Vietnam Remembered

[BuoyJumper]

Check out LTGunners "Weapon of the Week".  WOW

RIGHT ON V ... We are presently discussing the Coast Guard (designed by a GM Warrant) Piggyback Mk 2 Mod 0 And Mod 1 .50 BMG/81mm Mortar, an awesome weapon used by both the CG and the Navy units in Vietnam.  

                      The 81MM mortar was designed by a Coast Guard warrant officer. Unlike conventional mortars, weapon could
                                           be fired from the horizontal, due to trigger fired capabilities.

           81MM rounds. Upper is an illumination round, while lower is high explosive. The bags at the rear are powder increments.
                     Removing a bag lowers range. The other object is a sound powered phone, used for communications during firing.

The photos used in this post of Allan Wentworth's War Bird are posted in memory of
Lance Corporal Thomas P. Echols, USMC, 1st B 6th Marines, KIA 4 Dec. 2006 Anwar Province, Iraq
(Grandson of Jerry Echols, former C.O. of the War Bird in Vietnam)
LT (jg) Michael W. Kirkpatrick, USCGR, Alpha Co. OCS Class 2-67, XO, USCGC POINT ARDEN (WPB 82309),
KIA 9 Aug. 1969, Republic of Vietnam.

[BuoyJumper]

DISCLAIMER:
NOTE:  Excerpts from this Discovery Channel presentation
on the Coast Guard cutter Blackhaw in Vietnam is permitted
under the fair use provision of the copyright act, however
use is limited to educational and discussion purposes only.
Commercial use is prohibited.

[vftb]

  Thanks Buoy 

[EX-CG-GM]

Yep, thanks. 
 

Wonder if there is more of the video since it said it was an excerpt.....?

Maybe shots of the crew carousing drunkenly through Vung Tau.....

[BuoyJumper]

EX and V, I remember some discussion about concussion grenades in a deleted thread on the other mil site.  After watching this video I remember someone talking about using the grenades at night and just periodically throwing a couple over the side to discourage any VC from trying to swim out to a ship to attach explosives.  Did watchstanders on the Blackhaw due that on night watches like some of the cargo and Navy ships did?

[vftb]

Yep, all the time.  I also got to be a dead shot with an M-16 by picking water snakes out of the water (under the flood lights) on night watch    We were usually tied up to a dock, so sappers didn't have to swim far 

[vftb]

Posted a couple of concussion grenade "sea stories" either here or over there.  Will try to find them or re-write them. 

[BuoyJumper]

I know you didn't post any stories on concussion grenades on usmilnet, so it had to be on the thread the tards on the other mil site deleted.

I know how noisy is was in the bething area when we broke ice on the Mesquite, but damn, I'll bet when a couple of those concussion grenades went off it jolted a few people awake in the berthing area.  Could you ever get used to that sound while trying to sleep?

[vftb]

Could you ever get used to that sound while trying to sleep?

Yep; enough luke warm 33 Beer and you could sleep through a lot 

[EX-CG-GM]

When I was on the Blackhaw and we were in Cam Ranh Bay I'd toss the grenades into the water fairly close to the Officer's Quarters.  Eventually the OOD would come up and tell me to knock that **** off and throw them farthwer away.   

And then there was the BM 2 that managed to lodge on in a buoy cage and blow it right off the buoy.....

[JerryM]

  .  .  .  damn, I'll bet when a couple of those concussion grenades went off it jolted a few people awake in the berthing area.  Could you ever get used to that sound while trying to sleep?  

In my experience, Coasties get accustomed to most any noise in a week or ten days. After Sherman had been with Squadron Three for a few weeks, we had an NGFS mission one night and I slept through near 400 rounds (my stateroom was all the way forward on the main deck - almost on the forecastle).

In an earlier life, on the Eastwind, I was in "O" Division berthing - right over the screws, and when we were breaking ice, we were continually treated to the sound of large chunks of ice being hammered between the twin screws and the hull. I slept like a baby except when the noise suddenly stopped     

Jerry

[BuoyJumper]

In an earlier life, on the Eastwind, I was in "O" Division berthing - right over the screws, and when we were breaking ice, we were continually treated to the sound of large chunks of ice being hammered between the twin screws and the hull. I slept like a baby except when the noise suddenly stopped     

Jerry

Actually Jerry, I kinda of enjoyed the gentle bump-bump-bumping motion of my rack and the sheeeeeeeeesh sound of ice passing across the skin of the ship when I would hit the rack to catch some shuteye.  My rack was the starboard side, lower rack right at the water line just six inches or so off of the skin.

[BuoyJumper]

VIETNAM COASTIES

[vftb]

Scanned this picture for a friend of mine recently.  I didn't caption this one at the time, so I can't be absolutely sure but am 95% confident that this is Chu Lai.  Not long ago Ron (Buoy) was asking about concussion grenades; those cases at the bottom right of the tower would be them:

Figured this thread was getting kina slow, so thought I'd throw something in 

[MAGForce]

Great videos... and if anyone knows that kid that put that video together... he done good!