5 October 1968 – RT Alabama (MACV-SOG) On this day in 1968, RT Alabama was inserted into Laos with 1-0 Jim Stride, 1-1 Steve Engelke, and 1-2 Lynne Black As the helicopter was coming in, Black noticed an NVA flag flying which told him there was a large NVA base camp nearby. Stride…
Category: Military History
Military History 101: How Siege Warfare Returned
How Siege Warfare Returned The history of war is never far removed from battles for cities. Many of us, of whatever creed, were brought up on the story of the walls of Jericho tumbling after the Israelites marched around the stronghold once a day for six days, seven times on the seventh day, and…
Interview with MACV-SOG Major John L. Plaster
MACV-SOG Major John L. Plaster I have two books from Plaster in my Library that are dog eared, highlighted and just about worn out. The first is The Ultimate Sniper which I got many moons ago as a gift from a now departed friend (who was a better shot than me by a country…
The Bad Ass Files: Lieutenant Colonel Ronald “Sparky” Spiers
Badass paratrooper or war criminal? It’s no secret this blog is a big fan of Ronald Spiers of Band of Brothers fame. I did a couple of pieces on him including When Men Were Men and All War Depends Upon It. This article is one of the most in-depth I have come across on…
Know Your WW2 History: William Slim – A Soldier’s General
Via: Fix Bayonets Here is, perhaps, World War II’s greatest general, and hardly anyone today knows his name. Field Marshal William Slim is best known for commanding Fourteenth Army in Burma during the Second World War (1939-45). In taking command, he inherited a disastrous situation in which, with practical skill and quiet charisma,…
Know Your WW2 Pacific War History: The Battle of Peleliu – A Meat Grinder of the Pacific War
Battle of Peleliu – Revisting a Meat Grinder of the Pacific War This is a long but worthwhile read. The author, Capt. Dale Dye, USMC, Ret. is an astute Marine Corp and Military Historian. He was the military advisor on several series and movies such as Band of Brothers, The Pacific and Platoon. I…
Awakening the Saxon
The Wrath of the Awakened Saxon Rudyard Kipling It was not part of their blood, It came to them very late, With long arrears to make good, When the Saxon began to hate. They were not easily moved, They were icy — willing to wait Till every count should be proved, Ere the Saxon…
Know Your Military Psy-Op History: Operation Wandering Soul
The Ghostly Legacies of America’s War in Vietnam During the Vietnam War, as Viet Cong soldiers tried to sleep in the jungle at night, they sometimes heard an anguished, disembodied voice shrieking at them from the afterlife. The men heard the tormented, grief-stricken cries of a deceased comrade cautioning them against the futility of…
Know Your Obscure Military History: The Ravens
H/T Wynn For Further Study and Reading: The Ravens: The True Story Of A Secret War In Laos, Vietnam
Know You USMC History: Operation Starlite (1965)
H/T Fix Bayonets Locate, Close With, and Destroy There are two reasons for people to clash. First, because some people believe they have no other choice. A second reason is that it suits them. During OPERATION STARLITE, the 1st V.C. Regiment lost 615 men, either as killed in action or detained as…