Vietnam Vet Haunted By Mass Casualty Disaster | Full Interview 

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Flew back into the states from Iraq and was welcomed home by a line of Vietnam Vets coming off the plane. They served us breakfast and went above and beyond to give us what they didn’t receive coming back home. Almost 15 years later and it still makes me emotional to think about.

My dad who served in Vietnam with the 2nd Battalion 5th Marines 1st Marine division did two tours around 67 and 68 never really talked about the war until his later years. He just recently passed from Parkinson's this past November probably from the agent orange crap but he never once complained about it. He was one hell of a good dad and taught me how to shoot as he qualified expert with the M14. God bless you and all the vets who serve with hidden wounds.

Snake fascinating account of his days in Vietnam. It used to bother me when someone asked a Vietnam vet how they were treated when they got back,because everyone already knows the answer,but now I see it's usefulness in educating those that don't know about how shameful it really was.

" 2 most important days of your life, The day you were born and the day you figure out why " thats a hardcore quote from someone you should listen to.

I was with the 9th infantry division in 1968 and my first heavy combat fight didn't really scare me until the Vietcong started coming up out of their hidden tunnels underneath us and made things terrifying and it was late in the evening and then all of a sudden they disappeared. I can still hear combat some nights before bed.

You are all heroes! Thanks for your service!!

First, from one Nam Vet to another…Welcome Home Brother. Unlike most Nam Vets coming home, I wasn’t harassed in the 2 airports I went through and I was in my uniform. I was lucky I guess. As for any acknowledgment of my time in Nam, in ‘91 a doctor who was a Corpsman in Nam and a comic at a night club in ‘93, both thanked me for going over. I can’t remember when I actually heard, “Welcome Home” but it was YEARS after I came home.

Mike, Thank You for your service. As I was a 5-year old kid the year you enlisted, I COULD NOT understand how you and your brothers were treated upon your return. I still can't understand. It seems "Thank You" just isn't enough.

From one former cop to another I'm glad you were there at those times of horrific loss. I'm sure you did so much for survivors that it would surprise you and maybe overwhelm you sir. Bravo Zulu

❤❤❤❤ Tons of love and respect to all the Veterans out there. Blessings,Carlos ✝️🙏❤️😊🇺🇸

Yes, Welcome Home Brothers and Sisters

Very well spoken. Thanks for who you are.

Thank you for your bravery 🇺🇸

Welcome home, thank you so much for your service.👊🏻🇺🇸

God bless the Vietnam Veterans. My brother is one. He is 77 yrs. Old. And I am so proud of him and the others. They are the next generation of the Greatest Generation. Salute! God bless you all and Thank You !

I wore my uniform and was dam proud i wasn't about to bow down to the cowards no way

I worked as a armed security guard at a large hospital and saw an older guy wearing a "Vietnam Veteran" hat. I could tell he was a combat veteran. I'm a truth seeker and read and heard how these men (our soldiers) were shitted on. Anyway, I finally built up the courage to walk up to this man and say, "Excuse me Sir? That was a horrible war and I just want to thank you for making it back alive." He told me thank you. He left very soon after that and was crying. His wife was basically holding him up and walking him to his vehicle. To this day I wonder if I should have said that or not. This was about 5 years ago.

Thank you for sharing your story Mike

Thank you for your service from a brother Vietnam Vet

I was a dependent of a Vietnam veteran. I remember when you guys started the welcome home movement. I applaud you, as my father did not receive a welcome home at all. It was just back to business as usual. But I wasn't stupid, I knew my father had risked his life for me and my country. So thanks to you who began welcoming veterans home.

Welcome home and thank you for your service ! God bless!😊

Welcome Home Veteran Mike Jones! Thanks for your service and for your story. Intriguing stories. God bless!

Thank you Sir for sharing...

This is the first I have heard of this tragedy. Seems like death is always just around the corner looking for a place to strike. Thank you for your service, and for what you continue to do.

Thank you for your service in the military and law enforcement. Respect to both 🇨🇦🍻

Thanks a lot for all these great interviews. They are all riveting , every last one. God Bless

Thank you for sharing your Vietnam Experience. I salute you sir! I'm 74 now, I came in the Air Force in 1972. Then Honorably discharged in '79. Time flies. I pray you are @ peace.

Mike, God Bless You, and your fellow sailors, those that came home and those that paid the ultimate sacrifice. Need more of this.

Thanks for your service

Watching this from Central Thailand. Thanks. USN-RET.

Thanks for your service Mike! You're a patriot and a hero in my book.

Welcome home from New Zealand

Thank you for your service.

