COL James "Nick" Rowe: KIA this day, 1 April 1989 in the Philippines

On April 1, 1989, Colonel James Rowe, a legendary Green Beret, was killed by rebel group hit squad in the Philippines. Rowe was being driven to work at the JUSMAG (Joint United States Military Advisory Group) headquarters in Quezon City shortly after 7 in the morning when gunmen fired more than 20 bullets into his vehicle. He was pronounced dead at a nearby military hospital.

Philippine officials believed the killers were members of the New People's Army's (NPA) Alex Boncayao Brigade, although no group claimed responsibility for the attack. Earlier, the NPA have threatened to attack American targets unless the United States closes its military bases in the Philippines and end its support of the Philippine military's fight against the insurgency. Rowe was involved in helping the Philippine anti-insurgency campaign.

In the fall of 1963, Colonel Rowe, then a first lieutenant in the US Army Special Forces serving as an adviser to South Vietnamese irregulars, was captured by Vietcong guerrillas in the Mekong River delta. He was held in jungle camps from which he tried repeatedly to escape. For much of his captivity he was held in a bamboo cage and permitted to venture only 40 yards during the day. He busied himself chopping firewood and setting traps to capture small animals to supplement his diet of rice and fish.

On December 31, 1968, he succeeded in escaping and was spotted by a crew of an American helicopter, which lifted him to safety.

In 1985, Colonel Rowe was placed in command of the First Special Warfare Training Battalion at Fort Bragg in North Carolina, a post he held until last May 1985, when he went to the Philippines. While at Fort Bragg, COL Rowe was the driving force behind the creation of the USAJFKSWC Survival, Escape, Resistance and Evasion (SERE) course, considered the best of it's type across all services.

Colonel James Rowe was 51. He is buried at the Arlington National Cemetery.