Vietnam and grenades - a myth?
Moderators: DuncaninFrance, Niner Delta
Vietnam and grenades - a myth?
Can any veteran out there please clear up story I heard regarding the war in Vietnam?
I seem to recall reading somewhere that, in the early stages of the war, there were a fairly large number of soldiers wounded with grenade fragments in the back while clearing houses etc..
The story goes on that in clearing buildings, a man would be trained (at home) to throw a grenade into the building then to flatten himself against the outside wall, to avoid any blast effect, this failed in the field as the bomber would be caught by grenade fragments coming through the 'less than blast proof' walls.
Does anyone out there know if there is any truth in this, or have Ii fallen for an urban myth?
Thanks
Tom
I seem to recall reading somewhere that, in the early stages of the war, there were a fairly large number of soldiers wounded with grenade fragments in the back while clearing houses etc..
The story goes on that in clearing buildings, a man would be trained (at home) to throw a grenade into the building then to flatten himself against the outside wall, to avoid any blast effect, this failed in the field as the bomber would be caught by grenade fragments coming through the 'less than blast proof' walls.
Does anyone out there know if there is any truth in this, or have Ii fallen for an urban myth?
Thanks
Tom
The Truth IS Out There, The lies are in your head. (T. Pratchett - 'Hogfather'))
Wonder where that story came from?
Sounds like a myth to me. I did however know a guy in Vietnam who got a few small pieces of granade in his butt once. One guy threw a granade into a bunker after yelling the usual "fire in the hole!". The guy that was hit, instead of really getting out of the way just turned his back and bent over.
It didn't hurt him in any serious way but it got him dusted off and about 24 hours in a hosptal with round eyed nurses, hot showers and flushing toilets.
It didn't hurt him in any serious way but it got him dusted off and about 24 hours in a hosptal with round eyed nurses, hot showers and flushing toilets.
Myth
I'd vote for the myth. At the same time that war went on for so long with so many guys serving there that I have no doubt it happened at some point. Just not a regular occurance. Keep in mind also that many of us grunts were not the sharpest knives in the drawer!
wh12725
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FRAGS
My Reserve unit got a letter from a troop that went active-duty Army from us to the 7th IN Div. Panama during OP "Just Cause" The following is just stupid....Fighting in panama City ,all the poor houses have very thin walls ..Tropics I quess. Watched a fellow Squad member throw one , Then take cover along the wall waiting...Yep blew right through and filled his back up I can hear the Squad Leader's yelling about taking the prone or something I bet Also so he mentioned a case of M2 .50cal "plunging fire from the 82nd lines into 7th ID lines Over a building
Hey it takes abit go come up to speed, even for the guys on ful-time paychecks.
Hey it takes abit go come up to speed, even for the guys on ful-time paychecks.
This was the type of tale I had heard about."...Watched a fellow Squad member throw one , Then take cover along the wall waiting...Yep blew right through and filled his back up..."
The basic idea was that, at the time (and remember this story is early in the campaign), grenade training was generally geared to a European scenario (Eastern Bloc moving West) - and therefore more solid buildings - rather than for South East Asia.
Still, It looks like I was sold a pup over this one.
Thanks and Regards
Tom
The Truth IS Out There, The lies are in your head. (T. Pratchett - 'Hogfather'))
I saw a video clip on History Channel during a show about some diamonds that were buried in a fox hole by a US GI.
2 GI's in France doing what you are talking about, they tossed the frag through the door then stood flat against the wall on either side of the door. It was a masonary building but when it went off they looked like they were trying to climb up the wall backwards to get away.
I wondered if it was set up for the behest of the cameraman and if they ever did it again.
The look on the face of the one closest to the camera told the story.
2 GI's in France doing what you are talking about, they tossed the frag through the door then stood flat against the wall on either side of the door. It was a masonary building but when it went off they looked like they were trying to climb up the wall backwards to get away.
I wondered if it was set up for the behest of the cameraman and if they ever did it again.
The look on the face of the one closest to the camera told the story.
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Being on top of a Mt overlooking VC Valley, we tossed a lot of those frags down on any noise we heard. We pop the spoon, wait a moment or two... and toss the sucker! The air burst was more effective than if it landed on the ground.
