Khmer Special Forces
Encyclopedia
The Khmer Special Forces, also designated 'Khmer SF' for short or Forces Speciales Khmères (FSK) in French
, were the elite Special Operations
unit of the Khmer National Armed Forces
(commonly known by their French
acronym, FANK) during the 1970-75 Cambodian Civil War
.
, when the 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) was organized at Phnom Penh
under the command of then–Lieutenant-Colonel Thach Reng. Two other Special Forces groups, the 2nd Special Forces Group (Airborne) and the 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne) were activated the following year.
Under the auspices of Operation Freedom Runner – a Khmer National Armed Forces
training program set up in November 1971
by the United States Special Forces (USSF) – Khmer Special Forces teams began to be sent to South Vietnam to attend Parachute training at the ARVN Airborne Training Center in Long Thanh
, and the Special Forces’ course at the Army of the Republic of Vietnam Special Forces
(LLDB) Dong Ba Thin Training Center. The training course was run by a training cadre manned by the US Special Forces Detachment B-51. The course was modeled on the USSF/LLDB own training programs; the course began with four weeks of basic Special Forces skills followed by specialized training in one of six special forces skill sets: operations and intelligence
, demolition
s, light weapons, heavy weapons, radio communications, or medical. Other advanced additional courses included psychological warfare
, political warfare
, anti-tank warfare
, and martial arts
. A two-week ‘live-fire’ field exercise, sometimes complemented by a field operation against NVA/VC forces in the surrounding areas of the training center, completed the Special Forces course.
More specialised Special Forces training was carried out in the United States and Thailand
after December 1972. Khmer Special Forces trainees attended technical courses administered by the 5th Special Forces Group at Fort Bragg, North Carolina
, and courses at the Royal Thai Army (RTA) Special Warfare Center at Ft. Narai, Lopburi province
administered by the US 46th Special Forces Company; additional Guerrilla and ‘Commando
’ skills were taught by instructors from the Royal Thai Army Special Forces (RTSF) and Royal Thai Police
Police Aerial Resupply Unit
(PARU) at the latter’s Phitsanulok
training camp. Advanced Ranger
/Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol
and radio communications’ courses also began taking place by early 1973 at the Military Assistance Command Vietnam (MACV) Recondo School at Nha Trang
, South Vietnam, manned by the US Special Forces Detachment B-36, and at the Royal Thai Army Recondo School co-located at Ft. Narai, Thailand, before Operation Freedom Runner concluded in July of that year.
(LLDB). The Khmer Special Forces were organized in July 1973 into one separate Headquarter ‘C’ Detachment, along with three ‘B’ Detachments and 18 ‘A’ Detachments organized into three Special Forces Groups (SFGs). Unlike an American A-Team however, Khmer SF ‘A’ Detachments could field up to 15 men, the additional personnel being psychological warfare
specialists. They were structured as follows:
to deep-penetration raids, pathfinding
, and reinforcement duties. In the special forces’ unconventional training role, they also raised paramilitary
self-defense village militias in rural areas situated behind enemy lines, as well as training airfield security battalions for the Khmer Air Force (KAF). In addition, the Khmer Special Forces provided LRRP instructors for the FANK Recondo School at Battambang which first opened in 1972.
and North Vietnamese Army (NVA) light artillery teams, who were harassing the quarters of the Cambodian capital with 122mm rocket and 75mm recoilless rifle
fire .
In September 1973, the Khmer Special Forces spearheaded the combined FANK-MNK
amphibious operation to retake the provincial capital of Kampong Cham, which had been stormed by Khmer Rouge
forces in August. Just prior to the assault, two ‘A’ Detachments were inserted by helicopter into the insurgent-held southern quarter of the city and used LAW
rockets to neutralize an enemy stronghold. The role of the Khmer Special Forces teams at the Siege of Kampong Cham was not limited to combat assignments however; their radio operators also assisted coordinating the Khmer Air Force in carrying out successfully aerial resupply drops on behalf of FANK ground units defending the retaken city.
