From the late 1950's and especially after the election of President John F. Kennedy in 1960, US involvement in Vietnam had steadily increased. In 1963, most of the American troops in South Vietnam were Army Special Forces (better known then as the “Green Berets”). By 1965, events both military and political had led to a massive escalation in US involvement in the country. In 1963 there were some 16,000 men US servicemen in Vietnam. By 1966 when David Dolby arrived “in-country”, there were nearly 400,000.