Gordon l rottman entered the us army in 1967, volunteered for special forces and completed training as a weapons specialist. By kevin dockery during the vietnam war, the united states fought the viet cong and north vietnamese army forces with some of the most hightech weapons the us could produce. Another short osprey book that i read quickly for a section of my dissertation. The tunnel rats of the 1 st infantry division, the only one with any kind of formal training, was especially successful.
Would recommend this book over the movie tunnel rats. Originally created during the first indochina war which had pitted the viet minh against the french, this extensive network of tunnels grew from a fairly basic system to a highly complex underground labyrinth in the 1960s. To a man, volunteers only volunteers were permitted to join tunnel rat units they would enter the tunnels network systems of the viet cong armed with nothing more than a. They helped conduct military operations on behalf of. This title will be based on the personal accounts of those who served in this unique role and will describe the specialist training and equipment, not to mention the tactics and combat experiences, of those who fought an. This is the same patch that is supplied to the military and sold in military base exchanges. Obviously researched, gleaning background info from more than one source. Special us soldiers called tunnel rats would crawl through the systems to find the enemy.
By the time of operation crimp, these tunnel complexes included hospitals. Jan 01, 2012 another short osprey book that i read quickly for a section of my dissertation. Originally called tunnel runners by the 25th infantry division, and ferrets by the australian army, the term tunnel rat became the official accepted name during the vietnam war for men who would descend into a pitch black, claustrophobic, dank hell, to play a. In 1965, soon after the first us combat troops had arrived in. However, the brave troops that were picked for the job were commonly the shortest grunts in the platoon for obvious reasons. Tunnel rats were us, australian and newzelander soldiers who went inside viet cong vc. A sappers war, published in 2012 and reprinted in pocket format in 2014, tells the story of the entire sapper involvement in vietnam, from before the tunnel rats arrival until the very last convoy out of. For them, thats what they do and only they will do it, normal infantry within australian rank would not go into tunnel system, and they are the only unit tagged with tunnel rat acronym.
Tunnel rats one specialized weapon they used was the snw quiet special purpose qsp 1 revolver, a modified. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Carl kenneth cory, a tunnel rat of the us 25th infantry division, actually liked the mystique that came with being a tunnel rat including other troops thinking he was mad. The tunnel rats were not spies or saboteur sent to north vietnam or neutral cambodia.
The tunnel rats used a host of specialized weapons that helped them to be effective at their job. Their unofficial moto was non gratum anus rodentum in latin. The film is based on the factual duties of tunnel rats during the vietnam war. A harrowing account of americas tunnel rats in the underground battlefields of vietnam by tom mangold nov 29, 2005 4. Bct included lessons on handtohand combat, chemicalwarfare defence, map reading, first aid, bayonet fighting, guard duty, and the use of hand grenades. Even with these difficulties, the majority of tunnel rats were very successful. These were the terrifying dangers of being a tunnel rat. Wikipedia commons in 1946, the viet minh were the viet cong resistance fighters who began digging the tunnels and bunkers to combat the french, whom they would eventually defeat.
The tunnels have become a major nuisance for the u. Army brass decides to create a special unit called the tunnel rats. A second murder in bangkok links the deaths to a group of vietnam veterans who worked as tunnel rats, one of whom is about to become vicepresident of the usa and cannot have their secret revealed, so he sends a mercenary to take care of any revelations. It was long known that such complexes existed, but it was not realized just how extensive they were in some areas, how important they were to the viet cong, and how difficult it was to detect and neutralize. His small stature, tough nature, and not being claustrophobic fit the situation well.
Opinion my life as a tunnel rat the new york times. Tunnel rat patch, 25th infantry vietnam war, x rare. A few silenced pistols made their way to vietnam and some of them were used by the tunnel rats. He liked it as it was lighter, but ammunition was hard to get since we only had. Payne, a tunnel rat, bravely searches a tunnel s entrance during vietnam war. The training of tunnel rats is also covered from basic training boot camp, advance individual training as infantrymen or engineers, followed by tunnel warfare selection and training in demolitions, boobytrap awareness, chemical employment, countermine warfare and tunnel exploitation.
The viet cong sometimes sent a spear through the throat of the tunnel rat, impaling him in the tunnel opening. Nov 16, 2017 they would gain the nickname tunnel rats please do not reupload our content. Eightyfive percent rural, the few large cities and towns. Simple history merchandise get the simple history vietnam war book on amazon. Tunnel rats none kindle edition by macgregor, sandy, thomson, jimmy. Their main mission is to cleanup the vietcong network of tunnels found in the cuchi district outside the south vietnamese capital of saigon. See more ideas about vietnam war, vietnam and vietnam war photos. Tunnel rats trainer tunnel rats is a dark and intense singleplayer shooter for pc that depicts the horrific realities of the vietnam war as seen through the eyes of a young us soldier. As member of a otunnel ratso squad, the player is trained to clearing out the huge tunnel systems underneath the jungle of vietnam. The tunnel rats in the vietnam war the military history blog.
