10 Strangest Vietnam War Unsolved Mysteries

Operation Wandering Soul was a type of psychological warfare employed by the US during the Vietnam War. In Vietnamese culture, it is believed that if a body is not properly buried, then the soul will wander aimlessly in pain and suffering. It is also believed that they can be contacted on the anniversary of their death near where they died. The US Army set to work figuring out how they could use this against their enemy.

The US had their best engineers work weeks on creating an eerie tape which was called Ghost Tape Number Ten. This tape was played through speakers outside U.S. bases and off helicopters. It contained the ghostly voice of a Vietnamese man. He lamented his death and asked for his comrades to surrender. The disembodied voice along with eerie wails makes for creepy listening.

The effectiveness of the operation is still debated to this day. There are reports of whole camps surrendering or fleeing at the sound of these recordings. Other reports state that it just made it easier for the Viet Cong to target the US as it gave away positions. Some select soldiers even had to carry speakers that played the sound, making them easy targets. It is often hard in a war to sort through the propaganda and find the truth. We may never know if Operation Wandering Soul had a significant impact or not.