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 Advanced Party From Ft. Devens (currently 1 views) |
| aab3340 |
| Posted on: October 25th, 2011, 5:51pm |
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Posts: 25
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| Trying to find all details on advanced party what date did they leave Ft. Devens, how many, when did they get to Tay Ninh West, was their equipment waiting for them etc. Thanks |
Bob Poznanski
HHC 196th. MP Plt.
1965-1967 |
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| Gregory B Peters |
| Posted on: October 29th, 2011, 4:46pm |
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Maximum Member2 B company, 3/21/196th, incountry 07/1966-07/1967
Posts: 173
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Hi Bob,
I have asked about that also. Best I can figure is that the engineers were on the boat with you'all. see http://175thengineers.homestead.com/HomePage.html so the engineers from the 25thInf were at TayNinh but all they did was build the runway and the perimeter fence secured by the Wolfhounds (?). The boats landed 8/15 in VungTau and loaded onto C-130 and flew to TayNinh. I have no idea how much time elapsed. My understanding is that when the boats pulled into Long Beach a group was taken off and flown to Saigon, ChuChi, and then TayNinh to meet the planes. No Idea who they were, but you can bet they were all field grade and above, no grunts :-)
I was already there, watched you land, but don't remember being in the Advanced group. But so much of that was a blur for me. I don't remember if I was assigned to the 25th and reassigned to you guys. Or was assigned directly to you guys after washing out of jump school state side. I always wondered if I had completed it if I would have been sent to Santo Domingo like you guys were supposed to be :-)
Course I would have put in for the 503 Inf, my Dads old outfit, and ended up with you guys as part of the 173rd during Junction City :-) |
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Reply: 1 - 22 |
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| aab3340 |
| Posted on: October 29th, 2011, 6:13pm |
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Posts: 25
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Hi Greg
Three enlisted men from the 196th MP Platoon flew advanced party from Ft. Devens direct to RVN, the only one I have contact with is not sure of the date they left Ft. Devens. In the history of 4Th Bn. 31St Inf. it states their advanced party arrived by air on Aug. 6 1966 and met the ships on Aug 15 and flew to Tay Ninh West. My self and other MPs escorted convoys of the 196th vehicles to Tay Ninh from Saigon. I will make another post maybe later about my theory of who built the runway in Tay Ninh West.Thanks for your reply.
Bob |
Bob Poznanski
HHC 196th. MP Plt.
1965-1967 |
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Reply: 2 - 22 |
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| Jim Armstrong |
| Posted on: October 29th, 2011, 11:28pm |
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I enjoy the discussions about the early days.
I know there were a bunch of guys already working in country while we comfortably sailed in our little ships across the sea.
The only thing I might contribute is that I'm pretty sure nobody only did half the voyage. At least no one that I remember got off the Darby at Long Beach.
I had pretty good list of suggestions, howvever, if they had asked. |
Jim Armstrong
C, HQ, A 2/1
1965-1967 |
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Reply: 3 - 22 |
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| aab3340 |
| Posted on: October 30th, 2011, 12:32am |
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Posts: 25
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Hi Jim
This afternoon was looking at the Second Year 196th book and saw it states that an advance planning group left Ft. Devens on 9 July 66 and arrived in Saigon on 12 July 66. This is when they found out our new home would be Tay Ninh West. No other details listed. |
Bob Poznanski
HHC 196th. MP Plt.
1965-1967 |
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Reply: 4 - 22 |
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| Ken McKenzie, C, 4-31 |
| Posted on: October 30th, 2011, 5:54pm |
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Posts: 131
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| I know that when we arrived off the boat, and the flight to Tay Ninh, we met some new members that had been assigned to the 196th from other units already in Vietnam, or fresh from the States. At least one was assigned to our platoon, and he had been in-country with the advanced party for a couple of weeks at least. |
Ken McKenzie
C-4/31, 196th LIB, 1965-1967
C-1/5(MECH), 25thID, 1967 |
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| Bill |
| Posted on: October 31st, 2011, 10:50pm |
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Posts: 18
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| I was the Bn Ammo Sgt for 3/82 and was one of 25 from the Arty that flew from Devins thru Alaska to Saigon. I remember they billeted us in a warehouse that was full of supplies for the field and also caskets. I remember one of the troops had his picture taken in the casket and the undeveloped roll was sent to his parents by him. He was later KIA and I can't imagine the heartbreak his parents and anyone viewing the pictures, must have felt. One of many sad stories of the war. We established basecamp w/the help of the Wolfhounds as security and the Engineers and my understanding the Seabees. They built the airstrip on what was a soccer field and assisted us in clearing out the peanuts fields and the ant hills. We started building the "wabtocks" and after a period of time were issued airmattresses and eventually canvas cots. Gee! Sounds like a Luxury Hilton now that I look back on it. To digress a little, as we were deplanning in Tay Ninh we were welcomed with a barrage of mortar rounds. We were directed to bunkers by the infantry and it is my understanding the out going and incoming SGM from the 27th were both killed in that attack. May not be true. I know it was our baptism of fire and for the next 12 months memories were built that will not go away w/ time. It was great when the remainer of the brigade landed at Vung Tau and we felt less alone. The arty pieces were set on the perimeter and the bunkers were established and a sense of security covered those of us that had been there without them. I am proud to have been a part of the advance party, the 3/82 and the 196th LIB. A great bunch that did a great job. We a right to hold our heads high, high, and higher still. Thank You and Welcome home. |
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Reply: 6 - 22 |
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| ghut |
