Aaron Brooks Wolters
Brigadier General
Great thread Adler and a BIG THANK YOU to all who are and have served.
Forum Veterans
- Thread starter DerAdlerIstGelandet
- Start date
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Vic Balshaw
Major General
Thanks for all the likes gents, most unexpected.
- Thread starter
- #43
Come on I know there are more of you out there. Need more for my tribute...
ToughOmbre
Senior Master Sergeant
New Jersey Army National Guard 23 March 1971 - 22 March 1977
Scout (11D10) - I Troop, 3rd Squadron, 104 Armored Cavalry, 50th Armored Division
Converted and re-designated 1 July 1975 as 3rd Battalion, 113th Infantry.
Never left the States, spent time at Fort Dix, NJ, Fort Knox, KY and Fort Drum, NY
Steve
Scout (11D10) - I Troop, 3rd Squadron, 104 Armored Cavalry, 50th Armored Division
Converted and re-designated 1 July 1975 as 3rd Battalion, 113th Infantry.
Never left the States, spent time at Fort Dix, NJ, Fort Knox, KY and Fort Drum, NY
Steve
mikewint
Captain
Draft board revoked my student deferral and I was drafted in 1962. Fort Ord for Basic and Fort Sam Huston for Medic followed and I was in Vietnam in 1963 as an Advisor. I was assigned to the 8th Field hospital in Na Trang (beautiful sea-side town with a white sand beach near the Lon Van AB). Grew to hate the duty very quickly and volunteered (ya, green and dumb) for the Army's new MEDCAP program (what LBJ termed "hearts and minds"). As part of this program I got to travel throughout Vietnam with a small ARVAN (mostly old men and young boys) group setting up medical clinics at various villages and hamlets. Soon I was spending most of my time in the Central Highlands with the Degar (Montagnards) and Nungs. The Army wanted to recruit civilian defense units and scouts (CIDIG). The Montagnards were perfect for this as they were hated by the Vietnamese both north and south. It was "Dances with Wolves" for me and I loved it. It was very difficult to gain their trust but after about 6 months I had been "adopted" by the Jarai and Bahnar tribes. I had also become friends with many SF guys during this period who were in the Highlands trying to form and train the Montagnard CIDIG units. In my 10th month the village we were at was hit by an entire VC company. Somewhere in the neighborhood of 2 weeks later I was found in the jungle by an ARVAN patrol. From Vietnam to Japan to Walter Reed for more surgery and rehab. My roommate turned out to be an SF trooper I had met in Vietnam. They (SF) highly valued my experience, my MOS (medic/expert medical), and especially my connections in the villages. Not having finished my tour (13 months 15 days) I knew I was going to be sent back, but this time I would go as a professional with professionals. Ft Bragg and Ft Benning and back in Vietnam 11/64 assigned to the 5th Special Forces Group (abn). Essentially back to my old job setting up clinics and training other medics. I became aware that MACV was forming a Joint Personnel Recovery Command (JPRC) under Col Alderholt which would attempt to rescue downed pilots and captured soldiers. On paper it would have the ability to take assets from any service to accomplish its rescue missions. Code named "Bright Light" its teams would be medic heavy as POWs were expected to be in very poor shape. I volunteered (not green anymore but still dumb). It was too good to be true, in reality, the JPRC had to coordinate between a major Army command, major Air Force command, and no less than eight different sections in the MACV headquarters staff and co-ordinate with ARVN forces.
Mission #1 was a preview of things to come: A 17YO VC defector had told debriefers that he had been a guard at a prison camp where Americans were being held. It took a month and a half for a mission to be given the go-ahead. C-130s needed to transport the 3 Bright Light platoons were re-directed at the last minute by 7th AF on a supply mission (3 hrs lost); Hueys needed to insert the 3 platoons were pushed back and arrived 2hrs late. During the lost 5hrs the weather had gone from good to bad (heavy dropping cloud cover). Army intelligence had indicated no combat forces within 10 miles and only 12 guards. The first two platoons were dropped in the middle of a field where an entire VC battalion was resting and the 3rd platoon, lost in the heavy cloud cover was dropped on the other side of the river totally cut off. Air strikes were called in to cover the 3rd platoon but the AF over-ruled the use of the requested Skyraiders and sent F-100 Sabers. Hampered by their high speeds and low cloud cover, the F-100's released their bombs over the wrong area and bombed the Nungs, destroying a Huey on the ground and killing more friendly forces than were killed by the Viet Cong for the duration of the mission. End result: over 12 killed, 17 missing, two helicopters shot down, and no prisoners at the camp.
