life expectancy of an infantry soldier in vietnam

Never knew they had life expectancy stats. If it had been up to me, I would have awarded my gun the CIB too. I personally carried 300 rounds of ammo at all times, one belt in the gun and two across my chest. An NVA soldier had evidently spotted the gun and waited patiently for me to stick my head up. well i have been army infantry for 12 years with 2 deployments, and still going strong. It was just north of Saigon. 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 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. I did worry about the strength of my flax vest. He said fighting was especially deadly in the war-torn city of Bakhmut, dubbed "the meat . According to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund (VVMF) there are now officially 58, 318 names on the wall. I just wanted to get off No. I was a medic on one for two yrs and the only weapon I was issue was a six-shot .38. If it was your day to get hit or die, it happened. Ernest, Im glad that your first tour with the VN airborne was rewarding. The battalion was sending us to a village with a small river running through it. While traveling through the boonies the first few men were usually always shot first. A dense mass of elephant grass hung over the riverbank, and he ducked under it. Two of my classmates were killed within 2 weeks incountry and three wounded I know of. They were all up there scanning the terrain and looking for signs. I am 81 now and survived the encounter by terminated the sniper. I never even got a shot off. I always was told that the life expectancy of a LT was 14 seconds in INITIAL combat versus 9 seconds for an RTO. is sharing facts, thats truly good, keep up writing. When Roeski got hit, I took over the M-60. 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. Not long after the artillery barrage ended, the North Vietnamese swept through 4th Platoon and executed some of the survivors. His comparison to a FB was that if we were fired on we returned fire and requested assistance when needed. 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. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. We soon learned that the NVA troops were very different from the local guerrillas we had fought around Tuy Hoa. Seattle, Washington(WA), 98106. 1 Gun kept a lot of enemy heads down. The CACF is the basis for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial (The Wall): Average age of 58,148 killed in Vietnam was 23.11 years. Vietnam veterans' personal income exceeds that of our non-veteran age group by more than 18 percent. History is who we are and why we are the way we are.. I spent 10 1/2 months in the jungles of Vietnam. S/F, There were no door gunners on dustoffs. It was more or less next man up . Nobody attacked, where we were. 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. I never understood why they didnt put M60s on Medevacs (once the VC shot them down) but then, we now know they never intended to win that war in the first place. Take out the power center, youve got the edge. An infantry platoon commander in combat had an average of 6 weeks life expectancy. Interesting reading. 4. Tumbling end over end, the canisters exploded in a white-hot fireball. Foot soldiers went by the grace of God, but had a better chance than the infantry platoon commander in combat. A documentary about our company and our 1st Sgt was made. There were usually 3 man (At least 2) point teams. I was an FO back in the day. Nevertheless, I swung No. I had to rely on my gun more than before. Carrying a dead man some 300 yards through thick jungle in 100-degree heat was extraordinarily difficult. We fought to an agreed stalemate. Rarely do we examine war through the unique bond between a man and his weaponin this case the . I too never understood survivor quilt, Enjoyed your article. C Co, 1st-12th 66-67. Out of thousands of men that invaded that town in southern Afghanistan, we have lost 19. Even the AP photographer, Nick Ut, who took the picture, was Vietnamese. Surrounded by an enemy battalion, our hopelessly outnumbered platoon waged a desperate battle for survival. They were lazy, cowardly and of questionable loyalty, especially the RUFF/PUFFS, and they would steal your under ware if given half a chance. Lived too tell about it. 99% of infantry men will currently live to die of natural causes. Then one hot, sunny day, while walking across rice paddies, we suddenly received small-arms fire from Viet Cong in some distant hills. ), special forces, combat support, engineering, medics, and vehicle assault weapons. Our patrols were typically about 14 hours 24/7 We operated of old LSTs and large barges. 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. By the time we reached Vietnam in October 1966 I felt the gun had become a part of me. The United States sought to minimize and prevent attacks on civilians while North Vietnam made attacks on civilians a centerpiece of its strategy. I remember hearing a Lieutenant (Kennedy) say to one of his two platoon RTOs My RTO is Foxtrot Uniform. 