I was in MAG-24 at Cherry Point as a newbie- on my first day the Staff NCO ( who was I later found out a great leader ) also, liked to have fun with the New Guy- I was told to go to all of our squadrons and give them each an emergency requisition in a sealed envelope addressed to various Staff NCO’s in each squadron. I took the envelopes and distributed them as ordered. I was handing them envelopes with the letter ( I found out later ) for a request for 50 yards of flight line? We all had a good laugh on me, and in a week or 2 we had some fun with another Marine- all in fun- and all part of OUR BROTHERHOOD- Most went along with getting their leg pulled- and some were sore- but we were a team and for most part pulled together. Some of the guys ran out at quitting time without asking if the work was done- and some of us asked if anything had to still be done for that day. The Staff NCO’s knew who were good Marines and who were s**tbirds- at times a muster was called for added assignments or problems to be addressed- roll was called- and the usual suspects were MIA- we had a Gunny who was terse- but a squared away Marine- he was looking for one screw-up who always did everything wrong – and called me over and told me to go to the head- and pull his sorry butt out of one of the stalls where he always hid from doing work? nothing got by them – and like Santa – they knew who was bad or good- I can honestly say I disliked one Gunny- who was not squared away- and was about to be asked to retire as I found out even with Vietnam- they did not want him in any capacity. Met hundreds of NCO and Staff NCO’s and Hey I was an NCO as I got out. Miss the ethic or working together- or going to the NCO Club for a drink- or dinner- sometimes one Marine would mope around the Squad Bay- and you would ask him if he wanted to go to the club- after work- or if he would go with you to chow- and they would perk up and be thankful- as all Marines were different- and some were loners. Now in 2017 our world is still crazy- and we face problems as well. One day maybe we will live in peace – but we learn from the past- and plan for the future- and a I hope that our Marines will be kept out of harms way overseas!! Amen!
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I was in HMS 24 Mag24 at Cherry Point I was in the Motor Pool because they didn’t have any shop to put after Jet mechanic school at Naval Air Station Jacksonville FLA.because the Korean war Vets were being places first my Motor Pool Sgt. Was a World War two Veteran so one day he asked if I would go to PX with him he had to buy his wife a birthday present as were leavening the PX a second LT. Was going and the Sgt .said watch this we stoped and we saluted him and the Sgt told him to go home and tell his Mother he was saluted by a man and walked off SempernFI
Your photo for “Flight Line” shows an EA-6B of VMAQ-2 (Playboys) that sadly was recently retired from service. As a former Playboy that was lucky enough to have served with a great squadron of officers and enlisted, it was a sad day when I read Prowlers were being replaced with the F-18 Growler. Sgt. Maj. Swann-it was a honor to have served under your leadership. Sadly, the Playboy bunny on the tails of our birds fell to political correctness. No matter where we went around the world-we were Playboys-and we tried to live up to the name. All the stories told of the P.I. (not Parris Island) are true.
Sgt Hernandez, I was just up the flightline from you during that time Headquarters Sqdrn. Air Traffic Control (82-86). “Cherry Point Approach”……Remember the Q2 well, the night you lost an aircraft in Morehead City and the crew ejected safely into the waterway. Always a pleasure to work your aircraft. Also knew in passing a couple of your flightline Marines from a ship in the P.I. back in 79. Good guys to party with, one had the honor of telling how he was blown off the fantail during ops one day. (Fake news? maybe or not, I could see it happening and heard from a few others that Carrier Flight Deck ops were some of the most dangerous jobs especially at night.
Cpl. of Marines James Petit Weapons plt. Rockets E co. 2/9 3rd Marines, Khe Sahn. Self employed as a contractor while going to Bible school in Tulsa I did some sheet rock work for a fellow who had a picture on his wall of a F4 phantom with the bunny on the tail. I don’t know how to get it in this message but if you would like to see it text me @4173310220. Semper Fi !!
