They need to raise up and go after the bankers that made them fight for profit. Never houner murder of innecent people just because a man in a suit tells you to kill anther human for a stupid medal
my husband served 68 - 69 Combat Engineers, he had a lot of problems that he hid, a successful career, a history of addiction, married late in life but died early at 47 due to Agent Orange complications. He remained an enigma even to me. Thank you for your service sir. I am so sorry you were treated so badly.
In any war, people should never forget that soldiers are sent there by the politicians. So if you hate the war, hate the politicians. The poor dudes who go there deserve our support especially if the war is not justified.
They deserve our support. But they should also recognise that they were sent overseas to fight in another mans country for the sole purpose of expanding the illegal drug network in the golden triangle that, due to it being untaxable and unregulated, raked in millions for officials. On top of that the oil resources in the gulf of Tonkin provided another reason to try and invade. While vets might not like to hear they were fighting for drugs and oil and they certainly shouldn’t be disrespected for it, that’s exactly what it was unfortunately. The fact a lot of vets still believe what they were told about Vietnam though is worrying and shows as awful as it might be they need to be educated on the truth.
You've just traded an incomplete story of American involvement in Vietnam for an even less complete story. "The sole purpose" was not what you've said, at all. The primary purpose was the same as the Korean war: geopolitical strategy.
Wars are never about what they are claimed to be about; governments have to tell their citizens lies to get them to act as cannon fodder. When they tell you the war is about conflicting political systems, don't believe it. It's always about power and money. The victims are the soldiers on both side and especially the civilians on whose soil the war is fought.
So true I blocked it out for over 20 years before I got help from the va I finally learned it is okay to cry in which I never did all this time a Big Welcome Home to all Veterans
I was discharged Aug 73. at ft.Devins, Mass. took my uniform off, respectfully packed in an air tight bag where it has stayed for since. While going through my closet, I was reunited with my greens...and the song by Justin tr itt about the one's who didn't come back home...and I cried for the first time over fifty years... I looked in the mirror...gave myself a salute...Sgt. Jim(doc) Walter retired .
U.K. Here. I watched Vietnam from the safety of my living room. T.V. footage, News reports - that kind of thing. Only now - pushing on towards 60, do I realise that war is a rich-mans 'sport'. Only the munitions manufacturers and the politicians etc win in the end. The poor troops on the ground - on both sides - are just pawns in this whole sick game. RIP all those who didn't return and best wishes and long life to those who did.......
I think it was an attempt not to have another world war. World wars just sneak up on you and you can not stay out of them. I do not know what happened to China to make them stupid but the just stabbed us in the back soon after WW2. There was reason to be there in Vietnam.
factnotfictionpeople So dann true. This is why we should have advocacy groups on why not to join the military. I come from 3 generations of military personnel. My father said these wars ( Vietnam Veteran) is a rich mans war . You my son are going to College.
Learn from history! It keeps repeating itself in each generation! What right do the politicians and clergy have to send young men to war to kill other men? Absolutely none! They do so with lies and propaganda! Do not be misled, follow Jesus teachings! If everybody did there would be no war!
I just looked up Lcpl Jones bio and he fought on Hill 25. An incredible story to be heard for sure. Just for info, there is a photo of the same person on two (2) sites with another similar name, David Allen Jones, KIA 5/1/68.
Hill 25 was attacked by 150 V.C. at night. Marines had 28 men defending the top of hill. This went to hand to hand combat. But the 28 marines drove them off the hill. Marines had 10 KIAs and 18 wounded. So all of them got hit. I served in marine corps infantry. 1st battalion 6th marines 0311. I SALUTE MY BROTHER DAVIS ALLEN JONES. A TRUE HERO
After spending twenty years in the Army,working my way and I do mean working from a private E1 to a CWO4 Helios pilot.I still find it gratifying when I thank any veteran man or woman for there sacrifice and service.Beimg basically a loner in civilian life I find these folks excellent therapy and include all in my prayers.
Congratulations on getting to CW04! When I got back stateside I had 2 CW02's working on me to get into the warrant program (Intel) and had a fantastic CO. Then he rotated to next duty, and the second one was the biggest a-hole I ever came across. 10 months later I got discharged to go to grad school, and 3 months later he was RIF'ed out of the military. Long story, but we saved a whole bunch of people from having to serve under him in the future. He picked the wrong bunch of guys to try to micro manage, and showed us in two weeks that he was petrified from having been passed over once for Major.
This vet reminds me a lot of my dad (which was drafted) with the way he holds himself and speaks. It is very unfortunate that there was such an ignorance during that time period. Thank you for your service my brother in arms. I too have the same outlook, I'm doing my part with the intention that I do it well. God bless.
I was just an infant when Vietnam was going on. But, Thank You. Our country could use a lot more men like you today. Unfortunately, civic duty and responsibility like yours are a fading trait in a lot of young people growing up today. Thank you for being there.
I too was a door gunner/ scout 68/69. this is the best interview i have seen on Vietnam service and what we experienced. When i flew I too took off uniform and flew student standby, they made us ashamed to wear our uniform/the shame is on America not we the men and women in uniform, but then we were young. So many guys get on here and make shit up. Cutting off ears, 36 kills etc; I bet no one in his unit can confirm. Hell if all the lying pricks had killed as many as they claim there would be no NVA or VC left. Those of us that were there can smell the B/S a mile away, yes there were some with high kill numbers, but they are legends! Thanks man for standing tall...
Actually cutting ears and heads off did happen, my cousin was SF and I've seen pictures of it. Plus the guy you said is full of shit was a tunnel rat, I mean his job was to crawl in tunnels and kill people. 36 isn't a whole lot, hell Chuck Mawhinney had 103 confirmed kills as a sniper, he had over 200 probable kills. But thank you for your service
My cousin had the same kind of eyes , it was like he could see though me and hear my heart beating . That's the 1000 yard stair I heard alot about . Remember in war someone is trying to kill you and you are trying to kill them .
