US Aircraft Carrier Makes Landmark Vietnam Visit

US aircraft carrier Carl Vinson has made a call at Vietnam; the first time a ship of this size has done so since the Vietnam War came to an end.

The carrier made a stop at the port city of Danang; the port at which US troops first landed at the start of the conflict.

The visit is a deliberate attempt to demonstrate the growing military ties between the US and Vietnam.

Danang was a major US military base during the Vietnam War, making the ship’s visit all the more symbolic.

The vast ship is able to support up to 90 aircraft and will represent the largest US military presence in Vietnam since the war ended.

Millions of Vietnamese people, both military and civilian, were killed throughout the course of the Vietnam war.

Just over 58,000 American soldiers were killed or went missing in action.

The announcement of the vessel's visit came in January, during U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis' visit to Hanoi. 

It reportedly followed months of talks between Hanoi and the Pentagon. 

Although this is the largest U.S. carrier to visit Vietnam since the end of the war, other U.S. warships have made visits in recent years, as ties between the two nations have improved. 

In 2016, submarine tender USS Frank Cable and the USS John S. McCain made a visit. 

A Navy band will play a concert in Danang as part of the visit, and sailors are scheduled to spend time meeting people who were exposed to Agent Orange chemicals during the war.