The Last Battle: The Mayaguez Incident and the End of the Vietnam War

by Ralph Wetterhahn

Examines the final military contest of the Vietnam War, relating the hijacking of the U.S. merchant ship Mayaguez, the deadly marine raid on a remote Cambodian island to free the ship and its crew, and the fate of three marines left behind after the battle. Reprint.

Genres: History, Military Fiction, Military History, War, Nonfiction

400 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

Reviews

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent account of the last major engagement of the Vietnam War. A local commander seizes a US ship and it became a crisis where marines and airmen had to die to show the world a bunch of politicals had stones. A main feature of this story is the communication link direct from the White House to the aircraft and forces on the scene, set up when the President demanded more responsive comms. What is interesting is now Washington is making tactical decisions in real time. If things go wrong, can’t blame the on-scene commander. The President didn’t want any movement of the Mayaguez captives to other areas. The capability to disable the fishing trawler that was carrying the captives was overhead:

In spite of the no-fire decision regarding the trawler, the National Security Council participants relished not only making big strategic decisions but, because of enhanced communications, were becoming enamored with making small tactical ones as well. Gerald Ford was a president whose military experience dated to World War II. His senior military man, General Jones, had a career in heavy bombers, and the rest of the National Security Council had little exposure in the trenches. General Jones, for example, did not advise the president about the accuracy of the A-7 gatling gun, which uses a computer-controlled sight, because as a bomber pilot he had no feel for it. Reliable A-7 information might have caused the president to change his mind about shooting off the tail of the trawler. But the real question is, should the president have been making that kind of decision in the first place?

Every squadron keeps tabs on their best strafers. Top guns are no secret in the macho world of fighter aviation. If a decision to try stopping the trawler was to be made, it should have come from no higher than the controlling team in Cricket, the orbiting EC-130, after considering the availability of helicopters for rescue, the qualifications and accuracy of the pilots and planes flying above the boat, risk to the captives, and the size and defenses of the target. With only small arms aboard the trawler, the fighters could get in very close for the shot. A talented A-7 strafer can routinely get off a very tight quarter-second burst, sending twenty or so rounds within a two-square-yard area, Rescue helicopters were less than two hours away at U-Tapao. The staff inside Cricket may have come to the same conclusion as did President Ford, but instead of dealing with the issue themselves, the controllers spent their time sending requests for guidance back to distant headquarters.

What a Sh*t-show! The author picked this dispatch from Gallipoli to compare to the helicopter assault on Koh Tang Island. Very apt. The book is very good in setting up the rolling failures in command, intelligence, planning and execution. The aircrew and Marines are paying the price:
Up to the very last moment it appeared as if the landing was to be unopposed. But a tornado of fire swept over the beach, the incoming boats, and the collier. The Dublin Fusiliers and the naval boats’ crews suffered exceedingly heavy losses while still in the boats . . . and of these nearly half had been killed or wounded before they could reach the cover afforded by the steep, sandy bank at the top of the beach.

Sir lan Hamilton, Official Report of the Gallipoli Landings, April 25, 1915

Phat Kheng unlatched the breech as his assistant, with hands shaking, fed in the first round. Then Phat Kheng slammed the breech closed and cycled the bolt. Two helicopters were sliding in from the left toward the east beach. Phat Kheng took aim.

Knife-31, flown by Major Howard Corson, and Knife-23, piloted by First Lieutenant John Schramm, had heard the “Hot LZ” calls just as they swung in toward the eastern beach. Corson passed the word to the marines in back, then slowed to a hover just off the beach. Suddenly the tree line lit up with muzzle blasts. The left side-gunner, Sergeant Randy Hoffmaster, opened up with his minigun as a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) round found its mark. The RPG penetrated the left side of the cabin area and exploded, immediately wounding the men seated there, including navy corpsmen HM1 Bernard Gause, who went down immediately, and HN Manning, who was also hit. Without foam fire-suppressant like that carried inside Jolly Green tanks, Corson’s left tank burst into flames. The conflagration quickly spread inside the cargo bay.

With his helicopter on fire, RPGs exploding all over the aircraft, and machine-gun tracers tearing through the fuselage, Corson tried vainly to reverse course. As the chopper swung away to the right, Sergeant Randy Hoffmaster opened up with his minigun from inside the cabin inferno while copilot Second Lieutenant Richard Vandegeer fired an M-16 out his side window. An explosion from an RPG ripped away the nose of the aircraft. Dazed and wounded, with no instruments left in front of him, Major Corson rode the aircraft into the surf. He sat frozen in his seat, facing forty-five degrees away from the beach. What was once metal and Plexiglas in front of him was now nothing but a gaping hole.

