Chu Lai Chu Lai is a sea port , urban and industrial area in Núi Thành district , Quảng Nam province , Vietnam . The city is served by Chu Lai International Airport . It is also the site of the Chu Lai Open Economic Zone ( Vietnamese : " Với Khu Kinh Tế Mở Chu Lai " ) . History . A settlement did not exist before the construction of the US military base commencing with a landing on May 12 , 1965 . The name " Chu Lai " was not marked on local maps . It is recorded in several sources that General Victor H . Krulak , who had been in China in the 1930s , dubbed it Chu Lai after the Chinese characters for his own name . Vietnam War . Chu Lai was a United States Marine Corps base from 1965 - 1971 during the Vietnam War . Roughly southeast of Đà Nẵng , the base had an air field to supplement the major base at Đà Nẵng . It was not named for any local geographic feature , but rather was the Chinese name of Lieutenant General Victor H . Krulak , commanding general of Fleet Marine Force , Pacific . Đà Nẵng ' s Air Base was the first major airfield used by the United States Marine Corps during the Vietnam War . Shortly after conventional ground forces began arriving in country in 1965 , it became necessary to open a second airfield because of the heavy traffic into and out of Đà Nẵng . Charles R . Gibson was selected to be the head engineer of the base . He and his crew broke ground in December and the base was officially operational as of 1 June 1965 , when three A4 - C Skyhawks from VMA - 225 landed . It was involved in Operation Starlite on 18 August 1965 , when the Marines made a pre - emptive strike on gathering Viet Cong ( VC ) forces who were preparing to attack the base . By mid - October 1965 , the base was home to more than 80 A - 4 Skyhawks from Marine Aircraft Group 12 . Marine Aircraft Group 13 was based at Chu Lai from September 1966 until September 1970 , with three F - 4 Phantom squadrons . In April 1967 , VMA ( AW ) 533 A6 - A Intruder All - Weather Attack aircraft arrived to provide air support for Marines in the I Corps , and to deliver ordinance on targets in North Vietnam under all weather conditions . The Marines departed Chu Lai on 13 October 1970 , turning control over to the United States Army . Chu Lai was also home to the Americal Division from approximately 1967 until 1971 . Aside from the runway and several concrete revetment s for fighter aircraft nothing remains of the U . S . Military presence . The nearby heliport , once home to several U . S . Army aviation units , including F / 8th Cavalry ( BlueGhost ) has been reclaimed by sand dunes . Future Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Roger Staubach spent a year in Chu Lai as a supply officer for the U . S . Navy from 1966 to 1967 . Kia Plant . Since 2001 , Kia Motors has manufactured automobiles at its Chu Lai Plant as part of a joint ventured with Truong Hai Automobile Co . The site covers , and Truong Hai was the first private company in Vietnam to manufacture automobiles , and the first to achieve an annual output of 5 , 000 automobiles . The facility expanded in 2003 on in Tam Hiep Industrial Park with an investment of VND1 , 900 billion . In 2007 , Truong Hai Automobile Co . Ltd became Truong Hai Automobile Joint Stock Company ( Thaco ) , with automobiles marketed as Thaco - Kia .