I'm a Vietnam Era vet and I always wore my uniform when I used to traveled home. I was in the 82nd. Airborne and we wore jumps boots and berets and man I felt so proud!
You guys who were there, always hold your heads up high, you ALL did what you had to do and done it Well. God Bless toy all, it was never your fault From the UK
thank you so much for serving my father was there in 65 66 and 67 airmobile 1st Cavalry Division as a door gunner Laster Ellsworth harp I was in from 1987 - 2007 welcome home sir
Welcome home Sir .. Coming from a Vietnam veteran's older son..thank you for your service. This goes out to all Vietnam Veterans out there.. God bless you all. Welcome home..
I am so ashamed of the people that disrespected you guys. They should have been kissing your feet and praising you for your sacrifice for our families... I was a kid and was not really aware of it all, but I apologize and thank you all from the center of my heart! I wish there could be a way to make it up to you all, and I feel I am in debt to you. Thank you all! P.S. I tried to join the service when I turned 17 but my eye sight and hearing loss disqualified me. Thanks again guys!
thank you for your service and wellcome home. i was also doorgunner big red one 1st aviation battalion 66-67. when i came home all i had was the fatigues i wore from the nam. the nice dress greens i wore proudly on my flight to newark nj. later wore my uniform to fly and visit all my family in penn and ohio. no one ever spit on me or said anything negative. maybe i was just lucky but i am sure that not every one returning was spit on. the country still had alot of good people in it. the only really strange thing that happened was that when we landed in newark the riots were happening in newark and jersey city. the national guard was firing tracers into the projects which were then bouncing up. it was a strange site seeing tracer fire as you landed at home.
I remember wearing my flight suit home to Mc Cord AF Base..as that was all I had. When we touched down in the US ll the flight attendants were crying as they welcomed us home (that was June 1969. Then we went to FT Lewis for a steak and eggs breakfast while they tailored new dress greens of us, so we could go home. Thanks for your service!!!!
I served with John Andersen- 1st Infantry, 1st Aviation. We were out of Phu Loi and flew on the Longhorns. I went through countless airports in uniform. Never a problem. The spitting and name-calling stories are blown way out of proportion. I kissed the ground when I landed home in Chicago. I was proud to wear my uniform.
I was drafted, permanently and totally disabled, and a combat veteran. This video is excellent. I was also poisoned by a potable water supply at Cam Ranh Bay. I drank some water. My tongue swelled up, cracked open, and I bled from my mouth. I could not eat ketchup for years and stuff with red dyes. Prior to that poisoning, I had been a field hospital. I did not seek medical treatment. My hospital records only say, 'admitted for trauma'. No record, no Disabilities. I'm missing a right kidney with the left one at 66%. Here is my point. The V.A. has some good employees. Management is another thing e.i.; Allowing MRI machines to break by not renewing an MRI maintenance contract. Bingo, V.A. management earns a bonus by saving money. Republic of Vietnam was a breeze compared to the monkeys in Congress running the V.A. like Barnie Sanders from the northeast.
I hope that you finally received the care and compensation you deserve. I had to fight with the Veterans Administration for at least a year to get my disability compensation for throat and lung cancer due to agent orange. First we're forced to fight against a foreign "enemy" and then we return and have to fight against our own country's administration.
1971 San Fransico Airport, Not a good idea to have been in my Army dress greens uniform. Got a not so nice Welcome Home there by the bunch of war protesters. The positive: I will be forever grateful to the Salvation Army who had people there helping veterans who were being hassled by protesters. Nice lady came to my rescue and took me the USO room and a place to nap and rest and away from any protesters.
Same here 1972, dressed in Navy whites, walking thru SFO with my hands full of bags, some hippie punk ran up behind me and grabbed my cover and sped of laughing. When I went outside to catch a cab, I got written up by shore patrol, for no hat. XO threw it out at mast!
Approx same time same place for me. I got my baptism in spit in SF trying to get home for Christmas and in uniform for standby flight. Baby killer? I worked in the engine room.
I am glad you made it back. If it were for door gunners laying down cover fire many of my men and probably myself would not be here today. So thanks again.
Thank you for your service and welcome home. I'm 41 years old and could not serve due to heart murmur, but my dad drove various boats, LST, riverine boats, etc in the Navy - Vietnam 1966-67. Great video testimony; Thank you.
Thank you for your service sir as well as telling your story my father is a brother who is a Vietnam erra veteran he claims but i still say he's a veteran cause he was in the service during the war i appreciate all the war veterans or veterans of our military i salute and try to thank as many veterans as i can and show them love for putting there lives on the line for this country god bless our veterans who served
Thank you for your service! I am so sick of the ungrateful, with their negative comments. They have no clue what these men went through. Unfortunately, many of our men were killed by women and children in Vietnam.
Thank you, you will never know how much gratitude I have for you. Though you will know who I am I thank you, I am proud of you, and I am proud to be an American because of the things you and your brothers did. I hope to that at the end of my service I can feel that same feeling of doing my part. This is only the beginning for me but it's men like you that make it all more worth it. Thank you for your service thank you for your sacrifice.
To this Fine example of a Man and too the millions like him, we out here in the Free World thank him from the Heart n Soul. Beauty Mate! Great post Jeff.
War is just a fact of life. I went to war and I did my part for my country. I was amazed at the courage I saw all around me. I prayed that I could be as bold as my comrades. In the book "Chickenhawk" the author talks about some pilots refusing to fly into a hot LZ. I never saw any wavering on the part of my pilots and crew. We did our job no matter what. In fond memory of my pilots and my door gunner who perished in the crash of my helicopter on 13 May 1970 -- I really wish y'all had made it.
Welcome Home Soldier ! Thank you for your service. My brother is a Vietnam Vet, I never miss a chance to acknowledge my appreciation for any veteran and particularly Vietnam Vets. My mother cried everyday that my brother was gone. We made sure the whole family was there when he arrived at the Cincinnati airport. He still struggles with PTSD and medical issues from agent orange, but he married and had 2 daughters and 3 grandchildren and 2 step grandsons. He is a member of the S.E. Indiana Vietnam Veterans and serves in the Honor Guard, he has many veteran funerals to serve at, but he believes that is his duty to honor those veterans. Sir you have my full appreciation and I honor you and all that served.