Schramm in Knife-23 had come in north of, and slightly behind Corson as he closed the distance to land. Schramm’s eyes scanned ahead for signs of a firefight. He slowed to a hover, then swung his tail toward the beach To the south, something flashed in his peripheral vision. It was Major Corson’s helicopter, enveloped in a frightening ball of fire. Red hot tracers crisscrossed all around Corson’s CH-53 as it plunged into the water.

All sorts of meddling are enabled with the capability to communicate across the globe. Kissinger decides to put a pause on airstrikes ordered by President Ford. The SecState has no role in military operations but still interfered. Another example of civilian interference in a military op:

The planned second and third strikes against the same targets began an hour later, at 9:05 A.M. Cambodia time, and were carried out. The fourth strike, due to begin at 11:30 A.M. was diverted from their mainland targets to Koh Tang where they were to provide close air support for the marines. When word of the diversion reached the navy, the new tasking was rejected because the carrier-based attack aircraft had not been briefed and were not equipped with the proper radios to communicate with the men on the ground. As a result, the fourth mission was scrubbed. Clearly, if tactical decisions were going to be made at the top, then the person at the top—the president—needed to be in the Situation Room in the thick of things, not getting light-headed making toasts. Ford had wanted all four strikes to go in, but in the confusion half the sorties never even reached their targets.

A big political win can’t be marred by releasing the casualty lists so the death toll was kept quiet. Even worse, the 23 killed while relocating to Thailand before combat started were not even counted in the total. They were conveniently forgotten.
The crew had been saved; the Mayaguez recovered. Captain Miller attributed their release to the jet strikes against Cambodian patrol boats and the marine assault on Koh Tang.

Showing U.S. resolve in the wake of the Vietnam disaster had been accomplished. No one in the chain of command was going to rain on that parade. Even though the accounting had been completed and verified within twenty-four hours of the cessation of hostilities, the numbers were withheld from the White House. There can be little doubt that the information on the missing and the dead made it as far as the Pentagon and hence to the secretary of defense. For five days following the conclusion of the incident, the Pentagon doggedly stuck to its original story that only one marine had been killed, a few were missing, and seventy to eighty had been wounded. With communications so good that a pilot could be ordered via radio contact from the White House not to shoot at a trawler, how was it possible to require nine days to get a final casualty tally through to that same White House contact? Yet that is how long it took. By then, Time, Newsweek, and all the major weekly news magazines were out with cover stories hailing the incident as a victory for Ford.

While the president bathed in accolades, how was it going to look if word came out that forty-one had given their lives (twenty-three in the helicopter crash in Thailand and eighteen on Koh Tang) to free forty? How was it going to be taken if it were learned that bad intelligence given to Ford had caused him to attack the wrong island, Where the crew had never set foot?

5 Stars because it is an exciting read, reminiscent of Black Hawk Down in style and tension.

['Aussie Rick' · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great story; told in the manner similar to Mark Bowden's 'Black Hawk Down' and both books sit proudly in my library. Prior to reading this account of the 'Mayaguez' incident I had very little knowledge of what had occurred other than an American ship had been seized by communist forces during or just after the Vietnam War. I wasn't aware that American military personnel had lost their lives in retaking the ship or even that a battle had been fought.

This book, for me, was full of surprises. The details about the micro-management of the rescue mission, the large number of aircraft, ships and men involved and the large loss of equipment and men were all "eye openers". I read with surprise that within so little time after the end of the conflict in Vietnam that the higher echelons of the American military seemed to have forgotten all the hard lessons learnt during that war. When you read this book you cannot help but come away with nothing but praise for the soldiers, sailors and airmen involved in the mission. The story of the three man machine-gun crew was sad, more so because the author had taken the time to research their background and final fate.

It is understandable why the American Government wanted to hide the fate of these men and I would hope that those involved felt some remorse or shame in the shabby treatment that these men's actions and memory have received. Overall this is a great story with a pacey narrative that is full of action and detail. It was also interesting to be able to follow the fighting during the assault on Koh Tang from the perspective of the Khmer Rouge. The accounts of the author's visits to Cambodia and his follow up interviews with family and friends of the missing along with the surviving Khmer Rouge were quite interesting and gave the story that much more biting effect.

