United States Army Special Forces - Black Ops Recon
Corps Military Tactical Zone - Zone IV - Roman Numeral Patch
Skull and Crossed Bones - Blackjack
Vietnam War Patch - MACV-SOG - Mike Force - Mobile Strike Force
Measures - 3.2 inches in diameter (8 cms)
MOBILE STRIKE FORCE (MIKE FORCE) - BLACK JACK 21 – Blackjack 31
Officially set up in 1965 Mike Force was originally called the ' Mobile Guerrilla Force' due to the nature of the actions performed by this group in conjunction with the Nung Tribesmen since early 1964.
Headquartered at Nha Trang, Mike Force had the selection of the best of the Indigenous forces available including tribesmen of the Rhade, Raglia, Koho, Nung and Cham with the entire contingent of both the Nung and Rhade rated as 'Superb' in their jungle fighting skills and all airborne qualified.
The standards of the other tribesmen allocated/chosen to fight with Mike Force was well above that of the normal Indigenous combatant.
In total, approximately 40% of the indigenous combatants were Special Forces trained and qualified. (totalling over 1,000 men at Nha Trang alone).
Unusually, the area of operation of the 5th Mike Force at Nha Trang was 'Vietnam' and not restricted to operations in any particular zone.
Used for re-inforcement of indigenous positions the Mobile Strike Force (Reaction Force) was also used for Recon Ambush, Recon and Combat, Rapid Insertion, Jungle Tracking and Neutralization and were capable of operating in areas considered as VC / NVA Strongholds for period of more than 60 days without re-supply or contact if necessary.
BLACKJACK 21
Developed as a theory of operation and first put into action in November 1966, 'Blackjack' saw considerable success during it's five years of operation until 1971.
Further to intelligence provided by Recon teams on long insertion missions a 3 to 4 man Recon Team would be sent to survey an area followed shortly by a 150 Man 'Mobile Guerrilla Force' (MGF) made up of Mike Force Trained Indigenous Soldiers commanded by a US Special Force Command Group.
The first such Blackjack operation was 'Operation BLACKJACK 21' in Kontum province in October / November 1966.
Having been air-dropped into the Plei Trap Valley on the 13th of October the entire action force was eventually airlifted out of the area. Having run into 3 NVA on bicycles (who were killed) the force shortly afterwards came under intense fire from a large enemy force and spent four days attempting to prevent itself from been surrounded.
Enemy casualties (apart from the three cyclist) are unknown, no allied wounded or KIA. They were airlifted out on the 9th of November.
Not deemed a disaster (in fact having returned with a full contingent of personnel after almost a month in the field it was considered a considerable success) and in mid 1967 the Mobile Guerrilla Force was integrated into and came under the command of the Mobile Strike Force.
Blackjack 21 was followed by Blackjack 22 and later Blackjack 31.
CTZ IV - Mekong Delta
The IV Corps (Vietnamese: Quân đoàn IV) was a corps of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN), the army of the nation state of South Vietnam that existed from 1955 to 1975.
It was one of four corps in the ARVN, and it oversaw the Mekong Delta region of the country.
The Mekong Delta was the heartland of agricultural South Vietnam, it encompassed the fertile alluvial plains formed by the Mekong River and its main tributary, the Bassac River. With its sixteen provinces, the Delta contained about two-thirds of the nation's population and yielded the same proportion in rice production.
The terrain of IV Corps differed radically from other regions. Flat and mostly uncovered, it consisted of mangrove swamps and ricefields crisscrossed by an interlocking system of canals, natural and artificial. Except for some isolated mountains to the west near the Cambodian border, few areas in the Delta had an elevation of more than 10 feet (3.0 m) above sea level. During the monsoon season, most of the swampy land north of Route QL-4, generally called the Plain of Reeds, was inundated, especially when alluvial waters raised the level of the Mekong River from July to October.
