Welcome Home Brothers ! Even the AP photographer, Nick Ut, who took the picture, was Vietnamese. I think convoy truck drivers had one of the most dangerous job. No combat assignments for another year of service in Vietnam or get out in about a month. LUCK pure LUCK. Id had a premonition, and asked the LT to let me trade off to become the AG. Michael Doolittle..I was with 1/8 inf, 1st Brigade, and that day, March 22nd was also our darkest day. I lost my cherry very early. Calculate the pH of a solution of 0.157 M pyridine. John Doever I prayed I would not have to fire over the heads of the 4th Platoon troops entering the draw to retrieve our dead. It began just as, it was getting dark. I was an M-60 machine gunner for a battalion recon platoon in 1967, for the First Infantry Division, Known as The Black Scarf Battalion. Soldier,this is a wardont forget that, and anytime we are in a fight we will be toughest SOBs in the fight!! I won a few times, and even when I did not I benefited from handling the gun under stress. Out of thousands of men that invaded that town in southern Afghanistan, we have lost 19. Each company had eight M60s. Papitto Opportunity Connections Mission: The Papitto Opportunity Connection (POC) is a private foundation dedicated to listening and working together with Rhode Islands BIPOC communities to empower and create individual success stories by investing in education, job skills training, and entrepreneurial ventures. Very memorable comments. Five men killed in Vietnam were only 16 years old. The one number that is really important is 56,220 and we all know what that number represents. As a result, less than one percent of all Americans wounded, who survived the first 24 hours, died. Tony told me that either he or I would greet all incoming troops and we did- and here is the speech we gave to them. I was never hit by enemy fire even though they had multiple opportunities after that I was an rto for the company commander and I have to say both jobs were not fun. The two platoons were to advance no more than 200 yards from the main body of the company. There were also wounded. Great story!!! Different type units, different locations, different opinions on dangers. They were held in special regard after the Normandy landings, when 225 Rangers scaled cliffs at Pointe Du Hoc on June 6, 1944 under intense enemy fire. It was reported as an overwhelming success for the Communist forces and a decided defeat for the U.S. forces. I never saw any correlation as to what MOS a soldier was and their survival rate. It called for release of all U.S. prisoners, withdrawal of U.S. forces, limitation of both sides forces inside South Vietnam and a commitment to peaceful reunification. I was in the AF a Reo in a F4-C. Who had time to worry about the life said to me. What were the life expectancies of soldiers during the Vietnam War? They were a great bunch. Two of my classmates were killed within 2 weeks incountry and three wounded I know of. I handled Top Secret Commo on a daily basis. I was to have that experience two more times before it was over. Of the . I know this is a standard cliche, but it is so true, All gave some. The average man who fought in World War II was 26 years of age. 4329 0 obj <>stream We were probably not too far away on that day. He retired in 2012 and lives in Delray Beach, Florida. Im laying behind a rice paddie dike.I put my whole body as far down in the muck while the bullets were over my head. 1ST MAW 66-68. Found NVA bunker complex. What Was It Like To Hump The Boonies in Vietnam? I always felt that Infantry units were in more danger because of ambush issues and no permanent defensive structures. A Co, 1/5 Cav, 1 Cav Division. Love this analysis. A typical Patrol Boat River (PBR) was about 31 feet long and had twin 50s forward an M 60 midships and a 50 aft. Soldiers also act in the mobilization of vehicles, weaponry, troops, and more. The enemy fire ceased, and we made arrangements to collect our dead before continuing on to Company A. Sergeant Galiano's experience does not deny Brands depiction of the battle in Vietnam, but offers a typically overlooked perspective of a drafted soldier fighting in the central highlands of Vietnam. Interesting but something is missing. Look for the blue accessibility symbol floating on every page of our website and click on it to tailor your viewing experience to your particular disability. Without the helicopter it would have taken three times as many troops to secure the 800 mile border with Cambodia and Laos (the politicians thought the Geneva Conventions of 1954 and the Geneva Accords or 1962 would secure the border). I put the M60s bipod legs down, lifted the weapon and positioned it on the ground outside the streambed facing the NVA. Although we do tend to bomb a lot, thats only half of what we do. Needless too say I depended on Sgt. Over 600 Navy FMF Hospital Corpsmen were killed in Vietnam. Ron. 4 Joey Piambino were to my right in the streambed. 