If you enjoyed books like 'Black Hawk Down' and 'Flags of our Fathers' then I am sure that you'll enjoy this book. This is the sort of story that all serving members and their leaders should read and I would like to say how deeply I felt towards those men who flew into hostile fire and those who stayed behind to cover their comrades at Koh Tang.

[Martin Koenigsberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everybody knows what happened in the Mayaguez Incident. Those Khmer Rouge took one an American ship in custody and the US Navy and Marines got the ship and crew returned after kicking some commie butt. American arms won another victory- just after the fall of South Vietnam's capital, Saigon.

Except that is not really what happened. In fact, although the ship and crew were returned, the whole US military/political handling of the affair was a bit of a snafu from start of finish. In fact, the Marines, who pride themselves on never leaving a min behind, left three in the confusion. And the recovery of the boat and crew had little to do with the "Rescue Operation" and the "Punishment Raids" that Gerald Ford and Henry Kissinger were so proud of. Wetterhahn lays in all out in a great tick tock of the action, and the various recovery operations since the 90s to examine the archeological record and thus the truth.

Some of the science and politics may be too difficult for most junior readers, but a science whiz kid might enjoy it. Gamers/Modellers/Military Enthusiasts, on the other hand will find a plethora of material to enjoy. In fact the whole thing cries out to be turned into a game in one fell swoop. Diorama makers will also find a ton of inspiration for great work. A strong recommendation for a good read.

[Greg Kerr · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was of particular interest since I was a member of Naval Patrol Squadron 4 stationed at Cubi Point Naval Air Station at that time. In fact, the author mentions our Commanding Officer and several other officers in the squadron but never mentions the squadron by name (VP-4), though VP-17 was mentioned as being out of Cubi Point. Maybe it’s because an USAF pilot wrote the book. Which makes me wonder why all the USAF aircraft mentioned in the book are pictured in an appendix and the lone Navy P3 that was on site the entire time was overlooked.

Anyway, about the book. It is well researched and pulls no punches. It actually reads like a fine thriller and I had to stop and reset my thinking several times. It surprised me that this was considered the final battle of the Vietnam War.

There was one statement on page 256 that I know is incorrect because we continued to fly out of U-tapao until returning to our home port in the fall. This, of course may have still been classified in 2001 when the book was published.

[Nathan · Rating 1 out of 5]

A vague and blundering account of a little-known event. After pages of tedious forensics interspersed with corny, overdone sentiment, I was still unsure of the exact import of the titular incident. Not so much boring or offensive as just confusing and incoherent.

[Hans Brienesse · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a book this was to read. And what an eye-opener it was too. This was an incident that occurred after the Vietnam war at the time that Pol Pot was trying to gain power with his Khmer Rouge followers in Cambodia. It was unknown to me but as soon as I began reading the book I wondered why it was not given more prominence than what it has. It is difficult to grasp the reasons why, when America had such a superiority in men and machinery, it lost the war in Vietnam, but becomes even more difficult to fathom why it persisted with it's "America is all powerful" style of diplomacy; or lack thereof. Adolf Hitler was crticised after the Second World War for his persistent meddling in tactical decisions rather than strategic ones, yet here was Gerald Ford and all the top Eagles in the government doing the same. To say that this caused unnecessary loss of life would be grossly understating the fact. Full marks to Ralph Wetterhahn for grabbing the problem by the scruff of the neck and running with it; at least the families got some closure. all in all an excellent piece of journalism and writing and thoroughly recommended to all history buffs with an interest in modern conflicts. Five stars.

[Th · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had high hopes for the book in that it is about a somewhat little known incident that I have been curious about for years. Unfortunately, the writer goes out of his way to vilify President Ford, who, along with his team, did their best to deal with a quickly changing life and death circumstance. Ford did so with limited available information. Though the writer quotes the Captain of the Mayaguez as thanking President Ford for taking quick action to prevent the crew from having been imprisoned or killed in Cambodia, the writer still faults the President and his team at every opportunity. In that much of the criticism relies primarily on one National Security Council meeting transcript, it is questionable how well the matter was researched. The writer also seems to ignore the fact that, though dealing with the Mayaguez crisis was important, the President had to address numerous other pressing matters as well. Though the writer apparently made several visits to Cambodia, his slanted views of the President’s actions (based on apparently limited research) calls into question (at least in my view) the accuracy of the descriptions of the battle.

[Neal · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a true story that America wishes never happened. Marines don't leave Marines behind. Ever. Except that three did get left behind in the Mayaguez incident.