Thanks for your service. My dad,Steve Rafferty was a door gunner in 128th,in Vietnam in 67',68' and in 70 and 71,and I've got a whole lot of respect for you and all the american soldiers who went. Thanks!
I did not serve in Vietnam. Too young for that. I did however go in the Navy in 77. I remember walking through New York City in my uniform. I came across the man who turned and started yelling at me saying why was I there and his son died in Vietnam. People stopped and stared at me like I had done something wrong. I was proud to wear that uniform and I'm glad I did. I couldn't agree more with you military service definitely made a positive difference in my life. I very much appreciate you and all the other vets that made it back home. I'm sorry that we lost such talented young people in a war that meant nothing to no one. Welcome home my friend !!!!!!
+DaveSender66 I had a similar experience at the airport in Dallas at Christmas 1976. Some idiot - drunk - started berating and pushing me. He left, in handcuffs, with a fat lip courtesy of a young, green-as-grass 18-year old USAF me.
Didn't like traveling in uniform due to the stares in the civilian airports. 1969 was a difficult time due to the war and its protests. Like others have posted hear, it took over 30 years before someone thanked me for my service. No regrets serving and happy to have survived the conscription. Have missed my buddies since being discharged. Have found a few though but they not too interested in recalling the past. Conscription has a strange effect on some folks.
It was a tough way to grow up. I turned 19 and 20 in Vietnam. Good to hear these sentiments that reflect my experiences and feelings. Thank you for sharing Brother from another crew chief/ door gunner
My dad was a Vietnam vet who was a chief crewman on choppers, 1965-68. He thought the same as you. YOU SIR...have my upmost respect, WELCOME HOME SIR ! THANKYOU FOR YOUR SERVICE ! God bless you and your brothers in arms.
It brings tears to my eyes at the first glance at the Vietnam wall, to all those who gave it all, to all my friends that are still here i thank them, for everything they have done. For everyone who has done it, I have talked to many a veterans. I have seen the war from there eyes, but still can never understand truly. I still thank them for there service and thank god they made it home alive, when so many people...... just didn't........
Thank you for your service, and for doing what was asked of you. It was an unusual war in unusual times. A simple thank you is not enough and will certainly not make up for the disparaging remarks directed toward the soldiers, but THANK YOU... and WELCOME HOME!
We did our jobs, came home and faced the terror we saw both in country and coming home....cried to no one and went on and here we are...Thanks for your service and Welcome Home...
Thank you sir and WELCOME HOME!! My brother served '66 to '70. He came home alive but said he left his soul in the Mekong Delta...life has been a struggle for him.
Thank you for this video. It is reminiscent of talking to my dad about his service in Vietnam. He will tell you stories, but not about the fighting. I'll likely never know how he earned his bronze star.
thank you Mr. Fromberg for sharing some of your thoughts about what you went through and how it affected your life. my dad was there also form early 69 till late 69 as a crew chief and the last crash he was in broke his back. i didn't get around to asking him all the things i wished i had, but he also spoke of some of the "good times" and would still laugh, then other thoughts would be the opposite, as i'm sure you know all too well. i use his unit's patch to honor him & had to say thanks2u
Thanks for your service, and welcome home. As a veteran, I have to tell you that being satisfied with what you did, you did the best you could for the time and situation, is the best way to come to terms. None of us can change the past. No matter how much we might like to.
Welcome home Brother! You're service is greatly appreciated. Brother, you and your generation blazed a trail for my generation to boldly follow. Semper Fi!
I have an uncle an uncle who was a door gunner. My other uncle who was on the ground came back pretty messed up compared to other. Even though they both knew I had great respect for them, they didn’t like to talk a lot about it. He took a lot of lives but is strong in his faith towards Gods love for him.
Thank you for your service welcome home glad your safe. My uncle Bobby Gaxiola. Door gunner 67/68 He made it home too had a tuff life but in the end he got it together and was living life. Rip uncle B !
it's totally unacceptable that people treated the Vietnam veterans the way they did and makes me sick. but the reason our military is treated well today is because people like you were treated so badly when returning home from vietnam. Thank you for your service brother, and welcome home.
I had a high school friend who was one of the first from our area to go to Viet Nam. They made him a door gunner but he didn't come home. It pretty much shocked the whole city.
As a non combat vet. Nucs. That really boiled down the military experience. Everything he said has lead me to my life. The military was the best part of my becoming a man. I’ve had a successful life, soon to retire. Every year I go to Canada to fish with a guy I have stayed in touch with for 38 years. I thank him for his service.
I grew up and graduated HS in '72. By sheer happenstance I just missed the Draft. I have had on my '94 F-350 a bumper sticker. 'Vietnam Vets are my Heroes', for 25 yrs. Sincere gratitude for my upperclassmen who took the brunt of the service call and gave so much in life and limb. Local shout out to my Pennsauken, NJ family friend, Bobby Wagner. To all vets a sincere Thank You, from we who did not serve.
Hi. I stumbled across your video quite by accident and watched it. I am seeing it eight years after it was put on TH-cam. Just want to say, Thank You for your service, sir And Welcome Home. Forever. 😊 Dr D from Oklahoma.
When I arrived and was assigned to the 173d in '66, I boarded a bus with wire mesh grills welded over the windows to keep grenades out. When I landed back at Travis AFB a year later in '67 and left the base, I boarded a bus with wire mesh grills welded over the windows to protect us from the demonstrators at the exit gate. What goes around comes around.
Bless you sir. We owe men like you a lifetime of thanks. You make it possible for us to do what we love. Welcome home & thank you for your service to our country.
