Background As early as 1962, the need for a centralized U.S. logistical organization in
South Vietnam was foreseen by Commander U.S.
Military Assistance Advisory Group, Vietnam,
Lieutenant General Paul D. Harkins. The proposal was disapproved, however by Commander in Chief,
United States Army Pacific and
Commander in Chief Pacific, who felt that the requirement was not justified at that time. The idea was revived in August 1964 by the
Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV) J-4 (Logistics), who believed that the current and future situation would require a logistical command to support activities in South Vietnam. Accordingly, he saw that a plan was prepared which included the prompt introduction of a logistical construction capability. On 21 December 1964, the
Joint Chiefs of Staff endorsed the MACV plan and recommended that 230 men be initially dispatched to South Vietnam to form a logistical command as soon as possible.
Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara approved the plan in principle, but stated that additional justification was needed, particularly for the engineer construction group. However, he felt that the subject was of sufficient importance to send a special representative to South Vietnam and on 31 January 1965, a group from the Office of the Secretary of Defense arrived in
Saigon. After four days of conferences, this group recommended the establishment of a logistical command with an initial strength of 350 men. The establishment of an engineer construction group, not recommended initially, was approved in April as planning for a further buildup developed. ==Late 20th Century==