1st Vietnamese Parachute Battalion

The 1st Vietnamese Parachute Battalion (Fr: 1er bataillon de parachutistes vietnamiens) was a French-Vietnamese paratroop battalion formed in Saigon, French Indochina on May 1, 1951.

Operational history
The 1st Vietnamese Parachute Battalion (5 BPVN) was one of five battalions of Vietnamese paratroopers raised by the French Army between 1951 and 1957 as part of General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny's policy to establish a Vietnamese Army. Its cadre was drawn from two existing Vietnamese parachute companies, including 1st Indochina Parachute Company and 1st Company of the South Vietnamese Defense (1st Escadron Parachutiste Garde du Việt Nam Sud under Lieutenant Haynin) and volunteer soldiers from 1st Guards Company and from 1st Colonial Commando Parachute Battalion (1 BCCP).