I meant any one that stepped foot in I agree with the rest of your post, and so did the Army. There was a huge difference between tours of duty also. This trip always was a concern, because I would be in a vulnerable condition in Indian Country with only two surveyors alone in a ton jeep. Now Iv had five and 10 % works. Change). According to the American War Library, as of February 28, 2019, it is estimated that approximately 610,000 Americans who served in land forces during the Vietnam War or in air missions over Vietnam between 1954 and 1975 are still alive to this day. Alternatively, to transfigure my destiny. The fear returned, as I knew he was of small stature. Yes. I arrived in country Dec. 5, 1967. The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. Im now 74. The _ga cookie, installed by Google Analytics, calculates visitor, session and campaign data and also keeps track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The wheels were bouncing crazily as the tires encounter deep furrows dug in the hard dirt from the last monsoon. I turned left into the open valley dirt road that lead to the OP, crossed the blue line (river or stream on a map) and raced through the dense, triple canopy jungle to the open valley floor. How many Canadian WWII veterans are still alive? This included Westmorland and Abrahms. After Vietnam I hitchhiked for about 12 years. How old is the youngest Vietnam veteran still alive? The last number of Viet Nam veterans alive today was 730,000, which would equate to around todays number of 610,000. Then we went back to the Boonies. when we carried ordnance we had to accept 50 cal fire from the shore on the way to saigon. We did what we felt needed doing. DamnIll be 76 in March. At what rate are Vietnam veterans dying? - Answers 23 Div and finally MACV Tm 87, 43 RCAT 18th ARVN Div. and i abhor those who say they served when they were plumbers in texas and talk of medals they never earned. The now call them Vietnam era veterans. No two people standing side by side performed the same duties. Who really cares who stepped foot on land. I knew I was dying, but I struggled with all my might to stay alive. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". We may never know who actually served and were in country during the fight. While that's a staggering figure is, the actual amount could be higher. I did a short extra tour with the 97th Trans in Cam Rahn Bay, they had 30 or so LCUs that hauled artillery projectiles and other stuff including fuel up many of those rivers. but some men, like myself , were told by their draft board, go to vietnam on your ship. It is called the Stolen Valor Act., Dau Tieng A Co. 3/22 Inf. She is also a strong advocate for equal opportunity, and she works tirelessly to ensure that all students have access to quality education regardless of their socioeconomic status or race. many US MILITARY PERSONNELL served in Afghanistan from the start to when the last GI got on the last plane/helicopter out. Pleiku, Dak To, An Khe. I was drafted and sent to Germany 66-68 because of the Vietnam War in the 4Armored Division. Or did you spend 24/7 365 days in the boat? SP5 Mark Kuzinski 86.6K 296 151 53 53 0 Vietnam veterans are dying at the rate of 390 deaths each day. may we all be the last man standing. Our side would have collapsed without you. What Major Is Kent State University Known For? What is left of them is in Davis Monthan AFB, Tucson, and they still smell today. On this Memorial Day 2021, VA honors their service and recommits itself to . The average annual payment was $18,100. We were sprayed every 2 weeks with Melithon (Insecticide) that was 96 percent pure. The truth is that until Vietnam veterans can agree amongst themselves what constitutes a real Vietnam vet, the debate may continue. He was killed in action just a few months later. Having studied the war for years, I believe that the correct figure for those on the ground in South Vietnam is 2.6 million. Yes, there are fuckyou lizards. April 1st was my day to rejoin 4th. why not compare them?. I started this post a year ago, it was a simple question. I served in Vietnam from Jul 68 to Jul 69. An overwhelming number are buried by family and friends. How many Vietnam vets are still alive today? i am not saying i was a hero, but i am saying that i did the job and i did not argue. Did your foot ever touch the ground? The artillery, Helo crews, combat engineers, in Vietnam are also considered Combat Vets, Well, I guess it just did not count for us Huey Teams (Sky Angels) supporting infantry/artillery units by flying in to lay down suppression fire, flying you into hot LZs, taking you out of the boonies, bringing you ammo and supplies, flying the wounded and dead back to base camp, not to mention Huey night Hawk missions to rectify an enemy ambush for our infantry that would be pinned down with no hope of survival. I do not doubt that it occurred, but can anyone cite a reliable source for this? Vietnam was very different, it was not supported by our Nation, the draft of so many young men to fight in a country that few could ever find on a map, let alone now anything about. all of the participants in this thread are veterans. I WAS IN THE 85TH ORD COMPANY . These numbers were not included since these service members were far removed from combat experience and did not spend any amount of time in harms way.. They wore the Vietnam Service Medal. (How Convenient), Hi. Where do they thinly get Ella enemys came from? Why