Sgt Hernandez, that is an EA-6A, not an EA-6B. I too was in VMAQ-2 and made several West-Pacs with the various detachments. I was in Seat Shop but did a bunch of time in Corrosion Control because we got to spend a lot of time in th P.I. painting aircraft, because at the time it was the only Fleet paint facility in the Western Pacific. I LOVED the P.I.
At Cherry Point in ’69-’70 with H&MS-14, newbies came to us many times to request 50 feet of flight line or a 50 gallon drum of prop wash. We usually sent them to another warehouse.
“swing with the wing”. As a shop NCO, I once sent a young L/Cpl to our sister squadron to get a ASH Receiver. He came back with the bobble wrapped package, I told him to unwrap it …..ASH TRAY !!! We all had a good laugh. S/F
STATIONED AT CHERRY POINT (1967) (AFTER NAM), (WISH I WAS BACK IN THE NAM). WHEN I GOT TO THE POINT I WAS A (LANCE CORPORAL) PLAYING (MARINE) WITH A BUNCH OF WEEKEND WARRIOR’S WHO WERE( NEVER) TO THE (NAM) A BUNCH OF WANT A BEE’S ALL DAY IN THE WOOD’S ALL DAY ALL THE TIME JUST TO MAKE (CORPORAL) NEVER MADE IT. (BORING) THE POINT WAS LIKE A (SOUTHERN RETIREMENT HOME FOR MARINE’S) IF YOU WERE FROM THE SOUTH YOU WERE RIGHT AT HOME I WAS A (YANKEE!) (SWOOPED) HOME EVERY CHANCE I GOT) NO WHERE BASE, BAR (ONE) SOLD ( 3.2 BEER NO LIQUOR) OFF BASE IN BAR (ONE) NEXT TO A REAL ESTATE OFFICE TRAILER AND THAT WAS THE TOWN. HAD BETTER TIME ON BASE! (TICKED OFF THE SOUTHERN COMMANDER OF BASE ONE DAY?) HEAVENS KNOW WHY. (GOING CRAZY) SO THE COMMANDER SAID I AM GIVING YOU TWO NEW DUTY STATION’S TOO PICK FROM BECAUSE YOU ARE LEAVING HERE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE?.(YANKEE) HAPPY DAY’S ARE HERE TO STAY (YES) FIRST CHOICE (CUBA) OR (MARINE BARRACK’S SAN FRANSICO TREASURE ISLAND) SPIT SHINE AND POLISH AND UNIFORM OF THE DAY EVERY DAY, FRISCO HEAR I COME. SOON AS I CHECKED IN WITH MY COMMANDING OFFICER HE SAID YOUR NOT A (CORPORAL) HE SAID WERE ALL CORPORAL’S AND ABOVE HERE DEPENDING ON YOUR RECORD, WAS PROMOTED THAT DAY, AND UP FOR SGT. IN (6 MONTH’S) BEST DUTY STATION I EVER HAD WE WERE (ONE BARRACK’S OF MARINE’S) AND THE TREASURE ISLAND WAS ALL NAVY PERSONAL IN TRAINING. (ALL WAY’S BROKE AND LOT’S OF BOOZE AND WOMEN) HAD MORE FUN ON THE BASE THAN GOING TO FRISCO ALL THE GIRLS FROM FRISCO CAME TO THE BASE (WOW!) WE HAD THE BEST BASE CLUB I EVER SAW (SPONSORED BY THE NAVY) SEMPER FI! (SKI)
(SKI); Like you BROTHER, Vietnam would be the perfect place for me;not that the good ‘ol U.S.A. & the Corps aren’t close to my heart, soul and spirit. Not sure but think Quantico was my last Duty Station. There we trained 2nd Lieutenants in Guerrilla Warfare which name of training was called SDT. Now that was FUN. We’d sprang all types of ambushes on them, booby traps, spider holes & even hide in the trees. Then when they’d brake for lunch, we’d “open up” on them. Always they’d yell, ” No fair, no fair ” of course to which our reply would be: “All’s fair in love & war”. Reason it was liked so very much was it sort of daily reminded me of being in Vietnam.
