 This is Cameron Bay, South Vietnam, in early 1965. Ships were anchored in the harbor many for weeks, waiting to unload their precious cargo of rations, rifles and ammunitions, trucks and tires, plasma, and a million other items so vital to our forces in Vietnam. The reason for this great ship backlog was a scarcity of unloading facilities. There was only one stone pier, which had been extended by Army engineers to accommodate two ships. In addition, there was the Transportation Corps' Lieutenant Colonel John U.D. Page, the only beach discharge vessel of its kind in the United States Army inventory, and other amphibious means for the unloading of cargo. Existing dock facilities were scarcely sufficient to support the tremendous logistical requirements of our rapidly expanding forces. Measures had to be quickly taken to increase the volume of cargo discharge and reduce the shipping backlog at the anchorages. Additional piers would solve the problem, but it would take anywhere from 18 to 36 months plus the services of approximately 400 workers to build one permanent pier. It was out of the question. It was too long to wait. There was, however, a temporary solution. A de-long prefabricated pier was in mothballs in Charleston, South Carolina. This particular pier, built in 1952 for the Transportation Corps, is 300 feet long, 90 feet wide, and 13 feet deep. It is equipped with 22 caissons and air jacks to elevate and hold it above water. By June 1965, this completely overhauled pier was ready for service. It left Charleston Harbor for Vietnam on 11 August. The de-long pier was designed after World War II by Colonel L. B. DeLong, a former Army engineer. During his service in the Army, Colonel DeLong saw the need for piers which could be both mobile and stable, the ability to permit worldwide range and flexibility and stability to make them invulnerable to wind, wave, and weather. 12,000 miles and 81 days later, on 30 October 1965, the first de-long pier arrived in Cameron Bay. Installation began as soon as the pier was positioned at the causeway provided for it. The work of construction was conducted by members of the 497th Engineer Company, as well as five civilian employees of the DeLong Corporation. The men worked against time in spite of long hours and bad weather. They had but one concern to get the pier finished as quickly as possible. By mid-December 1965, the pier was operational. Ships now had the capability to discharge cargo at the rate of 800 tons each per day, all vital to our forces in Vietnam. There were now two piers at Cameron Bay, the old Stone Pier and the first DeLong Pier, which were capable of unloading four ships simultaneously. It was an improvement, yet not enough to completely break the ship backlog at Anchorage, not only in Cameron, but in other waterways of South Vietnam as well. As a result, on a priority basis, the Army contracted with the DeLong Corporation for additional piers. To expedite delivery, the DeLong Corporation subcontracted the work of construction to the Japanese shipbuilding industry. Here, the piers were prefabricated within a period of 90 days. They are constructed to be towed into position wherever and whenever they are needed for dock facilities, either permanent or temporary. At the time these scenes were photographed, two sizes of piers were being built. The large or eight type barge is 300 feet long, 80 feet wide, and 13 feet deep. The smaller B type barge is 150 feet long, 60 feet wide, and 10 feet deep. The caissons upon which the barges rest are 140 feet long, 6 feet in diameter, and are made of one and one half inch steel. Each caisson weighs 79 short tons. It takes 10 caissons to support an A barge, and from 4 to 6 to support a B barge. The old type air jack, as seen here, weighs 13 short tons and can lift 160 short tons. DeLong's new improved air jack, also being used in Vietnam, weighs 20 short tons and has a lifting capacity of 500 short tons. Immediately upon completion, the barges are towed to South Vietnam. The trip takes from two to three weeks depending on the weather. This is Cam Ron 2, the first newly constructed DeLong pier in Vietnam. Twelve men can install a permanent pier in about four weeks. A temporary pier with jacks left on and caissons not capped can be installed in about two weeks. Alongside the pier, to facilitate the handling of the heavy caissons and jacks, is a work barge with a 150 ton crane. When the barge is in place, the caissons are laced into the well of the barge and lowered until they rest on the bottom of the bay. Next, the air jacks are lowered over the caissons and secured to the deck with connecting tie bars. When all the caissons and air jacks have been installed, the barge is jacked up above the water. The action of the air jack can be compared to a boy shinning up a pole. Assume the pole to be a caisson of uniform diameter and the jack, the hands and feet of the boy. The jack has the lower and upper sections connected by air operated cylinders. The positive lifting connection is provided by the tie rods secured between the upper section and the load. The two sections ringing the caisson carry grippers which when inflated, grip the caisson and when deflated, permit vertical movement. The lifting cycle is as follows. Grip for load bearing with the lower section. With upper section grippers released, the cylinders transfer their energy through the tie rod to lift the load. The upper section grippers expand and secure the load. The lower section grippers release while the retractor jack raises the lower section to its new position. This cycle has raised the load 12 inches. The caissons are then driven into the ocean bottom by a crane operated pile hammer adapted to fit these large caissons. The barge can then be lifted by the air operated jacks to the desired height. Fenders to absorb the impact of docking vessels are then bolted to each caisson and to the barge. When all fenders have been installed, the pier is ready for cargo operations. As of January 1967, four DeLong Piers are operational in Camron Bay. Two in Quinyong and one each in Da Nang, Vung Ro, Vung Tau and Sada Hip, Thailand. The total United States discharge capacity for Southeast Asia is 6,000 short tons of cargo per day.