When not part of a JPRC mission I worked with recon teams going into Laos and Cambodia. By Ambassador Sullivan's edict these incursions were limited to a 12 mile strip with no air cover allowed. By late 1967 I'd had my fill, especially when the Army refused to believe our reports of VC and NVA buildups, including tanks, along the border. They weren't tanks, just bulldozers we were told. I refused to re-up and refused offers of OCS.
A lot older and just a bit wiser, I returned to the world to be spit on and called every foul name in the book and a world in which congress hadn't quite gotten around to passing a GI bill for Vietnam.
Back row boonie hat and sunglasses
Center back row
Old, fat and grizzled
Class A's with my "to dumb to duck"
Mission #1 was a preview of things to come: A 17YO VC defector had told debriefers that he had been a guard at a prison camp where Americans were being held. It took a month and a half for a mission to be given the go-ahead. C-130s needed to transport the 3 Bright Light platoons were re-directed at the last minute by 7th AF on a supply mission (3 hrs lost); Hueys needed to insert the 3 platoons were pushed back and arrived 2hrs late. During the lost 5hrs the weather had gone from good to bad (heavy dropping cloud cover). Army intelligence had indicated no combat forces within 10 miles and only 12 guards. The first two platoons were dropped in the middle of a field where an entire VC battalion was resting and the 3rd platoon, lost in the heavy cloud cover was dropped on the other side of the river totally cut off. Air strikes were called in to cover the 3rd platoon but the AF over-ruled the use of the requested Skyraiders and sent F-100 Sabers. Hampered by their high speeds and low cloud cover, the F-100's released their bombs over the wrong area and bombed the Nungs, destroying a Huey on the ground and killing more friendly forces than were killed by the Viet Cong for the duration of the mission. End result: over 12 killed, 17 missing, two helicopters shot down, and no prisoners at the camp.
When not part of a JPRC mission I worked with recon teams going into Laos and Cambodia. By Ambassador Sullivan's edict these incursions were limited to a 12 mile strip with no air cover allowed. By late 1967 I'd had my fill, especially when the Army refused to believe our reports of VC and NVA buildups, including tanks, along the border. They weren't tanks, just bulldozers we were told. I refused to re-up and refused offers of OCS.
A lot older and just a bit wiser, I returned to the world to be spit on and called every foul name in the book and a world in which congress hadn't quite gotten around to passing a GI bill for Vietnam.
Back row boonie hat and sunglasses
Center back row
Old, fat and grizzled
Class A's with my "to dumb to duck"
Attachments
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parsifal
Colonel
Hope you dont get offended Tough Ombre, but to me in some of those shots you remind me of Donal Sutherland in that movie "Kelly's Heroes".
CharlesBronson
Senior Master Sergeant
Interesting topic, at first I thought it was for the veterans of the forum, meaning the ones with more years signed up, evidently is not, good photos of though men here.
Airframes
Benevolens Magister
mikewint
Captain
vikingBerserker
Lieutenant General
Man, I can't wait until I can grow a real mustache like TO or Terry.
Cool pics Gents!
Cool pics Gents!
ToughOmbre
Senior Master Sergeant
Thanks for sharing Guys..
parsifal
Colonel
How Sutherlands character beats two Tigers with just one Sherman is a classic. The third tiger is never beaten, but part of Sutherlands payout is to keep the captured tank as booty. He complains about what a mess it is inside (oil leaks and dodgy clutch from memory.
Anyway, one of those classic moments from a fun war flick
Anyway, one of those classic moments from a fun war flick
Soldier
Airman
I was in from 1996 to 2007 time was spent in Active and Reserve of the U.S. Army. Duty stations include: Germany, Operation Joint Guard (Bosnia), Kuwait 2000 (Operation Desert Spring) also known as the time when USS Cole was bombed, and Iraq 2004 to 2005 (Al Taqqeddum AB) Operation Iraqi Freedom.
as for the Pic it is located in the Members Mugshots thread
BIO:
I was born in Olathe Kansas. I lived there from birth to about 8 and then moved to Topeka, Kansas. 8 years later, I moved back to Olathe. I have two older brothers. One is in the U.S. Air Force. The other works for a Natural Gas Company.
I graduated from Olathe North High School in 1996 and Joined the US Army. I went to basic training at Ft. Leonardwood, Mo and attended Advanced Individual Training (AIT) at Ft. Lee, VA. When I received my orders for my permanent duty station, it was accompanied by N.A.T.O orders. I flew to Germany and two weeks later I found myself in Bosnia refueling Apache Helicopters. Being 18 and the first time away from home besides basic and AIT was bad enough, but being in a Hazardous Fire Zone and not knowing any of my fellow soldiers sucked. During the deployment I decided to get a tattoo while on Pass in Budapest Hungary. I can tell you for sure that alcohol and tattoos do not go together well. THey tend to make you bleed a lot. After living in a tent for 8 months I redeployed back to Germany. The rest of the time in Germany was a blast. Since I had learned how to speak German in high school, getting around was easy for me and I did a lot of traveling around the country.