Other undeveloped swampy areas along the coast had turned into havens that sheltered Viet Cong (VC) main force units just as the scattered bases inland offered good refuge for local guerrillas.
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Cheesecloth backed Vietnam War patch - Filler - made for collecting, swapping, made during conflict and through to mid-late 1980's in Vietnam - Pieces were made in Vietnam.
More recent, similar pieces are felt backed (I do not sell felt back) - if you have any questions about anagrams used, translations, unit location etc please ask – I am always happy to answer.
Command Control, North, South, Central, MACV, Special Forces, SOG, Special Op’s, Special Operations Group, 5 th Special Forces, Army Security Agency, Military Intelligence, Psy-Ops, US Army, De Oppresso Liber, Airborne, 1 st Special Forces, CIDG, Mike Force, Mobile Guerrilla Force, Mobile Strike Force, Operations Detachment, Provincial Recon Unit, Recon Teams, RT, USMC, United States Marine Corps, Vietnam War, WWII, WWI, French Indochine War, French Foreign Legion, Legion Etrange, Project Omega, Recondo School, Rapid Fire, Project Delta, Special Missions Advisory Force, Project Gamma, Project Sigma, Indigenous Troops, MACV-SOG, CCC, CCS, CCN, USARV, SMAG, TAG, Field Training Command, Recon Team Leader, US Navy, Air Force, AATTV, Long Tan, Nui Dat, AAFV, ATF, New Zealand V Force, Big Red One, 1st Infantry Division, 1st Cavalry Division, Tropic Lightning, 25th Infantry Division, Subdued, Patch, Patches, Uniform, Helmet, Flash, Beret, Arc, Tab, 101 st Airborne Division,
Command Control, North, South, Central, MACV, Special Forces, SOG, Special Op’s, Special Operations Group, 5 th Special Forces, Army Security Agency, Military Intelligence, Psy-Ops, US Army, De Oppresso Liber, Airborne, 1 st Special Forces, CIDG, Mike Force, Mobile Guerrilla Force, Mobile Strike Force, Operations Detachment, Provincial Recon Unit, Recon Teams, RT, USMC, United States Marine Corps, Vietnam War, WWII, WWI, French Indochine War, French Foreign Legion, Legion Etrange, Project Omega, Recondo School, Rapid Fire, Project Delta, Special Missions Advisory Force, Project Gamma, Project Sigma, Indigenous Troops, MACV-SOG, CCC, CCS, CCN, USARV, SMAG, TAG, Field Training Command, Recon Team Leader, US Navy, Air Force, AATTV, Long Tan, Nui Dat, AAFV, ATF, New Zealand V Force, Big Red One, 1st Infantry Division, 1st Cavalry Division, Tropic Lightning, 25th Infantry Division, Subdued, Patch, Patches, Uniform, Helmet, Flash, Beret, Arc, Tab, 101 st Airborne Division, 82nd Airborne, 173rd Airborne, Combat, Militaria, Medal, Badge, Map, 199th Infantry Brigade, Old Ironsides, 5th Infantry Division, MAAG, USARPAC, XXIV Corps, 23rd Infantry Division, Americal, 38th Infantry Division, Black Op’s, Clandestine, Non-Conventional Warfare, 11th Infantry Brigade, 11th Armored, 196th , 1st Aviation, 18th Engineers, Medic, Medical, Viet Cong, VC, Viet Minh, Dien Bien Phu, Saigon, Tiger Force Rangers, Ranger, Logistical Command, Khe Sanh, POW, RVN, ARVN, South Vietnam, North Vietnam, NVA, Hanoi, Siagon, Phan Rang, LLDB, Bright Light, Free World Forces, Company, Platoon, Patrol, Long Range, Special Forces, ARVN, Green Berets, Elite, Recon, Reconnaiance, CCN, CCC, CCS, MACV SOG, SOA, Paratrooper, Parachutist, Vietnam War, Special Operations, Military, Tiger, Ranger, Route, Team, VC, NVA, Viet Cong, Command Control