Program Information

In closing days of the Vietnam War, with the North Vietnamese literally at the gates of Saigon, the United States rescued thousands of Vietnamese orphans from harm’s way...many of whom had been fathered by and left behind by American and European soldiers.

A Moment in Time is a brief, exciting and compelling journey into the past. Created to excite and enlighten the public about the past, its relevance to the present and its impact on the future, A Moment In Time is a captivating historical narrative that is currently broadcast worldwide.

Transcript

Lead: For 400 years service men and women have fought to carve out and defend freedom and the civilization we know as America. This series on A Moment in Time is devoted to the memory of those warriors, whose sacrifice gave, in the words of Lincoln at Gettysburg, the last full measure.

Content: In closing days of the Vietnam War, with the North Vietnamese literally at the gates of Saigon, the United States rescued thousands of Vietnamese orphans from harm’s way. Two years after the cease-fire agreement between the US and North Vietnam, the latter began its final assault on the South. In the midst of this chaos, many service organizations began begging the American government to help evacuate thousands of orphans from their facilities in Vietnam. Of particular concern were the offspring fathered by and left behind by American and European soldiers. These Nguoi Lai, or mixed race children, would have been particularly imperiled under the regime of the victorious North Vietnamese.

In early April 1975 President Gerald R. Ford authorized Operation Babylift, an attempt to fly thousands of orphans out of Vietnam. On April 3 the flights began and one of the first flights ended in tragedy. An Air Force C-5A Galaxy with 300 passengers, children and caregivers lifted off from Ton Son Nhut Airport, had just reached 23,000 feet when an explosion blew off the rear doors of the giant craft. Through skilled flying, the pilots turned the plane back and brought it down about 2 miles from the airport. More than half of the passengers died and many of the 170 or so survivors were injured. Almost without interruption, however, the flights continued and before Operation Babylift was discontinued because of enemy fire. At the end of the month, 2700 children had been flown out to the United States with an additional 1300 children flown to Canada, Australia and Europe. Most Americans supported this effort although many questioned the motives, ethics and process involved.

Research assistance by Eric Houdek, at the University of Richmond, this is Dan Roberts.

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