Table Of ContentVIETNAM STUDIES
The Development and
Training of the
South Vietnamese Army
1950-1972
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VIETNAM STUDIES
THE DEVELOPMENT AND
TRAINING OF THE SOUTH
VIETNAMESE ARMY,
1950-1972
by
Brigadier General James Lawton Collins, Jr.
DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY
Washington, D.C., 1975
DEC 1 0 1975
THE COMMAND AND GENERAL STAFF COLLEGE
LIBRARY
Call Number
CGSC Form 13 — 11 Dec 72
USACGSC—3P3-3564—10,000—29 Jun 73
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 74-34409
First Printing
For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office
Washington, D.C. 20402 - Price $2.30 (paper cover)
Stock No. 0820-00532
.^09517
Foreword
The United States Army has met an unusually complex chal
lenge in Southeast Asia. In conjunction with the other services, the
Army has fought in support of a national policy of assisting an
emerging nation to develop governmental processes of its own
choosing, free of outside coercion. In addition to the usual prob
lems of waging armed conflict, the assignment in Southeat Asia
has required superimposing the immensely sophisticated tasks of
a modern army upon an underdeveloped environment and adapt
ing them to demands covering a wide spectrum. These involved
helping to fulfill the basic needs of an agrarian population, dealing
with the frustrations of antiguerrilla operations, and conducting
conventional campaigns against well-trained and determined
regular units.
It is still necessary for the Army to continue to prepare for
other challenges that may lie ahead. While cognizant that history
never repeats itself exactly and that no army ever profited from
trying to meet a new challenge in terms of the old one, the Army
nevertheless stands to benefit immensely from a study of its experi
ence, its shortcomings no less than its achievements.
Aware that some years must elapse before the official histories
will provide a detailed and objective analysis of the experience in
Southeast Asia, we have sought a forum whereby some of the more
salient aspects of that experience can be made available now. At
the request of the Chief of Staff, a representative group of senior
officers who served in important posts in Vietnam and who still
carry a heavy burden of day-to-day responsibilities has prepared a
series of monographs. These studies should be of great value in
helping the Army develop future operational concepts while at
the same time contributing to the historical record and providing
the American public with an interim report on the performance
of men and officers who have responded, as others have through
our history, to exacting and trying demands.
The reader should be reminded that most of the writing was
accomplished while the war in Vietnam was at its peak, and the
monographs frequently refer to events of the past as if they were
taking place in the present.
All monographs in the series are based primarily on official
records, with additional material from published and unpublished
secondary works, from debriefing reports and interviews with key
participants, and from the personal experience of the author. To
facilitate security clearance, annotation and detailed bibliography
have been omitted from the published version; a fully documented
account with bibliography is filed with the U. S. Army Center of
Military History.
Brigadier General James Lawton Collins, Jr., presently the
Chief of Military History, U.S. Army, has the wealth of experience
required to tell the story of allied participation in the Vietnam
War. After having served in Korea as the Assistant Commander, I
Corps (Group) Artillery, General Collins had two tours of duty
in Vietnam that involved close liaison with all nations participating
in the allied effort. In 1964 he was assigned as the senior U.S.
adviser to the Vietnamese Regional Forces and Popular Forces,
and in May 1965 was named Special Assistant to the Commander,
U.S. Military Assistance Command, Vietnam. In the latter capacity
General Collins was the personal representative of General West
moreland to the Vietnamese Joint General Staff on all matters
pertaining to the co-ordination of U.S., Vietnamese, and allied
forces operations. For his outstanding service in Vietnam, the Re
public of Vietnam awarded him the National Order and the Army
Distinguished Service Medal, two of its most coveted awards.
Washington, D.C. VERNE L. BOWERS
15 April 1974 Major General, USA
The Adjutant General
iv
Preface
In 1954 the Army of South Vietnam was a collection of former
French colonial troops with little command experience and no
support forces worthy of mention. Gradually and despite a con
siderable degree of political and social instability, the Army, with
strong American assistance, was molded into an effective fighting
force by the efforts of Vietnamese leaders. After 1960 the South
Vietnamese Army also acquired a counterinsurgency capability,
but by 1965 increased political turmoil had undermined its effec
tiveness and necessitated the intervention of strong U.S. combat
forces.
From 1965 to 1968, while U.S. forces bore the brunt of the
fighting, the South Vietnamese slowly regrouped and, with increas
ing American advisory assistance and materiel support, once again
became an effective fighting force. During this period the military
provided security for the civilian population and administration
and, in schools and training centers, laid the basis for a larger and
more responsive military force.
