There are legends, and then there is Maj. Richard Meadows.
He enlisted in the Army in 1946 at age 15. He first saw combat as a paratrooper in Korea and was, by age 20, the youngest Master Sergeant in the Army at that time.
In 1953, he passed SF Selection and 7 years later, became one of the first Americans to participate the SAS exchange program. He completed SAS training, was an acting troop leader for 12 months, and participated in a field combat operation with his unit.
During Vietnam, he became a MAC V SOG member, running clandestine operations deep into Laos and North Vietnam. He was also a TL during the famous Son Tay raid which consisted of rescuing POWs deep behind enemy lines.
By the 1970s, he was a key part in the founding of Delta Force and participated in the Iranian Hostage rescue mission in 1980.
He received several medals for valor including the DSC, Silver Stars and more. Many in the SF community said that if the contents of Meadows' military record been disclosed, he would have been awarded the Medal of Honor several times.
The majority of Meadows' covert roles in Vietnam working with the CIA's Special Activities Division remain undisclosed to this day.
He died of leukemia in 1995.#macvsog #slayer #stayzero #zerofoxtrot