Thank you for your service

Thank you for your service & sharing your story. So sad. AK2. Uss Constellation (75-78) & VP 67 (78-80). Wespac 77

Ty for your service brother. SE Asia 69-70 LRRP

In my life I've met a lot of vets who actually served in times of war, and most of them struck me like this guy: they weren't all blood and guts. They were mostly kind, the sort of people who valued life and treated other people right because they had seen the other side first hand. They knew how fragile life is, how destructive war and violence is and they had no love for it.

Mike simple profound and eloquent. Welcome home Brother. I did two combat tours in Vietnam, as well as worked in public safety. Your a credit to the uniform and the badge.

Never heard of this before.Thanks.

Welcome home thanks for all you did in the Vietnam War

God bless you!

🇺🇲God Bless This Patriot 🙏🏻

My Uncle Windle Seaton( he was from Fulton,NY) was in the Navy, and went to Vietnam.... I wonder if he knew my uncle ? My uncle passed in 1976 at the age of 29 . I never got to know him .... anyway thank you for your service sir !

Thank you. 🙏 🇺🇸

Both my ex husband and I are veterans but only he was in Vietnam. He was over there twice. And then he went to the Marshall Islands for radiation clean-up. He couldn't handle our daughter as she was born developmentally delayed, Special Needs.

AT2 here, 81-85. Thank you for your service.

This man’s voice would be perfect in the radio as an announcer or dj

May God bless you sir

Wow! 3 bothers lost!! I thought they stopped posting brothers on the same ship after the Sullivan Brothers were lost together in WWII?? Unbelievable!

Thanks for your service ❤️ how could they not be recognized on the wall?? First I have heard about this event. My mom’s much younger cousin Gary Newbie’ died on the USS Forestal’ along with many other navy seamen. Wonder if they are on the wall?

Great video. Moving.

Thank you Mike!.

3rd Batt. 7th Marines ChuLai,RVN 10/65-11/66

If I was going into Vietnam. I would’ve jumped at a submarine position. “Are we gonna do something today, sir?“ “probably not.“

I lost my best friend from Boot Camp on that ship.

Welcome home! Regarding the two ships colliding, what a colossal screw up. I navigated the globe on boats under 300’ and don’t understand how ships so effing large couldn’t see each other on radar and take evasive action. Granted, the radars I used were not of that era, but WTF?

New military recruit: lets kill someone. Veteran: thy shalt not kill.

Are the veterans that have passed away after serving in the Vietnam War recognized on the wall or elsewhere? It seems only right that every American that put in time over there should be honored. Yes?

Thank you sir. Utube too

From one San Diegan to another, I salute you, Mike, for your naval service and tour in 'Nam. I remember the tragic USS Evans DD-754 incident and how very little media coverage there was about this tragedy. I was in high school then. The other mass casualty incident you mentioned I presume to be the mid-air collision of the PSA airliner and the small private aircraft over the community of North Park around Boundary St near University Ave. That was really horrible. As a police officer, you must've been working under Chief Bill Kollender at the time. Was Ray Hoobler the previous Chief?

AW also, late 70s. I took S-3 over P-3 and I’m sure I had the same shocked looks and comments!

I was in Subic Bay when the Frank D Evans was towed in.

I HOLD ALL OF YOU VIETNAM VETERANS IN VERY HIGH REGARD ...THANKYOU FOR YOUR SERVICE....YOU ARE " HIGH ACES " IN MY BOOK ....

Boys turned into Men warriors at such a young age. Nobody talks about it how hardcore these men were. Very smart very intelligent very brave. God bless all that fought these awful battles who were lied to. You will never be forgotten. ❤

He must be referencing PSA flight 182 in San Diego in 1978.

AW Flew S-3A's 1981 - 1986

I am a retired Army vet of over 20 years of service. I always hated the fact that they drafted young poverty stricken men to go fight this unjust evil war. Yet they elected/selected rich privileged draft dodgers as Commander in Chief.

It is in vain to die overseas for people that we don’t even know that are strangers it is not to put them down it is just that we simply do not know them the Vietnam war was a 100% waste

I can think of 500,000 people that need to be shipped overseas, right now.