We had cases and cases of frags, claymors, pop and trip flairs, ammo and smoke. After dark our AO was a free fire zone (FTA Sen. Kerry)! We expended a lot of 'stuff' on our hill to keep Charlie off ballance, because our OP observed the Ho Chi Min trail, six clicks east of Cambodia, and 14 clicks south-west of Pleaku.
We were four GI artillery surveyors assigned to a seperate four hr. watch at night. At one time we had a 2nd LT, but he came down with malaria. I'll tell ya, it got pretty lonely on watch from 9PM - five in the morning, allthough we monitered two radio nets... one to FDC in S3 at Camp Enari, and the other connected us with the 5th. SF and their fortified villes.
One dark night at around two in the morn, the stars were so brilient they were amaizing. I felt so at piece that night, I knew everything was going to be fine. Nothing could hurt me that night, and there was not any action on my watch.
The next night it was back to normal... Spooky... 122mm rockets, fire in the sky. Limination rounds, HE, twin 50's skraffing our hillside. All 12 of the Yards were up that night, fireing their M-1 carbines they got from the 5th. SF's. We had two M-60, four M-16's plus a M-79 grenade launcher. We also had two surveyed in DT's for a crissis, and that got us 155mm and/or 8in guns zeroed in on our flanks.
We could rain a lot of 'stuff' down on the NVA, and that's the only thing that kept us alive. We all knew it, but they still probed us every once in a while.
Thanx Dante'
We had cases and cases of frags, claymors, pop and trip flairs, ammo and smoke. After dark our AO was a free fire zone (FTA Sen. Kerry)! We expended a lot of 'stuff' on our hill to keep Charlie off ballance, because our OP observed the Ho Chi Min trail, six clicks east of Cambodia, and 14 clicks south-west of Pleaku.
We were four GI artillery surveyors assigned to a seperate four hr. watch at night. At one time we had a 2nd LT, but he came down with malaria. I'll tell ya, it got pretty lonely on watch from 9PM - five in the morning, allthough we monitered two radio nets... one to FDC in S3 at Camp Enari, and the other connected us with the 5th. SF and their fortified villes.
One dark night at around two in the morn, the stars were so brilient they were amaizing. I felt so at piece that night, I knew everything was going to be fine. Nothing could hurt me that night, and there was not any action on my watch.
The next night it was back to normal... Spooky... 122mm rockets, fire in the sky. Limination rounds, HE, twin 50's skraffing our hillside. All 12 of the Yards were up that night, fireing their M-1 carbines they got from the 5th. SF's. We had two M-60, four M-16's plus a M-79 grenade launcher. We also had two surveyed in DT's for a crissis, and that got us 155mm and/or 8in guns zeroed in on our flanks.
We could rain a lot of 'stuff' down on the NVA, and that's the only thing that kept us alive. We all knew it, but they still probed us every once in a while.
Thanx Dante'
"We do not stop laughing because we grow old;
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We grow old because we stop laughing!"
Objects in mirror are closer than they appear: DRIVE FASTER!!!
I found the mirror at a wrecked race car at California (AAA) Speedway
A lot of the problem was due to poor training or NO training. Yours truly missed the grenade training in BCT due to KP, when I arrived in RVN
as a Tet replacement, I was a 12B (Combat Engineer) who ending up
fighting as an 11B (Light Weapons Infantryman). The first time I threw a
grenade was in combat, likewise the first time I ever put my hands on an
M-60 was a half hour before I took it into combat.
as a Tet replacement, I was a 12B (Combat Engineer) who ending up
fighting as an 11B (Light Weapons Infantryman). The first time I threw a
grenade was in combat, likewise the first time I ever put my hands on an
M-60 was a half hour before I took it into combat.
Dante
Were you on KP during grenade school too?
The fuse time on a granade wasn't an exact science. I don't think many would have done what you discribe, Dante. The correct way was to pull the pin.. and not with your teeth, like the movies... then toss the granade and let the handle fly off with the granade in the air. Right guys?Being on top of a Mt overlooking VC Valley, we tossed a lot of those frags down on any noise we heard. We pop the spoon, wait a moment or two... and toss the sucker! The air burst was more effective than if it landed on the ground.
Last edited by Niner on Tue Oct 04, 2005 10:30 am, edited 1 time in total.