50 years ago, on April 27, 1975, Cu Lao Thu (now Phu Quy Island) - the last territory of Binh Thuan province and the battlefield of Zone VI was completely liberated, contributing greatly to the overall victory of the whole nation.
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In late 1974 and early 1975, in the context of the rapidly changing balance of power in the South in favor of the revolution, the Politburo proposed a plan to liberate the South. From there, Buon Ma Thuot, a series of provinces in the Central Highlands, the coastal areas of the Central region and the South Central region were also liberated one after another.
On April 16, 1975, at the battlefield of Zone VI, the liberation army smashed the defensive “shield” of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) in Phan Rang, liberating Ninh Thuan province. In the bamboo-splitting offensive of the main army corps, our army advanced into Binh Thuan, liberating Tuy Phong (April 17), Hoa Da, Phan Ly and Hai Ninh districts (April 18) in turn. At exactly 8:00 p.m. on April 18, we attacked Phan Thiet; at 9:00 a.m. the next morning, the Military Management Committee entered Phan Thiet. At 1:00 p.m. the same day, the entire Binh Thuan province was liberated (except Cu Lao Thu). In that victorious spirit, our army attacked and liberated Ham Tan (former Binh Tuy province) on April 23. Although located in the middle of the ocean, far from the mainland, the exciting news of the 1975 Spring General Offensive and Uprising was continuously transmitted to the island. The people of Phu Quy were even more eager when they heard the news that the whole Binh Thuan province had been liberated.
In that context, on April 22, Mr. Tran Nghia and a number of young people in Long Hai rose up to disarm the army and civil defense forces to seize power. Due to the imbalance of forces, the uprising was suppressed; Mr. Tran Nghia and his son and a number of young people were shot and killed on the spot. However, before that, Mr. Nghia's team had managed to bring the half-red, half-blue flag of the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam to plant on a high rock, inspiring the people on the island.
Coordinated attack to liberate Cu Lao Thu
According to the Navy Command, along with the task of organizing forces to liberate the Truong Sa archipelago, on April 23, comrade Nguyen Ba Phat - Commander of the Forward Naval Command was assigned by comrade Le Trong Tan the task of organizing and commanding forces to liberate Cu Lao Thu.
Cu Lao Thu is 21 km² wide, with a population of about 12,000 people, mainly living by fishing. On the island at that time, there was "1 "military" squadron, 1 puppet police platoon, nearly 4,000 militia and about 800 puppet soldiers who fled to the island after Ham Tan town fell". Not only that, from April 22, there were often 2 warships (HQ11 and WPB) of the Republic of Vietnam Navy to protect this island area. Thus, by the end of March 1975, the Republic of Vietnam forces on the island accounted for about 50% of the population here.
After Phan Thiet was liberated, under the direction of the Zone VI Party Committee, the Provincial Party Committee and the Military Command of Binh Thuan province quickly deployed preparations for the liberation of Phu Quy. In particular, Tuy Phong district was assigned the responsibility of carrying out this historic task. On the afternoon of April 24, Tuy Phong District Party Committee established a 20-member Civilian Military Group, led by Comrade Nguyen Thanh Tam - Secretary of the District Party Committee. At the same time, Binh Thuan Provincial Party Committee also sent comrades Dao Cong Tro, Pham Quynh Chau, Nguyen Huu Lai, Nguyen Truong Phuoc, Nguyen Hue Oanh and Ngo Sau to participate. Later, an additional squad of Company 490 of Tuy Phong district joined the army to liberate Cu Lao Thu. In coordination with Binh Thuan, the Navy Command sent ship 643 (Group 125) captained by Senior Lieutenant Vo Han and a number of fishing boats carrying a part of the navy force, a water commando squad of Battalion 407 (Military Region 5), and the 3rd Infantry Company (belonging to Regiment 95, Division 3, Military Region 5) under the direct command of Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen The Trinh, Head of the Navy Military Science Department.
After closely unifying the military, political and logistical plans, on the morning of April 26, the Navy Command's combat forces left Cam Ranh military port (Nha Trang) and arrived at the assembly location at night. At around 1:00 a.m. on April 27, fishing boats T2 and T3 transported the forces of the first and second groups to the assembly location safely. At 1:50 a.m., they secretly approached the island. At Binh Thanh (Tuy Phong, Binh Thuan), at 6:00 p.m. on April 26, the liberation army of Binh Thuan also began to turn the waves and head straight for Cu Lao Thu. At 3:00 a.m. on April 27, the group had approached the island.
According to the battle plan, our army organized into 4 attack groups to attack 3 communes (Tam Thanh, Ngu Phung, Long Hai) and the administrative office. At 5:15 a.m., the forces on the groups opened fire simultaneously. Being surprised and attacked fiercely by the liberation army, the army and government of the Republic of Vietnam on the island fled in disarray. Meanwhile, the soldiers in the administrative building relied on the bunker system to continue to fire and resist fiercely. By 6:30 a.m. on April 27, the liberation army had completely controlled Cu Lao Thu. At sea, the Vietnam People's Navy ship 643 also fought fiercely with the HQ11 and WPB ships using B40 and B41 anti-tank guns and 12.7mm anti-aircraft guns. As a result, the WPB was severely damaged, the remaining ship did not dare to come close, only loitering far away, firing moderately, waiting for support. By the afternoon of the same day, it had withdrawn from the island.
Together the whole country goes up
With the victory on Cu Lao Thu, our army destroyed and captured 382 prisoners, captured 900 guns of various types, wounded 1 ship, 1 motorboat, captured 2 radios and many military equipment. After the liberation, the island liberation force handed over to the forces of Military Region VI to guard under the direction of the Campaign Command. The battle on Phu Quy Island took place according to our army's operational plan, in just over 1 hour, the set target was completely resolved. From here, the island and the mainland were connected into one strip. Although it was the last land to be liberated, the victory on April 27, 1975 on Phu Quy Island had an important strategic significance, contributing greatly to the victory of the army and people of Binh Thuan province, of Region VI, to the overall success of the historic 1975 Spring General Offensive and Uprising of our nation.
After 50 years of liberation (April 27, 1975 - April 27, 2025), under the leadership of the District Party Committee, the attention of the province, the Central Government and the consensus of the entire people, Phu Quy island district has made comprehensive development steps, achieved many important achievements, with profound revolutionary significance. The economy has grown steadily, people's lives have been improved; politics is stable, national defense and security are maintained, creating a safe and favorable environment, attracting tourists, promoting socio-economic development.
Source: https://baobinhthuan.com.vn/ngay-27-4-1975-giai-phong-cu-lao-thu-129768.html
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