Editing Civil Air Transport (section)

===First Indochina War===
[[Image:Dien bien phu castor or siege deinterlaced.png|190px|thumb|CAT pilots flying [[Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar|C-119]] during the siege of Dien Bien Phu in May 1954]]
On May 1, 1953, ''Operation Squaw'' began, calling for CAT to airdrop supplies to French troops besieged at Na Sam, [[Laos]]. This operation was the first U.S. involvement in what became the [[First Indochina War]].<ref name="CAT Association">{{cite web|url=https://www.catassociation.org/history/cat-historical-milestones/|title=A Chronological Summary of Some CAT Historical Milestones|publisher=CAT Association|accessdate=May 19, 2021}}</ref> CAT transported supplies and troops for French operations during ''[[Operation Castor]]'' in November 1953.<ref name="ambafrance-us.org">{{Cite web |url=http://ambafrance-us.org/IMG/pdf/nff/NFF0502.pdf |title=French Embassy in the USA, February 25, 2005 |access-date=February 17, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110811102754/http://ambafrance-us.org/IMG/pdf/nff/NFF0502.pdf |archive-date=August 11, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

CAT assisted the French government at various times during its Indochina wars, flying supplies and equipment into [[Hanoi]]'s [[Gia Lam airport]] and other fields using C-46 and C-47 transport planes.

''Operation Squaw-II'' was approved on January 29, 1954, and, after negotiations with the French, a contract was signed on March 3 for CAT to supply 24 pilots to operate 12 C-119s.{{sfn|Leary|2006|p=181}} At the [[Battle of Dien Bien Phu]], CAT supplied the French garrison by parachuting troops and supplies with covert USAF [[C-119]] inscribed with French Air Force insignia. Two CAT pilots [[James B. McGovern Jr.]] and Wallace Buford were killed in action during the siege of Dien Bien Phu in May 1954.<ref name="CAT Association" />{{sfn|Leary|2006|p=191}} They were the first American casualties of what was later termed the [[Vietnam War]].<ref name="ambafrance-us.org"/> McGovern's remains were recovered in 2002 and identified in 2006.<ref name="CAT Association" /><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/news-information/featured-story-archive/earthquake-mcgoons-final-flight.html |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090805091122/https://www.cia.gov/news-information/featured-story-archive/earthquake-mcgoons-final-flight.html|archivedate=August 5, 2009|title=A Look Back&nbsp;... Earthquake McGoon's Final Flight |publisher=Central Intelligence Agency |date=July 16, 2009 |accessdate=October 10, 2012}}</ref> Seven surviving CAT pilots out of the thirty-seven involved in the battle received the French [[Legion of Honor]] in February 2005 during a special ceremony at the French embassy in Washington.<ref name="ambafrance-us.org"/>

The 1956-1957 edition of ''Jane's All The World's Aircraft'' lists the head office address as 46 Chung Shan Road, North, 2nd Section, Taipei, Taiwan (Formosa). The president and general manager is given as Hugh L. Grundy, with C.J. Rosbert listed as vice-president and assistant general manager. The fleet is listed as 2 Douglas DC-4, 22 Curtiss Commando, 2 Douglas DC-3, 3 Douglas C-47, and 2 Convair Catalina.

In the 1958-1959 edition of Jane's, the last year in which the "Airlines of the World" section was carried, the home office address in Taiwan remained the same, but no company officers are listed. The fleet is given as 3 Douglas DC-4, 25 Curtiss C-46, 5 Douglas DC-3, 2 Convair Catalina, with 2 Douglas DC-6B on order.

[[File:C-46 of Civil Air Transport (CIA) in Indochina.jpg|thumb|A CAT [[Curtiss C-46 Commando|C-46D]] in Indochina]]