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Hark-1
Operation Hardnose was a Central Intelligence Agency-run espionage operation spying upon the Ho Chi Minh trail that began during the Laotian Civil War. Started in Summer 1963, it soon attracted the attention of the U.S. Secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara. By December 1963, he was calling for its expansion. Operation Hardnose expanded and continued to report on the Ho Chi Minh trail even as American military intelligence activities mounted against the communist supply artery. In an attempt to adapt technology for use by illiterate Lao Theung, some of the U.S. Air Force's survival radios were modified by the CIA for use by their spies. By 1968, Operation Hardnose was being marginalized by use of other intelligence systems, such as air- and ground-based electronic sensors. Also, with the advent of the AC-130 Spectre gunship, which both generated its own targets as well as struck them, there was little use for Hardnose spotting enemy vehicles. Hardnose faded into insignificance aft ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Laotian Civil War
The Laotian Civil War was waged between the Communist Pathet Lao and the Royal Lao Government from 23 May 1959 to 2 December 1975. The Kingdom of Laos was a covert Theatre (warfare), theater during the Vietnam War with both sides receiving heavy external support in a proxy war between the global Cold War superpowers. The fighting also involved the People's Army of Vietnam, North Vietnamese, Army of the Republic of Vietnam, South Vietnamese, Military Assistance Command Vietnam, American and Royal Thai Armed Forces, Thai armies, both directly and through irregular proxies. The war is known as the Secret War among the American Special Activities Center, CIA Special Activities Center, and Hmong people, Hmong and Iu Mien people, Mien veterans of the conflict. The Franco–Lao Treaty of Amity and Association (signed 23 October 1953) transferred remaining French powers to the Royal Lao Government (except control of military affairs), establishing Laos as an independent member of the Fre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Survival Radio
Survival radios are carried by pilots and search and rescue teams to facilitate rescue in an emergency. They are generally designed to transmit on international distress frequencies. Maritime systems have been standardized under the Global Maritime Distress Safety System. Civil and military organisations utilized different frequencies to communicate and no infringement on either sector would take place. For emergencies involving civilian aircraft, the radio frequency used is VHF 121.5 MHz and for military aircraft incidents, the frequency used is UHF 243 MHz. History The use of radio to aid in rescuing survivors of accidents at sea came to the forefront after the sinking of the RMS ''Titanic'' in 1912. Lifeboats were equipped with spark gap transmitters such as the Marconi Type 241, c. 1920. These operated using Morse code on 500 kHz, the international distress frequency at the time. This frequency had the advantage of long range due to ground-wave propagation and was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
People's Army Of Vietnam
The People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN), officially the Vietnam People's Army (VPA; , , ), also recognized as the Vietnamese Army (), the People's Army () or colloquially the Troops ( ), is the national Military, military force of the Vietnam, Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the armed wing of the ruling Communist Party of Vietnam, Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV). The PAVN is the backbone component of the Vietnam People's Armed Forces and includes: Ground Force, Vietnam People's Navy, Navy, Vietnam People's Air Force, Air Force, Vietnam Border Guard, Border Guard and Vietnam Coast Guard, Coast Guard. Vietnam does not have a separate and formally-structured Ground Force or Army service. Instead, all ground troops, army corps, military districts and special forces are designated under the umbrella term combined arms () and belong to the Ministry of Defence (Vietnam), Ministry of National Defence, directly under the command of the Central Military Commission (Vietnam), CPV Central ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Salavan (city)
Salavan (, ) is the capital of Salavan Province in southern Laos. It is a provincial district. It is 125 km from Pakse on a partially paved road. Geography Salavan is in the southernmost area of Lao. The city is in a forested area. Dozens of indigenous villages of tribes surround Salavan. Climate Culture Salavan's local culture is influenced by the Lao Loum, lowland Lao who form the majority of the population of the city and country, and hill tribe and former colonial French cultures. Salavan has a "frontier town"-like feel because of the dearth of settlements outside the city. References {{Districts of South Laos Populated places in Salavan Province ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bolaven Plateau
The Bolaven Plateau is an elevated region in southern Laos. Most of the plateau is located within Champasak Province of Laos, though the edges of the plateau are also located in Salavan, Sekong and Attapeu Provinces. It is located between the Annamite Range, along which runs Laos' eastern border with Vietnam, and the Mekong River to the west, at about . The plateau's elevation ranges approximately from above sea level. The plateau is crossed by several rivers and has many scenic waterfalls. The name Bolaven makes reference to the Laven ethnic group which has historically dominated the region. However, domestic migrations by the Lao ethnic group (which comprises approximately 50 to 60 percent of the population of Laos) has resulted in widespread interethnic marriage, thus modifying the ethnic composition of the region. Historical significance The Bolaven Plateau has had an important role in the greater history of Laos. The three most significant historical periods which ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Phitsanulok
Phitsanulok (, ) is a city municipality in northern Thailand and the capital of Phitsanulok province. It had a city population of 60,827 and an urban population of approximately 200,000 in 2024, making it Thailand's 19th-most populous city proper and one of the major urban centers in the northern region. Located in the geographic center of the province, it occupies the fertile plains along the banks of the Nan River, which flows south to join the Chao Phraya River. Phitsanulok was founded in the 11th century as a small Khmer outpost called ''Song Khwae'' (). The city served as the second capital of various kingdoms on several occasions; during the late Sukhothai Kingdom, and during the Ayutthaya Kingdom under King Borommatrailokanat, who resided in the city to defend against the Lanna Kingdom. He unified the western and eastern Song Khwae settlements and renamed them "Phitsanulok". Due to its strategic importance as Ayutthaya's northern outpost, the city frequently faced ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Operation Pincushion
