[1] Cử was the second son of Nguyễn Văn Lực, a leader of Việt Nam Quốc Dân Đảng (VNQDD), a nationalist party which opposed the regime of Diệm.
Cử was trained in the United States as a pilot, and had not been promoted for six years, which he felt was due to his father’s opposition to Diệm, who had him briefly jailed for "antigovernment activities.
"[3] They had planned for Cử, and Phạm Phú Quốc, who he had recruited from his squadron, to attack the Independence Palace (Dinh Độc Lập) on 27 February.
[3] Cử had persuaded Quốc by claiming that all the armed services and the United States were aware of the plot, showing him a Newsweek article critical of Diệm.
The French colonial-era palace was in flames as their two fighter aircraft, World War II model AD-6s, supplied by the United States, dropped bombs and napalm.