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This photo was taken by a soldier in |
 The
Herd`s  Go`in Ta War Again... February
25, 2005
“It’s
hard to believe another year of training has come to an end and we are on the eve of
deployment,” Maj. Gen. Jason Kamiya, commander of the Southern European Task Force (Airborne),
told hundreds of Americans and Italians gathered in the base theater Wednesday. Kamiya
and the SETAF headquarters staff are heading to Afghanistan to begin what is expected to be a yearlong deployment leading U.S. peacekeeping
efforts. The SETAF colors were furled Wednesday in a ceremony held indoors because
of the weather. “I’ve
been told that Afghanistan can be a very cold, snowy country this time of year,”
Kamiya said. “Vicenza is such a great host city that it recently snowed here twice to
prepare us for Afghanistan.” And
both Kamiya and SETAF’s top enlisted soldier, Command Sgt. Maj. Iuniasolua Savosa,
say the troops are ready. “Absolutely,”
said Savosa, adding that SETAF and its major subordinate unit, The
173rd Airborne Brigade,
have known about the deployment for almost a year. “[The notification]
was so far out, we knew we could get the soldiers trained to do the mission,” he
said. SETAF
will take over for the Hawaii-based 25th Infantry Division.
Kamiya said it would be the first time a nondivision-size headquarters staff has been
assigned to take over a mission run by a larger unit. He and Savosa credited the U.S. Army
Europe headquarters staff for contributing support and personnel to make it happen. Of
course, SETAF will be far from alone in country. The 1st Brigade of
the 82nd Airborne Division, elements from the Giebelstadt, Germany-based 12th Aviation Brigade and the Illesheim, Germany-based 11th Aviation Regiment and other reserve and active-duty units from
the States and the Pacific theater will soon be serving in Afghanistan. The NATO-led International Security Assistance Force is also in
country and is expected to take a greater role in peacekeeping efforts during SETAF’s
year in Afghanistan. An Italian commander is scheduled to take over ISAF from a Turkish
counterpart during that span. Kamiya
told Italian journalists after the ceremony that he expects to have a good relationship
with the Italian commander “given the fact that we both come from the same host
nation.” Advance
elements from Joint Task Force-76 are already in Afghanistan
and the SETAF headquarters is expected to join them shortly. Some units, both on base and
elsewhere, won’t actually be in country until after SETAF takes command on March 15. Kamiya
said his thoughts and emotions about the deployment probably echo that of most of his
soldiers.
He
cited apprehension, confidence
and excitement, before addressing anxiety. “You’re trained to a razor’s edge and you just want to get there and get the game going,” he said.
All The Way.
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`I have never seen this
patch
before. Maybe you can post it on your site to get input from other vets.`
Thanks,Don Hardy Viet Nam 69-70 |
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Chuck *Doc* Stewart From: Dick Willis <DickW@comglobal.com> Can anyone recall this accident and possibly help Dick with it. If so, please reply to him directly at DickW@comglobal.com.
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USS REAGAN PASSING THE ARIZONA MEMORIAL |
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Capability
Costs
the Navy approximately $2.5 million per day for underway operations (Sailor's salaries
included). When the Bridge pipes "Man the Rail" there is a lot of rail to man on this monster. Shoulder to shoulder around 4? acres. This doesn't give her displacement but it's about 100,000 tons with full complements. "Man the Rail"
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Any0ne Out there Still
Airborne ?
Send us Y0ur
stories~ |
| By
Kent Harris,
Stars
and Stripes Mideast edition, Wednesday, March 16, 2005 BAGRAM
AIR BASE,
Afghanistan
— The lightning bolt has given way to the lion. The
Southern European Task Force (Airborne)
took over authority of Combined/Joint
Task Force-76 from
the 25th
Infantry Division
in a ceremony Tuesday. SETAF,
whose patches feature St. Mark’s lion, becomes the first non-division size element to
run the mission in Afghanistan since the United States forced out the ruling Taliban
government following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. “This
is the most well-prepared group of soldiers that I have ever handed a mission over to in
my 32 years in the United States Army,”
said Maj. Gen. Eric Olson, the 25th ID commander. He and his headquarters staff boarded a
military transport plane shortly after the ceremony and headed back to Hawaii. Maj.