58,148 were killed in Vietnam, 75,000 severely disabled, 23,214 were 100% disabled, 5,283 lost limbs and 1,081 sustained multiple amputations. Company A searched in vain for the platoon in the dark and finally found the shattered unit on the morning of May 19. So I guess I defied the odds. The Vietnam War was the turning point for Communism. 1 gun and was hoping it would stay that way. Lived too tell about it. As some said, averages are meaningless. In your rucksack . 1 Gun, as always, thumped out a throaty roar as I fought desperately to push the enemy back. The Kb of pyridine, C5H5N, is 1.5 x 10-9. I felt the same way jumping off the chopper with my m-60, 300. rounds of ammo,grenades,sandbags and six canteens of water. I was trained as a RTO in 1970 at Fort Ord then went to Fort Gordon for teletype school, my MOS was 05C20 when I finished. You were a Great RTO. 1,713,823 of those who served in Vietnam were still alive as of August, 1995 (census figures). We were like sitting Ducks. Sometimes on Family Guy when there about to take someones heart out they say, calimar or maybe its spelled different. Staying alive was kinda of important. The CACF is the basis for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial (The Wall): Average age of 58,148 killed in Vietnam was 23.11 years. Me molesta que mis padres no ______ (cuidar) su alimentacin.. 3. Before he was drafted Renza had worked as a hairdresser for women in his hometown of Peekskill, New York. First thing we did was, Set up a complete circular perimeter. In my humble opiniona maneven leaders should often recalculate their adversaries capabilities and limitations and his own limitations as wellwhen 10,000 miles from home against a determined worthy foein a strange landThe objective of Lam Son 719? Thats what I figured but didnt know for sure. 2. Your Dad and I had the same job. They were also in a circular formation. The body felt as though it weighed considerably more than it looked. Subscribe to receive our weekly newsletter with top stories from master historians. Contents 1 Unclear objectives 2 North Vietnamese strategy If you would like to get a copy, and cant find it, let me know, and I will make sure you get one. I am convinced the same NVA soldier who shot at me moments before had killed my good friend, a budding doo-wop singer from Long Island, New York. My dad died of cancer at 52. What was the average life expectancy for soldiers during World War 2 Army Infantryman (MOS 11B): 2022 Career Profile - Operation Military Kids What percentage of Vietnam veterans actually saw combat? Totally bogus. Because if only 1 RTO fought for say only 10 or 15 minutes before being killed, that would up the AVG for the total war! As I carried a PRC25 radio for over seven-months in the > Nam, I was curious to find out what I did RIGHT to surv >, One MOS I figured was a sure short timer was POL{Fuel} Truck Driver. Few areas of the world have been as hotly contested as the India-Pakistan border. Also, it would mean the killed RTOs died within seconds of the fight (it doesnt distinguish between ambush or regular fight, eg. An interesting comment I had. S/F, There were no door gunners on dustoffs. means: 1 gets killed the 1st second, another one after 9 seconds avg. I have a fried Who is killed in Vietnam six months before I got there cause of death was other how would I find out since his parents are long gone, Do a search for his name n Coffeltdatabase.org, Sir, would you mind me translating this into Spanish and getting it posted in our blog? Done ranting. Thats why I never understand people talking about survivors guilt it should have been me, why him? etc. Thats 390 per day. I personally believe and agree with previous posts that when its your time, not much you can do. Sure but so was everyone else who went 12 months without getting killed or wounded. Prayers for all. Had multiple Ks and Ws. 0 There were usually 3 man (At least 2) point teams. After a quick lesson, DeLong became the new owner of 4th Platoons No.1 Gun. Flipping the safety off, I scanned the jungle in front of me. Change), You are commenting using your Facebook