The battles of the Tet offensive of 1968 were followed by the
general mobilization of South Vietnam and, one year later, by the
decision of the United States to begin troop redeployments. These
moves set the stage for the third phase in the Army's development,
Vietnamization. The years from 1968 to 1972 saw a great expansion
of South Vietnam's territorial security forces and militia, and the
continual improvement and modernization of the regular Army
as it once again assumed complete responsibility for the war effort.
This monograph, covering the three stages in the growth and
development of the South Vietnamese Army, highlights the role
of the U.S. Army, especially the MACV advisory system. Most of
the material presented is based on official historical summaries
prepared on a regular basis by the major U.S. military commands
in South Vietnam. Special attention is given to the expansion of
South Vietnam's training base and her increasingly sophisticated
military school system. While such a study can do no more than
survey these activities, it does reflect the deep and continuous
commitment by thousands of American soldiers to make the South
Vietnamese Army a self-sufficient force capable of defending itself
with minimum outside assistance.
Washington, D.C. JAMES LAWTON COLLINS, JR.
15 April 1974 Brigadier General ,U.S. Army
Contents
Chapter Page
I. THE FORMATIVE YEARS, 1950-1959 1
Background 1
Military Assistance Advisory G r o u p, V i e t n am . . .. 2
Organization and Force Structure 8
Training ' 12
II. THE CRUCIAL YEARS, 1960-1964 17
The Problem, 1959-1960 17
The Immediate Response, 1960-1961 18
Counter insurgency Plan, 1961 20
Presidential Support 21
U.S. Buildup, 1961-1962 25
Establishment of the Military Assistance Command,
Vietnam 27
Years of Progress, 1962-1963 29
Years of Crisis, 1963^-1964 30
Training of the South Vietnamese Army, 1960-1964 . 33
Air Support 36
Role of the U.S. Army Special Forces 38
T he Civilian Irregular Defense G r o up P r o g r am . .. 4 0
Territorial Forces: Civil Guard and Self-Defense Corps 41
Civil Affairs 43
III. THE BUILDUP YEARS, 1965-1967 47
Background . • 47
Military Assistance Command Advisory Expansion . . 48
U.S. A r m y Special Forces Advisory P r o g r a ms . . .. 5 3
Financial Support 55
Manpower Resources 56
The Desertion Problem 60
Economic and Social Improvement 63
Force Structure Expansion 65
Limits of Expansion 67
Territorial Forces 71
The Civilian Irregular Defense Group 74
Chapter
Training and Leadership 75
Offshore Training 79
South Vietnam Schools 80
IV. VIETNAMIZATION, 1968-1972 85
Background 85
Mobilization 85
Force Structure 86
Desertions 91
Pay and Allowances 93
Veteran Affairs 94
Leadership 97
Materiel 100
Training Overview 103
School and Training Center Improvements 105
Combined Arms Training 109
Middle Management Training 110
Advanced Technical Training Ill
Pilot T r a i n i ng for the S o u th V i e t n am A ir Force . .. 1 12
On-the-Job Training 114
Combined Operations 117
Mobile Advisory Teams 119
V. OVERVIEW 123
General 123
Training Centers 123
Unit Training 126
Military Schools 126
Summary and Conclusions 127
Appendix
A. Major RVNAF Schools and Training Centers Existing at the
End of 1958 131
B. RVNAF Academies, Colleges, and Schools 132
C. RVNAF Training School Enrollments for 1970 150
D. Republic of Vietnam Armed Forces 151
GLOSSARY 153
INDEX 155
Maps
No.
1. Location of RVNAF Academies, Colleges, and Schools, 1969 . 81
2. Location of RVNAF Training Centers, December 1971 . . . 107
Illustrations
Page
U.S. Military Advisory Group Headquarters, Saigon 3
Civil Guard Basic Training Class 11
Officer Candidates Train at Thu Due 15
U.S. Army Adviser Trains at Battalion Level 25
U.S. Army Aviation Supports South Vietnamese Units . . . . 26
Lonely Outpost of Self-Defense Corps 31
CIDG Unit Training 41
New Territorial Recruits 57
Training at Phu Cat 77
Range Practice With New Ml6 Rifle 78
Cadets at Dalat 82
Rangers Defend Saigon, Tet 87
Instruction at Da Nang Vocational School 96
Maintenance Classes for New Equipment 103
Bridge Construction Training, Engineer School 112
Students at Vung Tau Signal School 113
Vietnamese Student Pilots, Ft. Stewart, Ga 114
Signal Training for Vietnamese 115
MAT Adviser Examines Homemade PF Mortar 121
South Vietnamese Armor in Cambodia 129
South Vietnamese Field Operation 130
AH illustrations are from Department of Defense files.
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