In February 1971, the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) launched an incursion into Laos in an attempt to cut the Ho Chi Minh Trail and destroy North Vietnamese Army (NVA) base areas along the border. US ground forces would support the operation from within South Vietnam and would pave the way to the border for ARVN troops, and US air support would cover the South Vietnamese forces once they entered Laos, but the South Vietnamese forces would attack on the ground alone.

The operation, dubbed Lam Son 719, went very well for the first few days, but as movement became bogged down the NVA rushed reinforcements to the battle and the ARVN forces found themselves under heavy attack. US airpower wreaked havoc on the North Vietnamese troops, but the South Vietnamese never regained momentum and ultimately began to withdraw back into their own country under heavy enemy pressure.

In this first in-depth study of this operation, military historian and Vietnam veteran James H. Willbanks traces the details of battle, analyzes what went wrong, and suggests insights into the difficulties currently being incurred with the training of indigenous forces.

The book is published by Texas A&M University Press. The audiobook will be published by University Press Audiobooks.

"This is a well-written and informative book. A good read for those interested in the Vietnam War." (Military)

"Successfully combines policy and operational history in a comprehensive and definitive account of a controversial military campaign… a worthy addition to the literature on the Vietnam War." (The Journal of American History)

“A stand out work, one that will be of great importance in the world of professional academic historians and will be of great interest to a broader military history readership.” (Andrew A. Wiest, author of Vietnam's Forgotten Army: Heroism and Betrayal in the ARVN)