Kit Carson Scouts
| Kit Carson Scouts | |
|---|---|
| Lực Lượng 66 | |
A "Tiger Scout", as the Kit Carsons were called in the U.S. 9th Infantry Division, firing an M60 machine gun | |
| Active | 1966–1972 |
| Country | South Vietnam |
| Allegiance | United States, Australia, South Korea, Thailand |
| Type | Scouts |
| Role | Anti-guerrilla warfare Artillery observer Clandestine operation Counterinsurgency Direct action HUMINT Jungle warfare Long-range penetration Raiding Reconnaissance Special reconnaissance Tracking |
| Size | ~2,300 (peak strength) |
| Engagements | Vietnam War |
The Kit Carson Scouts (also known as Tiger Scouts or Lực Lượng 66) belonged to a special program initially created by the United States Marine Corps (USMC) during the Vietnam War involving the use of former Viet Cong (VC) and People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) personnel as anti-guerrilla forces, clandestine operation, combat patrol, and intelligence scouts for American infantry units. VC and PAVN combatants who defected and became aligned with the South Vietnamese government were known as Hồi Chánh, a term loosely translated as "members who have returned to the righteous side". Only a very small number of these Hồi Chánh were selected, trained, and deployed with the USMC and later also other American and Allied (non-Vietnamese) infantry units between 1966 and 1972.