do the vets who served during the Vietnam War era have to be so devisive? How were WWII veterans & Korean War Veterans accounted for? There is no definitive answer to this question as the number of World War 2 veterans who die each day varies depending on the specific situation. I raised my left leg and body up and pushed off that knee with my left hand. What numbers do the VA have? Likewise, drafted Sep 66, Vietnam Aug 67-Aug 68, and Im 75. These numbers are probably as good as any well ever find and are from 2019 and 2021 respectively. to Ken Drombosky This is a reasonable number but you get very different notions of the death rate when you compare 800,000 to 2.7 million versus 800,000 out of 9.2 million. These numbers were not included since these service members were far removed from combat experience and did not spend any amount of time in harms way. And though did not serve in actual combat, as you describe it, we were shot at & mortared on occasion. The first advisors were sent in country much earlier than 1962. The average age of our Vietnam veterans is now over 70. Approx 58,000 in Vietnam. I was all over in 7 years. I was thinking that in 10 days I would be on R&R in Taipei, Formosa. While there troops from our unit were deployed to Vietnam as replacements yet some people dont consider us as support for troops in Vietnam. How many Vietnam War veterans are still alive 2023? I Never got to Korea but I have friends who got a medal for service in Korea. One count should be those Vietnam Veterans who had feet on the ground. This cookie is installed by Google Analytics. More than 3.4 million deployed to Southeast Asia (1) and approximately 2.7 million of those served in the Republic of Vietnam (2). How many ww2 veterans are still alive 2021? Korea had 2 divisions in Vietnam The White Horse & Tiger Divisions The Australian Military was also present but I do not know the numbers There could be others. 400 hundred days of always being ready to fight and protect our 40 Huey helicopters, flew as door gunner a lot. Our service was diminished while there and continues being disrespected by those who lump all Vietnam-Era vets with those whose lives were on the line. If you assumed that 500,000 new troops served there every year from 1962-1975, you still couldnt get to 9,000,000 serving there, so using the peak number is not realistic. In addition, the US lost two F-111As, three F-4s, two A-7s, two A-6s, one EB-66, one HH-53, and one RA-5C. It was difficult for me to move. it is the duty of the community to stay behind their warriors to heal them and at the back of them when they come back. 1968, 69. The New York Times reported that claims like those of the American War Library are false and that, instead of only one-third of Vietnam vets remaining, the number points to more than 75 percent of Vietnam veterans still living and breathing today. Waiting for a slight pause in the clamor in my ear, I decided to escape towards the cover of the Bush. In the enormity of the cosmos, Vietnam is inconsequential, covered over by days dust! 58,184 died in the combat zone or from combat wounds. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Every grunt I know would say no. Dec 1967 Dec 1968 & Jan 1969 Nov 1969. I can tell you that those who served in Thailand should definitely be considered Vietnam Vets. It only had the National Defense ribbon on the cap. i appreciate i was not in a company and humped for a year. I will never forget the pop pop pop, pop pop of an AK-47 in rapid-fire, but I heard the far off rattle of a M-60 machine-gun through the roar; Why I thought of PFC Wildaboro and his escapade with the machine gun that OTHER sun-drenched afternoon! About 15 out of every 100 Vietnam veterans (15%) were currently diagnosed with PTSD when the most recent study of . None of us could have done our job without the support of troops around the globe. As stated in the previous post I too can spot a fake in 10 seconds. Check your POW list. If my math is correct, are you going on 68 years old ? So, where is the discrepancy in these numbers? I was with the 1st Inf Division from July 67 to June 68 and we received $15 overseas pay and $65 combat pay a month. My son, James, is 16 and has autism. Anyone suggesting that only a CIB award means you were a combat veteran is very uninformed The Battle of Soui Tre March 21, 1967 the men of the 2/77 Artillery were every bit infantry as well as Arty that day and many many other FSB battles. To that we can add those who served in adjacent waters and countries, but 2.6 is likely the closest figure to those in country. I only spent one overnighter. Hundreds of Vietnam vets infected by a slow-killing parasite - NBC News we got one daily the other one weekly. In my book, they are all Vietnam Vets, just like the guys back home who never went overseas are WWII or WWI veterans. Im going with 2.9 and saying the person who wrote 9.2 has the seing disease whereas they see everything in reverse. How Many Vietnam Veterans Are Still Alive In 2022? I saw the truck bounce towards the trees. i am not better, but i am not worse. I was also at LZ Bayonet. Hazardous duty pay was $65 and overseas pay varied by rank $8 to $ 16. I was the first male born to the Puccetti family after his death, so my parents received permission to name their son after Dante. Bob ONeal, Lt.Col. in ww2 more merchant men were killed than all the services combined until june 6, 1944. and they were civilians. The book by Hal Moore & Joe Galloway We were soldiers once, and young describe what many of us experienced. Are we counted as two people or have they accounted for us already. Active Duty: 473,000 It was a free-fire zone, and a nearby flight of gunships was engaged in shooting up the western valley. Nobody can bad-mouth Huey pilots and crews. no problem with the spell checking. If field infantry personal awarded a CIB having engaged the enemy are a ten (10), what are the field artillery units at a fire base like FSB Gold in Operation Junction City. Dave, I was in 1st Battalion 26 th Infantry HMP 1st Infantry Division in 68 November 68 to January 69. Perhaps the reason for guys is that there were times we had to drink out of bomb craters that were in areas sprayed with Agent Orange. 