How do we know when a war begins or a war ends? Does it start when we send our troops to the frontline and end when we bring them home? Veterans Day is celebrated on November 11 every year because on November 11, 1918, a cease-fire was declared and it was the end of World War I. However, we celebrate Vietnam Veterans Day on March 29. On March 29, 1973, the last of the combat troops boarded a plane in Saigon and returned to America. To many it marked the end of the Vietnam War and to others it marked a day to Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans.
The Military Assistance Command Vietnam (MACV) was vital to the planning and implementation of many operations throughout the Vietnam Conflict to include the final operation, OPLAN J215 under the codename COUNTDOWN. As early as October 1972, MACV leaders developed the final stages of withdrawal to end U.S. military involvement in Vietnam. This plan included setting up a new headquarters in Thailand for military operations in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. It also included activating a Four-Party Joint Military Commission to oversee the conditions of a cease-fire. The date of cease-fire would be marked X-Day. According to COUNTDOWN, Phase I was the period immediately before X-day and would involve a contingency of personnel to forward deploy into Thailand. Phase II was X-day to X plus 45 and involved a majority of U.S. and South Korean troops departing Vietnam. Phase III was X plus 45 to X plus 60 that involved the remaining troops to depart Vietnam, except a contingency of Defense Attaché personnel, and the deactivation of MACV.
On January 27, 1973, U.S. Secretary of State William P. Rogers, Foreign Affairs Advisor, Dr. Henry A. Kissinger, and foreign ministers from North Vietnam, South Vietnam, and the Viet Cong signed a peace accord to end the Vietnam War and restore peace in Vietnam. According to the peace accord, the U.S. agreed to end military activities and withdraw combat troops within 60 days. Additionally, the North Vietnamese agreed to a cease-fire and to release all American prisoners of war within 60 days.
From 1970 to 1973, the U.S. began withdrawing troops from Vietnam. In early 1970 there were almost 450,000 troops stationed in Vietnam and by the end of 1971 there were only about 157,000. Aggressively withdrawing more troops, the U.S. service branches only had about 95,000 personnel in Vietnam, of which 6,000 were combat troops. After the signing of the Peace Accords in January, 1973, the U.S. out-processed the final military personnel from Camp Alpha as prescribed in the agreement. The last of the U.S. military personnel departed from South Vietnam on March 29, 1973.
Operation HOMECOMING commenced February 12, 1973 as three U.S. Air Force C-141A aircraft took off from Hanoi and one C-9A aircraft took off from Saigon with the first group of prisoners of war (POWs) to be released as a result of the Paris Peace Accords. Their first stop would be Clark Air Base, Philippines and then on to Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii or Travis Air Force Base, California. By the end of March in 1973, 591 POWs returned home to America. However, there were still 2,000 U.S. personnel missing in action.
The last of the U.S. military personnel included the Four Party Joint Military Commission, the 50-man contingent for the Defense Attaché Office, and the 143-man Marine embassy guard. In a brief ceremony on March 29, 1973, the MACV Commander, General Weyand, furled the colors and deactivated the MACV, marking the end of its 11-year war.
One year later, President Richard Nixon proclaimed March 29, 1974 as Vietnam Veterans Day. Over the years, Vietnam Veterans Day was celebrated by some states on March 29 signifying the end of the conflict and the return of American troops, while other states celebrated it on March 30 when the final troops reached American soil. Some states took liberty and honored and welcomed home Vietnam veterans on other days of the year as well. In 2012, President Barack Obama proclaimed March 29 at Vietnam Veterans Day and called “upon all Americans to observe this day with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities that commemorate the 50-year anniversary of the Vietnam War.” Then, with the signing of the Vietnam War Veterans Recognition Act of 2017, President Donald Trump officially recognized March 29 as National Vietnam Veterans Day.