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. The average age of the 58,148 killed in Vietnam was 23.11 years (Although 58,169 names are in the Nov. 93 database, only 58,148 have both event date and birth date. My assistant gunner and my ammo bearer also carried 300 rounds each. 1ST MAW 66-68. 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? On average US troops served 1-2 years in Vietnam, and the percentage of troops killed was actually fairly low for a war this size, 2.14% of all who served were killed, the life expectancy was roughly around 1 year, 5 months and 3 weeks (taking into account the 1-2 year difference in some troops's serving times) Sponsored by Primal Labs I was told to show the new guy how to use it properly. The Kb of pyridine, C5H5N, is 1.5 x 10-9. 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. I always found life expectancy numbers interesting in that I could never find any supporting information that could be validated. Their personal income exceeds that of our non-veteran age group by more than 18 percent. "And in seizing the firm land at the . E)V_5lu[vC3+"vg2L& I worried about that kind of leadership style in the highlands. Thanks for posting! DeLong had only fired the weapon once in training, so I let him fire off a few rounds to practice. It means, IF (!) I've never heard about the life expectancy of 6 weeks (even with a short google search). I couldnt disagree. An infantry platoon commander in combat had an average of 6 weeks life expectancy. I was in the AF a Reo in a F4-C. Who had time to worry about the life I got shot on a mission with 45 days left. Ed, I was in a Grunt Platoon in Vietnam 70-71. U.S. Wings is a manufacturer and a supplier. Hi, the whole thing is going nicely here and ofcourse every one AS LEADERS IN AMERICAS SERVICES WE MUST BE PROFICIENT AND READY TO ACCOMPLISH OUR MISSIONS- I knew some of this, but certainly not all. It was on the Job Training ! Appx: 6 months in, all of the 543d TC joined forces with the 572d TC. 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 1 gun and was hoping it would stay that way. (and yes, you cant ask them, so it would have to be derived from the AA-reports and survivors). Some were constantly exposed to combat, some not so often. Ever since that fateful day in 1967, I have often wondered what became of my beloved M60. We were discussing the different units and dangers of each. Of those killed, 61% were younger than 21 years old. I was a REMF but Ive heard of 05Cs that were stuck out in the boonies on a firebase. 1st Platoon, C Company, 2nd Battalion 327th Infantry. My 31-months in-country was in three Direct Support US Army aviation units, 15TC BN, First Cav, 335TH, Americal and 17TH Cav 101ST ABD65-71In the last battle I was directly involved, LAM SON 719, into Laos, cost army aviation units over 600-helicopters shot down or battle damagedthe NVA were waiting for our SECRET mission in early 71I was glad to go home at battles end, in March 71 , almost unscathed, I was TDY for my absurd third tourTo the point, many ARVN Rangers, airborne and their other best died in Lam Son 719US Army Infantry were forbidden entry to Laos in 71.. the ARVN were massacredand many US Army pilots and crew mambers were KIA & WIAeven MIA. But it was my jobso I tried not to think about it much. The one that should be there is the combat medic. For example: 7*x^2. Sholly injured an ankle, and 1st Lt. Cary Allen took command of Company B. He was wounded and suffered permanent disability shortly before his tour was up. Thats my experience. What were the life expectancies of soldiers during the Vietnam War? The next morning, the blasting could still be, heard. Wortman, another RTO never made it back to The World. Expenditures for a body in a combat zone? Saw from mostly safe distance almost all the weapons systems that where there used. Vietnam War the helicopters that came in to transport soldiers were the hardest hit with mass casualties . According to the American War Library, as of February 28, 2019, it is estimated that approximately 610,000 Americans who served in land forces during the Vietnam War or in air missions over Vietnam between 1954 and 1975 are still alive to this day. The income differentials in life expectancy for Veterans in 2011-14, however, are estimated to be smaller. hmK#1+yNvA You of course had the radio plus xtra batteries & handsets plus your rucksack with 7 to 8 canteens , 20 mags ( I used to carry 17 rounds in the mags instead of 20 ) because the springs would force the round into the chamber causing jams . Required fields are marked *. 