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    United States Military Transport Operations in Thailand 1966: 1975
    United States Military Transport Operations in Thailand 1966: 1975
    United States Military Transport Operations in Thailand 1966: 1975
    Ebook180 pages1 hour

    United States Military Transport Operations in Thailand 1966: 1975

    By Joseph J Wilson, Jr

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    About this ebook

    This is a fact-based look at the composition of the battalion, its assigned missions and how those missions were carried out in support of U.S. military operations out of Thai based units against communist forces in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia.The U.S. Army's 519th Transportation Battalion (TRUCK) was the only U.S. military line-haul trucking unit in Thailand during the Vietnam War in Southeast Asia from 1966 until 1971, and during the military phase-down transportation companies continued operating in Thailand until 1975.This is a must read for military history buffs of all ages.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherJoseph J Wilson, Jr
    Release dateDec 28, 2017
    ISBN9781370772056
    United States Military Transport Operations in Thailand 1966: 1975
    Author

    Joseph J Wilson, Jr

    I am a retired US Army transportation sergeant and amateur military historian. I love to travel to Southeast Asia and explore Thailand away from the tourist spots.

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      Book preview

      United States Military Transport Operations in Thailand 1966 - Joseph J Wilson, Jr

      United States Army Motor Transport Operations in Thailand 1966 - 1971

      Published by Joseph J. Wilson, Jr. at Smashwords

      Copyright 2018 Joseph J. Wilson, Jr.

      Smashwords Edition

      Visit my Smashwords author page at https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jjwilsonjr

      Discover other titles by Joseph J. Wilson, Jr.:

      Adrift in the Panama Canal

      The World According to Peter Pickle & Peter Pickle Goes To Camp

      U. S. Army Engineers in Thailand 1962 - 1971

      Smashwords Edition, License Notes

      Thank you for downloading this ebook. This book remains the copyrighted property of the author, and may not be redistributed to others for commercial or non-commercial purposes. If you enjoyed this book, please encourage your friends to download their own copy from their favorite authorized retailer. Thank you for your support.

      PART ONE

      1966 – 1968

      Lieutenant Colonel Gerald R. Gillie U.S. Army (Retired)

      1934 - 2017

      UNITED STATES MILITARY

      MOTOR TRANSPORT OPERATIONS

      IN

      THAILAND

      1966 – 1968

      A TERM PAPER

      PRESENTED TO

      THE FACULTY OF THE

      U.S. ARMY LOGISTICS MANAGEMENT CENTER

      IN PARTIAL FULFULLMENT

      OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR

      THE ARMY LOGISTICS MANAGEMENT COURSE

      BY

      MAJOR GERALD R. GILLIE

      MAY 1969

      CLASS 69-3

      BOX # 1530

      PREFACE

      From May 1966 to December 1967, I was assigned to the 519th Transportation Battalion as the Operations Officer.  Within only a few months after reporting to this newly activated battalion, I recognized that it was destined for success because it possessed the essential conditions and resources upon which success is dependent. Although I have worked in a half dozen other organizations that successfully accomplished their mission, they were mediocre in comparison. The euphoria of success stayed with me throughout this 18 month assignment, and at the conclusion of that tour, I could unequivocally declare that it was the most satisfying and professionally rewarding experience of my military career.

      Since then, I have often reflected upon that experience and tried to analyze it to determine what principles of military management could be derived there from and used to insure successful organizations in future assignments. I also wondered in a pessimistic sense, how long the success would last, and what problems would cause the demise of the battalion?

      This term paper gives me the welcomed opportunity to seriously analyze the success and problems of the 519th and to put the analysis in print for the benefit of others, particularly my comrade officers in the Transportation Corps, who hopefully will find some useful ideas for their future assignments.

      A comparison between the 519th Transportation Battalion in Thailand with similar battalions in Vietnam would be difficult to make because the 519th did not operate under combat conditions. Therefore, I do not arrogate any glory to the 519th in deference to the courageous truck units in Vietnam. However, I believe this battalion displayed the high quality that would have made it compare favorably with other truck battalions in Europe, Korea, and CONUS.

      Since this term paper is a labor of love, I solicit the reader’s indulgence in its length, particularly if the reader is a member of the ALMC faculty.