Written by a former air force fighter pilot, this is a page-turning gut-wrencher, especially for those who were in the military during the Vietnam War. It's extraordinarily well-researched and documented, with the author having spent over five years just gathering the details. It's another example of why wars shouldn't be fought by politicians sitting in offices in Washington, DC, instead of allowing the fighters in the field to do their jobs.

The book had to be written, but...what a shame.

[Anthony Nelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting account of the blunders that led to the final battle of the Vietnam War, as a politically motivated massive response to the capture of an American merchant ship by the Khmer Rouge led to dozens of deaths. Wetterhan makes the case that the battle was entirely unecessary, and the Khmer Rouge had actually released the men before they even fully understood an invasion was underway. He parallels the story of the battle with his decades later involvement in the search for remains, but the most redeeming feature of the book is that he is able to find and interview the Khmer Rouge commander, so it has a parallel point of view that is often missing from books like this.

[Emma Wong · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book many years ago, but was reminded of it when I was reading another book about Henry Kissinger. I give this book five stars for the following reasons:

1. It is a compelling piece of history EVERY adult American voter should be aware of regardless whether the book is written well or not.

2. The book also happens to be a very compelling narrative. It is a page-turner. At least I thought so. You know something bad is going to happen, but you want to find out what and how.

I highly recommend it, even to people who do not like non-fiction.

[Patrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a Marine, you learn all the good history in boot camp. All the stuff to make you proud. How we never leave a man behind. You don't learn about the 3 man machine gun team of 18-22 year old Marines who were left behind on an island with the Khmer Rouge, and abandoned, fate unknown for decades. This was a very interesting, gut wrenching story with... I couldn't call it a happy ending, but cathartic somehow.

[John Monaghan · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was fitting that the last military action of the Viet Nam war turned into a fiasco where many layers of White House advisors screwed the recovery up. We left 3 Marines on the beach when we withdrew.

[EricW_D1 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book since it showed various perspectives.

[Ate Hoekstra · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great read of a fascinating and very well researched true story. It's without doubt one of the most interesting books about the Vietnam War out there, although it's actually much more the story of a short, intense, wrong-going battle against the Khmer Rouge than a story about America's failed attempt to win a devastating war in Vietnam.

Or, as Ralph Wetterhahn says it himself: "The struggle on Koh Tang was, in a sense, a metaphore of the entire Vietnam War: an action begun for what seemed a good and noble purpose, which quickly degenerated into an ugly, desperate fight, micromanaged from no less than the office of the president of the United States."

[Urey Patrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an excellent account of the last battle of the Vietnam War. The author has painstakingly researched and documented the battle, the details of the chaotic command and control, the woeful planning and preparation, the ad hoc execution of the battle plan and the individual courage and heroics of the participants. He has brought to the front the stories of the three Marines who were left behind, held out then were captured and executed by the Cambodians - and scandalously ignored for years by their service and government. My only criticism is that the author injects too much of himself in his writing - too much of his activities, his perspective - making it a combination history (superb) and personal journal (OK but not what interested me about the subject).

[Fredrick Danysh · Rating 4 out of 5]

In 1975 Cambodia's Khmer Rouge captured the American merchant ship S.S. Mayguez. In order to prevent a replay of the Puebo incident, the US government launches a rescue attempt. This is the story of the rescue and the fate of many participants. The story had been classified for many years including the fact that three Marines had missed the withdrawal evacuation. In 2000 the remains of several of the patricipants were returned to relatives.

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

I remember following the MAYAQUEZ incident when I was young, but there sure were a lot of things we weren't told about then. An interesting read. The Marines apparently left three of their own on the beach, all of whom were brutally executed---and then the US covered it.

[Diana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great war story. Very sad but so well written that the whole time reading, I felt that I was there. Learned a bit about the US Marines and their policies.

[Dave Gray · Rating 3 out of 5]

Signed by Col John P Lucas, Knife 23 and my former boss

[Timothy Gretler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing story...as a former Marine it's hard to believe we left some our own behind.

[Brian Richard Carr · Rating 4 out of 5]

While visiting a coworker desk, I noticed he had a table set aside covered with books, a letter from President Ford, and some medals. As we discussed the items on the table, I found out he had been on of the Marines who had been on the island during this incident. As he noted it was one of the first joint warfare attempts that failed miserably. To this day, 31 USAF security policemen who were shot down in a helicopter rescue attempt are still not on the Vietnam memorial wall but all the Marines and pilots who died are. If you want to read a bit of forgotten history, I recommend this book.