Vikings in Vietnam - Norwegian Patrol Boat Captains in CIA Clandestine Operations

In a little-known episode of the Vietnam War, the CIA hired Norwegian skippers to command fast patrol boats to land South Vietnamese commandos and combat swimmers on the coasts of North Vietnam. This book will explain who the “Vikings” were, describe their missions, and detail their equipment (primarily Swift- and Nasty-class patrol boats). Author Alessandro Giorgi relied heavily on recently declassified source material to piece together the story.

From his arrival in war-torn Vietnam in 1968 to his reluctant departure twenty-five months later, John Cook served as an advisor in the district of Di An and took part in the systematic operations of the Phoenix Program to destroy the Infrastructure, the political organization of the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese forces. The Advisor is the story of those twenty-five months of fighting an laughing and hoping, and of the people who shared them - Major Chau, a man who so tremendously symbolized dedication to the destruction of the Infrastructure that the Viet Cong made several attempts on his life; Lietenant Hau, Cook's Vietnamese counterpart and close friend; Colonel Anderson and Major Allen, two of Di An's senior advisors; and other American and Vietnamese colleagues who - fighting a war at its rice roots, rather than viewing it through myriad news analyses and peace demonstration demands - found it impossible to remain objective about such a conflict. More than the story of bombings, sweep operations, enemy confrontations, and hamlet pillages, The Advisor tells how one man came to see the Vietnam War as his war, how he bacame involved in the district villagers' struggle for their freedom from terrorism, and how he learned the true costs of that freedom.

From his arrival in war-torn Vietnam in 1968 to his reluctant departure twenty-five months later, John Cook served as an advisor in the district of Di An and took part in the systematic operations of the Phoenix Program to destroy the Infrastructure, the political organization of the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese forces. The Advisor is the story of those twenty-five months of fighting and laughing and hoping, and of the people who shared them - Major Chau, a man who so tremendously symbolized dedication to the destruction of the Infrastructure that the Viet Cong made several attempts on his life; Lietenant Hau, Cook's Vietnamese counterpart and close friend; Colonel Anderson and Major Allen, two of Di An's senior advisors; and other American and Vietnamese colleagues who - fighting a war at its "rice roots," rather than viewing it through myriad news analyses and peace demonstration demands - found it impossible to remain objective about such a conflict. More than the story of bombings, sweep operations, enemy confrontations, and hamlet pillages, The Advisor tells how one man came to see the Vietnam War as his war, how he bacame involved in the district villagers' struggle for their freedom from terrorism, and how he learned the true costs of that freedom "Forever Forward is the first in-depth account of K-9 operations during the Vietnam War, and provides a behind the scenes look at how Allied forces employed dog teams in a variety of roles, the evolution of the United States military working dog program, and the aftermath of Vietnam. The 4,000 dogs that served with our men in Vietnam in every service branch are America's unsung heroes. American dog teams averted over 10,000 casualties and worked as scouts, sentries, trackers, mine, and tunnel detectors. They were so effective the Viet Cong even placed a bounty on them. Heroes yes, but our own government left most of them behind to an unknown fate"--Jacket