Binh Hung Island

Geography

Binh Hung lies a short distance off the mainland coast of Nam Cam Ranh commune. Vietnamese Wikipedia puts it 1 km from the mainland with an area of under 2 km²^[1]; the French article gives a maximum length of 1.8 km, an area of less than 2 km² and a distance from the shore of a little more than 500 m^[2]; the two disagree on the distance. Znews also describes the island as only 1 km offshore^[11].

The Vietnamese article gives coordinates of 11.77913, 109.2126256^[1], the French article 11°46′48″ N, 109°13′04″ E^[2], and Wikidata 11.779444, 109.218333 with an elevation of 50 m and the GeoNames identifier 1585183^[3]. The Wikidata item carries the English label Hòn Chút and the Vietnamese label Đảo Bình Hưng^[3].

The Hon Chut lighthouse

A lighthouse named Hòn Chút stands on the island. Vietnamese Wikipedia dates it to nearly a century ago, gives its position as 11°47′00.6″ N, 109°13′16.1″ E and its most recent renovation as 1988^[1]; the French article attributes it to the French colonial period and also gives 1988 for the renovation^[2]. Dân Trí describes it as over 100 years old and standing at the highest point of the island^[4]. No source gives the year of construction.

The loss of the submarine Phenix

On 15 June 1939 the French submarine Phénix was lost during training manoeuvres in the South China Sea off Cam Ranh with all 71 men aboard, five officers and 66 enlisted men^[5]. A Loire 130 flying boat spotted the wreck on 16 June 1939, 12 nautical miles (22 km) north east of the island of Hon Chut, but the depth was beyond the salvage capability of the time; the inquiry found the most probable cause to be an explosion of hydrogen released by the batteries^[5]. The French Wikipedia article on the island records the wreck off its coast in June 1939^[2].

Population and economy

Vietnamese Wikipedia gives nearly 1,800 residents in about 375 households^[1]; the French article gives approximately 1,800 people^[2]. Vietnamese media group the island with Bình Ba, Bình Lập and Bình Tiên as the 'Tứ Bình' of the Cam Ranh coast, and Dân Trí places it in the former Cam Bình commune of Cam Ranh city^[4]. No published figure for fishing or lobster farming at the island was found.

Administration

Until 30 June 2025 Bình Hưng and Bình Ba together formed Cam Bình commune of Cam Ranh city^[2][4]. Resolution 1667/NQ-UBTVQH15 of 16 June 2025, in force from the day it was passed, merged Cam Lập, Cam Bình, Cam Thịnh Đông and Cam Thịnh Tây into Nam Cam Ranh commune, which began operating on 1 July 2025^[7], which Vietnamese Wikipedia gives as 92.59 km² with 23,525 people in 2025 and 14 villages, including a village named Bình Hưng^[6]. The Vietnamese article on the island already lists Nam Cam Ranh as its commune^[1].

The tourism prohibition

Decision 44/2015/QĐ-TTg, signed on 22 September 2015 and effective from 6 November 2015, promulgated the Regulation on ensuring security and safety of the Cam Ranh Military Base^[8]. Article 37 clause 4, as quoted by Sài Gòn Giải Phóng, names the Mũi Hời area, Bình Ba island and Hòn Chút (Bình Hưng island) as places where tourism activities may not be conducted^[9]. Decision 04/2025/QĐ-TTg of 30 September 2025, issued under Law No. 25/2023/QH15, carries the same rule in Article 21 clause 1: apart from activities under point a, clause 4, Article 18 of that law, the Mũi Hời area, Bình Ba island and Hòn Chút may not conduct or develop any form of tourism^[10].

In December 2024 Sài Gòn Giải Phóng reported that a Ho Chi Minh City travel firm was telling customers that tours to Bình Hưng were permitted and that only foreigners were restricted; the paper set that claim against the 2015 regulation and the confirmation of the provincial tourism department that no such tours may be organised^[9]. On 4 June 2026 the Khánh Hòa Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism ordered travel firms to stop organising and promoting tours to Mũi Hời, Bình Ba and Hòn Chút, to terminate operations in the prohibited area and to remove advertising, with the Nam Cam Ranh commune People's Committee responsible for inspection and penalties^[11][12]. Znews stated that the restriction applies to all tourists, without distinction between domestic and foreign^[11].