An old gentleman was talking to me in the pub the other night. He had certainly had a few pints. His story was not of much substance but interesting for its claim. Supposedly he was in the SAS in Malaya around 1953/4. He, and other SAS members were flown from Singapore to Saigon at the time of the fall of Dien Bien Phu. This, as some will know,is at the time of France's Indo China War and well before any USA involvement with the Republic of Vietnam. Whatever the reason for their presence it came to nothing.No action was, as far as he knew ,taken. Dien Bien Phu fell and they were removed back to Singapore. I often get nobbled by people who wish to tell me their life stories. I must have a kind face.Does anyone know / heard /suspect anything about this.The fact that things were in a shambles could have meant extraction of something or someone important to British interests I suppose. Anyway I put it before you hoping it is more than a mixed up memory of an old man.
There was a British mission that visited the French @ Dien Bien Phu, before the Viet Minh siege started. I would assume their role was advisory, drawing on our colonial experience, notably in Malaya then undergoing 'The Emergency'. So a SAS detachment being present is not a surprise. The USA had a far bigger role at the time, indeed there was a proposal to use nuclear weapons at one point.
Found my reference for the British mission. It is an American book: 'Dien Bien Phu: The Epic Battle America Forgot' by Howard E. Simpson. See: https://www.amazon.com/Dien-Bien-Ph...Dien+Bien+Phu:+The+Epic+Battle+America+Forgot Given the US practice of revealing UK secrets it might be worth a peek.
This is I think the mot appropriate thread for a pointer to a book published in 2015 in the USA Britain and the Wars in Vietnam: The Supply of Troops, Arms and Intelligence by Gerald Prendergast, a UK-based author. Link to publisher: Britain and the Wars in Vietnam – McFarland Via Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Britain-Wars-Vietnam-Intelligence-1945-1975/dp/0786499249 A preview of the opening 26 pgs is available via Google Books: Britain and the Wars in Vietnam