Rose Garden at Nam Phong
Rugged facilities at a Marine Airbase in Nam Phong, Thailand – 1972. The airfield was carved out of the jungle by US Navy Seabees where it hosted a variety of Marine fighter and transport squadrons, and Marine security forces. Missions were flown out of here into nearby Laos and Cambodia, as well as Vietnam. Sarcastically called the “Rose Garden” the base was not long lived as most of the US personnel were sent home not long after. The red dust was everywhere including inside the 10-man tents that served the airfield in and around the aircraft parking area. The photo clearly shows this was not a pretty place to be, but well equipped with guard shacks, and plenty of concertina wire and barbed wire fences. Like all the inland bases in Thailand it was wicked, wicked hot. Fortunately we only flew in here once.
My brother in law was a photographer with the U.S. Naval Construction Battalion FIVE,who constructed the Rose Garden. He's now 78 and speaks of his time spent there. When he arrived it was solid jungle. When they were finished it was the Rose Garden'!
ReplyDeleteJohn DeMoss, CPL, USMC, Task Force Delta Spring '72 Nam Phong Thailand [& very briefly in Danang, S.V]...Damn, have you EVER seen "weed killer" this effective?!
ReplyDeleteSemper Fi ! And a shoutout & thanks to those Navy Seabees who helped us out and to some of those USAF fly boys who also helped us out...JSLD