Immediately following right back within compound, we unloaded the brand new beer, place it toward a cut out-out-of 55-gallon drum and iced they off

Truth be told there wasn’t in whatever way we are able to stream you to pallet straight back on the the new lighthearted vehicle, very being the a Samaritans we had been, i stacked as numerous times even as we you may into all of our V-100-a great deal we could not turn the new turret. Definitely, there were particular disappointed MPs one to evening and you may an abundance of awful head aches 24 hours later.

To the men who served on a V-100 for a year, the vehicle became more than just a machine. It became your life, your friend and your protector. All but two of our V-100s were named after comic book heroes. These included “Captain America,” “Thor,” “Big Ben,” “Flash,” “Spider – man,” “Barbarian,” “Atom,” “Daredevil” and “Iron Man.” The other two were named “Road Hog” and “The Lemon.” Each of the V-100s had a painting of the character or the name across the front, life-sized and in coloric book superheroes painted on the front of the V-100s made for an interesting article in The newest Roundup, our local GI newspaper https://escortfrauen.de/en/switzerland/zurich-canton/wallisellen. The April 1970 article was headlined, “66th MP Co. Super Heroes to Combat VC Wrong Doers.”

Occasionally we’d the minutes, like the day when we have been escorting a beneficial convoy within the A keen Khe Ticket and another of your automobiles destroyed a whole pallet off alcohol

David A beneficial. Swisher resides in Marshall, Unwell. He obtained new Armed forces Commendation Medal that have V Tool getting his methods from inside the ambush at the A keen Khe Violation in April 1970. For further learning, see: Cadillac Gage V-100 Commando 1960-71, by the Richard Lathrop and you may Jim Laurier; and you will Combat Police: U.S. Army Military Police in Vietnam, of the Rick Younger.

Much of our very own issues showed up to your QL-19, but I sensed more comfortable on that highway than to the QL-step 1, given that they there had been alot more convoys for the QL-19 and therefore higher likelihood of content. My baptism out of flame showed up on bush at the hairpin bend from the An enthusiastic Khe Citation. Our very own V-100 had already come through the newest hairpin and try headed off the brand new citation, when the westbound convoy is actually struck. What “Contact! Contact! Contact!” came over the radio online when i try riding, thus i turned into the new V-100 around and you will headed back up the brand new ticket. When we have got to brand new hairpin, I noticed particular Korean soldiers pinned off. Among them got their arm stuck up floating around pointing to the south section of the hairpin turn. We removed the brand new V-100 between the Koreans plus the standing he was pointing in order to, so we you certainly will let them have a tad bit more safety and possess engage with the firepower.

My personal V-100 is escorting good convoy out-of Tuy Hoa one day when there is an abundance of construction run the street, ultimately causing a little an accordion impression

Some thing about powering the brand new courses every day try that you never knew exactly what uncommon situation would happen second. In the event the front side of one’s convoy eliminated, the back fasten. Then the front side create initiate once more, and the convoy spread out before the bottom you can expect to begin. Due to this, We told the V-100 rider Reno Catalano to enter the center of the fresh roadway so we helps to keep other vehicles of our very own convoy up to we had out of the structure city. While we constantly assist faster vehicles go ahead and solution the fresh convoy automobiles, because there is really structure I desired to save brand new convoy free from one other customers.

On one convoy to Weil Nang, our vehicles strike good Lambretta laden up with Vietnamese. It absolutely was slightly chaos. The fresh Lambretta ran off of the highway and you may off an embankment. Once i had a good dustoff here and had some thing cleaned upwards sometime, there are a myriad of black pajama-clothed individuals with firearms standing up to speaking and you can screaming. Because of the difficult, a misunderstanding can potentially provides arisen, before you to occurred i got from around and you can back to our convoy.