account. Now, to calmly answer your question, air strikes have actually been an efficient technique used by us for years now. 15 May he was killed by friendly fire, and a host of us were WIA, myself included. As we approached the battle, we heard intense firing. "The Rangers pulled themselves over the top," President Ronald Reagan said of the men, in 1984. Two of my closest friends in the company, Spc. wmy:LsN{/^yzJ] 6.7>n-:FqOa#CW>ia?wt?Xa@ghCd bF)`Schl4*f. Anyway I was wondering about the RTOs in a grunt platoon, was that their MOS or were they 11B that carried a PRC ? HOOAH!!! If you have other information let me know. Whether they produced battlefield images of the dead or daguerreotype portraits of common soldiers, []. Fact: No American had involvement in this incident near Trang Bang that burned Phan Thi Kim Phuc. Stop staring at your computer already, get up. 1 Gun before my luck ran out. 1st Platoon, C Company, 2nd Battalion 327th Infantry. Contents1 [] In 1964 an Ohio woman took up the challenge that had led to Amelia Earharts disappearance. I never thought of it that way before but have many times since. In the last 5 years the symptoms of PTSD and AO are starting getting worse in me. C Co, 1st-12th 66-67. To keep busy on the boat ride to Vietnam, my unitCompany B, 1st Battalion, 8th Infantry Regimentheld competitions where we took the gun apart and put it back together while blindfolded to see who could do it fastest. Explore the Life of a U.S. Infantryman in Vietnam. But, once the enemy lays down his weapon, I want YOU TO REMEMBER THREE THINGS: 1, HE IS A SOLDIER, JUST LIKE YOU.2, HE IS AWAY FROM HOME And family, just like you. Of the eight who remained, seven were wounded. Thanks. The next morning, the blasting could still be, heard. If you look at all of the things the radio operators were tasked with, it becomes abundantly clear why commo guys weren't expected to last long. I may not have hit anyone that day, but I am certain that No. Now we know. I am proud to have fought alongside of them. Two rounds smashed into a log inches above my head. If my memory is correct, only the 1st Cab flew wiith doorgunners. PDF Mortality Rates and Life Expectancy of Veterans - Veterans Affairs I will always think/say, we had absolutely no reason for being in that place. Soon after, Pfc. In the First Armored Division, now part of the 23rd Infantry Division, commonly known as the Americal Division, combat medics were called into action every day because the fighting was now. Quickly learned to control rate of fire. Anxiously extending the bipod legs on the M60, I added a 100-round belt to the one I already had in the gun. They kept coming up the hill bringing more bodies to me until all seven had been found. Ordered to reinforce the unit, the Company B commander put our four platoons abreast of each other, and we marched west. However, Shermans were very outmatched by the German tanks on the field of battle. %PDF-1.5 % The first six or seven months I walked point for our platoon and led many ambushes and green eye patrols. David H. McNerney, who assumed command of the company when all of its officers were killed or wounded, was presented with the Medal of Honor in a White House ceremony in September 1968. He pulled the company into a perimeter and dispatched 4th Platoon to recon the trail to the west, while 1st Platoon performed a similar mission to the east-southeast. For his actions, he was awarded the Congressional Medal if Honor. In Vietnam, 1 in 400 of the wounded died of their . The Republic of Vietnam lost 1,018 aircraft and helicopters from January 1964 to September 1973. my left and saw this rice paddie farmer and his ox and I was trying to motion him to get down he just looks at me and starts Thanks for the perceived loss and the countless assassinations and torture visited upon Vietnamese, Laotians, and Cambodians goes mainly to the American media and their undying support-by-misrepresentation of the anti-War movement in the United States. I think those numbers are percentages of US KIA, not mortality times. Amen I was a machine gunner for 7 months 503rd infantry 173rd airborne and you hit the nail right on the head. Its not all written down. Then one hot, sunny day, while walking across rice paddies, we suddenly received small-arms fire from Viet Cong in some distant hills. Remember he wanted to reenlist for one more year in Vietnam. My heart was pounding out of my chest. Appx: 6 months in, all of the 543d TC joined forces with the 572d TC. The battalion was sending us to a village with a small river