RECON TEAM ANACONDA – SPECIAL FORCES – KHE SANH OPS – Vietnam War
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Description
RECON TEAM ANACONDA – SPECIAL FORCES – KHE SANH OPS – Vietnam War
Recon Team (RT) Anaconda was a highly classified unit of the US Army Special Forces. As part of the Military Assistance Command, Vietnam – Studies and Observations Group (MACV-SOG), they undertook dangerous,
clandestine reconnaissance missions in the Khe Sanh area during the Vietnam War, often venturing across the border into Laos.
MACV-SOG and the Secret War
In January 1964, the US military created the top-secret MACV-SOG to conduct covert unconventional warfare operations in Southeast Asia. While the US was officially confined to fighting in South Vietnam, MACV-SOG was authorized to operate “across the fence” into neutral Laos and Cambodia.
MACV-SOG’s command was divided into three field commands:
- Command and Control North (CCN): Based in Da Nang, this was the parent command for RT Anaconda and other teams operating in the northern part of South Vietnam, Laos, and North Vietnam.
- Command and Control Central (CCC): Operated in the Central Highlands.
- Command and Control South (CCS): Operated in the southern part of the country.
The composition of a recon team
A MACV-SOG reconnaissance team was a small, tight-knit unit designed for stealth and speed. The typical team consisted of:
- US Special Forces Green Berets: Usually three to six American soldiers.
- Indigenous personnel: Four to nine highly trained local troops, often Montagnards or ethnic Vietnamese, who knew the terrain and spoke the language.
MACV-SOG organized its reconnaissance teams, originally called “Spike Teams,” and named them after US states, snakes, and tools.
Khe Sanh and the Ho Chi Minh Trail
The area around Khe Sanh was a critical operational zone for SOG because it bordered Laos, through which the North Vietnamese Army’s (NVA) main supply route—the Ho Chi Minh Trail—ran.
- The Ho Chi Minh Trail was not a single path but a vast network of roads, tunnels, and footpaths used to move troops and supplies from North to South Vietnam.
- RT Anaconda’s missions were part of the effort to disrupt this supply line by placing sensors, performing wiretaps, and gathering intelligence on NVA troop movements.
- These teams played a vital role in providing critical intelligence on the NVA buildup around Khe Sanh in late 1967, which led to the famous 77-day siege of the Marine combat base there in 1968
Additional information
| Weight | .41 lbs |
|---|---|
| Dimensions | 9 × 6 × 2 in |
