19 years ago
A new reader reminded me last night that it’s been 19 years since the ground war was launched on January 24th, 1991. Hardly seems possible. The reader was in the artillery unit that supported COB6 and I and here’s some pictures he so graciously allowed me to borrow of the 4st Battery 3th Artillery Regiment with the 1st Infantry Division in those days;
Category: Military issues
Freakin’ A…..it’ss been that long? Maybe I’ll dig up a couple of photos.
That long ago? Damn I feel old…
Damn, can’t figure out how to upload these pictures. Any help?
Sorry for the shakeyness. Kinda’ pumped up at the time…
Pumped up? We were practically rapid. I remember standing in the hatch of the brad just saying to myself over and over “Lets go” as the clock ticked down to LD time.
Air strikes started now February 24th was start of Ground war. (TF Ripper)
Here is a photo or two. I uploaded 6 or so photos, feel free to browze if you want….
…and there I was on the mortar range at Ft. Benning during 11C school. Then I gave up an OCS slot to try and get in on the action. Got sent to Germany instead with the 3rd ID. Rock of the MARNE! My Ass Reaming Never Ended. Had to wait another sixteen years to finally learn that getting shot at isn’t all that much fun. Exciting though….
1st BDE, 1st ID.
Those were the ‘Good Ol’ Days’.
It can’t be that long ago, can it?
Sadly, it CAN be that long ago.
I’d do it all over again in a heartbeat, too.
Now I know it’s been nineteen years since I jumped the gun by a month. My mind is shot.
all I remember is Gorbachev on the TV saying that he got a courtesy phone call from Bush I that the US would start the military action against Saddam and then saying that he (Gorbachev) immediately got on the phone to call Saddam and warn him about the same…
Damn… I can’t offer any war stories or pictures, but I CAN say thanks.
Was in Hawaii at the time, and it was an arm-chair TV war for me.
Then Nam vets were invited to march with some returning units in a Welcome Home event. It wasn’t a big event, but it was wonderful.
For some time ‘welcome home’ was something we said to each other in private, but on THIS day we said it to these young folks… and they said it to us!
We limped, rolled, or otherwise ‘marched’ shoulder-to-shoulder and grinned a lot.
So, again, THANK YOU.
What really strikes me as odd is that at the time we started this war Viet Nam had been over for what, about 16 years? Today, we are farther removed from Desert Storm than we were from Viet Nam at that time…
What I also remember is that the Nam guys were absolutely NOT going to allow what happened to them happen to us when we got home….Thanks guys!
Didn’t realize it was 19 years ago, but if you want some real war stories I was on recruiting duty in rural, and I mean rural Alabama.
Let’s just say we weren’t exactly treated as heroes and command advised us to not wear uniforms in public and fer gosh sakes don’t take the gubmint vehicle home. Panic about the draft coming back was so rampant that at times we had to unplug the phones just to take a break from saying “There is no draft”.
Recruiting duty was so bad that the commanding general of recruiting command issued an order that no one would be relieved of recruiting to go back to the real Army no matter what we did.
Amazing that August will be the twentieth anniversary of the Gulf War. It’s also amazing that equipment used in the Gulf War and even Vietnam are still being used in Iraq and Afghanistan.
I still remember sitting in front of the TV, wondering what my son was doing. And how far he’d get, he was an LAV driver in 3d LAV Bn, which is what they called it back then. I knew the war was coming, because we got a phone call a day before the airstrikes started. I knew it was starting, just by what he didn’t say.
Yat Yas said:Amazing that August will be the twentieth anniversary of the Gulf War. It’s also amazing that equipment used in the Gulf War and even Vietnam are still being used in Iraq and Afghanistan.
August???
But I dunno, there’s MA Deuce (at least) to consider, and yeah it’s amazing.
BTW, I ate some WWII C-rats on Kauai after Hurricane Iwa in ’82! I was working with some National Guard types doing commo (Ham Radio) and they were shocked when I was digging through the boxes looking for pound cake and peaches.
