Brits in the Vietnam war
Discussion
I've been doing some Google trawling to see if the old rumours about UK forces being covertly involved in the Vietnam war have been settled either way. It seems pretty clear that any official involvement would have become public knowledge by now, but rumours persist and I was wondering if any PHers had heard anything interesting or even vaguely plausible.
There seem to be 3 types of rumour:
That UK forces attached to US/Australian/New Zealand forces who were supposed to stay clear of Vietnam perhaps didn't always.
That some of the combatants (especially with the Australian army) who did have British passports and accents had formerly been in the UK forces and perhaps hadn't actually transferred.
That British soldiers legitimately attached to the British embassy in Saigon may have got more involved than they were meant to.
What confuses the issue is that not only would any UK troops who did get involved probably keep quiet about it, but any Soldier of Fortune style fantasist anywhere near SE asia cannot resist claiming they were involved. Add to this the difficulty Americans have in distinguishing Australian and British accents and you can imagine the scope for wild rumours. My favourite (which I nearly put in the celebrity urban myths thread) is that a recent leader of a UK political party saw covert combat in Vietnam.
There seem to be 3 types of rumour:
That UK forces attached to US/Australian/New Zealand forces who were supposed to stay clear of Vietnam perhaps didn't always.
That some of the combatants (especially with the Australian army) who did have British passports and accents had formerly been in the UK forces and perhaps hadn't actually transferred.
That British soldiers legitimately attached to the British embassy in Saigon may have got more involved than they were meant to.
What confuses the issue is that not only would any UK troops who did get involved probably keep quiet about it, but any Soldier of Fortune style fantasist anywhere near SE asia cannot resist claiming they were involved. Add to this the difficulty Americans have in distinguishing Australian and British accents and you can imagine the scope for wild rumours. My favourite (which I nearly put in the celebrity urban myths thread) is that a recent leader of a UK political party saw covert combat in Vietnam.
XJSJohn said:
A friend / drinking buddy of mine was a radioman with one of the SBS unites and he certainly did a vew trips into Vietnam in the early 70's with the rest of his regiment (correct term??)
He doesn't say much about it (and other places that, as he so tactfully puts it "was not officially visiting" ) other than a comment in passing if something comes up in conversation.
Which ties in with the recent-leader-of-a-UK-political-party rumour.He doesn't say much about it (and other places that, as he so tactfully puts it "was not officially visiting" ) other than a comment in passing if something comes up in conversation.
XJSJohn said:
Dr Jekyll said:
XJSJohn said:
A friend / drinking buddy of mine was a radioman with one of the SBS unites and he certainly did a vew trips into Vietnam in the early 70's with the rest of his regiment (correct term??)
He doesn't say much about it (and other places that, as he so tactfully puts it "was not officially visiting" ) other than a comment in passing if something comes up in conversation.
Which ties in with the recent-leader-of-a-UK-political-party rumour.He doesn't say much about it (and other places that, as he so tactfully puts it "was not officially visiting" ) other than a comment in passing if something comes up in conversation.
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