I spent some time in H&MS 14 Avionics, went away to New River and recruiting, and came back to MALS-32 Avionics. Ended up with TME-21 and retired from FREST. Anyway, being avionics types, we used to send the newbies for an ID-10T
Randy, yes remember sending many “boot” for an idiot form to admin! Guess you can’t do that now, you would have to have them look up the ID-10T online now right? I was in comm and when I was in 2/5 the line companies would send their boots down to comm to get boxes of grid squares and some frequency grease for their radios before going to the field. We would usually give them ammo cans with maps that we had cut up into grid squares and tell them we were all out of frequency grease. They had to go to supply to get more freq grease. Eventually, the line companies would have them bring us back our ammo cans to start the fun all over again with the next set of boots.
At El Toro in 1967 we were all brand new from NAS Memphis and they would send guys around MAG33 looking to borrow the one Skyhook we had. I think the SeaBees would send guys looking for plank stretchers too.
’77 Returned to CONUS following 3 years at MCAS Futema, Japan. I was a SSgt E-6. ATC headquarters was at MCAS(H) New River, stationed at MCALF Bogue Field, billeted at MCAS Cherry Point. Assigned to new enlisted barracks, not SNCO barracks. Barracks Sgt. was a Pvt waiting disposition of his court martial. Handrails, light fixtures, fire extinguishers all ripped from walls. I opened the door to my assigned room, found filthy bunks and gear for 3 individuals. But, I wound up all to myself. Conducted a thorough field day. told barracks NCO to locate owners of gear still in my quarters, three days limit. On the third day, I collected gear in bedding, tied it up, then tossed it overboard from 3rd deck to the Pvt bellow, with instructions to lock it up somewhere. A few days later I was ordered to report to the office of the SgtMaj in charge of that facility. After I reported to him, he told me I was up on charges for misappropriation of the gear I had removed from my quarters. My response was to request mast to the Commandant, where I would ask him why this facility was run the way it was. SgtMaj looked @ me, then told me to vacate his office. Never heard another word, but there were civilian workers repairing damaged fixtures, I was discharged in Dec., and headed for home and family in Seattle.
At MALS-16 in the early 90’s breaking in our newbies also included getting from supply a gallon of pneumatic fluid, or a box of level bubbles. If the Gunny was in a good mood you would send the new guy to him for a PRC-E7.
Almost forgot the BA1100N with an ST ring!
Got to MCAS El Toro in Spring of ’69 for 6 months of ojt before going to staging at Camp Pendleton. I was a radar tech in VMFAT-101, an F4 Phantom training squadron. As a newbie, I was a “go for” under some Vietnam Nam vets training us and flight crews to ship out to ‘Nam. On one of my first days there and after walking waaay down the long flight line to work on one of the Phantoms, the E5 with me asks me for the ignition key to the jet. He said I was supposed to have gotten it from the maintenance gunny. “Well, run back to the hanger and tell the gunny you ‘f..ked up’ and forgot the key!” “RUN!” I got him back later when he was Sgt. of the Guard and I was walking guard duty one night! All I did was cock my .45 1911 after he had passed by my hiding spot late one night!
Looking for a few Marines stationed at Atsugi, Japan…….Marine Corps Barracks 1969 to 1971. Also Nam 1968 to 1969 Da nang 1st Communication Battallion 1st Marines.
L/cpl H.L. Young, Viet Nam 65/66/69. You Airdales are cool, but try being on your first Med Cruise(H 2/8) and told to go topside during a storm in the Atlantic for Mail bouy watch… Or on LPH 47 (Operation SteelPike) and told to to get 6 feet of flight line…. Nothing like being a boot… Semper Fi..