Sir, don’t forget that many 80’s & 90’s kids grew up pretending to be you guys. My friends an I grew up imitating you and finally joining the service like you did . Much love to the 60’s&70’s U.S. warriors
Thank you so much for your great work and keeping all of us safe. I feel your spirit. I too am a Veteran United states army. It takes all of us to make our lives better,
Thank you sir! and welcome home......I was 9 when we pulled out of Vietnam but am ashamed of not only the way Americans treated veterans but also the way we abandoned the South. If you go you stay, if you are going to stay, don't go. We never learn and did the exact same to Iraq in 2012 then had to go back as a result. I look for ways to help vets when I can. Maybe a thank you, a handshake, or sometimes will anonymously pay for a meal of a vet or some police officers eating at a restaurant. We owe them all.
ONLY HEARD WELCOME HOME FROM OTHER VETS AND THAT MEANS MORE TO ME THEN THANK YOU FOR YOU SERVICE.WE JUST TRIED TO STAY ALIVE TO SEE ANOTHER DAY.RVN 67& 68
I was a few years too young for Vietnam but I a lot of my friends got treated like shit when they came home. It's damn shame that that kind of thing happened to the Vietnam Vets. Thank you all and welcome home.
I was nine years old during the Tet Offense in 1968. My father was a career Naval officer and a submariner. My mother, brother and I religiously watched Walter Cronkite and followed the war and its affects. The protests were confusing to me, but what really concerned me was how could our guys fight a war out in those jungles? It is probably the most difficult terrain, and combined with the weather, and the tenacity of the VC and the NVA, I really felt for the troops on the ground. They, especially, went through a lot. Years later, only three years after the war's end I found myself in the Air Force ROTC at Washington State University. I remember getting looks of disdain, and disgust as I walked around campus in my uniform. We owe a debt of thanks to these brave Veterans and those who so righteously looked down on them with disdain should seek forgiveness and apologize. Thank all Vets for their service, but especially our men and women who served in Vietnam. It wasn't a picnic....
My best friend Jimmie Chastaine may God rest his soul was a door gunner on a helicopter in Vietnam. He did three tours as the door gunner he told me one day after knowing each other for maybe five years or so. I remember going to his house to work on his A/C one hot summer day and damn it was hot in that house. I brought a fan with me to help keep me cool while working on the A-coil and he absolutely freaked out when he saw the fan saying get it the F outta here. I found out later on that he couldn’t have any wind blowing against him I’m guessing from his days being in that open chopper it just brought back all the memories for him. I would’ve never had guessed that would trigger memories, but I guess anything can. I respected his wishes of course and continued fixing his AC while sweating like a whore in church lol. I’d do it again today if he was alive and asked me. He was truly a great guy that would do anything for anyone. Thanks for listening to my story because when he passed he had no family and I think I was his only friend he had left so I just wanted share that with you and say his name one more time. Even though his name was Jimmie Chastaine, he went by Claud Moore and lived in Evansville Indiana until his passing.
Men like him are the ones that need to be praised and honored.
They need support, as nothing we can even imagine could replicate what they have experienced physically and mentally, both sides.
People like Ali should be honored, for standing up against war instead of saying „That's something you did for your country.“
They need to raise up and go after the bankers that made them fight for profit. Never houner murder of innecent people just because a man in a suit tells you to kill anther human for a stupid medal
Thank You For Your Service !!!
yeah but your government rather pay some piece of shit ignorant people millions of dollars to rhyme words on stage.
my husband served 68 - 69 Combat Engineers, he had a lot of problems that he hid, a successful career, a history of addiction, married late in life but died early at 47 due to Agent Orange complications. He remained an enigma even to me. Thank you for your service sir. I am so sorry you were treated so badly.
In any war, people should never forget that soldiers are sent there by the politicians. So if you hate the war, hate the politicians. The poor dudes who go there deserve our support especially if the war is not justified.
They deserve our support. But they should also recognise that they were sent overseas to fight in another mans country for the sole purpose of expanding the illegal drug network in the golden triangle that, due to it being untaxable and unregulated, raked in millions for officials. On top of that the oil resources in the gulf of Tonkin provided another reason to try and invade. While vets might not like to hear they were fighting for drugs and oil and they certainly shouldn’t be disrespected for it, that’s exactly what it was unfortunately.
The fact a lot of vets still believe what they were told about Vietnam though is worrying and shows as awful as it might be they need to be educated on the truth.
@@kubrikansis7289 u got any documentary recommendations ??
You've just traded an incomplete story of American involvement in Vietnam for an even less complete story. "The sole purpose" was not what you've said, at all. The primary purpose was the same as the Korean war: geopolitical strategy.
Wars are never about what they are claimed to be about; governments have to tell their citizens lies to get them to act as cannon fodder. When they tell you the war is about conflicting political systems, don't believe it. It's always about power and money. The victims are the soldiers on both side and especially the civilians on whose soil the war is fought.
we aren't supposed to hate anyone. Bless them that curse you, do good to them that despitefully use you.
So true I blocked it out for over 20 years before I got help from the va I finally learned it is okay to cry in which I never did all this time a Big Welcome Home to all Veterans
I was discharged Aug 73. at ft.Devins, Mass. took my uniform off, respectfully packed in an air tight bag where it has stayed for since. While going through my closet, I was reunited with my greens...and the song by Justin tr itt about the one's who didn't come back home...and I cried for the first time over fifty years... I looked in the mirror...gave myself a salute...Sgt. Jim(doc) Walter retired
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God bless you and welcome home
You have to reinvent yourself because nobody else can help!! Just pointing out.
@@jameswalter7118 thank you for your service & sacrifice, welcome home.
@@jameswalter7118 *salutes you*
Many of us were drafted....we did what our fore fathers did before us. Had no choice.....I too am proud to be a veteran.
john moore I served in the Canadian Army,I did a tour in Cyprus, no more near a Vietnam,I salute you and all American soldiers.😃
john moore I served in the Canadian Army,I did a tour in Cyprus, no more near a Vietnam,I salute you and all American soldiers.😃
Welcome home thank you.
john moore , thank you for your service!
john moore thank you for your service
U.K. Here. I watched Vietnam from the safety of my living room. T.V. footage, News reports - that kind of thing. Only now - pushing on towards 60, do I realise that war is a rich-mans 'sport'. Only the munitions manufacturers and the politicians etc win in the end. The poor troops on the ground - on both sides - are just pawns in this whole sick game. RIP all those who didn't return and best wishes and long life to those who did.......