They came to be known simply as tunnel rats with the unofficial motto non gratum anus rodentum not worth a rats ass. In 1965, soon after the first us combat troops had arrived in vietnam, it was realized that in some areas the viet cong had developed vast tunnel complexes in which to hide from the enemy. During the vietnam war, tunnel rat became an unofficial specialty. As member of a tunnel rats squad, the player is trained to clearing out the huge tunnel systems underneath the jungle of vietnam. Towards the end of the year, the army began to train off leash dogs, at fort benning. The pistols that were carried by the tunnel rats were varied, the. Other tunnel rats procured their own personal firearms to suit their own needs. This tongueincheek expression was the motto of the tunnel rats, an informal name given to a group of infantry soldiers and combat engineers in the vietnam war with a very hazardous specialty. Start reading tunnel rat in vietnam warrior book 161 on your kindle in. This patch would be a great gift idea and a wonderful addition to your patch collection. The vietnam tunnel rats are the men who served in the engineer field troops in vietnam 3 field troop and 1, 2 and 3 troop of 1 field squadron, royal australian engineers. These weapons were used in against some of the most lowtech forces the us military had faced in a long time.
Sometimes while on the mission, a tunnel rat would meet a viet cong soldier, and would then have to engage in exceedingly close combat. Tunnel rats in vietnam cherrieswriter vietnam war website. I seem to remember a book my friend read in high school about 20 years ago that was about or had a section on the tunnel rats, i can picture the cover but i cant see the name in my minds eye. He was spotted by a former trainer and found himself with the label. Dedicated to the men of 3 fld troop and 1troop, 2troop and 3troop 1 fld sqn rae, the aussie tunnel rats. Dec 06, 2014 tunnel rats were all volunteers as they soon realized that if a person really didnt want to do the job, he would just report the tunnel as a dead end. What specialized weapons were used by the, tunnel rats. Tunnel rat in vietnam warrior book 161 kindle edition by rottman. Named after the tunnel rats in the vietnam war, the mixedgender, multiracial collective consists of some seventeen individual members and incorporates four affiliated groups, lpg, future shock, foundation, and new breed, which have recorded both within tunnel rats and independently. Sorry to say i havent read it, but its author did serve in vietnam. Ultimately, shooting underground was a last resort. This network connected villages, cities, and districts.
Tunnel rats as a unit is indeed exist for australian force in vietnam, they are the men of 3 troop, 1st field sqn, royal australian engineer. A tunnel rat might therefore choose to enter the tunnels wearing a gas mask donning one within was frequently impossible in such a confined space. There were numerous underground guerilla bases in south vietnam that had been built and supplied by forced labor from the surrounding villages. Feb 20, 2012 buy tunnel rat in vietnam warrior by gordon l rottman isbn. Most of us who served as tunnel rats during the vietnam war quickly realized that crawling through underground enemy bunkers would be the least of our worries. The tunnel rats were american, australian and new zealander soldiers who performed underground search and special missions in vietnam. Our tunnel rat vietnam patch is a full color, embroidered military patch. The viet cong amassed around 250 kilometres of underground tunnels. The tunnels also hosted armament workshops, training depots, headquarters, and a variety of other facilities. Many of the tunnel rats from austraila, new zealand, south vietnam, and america volunteered for the dangerous position. Tunnel rat, ferret patch vietnam war original post. American officers in vietnam viewed the short, wiry combat engineers as swat teams to be summoned whenever a suspicious hole was found in the ground. Unfortunately this book is almost entirely a recitation of the equipment used by tunnel rats, or how many tunnel rats you might find in a battalion, or how tunnel rats might have used gas or explosives or flashlights in a tunnel. It was long known that such complexes existed, but it was not realized just how extensive they were in some.
Tunnel rats is a dark and intense singleplayer shooter for pc that depicts the horrific realities of the vietnam war as seen through the eyes of a young us soldier. Some of the basic combat training bct soldiers undertook helped though. Some civilian handguns worked their way into the mix, but for most of the tunnel rats the big. In a documentary for the film, boll revealed the film did not have a script, and instead the actors improvised their lines. Those were the guys who wriggled their way through the ridiculously narrow tunnels the viet cong used to transport personnel and weapons, set boobytraps, and all that. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading tunnel rats none. What was it like to be an american tunnel rat in vietnam. The tunnel rats by stephen leather goodreads share book. One of these was master sgt flo rivera who acquired and used a 9mm german luger.
