Completely amateur web and Google-Earth based research. Corrections, commentary and constructive feedback welcome. Many thanks to those who helped find stuff, particularly Sea O’Connor and the Google Earth guys. This is not intended to be exhaustive or authoritative.

In this illustrative essay I will concentrate on air-defences and then cover a few curiosities. All illustrations by me unless otherwise stated.

Much of this research has been on Google Earth. I’ve attempted to Upload a Google Earth placemark’s file (.KMZ) http://www.upload.ae/file/14471/Planemans-Vietnam-kmz.html" target="_blank">HERE. To open it, first open Google Earth, them open the attached file. The file hosting site makes you wait a minute but the file is well worth it!




HANOI
The capital of the country, Hanoi was also the target of much US bombing in the Vietnam war and the location of many air defences.

An illustration from HERE shows some of the Soviet supplied SA-2 SAM sites around Hanoi during the Linebecker raids of the Vietnam War:



Looking at Google Earth it’s apparent that this sketchmap is not exactly to scale and that the exact locations of the batteries may be slightly off, but the general picture is there. Additionally I was able to cross-reference several SA-2 sites with the map.

Now Hanoi is protected by multiple layers of SA-2 and SA-3 SAMs, and Anti-aircraft gun sites, all operated by the Air Defence troops.

Since plotting the above illustration I’ve found more AAA sites and refined my range estimates, but the above still gives a good idea of the defenceive picture. All AAA is shown as 4km radius which is equivalent of 37mm AAA. Most sites are compatible with various AAA guns and ranges may go as far as 6km for 57mm AAA with radars, or just 1.5km for 12.7mm machine guns. Materially on a map like this that doesn’t make much difference.




SA-2 “Guideline”
Whilst Hanoi retains several SA-2 sites they are much reduced compared to the 1970s. Surprisingly, many sites are more recent with a peculiarly Vietnamese layout of just 4 (as opposed to the usual 6) missile launching positions.

SA-2 coverage:

Hanoi is at the centre-left of this image, Hai Phong is centre-right.

Not alluded to in the sketch above is that the SA-2 has a minimum engagement range of 6km. The missile is medium range but capable of all operational altitudes.

The main versions of SA-2 in service are the SA-2D and SA-2F. These are relatively advanced for SA-2s but are still Vietnam war era with no indications that they have been substantially modernized. Many empty sites for SA-2 remain around Hanoi, some 6-missile layouts being Vietnam war whereas some are more recent 4-missile sites. The move to 4-round sites is surprising given that in Soviet doctrine the SA-2 was supposed to be fired 3-per-target. Maybe Vietnam rations 2 missiles per target, certainly during the Vietnam War few engagements involved 3 missiles per target.

SA-2D “Guideline” SAM


Example SA-2 sites around Hanoi

The above site has been converted from 6-missile to 4-missile configuration


This site was built as a 4-missile site, and is presumably more recent than the Vietnam War


SA-3 “Goa”
The USSR was reluctant to supply the more advanced SA-3 missile to Vietnam because they were concerned that some may fall into Chinese hands (USSR and China had just fallen out).Whilst reports vary it’s likely that the SA-3s were supplied after the end of the War.

SA-3 coverage


The SA-3 is undoubtedly more potent though shorter ranged than the SA-2, but is increasingly obsolete. Vietnamese SA-3s are not reported to have been upgraded.


Vietnamese SA-3 sites generally follow the standard pattern. Although the SA-3 is more mobile than the SA-2, the sites around Hanoi are static installations.

Note that the radar and control vehicles are protected by something approximating a concrete drive-through garage, with the antenna on the roof.

Anti-aircraft Artillery (AAA)
This is my favorite bit because they are often overlookedor miss-identified on Google Earth as SAM sites. As you can see the above SA-3 site is co-located with an AAA site. The one in the above image looks like a light AAA site (heavy machine guns) and without a radar – the revetement in the centre is much too small to drive in a trailer mounted radar like “Fire Can”. This is probably because the AAA gets general target data from the SA-3 site’s sensors. The control location at the centre probably has a guy with a hand help optical sight somewhat like a widely spaced pair of binoculars.

A typical AAA site has 6 gun positions arranged in a circle around a control position:


Exact layouts vary in almost every respect, but static sites are relatively easy to identify in Vietnam because they require barracks and quickly have well worn (or paved) paths between the guns. Although similar in layout to the classic SA-2 pattern, AAA sites are usually much smaller with a diameter of about 60-80m as opposed to 1750+for an SA-2 site.

Example AAA sites, Hanoi



The top example has shelters for the guns. This is peculiar to Vietnam and works like this:


The two roof panels come up to meet at an apex over the gun, which has to be lowered. Triangular endplates also fold out to give a garden shed like appearance (as is clearly visible on Google Earth in some sites elsewhere).

These sites employ various AAA guns but most notably the Soviet supplied M1939 37mm gun and the S-60 57mm gun.

M1939 37mm AAA

Note that illustration shows modified Chinese Type-74. Virtually no difference and I already had this illustration..

