FOB-1 – Phu Bai

The adjacent Vietnamese  camp also contained an air strip.  which benefited SOG operations.  Construction was begun on the Phu Bai Camp in March, 1966 and was completed by July 1966 when Major Van Sickle assumed command of the camp.  

Five recon teams were formed to begin operations.  The teams were launched from two sites.  One Khe Sanh air strip which had been established by Major Charles W. Norton  Jr.  during June 1966 and called the forwarded operation base FOB-1 

The other was directly across the road from the base camp’s main gate and allowed launches into south Laotian targets areas which bordered and joined with Kontum’s “Shinning Brass” northern reconnaissance area. 

The “Shining Brass” areas for Phu Bai and Kontum overlapped in the vicinity of Ashau Calley and gave the camps a joint responsibility for conducting recon missions into the valley on a rotating basis. Ashu Valley (‘the valley of death”) swarmed with enemy activities and SOG missions were run into the valley to harass, interdict and disrupt the enemy’s movement and plans.   

The Khe Sanh launch site allowed access to the northern targets of “Shinning Brass” and camp’s launch site allowed launching into the southern areas which inter-meshed with Kontum’s northern recon areas. 

Over commitment of the recon teams was becoming a common problem and newly extracted teams found themselves faced with almost immediate reinsertion into the same target areas.  The over zealous, unrealistic demands  placed the commanders in a pressure situation and caused men to agree to be inserted without proper pre-reconnaissances preparation of planning. 

Newly arriving SOG volunteers quickly learned of SOG’S 80% casualty rate in recon operations and not to volunteer for duty at Phu Bai.  Phu Bia had become notorious for the loss of lives.  It was not an adventure to be in Phu Bai, but a trial for survival of the fittest.