Trần Thanh Phong (19 January 1926 – 1 December 1972) was a Major general in the

South Vietnam South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam (RVN; , VNCH), was a country in Southeast Asia that existed from 1955 to 1975. It first garnered Diplomatic recognition, international recognition in 1949 as the State of Vietnam within the ...

ese

Army of the Republic of Vietnam The Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN; ; ) composed the ground forces of the Republic of Vietnam Military Forces, South Vietnamese military from its inception in 1955 to the Fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. Its predecessor was the ground forc ...

(ARVN).

Military career

Phong served as the commander of I Corps, which oversaw the northernmost part of the country, from 20 May to 30 May 1966, when he was replaced by Lieutenant General

Hoàng Xuân Lãm Hoàng Xuân Lãm (10 October 1928, Huế–2 May 2017, Davis, California) was a South Vietnamese lieutenant general in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN). Military career In 1964 he commanded the 23rd Division, where his US advisor reg ...

. He was one of five different I Corps commanders in two months, as Prime Minister

Nguyễn Cao Kỳ Nguyễn Cao Kỳ (; 8 September 1930 – 23 July 2011) was a South Vietnamese military officer and politician who served as the chief of the Republic of Vietnam Air Force in the 1960s, before leading the nation as the prime minister of Sout ...

struggled to find a leader of whom he approved while the

Buddhist Uprising The Buddhist Uprising of 1966 (), or more widely known in Vietnam as the Crisis in Central Vietnam (), was a period of civil and military unrest in South Vietnam, largely focused in the I Corps area in the north of the country in central Vietna ...

was taking place. In 1967 Phong served as Director of Operations (J-3) on the

Joint General Staff The Joint General Staff (JGS) was a body of senior uniformed leaders in the South Vietnamese military which advised the Ministry of National Defence and the President of South Vietnam. Organisation The JGS carried out administrative and plannin ...

(JGS) and was a rival of JGS Chairman

Cao Văn Viên Cao Văn Viên (; December 21, 1921 – January 22, 2008) was a four-star army general in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam during the Vietnam War. He rose to the position of Chairman of the South Vietnamese Joint General Staff. Butterfie ...

. On 9 September following the South Vietnamese presidential election, new

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Nguyễn Văn Thiệu Nguyễn Văn Thiệu (; 5 April 1923 – 29 September 2001) was a South Vietnam, South Vietnamese military officer and politician who was the Leaders of South Vietnam, president of South Vietnam from 1967 to 1975. He was a general in the Repub ...

began consolidating power and promoted Phong to JGS chief of staff. He subsequently served as the head of the pacification program, head of the

Republic of Vietnam National Police The Republic of Vietnam National Police – RVNP (), Police Nationale de la République du Vietnam or Police Nationale for short ( – CSQG) in French, was the official South Vietnamese national police force from 1962 to 1975, operating closely ...

and finally as deputy commander of Military Region II. During the 1972

Easter Offensive The Easter Offensive, also known as the 1972 spring–summer offensive (') by North Vietnam, or the Red Fiery Summer (') as romanticized in South Vietnamese literature, was a military campaign conducted by the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN, t ...

MR II senior advisor

John Paul Vann John Paul Vann (born John Paul Tripp; July 2, 1924 – June 9, 1972) was a lieutenant colonel in the United States Army, later retired, who became well known for his role in the Vietnam War. Although separated from the military before the Vietna ...

suggested putting Phong in charge of the defense of Kontum, but Phong's sister-in-law, the wife of Prime Minister

Trần Thiện Khiêm Trần Thiện Khiêm (; 15 December 1925 – 24 June 2021) was a South Vietnamese soldier and politician, who served as a General in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) during the Vietnam War. He was born in Saigon, French Cochinchina, ...

