As I made it back to the road I remember seeing the This was another example in the Vietnam War of an inaccuracy becoming the perceived truth. As of the current Census taken during August, 2000, the surviving U.S. Vietnam Veteran population estimate is: 1,002,511. three, he believes he is doing what his country wants him to dojust like you So you better damn well treat him with the compassion you want for you!! For some reason, the written word of this article was somehow deleted and lost. Soon after, Pfc. 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? Over 900,000 patients were airlifted (nearly half were American). I met a Marine a few years ago who was stationed North of Da Nang. The income differentials in life expectancy for Veterans in 2011-14, however, are estimated to be smaller. The oldest man killed was 62 years old. The article was interesting. The TOTAL number of CIB and CMB awarded would give you the answer !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! During that same Census count, the number of Americans falsely claiming to have served was: 9,492,958. 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. Some of my men didnt. Isolated atrocities committed by American Soldiers produced torrents of outrage from anti-war critics and the news media while Communist atrocities were so common that they received hardly any media mention at all. No. He also worked on Jacqueline Kennedys hair pieces and wigs. I applaud the courage and difficult and all so dangerous job of Roger Herforth when he served as an RTO for the Hawk Recon Platoon of the 101st airborne division in Vietnam.. My heart was pounding out of my chest. Ever since that fateful day in 1967, I have often wondered what became of my beloved M60. (LogOut/ 6 Answers They say Kali Ma Theyre referencing this scene from the movie Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom: What is the life expectancy of an army infantry soldier? I would carry when on ambush. 58,148 were killed and 304,000 wounded out of 2.7 million who served. I lost my cherry very early. meaning what is the chance of me getting killed in combat. THE MAN I INHERITED THE GUN FROM WASNT SO LUCKY. We could not see any enemy soldiers, but we could see smoke coming from their weapons through the trees. I was on a radar crew and we were told that, during war time, we would most likely be killed within minutes. As it was, less than 40 did not need evacuation. An Rtos job was essential, tough,(Carrying the extra weight of the radio transmitter along with his rucksack), and dangerous. THANKS! Both served in A 2/18 1st Infantry Division. During this Census count, the number of Americans falsely claiming to have served in-country is: 13,853,027. I may not have hit anyone that day, but I am certain that No. Then I dropped back down in the streambed to organize our ammo. 5 seconds. The early days of May 1970, I arrived at the Airport, next to Saigon. An Hinglish word (Hindi/English). We ambushed and got ambushed, firebase got attacked who carried what or did what had no bearing. At this time- senior Army leadership ordered us all to read the Geneva Convention to our troops because of the My Lai debachle. As a result, less than one percent of all Americans wounded, who survived the first 24 hours, died. I got shot on a mission with 45 days left. Change), You are commenting using your Facebook account. 2/3 of the men who served in World War II were drafted. Commanders like him were few and far between many were afraid of their own shadow and were only there to get their ticket punched. I was told to help carry one of the bodies. In that time 4 us kia and 4 wounded. I've never heard about the life expectancy of 6 weeks (even with a short google search). 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 The planes doing the bombing near the village were VNAF (Vietnam Air Force) and were being flown by Vietnamese pilots in support of South Vietnamese troops on the ground. As a point of reference, Patterson explained that combat troops in World War II, on average, spent 36 days in a combat environment; the average infantryman in Vietnam spent 245 days in constant. And us the living that served, who suffer from PTSD ,that figure or percent-aged would be about the greatest of all. My friend May, I later learned, was doing the same thing in 2nd Platoon. An NVA soldier had evidently spotted the gun and waited patiently for me to stick my head up. 1st Platoon, C Company, 2nd Battalion 327th Infantry. 