This coordinating role was again resumed on June-July 1974 during the siege of the district capital of Kampong Seila in Koh Kong Province
, located some 135 km (84 Miles) south-west of Phnom Penh, down Route 4
. At the time, this small town and its beleguered Government garrison were enduring a record eight-month long siege by Khmer Rouge force, with the local civilian population already suffering from starvation. Deviating from the Cambodian Army’s standard communications procedures, the garrison made desperate radio appeals to Phnom Penh for relief, a fact that arouse suspicions in the FANK High Command. Fearing that Government relief forces were being lured into a trap, it was decided to send first observers to assess the situation at Kampong Seila and to verify the loyalty of the garrison. After two unsuccessful attempts, a Khmer Special Forces team was heli-lifted into the town and after confirming the reports, aerial ressuply operations were sanctioned to alleviate the starvation and allow the Army garrison to hold out against further insurgent pressure.
, the bulk of the Khmer Special Forces under Brig. Gen. Thach Reng were withdrawn to Phnom Penh to assist in its defense. Two teams secured the National Stadium, in the Cércle Sportif Complex, where seven KAF UH-1H
transport helicopters were being kept to evacuate key members of the government.
On the morning of April 17, 1975, after supervising the heliborne evacuation of only a handful of top officials and their families from the improvised helipad at the National Stadium (three of the helicopters had to be abandoned due to technical malfunctions), Brig. Gen. Reng and his subordinates planned a massive breakout by land to the south-east towards the South Vietnamese border. Although the Khmer Special Forces escape force managed to sneak out across the southern suburbs of the capital, they never reached the border and were all presumed killed in action.
The remaining Khmer Special Forces teams defending the last government-held holdouts at Battambang, including the teaching staff of the Recondo School, and Siem Reap reportedly tried to escape in small groups to Thailand by treeking across hostile territory.
Only a handful of Special Forces personnel managed to evade enemy patrols and reach the Thai-Cambodian border; the rest was either killed in action or captured and sent to the Khmer Rouge-run labour camps (also known as “The Killing Fields
”), where they died after enduring the terrible working and living conditions during the late 1970s.
when he visited his villa on the coastal city of Kampong Som.
assault rifles that allowed Special Forces personnel to use ammunition retrieved from enemy caches while on operations.
FN GP35
Pistols Colt.45 M1911
Pistols Smith & Wesson Model 39 Revolvers TT-33
Pistols Type 56 Assault rifle Type 56-1 Assault rifle AKM
Assault rifle M16A1
Assault rifle CAR-15
Assault carbine Ithaca Model 37
pump-action shotguns RPD
Light machine gun Type 56 LMG Light machine gun M60
General purpose machine gun RPG-2
Rocket-propelled grenade RPG-7
Rocket-propelled grenade M72 LAW
Anti-tank rocket launcher M79
Grenade launcher M203
Grenade launcher M29 mortar
M18 Claymore anti-personnel mines
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, were the elite Special Operations
Special operations
Special operations are military operations that are considered "special" .Special operations are typically performed independently or in conjunction with conventional military operations. The primary goal is to achieve a political or military objective where a conventional force requirement does...
unit of the Khmer National Armed Forces
Khmer National Armed Forces
The Khmer National Armed Forces , often abbreviated to FANK, were the official armed defense forces of the Khmer Republic, a short-lived state that existed from 1970 to 1975, known today as Cambodia...
(commonly known by their French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
acronym, FANK) during the 1970-75 Cambodian Civil War
Cambodian Civil War
The Cambodian Civil War was a conflict that pitted the forces of the Communist Party of Kampuchea and their allies the Democratic Republic of Vietnam and the Viet Cong against the government forces of Cambodia , which were supported by the United States and the Republic of Vietnam The Cambodian...
.
Origins
The history of the Khmer Special Forces began in October 1971October 1971
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in October 1971: -October 1, 1971 :*Walt Disney World opens in Orlando, Florida....
, when the 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) was organized at Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh is the capital and largest city of Cambodia. Located on the banks of the Mekong River, Phnom Penh has been the national capital since the French colonized Cambodia, and has grown to become the nation's center of economic and industrial activities, as well as the center of security,...
under the command of then–Lieutenant-Colonel Thach Reng. Two other Special Forces groups, the 2nd Special Forces Group (Airborne) and the 3rd Special Forces Group (Airborne) were activated the following year.