Gen. Jason Kamiya, the SETAF commander, will lead a force of about 18,000 troops —
anchored by thousands of airborne
soldiers from the 173rd Airborne Brigade
and the
1st Brigade, 82nd Airborne Division.
But a host of other active and reserve elements from the Army,
Marines,
Air
Force,
Navy
and coalition
partners
will fall under the command. It’s
not the first time SETAF has led a joint task force in a peacekeeping operation in a
country torn by years of fighting. In 2003, it headed a joint operation about a third of
the size of the force in Afghanistan force to help bring peace to Liberia. Kamiya
said his troops are prepared to carry on the tasks the 25th ID and those before them
began. “We
are well-trained, well-resourced and are ready for the challenges ahead,”
he said. Many
elements of the 25th’s task force still are in country and will remain until
they’ve shown their replacements the ropes. The
1st Battalion, 508th Infantry Regiment,
a part of the SETAF force in Vicenza, Italy, already is on the ground and conducting
operations. But many other elements won’t arrive for weeks. Several
hundred soldiers and Marines, some leaving and some newly arrived, watched the ceremony in
the base’s medevac hangar. Also in attendance: representatives from about a dozen coalition
countries,
ambassadors
from the United States and Canada, Secretary
of the Army
Francis Harvey, Afghan
government officials
and Lt. Gen. David Barno, the top American
commander
in country. Barno
praised the efforts of Olson and the 25th during their year of operations. Among
the highlights he listed: “a
stunningly successful Afghan election”
that produced President Hamid Karzai, the
capture or death of dozens of Taliban leaders
and the expansion
of provincial reconstruction teams
from four to 19 across the country. Olson
asked for a moment of silence for the more than 20
troops in the task force killed in the last year.
He said he considered the mission the most important in his career.
An Air Force B-1 bomber capped the ceremony, flying by well under the clouds that doused the base with rain. The country’s seven-year drought appears to be over. But the mission has just begun for SETAF.
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Remember our POW/MIA's I'll never forget!* - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - * - *
General`s Orders # Fifteen seventy one.In Case anyone wants to see Their names Here from `69.
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Army looks to retirees to bolster forces... |
retirees on a military pension.
"It doesn't mean that we're scraping the bottom of the barrel," says Lt. Col. Bryan Hilferty, a spokesman for the Army personnel department. "It means that we're doing a prudent thing with American resources."
Activating retired soldiers is the latest step by the Army to bolster troop levels. Other efforts include extending overseas tours from 12 to 15 months, tripling bonuses for new enlistees and National Guard members who re-enlist, and mobilizing about 4,000 soldiers from the Individual Ready Reserve. The IRR is an infrequently used pool of former troops who still have contractual obligations to the military. The Army told the retired Detroit policeman last month that his skills are valuable now in Iraq. "If they have that much confidence in me, I thought I would give it a shot," Barren says. He could be in Iraq as early as February. The 4,500 retirees fall into three categories. The most valuable to the Army are 1,000 healthy retirees who have been out of service less than five years. A second group of 2,000 are in good health, out of the military no more than 10 years and 60 or younger. The third category of 1,500 retirees are older than 60 or have disabilities. Retired soldiers who rejoin would serve up to a year, although they could agree to more or volunteer for another assignment.
Garcia - 5-foot-10 and 155 pounds, about the
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Views
from The
My brother served in He left home a
robust, yet insecure child ...and returned a lean, gaunt and haunted man. He had a
far-away gaze that never seemed to focus. He tried to carry on with life as it should have
been, but it seemed to elude him. At the age of 28, with a wife and two little girls, he
committed suicide. Finishing what had started in the desolation of I
still cry like it happened yesterday, and not 18 years ago. He
will never show up in the casualty figures for the war. He isn't on "The Wall".
