Documents of an Elite Viet Cong Delta Unit: The Demolition Platoon of the 514th Battalion

Part One: Unit Composition and Personnel

David W. P. Elliott, Mai Elliott

ResearchPublished 1969

Translations of captured Viet Cong documents pertaining to the composition and personnel of the demolition platoon of the 514th Battalion. This report is first in a series of translations representing the entire file of unit records captured intact. (The others are RM-5849, RM-5850, RM-5851, and RM-5852.) The documents cover the period from early 1966 to mid-May 1967, a time when the battalion was under-strength and only infrequently saw action. The unit spent much time training, reorganizing, and bolstering morale. In Party membership, the unit was of the elite. Even though under-strength, it contained a Party chapter, usually found only at the company level. Seventeen personnel dossiers, compiled mostly by the men themselves, give accounts of battles, forced marches, and personal history that afford insight into Viet Cong practices and psychology.

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Document Details

  • Copyright: RAND Corporation
  • Availability: Web Only
  • Year: 1969
  • Pages: 118
  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.7249/pubs
  • Document Number: RM-5848-ISA/ARPA

Citation

Chicago Manual of Style

Elliott, David W. P. and Mai Elliott, Documents of an Elite Viet Cong Delta Unit: The Demolition Platoon of the 514th Battalion: Part One: Unit Composition and Personnel. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 1969. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_memoranda/RM5848.html.
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