Operation Pincushion was a covert training program for hill tribe recruits to become guerrilla soldiers during the Laotian Civil War. Run by United States Special Forces and funded by the Central Intelligence Agency, it trained 12 companies of irregulars in southern Laos between December 1961 and September 1962. These guerrilla forces were near the Ho Chi Minh Trail, and intended to secure the Royal Lao Government's hold on the Bolovens Plateau. Although copied from the CIA's Operation Momentum, the Green Berets' training program ran with limited success, due to cultural influences in the recruits' backgrounds. The adoption of the International Agreement on the Neutrality of Laos in July 1962 doomed Operation Pincushion, as it called for withdrawal of all foreign troops from the Kingdom of Laos by October of the same year. Pincushion training ended 14 September 1962 and the Green Beret trainers then withdrew from Laos. Background The Kingdom of Laos emerged from the First ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pakse
Pakse (or ''Pakxe''; French: ''Paksé''; Laotian: ປາກເຊ 'mouth of the river') is the capital and most populous city of the southern Laotian province of Champasak. Located at the confluence of the Xe Don and Mekong Rivers, the district had a population of approximately 77,900 at the 2015 Laotian census. History The French established an administrative outpost in Pakse in 1905. The city was the capital of the Lao Kingdom of Champasak until 1946 when the Kingdom of Laos was formed. After the Franco-Thai war the French ceded Preah Vihear Province, formerly belonging to the French protectorate of Cambodia, and the part of Champasak Province located on the other side of the Mekong river from Pakse, which had been part of Laos, to Thailand. Demographics In 1943, 62% of the population of Pakse were Vietnamese.Stuart-Fox, Martin (1997). A History of Laos'. Cambridge University Press, p. 51. . Today, Pakse is a centre of the Laotian Chinese community, with a large numb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Navy Base
The Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Navy Base (NKP), formerly Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Air Force Base, is a Royal Thai Navy facility used for riverine patrols along the Mekong River. It is approximately northeast of Bangkok, west of Nakhon Phanom city in Nakhon Phanom Province in the northeastern region of Thailand, and from Hanoi in Vietnam. The Mekong River is NKP's border with Laos. The airfield at NKP is jointly used as a civilian airport. History Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Navy Base was established in the 1950s as a RTAF base. The civil war inside Laos and fears of it spreading into Thailand led the Thai government to allow the United States to covertly use five Thai bases beginning in 1961 for the air defence of Thailand and to fly reconnaissance flights over Laos. Under Thailand's "gentleman's agreement" with the United States, Royal Thai Air Force Bases used by the USAF were considered Royal Thai Air Force bases and were commanded by Thai officers. Thai air police contro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Geneva Conference (1954)
The Geneva Conference was intended to settle outstanding issues resulting from the Korean War and the First Indochina War and involved several nations. It took place in Geneva, Switzerland, from 26 April to 20 July 1954. The part of the conference on the Korean question ended without adopting any declarations or proposals and so is generally considered less relevant. On the other hand, the Geneva Accords that dealt with the dismantling of French Indochina proved to have long-lasting repercussions. The crumbling of the French colonial empire in Southeast Asia led to the formation of the states of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam), the State of Vietnam (precursor of the future Republic of Vietnam, or South Vietnam), the Kingdom of Cambodia, and the Kingdom of Laos. Three agreements about French Indochina, covering Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam, were signed on 21 July 1954 and took effect two days later. Diplomats from South Korea, North Korea, the People's ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Royal Lao Government
The Royal Lao Government was the ruling authority in the Kingdom of Laos from 1947 until the communist seizure of power in December 1975 and the proclamation of the Lao People's Democratic Republic. The Franco-Lao Treaty of 1953 gave Laos full independence but the following years were marked by a rivalry between the neutralists under Prince Souvanna Phouma, the right wing under Prince Boun Oum of Champassak, and the left-wing, Lao Patriotic Front under Prince Souphanouvong and future Prime Minister Kaysone Phomvihane Kaysone Phomvihane (''Kraisorn Brahmavihara;'' , ; 13 December 1920 – 21 November 1992) was the first General Secretary of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party, leader of the Communist Lao People's Revolutionary Party from 1955 until his de .... During this period, a number of unsuccessful attempts were made to establish coalition governments. Notable members of the RLG *Prince Souphantharangsi – the secretary general of the royal palace and brother ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Democratic Republic Of Vietnam
North Vietnam, officially the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV; ; VNDCCH), was a country in Southeast Asia from 1945 to 1976, with sovereignty fully recognized in 1954. A member of the communist Eastern Bloc, it opposed the French-supported State of Vietnam and later the Western-allied Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam). The DRV invaded Saigon in 1975 and ceased to exist the following year when it merged with the south to become the current Socialist Republic of Vietnam. During the August Revolution following World War II, Vietnamese communist revolutionary Hồ Chí Minh, leader of the Việt Minh Front, declared independence on 2 September 1945 and proclaimed the creation of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. The Việt Minh (formally the "League for the Independence of Vietnam"), led by communists, socialists, nationalists and even progressive elements of the landowning class was created in 1941 and designed to appeal to a wider population than the Indochin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
