Bio
As the Executive Officer of Special Forces (SF) Operational Detachment A-23, 5th Special Forces Group (SFG), then-1LT James N. ‘Nick’ Rowe, along with MSG Daniel L. Pitzer and CPT Humberto R. ‘Rocky’ Versace were captured by Viet Cong in October 1963. Rowe spent the next 62 months isolated in close confinement. He was repeatedly tortured and threatened with execution. On New Year’s Eve, 1968, Rowe overpowered his guards, escaped, and was rescued by a passing American helicopter.
In 1981, LTC Rowe developed a rigorous Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape (SERE) course for high-risk military personnel that is now a requirement of Special Operations training.
In April 1989, while being driven to work, COL Rowe (Chief of the Joint U.S. Military Advisor Group [JUSMAG], Philippines) was assassinated by the Communist terrorist group, the New People’s Army. The SF training area at Camp Mackall, North Carolina, was renamed the Rowe Training Facility in his honor.