Under the auspices of Operation Freedom Runner – a Khmer National Armed Forces
Khmer National Armed Forces
The Khmer National Armed Forces , often abbreviated to FANK, were the official armed defense forces of the Khmer Republic, a short-lived state that existed from 1970 to 1975, known today as Cambodia...
training program set up in November 1971
November 1971
January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – DecemberThe following events occurred in November 1971. -November 1, 1971 :*The Toronto Sun begins publication...
by the United States Special Forces (USSF) – Khmer Special Forces teams began to be sent to South Vietnam to attend Parachute training at the ARVN Airborne Training Center in Long Thanh
Long Thanh
Long Thanh is a district of Dong Nai Province in the Southeast region of Vietnam.As of 2003 the district had a population of 204,793. The district covers an area of 535 km². The district capital lies at Long Thanh Town....
, and the Special Forces’ course at the Army of the Republic of Vietnam Special Forces
Army of the Republic of Vietnam Special Forces
The Army of the Republic of Vietnam Special Forces were the elite military units of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam . Following the establishment of the Republic of Vietnam in October 1955, the Special Forces were formed at Nha Trang in February 1956...
(LLDB) Dong Ba Thin Training Center. The training course was run by a training cadre manned by the US Special Forces Detachment B-51. The course was modeled on the USSF/LLDB own training programs; the course began with four weeks of basic Special Forces skills followed by specialized training in one of six special forces skill sets: operations and intelligence
Intelligence
Intelligence has been defined in different ways, including the abilities for abstract thought, understanding, communication, reasoning, learning, planning, emotional intelligence and problem solving....
, demolition
Demolition
Demolition is the tearing-down of buildings and other structures, the opposite of construction. Demolition contrasts with deconstruction, which involves taking a building apart while carefully preserving valuable elements for re-use....
s, light weapons, heavy weapons, radio communications, or medical. Other advanced additional courses included psychological warfare
Psychological warfare
Psychological warfare , or the basic aspects of modern psychological operations , have been known by many other names or terms, including Psy Ops, Political Warfare, “Hearts and Minds,” and Propaganda...
, political warfare
Political warfare
Political warfare is the use of political means to compel an opponent to do one's will, based on hostile intent. The term political describes the calculated interaction between one's government and a target audience to include another country's government, military, and/or general population...
, anti-tank warfare
Anti-tank warfare
Anti-tank warfare was created by the need to seek technology and tactics to destroy tanks and their supporting infantry during the First World War...
, and martial arts
Martial arts
Martial arts are extensive systems of codified practices and traditions of combat, practiced for a variety of reasons, including self-defense, competition, physical health and fitness, as well as mental and spiritual development....
. A two-week ‘live-fire’ field exercise, sometimes complemented by a field operation against NVA/VC forces in the surrounding areas of the training center, completed the Special Forces course.
More specialised Special Forces training was carried out in the United States and Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
after December 1972. Khmer Special Forces trainees attended technical courses administered by the 5th Special Forces Group at Fort Bragg, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, and courses at the Royal Thai Army (RTA) Special Warfare Center at Ft. Narai, Lopburi province
Lopburi Province
Lop Buri is one of the central provinces of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are Phetchabun, Chaiyaphum, Nakhon Ratchasima, Saraburi, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya, Ang Thong, Sing Buri and Nakhon Sawan.-Geography:...
administered by the US 46th Special Forces Company; additional Guerrilla and ‘Commando
Commando
In English, the term commando means a specific kind of individual soldier or military unit. In contemporary usage, commando usually means elite light infantry and/or special operations forces units, specializing in amphibious landings, parachuting, rappelling and similar techniques, to conduct and...
’ skills were taught by instructors from the Royal Thai Army Special Forces (RTSF) and Royal Thai Police
Royal Thai Police
The Royal Thai Police are the national police of Thailand.-About:Primary responsibility for the maintenance of public order through enforcement of the kingdom's laws was exercised by the Thailand National Police Department , a subdivision of the Ministry of Interior...