| Posted on: November 1st, 2011, 2:50am |
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| I am Gene Hutmaker D 2/1 (Mortars - Lt Wicks) a member of the Rear Detachment/Advance Party crew fot the 196th - we hustled out all the packing of the Brigade's equipment so quick that we were able to spend time at the Little Club in Ayer - also a few days after the main body left for the Darby & Patch a Green Beret team came to Devens to give us some 'Nam fighting techniques (they were erroneously informed of the departing date) - the Berets recruited me as part of their team for demonstrations (these guys were good) - we boarded a 747 on the day Linda Bird got married in August -landed at in Fairbanks Alaska & Kyoto Japan for refueling - landed in the evening in Saigon and were put up in a warehouse with empty coffins for the night - after eating in the morning flew inland to Tay Ninh where we started building the base camp while the 25th Lightning Div provided protection on the perimeter - Note: some of the soldiers that didn't make it back (AWOL ?) to the boats departing Long Beach were flown in |
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Reply: 7 - 22 |
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| joemahoney |
| Posted on: November 1st, 2011, 4:16pm |
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Posts: 56
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| I was one of those first replacements Ken mentioned. I came from the “Old Guard” (1/3), and arrived in Viet Nam on 8/1/66 at camp Alpha. About 30 of us were assigned to the 196th, but we had to wait for them to dock. We were told we were going to Cu Chi, and then told to hang loose. A few days later, we were loaded into a C123 and flew in to Tay Ninh. We put up tents and filled sand bags at Brigade for a week or so, before we were assigned to our Battalion and Company. I guess that make me part of the advanced party? |
Joe Mahoney
B 2/1
66/67 |
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Reply: 8 - 22 |
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| Fletchw2zero |
| Posted on: November 1st, 2011, 5:31pm |
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Posts: 175
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I came much much later but I have stumbled on a link. When my buddy was on his way out with cancer, I ran his business for him and one of the storage units he won at auction had some memorabilia from the Alaska Tug & Barge Co. Apparently they were the first private Tug company in Vietnam for the war. They came in at Saigon and went to Vung Tau in that time frame. http://www.michaelboyce.com/boyceweb/abt.html
The stuff included a book about the company and some photographs from then and a very nice 30" wood model of the tug Michael which is pictured in theater. I used to read to Mark from the book and tell him stories from Vietnam before he died. He never went to war, but he may well have gotten his exposure to chemicals at Aberdeen Proving Grounds that at least contributed to his cancers. |
Fletch
Co B 4/31 May through November 69
C Btry 1/82 Arty Nov 69 thru April-ish 70 radio handle whiskey two zero
Craig Fletcher |
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Reply: 9 - 22 |
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| Bob Kotch |
| Posted on: November 1st, 2011, 5:47pm |
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Posts: 187
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| Great posts. I really enjoy hearing from you boat guys about the trip from Ft. Deavens on the Darby and Patch and from those of you who were a part of the advanced party about the early days of the 196th in country. I don't know as much as I would like about it and your posts give me good insight into it. Would like to hear some more. Most of you guys were probably back here in the world by the time I got there in late Sept., 66. |
HHC, MP Plt. 9-67 through 9-68 |
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Reply: 10 - 22 |
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| Bob Kotch |
| Posted on: November 1st, 2011, 5:50pm |
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Posts: 187
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| Another slip of the finger, I didn't get there until Sept, 67. |
HHC, MP Plt. 9-67 through 9-68 |
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Reply: 11 - 22 |
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| ghut |
| Posted on: November 1st, 2011, 10:30pm |
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Posts: 2
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| Anyone recall the small plane that crashed in base camp after we were there for a short time |
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Reply: 12 - 22 |
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| Jim Armstrong |
| Posted on: November 1st, 2011, 11:58pm |
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Bob: You are really an "early" guy, too.
Just short of four years after you got home (and five after the Devens originals), there were still 196ers on the ground.
I can't imagine how frustrating and even futile their experiences must have begun to seem.
Some of them were 12 years old when the ships sailed. |
Jim Armstrong
C, HQ, A 2/1
1965-1967 |
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Reply: 13 - 22 |
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| Gregory B Peters |
| Posted on: November 2nd, 2011, 12:25am |
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Maximum Member2 B company, 3/21/196th, incountry 07/1966-07/1967
Posts: 173
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A story I heard was that the big brass wanted you guys to make a pretend assault landing at Vung Tau. that they threw cargo nets over the sides and everyone had to climb down to the waiting LSTs with all your gear. supposedly men fell and drowned and you ended up going to the docks and unloading on the gangplanks. And that is why you needed replacements so soon. Any truth to that?
My story is more like Joe's, but was there earlier like Ken said, and funny Joe, when I left Nam I went to the Third Herd at Ft Myer :-) But I do remember filling sandbags 24/7, when not doing that we were on patrol/ambush, or perimeter duty. And it seems we had mortar attacks damn near every nite. Made us dig our bunkers deeper and pile on more sand bags. The thing I remember about the giant termite mounds, we would use C-4 or bangalors to blow them up and it would rain live snakes and pieces of them for about 5 minutes after each explosion. Nothing would make you run faster than having a pissed off live cobra land in the middle of a group of guys huddled behind another mound.
Greg |
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Reply: 14 - 22 |
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