On March 26, Mr. Ngo Vu Thang - Vice Chairman of Ca Mau Provincial People's Committee - said that functional agencies are currently clearing and cleaning to relocate the plane by Nguyen Trai street (behind the staff housing area) to the Provincial Military Command to better preserve it.
The relocation is expected to be completed this Sunday. After relocating to a new location, Ca Mau province will coordinate with specialized units to determine the origin of the MiG-21 aircraft. In the long term, the province wants to restore it for display to people and tourists to visit.
From the reflection of Lao Dong Newspaper, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Ca Mau province inspected the MiG-21 aircraft and determined that some positions on the wings, the front and tail parts were corroded and deformed; the aircraft body paint peeled off, many parts were degraded, damaged and lost.
This agency also said that the MiG-21 aircraft mentioned above was among the 3 aircraft that Minh Hai province (now Ca Mau) coordinated with Military Region 9 to bring to display in front of the Provincial Post Office, now Hung Vuong Park in 1985 - on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of national reunification (April 30, 1975).
After the exhibition, Military Region 9 transferred 2 aircraft, and the remaining MiG-21 was handed over to local management. The managing agency has not yet been identified due to lack of records through stages.
To clarify the origin, the Political Department of Military Region 9 directed units to contact and collect information from officers who used to work in the Air Defense - Air Force Service.
Colonel Kieu Van Dung - former Deputy Chief of Staff of Air Division 370 - said that he had a confirmation sent to the Military Region 9 Museum. The content clearly states: In the 1980s, during the time of performing international duties in Cambodia, the Air Defense - Air Force Service established a representative agency in the South to serve combat command.
At that time, Hero of the People's Armed Forces Nguyen Van Bay - Deputy Chief of Staff of the Air Defense - Air Force Service - was assigned to represent the Air Force Command in this area. According to instructions, he donated a number of decommissioned aircraft (out of service) to the southern provinces for display, including Minh Hai province.
After receiving, the aircraft are managed by the locality, serving the purpose of the exhibition. The representative agency of the Navy was later dissolved, while Minh Hai province was divided many times. Currently, the MiG-21 in Ca Mau is not under the management of the agencies of Military Region 9 but under the local authority.
Colonel Dung said that the Military Command of Ca Mau province needs to coordinate with departments to advise the Provincial People's Committee on handling plans, or request the Air Defense - Air Force Service to consider.
Previously, as Lao Dong newspaper reported, a MiG-21 aircraft was forgotten in Ca Mau. After the information in Lao Dong Newspaper, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Ca Mau province intervened to verify and discovered that no agency managed it, and it is not known who the real owner of the aircraft is.