Police Aerial Resupply Unit
Naresuan 261 Counter-Terrorism Unit
-History:Special Operations Unit "Naraesuan 261" was set up in 1983, Buddhist year 2526, by a Thai Cabinet Resolution. The Resolution, dated February 1, 2526 , was a major policy decision designed to provide a force for counter-terrorism efforts....
(PARU) at the latter’s Phitsanulok
Phitsanulok
Phitsanulok is an important and historic city in lower northern Thailand and is the capital of Phitsanulok Province, which stretches all the way to the Laotian border. Phitsanulok is one of the oldest cities in Thailand, founded over 600 years ago...
training camp. Advanced Ranger
Ranger
-Law enforcement:* Arizona Rangers* California State Rangers* Colorado Mounted Rangers* Council ranger, a type of officer in Australia* Newfoundland Rangers* New Mexico Rangers* Pakistan Rangers, a Pakistani paramilitary force* Texas Ranger Division...
/Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol
Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol
Long Range Reconnaissance Patrols, or LRRPs , were special small four to six-man teams in the Vietnam War on highly dangerous special reconnaissance missions deep into enemy territory....
and radio communications’ courses also began taking place by early 1973 at the Military Assistance Command Vietnam (MACV) Recondo School at Nha Trang
Nha Trang
Nha Trang is a coastal city and capital of Khanh Hoa province, on the South Central Coast of Vietnam. It is bounded on the North by Ninh Hoà district, on the East by the South China Sea, on the South by Cam Ranh town and on the West by Diên Khánh district...
, South Vietnam, manned by the US Special Forces Detachment B-36, and at the Royal Thai Army Recondo School co-located at Ft. Narai, Thailand, before Operation Freedom Runner concluded in July of that year.
Structure and organization
The Khmer Special Forces were closely modelled after the United States Special Forces (USSF) and the South Vietnamese Army of the Republic of Vietnam Special ForcesArmy of the Republic of Vietnam Special Forces
The Army of the Republic of Vietnam Special Forces were the elite military units of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam . Following the establishment of the Republic of Vietnam in October 1955, the Special Forces were formed at Nha Trang in February 1956...
(LLDB). The Khmer Special Forces were organized in July 1973 into one separate Headquarter ‘C’ Detachment, along with three ‘B’ Detachments and 18 ‘A’ Detachments organized into three Special Forces Groups (SFGs). Unlike an American A-Team however, Khmer SF ‘A’ Detachments could field up to 15 men, the additional personnel being psychological warfare
Psychological warfare
Psychological warfare , or the basic aspects of modern psychological operations , have been known by many other names or terms, including Psy Ops, Political Warfare, “Hearts and Minds,” and Propaganda...
specialists. They were structured as follows:
- The 33-man ‘C’ Detachment, which comprised three 25-man HQ ‘B’ Detachments sub-divided into five 15-man ‘A’ Detachments, was allocated at the Cambodian capital and served as Headquarters for the Khmer Special Forces Command.
- The 1st Special Forces Group, was composed of one 25-man ‘B’ Detachment and six 15-man ‘A’ Detachments (A-111, A-112, A-113, A-114, A-115, A-116) deployed in Battambang provinceBattambang ProvinceBattambang is a province in northwestern Cambodia. It is bordered to the North with Banteay Meanchey, to the West with Thailand, and to the East and South with Pursat. The capital of the province is the city of Battambang. The name, meaning 'lost staff', refers to the legend of Preah Bat Dambang...
.
- The 2nd Special Forces Group, comprising the B-12 Detachment and six ‘A’ Detachments (A-121, A-122, A-123, A-124, A-125, A-126) was stationed in Phnom PenhPhnom PenhPhnom Penh is the capital and largest city of Cambodia. Located on the banks of the Mekong River, Phnom Penh has been the national capital since the French colonized Cambodia, and has grown to become the nation's center of economic and industrial activities, as well as the center of security,...
.
