Nguyễn Văn Cốc is a former North Vietnamese MiG-21fighter ace of the Vietnamese People's Air Force's 921st Fighter Regiment.
Early Life
Nguyễn Văn Cốc was born in the Việt Yên District of the province of Bắc Giang in French Indochina, north of Hanoi. When he was 5 years old, his father, Nguyen Van Bay and his uncle, were killed by the French. Fearing further trouble with the French, his mother moved the family. Nguyễn spent the rest of his childhood near Chu air base, which kindled an interest in aircraft. Nguyễn Văn Cốc attended Ngô Sĩ Liên school in Bắc Giang and upon completion of his schooling, enlisted in the Quan Chung Khong Quan in 1961 and underwent his initial training at Cat Bi Airbase in Haiphong. Nguyễn subsequently spent four years undergoing pilot training in the Soviet Union at the Bataysk and KrasnodarSoviet Air Force bases. Of the 120 trainees dispatched in Nguyễn's draft to the Soviet Union, he was one of seven who graduated as a MiG-17 pilot. After a brief spell back in North Vietnam serving with the 921st Sao Do Fighter Regiment, he returned to the Soviet Union and underwent conversion training to the MiG-21 in a two-seat Mig-21U, before returning to the 921st Fighter Regiment in June 1965. He began operational flying in December 1965. On 2 January 1967, he was among a group of pilots who fell into a trap set by the United States Air Forces8th Tactical Fighter Wing. Nguyễn Văn Cốc and four other Vietnamese pilots were shot down. All ejected safely. Flying a MIG-21PF, Nguyễn Văn Cốc normally served as a wingman. He scored all his victories using the heat-seeking R-3S Atoll missile. In 1969, Nguyễn Văn Cốc was awarded a Huy Hiệu medal for each of his nine claimed kills. The end of Operation Rolling Thunder on 31 October 1968 removed him from the opportunity for further air combat. In that year, Nguyễn Văn Cốc was transferred from operational duties so that his valuable combat experience could be put to use in training new pilots. Among the pilots he trained was Nguyen Duc Soat. After the war, Nguyễn Văn Cốc remained with the Vietnamese People's Air Force, retiring with the rank of Chief Inspector in 2002 after declining health.
Nine air-to-air combat kills of United States aircraft and two AQM-34 Firebee UAV kills were credited to him during the Vietnam War. Of these, seven have currently been acknowledged by the United States Air Force. While sometimes U.S. forces may have attributed aircraft losses to surface-to-air missiles, since it was considered "less embarrassing", there was often doubt about cause of the loss. Coc also claimed an F-4 Phantom and F-105 Thunderchief in November and 17 December 1967 but there are no corresponding American losses. The following kills, while flying the MiG-21, have been credited to Van Coc by the VPAF :
30 April 1967: USAFF-105D piloted by Robert A. Abbott of the USAF 355th TFW. This was his first air victory and occurred while he was acting as a wingman to Nguyen Ngoc Do, who also downed an aircraft.
23 August 1967: USAF F-4D of Major Charles R. Tyler and Captain R. N. Sittner of the 555th Tactical Fighter Squadron. Tyler was captured and Sittner was killed.
9 October 1967: USAF F-105D piloted by Clements.
18 November 1967: USAF F-105F of Oscar Dardeau and Edward Leinhoff.
20 November 1967: USAF F-105D piloted by Butler.
3 February 1968: USAF F-102A piloted by 1st Lt. Wallace L. Wiggins of the 509th FIS/405th FIW.
23 February 1968: F-4D of Guttersen and Donald.
7 May 1968: On the afternoon of 7 May 1968, three flights of MiG-21 fighters from the VPAF 921st Regiment were flying towards Tho Xuan Air Base, as part of redeployment in response to the U.S. bombing halt above the 19th Parallel. The flights were led by Dang Ngoc Ngu, Nguyen Van Minh and Nguyen Van Coc. Due to the lack of coordination between the different sections of the VPAF 921st Fighter Regiment and the ground-based air-defense forces, the MiG-21 flights were mistakenly identified as U.S. fighter-bombers and were fired upon by North Vietnamese anti-aircraft artillery. Moments later, Ngu also mistook an escorting flight of MiG-21 fighters flown by Nguyen Dang Kinh and Nguyen Van Lung for U.S. fighters. He dropped his fuel tanks to prepare for an attack which was promptly aborted when he realized they were North Vietnamese.
