10 rounds of security Ammunition...
Mid December 1992- 3/9 USMC Somalia.
The day before a major fire fight with Addid's men at a arms depot.
We get a call to go out to secure a army unit: a radio rebroadcasting unit that was shot up. They request our weapons platoon because the shots came from a tank mounted MG.
We're all: " Yay! we get to splash a tank!" So we grab kit and haul ass. We get there after night fall, and it's a coastal bushy hill top overlooking a compound about a mile away.
We immediately deploy a pair of dragons with thermal sights. ( These sights were so rudimentary that they were rated as running for hours, not days, and required bottled refridgerant) No heat from either of the tanks down in the compound, and NV shows no movement in or arround them.
The "sit-rep" we get after an hour is to -watch the compound for hostile activity and destroy the tanks if they show any life.- ( Daylight would have revealed the T54/55 Tanks were rust buckets. Decorative security measures, used as pill boxes. )
We Move the Hmmvs with Mgs up to a short rock wall overlooking the compound, and set up watches for the night. We get assigned some Army enlisted to help fill in the open areas. We end up with a Hmmv with a M60E in the turret ring pintle that is unmanned. I turn to a army PFC, and say "Hey. Take two hours on watch go man that 60. "
He stands there ... He is still in shock about getting shot at I figure, so I encourage him nicely.
His first words: " I don't know how to run a 60."
...ahhh thats right. I'm dealing with REMFs. They're not FAM trained. So I say " Fuck the 60, we just need eyes and your rifle, if shit goes down tonight."
He's still staring at me.... Then he stutters out " I don't have any ammo for it... "
I reply "The 60 has a can ready on it. You said you can't run it any way...- just get in and climb up and watch for movement."
He's still staring at me....
He finally stammers... " No. Not for my M16. We Army guys were only issued 10 rounds each of 'security' ammo. "
I look arround at the 25 army guys and gals I can see in the moonlight... and get that sick sweaty bile taste...
I ask him to clarify that statement- Turns out they landed here and were issued a full load out of rifle ammunition. Once they set in and began operations however, their XO came arround and took back all but 10 rounds.
I immediately call my Plt Sgt over. He tells our gunny and the ANGLECO warrant Officer, who immediately disappear into the head shed bunker.
You can hear them chewing ass through the armored connex box. Gunny comes out with a child's bright orange mini trash can, that has the top duct taped on. He walks out into a central area. Cuts the tape off eith his K-Bar and barks- " All of you Army personel front and center!" He then orders them to fill their hemets with the loose 5.56 ammo in that toy trash can, and distribute it into their soldiers magazines "Right fucking now!"
The next morning before dawn the battalion pulled us off the hill top, and into the noose forming arround the arms depot below.
That turned into a epic combined arms firefight. We took one wounded, droped a building roof onto 19 fortified hold outs in the main building.
Never did get to splash those two tanks. One of our LAVs laced em with 25mm at the onset of the firefight....
Okinawa
We were participating in a joint JDF/Marine Corps training operation in northern Japan. There was a barbecue where the Japanese host soldiers did a tabletop stir fry above a campfire, and then there was a pallet stacked chest high with saki in milk cartons. It was supposed to be one carton per person. Whatever. Everybody took 3. And we got toasty arround the embers of the stir fry.
About 2 Am it was 28° F outside and our stove was roaring. and everyone was dead asleep when there was shouting and yelling from officer country. A few of us went to go look. Apparently someone had cut the guy lines on the captain's GP small. We found out later that some of those persons also stayed around to piss on the tent. Remiss of me not mention that the stove was lit, an the tent caught fire....
The captain was an admin puke that had been given an infantry command so he could be promoted. He was worthless.
All 3 lieutenants from the different platoons, Had consumed their 9 cartons of saki and decided to cut down the captain's tent and piss on it.
Two of the drunk bastard's were identified immediately. We found our lieutenant laying in a ditch, face down passed out drunk when walking back from when we went to go look. We dragged him back to our tent, stuffed him in a sleeping bag, and put him in a spare rack.
It was freezing, there is nothing much to see except for the smoldering remains of that GP small, and a captain screaming at 2 drunken lieutenants. So we all went back to our tent and tried to get some shut eye.
About 5:00 a.m. our Gunny poked his head in the tent and asked if anyone had seen the lieutenant? I'm sure they were worried that he was dead out there in the forest, having frozen to the ground or drowned.
We pointed to the still sleeping drunken butter bar, and the Gunny proceeded to pour a cold canteen of water on him to get him conscious. Told him about the occurrences in the middle of the night. Stopped. Then turned 360° - looked us all in the eye- and then briefed the lieutenant on the 'Facts' of the situation: that the other 2 lieutenants had been caught, and had not implicated him as part of the attack on the captain's tent. He then informed us that we had found the LT much earlier then we had, and had safely secured him in his tent. Not ours.
We abided by this narative, and the shit hit the fan for comand.
In the end, both lieutenants lost their commission, The captain was relieved of his post, and our weapons Plt LT stayed.
He quietly threw us a BBQ back on Okinawa as a thanks for the plausible deniability. Gunny was there too, and we all asked him if he remembered the event.... He got real quiet and simply said " I dont know what you fuckers are talking about. I was asleep in my rack."
Company parade formation in cental Japan (circa 1992) Joint MC JDF training (Biwako).
Japanese are screaming and going through rifle drill... Sudenly unsheath antique 2ft long bayonetts and afix them on their rifles. Classic sound effect of metal on metal....And a roaring shout as they move into a lunging stance rifles raised.
Gunny at the back if a formation. Says out loud:
"If they yell Bonsai!!! Run like hell."
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