He will never be honored by his country. He will only live in his mother's heart, in his
brother's heart, in my heart, and in the memories of a few of his fellow battery-mates. He
is one of the countless young men who gave, and who simply disappeared. Douglas
Gene...
Mom
thinks about you every day Douglas
Gene... Pop
finally did break down and cry Douglas
Gene... Our
brother always wants to take the blame Douglas
Gene... Your
little girls are doing very well And,
oh how much they miss you Douglas
Gene... I
never knew how much you meant And,
oh how much I miss you Rich
Van Natter
When
my uncle died, his father said that the worst thing that can happen to a parent is that he
survives past the death of his child. That is what Jed
Proujansky
I think that to
understand the psyche of some Vietnam Vets, you will have to understand the sense of
betrayal many feel at the political system which lied to the American people, and left the
vets holding the goods. This was our first real political war. We could easily have won
it; the Pentagon had plans for winning it (an invasion of Television
played a role, because for the first time Americans could see the results, often
immediately (and before we even knew about them). It was therefore a sense that we had
tried our hardest, sometimes repeatedly doing the same miserable things over and over
again because some politician thought it was best (when the military knew it would
jeopardize their people). This has
contributed to the sense that politicians are not looking out for what's best for the
country, but only for what looks best for themselves. I think this is the longest-lasting
legacy of the
John C. Ratliff\ |
 |
Views
from The
I was born in 1950 and raised by people who LIVED the "American
Dream".
I watched
When I had friends returning, in '69 and '70 (some
SEVERELY disfigured),
and was told about what REALLY was going-on over there, I tried to relay the info to my
parents. MOST of us were told, "You're only KIDS, whattaya KNOW about it!" THAT
was the toughest thing, about those days; having your sense of honesty challenged by the
SAME people who taught you to "be an individual" and "think for
yourself"!!!! The
biggest thing I've learned, in life, is to ALWAYS think for yourself!!! DON'T allow other
people to do your thinking for you! ULTIMATELY, YOU have to live with the outcome of your
decisions!!!! Daniel
A. Bozyk
I
am also too young to really know. But I'm not too young to understand. Currently I am 16
years old, but I understand the hurt people feel, and I do not understand 'why?'
I don't think I ever will understand because war is a very hurt-full thing that no one can
control. It could be controlled if everyone cared enough, but, if you take a look at this
world, you'll see that no one cares enough. I care a GREAT deal, but who will listen to a
16 year old? No one listened back in (Katie)
FRUSTRATION The why is a difficult to define
as is the reason for 56,000 names on a wall. Most vets that I know now realize that it was
a political war ran by politicians. Most of the events that happened to Vietnam Vets that
were hurtful happened because of political ideology. People were very passionate about
their feeling for and against the conflict. As most conflicts start people want something
that someone else has and eventually it leads to a conflict. (Anonymous) WHY
WE WENT TO I just want to know why we went
to war. Because it was political is not an answer. Was it just to fight communism, or for
oil, or what. I wasn't around then so please, someone tell me all the reasons we went to (Joe Flood) WHY
Hey
Joe, (John C. Ratliff)
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The
Black Horse I
rode the black horse Duty,
honor, and country So
exciting to be But
the art of war To
friend and foe
I
have no hope I
sometimes now listen But
I rode the black horse
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My
Viet 
Nam
Tour.
 I
joined the Army
Airborne
in August
of 1967,
went through basic Training Infantry
School
and Advanced
Individual Training
and then earned my Jump
I served Time with the
82nd
Airborne
Brigade
during The D.C.
Riots,
The Republic of Viet Nam late 68 and 69. “What the hell is 173rd Anyway, We asked . “
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I served
Through out The
Central Highlands
as a
combat infantryman {11B1P},
with Charlie Company {Contact
Charlie}, 1st
of the 503rd,
173rd
Airborne Brigade,
as an Ammo
bearer
for the M-
60 machine gun… gunner…
Point
man…
then platoon
R.t.o {radio
transmitting operator}
with top security clearances. Though
never
to forget
the horrors
of war, memories of the closeness and camaraderie with the 173rd
troopers
will stand up
most
in my mind always! “The
Brigade”
worked our butts off!”
