SOG Kontum: Top Secret Missions in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia, 1968–1969 by Joe Parnar and Robert Dumont (Casemate, 304 pp. $37.95, Hardcover; $15.99, Kindle), as the subtitle indicates, tells the story of MACV Studies and Observation Group covert missions operating from a special forces forward operations fire support base near the Ho Chi Minh Trail.
Those SOG teams arrived in Laos and Cambodia to conduct reconnaissance, rescue downed pilots, conduct psychological operations, and reduce the flow of weapons and personnel down the winding road.
Directors: Rachel Neubeck, Diaunte Thompson
The MACV/SOG program was the largest covert operation conducted by the US military since World War II. It disbanded in 1972 and most of its records were destroyed.
One of the first books on the program was SOG: The Secret Wars of American Commandos in Vietnam by John Plaster, which was published in 1997. Parner and Dumont's book is something of a sequel to Plaster's book. Both books do a good job of replacing lost records and serving as tributes to SOG agents, their allies, and their helicopter crews.
SOG units usually consisted of three soldiers and a group of indigenous warriors, mostly Montagnards. The authors interviewed many veterans, and the book is replete with their eyewitness accounts.
The book concentrates on the missions launched from FOB Kontum, which was close to the tri-border area. Former Vietnam War Green Beret Parnar and researcher/writer Dumont cover weapons, uniforms (without insignia), and equipment in the introduction.
They then go on to describe the missions. A typical one started with helicopter insertion. Most of the missions consisted of exploring the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Many resulted in problems that required emergency evacuations. These problems were often unplanned encounters with larger enemy units.
The book format works well. The transition from one eyewitness account to the next is seamless. There are many photos of SOG members and maps. What stands out is that many of the missions went wrong, sparking huge efforts to rescue the Americans and their Montagnards.
The book is a tribute to the SOG personnel and helicopter crews who risked their lives collecting endangered units. Doctors also come out as heroes. Indigenous soldiers are given their fair share. The enemy is represented as a worthy adversary.
My main takeaway is how American military leaders were willing to lose more lives to rescue a small number of Americans or even a dead American.
Also, I couldn't help but wonder if the missions were worth it. I can't believe they have had such an impact on the Ho Chi Minh Trail.
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