Tag: Vietnam

Near the end of September, the brass asked Schaff if he’d mind becoming the One-One, or assistant team leader. The brass wanted to put an overweight Special Forces sergeant from Germany who had a previous tour of duty with a Green Beret A-Team, but no experience in Laos, in the One-Zero slot simply because he […]

Lt. Gen. Thomas H. Tackaberry joined an Army at war, enlisting amid World War II. He later served in Korea and Vietnam, becoming a hero of both conflicts. He’d go on to command the 82nd Airborne Division and, later, the 18th Airborne Corps and Fort Bragg. But Lt. Gen. Tackaberry, who died Monday at the […]

It was 47 years ago, today that US Army Special Forces SGT Brian Buker would lose his life in a battle for a Viet Cong mountain stronghold at Nui Khet. For his actions in the three-day battle, Buker would posthumously be awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. Buker was killed by a combination of rocket […]

The Vietnam People’s Air Force (VPAF) is shopping for a new training jet and it appears they are going to purchase the Russian Yak-130. The Yak-130 first flew in 1996 and has been marketed as a light attack aircraft. There have been over 100 of the twin engine, tandem seat jets built at an estimated cost […]

When I was a kid, my dad didn’t talk much about Vietnam.  I knew that he served as a combat medic, and thanks to his customary plastic bottle of Black Velvet after dinner, I heard him mention the horror and trauma associated with treating American soldiers that had been caught in napalm strikes once or […]

The United States emerged from World War II with the Bazooka as its primary anti-armor and anti-structure weapon.  Proven as a true war winner, the series, requiring a firer and a loader, started with the M1, upgraded through the  M9 and ended with the M20B1 ‘Super’ during Korea. The Bazooka’s basic design never changed, and […]

Using side-firing weapons on aircraft can be traced back to 1927, when a concept was demonstrated by fixing a .30 caliber machine gun to the side of a biplane and flying a simple maneuver known as a pylon turn. Named after the air racing term, it involved positioning an aircraft in a gentle bank and […]

Recently coming across this vintage film of Navy SEALs in Vietnam, I thought I would share it with everyone on SOFREP.  The national archives describes it as: This film shows Navy SEALs in action in the jungles of Long Phu, Vietnam. SEALs are seen as they marched single file and crouched down in tall brush while […]

The F-16 Fighting Falcon, in addition to being a premier air-to-air combat platform also performs a very important mission called SEAD or Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses. Also known as “Wild Weasel” the mission is to enter enemy airspace early and disrupt or destroy their air defenses. This allows the main strike package of aircraft […]

March 3, 1969 was a memorable day for the US Navy (and for Tom Cruise) with the establishment of the famed Fighter Weapons School better known as ‘Top Gun’ at the former Naval Air Station (NAS) Miramar, California. Watch: What is Top Gun? Background: During the early years of the Vietnam War the US suffered […]

The U.S. Army recently announced it would be standing up six security force assistance brigades (SFABs), designed to provide the Army with units specifically trained to work as military advisors. As part of their training pipeline, these advisors will likely receive cultural and language training to facilitate working with their partner forces. They will have […]

The slew of criticisms which have been leveled against Donald Trump and his decision-making capabilities must now be tempered by his choice in National Security Advisor. Bringing Lieutenant General H.R. McMaster on board in an administration already being characterized for insular thinking through an ‘inner circle’ shows that Trump has some appreciation for a man […]