+factnotfictionpeople blimey, it took you till the age of 60 to realise that? I could have told you all about if 40 years ago
+factnotfictionpeople i believe the internet is where bullshit comes to die, and the truth comes out.
I think it was an attempt not to have another world war. World wars just sneak up on you and you can not stay out of them. I do not know what happened to China to make them stupid but the just stabbed us in the back soon after WW2. There was reason to be there in Vietnam.
factnotfictionpeople So dann true. This is why we should have advocacy groups on why not to join the military. I come from 3 generations of military personnel. My father said these wars ( Vietnam Veteran) is a rich mans war . You my son are going to College.
Learn from history! It keeps repeating itself in each generation! What right do the politicians and clergy have to send young men to war to kill other men? Absolutely none! They do so with lies and propaganda! Do not be misled, follow Jesus teachings! If everybody did there would be no war!
Welcome home and thank you from the family of Davis Allen Jones, KIA 11.2.1967
I just looked up Lcpl Jones bio and he fought on Hill 25. An incredible story to be heard for sure. Just for info, there is a photo of the same person on two (2) sites with another similar name, David Allen Jones, KIA 5/1/68.
Hill 25 was attacked by 150 V.C. at night. Marines had 28 men defending the top of hill. This went to hand to hand combat. But the 28 marines drove them off the hill. Marines had 10 KIAs and 18 wounded. So all of them got hit. I served in marine corps infantry. 1st battalion 6th marines 0311. I SALUTE MY BROTHER DAVIS ALLEN JONES. A TRUE HERO
@@GunnyKeith Thank you Keith from the family of Davis.
After spending twenty years in the Army,working my way and I do mean working from a private E1 to a CWO4 Helios pilot.I still find it gratifying when I thank any veteran man or woman for there sacrifice and service.Beimg basically a loner in civilian life I find these folks excellent therapy and include all in my prayers.
Congratulations on getting to CW04! When I got back stateside I had 2 CW02's working on me to get into the warrant program (Intel) and had a fantastic CO. Then he rotated to next duty, and the second one was the biggest a-hole I ever came across. 10 months later I got discharged to go to grad school, and 3 months later he was RIF'ed out of the military. Long story, but we saved a whole bunch of people from having to serve under him in the future. He picked the wrong bunch of guys to try to micro manage, and showed us in two weeks that he was petrified from having been passed over once for Major.
here in Australia the aussie vets are only just now getting recognised for there service .......
Bullshark! Our Vets have been loved and welcomed back for decades.
Bless the Diggers and their proud service in all Wars, especially their commendable service in Viet Nam.
Your country has always been a backwards shithole country. that doesn't surprise me.
Salute to your forces and to the vets who served in that time
thank you for your service. I have the utter most respect towards this man.
yep, this man needs to be fed steak every day
Amen and is the Real Deal.
The way these veterans were treated when they came home was the beginning of the end for our country. It hurts my heart to even think about it.
war criminals ...according to the constitution
Thanks for your service. I enlisted in 1972, did three years all stateside. I'm very glad you survived combat! Thanks again!
This vet reminds me a lot of my dad (which was drafted) with the way he holds himself and speaks. It is very unfortunate that there was such an ignorance during that time period. Thank you for your service my brother in arms. I too have the same outlook, I'm doing my part with the intention that I do it well. God bless.
to all that served, thank you. so sad what happened to the vietnam vets.
I was just an infant when Vietnam was going on. But, Thank You. Our country could use a lot more men like you today. Unfortunately, civic duty and responsibility like yours are a fading trait in a lot of young people growing up today. Thank you for being there.
I too was a door gunner/ scout 68/69. this is the best interview i have seen on Vietnam service and what we experienced. When i flew I too took off uniform and flew student standby, they made us ashamed to wear our uniform/the shame is on America not we the men and women in uniform, but then we were young.
So many guys get on here and make shit up. Cutting off ears, 36 kills etc; I bet no one in his unit can confirm. Hell if all the lying pricks had killed as many as they claim there would be no NVA or VC left. Those of us that were there can smell the B/S a mile away, yes there were some with high kill numbers, but they are legends! Thanks man for standing tall...
Actually cutting ears and heads off did happen, my cousin was SF and I've seen pictures of it. Plus the guy you said is full of shit was a tunnel rat, I mean his job was to crawl in tunnels and kill people. 36 isn't a whole lot, hell Chuck Mawhinney had 103 confirmed kills as a sniper, he had over 200 probable kills. But thank you for your service
His eyes, tells his story
will morgan yes sir, still wild.
My cousin had the same kind of eyes , it was like he could see though me and hear my heart beating . That's the 1000 yard stair I heard alot about . Remember in war someone is trying to kill you and you are trying to kill them .
will morgan captain f’ing obvious haha, no shit
I was going to comment this as well...
bombardier eyes
I'm a Vietnam Era vet and I always wore my uniform when I used to traveled home. I was in the 82nd. Airborne and we wore jumps boots and berets and man I felt so proud!
You guys who were there, always hold your heads up high, you ALL did what you had to do and done it Well. God Bless toy all, it was never your fault From the UK
thank you so much for serving my father was there in 65 66 and 67 airmobile 1st Cavalry Division as a door gunner Laster Ellsworth harp I was in from 1987 - 2007 welcome home sir
Welcome home Sir .. Coming from a Vietnam veteran's older son..thank you for your service. This goes out to all Vietnam Veterans out there.. God bless you all. Welcome home..
I am so ashamed of the people that disrespected you guys. They should have been kissing your feet and praising you for your sacrifice for our families... I was a kid and was not really aware of it all, but I apologize and thank you all from the center of my heart! I wish there could be a way to make it up to you all, and I feel I am in debt to you. Thank you all!
