Black Ops, Vietnam

The Operational History of MACVSOG

Robert M. Gillespie

Narrated by Paul Heitsch

Available from Audible

Book published by U.S. Naval Institute Press

Without doubt the most unique U.S. unit to participate in the Vietnam War, the Military Assistance Command, Vietnam Studies and Observations Group (MACVSOG) was a highly-classified, U.S. joint-service organization consisting of Army Special Forces, Navy SEALs, Marine Force Reconnaissance units, the Air Force, and the CIA. Committed to action in Southeast Asia even before the major U.S. build-up in 1965, it also fielded a division-sized element of South Vietnamese military personnel, indigenous Montagnards, ethnic Chinese Nungs, and Taiwanese pilots. During its nine-year existence, MACVSOG participated in most of the significant operations of the conflict, including the Gulf of Tonkin incident, the Tet Offensive, the incursion into Cambodia, the Green Beret murder case, the Phoenix program, and the Son Tay POW raid. The story of this extraordinary unit has never before been told in full and comes as a timely blueprint for today’s unconventional warfare.

Published in cooperation with the Association of the United States Army.

REVIEWS:

“Fascinating account...Gillespie's book is particulary timely in light of the ongoing fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan. It demonstrates the hazardous duty that SOG teams endure.”

—Military Heritage

“Assembled from declassified documents and memoirs, Black Ops Vietnam is an in-depth focus on the deeds of this elite group, and its true stories are especially relevant amid today's problematic, complex, and difficult ongoing counter-insurgency operations. Highly recommended.”

—The Midwest Book Review

“This is a complete history of the MACVSOG unit and uses declassifed documents and memoirs to to detail its achievements, offering a full and involving survey for any military history collection strong in Vietnam operations.”

—California Bookwatch