Facing the Khmer Rouge | Maj. Gen. Ken Bowra

Major General (Ret) Kenneth R. Bowra was commissioned a regular Army officer and assigned as Airborne Rifle Platoon leader in the 82nd Airborne Division after graduating as a Distinguished Military Student from The Citadel in 1970. After completing Special Forces training, he was deployed to the Republic of Vietnam, serving as a “One Zero,” (reconnaissance team leader) for RT Idaho and RT Sidewinder in MACV-Studies and Observations Group (SOG) Combat and Control North. He later served as an advisor to the Cambodian Infantry Battalions in the US Army Vietnam Individual Training Group (UITG)/Forces Armee Nationale Khmer (FANK) training program. As an A-Team executive officer and commander, he trained, advised, and conducted combat operations with Cambodian troops. He returned to Cambodia in 1974, this time assigned to the Military Equipment Delivery Team Cambodia, after serving as ODA Commander of a HALO and SADM team in Company A, 3rd Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne)(5th SFG(A)) at Fort Bragg, NC. He remained in Cambodia until the fall of the Khmer Republic in April, 1975. Major General Bowra retired from the U.S. Army with over 33 years of service on 1 October 2003. Timeline: 00:00:00 Introduction and Background of FANK training program 00:01:18 Long Hai Training Battalion, the training regime 00:03:57 Weapons and Equipment 00:07:02 Easter offensive 00:08:14 Differences between Cambodian and ARVN doctrine 00:09:35 Support assets 00:10:41 Thoughts about the chances for FANK 00:13:10 The Khmer Rouge were ruthless 00:14:00 The Killing Fields 00:15:50 Liberation by the NVA 00:17:01 Combat operations with FANK 00:22:12 Tracking the enemy 00:23:18 Cultural differences between Cambodians and other Indig troops 00:24:50 Phantoms on the payroll - corruption in FANK units 00:27:20 Capabilities of FANK units 00:27:52 A successful training regime 00:29:07 American support for FANK units in Cambodia - MEDTC 00:31:23 Surrounded enclaves, the end approaches 00:32:18 The aftermath of Operation Eagle Pull - the fate of friends after the fall 00:34:41 The letter from Jill 00:36:18 Harry and Jill surviving the Killing Fields 00:38:00 What could have been done differently? 00:41:40 Finish