P.S. I tried to join the service when I turned 17 but my eye sight and hearing loss disqualified me. Thanks again guys!
thank you for your service and wellcome home. i was also doorgunner big red one 1st aviation battalion 66-67. when i came home all i had was the fatigues i wore from the nam. the nice dress greens i wore proudly on my flight to newark nj. later wore my uniform to fly and visit all my family in penn and ohio. no one ever spit on me or said anything negative. maybe i was just lucky but i am sure that not every one returning was spit on. the country still had alot of good people in it. the only really strange thing that happened was that when we landed in newark the riots were happening in newark and jersey city. the national guard was firing tracers into the projects which were then bouncing up. it was a strange site seeing tracer fire as you landed at home.
I remember wearing my flight suit home to Mc Cord AF Base..as that was all I had. When we touched down in the US
ll the flight attendants were crying as they welcomed us home (that was June 1969. Then we went to FT Lewis for a steak and eggs breakfast while they tailored new dress greens of us, so we could go home.
Thanks for your service!!!!
I served with John Andersen- 1st Infantry, 1st Aviation. We were out of Phu Loi and flew on the Longhorns. I went through countless airports in uniform. Never a problem. The spitting and name-calling stories are blown way out of proportion. I kissed the ground when I landed home in Chicago. I was proud to wear my uniform.
+John Andersen You were lucky sir! Some others were unfortunately greeted with arrogant protesters!
I want to Thank you for your service, and all those who did.
I was drafted, permanently and totally disabled, and a combat veteran. This video is excellent. I was also poisoned by a potable water supply at Cam Ranh Bay. I drank some water. My tongue swelled up, cracked open, and I bled from my mouth. I could not eat ketchup for years and stuff with red dyes. Prior to that poisoning, I had been a field hospital. I did not seek medical treatment. My hospital records only say, 'admitted for trauma'.
No record, no Disabilities. I'm missing a right kidney with the left one at 66%. Here is my point. The V.A. has some good employees. Management is another thing e.i.; Allowing MRI machines to break by not renewing an MRI maintenance contract. Bingo, V.A. management earns a bonus by saving money. Republic of Vietnam was a breeze compared to the monkeys in Congress running the V.A. like Barnie Sanders from the northeast.
I hope that you finally received the care and compensation you deserve. I had to fight with the Veterans Administration for at least a year to get my disability compensation for throat and lung cancer due to agent orange. First we're forced to fight against a foreign "enemy" and then we return and have to fight against our own country's administration.
And they want us to pay for illegals' govt benefits, fuck. Insane respect to you. How'd you lose the kidney?
@N Silva My God, you are crazy!
1971 San Fransico Airport, Not a good idea to have been in my Army dress greens uniform. Got a not so nice Welcome Home there by the bunch of war protesters. The positive: I will be forever grateful to the Salvation Army who had people there helping veterans who were being hassled by protesters. Nice lady came to my rescue and took me the USO room and a place to nap and rest and away from any protesters.
+james morikawa You and me both brother. I got the same treatment in SFO in 71. It was a helluva thing....
Same here 1972, dressed in Navy whites, walking thru SFO with my hands full of bags, some hippie punk ran up behind me and grabbed my cover and sped of laughing. When I went outside to catch a cab, I got written up by shore patrol, for no hat. XO threw it out at mast!
I always felt for you Vietnam Veterans... In the Bush... downtown San Francisco....talk about culture shock! FUCK.... blessings
And WOW. I didnt know the Salvation Army was there to help you guys. All the more reason to give to Salvation Army. God Bless you.
Approx same time same place for me. I got my baptism in spit in SF trying to get home for Christmas and in uniform for standby flight. Baby killer? I worked in the engine room.
I am glad you made it back. If it were for door gunners laying down cover fire many of my men and probably myself would not be here today. So thanks again.
My uncle was a door gunner. He didn't come home the same person he was when he left.
I fought in a later war (when I was 23!!) and it's 100% true, you are NOT the same...
MY grandfather wouldn't talk much about the Pacific. He saw a lot of combat on a heavy cruiser, lost much of his hearing from those guns.
Cheeki Breeki - From my own RSVN experience, nobody did.
neither did allot of them....
+N Silva blame trump. ... that's rich
Thank you for your service and welcome home. I'm 41 years old and could not serve due to heart murmur, but my dad drove various boats, LST, riverine boats, etc in the Navy - Vietnam 1966-67. Great video testimony; Thank you.
Thank you for your service to our country sir. You did your job and you made it home. And welcome home.
Thank you for your service sir as well as telling your story my father is a brother who is a Vietnam erra veteran he claims but i still say he's a veteran cause he was in the service during the war i appreciate all the war veterans or veterans of our military i salute and try to thank as many veterans as i can and show them love for putting there lives on the line for this country god bless our veterans who served
Thank you for your service! I am so sick of the ungrateful, with their negative comments. They have no clue what these men went through. Unfortunately, many of our men were killed by women and children in Vietnam.
my father was a door gunner for the 101rst kingsman and one of his memories is also stealing beer
Thank you, you will never know how much gratitude I have for you. Though you will know who I am I thank you, I am proud of you, and I am proud to be an American because of the things you and your brothers did. I hope to that at the end of my service I can feel that same feeling of doing my part. This is only the beginning for me but it's men like you that make it all more worth it. Thank you for your service thank you for your sacrifice.
To this Fine example of a Man and too the millions like him, we out here in the Free World thank him from the Heart n Soul. Beauty Mate!
Great post Jeff.
My uncle Chris licurse was in Vietnam he saved 2 of his friends lives he never spoke about his experience it was too traumatic
War is just a fact of life. I went to war and I did my part for my country. I was amazed at the courage I saw all around me. I prayed that I could be as bold as my comrades. In the book "Chickenhawk" the author talks about some pilots refusing to fly into a hot LZ. I never saw any wavering on the part of my pilots and crew. We did our job no matter what. In fond memory of my pilots and my door gunner who perished in the crash of my helicopter on 13 May 1970 -- I really wish y'all had made it.
You survived a helicopter crash? Jesus
Thank you for your service. I wish the Vietnam Vets (my birth father was one) weren't treated so badly.