- The 3rd Special Forces Group, composed of the B-13 Detachment and six ‘A’ Detachments (A-131, A-132, A-133, A-134, A-135, A-136). The 3rd SFG was given responsibility for operations around the capital, along the lower MekongMekongThe Mekong is a river that runs through China, Burma, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. It is the world's 10th-longest river and the 7th-longest in Asia. Its estimated length is , and it drains an area of , discharging of water annually....
-Bassac riverBassac RiverThe Bassac River is a distributary of the Tonle Sap and Mekong River. The river starts in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, and flows southerly, crossing the border into Vietnam near Châu Đốc....
corridors, and the coastline.
Khmer Special Forces’ missions
The missions performed by the Khmer Special Forces during the war were many and varied, ranging from long-range strategic and tactical reconnaissanceReconnaissance
Reconnaissance is the military term for exploring beyond the area occupied by friendly forces to gain information about enemy forces or features of the environment....
to deep-penetration raids, pathfinding
Pathfinding
Pathfinding generally refers to the plotting, by a computer application, of the shortest route between two points. It is a more practical variant on solving mazes...
, and reinforcement duties. In the special forces’ unconventional training role, they also raised paramilitary
Paramilitary
A paramilitary is a force whose function and organization are similar to those of a professional military, but which is not considered part of a state's formal armed forces....
self-defense village militias in rural areas situated behind enemy lines, as well as training airfield security battalions for the Khmer Air Force (KAF). In addition, the Khmer Special Forces provided LRRP instructors for the FANK Recondo School at Battambang which first opened in 1972.
Combat operations 1971-74
Besides unconventional warfare and training operations, the Khmer Special Forces were also engaged on some notable combat operations in support of FANK regular troops. The first true combat assignment of the Khmer Special Forces occurred in May 1972, when they participated in a search-and-destroy operation alongside Army units around Phnom Penh to clear its northern outskirts of Khmer RougeKhmer Rouge
The Khmer Rouge literally translated as Red Cambodians was the name given to the followers of the Communist Party of Kampuchea, who were the ruling party in Cambodia from 1975 to 1979, led by Pol Pot, Nuon Chea, Ieng Sary, Son Sen and Khieu Samphan...
and North Vietnamese Army (NVA) light artillery teams, who were harassing the quarters of the Cambodian capital with 122mm rocket and 75mm recoilless rifle
Recoilless rifle
A recoilless rifle or recoilless gun is a lightweight weapon that fires a heavier projectile than would be practical to fire from a recoiling weapon of comparable size. Technically, only devices that use a rifled barrel are recoilless rifles. Smoothbore variants are recoilless guns...
fire .
In September 1973, the Khmer Special Forces spearheaded the combined FANK-MNK
Khmer National Armed Forces
The Khmer National Armed Forces , often abbreviated to FANK, were the official armed defense forces of the Khmer Republic, a short-lived state that existed from 1970 to 1975, known today as Cambodia...
amphibious operation to retake the provincial capital of Kampong Cham, which had been stormed by Khmer Rouge
Khmer Rouge
The Khmer Rouge literally translated as Red Cambodians was the name given to the followers of the Communist Party of Kampuchea, who were the ruling party in Cambodia from 1975 to 1979, led by Pol Pot, Nuon Chea, Ieng Sary, Son Sen and Khieu Samphan...
forces in August. Just prior to the assault, two ‘A’ Detachments were inserted by helicopter into the insurgent-held southern quarter of the city and used LAW
Anti-tank warfare
Anti-tank warfare was created by the need to seek technology and tactics to destroy tanks and their supporting infantry during the First World War...
rockets to neutralize an enemy stronghold. The role of the Khmer Special Forces teams at the Siege of Kampong Cham was not limited to combat assignments however; their radio operators also assisted coordinating the Khmer Air Force in carrying out successfully aerial resupply drops on behalf of FANK ground units defending the retaken city.
This coordinating role was again resumed on June-July 1974 during the siege of the district capital of Kampong Seila in Koh Kong Province
Koh Kong Province
Koh Kong is a province of Cambodia. The name means "Kŏng Island Province". Its capital is Koh Kong.-Geography:The most south-western province of Cambodia, Koh Kong has a long undeveloped coastline and a mountainous, forested and largely inaccessible interior which embraces part of the Cardamom...
