The great majority of Vietnam Navy ship
Zippos were factory engraved. To be
considered a "Vietnam Zippo" the engraving
should include specific reference to Vietnam
as shown on the lighters below. Military
Zippos made during the Vietnam War years
that do not refer to Vietnam are often
referred to as "Vietnam Era Zippos".
This is a 1953 hand-painted
Town &
Country Trout Zippo which
was many
years later engraved with "USN
Saigon
1967" and with a map of
Vietnam on the
back. It was not unusual
for the the servicemen to
bring their own Zippos to
Vietnam and have them
engraved "in-field". This
is one of the oldest Vietnam
War Zippos.
1966 slim Zippo for USS
Dahlgren DLG-
12, a guided missile
destroyer.
USS Richard S. Edwards DD
950 destroyer on a 1967
Zippo.
1968 USS Du Pont DD
941 (Destroyer),
"South Vietnam
Cruise 1968-69".
The
reverse has the
emblem of the
"Tonkin
Gulf Yacht Club",
the name given to
the
7th Fleet ships
participating in the
carrier operations
off the coast of
Vietnam.
1968 Zippo for the
USS Corry DD 817
destroyer's 1968-69
Vietnam Cruise with
the Tonkin Gulf
Yacht Club emblem on
the back.
1968 slim Zippo for
USS New Jersey
BB 62 (battleship)
with initials
"LAY".
1968 Zippo for USS Benewah, APB-35,
a Brigade Command Ship which served
as the Flagship for River Assault
Flotilla One in the Mekong Delta.
1968 slim Zippo for USS Forrestal
CVA 59, an aircraft carrier. While
on tour in 1967, a missile was fired accidentally, causing a tragic fire
which killed 134 service men and
destroying numerous aircraft. An
earlier Town & Country Zippo for the
Forrestal can be found
HERE.
1968 Zippo with the name Gusti F.
Saxberg on the lid and the and the
Vietnam emblem for the battleship
USS New Jersey BB 62 on the case.
Here is a 1969 high-polish
Zippo with the engraving
of USS Repose on the
outline of Vietnam. The
hospital ship, known as "The
Angel of the Orient" served
in Vietnam from 1966-70
1969 slim Zippo that reads
"Navy 1969 Vietnam" with the
emblem of USS Franklin D.
Roosevelt. The reverse reads
"TF 115" or Task Force 115
or Operation Market Time,
the effort
to block the flow of
arms and supplies
into South Vietnam.
1969 Zippo for the Naval
Support Activity Detachment
in
Binh Thuy.
1970 Zippo for the Naval
Support Activity Detachment
in
Dong Tam.
1970 Zippo with the logo for
CBMU 302
(Naval Construction
Battalion Maintenance
Unit) Vietnam with 70-71-72
engraved on the
lid. They were known as
"Seabees". The
reverse is engraved with the
name
David R. Symons.
1972 Zippo engraved with
"CWO-3
Brown to Ha-Si Co Tet 73".
This may signify "From Chief
Warrant Officer 3 Brown to
Corporal Co, Christmas
1973".