, intervened and vetoed the job as too dangerous. He was killed on 1 December 1972 when the

Republic of Vietnam Air Force The South Vietnam Air Force, officially the Republic of Vietnam Air Force (RVNAF; ; ) (sometimes referred to as the Vietnam Air Force or VNAF), was the aerial branch of the Republic of Vietnam Military Forces, the official military of the Repub ...

plane he was travelling on crashed in bad weather on approach to

Tuy Hoa Air Base Tuy Hoa Air Base was an air force base in Vietnam, being closed in 1970. It was built by the United States in 1966 and was used by the United States Air Force (USAF) during the Vietnam War in the II Corps (South Vietnam), II Corps Tactical ...

. Four other South Vietnamese and two

USAID The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an agency of the United States government that has been responsible for administering civilian United States foreign aid, foreign aid and development assistance. Established in 19 ...

officials were also killed in the crash.

Awards and decorations

* : **

VPD National Order of Vietnam - Grand Officer BAR

Grand Officer of the

National Order of Vietnam The National Order of Vietnam () was a combined military-civilian decoration of South Vietnam and was considered the highest honor that could be bestowed upon an individual by the Republic of Vietnam government. The decoration was created in ...

Military Merit Medal ** Vietnam Army Distinguished Service Order Ribbon-First Class

Army Distinguished Service Order, First Class ** Vietnam Air Force Meritorious Service Medal ribbon

Air Force Meritorious Service Medal ** Vietnamese Gallantry Cross ribbon

Gallantry Cross ** Vietnam Hazardous Service Medal ribbon

Hazardous Service Medal The Hazardous Service Medal () was a single-grade decoration awarded by South Vietnam. Established in 1964, the medal was awarded to military personnel by the Chief of the Joint General Staff, Republic of Vietnam Armed Forces. The medal could be aw ...

Vietnam Armed Forces Honor Medal ribbon-First Class

Armed Forces Honor Medal, First Class ** Vietnam Staff Service Medal ribbon-Second Class

Vietnam Staff Service Medal The Republic of Vietnam Staff Service Medal () was a Orders, decorations, and medals of South Vietnam, military award of South Vietnam established in 1964. The medal was awarded in two classes and was awarded for outstanding initiative and devotio ...

, Second Class ** Vietnam Training Service Medal ribbon-First Class

Training Service Medal, First Class ** Vietnam Civil Actions Medal ribbon-First Class

Civil Actions Medal The Republic of Vietnam Civil Actions Medal () also known as the Vietnam Civil Actions Medal or Civil Actions Medal, is a military decoration of the former South Vietnamese government (1955–75). The medal was created on May 12, 1964 during t ...

, First Class ** Vietnam Good Conduct Medal ribbon-First Class

Good Conduct Medal, First Class **

Vietnam Campaign Medal The Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal, also known as the Vietnam Campaign Medal (), is a South Vietnamese military campaign medal which was created in 1949 and awarded during the First Indochina War. During the Vietnam War (Second Indochina War ...

Military Service Medal The Military Service Medal is a military medal awarded to members of the Military of Austria. It is awarded in three classes: gold, silver, and bronze depending on length of recognized service. Established in 1963, the medal was originally called ...

, Second Class ** Vietnam Air Service Medal ribbon

Air Service Medal ** Vietnam Navy Service Medal ribbon

Navy Service Medal ** Vietnam Chuong My Medal ribbon-First Class

Chuong My Medal, First Class ** Vietnam Cultural and Educational Service Medal ribbon-First Class

Cultural and Educational Service Medal, First Class ** Vietnam Psychological Warfare Medal ribbon-First Class

Psychological Warfare Medal, First Class * : **

Bronze Star Medal The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious a ...

with

"V" device A "V" device is a metal Letter case, capital Letter (alphabet), letter "V" with serifs which, when worn on #Decorations eligible for the "V" device, certain decorations awarded by the United States Armed Forces, distinguishes a decoration award ...

Army Commendation Medal The Commendation Medal is a mid-level Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, United States military decoration presented for sustained acts of heroism or meritorious service. Each branch of the United States Armed Forces issu ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tran, Thanh Phong 1926 births 1972 deaths Army of the Republic of Vietnam generals People from Trà Vinh province