![cover image](https://wikiwandv2-19431.kxcdn.com/_next/image?url=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/68/Australian_Soldier_Operation_Crimp.jpg/640px-Australian_Soldier_Operation_Crimp.jpg&w=640&q=50)
Tunnel rat
Soldiers who performed underground search and destroy missions in Vietnam / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about the team of soldiers involved in underground missions. For other uses, see Tunnel rat (disambiguation).
The tunnel rats were American, Australian, New Zealander, and South Vietnamese soldiers who performed underground search and destroy missions during the Vietnam War.
![Thumb image](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/68/Australian_Soldier_Operation_Crimp.jpg/640px-Australian_Soldier_Operation_Crimp.jpg)
![Thumb image](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/74/NARA_111-CCV-529-CC38112_Ronald_A._Payne_checking_tunnel_entrance_Operation_Cedar_Falls_1967.jpg/640px-NARA_111-CCV-529-CC38112_Ronald_A._Payne_checking_tunnel_entrance_Operation_Cedar_Falls_1967.jpg)
![Thumb image](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/69/Sgt._Ronald_A._Payne_Tunnel_Rat-Vietnam_War%2C_1-24-1967.png/320px-Sgt._Ronald_A._Payne_Tunnel_Rat-Vietnam_War%2C_1-24-1967.png)
Later, similar teams were used by the Soviet Army during the Soviet–Afghan War and by the Israel Defense Forces in campaigns in the Middle East.