George Bacon (CIA officer)
George Bacon George Washington Bacon III | |
---|---|
Born | FNLA | August 4, 1946
Branch | United States Army Special Forces Central Intelligence Agency |
Years of service | 1966–1970 (Army) 1970–1975 (CIA) |
Unit | MACV-SOG |
Battles/wars | Vietnam War (WIA) Cambodian Civil War Laotian Civil War Angolan Civil War † |
Awards | Intelligence Star |
George Washington Bacon III (August 4, 1946 – 14 February 14, 1976) was an American soldier and intelligence officer. He served as a
Bacon is remembered as a talented eccentric whose hatred of communism was so great he disobeyed orders to refrain from combat while he served in Vietnam as a member of MACV-SOG. Although trained as a combat medic, he joined raids into Cambodia during Operation Menu.
Following discharge from the U.S. Army, Bacon spent time as a civilian before joining the
Vietnam
Bacon served in the
On 23 August 1968, he was at MACV-SOG's Command and Control North base to be considered for promotion. He was unfortunate enough to be napping directly in the path of an attacking force of
Because Bacon's medical training was considered too valuable to hazard, especially considering that MACV-SOG's casualty rate exceeded 100%, he was ordered to remain on base at the Command and Control North headquarters. Instead, outraged by denial of the chance to directly battle
United States
After discharge from the military, Bacon had difficulty reintegrating into civilian life. He alternated between working for the CIA, and an administrative position at
Laos
He then turned his military expertise to account as a case officer for the
Bacon was still only 24 years old. After completing training, the CIA shipped him off to the Kingdom of Laos to serve in the Laotian Civil War. He relieved Robert Burr Smith as the liaison to General Vang Pao, and quickly picked up Lao. At some point, he also learned Mandarin.[4][5]
Subsequently, he was assigned to be the regimental adviser to Groupe Mobile-24 on the
His roommate in Laos related some of Bacon's oddities. He stated that Bacon would strip naked at bedtime, then lie in his bunk through the night crunching crackers and reading obscure books and articles. He was notably a lone hand, though he got along with his fellow case officers.[6]
Angola
After serving his tour in Laos, Bacon left the Agency. Even though his efforts in Laos had earned an
It took Bacon a couple of tries to join the mercenaries being hired by the
On February 14, 1976, in a symbolic act of resistance, the mercenaries decided to block the MPLA's mechanized advance by blowing up a concrete highway bridge. Bacon, accompanied by several other mercenaries, mined the bridge for demolition before departing. They were fleeing the scene in a Land Rover when they ran into the rear stake-bed truck of an enemy column of dozens of vehicles. The Land Rover was riddled with enemy bullets before the soldiers of fortune could open fire. Before dying of multiple wounds, Bacon shoved fellow mercenary Gary Acker from the Land Rover.[2]
On February 26, 1976, the American Embassy in Kinshasa reported Bacon's death in action in Angola.
Legacy
George Bacon III's remains were never recovered. He is memorialized by a scholarship established by his family at
Notes
- ^ a b Prados 2006, p. 453.
- ^ a b c Murphy, Jack (24 May 2012). "MACV-SOG Operator, CIA Para-Military Officer, Mercenary, and Genius (Part 1)". SOFREP.
- ^ "Recon Team Sidewinder". Special Forces History. 10 May 2014. Archived from the original on 16 August 2016. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
- ^ a b c Murphy, Jack (26 May 2012). "MACV-SOG Operator, CIA Para-Military Officer, Mercenary, and Genius (Part 2)". SOFREP. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
- ^ a b c Murphy, Jack (28 May 2012). "MACV-SOG Operator, CIA Para-Military Officer, Mercenary, and Genius (Part 3)". SOFREP. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
- ^ Parker, pp. 49, 168–169.
- ^ a b Venter 2010, p. 238.
- ^ Murphy, Jack (29 May 2014). "MACV-SOG Operator, CIA Para-Military Officer, Mercenary, and Genius (Part 4)". SOFREF. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
- ^ "American Embassy message". National Archives. 4 May 2006. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
- ^ "Secretary of State message". National Archives. 4 May 2006. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
- ^ Venter 2010, p. 12.
- ^ "Secretary of State message of 16 July 1976". National Archives. 4 May 2006. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
- ^ "Secretary of State message of 19 July 1976". National Archives. 4 May 2006.
- ^ "Secretary of State message of 20 August 1976". National Archives. 4 May 2006. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
- ^ "George Bacon Memorial Scholarship". MeritAid. 2014. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
References
- Parker, James E. Jr. (1995). Covert Ops: The CIA's Secret War in Laos. St. Martin's Press. ISBN 978-0312963408.
- Prados, John (2006). Safe for Democracy: The Secret Wars of the CIA. Ivan R. Dee. ISBN 1615780114.
- Venter, Al J. (2010). War Dog: Fighting Other People's Wars: The Modern Mercenary in Combat. Lancer Publishers. ISBN 978-8170621744.
Further reading
- Harsch, Ernest, and Tony Thomas. (1976) Angola: The Hidden History of Washington's War. Pathfinder Press. ISBN 0873484622.