Project 404
Encyclopedia
Project 404 was the code name
for a covert United States
Air Force advisory mission to Laos
during the later years of the Second Indochina War, which would eventually become known in the United States
as the Vietnam War
. The purpose of Project 404 was to supply the line crew technicians needed to support and train the Royal Laotian Air Force, while Raven Forward Air Controllers were brought in to supply piloting expertise and guidance for running a tactical air force. The two programs together comprised Palace Dog
.
Project 404 began in 1966, as a successor after the completion of Operation White Star
, was smaller in scope, and was an adjunct to the various covert ground operations succeeding White Star. Because Laos was ostensibly a neutral
party to the conflict between the United States and North Vietnam, the airmen did not wear United States Air Force
uniforms, but instead worked in civilian clothing.
Code name
A code name or cryptonym is a word or name used clandestinely to refer to another name or word. Code names are often used for military purposes, or in espionage...
for a covert United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Air Force advisory mission to Laos
Laos
Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
during the later years of the Second Indochina War, which would eventually become known in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
as the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
. The purpose of Project 404 was to supply the line crew technicians needed to support and train the Royal Laotian Air Force, while Raven Forward Air Controllers were brought in to supply piloting expertise and guidance for running a tactical air force. The two programs together comprised Palace Dog
Palace Dog
Palace Dog was a United States Air Force covert operation to support the Royal Laotian Government in its military operations during the Laotian Civil War portion of the Vietnam War. It, in tandem with the Raven FACs was partially—in fact, largely—responsible for Laos becoming the most heavily...
.
Project 404 began in 1966, as a successor after the completion of Operation White Star
Operation White Star
Operation White Star was the code name for a United States military advisory mission to Laos during the first years of the Second Indochina War, which would eventually become known in the United States as the Vietnam War...
, was smaller in scope, and was an adjunct to the various covert ground operations succeeding White Star. Because Laos was ostensibly a neutral
Neutrality (international relations)
A neutral power in a particular war is a sovereign state which declares itself to be neutral towards the belligerents. A non-belligerent state does not need to be neutral. The rights and duties of a neutral power are defined in Sections 5 and 13 of the Hague Convention of 1907...
party to the conflict between the United States and North Vietnam, the airmen did not wear United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
uniforms, but instead worked in civilian clothing.
See also
- Battle of Lima Site 85Battle of Lima Site 85The Battle of Lima Site 85, also called Battle of Phou Pha Thi, was fought as part of a military campaign waged during the Vietnam War and Laotian Civil War by the Vietnam People’s Army and the Pathet Lao, against airmen of the United States Air Force 1st Combat Evaluation Group, elements of the ...
- First Indochina WarFirst Indochina WarThe First Indochina War was fought in French Indochina from December 19, 1946, until August 1, 1954, between the French Union's French Far East...
- International Agreement on the Neutrality of LaosInternational Agreement on the Neutrality of LaosThe International Agreement on the Neutrality of Laos is an international agreement signed in Geneva on July 23, 1962 between 14 states and Laos...
- Laotian Civil War (also known as the Secret War)
- Operation White StarOperation White StarOperation White Star was the code name for a United States military advisory mission to Laos during the first years of the Second Indochina War, which would eventually become known in the United States as the Vietnam War...
- Ho Chi Minh TrailHo Chi Minh trailThe Ho Chi Minh trail was a logistical system that ran from the Democratic Republic of Vietnam to the Republic of Vietnam through the neighboring kingdoms of Laos and Cambodia...
- North Vietnamese invasion of LaosNorth Vietnamese invasion of LaosThe North Vietnamese invaded Laos between 1958–1959.Souvanna Phouma announced that with the holding of elections the Royal Lao Government had fulfilled the political obligations it had assumed at Geneva, and the International Control Commission adjourned sine die...
- Royal Lao ArmyRoyal Lao ArmyThe Royal Lao Army was the armed forces of the Kingdom of Laos. Its predecessor was the National Laotian Army - NLA of the French Union, created in 1947 from 'maquis', or guerrilla units gathered by French commandos. It was created in 1954 after the French granted Laos complete autonomy...
- Royal Lao Air ForceRoyal Lao Air ForceThe Royal Lao Air Force was the air force branch of the Military of the Royal Lao Government in the Kingdom of Laos. The RLAF, along with the Royal Lao Navy, and the Royal Lao Army, were placed under the control of the Ministry of Defense in Vientiane....
- Lieutenant ColonelLieutenant colonelLieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
Lee LueLee LueCaptain Lee Lue was a Laotian Hmong fighter bomber pilot notable for flying more combat missions than any other pilot in the Kingdom of Laos. Lee Lue flew continuously, as many as 10 missions a day and averaging 120 combat missions a month to build a total of more than 5,000 sorties... - Major GeneralMajor GeneralMajor general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
Vang PaoVang PaoVang Pao was a Lieutenant General in the Royal Lao Army. He was an ethnic Hmong and a leader of the Hmong American community in the United States.-Early life:... - Vang Sue
- William H. SullivanWilliam H. SullivanWilliam Healy Sullivan was an American Foreign Service career officer who served as Ambassador to Laos from 1964-1969, the Philippines from 1973-1977, and Iran from 1977-1979....
U.S. Ambassador - Vietnam WarVietnam WarThe Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
(aka the Second Indochina War)
External links
- Senate Committee on POWs: "Covert Operations"
- Air America, CAS, Project 404, etc. website
- Air America Association web site
- Online Archive Materials about Air America in the Vietnam Archive at Texas Tech
- Air America - Roll of honour and images.
- Air America by Christopher Robbins
- The Ravens, Pilots of the Secret War in Laos by Christopher Robbins
- Laos List (partial list of U.S. personnel in Laos)