2023 CherriesWriter - Vietnam War website, RTO, John Scheur. News media have reported tha an American commander ordered the air strike that burned Kim Phuc.Those are incorrect. A soldier or Marine in Vietnam had a 98% chance of survival if he was evacuated within the first hour of being injured the best odds in the history of American warfare up to that time. Change), You are commenting using your Twitter account. I was a medic on one for two yrs and the only weapon I was issue was a six-shot .38. That means you lose five RTOs in 5 seconds. Two points: 1) at least in Army units, Medevacs (dust offs) flew unarmed aircraft. They were located, next to us, in/on Long Bhin Post. They used the callsign MEDIVAC and were armed. I had to rely on my gun more than before. It was an honor indeed to serve with some of the finest soldiers I have ever met. I was a 2nd Lt. Infantry platoon Leader. Whether they produced battlefield images of the dead or daguerreotype portraits of common soldiers, []. Were talking averages, obviously so, an RTO, with an expectancy of 5 seconds (!) I won a few times, and even when I did not I benefited from handling the gun under stress. Welcome home!! Cruz quite a lot. US Wings provides aviation apparel to the U.S. Government and commercial customers along with the general public. 1 gun and was hoping it would stay that way. I am one lucky SOB. I was over there twice serving as a Hospital Corpsman with a marine unit. An interesting essay, even more interesting are the comments. The Vietnam War was the first American war in which Black and White troops were not formally segregated, and even saw significant growth in the number of African Americans engaged in battlefield combat, [1] though some de facto segregation still occurred. The Organization of the Viet Cong Units in the South never recovered. My bud, Price took over as RTO. Or is it on display in a Hanoi museum so curious citizens of that city can inspect a weapon captured from American imperialists? Fact: Servicemen who went to Vietnam from well-to-do areas had a slightly elevated risk of dying because they were more likely to be pilots or infantry officers. 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. So I guess I defied the odds. Point, slack and compass. 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. As we approached the battle, we heard intense firing. The casualty rate in the current war today is a fraction. approaching a village and a firefight starts). 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. Great information. It weighed 24 pounds, was 43.5 inches long and had bipod legs that folded down to stabilize the weapon when firing from a prone position. Their personal income exceeds that of our non-veteran age group by more than 18 percent. Interesting reading. They also had a 12 gauge, and a M 79 grenade launcher and M 16. Database. Like most inexperienced gunners, he underestimated the power of the pig and failed to keep the barrel down when firing. 240 men were awarded the Medal of Honor during the Vietnam War. We all have opinions, this is mine. What was the average life expectancy of a soldier in Vietnam? S/F, There were no door gunners on dustoffs. You were a Great RTO. My dad died of cancer at 52. I was an RTO for 9-1/2 months for Hawk Recon 2/327 101AB from dec, 1969 to sept 70. Units would send a thorough report of their KIA and WIA, battle action coordinates, estimated enemy troop strength, enemy unit KIA/captured and any known direction heading. Needless too say I depended on Sgt. Rarely do we examine war through the unique bond between a man and his weaponin this case the . 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. 2) by my research, medics suffered 93% casualties with about 33% deaths. If the NVA shot at the group retrieving the bodies, I was to fire over the heads of the grunts and engage the enemy. Bloody May 1968 Mini TET. Startled, I quickly pointed my M60 at them. Lived too tell about it. HOOAH!!! 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. Amen I was a machine gunner for 7 months 503rd infantry 173rd airborne and you hit the nail right on the head. I am 81 now and survived the encounter by terminated the sniper. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_aircraft_losses_of We flew north, then made a stop, in Cam Rahn Bay. Data based on the latest United Nations Population Division estimates. July 68 to July 69. Lowering my gun, I turned around and noticed two VC sitting in the doorway of the hut, staring at me. Totally bogus. The average time lapse between wounding to hospitalization was less than one hour. Every single . Life expectancy at birth. 