Welcoming Spring in the middle of the Fatherland

"God's eye" at the outpost

The sun had just set behind Son Tra Mountain when the ship 390 carrying the members of the Working Group of the Naval Region 3 Command blew its whistle to say goodbye to the mainland before leaving Da Nang military port and heading towards Con Co Island (Quang Tri). The official voyage began, the excitement seemed to increase many times, because this was the first time the writer had been to the open sea on a modern ship with a displacement of up to 2,400 tons.

The shimmering lights of Da Thanh gradually faded away, at this time I began to feel the power of the waves on a stormy day, the ship rocked and swayed... Through the crack in the door, I could only see a mysterious black color.

Con Co Island (Quang Tri) looks like a warship in the middle of the ocean from afar.

At dawn, the command post announced that the ship had approached Con Co. The crew members were ready to go to the island to wish the officers, soldiers and people here a Happy New Year. We immediately went up to the deck of the ship to observe. In front of us was Con Co Island, shaped like a proud warship in the middle of the ocean.

On the island, the national flag flies on a towering flagpole, then the lighthouse, radar station, broadcasting tower system and houses are nestled among the wild hills. The scenery evokes a vibrant vitality, everything seems to be joyful and inviting.

National flagpole on Con Co island.

Setting foot on Con Co, it is easy to feel the peaceful feeling, like stepping into a midland village with lush green gardens, houses hidden under trees and many people with gentle smiles. The main roads on the island have been paved, the road around the island has also been upgraded to develop tourism, so traveling is quite convenient and easy.

After a firm handshake, Mr. Truong Khac Truong - Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Con Co island district said: "In 2019, the total budget revenue of the district reached more than 29 billion VND, of which revenue from tourism was nearly 7.5 billion VND, Con Co has become an ideal discovery destination for tourists.

To welcome the Lunar New Year of the Rat, the army and people here have prepared everything from food and supplies to organizing cultural and sports exchange activities. The forces on duty have also developed a combat plan to ensure that no unexpected situations occur.

Ships carrying goods and food to Con Co island district for soldiers and people here to celebrate Tet.

We took the opportunity to visit Radar Station 540 (Regiment 351, Naval Region 3) located on the highest hilltop of Con Co Island. In this seemingly arid and scorching place, the trees are very green, banana trees, lemon trees with heavy fruit branches add to the spring atmosphere in the middle of the ocean. All of this speaks to the diligence, hard work and meticulous care of the soldiers on this remote island.

Radar Station 540 is responsible for controlling the airspace and sea of ​​the Fatherland, and is considered the "divine eye" guarding the sea and islands of the homeland. Soldier Le Xuan Hung said: "This year I am staying at the unit on duty for Tet, this is the first time I celebrate Tet on the island, so I am really excited and looking forward to it, it will definitely be an interesting experience. My parents and siblings just called to encourage me, telling me to rest assured to do my duty, everyone at home is healthy and safe."

We also wanted to go around the island to enjoy the pristine beauty, to visit each agency, unit and nearly 10 families of youth volunteers on Con Co island to share our feelings. But time was too short, because the journey ahead was long.

Officers and soldiers of Radar Station 540 (Regiment 351, Naval Region 3) are on combat readiness duty.

At this time, Captain Le Xuan Huong - Political Commissar of the Radar Station immediately said: "Through the newspaper, you guys tell the people of the whole country that Con Co island district is ready to celebrate Tet, ready to guard the mainland for a happy Spring. Because each officer, soldier of the Radar Station, Border Guard Station, army, police and people on the island are a "divine eye" guarding the front line."

New Year greetings from the sea

Ship 390 weighed anchor, heading to the western waters of the Hoang Sa archipelago to patrol and protect the sea and islands of the Fatherland. The sea was rough, the waves were big, and Tet was approaching, so the waters of the Gulf of Tonkin were quite deserted these days, with only a few boats rushing back to the mainland occasionally. Cargo ships were also operating at full capacity to quickly dock, allowing sailors to reunite with their families.

Reporters take advantage of working in the Gulf of Tonkin.

The sea and sky were vast, in the late afternoon, from the deck, we suddenly saw a white dot shaped like a ship bobbing in the distance. The command post announced that it was the KN-313 ship of the Fisheries Surveillance Force on patrol duty at sea and contacted, requesting to approach ship 390 so that reporters could take pictures.

The two ships approached each other, the distance was only about 200 meters, we could clearly see the fisheries control soldiers on ship 313 standing in a row waving. On this ship, everyone shouted in unison: “Happy New Year!”. Then the distance between the two ships gradually increased, and increased…

Captain Ngo Quoc Tuan of ship 390 is still quietly watching the other ship. He said that ship KN-313 left the port a week ago to carry out patrol duty for more than a month. That means the officers and soldiers will celebrate Tet at the forefront to guard the sacred sea and islands.

Ship KN - 313 is on patrol duty at sea, officers and soldiers of the ship celebrate Lunar New Year at sea.

About 3 hours later, the command post again announced that it was preparing to meet the KN-368 ship on duty, asking reporters to come up to the deck to work. This location was identified as the oil and gas exploitation area of ​​Thang Long field. In the dark night, only seeing a streak of light approaching, the soldiers of ship 390 tried to adjust the headlights towards ship 368 to see the soldiers there lined up neatly and standing in salute.

New Year greetings resounded, followed by heartfelt waves, and after a few minutes the distance gradually grew farther. Like ship KN-313, ship KN-368 was on patrol duty and celebrating Tet at sea, because it would be more than a month before returning to the mainland. At dawn, on the waters of Ly Son (Quang Ngai), we continued to meet ship KN-372 of the Fisheries Surveillance Force and ship 9002 of the Coast Guard, who were on duty to protect sovereignty and territorial waters...

Officers and soldiers of ship 390 called to wish ship KN-313 a happy new year.

Looking at the sea and the sky in Spring, Colonel Vo Van Tuyen - Deputy Commander of Naval Region 3 shared: "Navy soldiers, border guards, coast guards, fisheries inspectors on duty at sea, islands and people of island districts are the ones welcoming Spring at the source of the waves. Far away and somewhat deprived, but every year, everyone overcomes to have a happy, warm Tet while completing the task of guarding and protecting the sacred sovereignty of our beloved Fatherland".

Cong Kien