The Last Boarding Party: The USMC and the SS Mayaguez 1975 (Raid Book 24)

On April 30, 1975, the final curtain of America's long involvement in the Vietnam War fell. North Vietnamese forces captured Saigon while thousands of South Vietnamese refugees attempted to flee on foot, boat, and aircraft. The American public believed that the events in Southeast Asia had finally come to a bitter end. Less than two weeks later, President Gerald Ford ordered air, naval, and Marine forces to conduct combat operations in waters off Cambodia. On May 12, communist Cambodian Khmer Rouge elements seized the S.S. Mayaguez, an American merchant ship, and its crew in international waters. This act of piracy created an incident where U.S. Marine Corps elements attempted to rescue the Mayaguez, one of the most controversial raids in recent history. This book will track every development in the mission , an eventual success that demonstrated American resolve to use military forces in foreign policy issues after the Vietnam debacle. "Just two weeks after the close of the Vietnam War, communist Cambodian Khmer Rouge elements seized the SS Mayaguez in international waters and took the crew hostage. Believing they had to act quickly, United States Marines boarded the ship, only to find the crew had already been removed. An assault was then launched on the nearby island of Koh Tang, where the crew was believed to have been taken. Instead of a quick strike against a limited foe, the marines encountered major opposition and were soon pinned down by large numbers of well-armed Cambodians. The firefight continued as US forces attempted to extract the Marines. This book recounts the bloody struggle on Koh Tang, as a hostage rescue mission turned into a desperate evacuation"--Back cover Blot to uger efter Vietnamkrigens afslutning i 1975 satte den cambodiske kommunistbevægelse Khmer Roughe sig i besiddelse af SS Mayaguez i internationalt farvand. En styrke fra USAs marinekorps bordede skibet, men besætningen var allerede blevet fjernet fra skibet. Marinestyrken angreb derfor den nærliggende ø Koh Tang, hvor man mente, at SS Mayaguez besætning befandt sig. Meget hurtigt blev marineenheden imidlertid bundet af ilden fra et stort antal velbevæbnede og veluddannede Khmer Rouge soldater. Det man troede var en let kamp mod en dårligt uddannet fjende, udviklede sig til at blive en kamp på liv og død, der ogå involverede udefra kommende amerikanske styrker, der blev indsat for at evakuere marineenheden og SS Mayaguez besætning Just two weeks after the close of the Vietnam War, communist Cambodian Khmer Rouge elements seized the S.S. Mayaguez in international waters. Believing they had to act quickly, United States Marines boarded the ship, only to find the crew had been removed. They then launched an assault on a nearby island where they believed the crew had been taken. Instead of a quick strike against a limited foe, the Marines encountered major opposition and were quickly pinned down. With large numbers of Cambodians closing in all around, the a desperate firefight developed as US forces tried to extract the Marines. This book recounts the bloody struggle on Koh Tang island, as a badly botched hostage rescue turned into a desperate evacuation. Cover......Page 1 Title......Page 2 INTRODUCTION......Page 4 ORIGINS......Page 9 INITIAL STRATEGY......Page 13 THE PLAN......Page 24 THE RAID......Page 38 ANALYSIS......Page 71 CONCLUSION......Page 76 BIBLIOGRAPHY......Page 78 INDEX......Page 80 IMPRINT......Page 81 "The Last Boarding Party: The USMC and the SS Mayaguez 1975".