New Books Examine Mayaguez,Pacific War Mystery, the Cold War

摘要

The 14-hour war: Valor on Koh Tang and the Recapture of the SS Mayaguez By James E. Wise Jr. and Scott Baron. Annapolis, Md.: Naval Institute Press, 2011. 320 pp. $34.95 ISBN: 978-1-59114-974-3 The hijack of the SS Mayaguez by Khmer Rouge forces in May 1975, just after the fall of Cambodia and South Vietnam, set off a rescue effort that returned the ship and 39 crew members to freedom but cost the lives of 41 U.S. Marines and airmen and resulted in the loss of four helicopters. The heroism of the Marines as they fought a defensive action, and of the Air Force helicopter crews who evacuated them, saved the day from a more costly ending. The heart of this book is the first-person accounts from a range of participants in the action, which was marked by intelligence failures and micromanagement.