100,000 or more to suicide and most of those occurred after the men came home. i was a merchant marine officer, technically a civilian. Got the scars to prove it too, both physical and mental. Serving during the TET offensive and time after. I know the difference, do you ? I served in the 101st airborne infantry battalion in 1968, the time of the Tet Offensive. My 2.6 million figure refers to American vets. We are not ashamed of our service or the fact we killed and had friends die, far more than we care to remember. 3rd Brigade 4th ID attached to the 25th ID 111.40 & 112.40 later these became 11B.40 & 11C.40. Home Kent State University How Many Vietnam Veterans Are Still Alive In 2022? This cookie, set by YouTube, registers a unique ID to store data on what videos from YouTube the user has seen. It was apparently based on an estimate that 800,000 Vietnam-era veterans had died by 2000. We who were in Vietnam know who we are and dont need anyone telling us what they think. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. Were you at Saigon firebase when guys set off grenade in APC ? The site is owned and run by a crook and charlatan named (?) How Many Veterans Commit Suicide A Day? - Veteran Warrior Outreach three years on and off in vietnam . Serious danger along those river banks. I was there in 69-71 also sprayed Im 74, inlisted 1968 spent 2 tours in Vietnam Im now 73, Comments left by my fellow Vietnam vets are very useful. Thats what we did in Vietnam we left and am glad we did. Age: 84. stay safe. My Company was A Co, 5th Trans Bn, 101st Abn. However, like it or not, the U.S. government makes the final decisions on who is officially considered a war veteran and thats really the way it HAS to be. The cookie stores information anonymously and assigns a randomly generated number to recognize unique visitors. They're generally in their 90s and about 245 die each day according to the VA. At 95 Army veteran Lincoln "Linc" Harner still remembers the war. Fact: Everyone who served during the Vietnam War are classified as Vietnam Era Vets. I was with 4th Med Bn. Was an Armored Cav Platoon leader Nov 67-Mar 68 Lost 4 APCS 4 men in my platoon KIA 12 wounded I think I was in a little combat . The New York Times estimated that, of the 8.4 million Vietnam veterans who were still alive in 2000, 1.1 million had died. the merchant marine needed every officer and sailor they could find. Also consider the thousands that served multiple tours. Spent a year in training and ended up a buck Sargent airborne ranger. It would cause great pain to them; reminiscent of what occurred to the family of my namesake, my first cousin Dante Michael Puccetti. a clerk typist got benefits. I don't know about you guys, but it kind of gives me the chills. He objected, and was assigned as an interpreter attached to the American Embassy in Sweden. Suddenly, I was in front of the truck near the grill. Their is a new book about to be released by Bill Comeau that tells a similar story of the 3rd Brigade of the 4th Infantry Duel with the Dragon about the Battle of Soui Tre that I fought in. 31 sets of brothers are on the Wall. Vietnam War Veterans, and honoring all who served: Memorial Day 2021 As anti-war vet , all these years later, I respect yall and your stories. The percentage of fatalities that resulted from this was 7.9%. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. But having spent a little time thinking about it, I go with the 2m figure. even when i went out with the airforce on resupply to fire bases. Splitting out the numbers of combat and era vets are separate questions. from Fallen Leaves, Broken Lives By Edward Tick The only good thing was 22 days off my tour. So, here well dive a little bit deeper into how many Vietnam veterans are estimated to still be alive based on various approximations and predictions. Apparently Infantry is the operative word. Im glad you made it back! Does receiving a few mortar rounds inside the wire of our compound count? good stuff !!!!! Not sure what to think about the article. Unless they kept track by service or SSN, how many Vietnam Veterans are there ? Approximately 7,500 women were stationed in Vietnam during the war. Still, the American War Library continues to verify their accounts and come to more concrete conclusions. But having a CIB does not exclude or diminish in any way the experiences or accomplishments of others, like you, and the wearer of the badge has no right to judge what any other man faced. How many Vietnam vets die each day? - nobelvoice.com Dave V. 1st Battalion, 14 th FA, Americal Division, VN, I Corps. it was one of the smaller airbus aircraft. (There are other locations and occupations also, but lets not muddy the waters in this paragraph.)