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). I also earned a Combat Infantryman Badge, signifying that I had been actively engaged in combat. Nevertheless, I swung No. E)V_5lu[vC3+"vg2L& A dense mass of elephant grass hung over the riverbank, and he ducked under it. The Bronze Star was awarded to ALL that were awarded the CIB in WWII because the Infantry accounted for over 70% of the casualties in WWLL BUT NOT 70% )F ALL THE INFANTRY !!! As we were, steadily building up, our area for protection. Staying alive was kinda of important. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. 58,148 were killed and 304,000 wounded out of 2.7 million who served. Was a door gunner and crew chief for just shy of 18 months (I extended to get out early). 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. Also, it would mean the killed RTOs died within seconds of the fight (it doesnt distinguish between ambush or regular fight, eg. This has been going on for about a week Every time I try to watch a video on Youtube from my laptop I get instantly redirected to "gslbeacon.ligit.com." I was drafted on Nov. 10, 1965, and assigned to the 4th Infantry Division. The one that should be there is the combat medic. The Tet Offensive succeeded on only one front and that was the News front and the political arena. 87% of Americans hold Vietnam Veterans in high esteem. Great reading. 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. This is excellent! After that initial post-service period, Vietnam veterans were no more likely to die from suicide than non-Vietnam veterans. How could we lose a war we had already stopped fighting? My good friend who was a RTO was killed. The Kb of pyridine, C5H5N, is 1.5 x 10-9. We were probably not too far away on that day. It had a crew of 4 (forward gunner, the coxswain (steering and driving) and the two aft gunners. The life expectancy of a radio operator in the Vietnam War ranged between five to six seconds all the way up to a slightly-more-optimistic thirty seconds, depending on your source. Despite initial victories by the Communists forces, the Tet Offensive resulted in a major defeat of those forces. We observed the rules of the Geneva Convention while the bad guys had no interest in doing so. When Roeski got hit, I took over the M-60. hb```8fB cBLd2>Tb jz1@E; aK6Tmc.Nn"&gn7hj'wm,h d6p4u0`&88:,TMV& y@ b=e>a&^ >{2b`ZHE3psn QZ If you were an administrative officer or clerk in an air-conditioned trailer in Saigon, your war might be a lot like peacetime duty. This makes our site more accessible to the blind, visually impaired, motor disabled, people with cognitive disabilities and more. I told by RTO that i could carry my own radio, When he agreed he was humping ammo. I sure feel for all you guys that went outside the wire. Bravo, 3/187th Inf, 101st Airborne Div, 2nd Plt, 2nd Sq, Hamburger Hill, May 69. US Wings is a veteran-owned business and an official supplier to the US Military. Our chase after the enemy unwittingly led us into a large ambush. He was wounded and suffered permanent disability shortly before his tour was up. Your email address will not be published. Such as in the song Jimmy by M.I.A look at aaja in the dictionary My indian boyfriend told me is meaning come to me, 6 Answers I have never had or heard of that particular brand, but have had several here in Canada, plus a number in the Caribbean and Asia, and there all the same, small cut hot dogs in a can, no need q now please.. Name the major nerves that serve the following body areas:? Id had a premonition, and asked the LT to let me trade off to become the AG. The Vietnam War gave us trouble because we didnt know how to counteract against guerrilla warfare in a jungle (dont forget that the US Army was switching to M16s, which often jammed). 8h%5HF8r,X'q#Vtgz%)P/Oi#rU(uO&*Xx1t^=xVLi The first man to die in Vietnam was James Davis, in 1961. A typical Patrol Boat River (PBR) was about 31 feet long and had twin 50s forward an M 60 midships and a 50 aft. a RTO got killed, it happened within 5 seconds but not that always ALL RTOs got killed. The Statistics in the Combat Area Casualty File (CACF 11/93) show an average age of death much higher than that of news reports. Interesting but something is missing. In my tour everyone had the same chance of getting shot. 