Killer Kane: A Marine Long-Range Recon Team Leader in Vietnam, 1967-1968

by Andrew R. Finlayson

Overview

The leader of one of the most successful U. S. Marine long range reconnaissance teams during the Vietnam War, Andrew Finlayson recounts his team's experiences in the year leading up to the Tet Offensive of 1968. Using primary sources, such as Marine Corps unit histories and his own weekly letters home, he presents a highly personal account of the dangerous missions conducted by this team of young Marines as they searched for North Vietnamese Army and Viet Cong units in such dangerous locales as Elephant Valley, the Enchanted Forest, Charlie Ridge, Happy Valley and the Que Son Mountains.

In numerous close contacts with the enemy, the team (code-name Killer Kane) fights for its survival against desperate odds, narrowly escaping death time and again. The book gives vivid descriptions of the life of recon Marines when they are not on patrol, the beauty of the landscape they traverse, and several of the author's Vietnamese friends. It also explains in detail the preparations for, and the conduct of, a successful long range reconnaissance patrol.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780786477012
Publisher:	McFarland & Company, Incorporated Publishers
Publication date:	10/03/2013
Pages:	288
Sales rank:	568,277
Product dimensions:	6.90(w) x 9.90(h) x 0.90(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Andrew R. Finlayson served for 25 years in the U. S. Marine Corps retiring as a colonel and went on to work in the defense industry in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq and Romania. He is the author of several defense and intelligence related articles and studies. He lives in Durham, North Carolina.

Table of Contents

Preface and Acknowledgments 1

1 Preparing for Battle 5

2 Lost Friends and Deep in Enemy-Held Territory 29

3 Killer Kane Goes on the Attack 62

4 More Patrols 77

5 The Summer of Living Dangerously 110

6 The Yellow Brick Road 145

7 Happy Valley 173

8 Swift Scout Makes Its Debut 198

9 Okinawa and Home 224

Glossary 269

Recommended Reading 273

Index 275

Editorial Reviews

excellent...deserves our full and undivided attention”—Leatherneck Magazine

From the Publisher