Son Tay Wannabe

[Dirt Farmer]

Bruce Hughs was my top.

When I went to S.O.T. school I was told a lot of the guys were Son-tae. Awe shit I wish I could remember, big guy, blonde hair, supposed to carry torch for cutting locks.
Crap would someone from the suba team help me here??

[Dirt Farmer]

Oh yeah and the big guy with blonde hair used me for an example in the hand to hand pit at S.O. T.. hahahaha I did not suck, but I did go down. hahaha

Tiny, that's what they called him!!

[mojaveman]

Knew SGMs Lupyak, Strahan, and Jakovenko. Met MAJ Meadows one time too. All Son Tay Raiders and all very impressive people.

Cool group of guys, kind of like many here today at PS.com.

Thanks brothers for the Legacy.

[tom kelly]

I know two of the soldiers on the list who are still alive, served with one of them in The 1 SFG(Abn) from 1963 to 1965. Both still live in the Fayetteville area and are members of The SFA Chap.1-18. The both of them are the kind of people you like to be with. Regard's' Tom Kelly

[SPEC4]

I was with the 6th SFG at the time , they were looking for volunteers, no further info.
It didn't matter, we wanted out of Fort Bragg and in on some action.
Spec 4 Closen was a friend of mine then, I volunteered too and was soon given a reason for not being selected, orders for Panama were coming down.
Many many legends walking around there, met more in Panama !

[B36reconman]

We just lost one of the "Blue Boy element leaders" back in April and I was/am proud to have called him my friend..He was a hell of a soldier...MAJ (R) George Petrie..RIP

[ZonieDiver]

When I was at the Weapons FTX in Feb '71, Sgt St. Clair (by then an SSG), was in charge of one of the 'lanes' - can't remember which. He regaled us with stories. It seems as if the intel was very detailed, though dated. He was wearing a 6th Group flash at the time, though said group only had a month left. (If only I'd known that about 8th... or enough balls and knowledge to call Mrs A!)

[Richard]

I was in AIT at Fort Lost-In-The-Woods when the SonTay raid took place. When I got to SFTG in Jan '71, we were all SonTay wannabes...we all wanted to go on a mission like that one!

Richard

[mark46th]

I was in AIT at Fort Ord. The raid went down on my 21st birthday...

[Badger52]

Originally Posted by WCH

Assault Element

MSG Galen C Kittleson

How timely the thread resurges just finishing a nightstand re-read of Shadows in the Jungle. Most inspiring; I recall thinking, upon learning of the raid, "there's always a chance someone would, someday, try to come get me." That was pretty good fuel.

As an aside, I can believe the need for non-theater security/selection. My Dad confided to me before he passed that - after making his way thru the CBI, flying the Hump, and getting to Tinian - that there was quite the palatable level of resentment by some experienced operational B-29 crews that they weren't selected for the atomic missions. Not an uncommon sentiment.

[levinj]

Yesterday, I too had the huge privilege of attending CPT Dan Turner's presentation on the Son Tay Raid. It is easily the most memorable class I've attended, and meeting CPT Turner has been one of the highlights of my training.

Sir, if you read this board, thank you very much for taking the time to come and speak with us. Your stories - particularly concerning SGT Buckler - were both entertaining and informative. We took notes.

[twistedsquid]

spent some time talking to my dad last night...he remembers meeting dick meadows "on some drop zone at fort gulick"...says he had just come back from british commando school and was "one of those free fall guys"..."very professional and no nonsense"..."extremely competent"...remembers hearing about his battlefield promotion and then his death....they were in the 8th together...he also remembers seargent nickerson also from the 8th...i think both were on the assault team...for the record my dad doesnt remember where the hell he was during son tay...so says my dad