Vietnam War: US Army Combat Intelligence Lessons (1968-1971)

Description

Vietnam War: Combat Intelligence Lessons (1968-1971)

Timeline of U.S. Army Combat Intelligence Lessons in Vietnam (1968-1971)

• 1968: The U.S. Army Vietnam begins collecting and publishing “Combat Intelligence Lessons” derived from the combat experiences of U.S. Army units in Vietnam. This initial set of lessons likely covered topics such as Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army tactics, mines and booby traps, and fundamental intelligence operations.
• 1969: The collection and publication of combat intelligence lessons continue, further refining and expanding on observations from the evolving conflict.
• 1970: More lessons are compiled, incorporating new experiences and challenges faced by U.S. forces, potentially including advancements in communications security and aerial reconnaissance.
• 1971: The final set of lessons in this series is published, encompassing a broader range of intelligence-related topics such as exploitation of human intelligence resources, counterintelligence, and special operations. This marks the culmination of the four-year effort to document and disseminate intelligence insights from the Vietnam War.

Cast of Characters

• U.S. Army Vietnam (USARV): The primary command responsible for U.S. Army operations in Vietnam. They are the overarching entity that initiated and oversaw the collection and publication of the “Combat Intelligence Lessons.”
• U.S. Army Vietnam Command Historian: The specific individual or office within USARV tasked with compiling and organizing the combat intelligence lessons. This role was crucial in preserving and disseminating the tactical and intelligence insights gained during the war.
• U.S. Army Units in Vietnam: These are the unnamed, but central, “characters” whose direct combat experiences form the basis of the intelligence lessons. Their engagements and observations provided the raw data for analysis and the development of the published reports.
• Viet Cong (VC): The communist guerrilla forces operating in South Vietnam, whose tactics and techniques were a primary focus of the intelligence lessons.
• North Vietnamese Army (NVA): The regular army of North Vietnam, whose strategies and methods were also extensively analyzed and documented in the intelligence reports