Fleet Air Reconnaissance Squadron One and Operation Frequent Wind. Although U.S. military involvement in Vietnam had ended with the withdrawal of the last ground combat forces in 1973, the U.S. maintained close ties with the Republic of Vietnam government and continued logistical support of their Armed Forces. Missions flown by, Fleet Air Reconnaissance Squadron One (VQ-1) had also essentially come to a close with the final withdrawal of U.S military forces. By March 1975 North Vietnam began its second invasion of South Vietnam since American withdrawal launched attacks in direct violation of the 1973 Paris Peace Accords. American military forces began mustering in mid-April off the coast of South Vietnam and in bases in the Philippines, primarily NAS Cubi Point, Philippines (Navy) and Clark Air Force Base, Philippines (USAF), and at Anderson Air Force Base (USAF) in Guam. Operating as Commander Task Group (CTG) 72.5, and in joint intelligence with the Central Intelligence Agency, (CIA), and U.S Naval Intelligence Command, (NIC) Fleet Air Reconnaissance Squadron One, (VQ-1) positioned two EP-3E Orion’s (PR-33 and PR-35), three aircrews (Crews 33, 35 and 36), and ground support personnel at NAS Cubi Point, Philippines beginning about April 17, 1975. This task group operated as a command separate from the usual VQ-1 Det Cubi Point. PR-35 and Crew 36 arrived at Cubi Point after an across-the-Pacific odyssey. That odyssey which found Crew 35 and Crew 36 in the Philippines for the operations in the evacuation of Vietnam/Saigon. Crew 35 returned from operations monitoring the soviet missile activities from Midway and Wake islands, Crew 36 after 135 straight days of deployment and flight operations in Hawaii, Dallas and California following the installation of the first computerized intercept system termed "Deep Well and Brigand, with the Communications intercept system termed Ares II” When the call came to form and activate CTG 72.5, Crew 36 had been flying in the Sea of Japan for Six and a half weeks, (52 days) monitoring Soviet and North Korean activities, in the upcoming possible operations of Vietnam. During that time, they had flown at a higher pace than usual, been intercepted five times by Soviet Naval Aviation MiG-23s (later designated MiG-27), and on April 9th narrowly missed being intercepted by a North Korean MiG-21 with orders to “eliminate the American Spy” only by the fortune of having to abort a mission early due to an engine/propeller failure. The flight crews began 24-hour overlapping surveillance 12 miles off the coast of South Vietnam on April 22, launching from NAS Cubi Point, Philippines. Missions sometimes lasted as long as 15.4 hours airborne due to the relieving aircraft and crew flying with the departing aircraft and crew for up to an hour for intelligence pass down. During this time there was very little crew rest time du to the high tempo of the operations. The EP-3E’s were the US Navy’s last combat flights of the Vietnam War, completing their missions for that period in April 20-29 1975, Flying 24/7 as intelligence and command and control of the Evacuation of Saigon. Crew 36 actually flew the last Naval Aviation combat mission of the Vietnam War. As CTG 72.5 VQ-1, it was squadron tasking to make the first call to advise to begin Operation Frequent Wind, the evacuation of American and Vietnamese citizens, when predetermined criteria were met. After flying a week of 24-hour overlapping surveillance support, Crew 36 personnel were on-station when the criteria were met and the first message was issued from PR-35. The designated on-scene commander; Crew 36, used that intelligence to convince the American Ambassador; Graham Wilson to approve the evacuation which began officially began on April 29, unofficially on 30 April 1975. During the evacuation PR-35, an unarmed intelligence reconnaissance aircraft flew with no national insignias, and Crew 36 was intercepted by a North Vietnamese MiG-21PF fighter. Because of the electronic intercept capability and communication intercept capability of the EP-3E Deepwell/Ares II aircraft and the capabilities of the enlisted aircrew the Electronic Warfare Officer, (EWO/EVAL), Ensign Michael Kelley was able to detect the intercept and successfully alert the pilots to take evasive maneuvers with the assistance of the “Biglook” operator AT2 David D’Amore which allowed the EP-3E (the size of a medium airliner) to evade the AA-2 Atoll AAM fired at PR-35 by the NVN MiG-21. The MiG then fired it’s 23mm cannon at the aircraft hitting the vertical stabilizer and horizontal stabilizer, shrapnel penetrating the aircraft cabin before leaving the area after receiving instructions from the onboard communications operators (instructing the pilot as his GCI center). Electronic Aircraft Commander; Lt Michael Asher, (EWAC), requested AA assistance and fighter protection from the USS Constellation, (CV-64), the reply was “you don’t exist, no escort available for you” Flight operations for CTG 72.5 continued until May 7 when Crews 33 and 35 were returned to NAS Guam. Crew 36 and PR-35, after being deployed for 141 days, were then relocated to Osan Air Force Base, Korea, to fly several days of "exciter and beggar balls" missions along the DMZ between South and North Korea to map the AA and Air defenses deployed there by North Korea. Crew 35 finally returned to Guam on May 11 after being deployed for 145 continuous days. The crews 33, 35 and 36 were released for further service with the Central Intelligence Agency, (CIA) and Naval intelligence command, (NIC). Crew 36 had the distinction of being the only EP-3 crew to that time to be awarded the Sea Service ribbon for extended deployment. All three of the crews were awarded and designated Combat Aircrewmen, (CAC) and Crew 36 was awarded 3 bronze stars. As a result of its participation in Operation Frequent Wind, VQ-1, as a command, was awarded the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal and the Humanitarian Service Medal. The flight crews and ground support personnel who composed CTG 72.5 VQ-1 were also individually awarded a Meritorious Unit Commendation for meeting 100 percent of the intense mission requirements. The three flight crews - 33, 35, and 36 - were also issued "Combat Zone Base Pay Exemption" forms for April 1975, making them the last VQ-1 Vietnam veterans and among the very last U.S. Vietnam Combat Veterans of any branch of the United States Military service. This ended VQ-1 and America's involvement in the Vietnam War in what was re-designated by Congress in 2003 as the 18th and Last Campaign of the Vietnam War. This also made Crews 33, 35 and 36 eligible to exchange their Armed Forces Expeditionary Medals for Vietnam Service Medals with 1 bronze star. The cockpit crew, Lt. Michael Asher (Pilot/EWAC), Lt. Charles Martin (Co-pilot), and AD1 Joseph Stivala (Flight Engineer), were awarded Air medals for their actions in the evasive maneuver in saving of the crew and aircraft. NOTE: (Michael Kelley was commissioned through Aviation Officer Candidate School at NAS Pensacola, Florida in 1973. He reported to VQ-1 in Guam in June 1974, following advanced Electronic Warfare training. He flew the last EC-121M Lockheed Super Constellation deployment before the Supper Constellation was retired from VQ-1. He was deployed with Crew 36 as a Junior Evaluator, (JEVAL), for its extended odyssey and sent the message advising the Task Force Commander to begin the Vietnam evacuation. He left VQ-1 in December 1976, and went on to teach Leadership and Management, and fly the ERA-3B Douglas Skywarrior on Electronic Warfare Aggressor missions with the Firebirds of VAQ-33 as Electronic Warfare Aircraft Model Manager, Mission Commander, NATO Coordinator and, at the time, the only O3 (Lieutenant) designated as an Event Commander. It should be noted that the decision to commence the evacuation was given by Ensign Michael Kelley, who was instrumental in the saving of the aircraft and crew due to his expertise and knowledge of the situation.

🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻🎖🎖🎖🎖🎖

a lot of guys died of Agent Orange and they aren't on the War Memorial Wall either

The navy is always fragile because boats are always super dangerous. The ocean does not tolerate.

Imagine the draft now? With college students.

coming home was hell, I wore my Green Beret proudly but was no longer happy with the US how we were treated with eggs thrown at you trash thrown at ya, my family was proud but when taken to a bar to say hello, No one would sit with us and we heard shitty statement so we left.

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

I joined 76 early enlistment, aviation,no school ,straight to fleet,east coast,va66 Cecil field, striking for ams,,no enemy actions,except cold war junk,3 cruises, out

Yeah, I’m sure the Vietnamese have many nightmares too.

Didn't experience the spittle bugs name calling, protesters when returning CONUS from the Nam. Came back aboard a C141 Starlifter hosp. Plane with about 150+- wounded casualties. Don't remember what base we landed or the time. Wound up at valley forge army hosp in Pa. Would have been better coming home walking normally and putting.up with the spittle bugs n hippies, protesters for sure.oh well.

General Westmoreland Lied, so there's that.

Sober, mature, stoic, balanced adult speaking.

Sailors on an active combat tour who don't make it should be remembered regardless of geography......shame on the pen pushers who make these rules.

👍♥🇺🇸

God Bless you, and Thank You for your service!!

Should have come in to the jungle and get up close and personal with the NVA.

Combat wounded Vietnam begging the v a for medical help!America I served with honor to be treated as a lab rat for medical school called veterans administration

My man went through all this shit just to have us end up under communism anyway. We waste this man’s sacrifices.

Its been a long time, Welcome Home! In reference to Mark Twain, God has a plan.

It sickens me someone always try to policies everything i'm a democrat i thought vietnam vets where the best last time i checked were all americans

I never understood the Democrats hatred of these people. It's OK to question the people in charge but the soldiers, sailors, Marines and airmen weren't running the show or calling the shots. Thank you for your service.

Trump

I was a Vietnam veteran before it became popular. Iron Triangle, 1969 🎖💜♠️🪖🇺🇸

Another drafted hero, treated terribly

That "Un-Welcome Home" scenario many of them faced was delusional, Stupid, and Careless. That was more shame than whatever they accused these Vets of doing in reality.

You have love for your service in millions of Americans what you sacrificed was so hard and you deserved a heros welcome coming home but you had kinda like today brainwashed liberal hippies that deserve incarceration for how they treated you we love you and thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your service and sacrifice thank you sir is not enough all veterans deserve so much more .

these old farts with their hats bemuse me; was Vietnam the height of their lives? Not mine; I spent two years in Nam and loved it--tried to stay longer, but our forces were pulling out. That was just a period, like college. I became an MD, DMD surgeon for over forty years; don't wear the stupid hat.

He must be referencing PSA flight 182 in San Diego in 1978.