I was wasting ammo and didnt even have a target! The fact is that most machine gunners, RTOs, junior officers and other extremely dangerous jobs survived the war. Whether they produced battlefield images of the dead or daguerreotype portraits of common soldiers, []. estimated education differentials in life expectancy for Veterans in 2011-14 are close to those of U. S. population in 1979-89. I saw killed and wounded everywhere in our combat operations. Explore the Life of a U.S. Infantryman in Vietnam. There were almost twice as many casualties in Southeast Asia (primarily Cambodia) the first two years, after the fall of Saigon in 1975, than there were during the ten years the U.S. was involved in Vietnam. Soldiers from 2nd Platoon, Company C, 87th Infantry Regiment, walk on patrol north of the Long . Great information. Then the tempo changed suddenly and violently. 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 I picked up my M60 and walked to the center of the perimeter, where I found the company commander, Capt. The helicopter provided unprecedented mobility. Nicknamed "the pig" due to its size, weight and sound, the gun struck fear into enemy troops. At that time, an infantry company consisted of about 150 men. I never thought of it that way before but have many times since. We used to provide cover for these guys. The first man to die in Vietnam was James Davis, in 1961. But it was my jobso I tried not to think about it much. Thank You Roger!!! The Vietnam War was the turning point for Communism. It was more or less next man up . Sure but so was everyone else who went 12 months without getting killed or wounded. They were well-armed, well-trained and knew how to fight. Point, slack and compass. The fall of Saigon happened 30 April 1975, two years AFTER the American military left Vietnam. Name the major nerves that serve the following body areas? (tirotactico.net). I was one of the many others I rode river boats in the Mekong Jan 68 to 69. Lucky you. They were also in a circular formation. What was the average life expectancy of a soldier in Vietnam? So I guess I defied the odds. 4322 0 obj <>/Filter/FlateDecode/ID[<4E412331B845E54EBDFDC79FA0627A18>]/Index[4314 16]/Info 4313 0 R/Length 65/Prev 560501/Root 4315 0 R/Size 4330/Type/XRef/W[1 3 1]>>stream Flipping the safety off, I scanned the jungle in front of me. The man listed as missing was machine gunner Joe DeLong, captured along with No. The article was interesting. We flew north, then made a stop, in Cam Rahn Bay. The average age of the 58,148 US Servicemembers killed in Vietnam was . What Was It Like To Hump The Boonies in Vietnam? No. From a military standpoint, it was almost an unprecedented performance. 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. We were very, lucky. We took fire all the time and responded. 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! 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.. Thank You for your courageous service as an RTO with the legendary Hawk Recon Platoon. Really no mention of the regular rifleman. A Co, 1/5 Cav, 1 Cav Division. Its not all written down. (LogOut/ In my tour everyone had the same chance of getting shot. Theres 58,276. If there was anything to this life expectancy of a few minutes then myself and many of my friends that are still alive today would be a long time dead. Five men killed in Vietnam were only 16 years old. 87% of Americans hold Vietnam Veterans in high esteem. Wow I was 31.8 Gun shot Carried model 1200 Winchester shot gun WIA May 68 Article was great. Information presented by SFC (Ret) David Hack. If my memory is correct, only the 1st Cab flew wiith doorgunners. In 1973, Renza opened his own salon in Peekskill. In Vietnam 70% 0f the casualties were Infantry BUT it might be 70% of ALL the Infantry that served in Vietnam. The Regiment traces its lineage back to World War II. Of the eight who remained, seven were wounded. Keep in step with US Wings Join our newsletter to receive all our latest news and offers, Example: Yes, I would like to receive emails from US Wings. Thats why they called us GRUNTS ! This article appeared in the October 2021 issue of Vietnam magazine. A battery of big 155 mm howitzers blasted the tiny platoon perimeter, tearing trees out of the ground and hurling chunks of red-hot shell splinters through the air. 99% of infantry men will currently live to die of natural causes. The man with the carbine immediately dropped it, and the two VC surrendered. Me molesta que mis padres no ______ (cuidar) su alimentacin.. 3. The one number that is really important is 56,220 and we all know what that number represents. The gas-operated, belt-fed gun had a maximum rate of fire of 550-650 rounds per minute. Ha Ha always enjoyed being a volunteer! We were in2dBn 503d . Hey Robert I was with the 38th Scout Dog Plt. Learned a lot from him. Corrections and confirmations to this errored index resulted in the addition of 358 U.S. military personnel confirmed to have served in Vietnam but not originally listed by the Department of Defense (All names are currently on file and accessible 24/7/365). Appx: 6 months in, all of the 543d TC joined forces with the 572d TC. We soon learned that the NVA troops were very different from the local guerrillas we had fought around Tuy Hoa. 