Honor Flight - Vets of WWII, Korea and Vietnam

T

TennVet

Member
Last fall I was able to travel to DC with a group of Vets. Over the years I have been to DC many times on business but always found an excuse to avoid visiting the Vietnam War Memorial (The Wall). This time I did, and I glad I finally avoided anymore excuses. I was asked to locate the inscription of a buddy's nephew, so I started a list. In total I found the inscription of six individuals that had special meaning to me.

If you are a Vietnam Vet and you have not made that trip consider contacting the Honor Flight organization in your area. If accepted you will experience a well organized tour conducted very professionally at no charge. You may also experience patriotic Americans cheering you on as you walk through the airport with your group. It's a humbling and emotional experience that washes away a forgotten welcome home from years past.
 
Marie5656 said:
My cousin got to go last year. He really enjoyed the trip
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When we left and arrived back in Nashville, we were met by groups on each side of the hallway. They had flags, signs welcoming us home, and thanking us for our service. There was same atmosphere as we passed through Reagon Intl. when arriving in DC and when we departed at the end of the day. I wasn't the only Veteran that had to choke back a lump in my throat or wipe away a tear. I can still think back to that feeling and I at last felt like I had been welcomed home.
 
I saw that one on my last trip to DC, I think. Oh yeah, it will make you cry if you remember Vietnam at all either from the outstanding nightly reports from Walter Cronkite & Co. or because you knew someone who was drafted, or feared the draft, or volunteered. I remember my neighbor joking about moving to Canada if he was called up, even though I was just a kid back then.

I still remember the casualty tally EVERY frickin' night on Cronkite. No letting up on those casualty counts to please any politicians! Not like Bush's wars where so many media outlets were so nicey-nice to him and you had to go to the Internet to find out just how much was being spent on that endeavor and how many people were killed or wounded.

Lord I miss that kind of in-your-face news reporting from the Big Three.

The Honor Flights are a great idea.
 
VintageBetter said:
I saw that one on my last trip to DC, I think. Oh yeah, it will make you cry if you remember Vietnam at all either from the outstanding nightly reports from Walter Cronkite & Co. or because you knew someone who was drafted, or feared the draft, or volunteered. I remember my neighbor joking about moving to Canada if he was called up, even though I was just a kid back then.

I still remember the casualty tally EVERY frickin' night on Cronkite. No letting up on those casualty counts to please any politicians! Not like Bush's wars where so many media outlets were so nicey-nice to him and you had to go to the Internet to find out just how much was being spent on that endeavor and how many people were killed or wounded.

Lord I miss that kind of in-your-face news reporting from the Big Three.

The Honor Flights are a great idea.
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I had resisted visiting the Vietnam Memorial even though I had been in DC a number of times on business. My 94 year old WWII veteran neighbor talked to me about Honor Flight and encouraged me to give it some thought. After he passed away due to Covid I kept recalling his words and then contacted a regional chapter. They are entirely financed by donations, and the trip was well organized with a full schedule for the day. There are similar chapters in every state to my knowledge, and I'm glad that gentlemen next door shared his encouraging words.
 
VintageBetter said:
I saw that one on my last trip to DC, I think. Oh yeah, it will make you cry if you remember Vietnam at all either from the outstanding nightly reports from Walter Cronkite & Co. or because you knew someone who was drafted, or feared the draft, or volunteered. I remember my neighbor joking about moving to Canada if he was called up, even though I was just a kid back then.

I still remember the casualty tally EVERY frickin' night on Cronkite. No letting up on those casualty counts to please any politicians! Not like Bush's wars where so many media outlets were so nicey-nice to him and you had to go to the Internet to find out just how much was being spent on that endeavor and how many people were killed or wounded.

Lord I miss that kind of in-your-face news reporting from the Big Three.

The Honor Flights are a great idea.
Click to expand...
I was in the 1st Marine, 3rd Battalion Combat Unit. We were constantly in fire fights. Johnson was always wanting body counts. It seemed like he was keeping score.
 
squatting dog: One night just after sundown, Abrams called our Captain and he told the Captain that our "kill" numbers were low compared to the 1st Marines. He ordered us to get the numbers up or face disciplinary action. How screwed up is that?

Like I already said previously, I think this was some type of a contest. About 14 of us was out on patrol one night around midnight. We came upon 3 Rangers that had 2 gooks hanging in a tree upside down with ropes around their ankles. Our Sergeant asked them what they were planning to do with those guys. The one Ranger answered not to f-----g worry about it. Just keep moving on. We got about 100 or more yards away when we heard 4 shots go off. One of the men in our patrol asked the Sergeant if we should go back and check it out. The Sergeant asked the Corporal if he was Looney?

We walked about another 50 yards and this dark thing ran in front of me where I was standing after the Sergeant stopped us. I thought it was a little grunt tryin to sneak by us. After I got a good look at it, I thought it was a rat. My Sergeant told me there are no 3 foot rats in Vietnam, so I asked what the hell was it? A guy in our platoon said it was a pig. Another guy shot and killed it. After I carefully looked at it, I could tell it was a pig. I asked if we could roast it and the Sergeant wasn't OK with doing that.
 
Gooks. What was "acceptable" then, and not to millions of people, is definitely not now. It was and is offensive.

 
Born_To_Lose said:
I was in the 1st Marine, 3rd Battalion Combat Unit. We were constantly in fire fights. Johnson was always wanting body counts. It seemed like he was keeping score.
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Body counts weren't that hard, count boots and divide by two. The brass played with the numbers anyway.
 
TennVet said:
You may also experience patriotic Americans cheering you on as you walk through the airport with your group. It's a humbling and emotional experience....
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As a member of the Patriot Guard Riders, I have been in the cheering crowd several times...
Thank You Sir and Welcome Home.
 
The wife & I went on several personal jaunts. New England foilage following Sandy to Maine. Baseball HOF @ Copperstown NY among others. The lasting memory was our stop in DC at the Vietnam Memorial 'The Wall' Found several friends & relative's names scattered along, it was one of the few stops I made a cash donation. The booths @ the end were manned by men wearing their American flag sweat bands. I usually never give but that wall motivated me to give up a couple of 20's. Never looked back nor felt cheated. To me it was a worthy cause.
 
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Never had a chance to go on an Honor Flight, but wouldn't turn it down if I did, if just for a chance to be with other soldiers and Marines that fought in battles.

I have been to the Wall many times and even placed flowers a few times. I have also visited the traveling Wall. Both are very moving and sad. My best friend's name is on the wall. He was our blooper man, which is the guy that uses the Bazooka. I wasn't more than 3 feet from him when he got hit. I tried to help him, but there was just too much damage. Sometimes, I can still see him lying there with his bazooka 10 feet away.

About a year later, the bazooka was no longer being used.
 
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