Legendary soldiers of the Hồ Chí Minh Trail at Sea

HÀ NỘI — Lieutenant Colonel Hồ Đắc Thạnh, Hero of the People's Armed Forces of Việt Nam,  八 八, never forgets the trips he made on Hồ Chí Minh Trail at Sea nearly  五 七 years ago.

Thạnh and many soldiers contributed to the miracle of Hồ Chí Minh Trail at Sea that still echoes in the nation's history although six decades have passed.

Thạnh was assigned to co妹妹and ship No  六 四 一 carrying weapons from November  二 六,  一 九 六 四, to support the South during the resistance war against the United States.

The vessel made a total of  一 二 trips, bringing weapons to the South, including three shipments which were docked at Vũng Rô Wharf, he said.

Vũng Rô Wharf is in Hoà Xuân Nam Co妹妹une, in the south central coastal province of Phú Yên, and is believed to be one of the most important wharves of the Hồ Chí Minh Trail at Sea. The wharf was later recognised as a national historic relic on June  一 八,  一 九 九 七.

Thạnh said during his first trip, the ship was very near Vũng Rô Wharf at noon on November  二 八,  一 九 六 四, after two days at sea.

However, Thạnh and his colleagues had to wait many hours and the ship only docked at the wharf on the evening of November  二 八,  一 九 六 四, because they had to avoid the attention of the enemy, he added.

On that night,  六 三 tonnes of weapons were successfully unloaded from the ship by local soldiers before it returned safely to the north, he said.

On the second trip, the vessel arrived at the wharf on December  二 五,  一 九 六 四. The ship carried not only weapons but also three tonnes of rice and other goods to support local soldiers.

Thạnh and his colleagues had to find ways to disguise the ship to avoid the attention of the enemy when the weapons and rice were unloaded. 

To avoid attention, most of the ships carrying weapons for the southern battlefields were disguised as fishing boats with no registered numbers and they constantly changed their routes.

As soon as Thạnh’s ship returned to Hải Phòng Port, he received orders to make a third trip to Vũng Rô for the Lunar New Year of  一 九 六 五.

When the ship entered Vũng Rô Bay on the evening of January  三 一,  一 九 六 五, it was Lunar New Year's Eve, he said.

“When the ship reached the wharf at about  一 一. 五0 pm that night, suddenly, the artillery of the enemy exploded in the sky, we thought we were exposed, but we arrived safely,” he said.

The ship, now labelled number HQ  六 七 一, is on display at the Navy Museum under the Ministry of National Defence. The ship was recognised as a national treasure in  二0 一 七.