Photos: A look back at the fall of Saigon and the final days of the Vietnam War

NPR Staff | April 30, 2025

The Fall of Saigon was the capture of Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, by the People's Army of Vietnam and the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam (also known as the Viet Cong) on April 30, 1975. The event marked the end of the Vietnam War and the start of a transition period leading to the formal reunification of Vietnam into a Socialist Republic governed by the Communist Party. North Vietnamese forces under the command of the General Van Tien Dung began their final attack on Saigon, with South Vietnamese forces commanded by General Nguyen Van Toan, on April 29, suffering heavy artillery bombardment. By the afternoon of the next day, North Vietnamese troops had occupied the important points of the city and raised their flag over the South Vietnamese presidential palace. The South Vietnamese government capitulated shortly afterward. The city was renamed Ho Chi Minh City, after the Democratic Republic's President Ho Chi Minh. The fall of the city was preceded by the evacuation of almost all the American civilian and military personnel in Saigon, along with tens of thousands of South Vietnamese civilians associated with the southern regime. The evacuation culminated in Operation Frequent Wind, the largest helicopter evacuation in history. (Photo by: Pictures From History/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

The Vietnam War came to an end on April 30, 1975, when North Vietnamese forces captured Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam. The fall of the city marked the end of the South Vietnamese government and decades of conflict.

In the days leading up to the city’s fall, tens of thousands of South Vietnamese civilians desperately tried to flee, including government officials, soldiers and their families, who feared persecution under the incoming communist regime. Almost all American civilian and military personnel were evacuated from Saigon after nearly two decades of war.

Thousands of people hoped to secure a spot on one of the last helicopters out, in what became the largest helicopter evacuation in history. Some of the most unforgettable images from those final days include South Vietnamese soldiers stripping off their uniforms to blend in with civilians, panicked crowds scaling the walls of the U.S. Embassy, and Navy crews pushing helicopters off aircraft carriers into the sea to make room for incoming flights carrying evacuees.

See these powerful scenes and others below:

Victorious North Vietnamese troops on tanks take up positions outside Independence Palace in Saigon on April 30, 1975, the day the South Vietnamese government surrendered, ending the Vietnam War. Communist flags fly from the palace and the tank.
Victorious North Vietnamese troops on tanks take up positions outside Independence Palace in Saigon on April 30, 1975, the day the South Vietnamese government surrendered, ending the Vietnam War. Communist flags fly from the palace and the tank. (Yves Billy | AP)
Defeated South Vietnam President Duong Van Minh (middle) walks out of Independence Palace after surrendering to PRG forces in Saigon on May 1, 1975.
Defeated South Vietnam President Duong Van Minh (middle) walks out of Independence Palace after surrendering to PRG forces in Saigon on May 1, 1975. (Yves Billy | AP)
As victorious North Vietnamese troops ride past on a tank, defeated South Vietnamese troops discard their uniforms in Saigon on April 30, 1975, the day the South Vietnamese capital fell to communist forces, ending the Vietnam War.
As victorious North Vietnamese troops ride past on a tank, defeated South Vietnamese troops discard their uniforms in Saigon on April 30, 1975, the day the South Vietnamese capital fell to communist forces, ending the Vietnam War. (Yves Billy | AP)
A South Vietnamese medic comforts a trooper wounded in the leg during a battle in Long An province, southwest of Saigon, on April 18, 1975.
A South Vietnamese medic comforts a trooper wounded in the leg during a battle in Long An province, southwest of Saigon, on April 18, 1975. (Rocco | AP)
The first rocket attack hitting Saigon struck the town center and set fire to 150 wooden houses. Fourteen died and over 40 people were injured in the attacks. Inhabitants of Saigon woke up to the devastation of war on April 21, 1975.
The first rocket attack hitting Saigon struck the town center and set fire to 150 wooden houses. Fourteen died and over 40 people were injured in the attacks. Inhabitants of Saigon woke up to the devastation of war on April 21, 1975. (Jacques Pavlovsky | CORBIS/Sygma via Getty Images)
Desperate South Vietnamese refugees cling to vehicles along Highway 1 as they flee North Vietnamese troops advancing to capture Saigon a few days before the fall of Saigon that signaled the end of the Vietnam War.
Desperate South Vietnamese refugees cling to vehicles along Highway 1 as they flee North Vietnamese troops advancing to capture Saigon a few days before the fall of Saigon that signaled the end of the Vietnam War. (Nik Wheeler | Corbis via Getty Images)
Orphans aboard the first 'Operation Babylift' flight at the end of the Vietnam War look through the windows of a World Airways DC-8 jet as it flies them to the United States in April 1975.
Orphans aboard the first “Operation Babylift” flight at the end of the Vietnam War look through the windows of a World Airways DC-8 jet as it flies them to the United States in April 1975. (AP | AP)
A South Vietnamese mother and her three children on the deck of an amphibious command ship being plucked out of Saigon by U.S. Marine helicopters on April 29, 1975.
A South Vietnamese mother and her three children on the deck of an amphibious command ship being plucked out of Saigon by U.S. Marine helicopters on April 29, 1975. (J.T. Walkerstorfer | AP)
Evacuees inside the U.S. Embassy surround the embassy's swimming pool as a helicopter rescues stranded civilians trying to escape North Vietnamese troops about to capture Saigon in April 1975.
Evacuees inside the U.S. Embassy surround the embassy’s swimming pool as a helicopter rescues stranded civilians trying to escape North Vietnamese troops about to capture Saigon in April 1975. (Nik Wheeler | Corbis via Getty Images)
Mobs of South Vietnamese civilians scale the 14-foot wall around the U.S. Embassy in Saigon on April 29, 1975, trying to reach evacuation helicopters as the last Americans departed from Vietnam.
Mobs of South Vietnamese civilians scale the 14-foot wall around the U.S. Embassy in Saigon on April 29, 1975, trying to reach evacuation helicopters as the last Americans departed from Vietnam. (AP | AP)
South Vietnamese civilians try to scale the walls of the U.S. Embassy in Saigon in an attempt to get aboard evacuation flights on April 30, 1975.
South Vietnamese civilians try to scale the walls of the U.S. Embassy in Saigon in an attempt to get aboard evacuation flights on April 30, 1975. (Neal Ulevich | AP)
A CIA employee helps Vietnamese evacuees onto an Air America helicopter from the top of 22 Gia Long St., a half mile from the U.S. Embassy.
A CIA employee helps Vietnamese evacuees onto an Air America helicopter from the top of 22 Gia Long St., a half mile from the U.S. Embassy. (Bettmann | Getty Images)
The U.S. Navy carrier USS Enterprise loaded to the gunnels with helicopters and planes evacuated from Saigon as a part of Operation Frequent Wind in April 1975.
The U.S. Navy carrier USS Enterprise loaded to the gunnels with helicopters and planes evacuated from Saigon as a part of Operation Frequent Wind in April 1975. (IMAGO | CPA Media via Reuters)
U.S. Navy personnel struggle to push an army Huey helicopter off the deck of a U.S. Navy carrier to make room for more refugee flights on April 29, 1975.
U.S. Navy personnel struggle to push an army Huey helicopter off the deck of a U.S. Navy carrier to make room for more refugee flights on April 29, 1975. (Pictures from History | Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

 

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