Operation Babylift
Operation Babylift was a mass airlift in April 1975 to move Vietnamese orphans and other vulnerable children from South Vietnam to the United States and other Western countries as the Vietnam War was ending. More than 3,300 children were flown out, though exact numbers vary.
After Da Nang fell and Saigon came under siege, U.S. President Gerald Ford announced that orphans would be evacuated. The mission used several planes, including C-5A and C-141 cargo aircraft, coordinated by the Military Airlift Command. Adoption groups such as Holt International and Friends of Children of Viet Nam helped identify children and arrange homes, with support from officials and organizations around the world.
On the first major flight, a C-5A (tail number 68-0218) took off from Tan Son Nhut Airport on April 4, 1975. Twelve minutes after takeoff, a door failed and a rapid decompression occurred. The plane landed briefly in a rice paddy, became airborne again, struck a dike, and broke apart. Of the 313 people aboard, 138 were killed and 175 survived, including 78 children and 35 Defense Attaché Office personnel.
Despite the disaster, evacuations continued, with safety precautions and a shift to different aircraft and daylight operations. In some cases, a faster evacuation was arranged by chartering a Boeing 747 funded by businessman Robert Macauley to move hundreds of children more quickly.
The operation was controversial because not all evacuees were orphans, and some families claimed children were taken without proper consent. A 1975 lawsuit raised these concerns. In later years, some adoptees used DNA testing to help reunite with Vietnamese families through groups like Operation Reunite. A memorial in Holmdel, New Jersey, was opened in 2015 to remember the families affected by the mission.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 05:14 (CET).