Page 65 - Stand Down Vietnam

The first time was when the Marines sent two hundred
fifty of us to Vietnam as replacements. At that time,
I was the senior sergeant in charge. The second time I
went through, I was going over with a unit. I think
that was MAG 31.

We were given about three days to rest before shipping
out for Vietnam.

As our plane approached the airfield in Vietnam it
began a steep landing to avoid anti-aircraft fire. Our
plane did a nosedive straight into the Da Nang
airfield. All I could say was “oh, oh”. This was the
start of my second tour of duty in Vietnam.

At the staging Battalion, we were given our
assignments. We were not issued weapons until we
arrived at our actual unit of assignment. It was
strange to be in Vietnam without a weapon. We were
only about fifty miles from the DMZ, with no weapons.

We were offered transportation by foot or truck or to
fly by helicopter. I chose the flight to Phu Bai.
When I checked in to my unit, I was given my equipment.
I was issued a pistol and five rounds.

Then I was told I could not shoot unless I was given
permission. I asked, “isn’t this a war zone?’ and the
guy said, yes – you still need permission to shoot or
go to jail. I said: “This is a funny war.” We soon
learned that our government considered Vietnam a “Show
of Forces”, it was not a war.