The 37mm AAA is basically Soviet Russia’s equivalent to the famous Bofor’s 40mm gun. Vietnamese 37mm guns tend to be twin barrel but single barrel versions may also be in service.


S-60 57mm AAA:

Location of site unknown


Light AAA Site
There is also at least one light AAA site in Hanoi. Light AAA, as in heavy machine guns, which are only effective to a range of about 1.5km so although there is an airport close by, and a radar station, it’s odd that the site is located where it is.






S-300 PMU-1 (SA-20)
By far the most sophisticated SAM in Vietnamese service, the S-300 has a reputation as the Russian equivalent to the Patriot. The PMU-1 version has a modest anti-missile capability.

The system is highly mobile but in peace time, it is often deployed from fixed sites to ease maintenance, allow readiness, and reduce operating costs.


Sites: Reports indicated 2 batteries. Logically one is in the north covering Hanoi, and the other in the south covering Ho Chi Minh City. Range: 150km.

Although I do not know the location of the sites, the below illustration gives a feel for the range advantage over the SA-2. The circle is centered on Hanoi:



Off topic curiosity in Hanoi
Whilst on Google Earth I found a Tupolev Tu-134 airliner in a carpark, miles away from any airport.

Turns out it’s a special police counter-terrorism training centre. How they got the aircraft there, we can only speculate.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

Ho Chi Minh City is defended by a layers of SA-2, SA-3 and AAA, with probable S-300 (SA-20) coverage:

What is interesting about Ho Chi Minh City’s air defence sites, indeed all those in the south of the country, is that they are post-Vietnam war era. They thus better reflect current Vietnamese military infrastructure doctrine than some of the legacy sites in the north.

Example SA-2 sites



Example SA-3 site


AAA sites
There are several clusters of fixed AAA sites although they do not provide full coverage of the city. There are no less than four active sites on the main airport:




There are also three AAA sites with multiple AAA batteries co-located.






Elsewhere in Vietnam (static defences)
Vietnam is not jam-packed with air defense sites as you might imagine, but there are several cities with defences and a few here-and-there.
Da’Nang
Cam Ranh
Can Tho

AAA cluster, Nan Tu’o’ng




Mobile Air Defences
Although all air defences have a degree of mobility, the Army and Navy operate the main mobile units. The main air defence weapons remain light AAA guns such as ZPU-1/4 & DShK heavy machine guns. These are pretty harmless to modern combat aircraft except unarmored helicopters and transports. SA-7 MANPAD missiles are also prevalent and sometimes even deployed in revetted positions similar to AAA (why???).

More formidable are the SA-6 and SA-13 tactical SAM systems:
SA-6 “Gainful” (Kub)


SA-13 “Gopher”



Other mobile units include the ZSU-23-4 ‘Shilka’ AAA tank. I haven’t been able to confirm the use of ny more advanced MANPADs than the largely obsolete SA-7 “Grail”.



Air Force
The air force operates a modest number of combat aircraft including several types of air defence fighter. The primary type, by quantity, is the MiG-21 “Fishbed” which was famously deployed during the Vietnam War. Current operational models are more modern but the design itself is undoubtedly reaching the end of its military relevance.
MiG-21

Vietnam has about 100 MiG-21s in service (some estimates 150), and they are primarily armed with obsolete AA-8 “Aphid” and AA-2-2 “Advanced Atoll” short range missiles. Some reports suggest that some Vietnamese MiG-21s have been upgraded, probably to MiG-21-93 standard, and possibly by HAL in India. However, although the Vietnam openly considered this in the early 2000s there is no evidence to support that it actually occurred. Such an upgraded MiG-21 would have better radar, avionics and weapons, possibly including the R-77 (AA-12 “Adder”) missile loosely equivalent of the AMRAAM. Deployment of the R-77 by Vietnam is unlikely as it would trigger Singapore to deploy their AMRAAMs in the region (currently they are stored in US on the pretext that no equivalent missiles are in the region and that deploying them would create an arms race).

With the MiG-21 becoming generally obsolete the Vietnamese have started deploying the much more potent Su-27 Flanker series of heavy fighter. These are generally equivalent to the F-15 Eagle series. The first Flankers in Vietnamese service were Su-27 models (6 x Su-27SK single seaters and 5 x Su-27UBK twin seaters).
Su-27SK Flanker

These Flankers were later joined by 4 more advanced Su-30MK2V twin seat multi-role fighters with enhanced strike capability.
Su-30MK2V Flanker

Vietnamese Flankers carry AA-12 Archer short range missiles and probably various versions of the AA-10 Alamo medium/long range missile. It’s unconfirmed whether they carry the AA-12 Adder but I think this is unlikely for the previously mentioned reasons.

This means that only 15 Flankers are in service (was 16), but reports suggest 24 may still be on order. Reports also suggest Vietnam intends to deploy the R-77 missile at some point.

There is conflicting evidence surrounding the basing of the Flankers with Phang Rang as the reported base, but all photos I could find, and Google Earth suggests that the Flankers are at Bien Hoa AB.



Flankers at Bien Hoa



The 1,500km operation radius of the Flanker is 10 times further than the most potent SAM systems in Vietnam (S-300). This allows the Flankers to cover much of the region: