Operation Castor | |||||||
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Part of First Indochina War | |||||||
![]() French Union paratroops dropping from a C-119 over Battle of Dien Bien Phu | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
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Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Jean Gilles Jean Dechaux Henri Navarre | Võ Nguyên Giáp | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
4,195 (as of 22 November)[1] | One infantry battalion and one artillery battery | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
By 20 November: 11 killed,[2] 52 wounded | unknown |
Operation Castor[a] was a French airborne operation in the First Indochina War. The operation established a fortified airhead in Điện Biên Province, in the north-west corner of Vietnam and was commanded by Brigadier General Jean Gilles. The Operation began at 10:35 on 20 November 1953, with reinforcements dropped over the following two days. With all its objectives achieved, the operation ended on 22 November. Castor was the largest airborne operation since World War II.
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