The Houston Chronicle recently reported the U.S. Army’s precedent-setting promotion of a Vietnamese-American officer to the rank of brigadier general. Col. Viet Luong was promoted in a ceremony officiated by Lt. Col. Mark Milley at the Central Texas Army post.
The ceremony was attended by members of Luong’s family, and his wife pinned the new stars on his uniform. He is the 1st Cavalry Division’s deputy commanding general for maneuver.
Luong’s journey from his homeland to the U.S. military was a long and challenging one. Shortly before the U.S. military left Vietnam in 1975, Luong and nine other members of his family escaped during Operation Frequent Wind to America. They stayed briefly in Fort Chaffee, Arkansas, before settling in Los Angeles.
Luong commanded troops in Iraq from 2006 – 2008 and in Afghanistan from 2009 – 2010. Lt. Col. Milley said at the ceremony, “There’s no one in uniform today that epitomizes what it takes to be an American soldier more than Viet Luong.”
Veteran Energy employee Luumach Vo served in Operation Iraqi Freedom and said of Luong’s promotion, “First of all, this is a massive career milestone for General Luong and a historic moment for all Vietnamese-Americans. That being said, we are all green. Our Army is a modern and diverse fighting force that draws from all American communities in order to accomplish our mission of protecting the United States; when we swear our oaths, we are one and the same, and I’m sure General Luong would agree. As an OIF veteran who also served at Fort Hood, I am proud to honor General Luong’s promotion and look forward to celebrating more milestones like this in the future.”
