The purpose of this manual is to provide a compendium of techniques and procedures used by reconnaissance teams (RTs). The success of any recon operation depends on the ability of the unit to develop its own procedures and to adapt and exploit those which prove successful. Ultimately, success depends on the motivation and training of the RT. This manual will provide an introduction to the required training and a basis for continuation of training. While no technique represents the final answer, those described here have been proven successful in several years of Recondo-style operations. To the beginner, this manual will serve as a summary of the techniques he must master; to the "old timer," it will be a refresher and review. There is only one type of recon man that has stopped learning recon - the dead type. This manual is directed only towards RT employment. Therefore, always keep in mind that the tactics and techniques described are directed towards one goal - the collection of intelligence. The patrolling tactics, insertion techniques, communications, etc. are only a means to accomplish that end. Developed for use at Recondo (Recon Commando) schools by the US Army Institute for Military Assistance in 1970 as a means to capture the operational knowledge of Studies and Observation Group Recon Teams from Command & Control North, Central and South. It contains information very difficult to find elsewhere, much of it presented in the form of "lessons learned" from operations in Vietnam. Presented in Special Operations Press' distinctive ERDL camouflage cover, denoting a Vietnam-era publication, this edition is an easy-to-read 6 x 9 inch perfect-bound paperback printed on first quality paper in the USA.

For firefights in the swamps, ambushes in the jungle, or just facing the enemy dead-on, Recondo trained LRRPs to win. They will never be able to duplicate the 5th Special Forces Recondo School and the training that gave its grads something they desperately needed—the skills to survive Long Range Patrol missions in the jungle that NVA considered its own. Vietman veteran Larry Chambers vividly describes the grit and courage it took to pass the tough volunteer-only training program in Nha Trang and the harrowing graduation mission to scout out, locate, and out-guerrilla the NVA. Here is an unforgettable account that follows Chambers and the Rangers every step of the way—from joining, going through Recondo, and finally leading his own team on white-knuckle missions through the deadly jungles of Vietnam. “I made this book mandatory reading for my Rangers. . . . We went from the worst platoon in the regiment to the best platoon in six months. In training we'd get to the objective so fast they had to hold us back.”—U.S. Army Master Sergeant H. “Max” Mullen Ret. 75th Ranger Regiment

Project DELTA was formed in October of 1964 with headquarters in Nha Trang. They conducted the most hazardous and critical missions inside South Vietnam. Project DELTA would prove to be one of the most successful Special Operations units in the Vietnam War. In August of 1970, The B-52 Tips were published as a series of memos and annexes for the use of B-52 team leaders and their troops as a means of capturing lessons learned. The Tips are broken down into the following sections: A - General B - M-16 / CAR 15 C - Load Bearing equipment D - Recon part E- Forward air controller (FAC) F- Remain overnight (RON) G - Breaking out of encirclement H - PW snatch I - Movement Techniques J - Infiltration / exfiltration Long considered a classic, Special Forces trainees were still being given handout copies of the B-52 tips in the mid 1990s. Presented in Special Operations Press' distinctive ERDL camouflage cover, denoting a Vietnam-era publication, this edition is an easy-to-read 6 x 9 inch perfect-bound paperback printed on first quality paper in the USA.

Filled with entertaining anecdotes and an insider's knowledge, Ranger Knowledge is a must-read for prospective rangers and armchair military enthusiasts everywhere. Written by a former 75th Ranger Regiment soldier, "Marty" will take you inside the Ranger Assessment and Selection Program and the Special Forces Assessment and Selection Program to teach prospective Special Operations soldiers the ins and outs of each unit's selection program. As someone who also runs a train-up program for soldiers going into the military on Ranger and Special Forces contracts, Marty is uniquely suited to write a program of instruction which walks would-be Special Operations troops through the course and tells them how to get from A to B and achieve their goals in the Special Operations community.

