This presentation of In Their Own Words is brought to you by the Honor Project and is dedicated to the brave men and women of the United States Armed Forces.

The United States Armed Forces The Studies The Studies

The Studies and Observations Group, commonly referred to as SOG, was an innocuous name given to a very deadly program.

Even within the military, SOG was a well-kept secret.

This covert Joint Service Task Force conducted reconnaissance and acts of guerrilla sabotage behind enemy lines.

The six-man teams operated primarily in Cambodia and Laos.

They were comprised of American soldiers and specially recruited indigenous mountain natives of Southeast Asia.

J.D. Bath was a SOG communication specialist.

Well, I just finished a one-year tour in the Special Forces Training Group at Fort Bragg.

And upon completion, I went into a company, E Company 3rd of the 7th, and went over,

I was there probably five months and received orders to go to Vietnam. And we went into fifth group up in

Danang and from there we were sent to Camduck. From there they moved us down to

two different regions that was into Khantum and to fubi and I ended up on team Nevada working as a commo-man

yeah the teams at that time were named after states and contum and it was called the F-O-B.

Then it was later changed to CC Central.

But I went to work for a master sergeant named Reno, Nevada, his team name.

And we went into training, I guess, I'd been climatizing and training with him,

learning the hand and arm signals that we use, the radio procedure and what have you. And

they were targeted for a mission, and because I'm the young man there, and I didn't have

much time on the ground, They told me to stay back.

So I went over and worked the combo bunker.

They went in, went on the ground and found a dry hole.

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