers approached her. They asked her if she knew anyone on base. She mentioned her brother-in-law was on base at the barracks. They took her and Doan there. She was able to find their location.
Sang had the third su vu lenh. Nong got on Son’s motorcycle, and Sang took a friend’s motorcycle without them knowing. They all went to the airport terminal to apply for a boarding pass for Trang and Doan to leave Saigon. Just before they reached the ticketing desk, there were several loud rocket explosions nearby. Everyone panicked and ran away from the terminal. After they all left the terminal a good distance away, they hid between a row of barracks as the rain of rockets fell throughout the night. There were gun fires, dead bodies, and many cries for help.

Dawn: Sun came up. Nong, Sang, Trang, and Doan all were blessed to survive the next day. Less rockets were launched. Sang recalls a girl selling sticky rice that morning. She said she could not sleep and stayed up all night cooking due to the loud rockets. Nong bought some sticky rice from her so she could earn some money. They prayed for her safety as they left.

Tho wakes up early and wakes Son to head back to the Air Force base. Son did not want to leave and told him to go without him. Tho could not persuade Son. He knew he could not stay back with him. He is an enemy to the VC. He also has his wife and daughter to be with. When he left the apartment, he observed the area. There was damage everywhere on the buildings and streets. It was a disaster. Since he did not have a motorcycle, he was hoping to catch the bus but no bus service was running. The VC took over Saigon and manned the area. Tho took off by walking. He was in civilian clothes since wearing his Air Force uniform was risky. If he was to be captured then he would be put to prison. The Prisoner at this time was tortured and had little chance of survival. In the area, the VC had multiple checkpoints with big machine guns on them. Tho was stopped at a checkpoint. The VC checked his ID and questioned him. He was very nervous, but he was able to answer calmly to the men. He carried a bag and inside was his Air Force uniform and a small handgun. VC officers did not check his bag or pat him down. He was able to get by undetected and unharmed.

7:00 AM: Tho arrived at Tan Son Nhut Air Force base. The security to get on base was strict and locked down. There were hundreds of people outside. Tho had to figure a way to get in. In his bag, he had his Air Force uniform. He changed from civilian clothes into his uniform. He mentioned to the Air Force guards that he was reported on duty. By coincidence, an Air Force Coronal drove up to the gate and validated his entry. Tho enters on base, he sees Nong about to exit with his son, Doan. Nong wanted to leave the base and take Doan to his parents in the countryside of Vietnam near Nha Trang. Tho told him he cannot go. It was too dangerous outside the base. VC took over Saigon, and their men were on the streets capturing South VN military officers. He cannot stay in Vietnam.

Most of the planes on base were damaged. There were still many South Vietnam Air Force pilots, officers, personnel, and families there trying to find a functional plane to leave the country. After a while without any success, Tho separated from the group. Nong, Sang, Trang, and Doan later got a ride on the back of a pickup truck packed with other people. They were driving around to find a working plane and gunshots were fired around them.

Afternoon: Tho was standing beside a C-130 Hercules plane packed with people. He was near the tail end of the plane when it started to move and reverse. As the plane was reversing, Tho had to quickly dodge flat to the ground as the wing propeller came close to hitting him. At the time, Nong, Sang, Trang, and Doan, still on the truck, were driving nearby and witnessed the whole incident. They were shocked to see Tho ducked down and got up once the plane was cleared. Tho later noticed a C-7 Caribou plane. Tho’s friend, Duc, another pilot, did not think this plane was operational. Tho was determined that this plane does work. The problem was Tho did not know how to operate a C-7, but he knew Duc knew how to fly C-7. He finally convinced him. Sang noticed his cousin on a plane and directed the driver to go over. The group saw Tho there. They got off the truck and boarded the C-7. About 50 people rushed and crammed into the plane. Off they flew out of Saigon.

C-130 Hercules C-7 Caribou

Late afternoon: Duc flew the plane to Thailand at US Air Force base U-Tapao. Duc mentioned many years later to Tho and Nong that when he was about to land, the plane the landing wheel did not eject. He was so nervous of this danger, but the plane landed on its belly safely. The Thailand government did not want Vietnamese refugees in their country, and the US had to transfer the refugees out. Later the same day, they were boarded onto a plane and flew into Guam since there was a US military refugee camp setup.

April 29, 1975

Morning: Originally the flight Hoi, Hung, Vuong, Tram Anh, Duan, Phuong, Thuy, An, Dung, and Ngoc were to land at Can Tho, but it detoured to Con Son Island. Con Son is an island off the coast of southern Vietnam. It is known as a prison island for South Vietnamese capturing the VC.

