James B . Vaught James B . Vaught , USA ( November 3 , 1926 – September 20 , 2013 ) was a United States Army General who was a combat veteran of three wars : World War II , the Korean War , and the Vietnam War . In Korea he served as a company commander in the 24th Infantry Division and in 1967 , in the Republic of Vietnam , on his first tour he served as the commanding officer of the 5th Battalion , 7th Cavalry . He has also played a major role in numerous United States Special Forces Operations . Early life and military career . Vaught grew up in Conway , South Carolina . A multi - generational native of the state , he has been identified as a direct descendant of Francis " Swamp Fox " Marion . He graduated from high school in 1943 and then was enrolled at The Citadel in Charleston , South Carolina . During this time , with World War II being fought by Allied forces in two theaters , the Federal Government ' s Military Draft was altered so that college students were eligible . In 1944 , Vaught was one of those drafted by the United States Army , though he was able to graduate and become a member of the Citadel ' s class of 1946 . Now in the Army , he was commissioned and became an officer in 1945 . As an officer , he served three and a half years in Germany . Korea and Vietnam . After World War II ended , Vaught had a relatively short stay back in the U . S . before he was sent overseas again . This time he was sent to Korea , where he was involved in the fighting against the communist forces of North Korea and China . He saw combat on several occasions after his landing at Pusan and the subsequent advance north towards the Yalu River . During this time he was injured twice . Later , in 1967 during the Vietnam War , he was sent to South Vietnam , where as the battalion commander of the 5th Battalion , 7th Cavalry , he played a key role in the liberation of Huế city during the Tet Offensive of 1968 . He also helped the besieged Marines at Khe Sanh until the North Vietnamese Army retreated after failed attempts to take the base . Vaught was later injured in an auto accident which resulted in him being medevaced , in a full body cast , to Walter Reed Army Medical Center . Although the " Vietnamization " policy was thought of as a failed concept , Vaught was a proponent of the policy and was a valuable asset to it throughout his second tour of Vietnam . Later life . After Vietnam , Vaught continued his career with the Army and was eventually promoted to Major General , serving at The Pentagon as Director of Operations and Mobilization for the Army . Perhaps his most notable role was played during " Operation Eagle Claw " , the infamous failed rescue mission of hostages in Iran , where General Vaught served as the overall Commander of the operation . When Vaught commanded the mission to rescue the hostages in Iran in 1980 , eight service members died and four were injured in the operation when the helicopters on the mission collided in the remote Iranian desert . Although President Carter went on television the next day to announce the failure of the mission and to accept the blame , Congress and the Pentagon launched inquiries to determine the reasons for the tragedy . The Pentagon probe was handled by a board of three retired and three serving flag officers representing all four services ; it was led by retired Adm . James L . Holloway III . The commission ' s report listed 23 areas " that troubled us professionally about the mission - areas in which there appeared to be weaknesses . The major criticism was of the " ad hoc " nature of the task force , a chain of command the commission felt was unclear , and an emphasis on operational secrecy it found excessive . The commission also said the chances for success would have been improved if more backup helicopters had been provided and if a rehearsal of all mission components had been held . James B . Vaught served his final tour of duty as a Lieutenant General serving in Korea , where he was the Commanding Officer of American and South Korean forces . He resided in Myrtle Beach , South Carolina . On Feb . 8 , 2012 , retired LT Gen . Vaught confronted Special Operations Commander Adm . William McRaven , over the recent increased media attention and resulting security leaks of operational procedures , surrounding Navy SEALs ' following the Osama bin Laden raid and the rescue of an American hostage from Somalia . Several members of the audience quietly laughed ( video link below ) as retired LT Gen . Vaught chastised McRaven , whose missions were successful . Vaught was quoted as saying " get the hell out of the media . " During Vaught ' s confrontation at the meeting of the members of the National Defense Industrial Association in Washington , D . C . , the 85 year old Vaught stated , " Now back when my special operators extracted Saddam from the hole , we didn ' t say one damn word about it " , he continued . " We turned him over to the local commander and told him to claim that his forces drug him out of the hole , and he did so . And we just faded away and kept our mouth shut . " Though Vaught was long retired by the time of Saddam ' s capture , his reference to " his special operators " addresses Vaught ' s critical role in the early formation and employment of the Army ' s classified Special Operations Forces , for whom Vaught was a critical early advocate and higher commander during the Iran Eagle Claw / Desert One rescue mission of 1979 . Special Operations Commander Adm . William McRaven politely listened to the elderly Vaught , answered the question with a reference to the PR film the " Green Berets " ( not a valid analogy , given the timely leaks of operational information in recent events ) , and then continued on with the Q & A session . Death . Authorities found his body in an Horry County , South Carolina pond . While Vaught died of asphyxia due to drowning , the coroner stated that his body also showed signs of cardiac disease . He was 86 .