Coastal Surveillance Centers

The Coastal Surveillance Centers (CSCs) were established during the Vietnam War as part of Operation Market Time, a joint United States and South Vietnamese effort to interdict the movement of supplies by sea to the Viet Cong. Operational from the mid-1960s, these centers were strategically located along the South Vietnamese coastline, where they coordinated intelligence gathering, radar surveillance, and rapid response by naval and air assets. Staffed by U.S. Navy advisors and South Vietnamese personnel, the CSCs played a pivotal role in monitoring maritime traffic, relaying information to patrol craft and aircraft to intercept suspicious vessels. Their efforts significantly hindered North Vietnamese supply lines and contributed to the larger counterinsurgency campaign in Southeast Asia.