I have been enjoying your photographs of Phu Mu and environs. I was posted to Savannakhet, Laos in November 1969, departed in November 1971.
I’m sure you remember the TRC-24 microwave shot to “ TEXAS ” across the Mekong at Savannakhet. That was only one of the ‘end-users’. I was under Pacific Engineering cover and was a communications officer for the CIA on that side of the river. One of my responsibilities was the operation and maintenance of the TRC-24 link we used for our RTTY circuit through Phu Mu. 

The other use of this link was the feed from AFRS Radio, which I rigged for low-level rebroadcast on our side of the river. The ability to receive the FM rebroadcast in Savannakhetwas of great enjoyment to us expats until somebody found the signal and told me to desist. From then on I would activate the signal periodically instead of having it up 24/7. My supervision told me to just go ahead, but it became a political issue to a degree.

Unfortunately, and for obvious reasons I don’t have any pictures of the site and the equipment. Wish I did, because this was about the most intense two years of my life! I have many other pictures and slides of other details, but none of the site which we called Camp Naseng. This was the headquarters of the CIA Unit, logistics base and training hqs. Outside of Savannakhetwe serviced a training camp Special Guerilla Unit (SGU) for training local troops and teams.

I found your site while researching the TRC-24 equipment, without, I add, with much success. There are few pictures of the gear, more pics of the antennas.

Anyway, I thought you might be interested in what was happening at the other end of one of the TRC links. I never had the opportunity to visit Phu Mu, but I talked to operators there whenever there were link outages or other maintenance issues.

It is kind of interesting to ‘fill in the blanks’ on some of this. I am now retired, living in Calaveras Country in California . In many respects we are brothers in arms. I still belong to the Air American Association, and when I can, I attend their annual reunion. I am also a member of China Post 1 of the American Legion.

Charles E .”Chuck” Farr