After Action Reports

If you flew your name will be listed on the daily after action reports as a crew member. There are several ways to get these reports but most take quite awhile. I have two links, the first is free but takes some know how to find what your looking for.
http://www.vietnam.ttu.edu/index.htm

The next site is for Marine Corps only broken down by units which makes finding what you need very simple. It costs $30 bucks for a months access.
Best $30 bucks I ever spent.

https://www.thevietnamfiles.com/Main.cfm

Another option is, that after I got everything I neeed, I downloaded alot of the airwing files before my subscription ran out. I don't know that I have what you need but I could look.

I know you can submit a request for this info and they will send you all this info on cd's but I think it takes awhile. I needed some evidence for a VA claim and within an hour had all the documentation I needed.

Hope this helps.

Terry

Terry: Thanks so much for responding to my request. I went and signed up for thevietnamfiles today. Your right, it's a lot easier to find unit info at this sight. I'll take a look and will get back to you. My dates of duty with the squadron are dim at best but if you have time would you check your files to see if I show up as a gunner (BRADY, W. G.). Thanks again, Semper Fi. Bill Brady

No Luck

I did have HMM-165 files on a disk but unless you have the year wrong, which I doubt, I can't find anything. The only after action report listed for 1967 is December. There are a few Command Chronologies listed for the time you were there but they aren't even consistent until 1968. It would appear that huge chucks of files were lost during this period. Sorry I couldn't be of any more help.

Terry

I was not a wear that the Combat V was awarded along with the Air Medal during the VN War?

Terry: Thanks again for making a search for HMM-165 After Action Reports. Using the web site you referred me to ( https://www.thevietnamfiles.com ) and (htttp://www.star.vietnam.ttu.edu), I could not find any After Action Reports for the time I crewed as a gunner (Feb67-April67) with the White Knights. Like you, I was trying to do the research before I filed a VA claim.
Both the sites were missing the After Action Reports, but had the Command Chronology reports. I recall several of the mission reports found in these documents. It is interesting that I can find nothing at all about even being with my unit (CommCO) at MABS 36, MAG 36, HMM-165, MARS (MAG 36 and H&MS 12 at MAG 12),or even with the 1st Shore Party Battalion where we carried a PRC 25 for support of the 5th and 7th Marines and the ROC Marines and RVN troops. I quess during that time of moving around, records were lost or damaged or are filed with some other Marine outfit. I can't even find my med. records while on the HS-Santuary for xrays of my back and shoulder to rule out fractures sutained by a "hard" landing in the CH-46A, or even following an incident when I had a PRC-25 blown up on my back by a sniper bullet. I did enjoy reading the Magpie publications that I had forgotten all about. In all, I am blessed by not being a satistic. Hey, did you ever call home while in country using the MARS station. I believe that duty saved my life and provided a time for me to heal from the first tour of duty.
Thanks much for your help Terry. Semper Fi, Bill Brady

Larry: Thanks for responding. Your right about the Combat V not being issued with the Air Medal. That was my error. It was awared with my Naval Commendation Medal. Bill Brady

Bill, if you have your citations that should work for evidence of being with the unit. Better yet, if you have any orders that show your transfer to the unit. Omission of duty in RVN is common even on the DD-214. Any pic's that may show you with the unit's aircraft? Dig deep and good luck.

Ron

Gunner's School

This isn't relevant to your quest, but I am reminded again of how much things had changed by the time I signed up to fly guns in 1969. I didn't even know that something like a real Gunner's School existed or that you were sent someplace else to attend it. My gunner "training" consisted of flying out over the South China Sea with our squadron armorer on board and shooting at a wooden crate we kicked out into the ocean. Each "trainee" fired for a couple of minutes at the most. I was the last of several guys to shoot, and when it was my turn the barrel of the .50 burned out after a few rounds and the armorer called it a day. The next day I was flying combat missions. Nobody said anything to me before we launched about intercom protocols, ROEs, or really anything at all. Maybe they just thought I already knew all of this, but they all knew it was my first day on guns. I felt like I was the invisible man flying with a crew of robots. There was practically no communication among the crew.

I remember wondering if the pilots had any idea how totally and completely unprepared some of us were to defend our aircraft.

good luck on finding records G.I.

records get lost or completely removed if on a navy pg 11 form by some over zealous office pog "it's not a regulaton marine corps form " I was a natops nco ,aieral gunnery instructer,and water survival instructer instructer,among other things, with HMM-165,under COs ,COL.s Kizer ,Mcginn(promoted me to Sgt.) and Ross (the plastered b*****d) Plasterer from 75-78:D does anyone remember the Marine Corps birthday party at the magellan hotel on Cebu (OH that mojo!)and the MAU Commanders Challage ?:D

Searching For Records

Bill,
I concur with Lurch on the issue of missing records.
Born of experience while researching my own records & that
of others,I've encountered a lot of gaps & or missing items.
It would certainly appear that a great deal of HMM 165's "in country" documents were fwd'd. to the wrong destination.
While perusing info from other units,I've often seen AAR's,..
bits & pieces from monthly reports,etc. appear from sqdrns.
other than that of record.
I'll be attending 165's reunion in Sept.Will broach the matter
with the membership at that time.