, located some 135 km (84 Miles) south-west of Phnom Penh, down Route 4
National Highway 4 (Cambodia)
National Highway 4 or National Road No.4 is one of the national highways of Cambodia. With a length of , it connects the capital of Phnom Penh with Sihanoukville in the south-west. Sihanoukville is the only sea international port of Cambodia. In consequence, NH4 is one of the most important...
. At the time, this small town and its beleguered Government garrison were enduring a record eight-month long siege by Khmer Rouge force, with the local civilian population already suffering from starvation. Deviating from the Cambodian Army’s standard communications procedures, the garrison made desperate radio appeals to Phnom Penh for relief, a fact that arouse suspicions in the FANK High Command. Fearing that Government relief forces were being lured into a trap, it was decided to send first observers to assess the situation at Kampong Seila and to verify the loyalty of the garrison. After two unsuccessful attempts, a Khmer Special Forces team was heli-lifted into the town and after confirming the reports, aerial ressuply operations were sanctioned to alleviate the starvation and allow the Army garrison to hold out against further insurgent pressure.
The final days 1974-75
By March 1975 with all land and river routes leading to Phnom Penh cut, the Khmer Rouge began their final assault on the Cambodian capital. Aside from three ‘A’ Detachments operating in Battambang and two in Siem ReapSiem Reap
Siem Reap is the capital city of Siem Reap Province in northwestern Cambodia, and is the gateway to Angkor region.Siem Reap has colonial and Chinese-style architecture in the Old French Quarter, and around the Old Market...
, the bulk of the Khmer Special Forces under Brig. Gen. Thach Reng were withdrawn to Phnom Penh to assist in its defense. Two teams secured the National Stadium, in the Cércle Sportif Complex, where seven KAF UH-1H
UH-1 Iroquois
The Bell UH-1 Iroquois is a military helicopter powered by a single, turboshaft engine, with a two-bladed main rotor and tail rotor. The helicopter was developed by Bell Helicopter to meet the United States Army's requirement for a medical evacuation and utility helicopter in 1952, and first flew...
transport helicopters were being kept to evacuate key members of the government.
On the morning of April 17, 1975, after supervising the heliborne evacuation of only a handful of top officials and their families from the improvised helipad at the National Stadium (three of the helicopters had to be abandoned due to technical malfunctions), Brig. Gen. Reng and his subordinates planned a massive breakout by land to the south-east towards the South Vietnamese border. Although the Khmer Special Forces escape force managed to sneak out across the southern suburbs of the capital, they never reached the border and were all presumed killed in action.
The remaining Khmer Special Forces teams defending the last government-held holdouts at Battambang, including the teaching staff of the Recondo School, and Siem Reap reportedly tried to escape in small groups to Thailand by treeking across hostile territory.
Only a handful of Special Forces personnel managed to evade enemy patrols and reach the Thai-Cambodian border; the rest was either killed in action or captured and sent to the Khmer Rouge-run labour camps (also known as “The Killing Fields
The Killing Fields
The Killing Fields are a number of sites in Cambodia where large numbers of people were killed and buried by the Khmer Rouge regime, during its rule of the country from 1975 to 1979, immediately after the end of the Cambodian Civil War ....
”), where they died after enduring the terrible working and living conditions during the late 1970s.
Controversy
A highly capable and well-trained force, unfortunately the Khmer Special Forces remained too small to make a strategic difference in the war. Casualties and manpower shortages affected their tactical deployment which rarely matched the proposed organization, with many ‘A’ Detachments actually falling below strength. Khmer Special Forces personnel often found themselves being employed in unsuitable tasks to which they had not been trained – in reality, many FANK regional commanders misused them as conventional shock troops on many occasions, such as the sieges and subsequent battles of Kampong Cham and Kampong Seila in 1973-74. Furthermore, a large portion of 2nd Special Forces Group’s personnel were siphoned off to protect Phnom Penh from the threat of internal coups d’état, while two more ‘A’ Detachments from the 3rd SFG were assigned security duties as a VIP protection squad for President Lon NolLon Nol
Lon Nol was a Cambodian politician and general who served as Prime Minister of Cambodia twice, as well as serving repeatedly as Defense Minister...
when he visited his villa on the coastal city of Kampong Som.