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). to the empployees was very informative. Screaming Eagles! At age 55, World War 2 Veterans Its just (bad) luck, fate, randomness theres no right or wrong, no justice or fairness, no reasoning. May they rest in peace. Vietnam Veterans were the best educated forces our nation had ever sent into combat. I was told to show the new guy how to use it properly. The average age of the men killed: 23.1 years. I think what is missing is the fact that the life expectancy of those firing at us was much shorter than those that they were firing at. Sgt. Quickly learned to control rate of fire. 101st Airborne Division. Me, a vehicle mechanic with Btry E, 41st Arty Quads 1970. Company B had seven dead, Grandstaff announced, and I was to take No. Thank You General Vessey for the almost 53 years I have lived since that day. The next three weeks passed uneventfully. 4. The American military did not lose a battle of any consequence. Ordered to reinforce the unit, the Company B commander put our four platoons abreast of each other, and we marched west. 1 Gun used to kill Americans? Black fatalities amounted to 12 percent of all Americans killed in Southeast Asia, a figure proportional to the number of blacks in the U.S. population at the time and slightly lower than the proportion of blacks in the Army at the close of the war.. This is not Vietnam where a machine gunners life expectancy was short because you had an entire army shooting at them. The Bn & Company I was assigned to, was on the last row of Bldgs. Ron. In the hands of a well-trained machine gunner, the M60 was a devastating weaponso feared by our opponents that they usually aimed their first shots at the machine gunners, who were often in positions exposed to enemy fire. 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. We were expecting, an attack. by Zita Ballinger Fletcher 1/18/2022. Non-divisional aeromedical evacuation units went by the callsign DUSTOFF. The next morning, the blasting could still be, heard. It was one of my most memorable tours in the Navy I later went to a carrier and was bored silly because I had about 1% of the responsibilities I had as an O-2. As I made my way to the river, I saw a VC guerrilla jump into the water on the other side. well I wonder how long your going to last lieutenant? I am proud to have fought alongside of them. Dont know why, but generally, their aircraft were not armed (door gunners, etc.). In 1964 an Ohio woman took up the challenge that had led to Amelia Earharts disappearance. My dog and I walked point my whole tour in Vietnam. We had been carrying machine guns for over seven months. Please do not send samples. The death squads focused on leaders at the village level and on anyone who improved the lives of the peasants such as medical personnel, social workers, and school teachers. Company A searched in vain for the platoon in the dark and finally found the shattered unit on the morning of May 19. Not long after the artillery barrage ended, the North Vietnamese swept through 4th Platoon and executed some of the survivors. I quit trying to make sense of all the numbers that have been generated about Vietnam. If it had been up to me, I would have awarded my gun the CIB too. C Co, 1st-12th 66-67. From a military standpoint, it was almost an unprecedented performance. Really? 79% had a high school education or better. They were well-armed, well-trained and knew how to fight. I was constantly untangling the barrel and bipod of the gun from grasping vines and branches. 10 1/2 months in the bush. In Vietnam 70% 0f the casualties were Infantry BUT it might be 70% of ALL the Infantry that served in Vietnam. MEDEVAC helicopters flew nearly 500,000 missions. Theres 58,276. The 4th Platoons single machine gun crewthe platoon had entered the fight short a gunhad been killed in the fighting, and I was to be moved there. . As far as I knew that was done in the whole battalion in 1968 . US Wings recently added to OTEXA's Made in U.S.A. It was reported as an overwhelming success for the Communist forces and a decided defeat for the U.S. forces. _____ 1. Different jobs have different life expectancy. Very interesting I carried theM 60 for 5 months that gun would cut down anything. 2. Shea's gallantry in action at the cost of his life were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon . Welcome Home Roger. They were great patriots fighting for their families and their homeland. where can i find red bird vienna sausage? It was on the Job Training ! I was in the AF a Reo in a F4-C. Who had time to worry about the life If you have other information let me know. 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. 11 c mos , meaning I was also cross trained for mortars . After about 30 minutes, the four enemy soldiers got up and left the area. 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. 85% of Vietnam Veterans made successful transitions to civilian life. The three of us had trained together at Fort Lewis and were good friends. Photo above is of Stanley Kober with RTO, John Scheur.