To do that day in and day out and keeping a high moral, attest to why The 173rd Brigade was such an elite “Pop
trip Not
only in the jungle,
but beyond the pathways throughout your lives thereafter. they
will most certainly devour
…in a seconds flashing … a part of your lives that you May
|
Ric |
Sky  reactivation, |
173rd
Airborne
Brigade
.
The reactivation of the
This was the case for Ken Cox, who almost couldn't hold his excitement when he was called to carry one of the newly reactivated battalion's citations to hang from the official colors freshly unfurled during the
reactivation
Col. James
Yarbrough observes during the 2-503d reactivation ceremony Jan. 25.
"I looked at my wife and she knew what went through my mind in that moment. It, [the reactivation] means a lot me, and it certainly meant as much for my comrads. It
reminded us of what it meant to serve in
Vietnam and
gave us pride in seeing our
tradition
carried on," Cox said.
"I had to stop, collect myself and think
`not now Ken,' when I was about to enter Hoekstra Field with that young soldier beside me.
It was amazing to release that streamer to Command Sergeant Major Rice [2-503d
command sergeant major].
It was as if all the ones [other
veterans]
that couldn't make it out of Vietnam were there with us to witness this
magnificent
Cox served
as a sergeant in the 1st Bn.
(Abn.), 503d
Inf., and
was wounded during the battle of Dak To in
1967, towards the end of his one-year tour in Vietnam. He now lives in Geneva,
Switzerland, with his wife Denise.
"These guys [today's
2-503d soldiers] remind
me of when we were volunteered to serve our country in need _ ready to go in an instant. I
hope though that they'll never have to experience what we did; that they'll never have to
be on the edge. I have been on the edge and it's not pretty," Cox added.
Also participating in the 2-503d reactivation was Floyd Riester, who traveled to Italy for
the second time, accompanied by his wife Karen and his youngest daughter Ashley.
"When we came last year we hoped to bring a better understanding of our work, our sense
of brotherhood and our
pride in wearing the 173rd
"The reactivation of the 2-503d is just the continuation of that dream."
"We thought we belonged to a society based on the principle of the last man standing,
but now we breathe fresh air and look proudly to the future, knowing that our past is well
preserved in today's
brigade and the 2-503d. We
trust that our tradition carries on," he said.
After the ceremony there was an atmosphere of achievement and reinvigorating hope for a
future that will continue to incorporate the values and the way of life of many proud paratr00pers
who served their country.
"The reactivation
of the
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Any0ne Out there Still Airborne ? Send us Y0ur stories~ |
Bamboo
Memories
Dewy`s site 3/503rd 173rd Kilo
Valley
Summer of 1968
2nd
Platoon A Company 4/503rd 173rd
Airborne Brigade. |
He wasn't There Again today. Oh How I wish he'd go
Away! |
In the Shadow...
...Is about taking a
...It’s about watching their home movies of combat, looking at photos of their youth,
hearing the songs they sang in the face of death. Feeling what they felt… Trying
to learn what they know.
...It’s about bringing Veterans and non-Veterans together in new ways
and in different places. paying tribute to those who were patriots when it wasn't popular to do so... Vietnam
Veterans organizations will inform their members of the Huey's movement across the country
and hopefully, thousands of them will bring their families and friends.
to show them… to tell them about it…
to offer a salute, as it flies on its way Around this Great Nation.
You should “Hear”
them coming in soon!
This is  where
you can keep The
News
up!
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DR
GrafiX
The Army, stretched thin by the conflicts
in Iraq and Afghanistan,
is dipping into one of its last resources for wartime duty:
same as when
he was a soldier - volunteered last year and is on the Army's
list but hasn't been called up. "I still do my 25 push-ups every night. I do a lot of
walking and get a lot of exercise," he says. "Hopefully,
I can get involved.
paratrooper wings
Rock
Review..
[