What Did You Work On While In The Military?

[Nephi]

I was one of those "nuts" that actually joined the US Army with the purpose and request to serve in Vietnam. Crazy right? I was an immature 18 year old and joined and trained as a heavy truck driver with a guaranteed duty assignment of Vietnam. Problem was that by the time all my training was done, I was unable to go to Vietnam as the war was over! So I stayed in 18 months then took an early out as there was far more money going back to work for the airlines in Burbank Calif. So now I'm an old guy that is retired and married - living in the Philippines and as close to Vietnam as I will likely ever get..

 

Nephi

[robert k]

20 minutes ago, Nephi said:

I was one of those "nuts" that actually joined the US Army with the purpose and request to serve in Vietnam. Crazy right? I was an immature 18 year old and joined and trained as a heavy truck driver with a guaranteed duty assignment of Vietnam. Problem was that by the time all my training was done, I was unable to go to Vietnam as the war was over! So I stayed in 18 months then took an early out as there was far more money going back to work for the airlines in Burbank Calif. So now I'm an old guy that is retired and married - living in the Philippines and as close to Vietnam as I will likely ever get..

 

Nephi

It doesn't have to be that way? Vietnam is close and a reasonable flight can probably be found. I hear they welcome tourists. From what I have been hearing over the last decade they are better capitalists than most countries.

[Nephi]

14 minutes ago, robert k said:

It doesn't have to be that way? Vietnam is close and a reasonable flight can probably be found. I hear they welcome tourists. From what I have been hearing over the last decade they are better capitalists than most countries.

Sounds like fun for sure. But on a limited income and married with a bunch of kids it's not likely----unless i win the lottery...

[Dave Hounddriver]

20 minutes ago, robert k said:

It doesn't have to be that way? Vietnam is close and a reasonable flight can probably be found. I hear they welcome tourists. From what I have been hearing over the last decade they are better capitalists than most countries.

Johnny was a medic in Viet Nam during the war.  He had some harsh times back then that he still tears up about if you can get him to talk about them.  He now lives near Dumaguete and he took his wife on a vacation to Viet Nam just a few months ago.  He had only good things to say about it so I think you are spot on the money with that post Robert.

[FortuneFavorsTheBold]

22 hours ago, chris49 said:

I am an Aussie. My Dad was on the "Bay City Project" where we built 3 naval guided missile destroyers for the Aussie Navy, 1958-68. Controversially the major mission for these 3 destroyers was serving under the US Flag, with an Aussie crew in Vietnam.

I became a US Citizen in 1975. I joined the USAF as a Nurse Officer in 1975. I was assigned at Andrews AFB and Lakenheath England, RAF Lakenheath. We still have a FB group for some of us who worked there in the hospital. We were there during the Iranian Hostage Crisis and we went on high alert several times. We housed F111's as part of deterrence to Russian air domination over Europe. There was a lot of tension but nothing much happened. I served 7 years and moved on to Saudi Arabia in 1982.

My collegue at Lakenheath was Airman Joe XXXXXXXXX. His Dad was Major XXXXXXXXX, a USAF pilot killed over Cambodia about 10 years earlier. Joe didn't talk about it then, because I think he did not know the story behind his Dad's death. Much later, about 15 years ago  The story of illegal bombings over Cambodia and Laos,came out, first under President Johnson and then later, illegally and secretly by President Nixon and Kissinger over Laos 1969-70. Declassified by President Clinton in 2000 and that's when the story came out.

Is that what you were involved in FortuneFavorsTheBold?

 

18 hours ago, Nephi said:

I was one of those "nuts" that actually joined the US Army with the purpose and request to serve in Vietnam. Crazy right? I was an immature 18 year old and joined and trained as a heavy truck driver with a guaranteed duty assignment of Vietnam. Problem was that by the time all my training was done, I was unable to go to Vietnam as the war was over! So I stayed in 18 months then took an early out as there was far more money going back to work for the airlines in Burbank Calif. So now I'm an old guy that is retired and married - living in the Philippines and as close to Vietnam as I will likely ever get..

 

Nephi

Signed up for nuclear weapons, "guaranteed" no Vietnam, no nukes there. Shipped to Vietnam/Cambodia to fight with mercenaries behind enemy lines anyway. Afterwards shipped to Germany, then put on tactical nuclear weapons team. Military Intelligence is an oxymoron ;-)

[FortuneFavorsTheBold]

23 hours ago, chris49 said:

I am an Aussie. My Dad was on the "Bay City Project" where we built 3 naval guided missile destroyers for the Aussie Navy, 1958-68. Controversially the major mission for these 3 destroyers was serving under the US Flag, with an Aussie crew in Vietnam.

I became a US Citizen in 1975. I joined the USAF as a Nurse Officer in 1975. I was assigned at Andrews AFB and Lakenheath England, RAF Lakenheath. We still have a FB group for some of us who worked there in the hospital. We were there during the Iranian Hostage Crisis and we went on high alert several times. We housed F111's as part of deterrence to Russian air domination over Europe. There was a lot of tension but nothing much happened. I served 7 years and moved on to Saudi Arabia in 1982.

My collegue at Lakenheath was Airman Joe XXXXXXXXX. His Dad was Major XXXXXXXXX, a USAF pilot killed over Cambodia about 10 years earlier. Joe didn't talk about it then, because I think he did not know the story behind his Dad's death. Much later, about 15 years ago  The story of illegal bombings over Cambodia and Laos,came out, first under President Johnson and then later, illegally and secretly by President Nixon and Kissinger over Laos 1969-70. Declassified by President Clinton in 2000 and that's when the story came out.

Is that what you were involved in FortuneFavorsTheBold?

Chris49 ~ Are you referring to B52 carpet bombing or SR-71 Blackbird surveillance?

[chris49]

On ‎7‎/‎4‎/‎2016 at 3:04 PM, FortuneFavorsTheBold said:

Chris49 ~ Are you referring to B52 carpet bombing or SR-71 Blackbird surveillance?

The later one. Under Nixon. Code Name? Can't recall...Mickey something.

[virginprune]

Going by the title of this topic: Saving up so I could buy myself out.

[WordsandMusic]

These kinds of questions when answered should be highly filtered. Though your service has long been over, you still may have information you are unaware of, that could benefit an enemy. Information gathering is like a puzzle, you have no idea what part of a puzzle you could be helping to complete.

Why we are all proud of our service, let it suffice, All gave some, some gave all, regardless of country! 

It can still put you in harms way even years later. Just saying!  

[Balisidar]

I was in the USAF for 10 years or so until I left in 1992.  Last baseD was at was Altus AFB, OK. (Yuck).

I worked on Air Traffic Control radars and associated electronic equipment.  Later in my career they had us take over weather radar also.

 

Good training and made for a decent career in electronics.  Combine that with computers and you've got a match made in heaven.