Description Nha Be, seven miles south of Saigon, was a major combat and logistics base. As naval leaders concluded early, the site was strategically placed at the junction of the Long Tau and Soi Rap, the main rivers between the port of Saigon and the South China Sea. Nha Be was also positioned near waterways traversing the Viet Cong-infested Rung Sat Special Zone (RSSZ) and the eastern Mekong Delta region. Nha Be was ideally located for support of river patrol and minesweeping operations. In addition, the Vietnamese Navy’s River Assault Group compound there was suitable for a small American force.
In March 1966 a detachment of Mine Squadron 11, employing 57-foot minesweeping boats (MSBs) and converted landing craft, became the first U.S. naval unit to deploy at Nha Be. During the next five years the U.S. minesweeping force patrolled the water approaches to Saigon, escorted commercial and military vessels, and worked to keep the ship channels free of enemy mines. While vessels were damaged or sunk, the absolutely vital water line of communication never was severed by Viet Cong action.
Also in March 1966, the first units of the navy’s River Patrol Force tied up at Nha Be and soon afterwards began operations against the Viet Cong waterborne traffic in the Rung Sat and the Mekong Delta. Eventually, the base was able to support 40 PBRs engaged in Operation GAME WARDEN. Other components were Helicopter Combat Support Squadron 1 and Helicopter Attack (Light) Squadron 3. Detachments of these units flew from helicopter pads at nearby Cruickshank Airfield. Both surface and air units at Nha Be took part in Operation GIANT SLINGSHOT. GIANT SLINGSHOT sought to interdict communist men and supplies infiltrating from Cambodia on the Vam Co Dong and Vam Co Tay Rivers during 1969-71.
The support base at Nha Be developed into a major logistics complex. In the beginning, the sailors had to rely on Army depots in Saigon for supply items common to both services and were quartered in tents at the Vietnamese installation. However once the Naval Support Activity Saigon Detachment Nha Be, was established, conditions improved. A pier for the PBRs was fashioned with Army pontoons and YRBM-16, a large converted lighter, was stationed at the site. YRBM-16 made berthing, repair, spare parts, and supplies available for the PBR units. An Army crane was used for hull repair of the MSBs. These and other measures were taken to provide interim support.
Twenty acres of nearby swampland were filled with dredged soil, and by December 1966, work was begun on permanent base facilities. These facilities included depot-level repair, administrative, communications, storage, maintenance, quartering, and messing buildings, four 1,000-barrel fuel storage tanks, and a boat pier. Although securing potable water and shoring up the landfill presented problems, Nha Be became a key naval support complex in the Saigon area.
By late 1968, 84 craft and the recently deployed headquarters of Naval Support Activity Saigon were based there. The facility continued to serve the Navy’s needs until its turnover to Vietnamese Navy and the disestablishment of Naval Support Activity, Saigon, Detachment Nha Be, in April 1972.