Description
Book SynopsisDuring the years of the Vietnam War, U.S. forces used three major types of equipment sets, with numerous modifications for particular circumstances. Different equipment was also used by Special Forces, the South Vietnamese, and other allied ground troops.
Vietnam War US & Allied Combat Equipments offers a comprehensive examination of the gear that U.S. and allied soldiers carried strapped around their bodies, what the gear contained, and what those items were used for. Fully illustrated with photographs and artwork detailing how each piece of equipment was used, and written by a Special Forces veteran of the conflict, this book will fascinate enthusiasts of military equipment and will be an ideal reference guide for reenactors, modelers, and collectors of Vietnam War memorabilia.
Table of ContentsIntroduction: the Vietnamese environment, as it affected personal LBE – listing of 'Free World' (allied) forces which used US equipment in Vietnam. /Development: background and development of the US Army M1956 LBE. /M1956 Load Bearing Equipment – description and use of this most widely seen pattern. /M1967 Modernized Load Bearing Equipment, developed specifically in response to experience in Vietnam. /US Marine M1961 Load Carrying Equipment. /ANZAC web equipment - description of British and M1956 LBE copies used by Australian and New Zealand forces. /Special reconnaissance equipment – description and use of specialized equipment by MACV-SOG, Special Forces, and Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol units. /World War II & Korean War vintage equipment – as used mostly by South Vietnamese forces, but in some use by US forces. /Indigenous equipment – description and use of low-cost equipment for Vietnamese forces, provided by the CIA's Counterintelligence Support Office. /Life in the Boonies - use of the equipments in the field, as shaped by differing terrain, climate, evolving weapons and procedures, and personal preferences (covering, e.g., procedures for movement, bivouacking, preparing food, perimeter defense and security, outposts, ambushes, etc.) /Conclusion. /Select Bibliography.
