Gordon L. Rottman entered the US Army in 1967, volunteered for Special Forces and completed training as a weapons specialist. He served in the 5th Special Forces Group in Vietnam in 1969-70 and subsequently in airborne infantry, long-range patrol and intelligence assignments before retiring after 26 years. He was a Special Operations Forces scenario writer at the Joint Readiness Training Center for 12 years and is now a freelance writer, living in Texas.

The recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan have highlighted the plight of the ordinary soldier, and this interest has carried over to previous conflicts such as Vietnam.

Introduction: the Vietnamese environment, as it affected personal LBE - listing of 'Free World' (allied) forces which used US equipment in Vietnam. /Development: background and development of the US Army M1956 LBE. /M1956 Load Bearing Equipment - description and use of this most widely seen pattern. /M1967 Modernized Load Bearing Equipment, developed specifically in response to experience in Vietnam. /US Marine M1961 Load Carrying Equipment. /ANZAC web equipment - description of British and M1956 LBE copies used by Australian and New Zealand forces. /Special reconnaissance equipment - description and use of specialized equipment by MACV-SOG, Special Forces, and Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol units. /World War II & Korean War vintage equipment - as used mostly by South Vietnamese forces, but in some use by US forces. /Indigenous equipment - description and use of low-cost equipment for Vietnamese forces, provided by the CIA's Counterintelligence Support Office. /Life in the Boonies - use of the equipments in the field, as shaped by differing terrain, climate, evolving weapons and procedures, and personal preferences (covering, e.g., procedures for movement, bivouacking, preparing food, perimeter defense and security, outposts, ambushes, etc.) /Conclusion. /Select Bibliography.