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. . Vietnam Veterans were the best educated forces our nation had ever sent into combat. I was an Artillery Forward Observer with the Infantry. Not much different than his unit. is sharing facts, thats truly good, keep up writing. For example, life expectancy of Veterans at age 25 population, thus 3.6 and 0.5 life-years smaller income differentials for male and female Veterans, respectively, shown in Tables 17 and 18. The jungle seemed to want No. _____ 1. The average infantryman in Vietnam saw about 240 days of combat in one year thanks to the mobility of the helicopter. The Army suffered the most total casualties, 38,179 or 2.7 percent of its force. well i have been army infantry for 12 years with 2 deployments, and still going strong. And yes, please God, bless America. I sure feel for all you guys that went outside the wire. Of those killed, 61% were younger than 21 years old. Walked point way to many times but never had contact. How could we lose a war we had already stopped fighting? 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 I knew some of this, but certainly not all. Interesting reading. Each company had eight M60s. AS LEADERS IN AMERICAS SERVICES WE MUST BE PROFICIENT AND READY TO ACCOMPLISH OUR MISSIONS- How old are Vietnam vets now? Can I use this word like this: The addressal by the C.E.O. DeLong had only fired the weapon once in training, so I let him fire off a few rounds to practice. I wasnt aware that they kept life expectancy statistics. I traveled to Fort Lewis, Washington, and trained there for 10 months before deploying to Vietnam as specialist 4. I told by RTO that i could carry my own radio, When he agreed he was humping ammo. Seattle, Washington(WA), 98106. !We dont abuse prisoners Now, if he reaches for his weapon to continue the fight BLOW HIS ASS AWAY THIS AINT SUNDAY SCHOOL!!! Five RTOs. If you ask people who live in these countries that won the war in Vietnam, they have a different opinion from the American news media. My second tour was as the S3 for LTC Anthony Herbertone of Americas greatest leaders and WARRIORS OF ALL TIME. Then we learned, appx: 1 mile to our North was, an American AMMO storage area. His body was torn to pieces. It didnt matter who you were or where you were. In all that time, the Tet 1968 fighting in Saigon was the only time the unit fought a pitched urban battlevery unusual during the war. then youd carry an extra 200 rounds of M60 ammo for the machine gunner , plus drag grenades , one smoke grenade plus etc. 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. Never knew they had life expectancy stats. He said when they were ambushed they took defensive positions, returned fire, called for assistance when needed, and retreated when necessary. Not to mention that right now its safer than some cities in the us. Vietnam War the helicopters that came in to transport soldiers were the hardest hit with mass casualties . 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. The last American troops departed in their entirety 29 March 1973. The rule of thumb was , any new guys would get the radio and keep it until another new guy came in. Some unfortunately also came home with physical scars. I didnt make a move without that gun beside me. I was told to help carry one of the bodies. Welcome Home Brothers ! This is hard to believe, losing nearly 711,000 between 95 and 00. LUCK pure LUCK. Four platoons in a rifle company. Lt lost a finger, same time. Artillery, and ground forces. 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. Also: for years I have read those life-expectancy numbers never really understanding them, but also noting that they wildly vary. One of them gazed in our direction, lowered his AK 47 assault rifle and fired six shots. Bruce Grandstaff and my best friend, Sgt. The average life expectancy of a Soviet soldier during the height of the battle was just 24 hours. Needless too say I depended on Sgt. 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? The average time lapse between wounding to hospitalization was less than one hour. I was stationed on 2 FSBs (8 & 175mm guns) west of Tay Ninh on the Cambodian boarder in the Ho Chi Minh trail and was wounded but nothing as bad as he was. Ron. Eventually I found a spot where the bed leveled off and began firing on the NVA. Half of the company hopped off the Huey on one side of the river, and the rest exited on the other side. Well, according to current mortality and morbidity statistics for the USright around 77.5 Years! A former expert with the M60 machine gun shares his experiences wielding the fearsome weapon in Vietnam. 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. Few areas of the world have been as hotly contested as the India-Pakistan border.

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