As the family exited the plane, Vuong was looking everywhere for her son, Doan. Her worst fear became a reality. Before she had her 3 children, her first born son became ill and died during infancy. For her to lose another child is heartbreaking. Vuong was in tears and no words could describe the loss of another child. Also, the loss of her husband not knowing if she will ever see him again. It was too much and devastating for her heart and soul. Her father could not see his daughter like this. He encouraged her to stay strong and live for her surviving children, Tram Anh and Duan. During their stay on the island, food was scarce. Buying chicken was worth paying in gold. Hoi was able to get a few chickens to feed his family. Ngoc saw a lady carrying a container. The lady opened the container. It was full of diamonds of different shapes, color, and sizes. The lady poured it in the water to wash it. Ngoc was nearby and stole one of the diamonds.

April 30, 1975

South Vietnam lost the war.

Early May 1975

A charter boat from a large ship arrived at Con Son Island. The charter boat was to take South Vietnamese on board the ship. The ship will take the people to the Philippines refugee camp. As the people got on the ship, they were pushing and pulling on one another as they boarded. People fell off and did not make it alive. When the family boarded the ship, they stayed near the bottom of the boat. There was barely any sunlight, people were crammed, and the horrible smell of everything bad since there was no working sewage. Once the family arrived in the Philippines, Ngoc forgot to take the stolen diamond with her. It would have been a worthy souvenir of the journey. The family were stationed in the Philippines for a couple weeks. Each day, the family wrote a message on a paper plate to find their missing family and let them know they were in camp. Vuong was ill and depressed. She had no appetite to eat. After a couple of weeks, the camp flew them out of the Philippines and into another US military refugee camp in Guam.

Mid May, 1975

Guam

Everyday there were buses unloading many Vietnamese refugees in Guam’s camp. Several days went by Nong, Tho, Sang, and Trang waited and checked every bus to see if their family were on it. After 2 weeks of separation, the remaining family arrived at Guam. They were all finally reunited except for Son. Hung was crushed. She lost her son.

May 1975

From Guam, everyone flew together to Fort Chaffee, Arkansas.

50,000 Vietnamese were stationed at Fort Chaffee after the fall of Vietnam war before relocating by many different sponsors across the country.

Many sponsors did not want a large group and offered the family to be separated. Hung did not want the family to be apart again. The family waited 2 months for a sponsor to accept all the family. Once the family received a sponser, Sang took another flight to California to be with his family.

July 1975

Family settled in Minnesota. Two different Lutheran churches in Minnesota sponsored the family members. Svea Lutheran Church sponsored Tho, Thuy, and An. Faith Lutheran Church in Spicer sponsored Hoi, Hung, Nong, Vuong, Tram Anh, Doan, Duan, Ngoc, Phuong, Trang, and Dung.

Son Dinh’s story

April 29, 1975

Tho wakes up early and wakes Son to head back to the Air Force base. Son did not want to leave and told him to go without him. Tho could not persuade Son. Son was tired from all the bombing and noise that night. He wanted to sleep in. He was to go to the Air Force base later. Not long after Tho left the apartment, there was a knock at the door. Three soldiers in uniform asked for Tho. Son told them he was not there. Son heard about it later that when VC captured the South Vietnam officers that they would take their uniform and wear it in disguise to capture other military officers. It was good that Tho was not there. After they left, Son got ready and headed to the Air Force base. There was a crowd of people surrounding the area. Security was secured and no civilians were allowed. Son reached the entry gate and told the security officer he has family inside the base. He described the women’s barrack location. The officers told him that the area was bombed and no one survived in that area. Son pleaded to go in. He wanted to check for himself if his family was killed. The officers did not let him inside the Air Force base. After a while, he went back to his apartment.

April 30, 1975

Duong Van Minh was the President of South Vietnam. He announced on radio at 10:00 AM South Vietnam surrendered to VC. South Vietnam soldiers were to put down their weapons. Their war was lost.

Son walked outside after the announcement. He was curious. He walked by the Dinh Doc Lap, South Vietnam President Independence palace. He witnessed VC soldiers surrounding the capital building. He walked to Binh bach dang, an area near the river. Crowds of people rushed to get on a ship to leave Vietnam. Many were South Vietnam officers and their families that could not leave by plane. Son wanted to leave but there were too many people. They were pushy, pulling, and some people did not make it alive. He went back to his apartment.

May 1, 1975

Son went by his father’s friend’s (Bac Tho) house. They were still there. Son explained to them that all his family were gone and dead when he went by the Air Force base. The security officers told him the area they stayed in was bombed. Bac Tho’s family was his family while he was in Vietnam. Son found comfort and stayed with his family.

Summer 1975

VC allowed Saigon University to reopen. Son went back to school, but the course was a new education program to learn about the Communist party with their history, government, and values. The VC taught the classes as they were a good party and the United States was bad. Son had to comply in order to survive in the country.

During this time, Son received a letter from the American Red Cross International Services. It was from his sister, Phuong. He was shocked and very happy to receive the letter. In the letter, Phuong mentioned all the family is alive and living in Spicer, Minnesota, USA.

