Patches

[39mto39g]

All the base Camps I was in ( somthing like 20) I noticed that most all the guys there had there rank and unit sewn on . All the time I was in VN I never had anything sewn on. In Cham Rahn There were guys with starched ironed and spit shinned boots and brass. I don't think any of that would have been to good in most places I went, It sure did look Pretty. Huua, so thats what the Army looks like?

Ron

[DMZ-LT]

In the bush we got a new uniform about every 3 months , no sewing. Had a set of fatiques at Dong Ha that had the 9th patch on the left shoulder. Came into Quang Tri once after about 3 weeks in the bush and a SFC said we were a disgrace to the Army the way we looked. I told him to stop talking to my men and get the F away. He did.

[39mto39g]

A real soldier couldn't survive in the bush, and a guy that does good in the bush couldn't be a real soldier. They are not the same.
Ron

[exlrrp]

Originally posted by 39mto39g A real soldier couldn't survive in the bush, and a guy that does good in the bush couldn't be a real soldier. They are not the same.
Ron

you said it Ron. Once youve gotten used to busting caps on people to make your daily living, the thrill of mirror shiny jump boots just isn't the same. All those field exercises in exotic places tends to make you see importance in other things besides shiny brass--like good times and high living..
I know for sure some people fought it. I knew some lrrps who pulled out the caliber and carjacked some MPs jeep that was busting their balls over--get this--their shoes not being black enough. Those poor ol 4th div MPs--you'd almost feel sorry for them if they werent such dicks. They hated my lrrp company and with some reason. .No I was not there when this happened.
But the hardest thing to get used to was all that CS back in Bragg. After a year as an airborne gunt, picking up butts and sanding roads was a real drag.
Stay good
James

PS My final fatigue shirt sported CIB, jumpwings, the Recondo school patch, jungle expert patch, 101st combat patch and 82d unit patch. not bad for a teenager in less than 3years "? wanna be an Airborne Ranger I wanna live a life of Danger!"Been there, done that got the tshirt

Just like Ron my second tour in Nam with the 4th ID I didn't wear anything on my fatigue shirt. Although sometimes when we did a clean set of jungle fatigues some of the shirts had US Army sewn on above the pocket. My first tour I was with an MI unit and all we did was provide security for the MI unit, tower guard, bunker guard, gate guard, and guarded the "detainees" bought in by the MI types for questioning. Wore the MACV patch, the whole shabang, name tag, US Army and Rank ( subdued) sewn on the sleeves. Boots were shined by hooch maids, and fatigues were ironed by them also. Third Tour was definite spit and polish since I was assigned to the 716th MP Battallion in Saigon.

[frisco-kid]

I had some real adjustment problems going from the 101st in Nam to the 82nd at Bragg. I think it was especially tough for us guys that went to Nam right out of Jump School, not having any experience with being in a garrison Airborne unit stateside or in Europe. Or even Panama. I hated Bragg the whole time I was there. I wasn't the only one, either. A good friend of mine from Nam volunteered to go back to get out of Bragg. If he had waited, he could have gone back with the rest of us a few months later when we were sent for Tet '68.

While with the 101st, we were encouraged to wear our patches. Many of the uniforms brought to us in the field had them on. During the time I was with them [JUN66-JUN67] they didn't have the subdued patches, and it was my understanding that the 101st was the only unit that wasn't required to wear them when they came out with them. Was that true, Bill?

Like James, I was proud to wear both the 101st and 82nd patches at once. When I got reassigned to Cam Rahn Bay on my second tour, I was supposed to wear the 1st Log Command [Leaning Shithouse] patch as a unit patch, and had the choice of either the 101st or 82nd for a combat patch. I almost always wore the 82nd as a unit patch, and 101st as a combat patch. There was a couple REMF NCO's and officers that would bust my balls about it sometimes, so I had a couple shirts with the Leaning Shithouse [with Airborne crest ] and a 101st combat patch to wear for awhile to appease them. Pretty soon I'd be back in the 82nd/101st shirts until the next time. F_ck those legs .

[MontanaKid]

I was in the Americal, but because of the bad publicity of My Lai, would wear my 196th Brigade patch instead. Fellow GI's didn't help, they would call the Americal patch the "baby killer" patch. One action by some of the members of one platoon and the whole division is tarnished. We were good. We had a tough AO. We weren't an elite Division, most of our grunts were draftees. But we did OK and suffered the fourth highest fatalities of any Army division.

Some of that patch thing is the usual unit rivalry. Like calling 101 the "puking buzzard," or the 9th the "Flower Power" or the 25th the "electric strawberry" or the 1st cav, "the horse is the horse never rode, the stripe is the river never crossed and the yellow is the reason why."

But I proudly identify with the Americal today. "Under the Southern Cross." Though our colors and a museum are at Fort Devons, the Americal has never served in the states or outside of the Pacific. It was formed in 1942 on the island of New Calidonia and fought in most of the campaigns of the war with Japan. They were slated to hit the beach at Kyushu in September of 1945 before we dropped the bomb. The division was activated in Vietnam in 1967 and covered Quang Ngai and Quang Tin Provinces until it rolled up its colors in the fall of 1971.

Thank for your service Montana Kid, I have never held anyone from the Americal Division repsonsible for My Lai except for those responsible, LT Calley, CPT Madian, and the COC. I was not at My Lai so I can't describe what was going through the minds of the soldiers there. It was just a bad thing for the US Army that's all. But the US Army has served it nation for well over 200 yerars with honor and distincition.

[Bill Farnie]

Originally posted by frisco-kid
While with the 101st, we were encouraged to wear our patches. Many of the uniforms brought to us in the field had them on. During the time I was with them [JUN66-JUN67] they didn't have the subdued patches, and it was my understanding that the 101st was the only unit that wasn't required to wear them when they came out with them. Was that true, Bill?

Tom,
I think your correct and I never saw a 101st subdued patch worn by anyone. They may have been available but I never saw them worn at all by anyone at anytime during my tour.

We had jungle fatiques with and without the 101st patch and ranks. When we first moved to I Corp we got fatiques with all the trimmings and when I went on R&R, I had a set with patch, rank and CIB and again when I was back at Camp Evans for DEROS. Other then those times it was either with or without the 101st patch depending, like with frisco, if they were on the shirt that came with a re-supply.

[rotorwash]

Well, not to make all you smelly ol' grunts jealous, but us pampered flyboys eventually were able to put together complete uniforms with all the proper patches, etc, even a few we made up like our platoon patch. When I came back from leave I brought one of those old stateside uniforms with me. Got a picture of me wearing it at Duc Pho.

I left before our unit was transfered from 1st Aviation Bde and re-assigned to Metrical Division.

Our company put Calley and those boys on the ground that day and it was an aviator that blew the whistle. The Bde CO was trying to put all the pieces together when he went down in one of our aircraft after an Air Force FAC knocked it out of the sky. Other then that I think the division performed well.

RW