Tunnel rat guns

[cpt-t]

I never knew of a Tunnel Rat School. And I don`t remember the 1st Inf Div, 25th Inf Div, or the 1st Cav Div, ever having a training program for Tunnel Rats. For Me and my Guys it was just really ((( OJT ))). I have been asked many times what combat was really like. And My answer most of the time is to just watch the movie Forrest Gump. The very short part where 1LT Dan and Bubba are so severely wounded. Combat is so horrible that there are no adjectives to, describe it or just put it into words very well. You lose your fine motor skills, and like changing the push on a Prick 25 or Prick 10 is extremely hard to do if not impossible. You can develop Tunnel Vision, and your voice on the radio is very fast and is very hard for the Red Legs ((( ARTY ))), Gun Ships, Medevac Birds to understand you, and you sound like that of a scared little girl. I always lost any feeling of pain and I became very angry like in a Rage to get even. Afterwards when it was all over and the WIA`s & KIA`s were all medevaced out, total exhaustion would generally hit me. And I would find myself crying. And all I wanted to do was just lay down and sleep. I am sorry if I have offended anyone, but sometimes I feel the need to just tell someone about it and the words just come out.
ken

 

[Heliman]

I never knew of a Tunnel Rat School. And I don`t remember the 1st Inf Div, 25th Inf Div, or the 1st Cav Div, ever having a training program for Tunnel Rats. For Me and my Guys it was just really ((( OJT ))). I have been asked many times what combat was really like. And My answer most of the time is to just watch the movie Forrest Gump. The very short part where 1LT Dan and Bubba are so severely wounded. Combat is so horrible that there are no adjectives to, describe it or just put it into words very well. You lose your fine motor skills, and like changing the push on a Prick 25 or Prick 10 is extremely hard to do if not impossible. You can develop Tunnel Vision, and your voice on the radio is very fast and is very hard for the Red Legs ((( ARTY ))), Gun Ships, Medevac Birds to understand you, and you sound like that of a scared little girl. I always lost any feeling of pain and I became very angry like in a Rage to get even. Afterwards when it was all over and the WIA`s & KIA`s were all medevaced out, total exhaustion would generally hit me. And I would find myself crying. And all I wanted to do was just lay down and sleep. I am sorry if I have offended anyone, but sometimes I feel the need to just tell someone about it and the words just come out.
ken

Thank you for telling it like it is and your sacrifice. Nothing more to say. Thank you.

Dave

 

[wwb]

cpt-t has it right. I was in the Big Red One in '69-'70.... no "tunnel rat school" as far as I know. That job always fell to the smallest guy in the squad.

We always tossed in a couple concussion grenades before anybody went in.