Weapons and equipment
The Khmer Special Forces used the standard weaponry and equipment of US origin issued to FANK units, complemented by captured Soviet or Chinese small-arms such as AK-47AK-47
The AK-47 is a selective-fire, gas-operated 7.62×39mm assault rifle, first developed in the Soviet Union by Mikhail Kalashnikov. It is officially known as Avtomat Kalashnikova . It is also known as a Kalashnikov, an "AK", or in Russian slang, Kalash.Design work on the AK-47 began in the last year...
assault rifles that allowed Special Forces personnel to use ammunition retrieved from enemy caches while on operations.
FN GP35
Browning Hi-Power
The Browning Hi-Power is a single-action, 9 mm semi-automatic handgun. It is based on a design by American firearms inventor John Browning, and completed by Dieudonné Saive at Fabrique Nationale of Herstal, Belgium. Browning died in 1926, several years before the design was finalized...
Pistols Colt.45 M1911
M1911
The M1911 is a single-action, semi-automatic, magazine-fed, and recoil-operated handgun chambered for the .45 ACP cartridge. John M. Browning designed the firearm which was the standard-issue side arm for the United States armed forces from 1911 to 1985. The M1911 is still carried by some U.S....
Pistols Smith & Wesson Model 39 Revolvers TT-33
TT-33
The TT-30 is a Russian semi-automatic pistol. It was developed in the early 1930s by Fedor Tokarev as a service pistol for the Soviet military to replace the Nagant M1895 revolver that had been in use since tsarist times, though it never fully replaced the M1895.-Development:In 1930, the...
Pistols Type 56 Assault rifle Type 56-1 Assault rifle AKM
AKM
The AKM is a 7.62mm assault rifle designed by Mikhail Kalashnikov. It is an upgraded version of the AK-47 rifle and was developed in the 1950s....
Assault rifle M16A1
M16 rifle
The M16 is the United States military designation for the AR-15 rifle adapted for both semi-automatic and full-automatic fire. Colt purchased the rights to the AR-15 from ArmaLite, and currently uses that designation only for semi-automatic versions of the rifle. The M16 fires the 5.56×45mm NATO...
Assault rifle CAR-15
CAR-15
The Colt Automatic Rifle-15 Military Weapons System or CAR-15 was a family of AR-15 and M16 rifle–based firearms marketed by Colt in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Due to their compact size, the short-barreled Colt Commando and XM177 versions of this family continued to be issued to the U.S...
Assault carbine Ithaca Model 37
Ithaca 37
The Ithaca 37 is a pump-action shotgun made in large numbers for the civilian, military, and police markets. It utilizes a novel combination ejection/loading port on the bottom of the gun which leaves the sides closed to the elements. In addition, the outline of the gun is clean...
pump-action shotguns RPD
RPD
The RPD is a 7.62mm light machine gun developed in the Soviet Union by Vasily Degtyaryov for the intermediate 7.62x39mm M43 cartridge. It was created as a replacement for the DP machine gun chambered for the 7.62x54mmR Mosin rifle round...
Light machine gun Type 56 LMG Light machine gun M60
M60 machine gun
The M60 is a family of American general-purpose machine guns firing 7.62×51mm NATO cartridges from a disintegrating belt of M13 links...
General purpose machine gun RPG-2
RPG-2
The RPG-2 was the first rocket-propelled grenade launcher designed in the Soviet Union.-Development:The RPG-2 , was a man-portable, shoulder-launched rocket-propelled grenade anti-armor weapon...
Rocket-propelled grenade RPG-7
RPG-7
The RPG-7 is a widely-produced, portable, unguided, shoulder-launched, anti-tank rocket-propelled grenade launcher. Originally the RPG-7 and its predecessor, the RPG-2, were designed by the Soviet Union, and now manufactured by the Bazalt company...
