From 1960 to 1962 he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and served as Military Attaché to the Royal Lao Embassy in Washington D.C. He was again promoted to colonel in 1962 and served as Chief of the Special Cabinet (Military Affairs) of the Ministry of Defense until 1964. From 1964 to 1966, he was appointed Chief Logistics Officer of the
Royal Lao Army in Vientiane. Col. Bounleut attempted a coup on 31 January 1965, with
Phoumi Nosavan attempting his own coup at the same time. Both coups were crushed by
Kouprasith Abhay by 3 February. Undaunted by his failure, Bounleut conspired with General
Thao Ma to prepare for the
1966 Laotian coup. After the coup failed, Bounleut took refuge in
Thailand where he remained until 1968, when he moved to France. Along with Phoumi, he is said to have assisted in drafting the plan for
Thao Ma's coup attempt in August 1973. Bounleut accompanied Thao Ma in the latter's seizure of
Wattay Airbase on 20 August 1973. While Thao Ma commandeered aircraft, Bounleut drove an armored car into Vientiane to take over the radio station. At 07:00 hours, he broadcast a communiqué calling for the replacement of Prince
Souvanna Phouma by Prince
Boun Oum as Prime Minister of the
Royal Lao Government. As the coup was suppressed, Bounleut stole a
Cessna U-17 and returned to Thailand. After the
Lao People's Democratic Republic was established by the
Pathet Lao in December 1975, Col. Bounleuth became a leader of the anti-communist political and military resistance against the communist Lao government and their Vietnamese mentors. ==Later life and death==