The "former CIA building", Saigon. A 1975 photo of evacuees boarding a helo on its roof came to symbolize US failure in Vietnam.

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Often referred to as 'the former CIA building', the Pittman Apartments at 22 Gia Long Street in Saigon were for the employees of the United States Agency for International Development during the Vietnam War. The building's top floor was reserved for the CIA's deputy chief of station. A 1975 photo by Dutch photojournalist Hubert Van Es of evacuees climbing a ladder to board an Air America Huey helicopter on its roof (sometimes incorrectly described as the roof of the US Embassy) came to symbolize the fall of Saigon and US failure in Vietnam. The building is now dwarfed by the modern skyscraper in the background.

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Size: 4800px × 3600px
Location: 22 Gia Long Street, Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City), Vietnam. SE Asia
Photo credit: © John Cairns / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: 22, agency, american, apartment, apartments, asia, block, central, chi, city, defeat, evacuation, failure, gia, ho, iconic, intelligence, long, minh, pittman, saigon, se, st, street, symbolic, withdrawal