In 1999, I received orders transferring me back to the US and assigning me of all places, Ft. Riley, Kansas. This time I was refueling the M1A1 Abrams Tank. In 2000, I was again deployed to a Hazardous Duty Zone, in Kuwait. I was in the desert when the USS Cole was bombed and spent about a week traveling and conducting operations to the Iraq border and taking soldiers to the Air strip to get flown to Quatar to guard the embassy.
In 2001, I got out of Active Duty and went into the Army Reserve in Kansas City, Kansas driving 5,000 gal fuel trucks (rolling RPG target) . I drove a fuel truck for a while and then was hired as Law Enforcement Officer in 2002. I was activated in 2003 with the Army Reserve and went to Ft. Leonardwood in Preparation to go to Iraq, however our mission was cancelled and I returned to my job until 2004 when I was activated again and sent to St. Louis, MO in preparation to deploy to Iraq. I was deployed with a unit in a position I was never trained. I received about 3 days of training before deploying ( all classroom work). When I arrived in Kuwait to stage for Iraq I was sent as part of the Advanced Party to get me as much OJT as possible. I was stationed at Al Taqquedum Air Base in Iraq. That is near Fallujah and Ramadi. I conducted approximately 35 combat patrols as convoy security and survived two encounters with Improvised explosive devices and mortar attacks. I redeployed in 2005 and returned to work until I ended my military carreer at the rank of Staff Sergeant in 2007. I received the Meritorius Service Medal, 2 Army Commendation Medals, 3 Army Achievement Medals, 3 Armed Forces Expeditionary Medals and a handful of other medals to include the Meritorius Unit Citation as a member of my unit.
But enough about me,
as for the Pic it is located in the Members Mugshots thread
BIO:
I was born in Olathe Kansas. I lived there from birth to about 8 and then moved to Topeka, Kansas. 8 years later, I moved back to Olathe. I have two older brothers. One is in the U.S. Air Force. The other works for a Natural Gas Company.
I graduated from Olathe North High School in 1996 and Joined the US Army. I went to basic training at Ft. Leonardwood, Mo and attended Advanced Individual Training (AIT) at Ft. Lee, VA. When I received my orders for my permanent duty station, it was accompanied by N.A.T.O orders. I flew to Germany and two weeks later I found myself in Bosnia refueling Apache Helicopters. Being 18 and the first time away from home besides basic and AIT was bad enough, but being in a Hazardous Fire Zone and not knowing any of my fellow soldiers sucked. During the deployment I decided to get a tattoo while on Pass in Budapest Hungary. I can tell you for sure that alcohol and tattoos do not go together well. THey tend to make you bleed a lot. After living in a tent for 8 months I redeployed back to Germany. The rest of the time in Germany was a blast. Since I had learned how to speak German in high school, getting around was easy for me and I did a lot of traveling around the country.
In 1999, I received orders transferring me back to the US and assigning me of all places, Ft. Riley, Kansas. This time I was refueling the M1A1 Abrams Tank. In 2000, I was again deployed to a Hazardous Duty Zone, in Kuwait. I was in the desert when the USS Cole was bombed and spent about a week traveling and conducting operations to the Iraq border and taking soldiers to the Air strip to get flown to Quatar to guard the embassy.
In 2001, I got out of Active Duty and went into the Army Reserve in Kansas City, Kansas driving 5,000 gal fuel trucks (rolling RPG target) . I drove a fuel truck for a while and then was hired as Law Enforcement Officer in 2002. I was activated in 2003 with the Army Reserve and went to Ft. Leonardwood in Preparation to go to Iraq, however our mission was cancelled and I returned to my job until 2004 when I was activated again and sent to St. Louis, MO in preparation to deploy to Iraq. I was deployed with a unit in a position I was never trained. I received about 3 days of training before deploying ( all classroom work). When I arrived in Kuwait to stage for Iraq I was sent as part of the Advanced Party to get me as much OJT as possible. I was stationed at Al Taqquedum Air Base in Iraq. That is near Fallujah and Ramadi. I conducted approximately 35 combat patrols as convoy security and survived two encounters with Improvised explosive devices and mortar attacks. I redeployed in 2005 and returned to work until I ended my military carreer at the rank of Staff Sergeant in 2007. I received the Meritorius Service Medal, 2 Army Commendation Medals, 3 Army Achievement Medals, 3 Armed Forces Expeditionary Medals and a handful of other medals to include the Meritorius Unit Citation as a member of my unit.
But enough about me,
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