Introduction
Professor, Academician, Major General, Hero of Labor Tran Dai Nghia (real name Pham Quang Le) was born on September 13, 1913, into a poor farming family in Chanh Hiep village, Tam Binh district, Vinh Long province (now Hoa Hiep commune, Tam Binh district, Vinh Long province). He is known as a great scientist, an outstanding representative of Vietnam's scientific community, and a key contributor to the building of Vietnam's defense industry.
Early life and education
From a young age, Pham Quang Le was studious, intelligent, and eager to learn. He consistently ranked at the top in school examinations, leading both the local and French baccalaureate exams. In 1935, he went to France to study at the age of 22. In 1940, he earned three degrees almost simultaneously: Civil Engineering, Electrical Engineering, and a Bachelor of Mathematics. He then continued his studies and obtained three more engineering degrees in Aeronautics, Mining-Geology, and Mechanical Engineering.
Career in military science
While in France, Pham Quang Le researched weapons manufacturing. He worked at an aircraft research institute in France, then in an aircraft manufacturing workshop and a weapons research institute in Germany. In September 1946, President Ho Chi Minh visited France for negotiations, and Pham Quang Le expressed his wish to serve his country. At the end of 1946, he was assigned the responsibility of Director of the Military Engineering Department under the Ministry of National Defense (now the General Department of Defense Industry of Vietnam) and concurrently Director of the Military Engineering Research Institute under the General Command (now the Institute of Military Science and Technology).
In 1947, under Tran Dai Nghia's technical direction, a military workshop in Thai Nguyen successfully manufactured the Bazooka, a weapon mainly used against tanks and warships. Two years later, he and his colleagues researched and successfully manufactured the SKZ recoilless rifle, a lightweight shoulder-fired weapon with great destructive power used against fortified fortresses, with armor-piercing concrete-penetrating warheads.
Key milestones
In 1948, Professor Tran Dai Nghia was among the first 11 people to be conferred the rank of general in the Vietnam People's Army. He was also the first Director of the Military Engineering Department, one of the scientists who laid the foundation for Vietnam's young defense industry. On November 20, 1948, he was promoted to Major General at the age of 35. In 1952, he was awarded the title of Hero of Labor in the first batch of Vietnam. He later served as President of the Vietnam Academy of Science.
During the resistance war against the United States, Tran Dai Nghia contributed significantly to finding measures to counter B-52 aircraft jamming and to upgrading the altitude of the SAM-2 missile for the most effective air defense. From the 1950s to the end of his life (1997), he held responsibilities in many different fields: Director of the Military Engineering Department; Director of the Artillery Department; Deputy Head of the General Department of Logistics; Deputy Head of the General Department of Technical Services; Head of the State Committee for Basic Construction; Head of the State Committee for Science and Technology; President of the Vietnam Academy of Science; Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade; Deputy Minister of Industry; Deputy Minister of Heavy Industry; the first Chairman of the Vietnam Union of Science and Technology Associations and the first Rector of Hanoi University of Science and Technology.
Professor Tran Dai Nghia passed away on August 9, 1997.