After Son completed the new education program. He was sent to a VC Youth Volunteer to tear down a tree forest and build homes. It was called the New Economic Zones. The VC captured anyone who sided with the Republic of Vietnam such as politicians, military officers, and their families. They were the VC prisoners. There were people who refused to relocate to this area business school. Son chose to become a school teacher.

Summer 1976

Son completed his education and became a school teacher.

1977-79

VC sent Son to Kien Giang province. It is located in the Mekong Delta region of southern Vietnam. Son and VC members went to a rural area. They built the school and he taught high school.

Summer 1979

Son was invited by one of his students to come over to his house and meet his family. They had a lot to drink that day. The student’s father asked him about his family. Son felt comfortable speaking openly to him after a few drinks. Son mentioned they were all in America. The man asked if he wanted to leave Vietnam and go to America. Son replied he wanted to leave but had no money. The man liked Son and mentioned to come back to his house the following week.

Son came back. The man took him on a rach soi (type of boat) ride. They stop at the man’s relative’s house. They made a deal with Son. The man’s family would help him leave Vietnam. Son will pay him back when he reunites his family in America. The price was 5 ounces of gold.

The plan was for Son to go back to Saigon. He will no longer go back to teaching. Son will be notified in Saigon when to leave but no exact date. When traveling inside the country, people must have an approved permission to go from one city to another. Son gained the VC trust in the area. He was also sneaky. He took a few forms and was able to forge people’s names to be able to leave the area. During this time waiting, he went back and forth from Kien Giang province to Saigon to make the travel normal so the VC does not suspect his plan.

November 1979

Son stayed at his Bac Tho’s house in Saigon during this time. The student’s father came by and mentioned get ready to leave.

The next morning, Son and 3 other people left Saigon to go to another town called Sa Dec by bus. 3 to 4 hours later, they were there in the market area. They waited a few more hours. Another man approached them to follow him to ride on a small boat. Along the way, the boat driver picked up more people. They approached a larger fishing boat. All the passagers got into the fishing boat. That evening the boat took off. There were about 150 people on this boat escaping Vietnam. As they headed out of the river and into the South China Sea, there was a VC boat passing by in the opposite direction. They did not stop his boat.

Two days in the sea, a Thai boat stopped Son’s boat that morning. They did not speak Vietnamese but some knew Chinese and little English. The Vietnamese refugees asked them for help to shore. There was a cost before they could help. The Vietnamese refugees gave them gold and other values for their help. The Thai people gave them some food and water but took off with their valuables.

By noon the same day, another Thai boat stopped Son’s boat. The Thai people said they will help them get to Malaysia. They asked all the Vietnamese men to get on their boat and took them to their ice room where the fish are stored. They were locked in the ice room. The Thai crew were not going to help and were better known as pirates. The women, children, and elderly people were then on the top deck on their boat. They were body searched to find gold, jewels, and other valuables on their body and clothes. While all the Vietnamese people were on the Thai boat, the Thai pirates went on to their boat to take more valuables and damaged the boat. When they finished, all the Vietnamese refugees were released and went back to their boat. The Thai pirates took off.

The next day, a third Thai pirate ship came on board their boat. These men looked like pirates. Their faces were covered in black and their voices were aggressive. The Thai pirates pulled out their knives and threatened the people demanding their gold and valuables. There were more Vietnamese refugees than the Thai pirates. There were about a dozen. The Vietnamese men decided to fight back. The Vietnamese men took bottles and anything to use as weapons to fight. The Vietnamese men killed and overthrew the Thai pirates off their boat. During the fight, the Vietnamese refugees lost their boat captain and a few people. Overall, it was a victory.

Several days passed. It could have been sixteen days or longer floating out on water. One damaged boat and a Thai boat attached in which they do not know how to operate. Everyone on the boat was starving. There were thoughts of eating people but it did not happen. There were other boats passing by them. No one stopped to help until a British oil tanker named Etalina came to rescue them. The people on Etalina questioned them why a Thai boat was attached to their boat. The Etalina crew removed the line on the Thai boat and took the Vietnamese boat with the people with them. Etalina towed the Vietnamese boat to Darwin, Australia. The Vietnamese refugees stayed on board Etatlina to quarantine. The Australian immigration spoke to everyone to gather information. Son told them his family is in America. He lost his letters from his sister during the journey. He memorized the address and provided the name of the church, Faith Lutheran Church.

After a few days, the Australian government allowed the refugees into the country. Son wrote a letter to his family to let them know he was in Australia. He stayed in Darwin for about 2 months and then he was transferred to Melbourne by plane. The Australian government provided housing for the refugees.

About three months in Melbourne, the Australian immigration gave him the news that they received approval to send him to Minnesota to be with his family. Son was sponsored by Gene and Leila Wenzel from Faith Lutheran Church.

June 30, 1980

Son arrived at the Minneapolis, Minnesota, airport. Everyone except for Tho’s family (family moved to Texas) met Son at the airport. It was a joyful moment. The family was whole again.

Map of the family journey in Asia fleeing Vietnam in 1975