      The Author

      TABLE OF CONTENTS

      CHAPTER TITLE

      FRONTSPIECE

      PREFACE

      TABLE OF CONTENTS

      1-INTRODUCTION

      2-THE ELEMENTS OF SUCCESS

      Battalion History and Espirit De Corps

      Dispersed Stationing and Unit Morale

      Organization, Missions and Motivation

      Leadership Climate and Proficiency

      3-THE UNIQUE OPERATING CONDITIONS AND PROBLEMS

      Line of Communications and Road Net

      Local National Truck Drivers

      Augmentation to a Commercial Carrier

      Customer Relations

      Location of the Battalion Headquarters

      4-CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

      5-FUTURE PROBLEMS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

      BIBLIOGRAPHY

      ANNEXES

      A.-USARSUPTHAI and Command Relationships

      B.-9th Logistical Command Organization Chart

      C.-519th Transportation Battalion Organization Chart

      D.-Thailand Road Net

      E.-Roles and Missions of the 519th

      F.-Comparison of Short Ton Workload

      G.-Mileage Workload

      H.-Special Workloads

      I.-Mileage Table

      J.-Battalion Distinctive Insignia

      K.-Local National Authorization

      CHAPTER 1

      INTRODUCTION

      This term paper discusses the salient features of U. S. military motor transport operations conducted by the 519th Transportation Battalion (Truck) in Thailand during 1967 and 1968. Firstly, the circumstances which made this battalion particularly successful are described and analyzed. Secondly, the unique operating conditions and problems encountered by the battalion are discussed and evaluated. Thirdly and finally, some conclusions are made about the current problems and some anticipated problems for each of which specific recommendations are offered in resolution.

      The 519th Transportation Battalion is the only U. S. Army trucking organization in Thailand where it plays an active role in strengthening the defense of Southeast Asia and in supporting U. S. Air Force units which are engaged in the Vietnam conflict.

      The success of the battalion was assured by a variety of circumstances. The history of the 519th reveals the tradition of outstanding professional accomplishment from which its personnel developed a high degree of esprit de corps. The varied organization, the varied and unprecedented missions, and unit dispersion gave battalion personnel the motivating challenges and opportunities for personal growth. The aggregate leadership at nearly all levels created a climate conducive to maximum productivity.

      The battalion operates under unique conditions which present a variety of problems. First, the length of the Line of Communications (LOC) is over 600 miles and the total road net over which the battalion’s trucks must travel to supply scattered units is in excess of 1,700 miles. These distances are considerably greater than like units have encountered in other countries. The drivers must operate their vehicles on the left side of the highway as in Japan or England. Because the U. S. Army trucks have left hand drive, the driver is at a disadvantage amidst the seemingly reckless stream of commercial and civilian traffic. Therefore, safety must be continually stressed. Second, five of the six line companies are organized as Type B units. Therefore, approximately 50% of the total personnel are civilians hired from the indigenous population. Naturally, the normal problems of communication are compounded by the language barrier. Third, the battalion is primarily utilized as an augmentation to the singular Thai Government-owned commercial trucking monopoly under contract to the U. S. Government. Whenever the contractor fails to provide the promised number of trucks, the 519th must rush to the rescue, particularly for port clearance operations. Fourth, consignors and consignees have been particularly inept or uncooperative in performing their responsibilities to properly load, block and brace or lash, document, and unload their shipments. Too often, the truck driver performs these functions just to get the job done. Fifth and last, the battalion headquarters has not been stationed at locations from which it could most efficiently control its operations and service its major customers.

      These current problems can be resolved or minimized by specific recommended action at the appropriate level of command. In addition, the future possibilities of open conflict in Thailand or the de-escalation of the Vietnam effort and subsequent withdrawal of U. S. forces are considered in relation to the battalion’s role. Further recommendations are offered for these anticipated problems.

      CHAPTER 2

      THE ELEMENTS OF SUCCESS

      BATTALION HISTORY AND ESPRIT DE CORPS

      The 519th Transportation Battalion (Truck) was most recently activated at Fort George G. Meade, Maryland on 20 May 1966 for the purpose of being deployed to Southeast Asia as soon as it had completed its provisioning and training. The battalion’s officer and no-commissioned cadre came primarily from troop units in Germany which units were being depleted for the Vietnam build-up. Most of the lower grade enlisted filler personnel were impressionable youths fresh from Advanced Individual Training, and a few were castoffs from other units. Therefore, as individuals all were establishing new interpersonal relationships; and as an unproven team, we were creating a functioning organization where before none existed.

      Creating an organization is significantly different from joining an operating organization. We neither had to inherit someone else’s mistakes, nor did we have the benefit of any established system from which to build. We had only ourselves to accredit for any success or failure achieved.

      Yet, like orphaned children who wonder about their unknown parents, so did we wonder about our parent organization. Did it have a previous existence? Did it have a past that we could point to with pride, something for us to live up to, or was it a nonentity? We were pleased to learn from the Heraldry Office several months later that our battalion had seen action during World War II.

      Originally activated as a Port Battalion on 25 June 1943, the 519th hit the beach at Normandy on 7 June 1944. For this and other action in France, the battalion was

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