Cat Lo Naval Base is a former

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

U.S. Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, multi ...

, and

Republic of Vietnam Navy The Republic of Vietnam Navy (RVNN; ; ''HQVNCH'') was the naval branch of the South Vietnamese military, the official armed forces of the former Republic of Vietnam (or South Vietnam) from 1955 to 1975. The early fleet consisted of boats fro ...

(RVNN) base approximately northeast of

Vũng Tàu Vũng Tàu (''Hanoi accent:'' , ''Saigon accent:'' ) is the largest city of Bà Rịa–Vũng Tàu province in southern Vietnam. The city area is , consists of 13 urban wards and one commune of Long Sơn Islet. Vũng Tàu was the capital of the pr ...

in southern

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

that was used during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

History

In October 1965, the U.S. Navy selected Cat Lo as the base for Swift Boat Squadron 1, Division 103 with 14

Swift Boats Patrol Craft Fast (PCF), also known as Swift Boats, were all-aluminum, long, shallow-draft vessels operated by the United States Navy, initially to patrol the coastal areas and later for work in the interior waterways as part of the brown-wate ...

to be based there with berthing, messing and basic repair facilities. Dredging to build the base facilities eventually took 3 years and it housed over 600 personnel.

Construction Battalion Maintenance Unit 302 Construction Battalion Maintenance Unit THREE ZERO TWO (CBMU-302) of the U.S. Navy was commissioned on 31 March 1967. Along with a sister unit, CBMU-301,CBMU 302 Cruisebook 1967-69, NHHA, Seabee Museum, Port Hueneme, C/ref> was also commissione ...

Detachment C was based at Cat Lo during the base construction. On 22 February 1966, the newly established Division 13, Coast Guard Squadron One began operations from Cat Lo. In early 1966 PBRs of River Divisions 53 and 54 began operations from Cat Lo. PACV Division 107 operating the experimental

Patrol Air Cushion Vehicle The Patrol Air Cushion Vehicle (PACV), also known as the Air Cushion Vehicle (ACV) in Army and Coast Guard service, was a United States Navy and Army hovercraft used as a patrol boat in marshy and riverine areas during the Vietnam War between ...

also operated out of Cat Lo during their first deployment to the Vietnam War. It was home to a radio transmitter that broadcast AFN. The base was handed over to the RVNN on 28 April 1971.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cat Lo Naval Base Buildings and structures in Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu province Military installations of the United States in South Vietnam Naval installations of the Republic of Vietnam