Awesome, Theater made RARE Original Vietnamese Hand sewn Vietnam Special Forces MACV SOG MIKE FORCE Commando's.

Made of of Cambodia Special Forces, which were CIA and US Special Forces Commanded. Conducted classified operations into Laos and Cambodia.   Rescued downed pilots and was a quick reactionary force.  The patch shows some soiling and age, but very good condition.  Does not look to ever been attached. 

RARE In Country hand made Vietnamese Tiger Camo patch with tight sandbag backing.  Have not seen another like it.

HISTORY

The South Vietnamese Mobile Strike Force Command, or MIKE FORCE, was a key component of US Army Special Forces in the Vietnam War. They served with indigenous soldiers selected and trained through the Civilian Irregular Defense Group (CIDG) and were led by American SF and Australian SAS. MIKE Force was a force multiplier, operating what is today called a Foreign Internal Defense mission. MIKE Force was composed of the persecuted Degar, Bahnar, Hmong, Nung, Jarai, Khmer Krom, and Montagnards. MIKE FORCE was active under MACV, Army Special Forces, from 1964 to 1970 and under ARVN until 1974. MIKE Force waged special warfare against the Viet Minh, NLF (Viet Cong), and PAVN (North Vietnamese Army) oppressors in various detachments, volunteering in support of MIKE FORCE missions. MIKE Force's mission was to act as a country-wide quick reaction force for securing, reinforcing, and recapturing CIDG A Camps, as well as to conduct special reconnaissance patrols. Search & rescue and search & destroy missions were also assigned. The conventional unit alternative to Special Forces detachments like MIKE was Tiger Force, which was primarily tasked with counter-guerrilla warfare against enemies from behind their lines that emphasized body-count rather than force multiplication. MIKE Force had a critical role in the search and rescue of downed American pilots because they were mobile and often in close proximity to the DMZ. MIKE Force also designated drop zones, landing zones, called in air strikes on high value targets, and collected intelligence during recons, much like the LRRPs. In 1970 MIKE Force was disbanded after Vietnamization ruined the loyalty of the indigenous personnel when SF were ordered to abandon them to the command of the South Vietnamese. While many Montagnards were Christian, they were still looked down upon by the Vietnamese and referred to as savages. In 1974 what indigenous personnel of the MIKE Forces remained in Vietnam were, along with their tribes of origin, systematically hunted down and murdered by the North Vietnamese when they took over the South. Some Hmong, Nung, Montagnard, and other groups still escape and evade persecution in Vietnam while struggling for independence, much like the people of Burma who were left by Detachment 101 when, like Det. 101, MACV was ordered home by the President.

Military Special Forces Patches History

Special forces personnel began serving in the Republic of Vietnam in 1957. During the early days of the Vietnam military build up, President John Fitzgerald Kennedy sent Special Forces Units to South Vietnam in a special advisory capacity. In September 1962, United States Special Forces, Vietnam (Provisional) was formed from members of the First Group, stationed on Okinawa, and the Fifth and Seventh Groups from Fort Bragg, North Carolina. The soldiers, operating in small units, created many patch designs, which were locally manufactured and, in many cases, handmade. The first insignia, of course, was the beret flash, which combined the yellow from the first group, black from the Fifth, and red from the

Seventh and incorporated them with a bend with bundles that represented the flag of the Republic of Vietnam. This flash, designed by Colonel George Morton, eventually became the insignia of the Fifth Special Forces Group. Popular among the recon teams known as "Mike Force," which is the universal corruption of "Mobile Strike Force," was the use of state names, some of which appear here. As state names were used up, names of snakes (for example, the Adder, Anaconda, and Cobra) became popular. The motto "We Kill For Peace" was almost universally used by these units. The collector will find that many of the MACV-SOG insignia were all originally hand-sewn and can be found later reproduced machine-sewn in copied versions and in many variants. This is due to the fact that many of the insignia were originally Hand-Made "in country" which were unauthorized wear and preferred by Special Forces Soldiers for there unique individuality and flare being all completely hand made, with no two exactly alike. Most Hand-Made patches were unauthorized wear which the Special Forces Soldiers again preferred, issued to Special Forces trained Indigenous Tribesman and new arrivals and/or new recon team members signifying their fighting skills and acceptance as being attached to the team. It is interesting to note that the Green Berets in many cases wore their patches inside the green beret. It was placed there in keeping with the covert nature of their missions. Besides recon teams, MACV-SOG also deployed exploitation teams or "hatchet teams" which were of platoon size and consisted of Americans and indigenous troops. The most famous, all highly classified areas of operations were along the Ho Chi Minh trail, into Cambodia and Laos. Information extracted from the book "US ARMY PATCHES" by Barry Jason Stein The Cloth Insignia Of The Vietnam War - 

The patches of the Vietnam war present a very interesting study because this is the first time where a fairly large number of in-country made patches were developed. The government issued patches had some new designs and saw the introduction of the subdued styles. Several soldiers took it upon themselves to contract with local seamstresses to create patches.  Some of them were replicas of existing ones while others were brand new. The Vietnam war saw the birth of a wide flurry of homemade (in-country made), unauthorized cloth insignia. When the US Army started fighting the Vietcong with guerrilla tactics, several small and specialized groups were formed.  Groups such as MACV SOG Special Forces Groups made their way into history. Often times the unauthorized insignia was worn in hidden places such as inside hats and berets.

I WILL NOT SHIP TO ANY OTHER COUNTRY.  IF YOU LIVE OUTSIDE OF AMERICA, I WILL NOT SHIP TO YOU DIRECTLY.  YOU WILL HAVE TO USE EBAY GLOBAL SHIPPING PROGRAM. NO EXCEPTIONS.

I accept Pay Pal. I try to ship out next day after payment is done.  I will put all winnings in one box for lower shipping (COMBINED). I will send only to the Pay Pal Address listed in the States or US Global shipping program.  Because of the value I will ship insured and signature confirmation required. No exceptions.

Please ask any questions before bidding.  I am a private seller and not an expert on the subjects, please research your item being sold and bid accordingly.  Prices very due to the rarity and type of patch.  These patches have been in my collection for many years, which I am parting with so others could collect and enjoy. 

I am selling a long time collection of US Vietnam Special Forces and ARVN. I have many hand made originals.  Most appear to be originals dictated by pricing. I'm going be listing them so save me as a seller. If anyone has an interest in a specific patch, or group, let me know I might have it.   I have been a long time collector finally selling his collection for others to enjoy.