4 Charlie Ranallo, were on No. We looked for cover and returned fire the best we could. a RTO got killed, it happened within 5 seconds but not that always ALL RTOs got killed. The man listed as missing was machine gunner Joe DeLong, captured along with No. MEDEVAC helicopters flew nearly 500,000 missions. The Vietnam Conflict Extract Data File of the Defense Casualty Analysis System (DCAS) Extract Files contains records of 58,220 U.S. military fatal casualties of the Vietnam War. The NVA had wedged a blocking force between our company and Company A, preventing us from advancing any farther. I do remember when I got short I thought about it a lot more. 2,709,918 Americans served in uniform in Vietnam. The casualty rate in the current war today is a fraction. well I wonder how long your going to last lieutenant? We had one RTO killed because he was too close to a 2ND Lt, same thing happened to another RTO. There were also wounded. US Wings is a veteran-owned business and an official supplier to the US Military. V. Victor Renza was sent home after he was wounded on May 18, 1967. It had a crew of 4 (forward gunner, the coxswain (steering and driving) and the two aft gunners. Thats 390 per day. The fact is that most machine gunners, RTOs, junior officers and other extremely dangerous jobs survived the war. Amazingly, the NVA men then walked a short distance away, sat down and ate lunch. Your Dad and I had the same job. He retired in 2012 and lives in Delray Beach, Florida. Fighters and planes dont make up the Army, thats the Air Force. 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. As it was, less than 40 did not need evacuation. This Battle changed his life and his future, had it not been for his actions, every man on this FSB Gold would have died. In your rucksack . Suddenly, I heard my name shouted from the Company B command group. aND, mAY GOD BLESS AMERICA!!! We used to provide cover for these guys. At Fort Lewis, every recruit learned to operate various weapons. 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. Re: Helicopter Crews (Medevac & Dustoff): To my knowledge, only the 1st Cav Medevac had M60s for protection. Calculate the pH of a solution of 0.157 M pyridine. Contents 1 Unclear objectives 2 North Vietnamese strategy 2/3 of the men who served in World War II were drafted. The earliest casualty record contains a date of death of . Our home base was Quang Tri fire Base, But I spent about 6 months out at Mai Loc with the rig. The machine guns were numbered within each platoon. This is not Vietnam where a machine gunners life expectancy was short because you had an entire army shooting at them. We walked the mountains and rice patties all thru Tu Thien Province. The Vietnam War was the turning point for Communism. Veteran Owned Since 1986. As of the current Census taken during August, 2000, the surviving U.S. Vietnam Veteran population estimate is: 1,002,511. What Was It Like To Hump The Boonies in Vietnam? 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.. Most of us have memories of these kind of experiences. February 5 th, 1967, Galiano was headed to Saigon, Vietnam with 90 fellow Americans on an Air Force c-131, but orders were quickly altered . 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). Still shaken, I grabbed the gun and crawled to the left inside the streambed. 76% of the men sent to Vietnam were from lower middle/working class backgrounds. by Zita Ballinger Fletcher 1/18/2022. Half of the company hopped off the Huey on one side of the river, and the rest exited on the other side. The helicopter provided unprecedented mobility. I think those numbers are percentages of US KIA, not mortality times. Then we all, loaded on C-147 cargo planes. Nicknamed "the pig" due to its size, weight and sound, the gun struck fear into enemy troops. Sgt. I was constantly untangling the barrel and bipod of the gun from grasping vines and branches. 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. Anxiously extending the bipod legs on the M60, I added a 100-round belt to the one I already had in the gun. 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. I watched in horror as four NVA soldiers ambled through the branches of a downed tree that partially concealed us. I was in 2nd Platoon and carried the platoons No. 1 Gun had registered its first kill. I look over to Event date is used instead of declared dead date for some of those who were listed as missing in action). A Co, 1/5 Cav, 1 Cav Division. My father was on a lrrp team!65-67never was shot but killed alot.He never really got over it though died in 2012! Death by a Bottle! None of the enlisted grades have an average age of less than 20. 4329 0 obj <>stream It resulted in the death of some 45,000 NVA troops and the complete, if not total destruction of the Viet Cong elements in South Vietnam. We went out typically in two boat patrols one lead one cover . I may not have hit anyone that day, but I am certain that No. Id had a premonition, and asked the LT to let me trade off to become the AG. Hack volunteered for service in Vietnam in 1968, joining the 1st Infantry Division. 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.

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