page_title: Phu Cat Air Base Security Forces
section_title: Operation Safe Side
hierarchical_section_title: Phu Cat Air Base Security Forces / History / Operation Safe Side
caption_attribution_description: Screen capture from historical film on the U.S. Air Force's SafeSide program showing a Security Policeman from the 1041st Security Police Squadron wearing his unit's distinctive beret and flash
context_page_description: Phu Cat Air Base Security Forces of the United States Air Force were Air Police and Security Police squadrons responsible for the air base ground defense of Phù Cát Air Base in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War.
  Phu Cat AB was the field test site for the six-month combat evaluation of the 1041st USAF Security Police Squadron from 16 January to 4 July 1967. The 1041st patrolled 26 miles of outer perimeter under Project Safe Side to evaluate the feasibility of developing a USAF Air Base Ground Defense force. Its experiences were a direct precursor to the development of the Security Force-concept in use today by the USAF.
  Units primarily responsible for base security were the 37th Security Police Squadron between 1 August 1966 and 31 March 1970, and the 12th Security Police Squadron from 1 April 1970 to 17 November 1971, when its parent 12th Tactical Fighter Wing was inactivated. These squadrons were periodically augmented by sections of "combat security police" on temporary duty in SVN under the designation 821st Combat Security Police Squadron. After the drawdown of U.S. forces at Phù Cát AB in 1971, the base and its security were turned over to the Republic of Vietnam Air Force.
context_section_description: 250 men assigned to the 1041st SPS (Test) trained in patrolling and intelligence-gathering for 15 weeks (5 September to 16 December 1966) at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, under a 35-man cadre, 23 of whom trained at the US Army Ranger School but only four of whom were fully qualified as instructors. This necessitated on-the-job training at Phu Cat AB for the 226 who completed the initial course.  At Schofield Barracks the organizational structure of the 1041st was finalized, consisting of a squadron headquarters (an officer and 38 enlisted men) for administration and evaluation; and an observation and surveillance flight (an officer and 37 EM), a close combat flight (two officers and 78 EM), a weapons support flight (one officer and 31 EM), an operations section (one officer and 21 EM), and a scout dog section (15 enlisted men and nine dogs) as combat elements. Vehicles assigned the unit were 28 M151A1 Jeeps, seven M37 ¾ ton trucks, two M35 2½ ton cargo trucks, and three armored personnel carriers.
  Its basic tactical units were 16 six-man fire teams, each equipped with an M60 machine gun and a grenade launcher. The squadron was proficient in all infantry weapons including mortars. It was equipped with three own weapons-mounted M113 armored personnel carriers (APC) for off-road mobility, supplemented by helicopters. A Tactical Security Support Equipment (TSSE) system consisting of buried seismic detectors and sensors called Multiple Conductor Intrusion Devices enhanced its capability of monitoring intrusions. Armory and headquarters personnel were trained in demolition.
  During its 179-day tour at Phù Cát, the 1041st conducted 651 patrols, 155 ambushes, and destroyed more than 350 tunnels and fortifications without suffering any fatalities. The Safe Side evaluation and findings report, along with a functional study conducted concurrently by the Chief of Staff of the Air Force, recommended that the Air Force create ten combat security police squadrons, each with 21 officers and 538 enlisted men, organized into three security flights of 167 men per flight, and detailed a TO&E. USAF accepted the organizational model but created only three squadrons.
caption: A Security Policeman with the 1041st SPS (Test) conducting pistol training, wearing the unit's unique beret and flash
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