running through it. Wortman, another RTO never made it back to The World. The last American troops departed in their entirety 29 March 1973. If it was 1941 and you were an average Soviet soldier, your life expectancy on the front line was days, not weeks, thanks to the ongoing german offence. It was more or less next man up . The early days of May 1970, I arrived at the Airport, next to Saigon. An Hinglish word (Hindi/English). I was a 2LT on Hamburger Hill and had 4 RTOs over a 7 day period (excluding the times I ended up carrying my own radio). PDF Sobering Statistics Concerning Vietnam Vets As of April 2016 I knew some of this, but certainly not all. From a military standpoint, it was almost an unprecedented performance. 8h%5HF8r,X'q#Vtgz%)P/Oi#rU(uO&*Xx1t^=xVLi I was lucky too but VN never left me. A dense mass of elephant grass hung over the riverbank, and he ducked under it. 1 Gun onto a small hill and provide security while others retrieved them. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. We killed a lot of the enemy but we took few serious casualties. Not much different than his unit. both tours. 17 photos showing the life of an elite US Army Ranger Nixon Presidential Papers. It didnt matter who you were or where you were. Both halves quickly swept toward the river to clear the village. Foot soldiers went by the grace of God, but had a better chance than the infantry platoon commander in combat. sweep team,then I heard the choppers and they were blowing the hell out in the tree line then it just got so quiet like nothing What was the life expectency of a private soldier in vietnam? I couldnt disagree. Though I flew only about 1/2 dozen missions as a Huey door gunner, I was initially told to sit on my flak jacket I always did so (personal protection first). Here are statistics from the Combat Area Casualty File (CACF) as of November 1993. Sorry,I was one of your Brothers in Arms that helped talk you out of enlisting for another year in Vietnam. I worried about that kind of leadership style in the highlands. July 68 to July 69. An infantry platoon commander in combat had an average of 6 weeks life expectancy. It was on the Job Training ! of what was usually 5 or 6 going in and many times the leads would find traps, punji pits or the VC waiting. 87% of Americans hold Vietnam Veterans in high esteem. I had scary thoughts about myself humping the bush as a RTO, I was a real puny guy back then. Thank God I made it. Back in 1965, I was a door gunner on Medevac recovery operations. 1 Gun, I jumped into a small dry streambed with Domke, my assistant gunner. It doesnt make any sense statistically/mathematically it is impossible. 99% of infantry men will currently live to die of natural causes. His comparison to a FB was that if we were fired on we returned fire and requested assistance when needed. I packed my own radio and got a Thank you from his Mom. TONY DISAGREED> hE SAID TAKE A 19 YEAR OLD, WHO HAS JUST TAKEN TWO ROUNDS TO HIS BODY, And IS watching his best friend die from multiple, bleeding wounds he wont give a shit about the Geneva Convention. Name the major nerves that serve the following body areas? Like most inexperienced gunners, he underestimated the power of the pig and failed to keep the barrel down when firing. Umm..maybe its because we also learn from experience. I was already lugging around a 24-pound weapon, 300 rounds of ammo and a pack that weighed a good 45 pounds. The smell of those charred bodies, blackened and smoking from the napalm strike, is something I can never forget. My dog and I walked point my whole tour in Vietnam. May they rest in peace. V. Victor Renza was sent home after he was wounded on May 18, 1967. The trailer for that video can be seen by googling the title, and it might still be sold on Amazon. First Sgt. 4 Charlie Ranallo, were on No. Of those killed, 61% were younger than 21 years old. 91% of Vietnam Veterans say they are glad they served. Hi, the whole thing is going nicely here and ofcourse every one (and yes, you cant ask them, so it would have to be derived from the AA-reports and survivors). The peace settlement was signed in Paris on 27 January 1973. As a Huey door gunner, when we left the ground on a mission, I always thought that this mission would be my last! Lucky you. Please do not send samples. Bloody May 1968 Mini TET. Sept 69 to Sept 70. US Wings is a veteran-owned business and an official supplier to the US Military. Radiomen in the Vietnam War faced a 5-second life expectancy Our Aussie Dust off choppers had door gunners, we worked