Undercover Armies - CIA FOIA - Central Intelligence Agency

C05303949
A IIOUJ/NG OPERATlON
'rlmg P lJO and Bill Lair til farewell bad .
(Courtesy of Bill u li"
1968; Pat umdry tit riKht
No one is irreplaceable, and the program continued. But Lair seems to have
enjoyed unique standing with Vang Pa~ Isomething that owed as
much to his modest demeanor and personal rectitude as to his acknowledged
competence. Jim Glerum recalled that! :had a nickname for him that
meant "the man who never lies," Watching the proceedings at numerous farewell
ceremonies in 1968, Glerum concluded that Lair enjoyed more respect
from foreign counterparts than any other American he'd ever known. IJ-.J
Pat Landry replaced Lair, bringing to the job the same single-minded dedication
but a very different personal style. He was even more impatient with
bureaucracy than Lair had been, and Jim Glerum, as the new deputy chief,
found himself running not only L . ]administration but also liaison
with Air America and the US Air Force. In addition, he dealt with the military
aid mission to Laos. nominally a part of the Mission in Thail and and
headed by Brig. Gen. John Vessey, later chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff,
Vessey proved to be an exce£tionally able and cooperative colleague, one
who would loyally defendL..] ogistical requirements against MACV skeptics
at SEACORD meetings. But Pat wanted no part of the unending difficul ­
ties with leadtimes and delivery schedules and delegated the logistical
problem to Glerum."0
IJ Jim Glerum, Lairwas not proportionately rewarded with promO(i on s. leav ing~s a GS·15.
(Landry intcrview):J
SEcLETllMR
7301