These folks deserve way more respect then they got....thank you to all of you.
Seems like an interesting genuine gent, would love to share a beer and hear what he has to say in more detail. Welcome home my man.
Welcome Home Soldier ! Thank you for your service. My brother is a Vietnam Vet, I never miss a chance to acknowledge my appreciation for any veteran and particularly Vietnam Vets. My mother cried everyday that my brother was gone. We made sure the whole family was there when he arrived at the Cincinnati airport. He still struggles with PTSD and medical issues from agent orange, but he married and had 2 daughters and 3 grandchildren and 2 step grandsons. He is a member of the S.E. Indiana Vietnam Veterans and serves in the Honor Guard, he has many veteran funerals to serve at, but he believes that is his duty to honor those veterans. Sir you have my full appreciation and I honor you and all that served.
Thanks for your service. My dad,Steve Rafferty was a door gunner in 128th,in Vietnam in 67',68' and in 70 and 71,and I've got a whole lot of respect for you and all the american soldiers who went. Thanks!
I did not serve in Vietnam. Too young for that. I did however go in the Navy in 77. I remember walking through New York City in my uniform. I came across the man who turned and started yelling at me saying why was I there and his son died in Vietnam. People stopped and stared at me like I had done something wrong. I was proud to wear that uniform and I'm glad I did. I couldn't agree more with you military service definitely made a positive difference in my life.
I very much appreciate you and all the other vets that made it back home. I'm sorry that we lost such talented young people in a war that meant nothing to no one.
Welcome home my friend !!!!!!
+DaveSender66 I had a similar experience at the airport in Dallas at Christmas 1976. Some idiot - drunk - started berating and pushing me. He left, in handcuffs, with a fat lip courtesy of a young, green-as-grass 18-year old USAF me.
Didn't like traveling in uniform due to the stares in the civilian airports. 1969 was a difficult time due to the war and its protests. Like others have posted hear, it took over 30 years before someone thanked me for my service. No regrets serving and happy to have survived the conscription. Have missed my buddies since being discharged. Have found a few though but they not too interested in recalling the past. Conscription has a strange effect on some folks.
It was a tough way to grow up.
I turned 19 and 20 in Vietnam.
Good to hear these sentiments that reflect my experiences and feelings.
Thank you for sharing Brother from another crew chief/ door gunner
Welcome home Sir, Thank you for your service!
I work with a man who was a door gunner in Vietnam. Good man. I’m also a vet and we get along just fine. Got tons of respect for him.
Thank you for your service. In my eyes you and everyone that served are heroes. Always grateful for our troops.
I'm proud of all veterans.
How nice to hear another back seater talk about this. It is a unique perspective to have. A very nice interview. I wish it was longer. 70-71
My dad was a Vietnam vet who was a chief crewman on choppers, 1965-68. He thought the same as you. YOU SIR...have my upmost respect, WELCOME HOME SIR ! THANKYOU FOR YOUR SERVICE ! God bless you and your brothers in arms.
Much love and respect. I had to 2 Uncles serve multiple tours in Vietnam. I personally appreciate yall service and sacrifice
It brings tears to my eyes at the first glance at the Vietnam wall, to all those who gave it all, to all my friends that are still here i thank them, for everything they have done. For everyone who has done it, I have talked to many a veterans. I have seen the war from there eyes, but still can never understand truly. I still thank them for there service and thank god they made it home alive, when so many people...... just didn't........
Thank you for your service, and for doing what was asked of you. It was an unusual war in unusual times. A simple thank you is not enough and will certainly not make up for the disparaging remarks directed toward the soldiers, but THANK YOU... and WELCOME HOME!
We did our jobs, came home and faced the terror we saw both in country and coming home....cried to no one and went on and here we are...Thanks for your service and Welcome Home...
My crane operator did two tours as a door gunner. Thank you for your service
Respect to you sir. Thank you for your service to our Country. (USAF '68 -72")
On behalf of our country thank you. What you have seen and did, does not go unrecognized. Sincerely Joeys Army Navy Store Watertown Connecticut
From One Veteran to another, Thank You Sir for your service. Welcome Home. May God Bless you with al the riches you want in Life.
My brother was also a door Gunner USMC this guy reminds me of him we lost him seven years agoApril
Your brother was a hero.....a survivor ...wish i could shake his hands
@@ronmifsud6946 thanks we thought so and still miss him every day
Thank you Sir for your service in Vietnam and welcome home to you and all the veterans that served in Vietnam. You are all heroes in my book.
my brother did 3 tours. never talked about it, except, he said sometimes he'd heat up his food with c4.
what's c4?
Thank you for your brave service Sir.
hats off to you Vietnam Veterans- glad I was too young to go. but would have if called. thanx for your service, & welcome back home.
Thank you sir and WELCOME HOME!! My brother served '66 to '70. He came home alive but said he left his soul in the Mekong Delta...life has been a struggle for him.
Thank you for this video. It is reminiscent of talking to my dad about his service in Vietnam. He will tell you stories, but not about the fighting. I'll likely never know how he earned his bronze star.
thank you Mr. Fromberg for sharing some of your thoughts about what you went through and how it affected your life. my dad was there also form early 69 till late 69 as a crew chief and the last crash he was in broke his back. i didn't get around to asking him all the things i wished i had, but he also spoke of some of the "good times" and would still laugh, then other thoughts would be the opposite, as i'm sure you know all too well. i use his unit's patch to honor him & had to say thanks2u
Thanks for your service, and welcome home. As a veteran, I have to tell you that being satisfied with what you did, you did the best you could for the time and situation, is the best way to come to terms. None of us can change the past. No matter how much we might like to.
any vet from any where are worth it,chin up kid.
Welcome home Brother! You're service is greatly appreciated. Brother, you and your generation blazed a trail for my generation to boldly follow. Semper Fi!
I am Canadian and watched the war every night on the news. I prayed for you guys often. God bless you for giving up your youth.