Rocket-propelled grenade M72 LAW
M72 LAW
The M72 LAW is a portable one-shot 66 mm unguided anti-tank weapon, designed in the United States by Paul V. Choate, Charles B. Weeks, and Frank A. Spinale et al...
Anti-tank rocket launcher M79
M79 grenade launcher
The M79 grenade launcher is a single-shot, shoulder-fired, break-action grenade launcher that fires a 40x46mm grenade which used what the US Army called the High-Low Propulsion System to keep recoil forces low, and first appeared during the Vietnam War...
Grenade launcher M203
M203 grenade launcher
The M203 is a single shot 40 mm grenade launcher designed to attach to a rifle. It uses the same rounds as the older M79 break-action grenade launcher, which utilize the High-Low Propulsion System to keep recoil forces low. Though versatile, and compatible with many rifle models, the M203 was...
Grenade launcher M29 mortar
M29 Mortar
The M29 is a United States produced 81 millimeter calibre mortar. It began replacing the M1 Mortar in U.S. service in 1952 being lighter and with greater range. It was replaced by the M252 Mortar in 1984...
M18 Claymore anti-personnel mines
See also
- Cambodian Civil WarCambodian Civil WarThe Cambodian Civil War was a conflict that pitted the forces of the Communist Party of Kampuchea and their allies the Democratic Republic of Vietnam and the Viet Cong against the government forces of Cambodia , which were supported by the United States and the Republic of Vietnam The Cambodian...
- Cambodian Navy SEALsCambodian Navy SEALsThe Cambodian Navy SEALs were the main elite Maritime Special Operations Force of the National Khmer Navy during the 1970-75 Cambodian Civil War.-Origins:...
- Khmer KromKhmer KromThe Khmer Krom are Khmer people living in the Mekong Delta and the Lower Mekong River area. Under the Khmer Rouge regime- according to the conservative estimates are that 150,000. Under the rule of Vietnam from 1979-93, Cambodia may have lost 20,000 Khmer Krom...
- Khmer National Armed ForcesKhmer National Armed ForcesThe Khmer National Armed Forces , often abbreviated to FANK, were the official armed defense forces of the Khmer Republic, a short-lived state that existed from 1970 to 1975, known today as Cambodia...
- Khmer RougeKhmer RougeThe Khmer Rouge literally translated as Red Cambodians was the name given to the followers of the Communist Party of Kampuchea, who were the ruling party in Cambodia from 1975 to 1979, led by Pol Pot, Nuon Chea, Ieng Sary, Son Sen and Khieu Samphan...
- Khmer SereiKhmer SereiThe Khmer Serei, or "Free Khmer", were an anti-communist and anti-monarchist guerrilla force founded by Cambodian nationalist Son Ngoc Thanh.-Origin:...
- kopassusKopassusKopassus is an Indonesian Army special forces group that conducts special operations missions for the Indonesian government, such as direct action, unconventional warfare, sabotage, counter-insurgency, counter-terrorism, and intelligence gathering.Kopassus was founded on April 16, 1952...
- LLDBArmy of the Republic of Vietnam Special ForcesThe Army of the Republic of Vietnam Special Forces were the elite military units of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam . Following the establishment of the Republic of Vietnam in October 1955, the Special Forces were formed at Nha Trang in February 1956...
- Police Aerial Resupply UnitNaresuan 261 Counter-Terrorism Unit-History:Special Operations Unit "Naraesuan 261" was set up in 1983, Buddhist year 2526, by a Thai Cabinet Resolution. The Resolution, dated February 1, 2526 , was a major policy decision designed to provide a force for counter-terrorism efforts....
- Royal Thai Army Special Forces
- United States Special Forces
- 911 Special Forces911 Special ForcesThe 911 Para-Commando Battalion is a Royal Cambodian Army special forces unit based west of Phnom Penh. Most of the battalion graduated from the Indonesian army's special force's Commando Training, Kopassus, so the 911 is very similar to the Kopassus; even they also wear the same red beret,...
External links
- http://www.camopedia.org/index.php?title=Cambodia – Cambodian comuflage patterns 1953-1975.
- http://camouflageindex.camouflagesociety.org/index.asp – list of Khmer SF comuflage patterns 1971-75.