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Tan Phu: Special Forces Team A-23 in Combat
"IF YOU ENJOYED GETTING SHOT AT, TAN PHU WAS A GREAT PLACE TO BE. . . ."
Vietnam, 1963. Leigh Wade was a radioman for Special Forces Team A-23, a twelve-man unit sent to Tan Phu, a hell on earth in the Mekong Delta where the VC had the advantage of knowing the tangled terrain. Wade's run sweeps and hammer-and-anvil operations, kill or capture as many VC as possible, and move back to camp before they could strike back.
But in those early days, Special Forces didn't have the "luxury" of proper air, artillery, and logistical support, so patrols moved through the black tropical night with the danger of death lurking in every shadow. By the time Team A-23 returned to Fort Bragg in December 1963, after a six-month tour, all but two of its original twelve members had been killed or captured. Wade left Vietnam thinking the Americans would pull out within twelve months, unaware that he would serve five more years of bloody combat. . . .
Vietnam, 1963. Leigh Wade was a radioman for Special Forces Team A-23, a twelve-man unit sent to Tan Phu, a hell on earth in the Mekong Delta where the VC had the advantage of knowing the tangled terrain. Wade's run sweeps and hammer-and-anvil operations, kill or capture as many VC as possible, and move back to camp before they could strike back.
But in those early days, Special Forces didn't have the "luxury" of proper air, artillery, and logistical support, so patrols moved through the black tropical night with the danger of death lurking in every shadow. By the time Team A-23 returned to Fort Bragg in December 1963, after a six-month tour, all but two of its original twelve members had been killed or captured. Wade left Vietnam thinking the Americans would pull out within twelve months, unaware that he would serve five more years of bloody combat. . . .
240 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1997
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March 19, 2020
I enjoyed this personal history of a Special Forces A-Team member from early involvement of the Americans in the Vietnam War. Mr. Wades remembrances are mostly filled with the optimism that was manifest in those early years however as his time in country grows longer you can feel the weariness setting in. This was a good memoir filled with many stories both humorous and sad and I thank the author for sharing.
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