We're the Military and Airpower Guys of Jonah Goldberg of National Review Online + a stray we found wandering around looking lost. All original material JHD, BHD, JR, WT, and KA 2003-2007 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html Sun, 03 Aug 2008 17:00:19 Z Movable Type 4.12 en Copyright 2008 http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification I racked my brain for a while, trying to decide how to spin this turkey highlight certain portions of the tale in order to give you something other than the usual humdrum yawner sedate narrative you’ve come to tolerate expect from me. But I decided against it, because I had a brain stall of galactic proportions wanted to give you an example of how gut-wrenchingly dull prosaically routine most of our missions were… *tongue planted so firmly in cheek you couldn’t budge it with det cord* Instead, I dumped half of it in V29’s lap asked V29 for an assist,... http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html Thu, 08 Jun 2006 00:34:09 -0600 ...even though I know in advance that you guys made it, you never know HOW you made it, or, in some cases... WHY. Heh--*we* don't know, either... Boq - The Armorer doesn't like my depiction of Connie and Hubert though. Connie? Connie Converse flew *jets*, not helicopters. Except for the time he and Corky Myers "appropriated" an amphib to fish my dad out of the middle of Long Island Sound (jets were kinda cranky back in the early fifties)... 74 - Both Two-Niner and I were members of the "My Tho for Lunch Bunch." I'm still trying to figure out how their mess steward eliminated the rice paddy taste from the tea. And we found a one-ton cache of 122mm rockets along the Vam Co Tay one morning--Charles got a little slovenly with his camo mats. I think the ensuing explosion shifted the entire river 20 feet to the south... Eagle1 - "Hey - you guys are a boat!" I knew somebody a long time ago who told that story from the cockpit perspective. If the pilot looked like a hobbit in a flight helmet, his name was Gaylord Robinson and held the distinction of being bounced out of the Army for being too *short* to be an aviator--after he finished his year and a half tour. Lex - Loach drivers were the usual suspects when it came to flying underneath the trees, but that's the advantage of having a 26-foot rotor disk vice a 48-footer. But *we* were the ones who had to go get them when they tried to fly between trees 25 feet apart... FbL - Hiya, kiddo! Did Were-Kitty ever clean the marshmallow fluff off the divan in the chandelier?]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46250 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46250 Thu, 08 Jun 2006 23:11:13 -0600 Great story. Love the comments, too. *smiling* http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46247 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46247 Thu, 08 Jun 2006 20:24:46 -0600 Hey. I was just thinkin'.... if this is a "TINS times two"... wouldn't that make you guys "TINS TWINS?" *snicker* http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46224 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46224 Thu, 08 Jun 2006 12:59:53 -0600 Blasted Blattid Bastid. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46223 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46223 Thu, 08 Jun 2006 12:46:57 -0600 Heee! Another chain successfully yanked. My work here's done. ;) http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46217 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46217 Thu, 08 Jun 2006 11:25:50 -0600 below the jungle canopies. Whew. And thanks from me for savign the Navy's bacon that day in 1970. What a great story.]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46216 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46216 Thu, 08 Jun 2006 11:07:31 -0600 Re: Joint helo ops. We were cruising off the coast of South Vietnam in 1972 when one of our sailors fell down a ladder or something and got himself smashed up enough that it was too much even for our Navy corpsmen to deal with. We called in a med evac. Army chopper vectored in. I'll never forget his comment as he arrived "Hey - you guys are a boat!" Made a very careful but very nice landing on flight deck (considering he had skids and not wheels like Navy helos do) and we were able to send off young sailor for repairs. Given all the rigging potentially in the way and all, I admired the willingness of that Army pilot to get his mission done. Don't know who he was, but he earned my respect... http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46214 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46214 Thu, 08 Jun 2006 10:40:30 -0600 Being a little unclear about boat designations is probably just an aviator thing rather than an Army thing. The folks at Ft Story don't have that problem. Although you Army helo types did have problems figuring out which boat was which, you had no problems figuring out which bases to refuel and rearm from based on the quality of food. Thats why Nha Be was constantly running out of 2.75" rockets. Proof once again that the Army travels on its stomach. BTW, my own little vacation along that particular stretch of river (Vam Co Tay) was about a year before your's. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46213 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46213 Thu, 08 Jun 2006 10:27:46 -0600 Boq - quit whining, wouldja? Besides, yer wrong. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46212 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46212 Thu, 08 Jun 2006 10:14:08 -0600 Great TINS there Boss(ret). Too bad that The Armorer doesn't like my depiction of Connie and Hubert though. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46205 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46205 Thu, 08 Jun 2006 08:53:14 -0600 I lurv TINS. Keeps me on the edge of my seat, even though I know in advance that you guys made it, you never know HOW you made it, or, in some cases... WHY. Very cool. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46197 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46197 Thu, 08 Jun 2006 07:57:40 -0600 uruloki - Don't apologize for breaking news items like that one in the comment blocks. OFS - Now you know whodunnit. I did a medevac from one of those bathtub toys you guys drove around in, but never pushed one downstream. And nothin' says "here's a lotta love from up above" like those 5" Zuni telephone poles the Black Ponies used to use... http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46189 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46189 Thu, 08 Jun 2006 06:15:28 -0600 I haven't heard that story in a while! Now if that does't meet the sea-story criteria ("This is no s***!") I don't know what does. You guys did some stuff for my outfit up around Tay Ninh City on a few occasions I beleive. We got a mixed bag of support up there, Sea Wolves, Army Air, Black Ponies and even some of Lex's F-4 driving buddies ( ya never lived till ya use an F-4 for close air support, a 500lb GP does a hell of a job of fire supression). A tip of the ole black beret, OFS late of River Division 594. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46188 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46188 Thu, 08 Jun 2006 04:58:37 -0600 press release up on my site, feel free to snag it.]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46187 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2006/06/tins_times_two.html#comment-46187 Thu, 08 Jun 2006 03:21:49 -0600