Project Delta - Origins of LRRP, Recondo in Vietnam This document collection includes the original 1970 Combat Recon Manual by Project Delta. It also includes the Special Forces updated version from 1995, and a third book on WW2 Jungle Fighting. Project DELTA was the first of the four Special reconnaissance (SR) units with a Greek letter formed by the U.S. Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV) during the Vietnam War to collect operational intelligence in remote areas of South Vietnam. Project DELTA was established at Nha Trang in 1964 and consisted of six reconnaissance hunter-killer teams each composed of two United States Special Forces (USSF) and four Army of the Republic of Vietnam Special Forces (LLDB) and later supported by the 91st Ranger battalion. It was designated Detachment B-52, 5th Special Forces Group. DELTA's mission included operational and strategic reconnaissance into long-held Viet Cong areas and the direction of air strikes on them. They were also to conduct bomb damage assessment, conduct small scale reconnaissance and hunter-killer operations, capture and interrogate VC / NVA, tap communications, bug compounds and offices, rescue downed aircrew and prisoners of war, emplace point minefields and other booby traps, conduct psychological operations, and perform counter intelligence operations. They were to focus on base areas and infiltration routes in the border areas. During its storied history, Project DELTA captured or destroyed numerous major enemy installations and supply routes. It was awarded numerous honors including the Valorous Unit Award, RVN Cross of Gallantry, RVN Civil Actions Honor Medal (PC) and the Navy Unit Commendation Ribbon. Project DELTA was deactivated in June of 1970. The successful Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol (LRRP) training program was originally established by Detachment B-52 of the 5th Special Forces Group (Project Delta). The Project Delta course was first established in May 1964 and would eventually evolve into the famous Vietnam RECONDO school. BONUS book: This ebook collection also contains a historical report on Jungle Warfare, written in 1942 just months into the Guadalcanal campaign during World War II. Via interviews with front lines Marines and Army soldiers it goes into great details of how the Japanese fought, weapons and tactical reports with specifics on what worked and what didn't. This no holds-barred feedback help U.S. military adapt and supply what our troops needed to succeed in the jungle of the Pacific war. Of note is comments from a one, Lt. Col. L.B. Fuller, the legendary 'Chesty' Fuller of Marine Corp fame to this very day.

LRRPs had to be the best. Anything less meant certain death. When Ed Emanuel was handpicked for the first African American special operations LRRP team in Vietnam, he knew his six-man team couldn’t have asked for a tougher proving ground than Cu Chi in the summer of 196868. Home to the largest Viet cong tunnel complex in Vietnam, Cu Chi was the deadly heart of the enemy’s stronghold in Tay Ninh Province. Team 2/6 of Company F, 51st Infantry, was quickly dubbed the Soul Patrol, a gimmicky label that belied the true depth of their courage. Stark and compelling, Emanuel’s account provides an unforgettable look at the horror and the heroism that became the daily fare of LRRPs in Vietnam. Every mission was a tightrope walk between life and death as Emanuel’s team penetrated NVA bases, sidestepped lethal booby traps, or found themselves ambushed and forced to fight their way back to the LZ to survive. Emanuel’s gripping memoir is an enduring testament to the valor of all American LRRPs, who courageously risked their lives so that others might be free.

Eyes Behind the Lines: US Army Long-Range Reconnaissance and Surveillance Units is the 10th study in the Combat Studies Institute (CSI) Global War on Terrorism (GWOT) Occasional Paper series. This work is an outgrowth of concerns identified by the authors of On Point: The United States Army in Operation IRAQI FREEDOM. Specifically, these authors called into question the use of long-range surveillance (LRS) assets by commanders during that campaign and suggested an assessment ought to be made about their continuing utility and means of employment. This revision contains some important additional information the author received after this book was originally published Major (Retired) James Gebhardt, of CSI, researched and wrote this Occasional Paper with that end in view. In this study, Gebhardt surveys the US Army s historical experience with LRRP and LRS units from the 1960s Cold War and Vietnam War, through their resurgence in the 1980s and use in Operations JUST CAUSE and DESERT STORM, to the advent of the GWOT. The paper's analytical framework examines each era of LRS units in terms of doctrine, organization, training, materiel, leadership, and personnel. In doing so, the author makes a strong case for continuing the LRS capability in the Army s force structure. The variety of environments and enemies likely to be faced by the military in the GWOT continues to demand the unique human intelligence abilities of trained and organized LRS units. As the Army leads the Armed Forces of the United States in combating terrorists where they live, the lessons found in this survey remain timely and relevant.