During the Vietnam War, the container ship USS Mayaguez was seized by the Communist Party of Kampuchea’s troops, better known as the Khmer Rouge. The crew wasn’t hurt, and there was no apparent reason for the seizing of the ship. But the Ford administration wasn’t willing to allow international embarrassment at the hands of a country that they considered an insignificant enemy. This was no ordinary rescue mission; freeing the USS Mayaguez became an issue of national prestige. After a one day bat