Franklin D.Miller spent 6 years running recon missions in VN,most of that with the 5th Special Forces "Studies and Observations" group known as MACV-SOG. At some time,I am unsure when exactly,it became known as the "Special Operations Group". SOG operated in Laos,Cambodia,and North Vietnam,running reconnaissance,POW "snatch" missions,booby-trapping NVA ammo dumps,calling in air strikes on troop movements,etc,etc,etc.
https://www.amazon.com/Reflections-Warrior-Years-Green-Vietnam-ebook/dp/B0018AKD3U/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=reflections+of+a+warrior&qid=1611862855&sr=8-1They did this with zero recognition. They didn't even wear US uniforms,didn't carry dog tags,or Army ID cards,and for a long time,didn't even carry US weapons. This was to insure the US diplomats could claim no US troops were in NVN,Cambodia,or Laos. If caught,the US would deny knowing who we were or knowing anything about us,and we could be executed as spies. We had NO protections under the Geneva Convention.
EVERYBODY who ran SOG missions was a volunteer,and could quit at any time they wanted and get re-assigned to a regular SF command with nothing negative written in their record. There were a number of people I know of who volunteered,but quit right after the briefing and were sent back to the SFOB for re-assignment the next day.
The only exception to this was if you had already been briefed for a mission and were waiting to be inserted. Once briefed,you went. You could quit the day you got back,but you went on that mission.
To this very day there has not been one single report of any MIA SOG members being reported by the North Vietnamese who were in control of the sections of Laos and Cambodia where we operated. The NV deny any knowledge of remains or POW's,despite the US having copies of radio messages mentioning them at the time of their capture or . Because of this,none of their remains have ever been found and returned to their families for burial.
I met Miller by accident his first day at the SFOB at Nha Trang. He had just reported in,and hadn't received an assignment yet. We got to talking and he told me he his intention was to stay in VN until he had earned a Medal of Honor. I didn't know him from Adam,and thought he was funny,so I suggested he volunteer for SOG "because that's where all the action is." When he asked me about it,I told him I couldn't tell him anything about it,and neither would anyone else until he reported in for the initial briefing,when he would be allowed to withdraw his assignment request and be returned to the SFOB for re-assignment.
Little did I know at the time he was dead serious,and totally fearless. O r that he would actually end up being awarded a MoH. Guys in SOG had a hard time getting MOH's because of the write-up for the valor award. It has to state where the action took place,and our valor awards usually had language like "in the vicinity of.....",and if possible mentioned a US unit that happened to be in combat that day and hinted it was in support of that regular army unit. That worked ok for most valor awards,but approval got picker the higher it went up the awards and decorations approval list. They always got approved or disapproved by senior officers who had no freaking idea about what had went on. Some guys didn't get the MoH until decades later. Roy Benevidez is one of them. He had already retired from the army before someone decided to take another look at his actions,and by that time everybody knew the actions took place in Cambodia,not SVN.
If you follow the link it will lead you to the amazon page where the book is reviewed and sold,and can read the reviews. All profits from the book go to his children.
Be aware,if you are looking for a book filled with blood and gore,this ain't it. Yeah,there is some in the last chapters that are about the mission where he lost a lung and won the MoH,but the rest is mostly a humorous look at daily life in SOG,the people he worked with and knew,some of the things they did,and some of the things he did. He really was a very funny guy.
Needless to say,I recommend it for anyone interested in the VN war,the army at war,or history.
