On August 5, 1965, in Trung Luong commune, Dinh Hoa district, Bac Thai province (now Binh Yen commune, Thai Nguyen province), the 299th Engineering and Construction Regiment held its first military-political conference, marking the regiment's birth during the resistance war against the US and for national liberation. From then on, the regiment was named "Tan Trao Regiment," and August 5th became its glorious traditional day.

The 299th Engineering Brigade educates new recruits about the unit's traditions. Photo: DUC ANH

From its early years, the Regiment stabilized its organizational structure and trained its personnel in fundamental specialized areas. In October 1965, the Regiment undertook the construction of Project Area B (the high-level command post of the Party and State). This was the largest project in the country at that time, constructed underground within rocky mountains, with a wide span, capable of withstanding the destructive force of bombs, bullets, and chemical weapons, and the highest requirement was absolute secrecy. Despite the arduous task, the Regiment completed the construction of 15km of service road in just three months, 20 days ahead of schedule.

In 1973, to meet mission requirements, the Regiment was reinforced with personnel and equipment, becoming a mixed Engineering Brigade under the 1st Army Corps. During the Spring Offensive of 1975, along with other units throughout the Army Corps, the officers and soldiers of the 299th Engineering Brigade swiftly marched over 1,700 km with a large quantity of technical equipment and vehicles. The Brigade was tasked with building the Army Corps' command post throughout the campaign, ensuring the mobility of all the Army Corps' technical equipment to the assembly point, and supporting the 320B Division's deep penetration attack to capture the Saigon puppet regime's General Staff Headquarters. This contributed to the Army Corps maintaining its offensive momentum, creating favorable opportunities to join the five army groups in the decisive strategic battle to liberate the South and unify the country.

The 299th Engineering Brigade organizes construction work while ensuring safety. Photo: DUC ANH

Currently, the Brigade focuses on improving training quality, combat readiness, constructing military facilities, detecting and disposing of bombs, mines, and explosive materials, participating in disaster relief, and search and rescue operations. On November 22, 2023, the Minister of National Defense signed Decision No. 6037/QD-BQP, transferring the Brigade to the direct command of the 12th Army Corps. Facing increasingly demanding tasks, the officers and soldiers of the Brigade remain united and overcome all difficulties; building upon the achievements already attained in training, combat readiness, construction of combat facilities, and the fulfillment of assigned tasks.

With 60 years of building, fighting, and maturing, the Brigade has been honored twice with the title of Hero of the People's Armed Forces, along with many other prestigious awards. Building on these achievements, the officers and soldiers of the Brigade always uphold the spirit of unity, proactive creativity, and diligent study, self-cultivation, and training; constantly improving their skills in all aspects, building a strong, comprehensive, "exemplary and outstanding" Brigade. The glorious tradition of the 299th Engineering Brigade - the heroic Tan Trao Engineering Regiment - is a solid foundation for each officer and soldier to enthusiastically strive for excellence and compete to achieve many new accomplishments.

Colonel Dinh Tuan Anh, Commander of the 299th Engineering Brigade

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    Source: https://www.qdnd.vn/quoc-phong-an-ninh/xay-dung-quan-doi/xay-dung-don-vi-cong-binh-chinh-quy-hien-dai-839841