on the theory if the Noggies would shot at Red Cross choppers, we would return fire, Aussie grunt, 60000 00 Aussies fought in Vietnam, Up the Old Red Rooster and more beer. Here is an 18 If anything went wrong, I could easily kill some of our soldiers. I got shot on a mission with 45 days left. Deltoid muscle _____ 2. Originally I went to the 543d TC. 2 Gun team, Ranallo and May, without any support. Everyone in the company hit the dirt. I was never formally trained as an RTO. where can i find red bird vienna sausage? Bob Sanzone. approaching a village and a firefight starts). %%EOF I was sitting on the ground one day trying to dry out my gear and better configure my ruck when my squad leader came walking over to me and said, Gow, youve got the radio. As he turned and walked away! we were getting it with machine gun and mortars. 9,087,000 military personnel served on active duty during the official Vietnam era from August 5, 1964 to May 7, 1975. We were expecting, an attack. When Roeski got hit, I took over the M-60. Unable to reach Company A, my company pulled back, formed a perimeter and called in air and artillery support. Naturally I was excited at the opportunity to join Sanzone, but at the same time I hated leaving 2nd Platoons No. I was also told that the Radio did put a target on my back. rice farmer who was still working with is ox like nothing ever Posterior Thigh _____ 4. One was holding a carbine. One of them gazed in our direction, lowered his AK 47 assault rifle and fired six shots. Despite initial victories by the Communists forces, the Tet Offensive resulted in a major defeat of those forces. They used the callsign MEDIVAC and were armed. Every mission, I had the same thought. Soldiers from 2nd Platoon, Company C, 87th Infantry Regiment, walk on patrol north of the Long . All the comments and replies are of absolute truth, I was only 18 when I got to Nam ,Im a country boy from NC so here I am Artillery, and ground forces. Walked point way to many times but never had contact. Now, the wisdom of this soldier tough but humanly compassionate warrior ethos can be assessed through the 2d Bn recordNO complaints about mistreatment of prisonerswhile achieving the most combat SUCCESSES IN THE BRIGADE. Seattle, Washington(WA), 98106. How old are Vietnam vets now? Back home he returned to hairdressing and got a job at Kenneth Salon in New York City working with top models and fashion magazine editors. MEDEVAC helicopters flew nearly 500,000 missions. We ambushed and got ambushed, firebase got attacked who carried what or did what had no bearing. I was one of the many others I rode river boats in the Mekong Jan 68 to 69. Total fantasy. In the few firefights and skirmishes we had with local VC, the gun always performed well. I remember hearing a Lieutenant (Kennedy) say to one of his two platoon RTOs My RTO is Foxtrot Uniform. Our battalion operated at a base camp near Tuy Hoa in Phu Yen province along the South China Sea from October 1966 to January 1967. We were told in training that the life expectancy of a machine gunner was about seven seconds from the moment the first round was fired. In January 1967, the 1st Battalion, 8th Infantry, was airlifted to Pleiku province in the Central Highlands. As we were, steadily building up, our area for protection. Thank You Roger!!! There must have been a real mathematician to come up with those calculations. Five RTOs. I had been shot in the back early in the battle and was lying behind a log with two other soldiers. Before I became a team leader on ambush and recon I was in command of the scout jeep for the 25th ID resupply convoy from January 1968 to June 15, 1968 and I found the resupply convoys a lot more dangerous because the enemy always knew where it would be and when. And I know what youre going to say, Because the American cs! Bullcrap!!!! endstream endobj startxref Vietnam War U.S. Military Fatal Casualty Statistics If youre a foreigner, I respect what you think, but make sure you read ALL your facts, and dont come to rash conclusion until you know everything from BOTH sides. As mentioned, who kept track of that in the first place? The ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) countries, Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand stayed free of Communism because of the U.S. commitment to Vietnam. I kept the radio because I understood the power of having the first communication with the support mechanisms of the military. The blasts from the AMMO, really lit up the whole area. I saw aircraft loaded with troops explode in