Tonkin Gulf Yacht Club - Navy

Tonkin Gulf Yacht Club - Navy

A half-century ago, the United States Navy valiantly entered the struggle to prevent communist aggression and liberate the people of South Vietnam. Stationed at Yankee Station in the Gulf of Tonkin, the United States Seventh Fleet earned the nickname Tonkin Gulf Yacht Club. The qualifications for membership into the ‘Club’ broadly construed to any service-member assigned to 7th Fleet, from the ships on the gun line, to aircraft sorties from the carriers, to riverine units, and Marines on the shore.

Despite the tongue-in-cheek nickname, the Seventh Fleet was constantly engaged in combat operations against enemy forces through attack carrier air strikes, naval gunfire support, amphibious operations, patrol and reconnaissance operations, and mine warfare. Through their grit and determination, many lives were saved that would have otherwise fallen to the VC advance.

This coin is dedicated to the tough fighting spirit and steadfast resiliency of the Navy’s Seventh Fleet. The obverse features the Tonkin Gulf Yacht Club logo, complete with Vietnamese boat over the flag of the Republic of Vietnam. The reverse displays the Logo of the United States Navy.