1st Battalion 22nd Infantry Khun's Story Page 9

1st Battalion 22nd Infantry

TUY HOA

Nov 1971

Since we were the last infantry unit operating in MR II (military region 2) we were being sent all over the region.
We went on missions to several different bases, usually the larger and safer airbases more so than the smaller firebases.
I do remember Dong Ba Thin, but I am sure there were others as well. I lost count of how many helicopter flights I had been on.
I liked traveling around and seeing different parts of the country. I think I saw most of MR II during my tour. Most of the time
though we were back to the old routine of guard duty and ambush patrol, working nights with the days off. Bender, Jarvie, and I
did as much as we could think of during the day to pass the time. We would play cards or chess or go to the PX or to the EM club
and drink beer. They even had a handball court where Jarvie and I played often. The base seemed to have quieted down since we
were there one month ago. I spent a lot of time in my bunk, reading and sleeping. Sleeping seemed to make the time pass the quickest.
Sometimes we would wander around the base flight area looking at the different choppers.

The pilot let me sit in his COBRA as long as I didn’t touch any buttons!

Back end of the Cobra - note the rocket pods and American flag painted on the tail

When my squad was picked for ambush patrol, we would load up on a deuce and a half and go off base.
It usually was a nice break from the monotonous boredom of guard duty. The truck driver always seemed
to be in a hurry and always seemed to drive recklessly. He would speed through the village on a narrow road
that was barely wide enough for the big truck. Then he would drop us off at the edge of a rice paddy somewhere.
The trip on the back of that truck was an adventure in itself. Sometimes the guys would yell at him to slow down.
He shook his head and yelled back “The faster the safer!” Just like the truck drivers on the convoys,
I guess they figured that a faster moving target was harder to hit.
Maybe that is the way they were trained to drive.

ME GETTING READY TO GO OUT ON AMBUSH

It was right around this time that the platoon Sergeant notified me that I was scheduled to appear before a promotion board.
He said that I should have no problem at all getting the promotion to Sergeant. All I had to do
was make a good appearance. He told me to get a haircut and make sure that I had on a clean uniform and that I was shaved.
They were offering to make me a Sergeant after only 16 months in the Army.
I respectfully declined the offer.

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