I have an uncle an uncle who was a door gunner. My other uncle who was on the ground came back pretty messed up compared to other. Even though they both knew I had great respect for them, they didn’t like to talk a lot about it. He took a lot of lives but is strong in his faith towards Gods love for him.
Thank you for your service sir, and welcome home GI.
Thank you for your service welcome home glad your safe.
My uncle Bobby Gaxiola. Door gunner 67/68
He made it home too had a tuff life but in the end he got it together and was living life. Rip uncle B !
Welcome home brother from a PaveHawk gunner. I love you man, thanks for speaking out here.
I was one of those door gunner too Jeff. 1965. Hard to really accept the way were welcomed back home
it's totally unacceptable that people treated the Vietnam veterans the way they did and makes me sick. but the reason our military is treated well today is because people like you were treated so badly when returning home from vietnam. Thank you for your service brother, and welcome home.
I had a high school friend who was one of the first from our area to go to Viet Nam. They made him a door gunner but he didn't come home. It pretty much shocked the whole city.
As a non combat vet. Nucs. That really boiled down the military experience. Everything he said has lead me to my life. The military was the best part of my becoming a man. I’ve had a successful life, soon to retire. Every year I go to Canada to fish with a guy I have stayed in touch with for 38 years. I thank him for his service.
I grew up and graduated HS in '72. By sheer happenstance I just missed the Draft. I have had on my '94 F-350 a bumper sticker. 'Vietnam Vets are my Heroes', for 25 yrs. Sincere gratitude for my upperclassmen who took the brunt of the service call and gave so much in life and limb. Local shout out to my Pennsauken, NJ family friend, Bobby Wagner. To all vets a sincere Thank You, from we who did not serve.
Thank you for your service Sir and welcome home. With heartfelt gratitude for you and all veterans.
Welcome home brother. I didn't hear it either, for a very long time.
Thank you for your service and God bless you Patriots🇺🇸
No matter what happened over there, i still respect you for going and coming back. It was an honor to listen to your story.
Hi. I stumbled across your video quite by accident and watched it. I am seeing it eight years after it was put on TH-cam. Just want to say, Thank You for your service, sir And Welcome Home. Forever. 😊 Dr D from Oklahoma.
When I arrived and was assigned to the 173d in '66, I boarded a bus with wire mesh grills welded over the windows to keep grenades out. When I landed back at Travis AFB a year later in '67 and left the base, I boarded a bus with wire mesh grills welded over the windows to protect us from the demonstrators at the exit gate. What goes around comes around.
Thank you for your service sir! Hold that head high you’ve earned it!
My uncle was a copter pilot with the 116th AHC at Cu Chi.....great you made it home.
Thank you for your service
Bless you sir. We owe men like you a lifetime of thanks. You make it possible for us to do what we love. Welcome home & thank you for your service to our country.
Sir, don’t forget that many 80’s & 90’s kids grew up pretending to be you guys. My friends an I grew up imitating you and finally joining the service like you did . Much love to the 60’s&70’s U.S. warriors
What a great man. Welcome home, sir oxox. Thank you so much for all you’ve done for this country.
Thank you so much for your great work and keeping all of us safe. I feel your spirit. I too am a Veteran
United states army. It takes all of us to make our lives better,
Thank you. You and your combat buddies were brave men. Those who protested and hated you didn't have balls like you. Thank you again.
Thank you sir! and welcome home......I was 9 when we pulled out of Vietnam but am ashamed of not only the way Americans treated veterans but also the way we abandoned the South. If you go you stay, if you are going to stay, don't go. We never learn and did the exact same to Iraq in 2012 then had to go back as a result. I look for ways to help vets when I can. Maybe a thank you, a handshake, or sometimes will anonymously pay for a meal of a vet or some police officers eating at a restaurant. We owe them all.
Goad Bless you Sir. Thank you for your service. Love each and every one of you
ONLY HEARD WELCOME HOME FROM OTHER VETS AND THAT MEANS MORE TO ME THEN THANK YOU FOR YOU SERVICE.WE JUST TRIED TO STAY ALIVE TO SEE ANOTHER DAY.RVN 67& 68
I was a few years too young for Vietnam but I a lot of my friends got treated like shit when they came home. It's damn shame that that kind of thing happened to the Vietnam Vets. Thank you all and welcome home.
I was nine years old during the Tet Offense in 1968. My father was a career Naval officer and a submariner. My mother, brother and I religiously watched Walter Cronkite and followed the war and its affects. The protests were confusing to me, but what really concerned me was how could our guys fight a war out in those jungles? It is probably the most difficult terrain, and combined with the weather, and the tenacity of the VC and the NVA, I really felt for the troops on the ground. They, especially, went through a lot. Years later, only three years after the war's end I found myself in the Air Force ROTC at Washington State University. I remember getting looks of disdain, and disgust as I walked around campus in my uniform. We owe a debt of thanks to these brave Veterans and those who so righteously looked down on them with disdain should seek forgiveness and apologize. Thank all Vets for their service, but especially our men and women who served in Vietnam. It wasn't a picnic....
My best friend Jimmie Chastaine may God rest his soul was a door gunner on a helicopter in Vietnam. He did three tours as the door gunner he told me one day after knowing each other for maybe five years or so. I remember going to his house to work on his A/C one hot summer day and damn it was hot in that house. I brought a fan with me to help keep me cool while working on the A-coil and he absolutely freaked out when he saw the fan saying get it the F outta here. I found out later on that he couldn’t have any wind blowing against him I’m guessing from his days being in that open chopper it just brought back all the memories for him. I would’ve never had guessed that would trigger memories, but I guess anything can. I respected his wishes of course and continued fixing his AC while sweating like a whore in church lol. I’d do it again today if he was alive and asked me. He was truly a great guy that would do anything for anyone. Thanks for listening to my story because when he passed he had no family and I think I was his only friend he had left so I just wanted share that with you and say his name one more time. Even though his name was Jimmie Chastaine, he went by Claud Moore and lived in Evansville Indiana until his passing.
Too many guys didn't get the respect they deserve when they got back to the world they left.God Bless you all.