mid-air. AS LEADERS IN AMERICAS SERVICES WE MUST BE PROFICIENT AND READY TO ACCOMPLISH OUR MISSIONS- An interesting essay, even more interesting are the comments. As I remember it the life expectancy was based on after the ambush was sprung or the fire fight started. Both my tours were in the Delta (IV Corps) where the only ground troops were regular ARVNs and RUFF/PUFFS. I loved it. 1 Gun and I now faced a new and more formidable foethe North Vietnamese Army. I credit my longetivity to great training at Ft Benning. I was a point man, M60 Gunner and squad leader. If it had been up to me, I would have awarded my gun the CIB too. General Westmoreland quoting Douglas Pike (a professor at the University of California, Berkeley), a major military defeat for the VC and NVA. Fighters and planes dont make up the Army, thats the Air Force. I applaud your courage as I know an RTOs job is essential, difficult (carrying the weight of his radio transmitter, his rifle, his ammo, and his rucksack), and dangerous as the enemy surely wanted to knock out any communications for support. Welcome home brothers and sisters. US Wings is a verified SAM Contractor and DLA Supplier and is officially listed as a manufacturer/retailer in the US Department of Commerce's Office of Textile and Apparel (OTEXA) Made in the USA database. From Cam Rahn, we kept flying north to, a Landing Zone near QUANG TRI. What unit lost the most soldiers in Vietnam? Oh, and even the Air Force has ground units. Thanks for posting! By the time we reached Vietnam in October 1966 I felt the gun had become a part of me. Their personal income exceeds that of our non-veteran age group by more than 18 percent. As I made it back to the road I remember seeing the 2,709,918 Americans served in uniform in Vietnam. Supported by a shoulder strap, No. HistoryNet.com contains daily features, photo galleries and over 25,000 articles originally published in our nine magazines. There were no Americans involved in any capacity. We fought to an agreed stalemate. In Vietnam he cut the hair of everyone in his company for free. He said when they were ambushed they took defensive positions, returned fire, called for assistance when needed, and retreated when necessary. Wow I was 31.8 Gun shot Carried model 1200 Winchester shot gun WIA May 68 Article was great. If you were an administrative officer or clerk in an air-conditioned trailer in Saigon, your war might be a lot like peacetime duty. After every officer in our company was either killed or had serious wounds, our 1st Sgt , David McNerney took over the company and without his leadership, and knowledge of war, and unbelievable courage, our company would probably have been wiped out. But I made it back in one piece. Sholly finally agreed and stated that the next time we received replacements I could give one of them my M60. I saw killed and wounded everywhere in our combat operations. Sgt. 101st Airborne Division. Americans who deliberately killed civilians received prison sentences while Communists who did so received commendations. Calculate the pH of a solution of 0.157 M pyridine.? If youre American (which you probably are), I could give a f***. The 140,000 evacuees in April 1975 during the fall of Saigon consisted almost entirely of civilians and Vietnamese military, NOT American military running for their lives. History is a guide to navigation in perilous times. We took fire all the time and responded. Fact: The American military was not defeated in Vietnam. I was wasting ammo and didnt even have a target! But it was my jobso I tried not to think about it much. We had 5 kias and roughly 50 wounded in our company so about one in three got hit. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_aircraft_losses_of There is no difference in drug usage between Vietnam Veterans and non-Vietnam Veterans of the same age group (Source: Veterans Administration Study). 11 c mos , meaning I was also cross trained for mortars . Often as not he was right beside you with a stolen chicken and a bag of rice. Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2023) - Worldometer Some Brothers said why spend another year in this hellhole???? We looked for cover and returned fire the best we could. As of April 14, 2017, there are 1,611 Americans still unaccounted for from the Vietnam War across Vietnam (1,258), Laos(297), Cambodia(49), and China(7). How Many Vietnam Veterans Are Still Alive In 2022? - CLJ I was over there twice serving as a Hospital Corpsman with a marine unit.
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