Rescue in the Valley of the Tigers: A Green Beret’s inspiring story of daring, courage, and selflessness — Vietnam 1968

"Rescue in the Valley of the Tigers" describes the evolution of a young American from carefree college student to seasoned military adviser in South Vietnam at the height of the war in 1968. Seasoned by his experiences and inspired by courageous and selfless men and women he met along the way, at age twenty-two, Tom Ross was called upon to lead a daring rescue mission deep into enemy territory. After three brave mountain villagers escaped the enemy captors, who had enslaved and abused them for years, they made their way to one of Special Forces Detachment A-502's isolated outposts. There, the American advisers at the outpost placed an urgent call to A-502's Operations and Intelligence officer, 1st Lieutenant Tom Ross. Reaching the outpost, the lead villager, Mang Quang, begged the young lieutenant for help in rescuing his family and the other families held hostage. Responding to the villager's passionate plea for help, Tom planned and led a rescue team deep into enemy territory and the remote mountain jungle of Vietnam. Flown to the village by the 281st Assault Helicopter Company and guided by Mang Quang, mist was still rising from a steamy jungle when the team launched a blazing attack early the next morning. Before the mission was complete, Tom and his small remaining team would become cut off and stranded. Rescue of Tom and his team would fall to others who would risk their lives to save his. On August 13, 1968, Walter Cronkite reported the story of the rescue on the CBS Evening News. 165 men, women and children had been freed as a result of the daring and extremely dangerous rescue mission in - the Valley of the Tigers.