Later, similar teams were used by the soviet army during the sovietafghan war and by the israel defense forces in campaigns in the middle east. The description of that final descent into a viet cong tunnel is the climax of the book rat six, written by flowers, that documents his service in vietnam and the littleknown story about. Aug 06, 2017 vietnams littleknown underground war and the men and women who fought it. By the 1960s, the tunnel complexes included hospitals, training areas. A harrowing account of americas tunnel rats in the underground battlefields of vietnam by tom mangold due to covid19, orders may be delayed. Though americans, australians, and new zealanders claim to know these hideouts existed. What was the mortality rate of the vietnam era tunnel rats. Most useful for tunnel rats, however, was the experience gained in. From jockey to tunnel rat viet nam vet tells his story.
Since there were no tunnel rat units as such, they being ad hoc. The tunnel rats encounter on reddit, a terminallyill vietnam veteran recounted a story of his time in vietnam that he was going to take to his grave but opted to put it on rnosleep instead. It was long known that such complexes existed, but it was. They helped conduct military operations on behalf of communist forces.
It is a story about the first allied tunnel rats in the vietnam war jan 1966. Did not try and raise a us v aussie issue regarding who was first of the tunnel rats. He was working on a new book titled avenger and wanted the main character to be somewhat based on my experiences in vietnam. These american, australian and new zealander soldiers infiltrated and sabotaged the intenselyclaustrophobic labyrinth of underground tunnels used by the vietcong to launch surprise attacks and set up ambushes. Training overall, tunnel rat soldiers received little, if any, specific training. The job was time consuming, difficult the tunnels were a tight squeeze for a typical vietname. The vietcong had been using tunnel systems for many years against the chinese, japanese and french invaders. This video starts with a couple of minutes from the documentary page 1 chris masters and then some questions put to the political commissar, tran. As the tunnel rat emerged through the connecting trap door, a viet cong might be waiting with a knife to slit his throat. Rottman, served in vietnam with the 1st cavalry division in the late1960s, and witnessed some of what tunnel rats did personally.
Tunnel rats is a west coast underground hip hop collective founded in 1993 in whittier, california. Feb 19, 2014 it seems crazy that men actually volunteered to go into these tunnels, but the tunnel rats were motivated by many different things. Consisting of a number of men formally trained to enter the tunnels, radio operators to communicate with them, a medic and a pair of former viet. The army deployed ten tracker teams to nam and added a final one late in 1969. There is little mention of tunnel rats in unit histories. Several of these tunnels had sharp ubends which could be easily flooded to trap and drown intruders. Grunts digital books firefights grunts infantry jungle warfare military tunnel rats vietnam conflict vietnam heroes vietnam war vietnam war blog war books war story. The story of a marine grunt in the first battle of khe sanh april 1967 duration. We believe our total number is somewhere around 700. Sep 03, 2018 the description of that final descent into a viet cong tunnel is the climax of the book rat six, written by flowers, that documents his service in vietnam and the littleknown story about.
He served in the 5th special forces group in vietnam in 196970 and subsequently in airborne infantry, longrange patrol and intelligence assignments until retiring after 26 years. Auburn author recounts life in vietnams harrowing tunnels. During the vietnam war, if a us tunnel rat got injured or. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Viet minh forces initially developed a complex system of underground tunnels to combat the french colonial invasion of vietnam known as the cu chi tunnels. Tunnel rats in vietnam us army training film 1969 youtube. The author gives a qualified description of his units 12 months in vietnam carrying out duties in a field previously unknown to most people of australias part in the vietnam war. Tunnel rats tunnel rats in vietnam us army training. The tunnel rats were american, south vietnamese, new zealand and australian soldiers who performed underground search and destroy missions during the vietnam war. Chops and i were some of the original tunnel rats and all our training was ojt. Most of us who served as tunnel rats during the vietnam war quickly realized that crawling through underground enemy bunkers would be the least of our. If you want a complete story of the original tunnel rats the buy the ebook or book called no need for heroes at a documentary ca. Sandy macgregor, the troop commander of 3 field troop the original tunnel.
The tunnel rats gently prodded for potentially armed mines in order to disarm them and prayed that they survived with both their legs. Sapper jim marett outside the ruins of a rubber plantation mansion in vietnam in 1970. First of all, those ops were certainly not off the book. Tunnel rats, also known as 1968 tunnel rats, is a 2008 germancanadian war suspense film written and directed by uwe boll. Pete rejoruiz, a cubanborn tunnel rat, is shown popping out of a north vietnamese tunnel. Read online tunnel rat in vietnam pdf book by on juggernaut books. Tunnel rats vietnam war attention us veterans help celebrate your past service with our personalized veterans rings. Small villages dot this land, worked by peasants, who have lived there for centuries. Au official newsletter of the vietnam tunnel rats association inc it was viet cong soldier duong van manh who first discovered how to lift m16 mines fitted with antilift devices from the 11km long barrier minefield laid by 1 field squadron in 1967. Did the tunnel rats make much of an impact in the war. For the bulk of the war there were three troops, each of around 40 men, a total of 120 tunnel rats in vietnam per year, for around five years, making 600, plus the first year when 3 field troop alone was there, with about 70 men. In a documentary for the film, boll revealed the film did not have a.
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