Team Sergeant: A Special Forces NCO at Lang Vei and Beyond

by William T. Craig

TANKS IN THE WIRE! The son of a career enlisted man, Bill Craig was a hard-bitten Korean War veteran and Special Forces brawler. In Vietnam, they called his kind of soldier a snake-eater. Now here is... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0804117144
• ISBN13: 9780804117142
• Release Date: February 1998
• Publisher: Ballantine Books
• Length: 368 Pages
• Weight: 0.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 4.2" x 6.9"

Customer Reviews

Personal Accounts

I find that knowing about a person's background prior to going to Vietnam allows me to understand why they reactyed the way they did in Vietnam. If a person wants accounts of just Vietnam they should stay away from most books written one first person accounts or by those relating the stories of men who have been in Vietnam. I find if all you want is the action and the war you miss out on getting to know the people who were there. For Most people Vietnam was not just being in in combat every day. Vietnam had day to day routines and jobs. Not all of a person's time in Vietnam was about fighting, but about their lives in country. I found this book to tell a story about a soldier who lived a life of a soldier in Vietnam from how he got there, to training, to daily acticvities, and to battles. This book is like many other first hand accounts written about life in Vietnam. A story about the soldier who lived and fought in Vietnam

Team Sergeant Leads the Way!

Craig has written a true, first-hand account of how fragile life was for Green Berets at the A-Team level. He details the gruesome facts of his experience helping to defend Lang Vei against a superior, but less-determined force. He also exposes the inherent difficulties of coordinating the activities of two srvices (Army & Marines) living and fighting the same enemy. This heart-pounding, blood-running, action-packed thriller will blow your mind. It says a lot about what makes the magnificent NCO Corps tick. Without Craig and, of course, others like him, the losses in Vietnam would have been much greater. It takes a lot of guts to fight for your life and the lives of your comrades when, in doing so, you are exposing yourself to lethal weopons designed to rip your insides and put you at rest, forever. Craig did that. He is a true hero.In Team Sergeant, young soldiers are treated to an explosive account of how the NCO Corps best works. Craig helped his officers and his unit solve battlefield problems the old fashion way - with confrontation, integrity, selflessness, determination, the courage of a young lion and, oftentimes, with a cold beer. Craig did what needed to be done.Thanks, SGM Craig, for your service to our country. Welcome Home, brother.HARD TO FORGET Newport News, VA

A warrior of the first order!

Team Sergeant is a great book dealing not only with one man's struggle to survive when all around is crumbling but a revealing look at the life of a warrior NCO! Team Sergeant focuses on the little known battle of Lang Vei were armor was employed by the NVA for the first time during the Vietnam War. At the time, William Craig was an SFC and the Special Forces Team Sergeant of the ill fated outpost during the Tet offensive in 1968. He provides a great first person account of the battle and gives his personal commentary on all aspects of the NVA assault. He even provides insight into the Marines refusal to provide assistance when the outpost was all but overrun. Craig's story does not end with the death of Lang Vei and he goes on to detail his final years with the Army in the aftermath of Vietnam and the many accomplishments he can take credit for. Command Sergeant Major Craig is a true warrior in every sense of the word and deserves many thanks from his country.Finally, if you are interested in the real world of SF and the battle of Lang Vei, this is the book to read. I can save you time and money by saying don't waste your time by reading Night of the Silver Stars by William Phillips which professes to detail the battle of Lang Vei. His primary motives are only to try to justify the marines refusal to come to the aid of the SF personal at Lang Vei. Craig provides a real view of the events of that night, not William Phillips in Night of the Silver Stars who was a marine in Vietnam and his objectivity is conspicuously absent in the pages of his book.Team Sergeant is a great book about a great but little known warrior! I would salute you CSM Craig but NCOs don't salute one another. My greatest tribute to you would be to say I would follow you into battle anytime!