Agreed!!!!!

 

A lot of ground pounders here, time for a sailor to speak up

US Navy, a proud part of the Marine Corps, 1971-2000. Started off on Guam as an Intel weinie (be nice!) then onboard USS Kitty Hawk '73-75 in Tonkin Gulf as Vietnam was winding down. Stationed here on Whidbey Isle in a Jammer squadron deployed on USS Eisenhower to the Med and Persian Gulf. Then some cushy shore duty in Maine on a watch-standing schedule. Shore duty Japan. Then submarines four years in the Pacific, some of the best duty ever. Then deployed Gulf War I with a Marine FAST team in Bahrain, Saudi and briefly Kuwait; a rifle-toting sailor, sheesh was getting too old for that. Then SubSchool department head in Pearl as a Senior Chief, then finished up on cush shore duty here as Master Chief and retired. Eleven years onboard seaduty when all was said and done, good times and bad times.

OORAH!

Now I'm sitting on my fat **** enjoying the woods and keeping the trees in order.

Rex

 

Man REXB thats quit a career.
I joined the navy as an airdale (jet engine mech) worked on them all J41 old a-7s,
J79 f-4's, tf30's f-14's, tf34 S3's, j52 p408 A6's, j56 turbo prop E-2's, thats what we
had on the USS kittyhawk and the USS Ranger where i did a couple westpacs, others
on land at Marimar and Whidbey Is. Played a part in the Iraq/Iran war, and missed our
safari in Monbasa.
Oh and overseas always walked into town with a couple Marine buddy's because
the marines being a branch of the Navy they learned to fight, Us squids, well we
were the best partiers in the world passed out drunk in port.

 

Currently stationed at Whidbey Island. Attached to a p-3 outfit here. Been in for about 5 years as an AT. Made a westpac to japan with dets to Iwo Jima, Guam, Brunei, Thailand, Phillippines, and Korea. EAOS is AUG07.

 

Went to all those places including sasabo, and hong kong which was fun but the
best was Pattaya Beach, even thought it was better than wikiki and austrailia.

 

I started out RA Army at Ft. Lewis April 69. After AIT, Wheel Vehicle Mechanic, went to VietNam in Oct.69-70. Volunteered as a Door Gunner when I got there. Got sent to the 281st Assault Helicopter Company (AHC) at Nha Trang (little did I know what I was getting into) and flew as a door gunner in 3rd Platoon, Wolf Pack Guns, on UH-1C Gunships. (MOS-67A1F) Ended up becoming a Crew Chief, (67N20)

From our web-site:

The 281st AHC was the first US Army Helicopter Company organized and trained as a Special Operations Aviation unit in the Republic of Vietnam. It was placed under Operational Control (OPCON) of 5th Special Forces Group (ABN), Detachment B-52, Project Delta, a Special Operations unit that conducted Strategic Reconnaissance and other clandestine operations throughout the country of South Vietnam.

Want to read some good stories, look at some cool pics?

Wolf Pack Guns http://281stahc-wolfpack.org/

281st Assault Helicopter Company http://281st.com/


RexB and you other Navy guys, my AC (main pilot) (this man could fly a helicopter) from Wolf Pack, WO 2 Boyington, ETS'ed from the Army and a few years latter joined the Navy. You may know him as Rear Admiral John E. Boyington. He just retired a few years ago from the Navy. John's living in TX now.


I ETS'ed in Jan 72 and hooked back up in the Army Reserve in 86 or 87, can't remember for sure, getting old. Took a school for HU-60 for Tactical Transport Helicopter, Repairer Supervisor course (MOS 67T30) I was looking forward to working on the Black Hawk, but it never happen. Avn in the Army Reserves is hard to do, not that many Avn units....

So I just went to the IRR to hang out, till Desert Storm and I volunteered to go. Army says sure, we need UH-1H Crew Chiefs, come on down. So I did.

After that I gave up and got out. Tried to hook back with the Army after 9/11 wanted to go to Afghanistan.....Never going to happen OLD GUY is what I was told.

 

I didn't think this thread would take off so quickly. I started it very late yesterday. Great to see it active.

 

20 years Navy as a Gas Turbine Mechanic, USS Cushing (Plank Owner), USS Elliot, Recruiting District LA, Intermediate Maintenance Long Beach, USS O'Brien, back to USS Cushing, Assault Craft Unit 5 @ Camp Pendleton (Swift Intruders, No Beach Out of Reach), USS Ingraham. 15 years sea duty and 8 deployments. 1978 to 1998. Never could make chief because of a big mouth. It did get me this job though making $100K+ a year.

Still don't hold a candle to my dad though 23 1/2 as an Engineman (Main Propusion Diesels) with one 3 year shore duty tour as Chief Engineer on a tug in Long Beach. He got the last of WWII, Korea, and the first of Vietnam.

Oldest brother did 20 in the Air Force as a electronics specialist, older brother did 9 as a missle tech on Boomers out of Charleston and baby brother did 12 doing avionics in the Marines.

 

Ah yes! Pattaya is the best!

 

It's universal......You Yell, We SHELL

Gunner15a

 

Er, no. When I was in 1 Mar Div was at Pendelton (I lived at LOVELY Las Pulgas during my time in when I was stateside). 3rd Mar Div was the reserve division, and 2 Mar Div was in the East Coast.

Gunner15a

 

This is something, so many of us served in the military. I don't usually make generalizations, though in daily life I notice how Ford owners, trucks in particular, have a "service to country" idealism, plus the salt-of-the-earth values of a good work ethic.
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i1dery, we're both alumni of the ****ty Kitty!
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JR, door gunner on a SpecFor helo in 'Nam. I looked thru your 281st website. Not a comfortable job or place to be. I don't suppose that Rear Admiral John E. Boyington was related to Pappy Boyington of the Black Sheep? You 'n me both tried to get back in after 9/11 - I wanted to watch out for the youngster's too. The answer was the same - thanks but no thanks. Gettin' past primetime has its downside.
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lol the legends of Pattaya Beach. We missed that port 'o call due to a change in sailing plan. But our overseas homeport was Olongapo which ain't too bad either.
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"You yell, we shell" Yep, king of the battlefield. Those upstart MLRS'ers won't completely assume that title.

 

RexB; Yes he is a cousin of Greg Pappy Boyington. Now this is a real small world. I met and got drunk with Greg in late 72 out a SEA-TAC airport. Did not know who he was for hours. Just and Old guy and a Young guy getting hammered We would do this off an on for a few years, but Greg was getting real sick, at the end. He was a man's, man. One of the Good Guys. He is missed.

 

I remember Olongapo the Adult play ground for most of the younguns.
there was an other place just outside of Olongapo couple miles Bareo,
borillo, barnicle anyhoe it was somthin like that, anyhow some old salty
Chief retired and set up shop there (BAR) called something that had horse in it,
stallion bar white stallion or black been a long time and the name could be completly
wrong. ten bucks set ya up all night.

 

It is a small world, most peeps wouldn't believe some of the happenings in the military, sea duty, ground-poundin', et al.

Shortly after John McCain was released in '73, he came aboard the Kitty Hawk and debriefed our jet-jockeys and Flag staff. He was prematurely white-haired in his 30's and obviously had gone through hell.

The 'ol Shah of Iran, Pahlavi, came aboard for an air show and to my spaces (CVIC and Flag country) in '74 -- we could feel the aura from that guy, despite his rep both good and bad.