Pound Cake was the ultimate item. You could barter that for almost anything. I still wear a P-38 on my dog tags, all these years later. I wear my tags whenever I travel. It drives the security pukes nuts, and I figure that if I ever have a serious medical problem, it at least tells them my blood type, SSN, and religion. They’ll likely figure to check with the VA for my records.
ponsdorf:
Iraq invaded Kuwait on August 3rd, 1990 and my unit, C Co 3rd AAVBn arrived in Saudia Arabia August 18th, 1990. At that time it was Desert Shield before becoming Desert Storm.
In 2005, I was recalled from retirement and served in Iraq with II MEF(FWD). The old war horses such as the Sea Knight, Sea Stallion, Cobra, Huey, C130 and M113 of Vietnam were still in use. The same amtracs, LAVs, HUMVs, MLRS, M198s, M16a2s, SAWs and M9s from Desert Storm were still in use. Of Course some were newer, but still the same design.
Yat Yas noted: Iraq invaded Kuwait on August 3rd, 1990 and my unit, C Co 3rd AAVBn arrived in Saudia Arabia August 18th, 1990.
I stand reminded. Thanks.
Off topic, and then some: I was trained on the M1 and the 1911 .45 in the ’60s. Even during VietNam Our Navy wasn’t ‘in the loop’ about weapons – SpecWar types aside. Oh yeah, I did get some formal training on the M14. I was in the ‘weapons’ division.
Other than a semi documented trip on the the Perfume river during Tet I have no/zero/nil experience with those other new-fangled weapons. [grin]
AW1 Tim offered: I still wear a P-38 on my dog tags
I carried one for years… AND I kept my dog tags for years as well.
I have no idea where either is currently?
ponsdoorf:
I did forget to mention that some of the best equipment we had in Iraq were some of the older Reservists and National Guard with service in Vietnam. It was my honor to work with 2 SeaBee reservists; one having served as a young Marine in Vietnam and the other as a sailor on a destroyer in the Gulf of Tonkin. At 45 years old, I felt like an old man, but they were in their fifties and hard as woodpecker lips.
Watched Desert Storm on AFN in Germany while guarding Patriots…Hella sucked. We deployed to Saudi after the war due to some Saddam sabre rattling.
Made up for missing out on the ’91 fracas with two trips to Asscrackistan. What blows my mind is that there are still a few ‘Nam guys in the Guard & Reserves that have served in this war!
ponsdorf,
I carried one for years… AND I kept my dog tags for years as well.
I have no idea where either is currently?
My youngest son (7) was wearing my dog tags just last weekend! He wondered why the cross said “Jesus I_Lord” not realizing to use the “s” twice! Still had the St. Micheal’s medal my mother gave my father in ’63…….
JuniorAG said: What blows my mind is that there are still a few ‘Nam guys in the Guard & Reserves that have served in this war!
Actually some have been KIA as well.
While I don’t think much of the http://oathkeepers.org/oath/ the concept is right on.
There is no PC aspect in the oath I took.
Was it 19yrs ago? Where did the time go.
Yeah, Some people got to have all the fun while some of us were getting our ASSES handed to us on a daily basis, courtesy of OPFOR at NTC. I was in the INFAMOUS 48th BDE Ga ANG. Dco 1/108th AR. I got to nurse maid a brokedick M1-IP and Babysit A DOUSHEBAG 2LT for three mnonths while some of ya got to take your SEXUAL FRUSTRATIONS out on ol Saddams boys. Hell when we got back to Ft Stewart (also same time as the 24th). Those guys were telling us how bad they felt for us and that coming from guys that had been in Country. Oh well it was a HELLUVA interesting time anyway. Welcome Home ya all. ARMOR UP.
My brother was in the OPFOR during that rotation, he laughs about it still to this day. Apparently y’all were pretty bad according to him.
As I recall, pretty much everybody got schooled by the OPFOR at NTC. I don’t think we ever had an engagement last longer than 30 minutes….my ears can still hear the beeper going off in my CVC helmet…..
After NTC, Desert Shield/Storm was a cake walk. That’s the way it should be.
After NTC, Desert Shield/Storm was a cake walk. That’s the way it should be.
Absolutely!!