Vietnam-what would you carry?

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AirForceShooter is the luckiest guy to have been there....Man, did the Aussies have great beer!!!
Vern, Thanks alot for mentioning Dong Ha, gateway to paradise (Gio Lihn, Con Thien, Rock Pile and points North). Ah, the fun we had.
Started with brace of Nikons, an M-2 carbine & a 1911. Scrapped the M-2 after I ran out of ammo during a bit of unpleasantness just north of the Cua Viet. Strange, none of the Jarheads (Hey, at least I capitalized Jarheads)had any .30 cal. carbine ammo. After that it was a shotgun (M-97 or M37), M-16 or what ever I could pick-up after my 16 locked-up and I need something more than a 105mm Nikor lens to shoot with.
AFS...see you at the range. My new Ar-15 actually shoots, unlike the original M-16.
Ah hell, I admit it. It was the free helo rides that got me to go back the second time. :evil:
 
From a REAL standpoint, I would carry whatever reliable weapon that had reliable resupply and also one suited for my job or MOS.

Assuming I was a typical Soldier or officer that would likely have been the M16 or M14.

In a make believe world where all things are considered equal, and I had my choice independent of other factors, and I had to choose a reliable infantry weapon for heavy close quarters combat in a wet, muddy, densely forested terrain, I would chose the AK47 as my primary weapon and the 1911 as my sidearm. My second choice for a primary weapon would be the M14.
 
Well as a Brit odficialy I would not haev been there but hypothetically, I would have been an iinstructor attached to austrailian or NZ SAS.

L1A1 SLR, probably with SUIT scope, Webley .455 service revolver, hand grenades, detcord and a motorcycle.*

(*was not there 18)
 
Depends on the rules of this game.


If it's anything I want, including modern weapons?

Robarm XCR with an ACE M4 SOCOM sidefolding stock, slung at my right side, muzzle down. Either 5.56 or 7.62 depending on what I'm doing. EOtech holosight with a 4x flip-to-side magnifier, flip-up iron sights, tangodown vertical grip, visible green laser on the underside rail, and an IR laser on the side rail with adjustable divergence so it can be used as an IR flashlight with NODs. The vacant side rail may or may not have a CAA picatinny rail mag pouch for an M16 mag.

Savage 10FP 20" Choate Folder, slung 'crossdraw' style on my left side. Harris bipod and Leupold FX-3 12x40mm

USP45 Tactical. Insight LAM

Dark Ops E&E Interceptor knife

Spetsnaz shovel

Victorinox Swisstool

Streamlight Sidewinder light with a helmet mount.

Surefire 9P with infrared filter, and a daniel defense offset flashlight mount already attached to it so it can replace the IR laser for IR illumination if it fails.

Suppressors for all my firearms.




For the Vietnam Era

SVD

Uzi (with stock removed)

1911

Barong

KA-BAR

M-99/U flashlight

Any 2-cell flashlight from the era
 
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I was an infantryman in the Americal Division and was wounded twice.
I mostly carried an M-79 grenade launcher which was fine except mine was really tired. I tried to get any kind of handgun for close quarters but it was nearly impossible since the guys in the rear all thought they needed a .45 to carry around. I would have been happy with any kind of handgun!

WEIGHT! I had good experiences with the M-16 also and saving a few pounds makes a huge difference when you carry it 24 hours a day.
I have never had, nor seen anyone have jamming problems with the M-16; maybe it was because they had the problems fixed by my tour.

Thanks.
 
Having been there,...(Nam 68-71),...all enlisted,...I carried a lot of different weapons there,...saw a lot of others being used as well. My first trip in, my sidearm was with a Colt Python,...it went bye bye pdq,... a great piece, but the action tolerances were too tight for the AO,..swapped it to a Huey jockey for an old S&W Model 10 in .38,... after that my constants became: A scrounged USGI 1911, occasionally a Ruger Gov't Model .22, ...and when in the "ville" I carried an old Browning .380 under my arm pit. Was given an unreliable M-16,... that whenever I had the choice pretty much stayed in the rack back at base camp. Used an M-14 for the most part, heavy as a truck, but was worth carrying the weight,...also used the M-2 carbine, a .45 Grease Gun, and on a few occasions a Thompson SMG. When needed I also used a 12 gauge pump with issued 00 Buck, ....and on more occasions than I care to recall, an AK-47 or an SKS from a battle field pick up. All depended on the where when and why. If I had to do it again I'd choose the M-14 and a 1911 anything,....and a 105 Howitzer Battery, and an overhead flight of Cobra's on call. Either would be real hard to beat when it gets real.
 
I spent some time there. Spooky and Spectre were always appreciated for keeping us relatively safe, as were the battalion of ROK's that guarded Phu Cat. VC absolutely did NOT mess with the ROK's. I had to carry the standard M-16 and a S&W .38 special, neither of which I had much faith in. I consider myself very fortunate to have never have had to depend on them, and to have come home unscathed, more or less.
 
'69-'70. Carried National Match M14 and 1911 as platoon leader. Later 1911 and M16 when escorting Hoi Chan's or captive back out into the field (would rather have had M79 with canister and he rounds) for that part of the tour.

Today I'd choose the FN FS2000 and a good 1911.
 
1911A1 and a BAR. I might take the Thompson MG over the BAR but I'd rather reach out and touch someone. The BAR is heavy but I'm 210lbs so I can handle it even in full auto. Much easier to shoot than the M14.
 
First of all, I am very glad not to have been there, not at all something I would choose to do. I have played enough paintball to know that all the Hollywood crap is just that, and it is very easy to get dead fast -- and that with inaccurate, short-range paintball weapons. My hat goes off to anyone who's ever had to fight in the jungle, anywhere.

The only weapon mentioned that have actually fired much is an Thompson M1A1, and I would be pretty happy to have the Tommy and a Colt 1911 if I had to be in a situation like that.
 
I'd have either been carrying the M-60 or the M-79 (we did have the option of carrying a 1911 with that).

But it ended before I shipped there, so I got to carry those (not at the same time :p ) on Okinawa.
 
Given a choice (and ammo) pretty much what I got now. M-249 w/ACOG and PEQ-2, IBA, AN/PVS-14. Through a 1911 in there too. (don't have one, but would like mine from home)

If we're in fantasy land, BOLO MK XXXII. 200cm Hellbore FTW.
 
I think the AK-47 was the perfect weapon for the jungle environment of Southeast Asia. Secondary would be a Browning Hi Power for me.
 
M-14 was a little hard to handle in a O-1 bird dog so M-1 went most time Nice thing was Radios on board brought all kinds of toys to the party.
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Michael,

Where you a FAC? My hat goes off to you sir. Would love to hear some stories.

I've read some of John Plaster's books on SOG and they seemed to prefer the CAR-15 or AK.
 
That ol' Skyraider was a beautiful piece of machinery! Loved to see'em comin' in low and hot.
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Tuner, if you want to see some great depiction of Sandy ops, get the movie "Flight of the Intruder" based on the book by Stephen Coonts. Also has a lot of great carrier ops scenes.
 
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