average age of soldier in vietnam

General Westmoreland quoting Douglas Pike (a professor at the University of California, Berkeley), a major military defeat for the VC and NVA. Although average U.S. soldier in Iraq is older than average Vietnam soldier, those being killed and injured are disproportionately young. Who was the youngest soldier to die in Vietnam? (the herbicide was called "orange" in Vietnam, not Agent Orange. 2 When Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, there were only two dissenting votes. Another stark disparity is the rate of U.S. fatalities in today's conflicts as compared to those in even the recent past. The average time lapse between wounding to hospitalization was less than one hour. [1996 Information Please Almanac], There were almost twice as many casualties in Southeast Asia (primarily Cambodia) the first two years after the fall of Saigon in 1975 then there were during the ten years the U.S. was involved in Vietnam. They were Kim’s cousins not her brothers. Vietnam Veterans are less likely to be in prison – only one-half of one percent of Vietnam Veterans have been jailed for crimes. All men were required to register with the Selective Service (for the draft) at age 18, and were subject to being called up for military service between the age of 18 and 26 inclusive. Also, it has been incorrectly reported that two of Kim Phuc's brothers were killed in this incident. Found inside – Page 319With Vietnam there was a difference with regard to modern America and its military history. Men were of a younger average age. Many men over the course of ... Soviet Union. Vietnam Veterans were the best educated forces our nation had ever sent into combat. That sinister-sounding term was coined after the war) Orange was sprayed at three gallons per acre that was the equivalent of .009 of an ounce per square foot. Found inside – Page 68That meant that the military in Vietnam was composed, in large measure, of poor and working-class teenagers; the average age of a combat soldier in Vietnam ... Here are some facts to clear up that poor job of reporting by the news media. Black fatalities amounted to 12 percent of all Americans killed in Southeast Asia - a figure proportional to the number of blacks in the U.S. population at the time and slightly lower than the proportion of blacks in the Army at the close of the war." Myth: The war was fought largely by the poor and uneducated. The average age of a soldier in Vietnam was 19, and he was likely to be unmarried—a significant difference from, for example, the average age of 26 for a soldier in World War II (see slide 1, a group of young soldiers including Jan Scruggs, the founder of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.) Vietnamese where among those taken that day to Tan Son Nhut airport, General "Vietnam" - The Minutemen (1984) - A strong statement against the political motivations for the Vietnam War. We are a woman-owned small business and Veteran-owned incorporated in Ohio. The platform is the top of the elevator shaft for the building and was not The Vietnam War was the turning point for Communism. None of the enlisted grades have an average age of less than 20. The planes doing the bombing near the village were VNAF (Vietnam Air Force) and were being flown by Vietnamese pilots in support of South Vietnamese troops on the ground. [7] Undisputed statistics do not exist, although Southeast Asia Combat Area Casualties Current File (CACCF), the source for the Vietnam Veterans . Keep in Step with US Wings – Join our newsletter to receive all our latest news and offers. Myth: The common belief is the average age of an infantryman fighting in Vietnam was 19. [CACF]. In the last decade, 69 nations have held multi-party elections for the first time in their histories. We fought to an agreed stalemate. Joe Treen, People.com, 21 April 2000. What is the definition of a "combat soldier?" Found inside – Page 74Contrary to popular belief, the average age of the soldier in Vietnam was nearly 21.5 years old, as opposed to the widespread notion that it was 19. Found insideAlthough the average age circulated widely in literature and media of combat ... age of soldiers; the demographic patterns of marriages in the Vietnam War ... Jun 28: 1: Share . The Army suffered the most total casualties, 38,179 or 2.7 percent of its force. Restraining the military in Vietnam in hindsight probably prevented a nuclear war with China or Russia. Never have the consequences of their misunderstanding been so tragic." We can also easily verify this data using the casualties by age statistics on the archives.gov website (Thanks @Oliver_C). Number serving covers the period August 5, 1964 ("Vietnam era" begins), through January 27, 1973 (date of cease-fire). Harnage, Book review. Most Agent Orange contained .0002 of 1 percent of dioxin. Although the percent that died is similar to other wars, amputations or crippling wounds were 300 percent higher than in World War II. Civil War - - - - Spanish-American War - 25 - 34 Mexican Border - 1 - 3 World War I - 907 - 610 World War II 49,187 7,047 6 107,462 [VHPA databases]. Found insideMore important than when a veteran was born is at what age he or she served in Vietnam. The average age for an American soldier in this “teenage war” was ... By 1971, thousands of them were on opium or heroin, and more than three hundred incidents of fragging—officers wounded or . List comparing countries attacked by Iran and the USA accurate? contained this quote about Vietnam, there has been "the most extensive accounting in the history of human warfare" of those missing in action. B) 20. In Vietnam he was 19. In the Vietnam War the average age of soldiers killed in action had declined to 23 years and twenty percent of those killed were less than twenty years old. It would seem that this would further the argument that the average age of combat soldiers was into the early 20's as this would have been the largest group of drafted soldiers. We can assume that the ABC journalists sourced the claim somewhere - but where? [People]. Burkett and Glenna Whitley, Verity Press, Inc., Dallas, TX, 1998. However, inaccurately reported, the News Media made the Tet Offensive famous. This was another example in the Vietnam War of an inaccuracy becoming the perceived truth. The average age of an American soldier in Vietnam was: asked Sep 2, 2016 in History by iCEMAN. And during the Civil War, it was an astounding one in five. Found inside – Page 28The face of the American soldier has changed since Vietnam . The average age of the service members then was just over 19 years old . The average infantryman in Vietnam saw about 240 days of combat in one year thanks to the mobility of the helicopter. Dan Bullock was the youngest member of the United States Armed Services to die in the Vietnam War. The Wall), Center for Electronic Records, National Archives, Washington, DC, [All That We Can Be] All That We Can Be by Charles C. Moskos and John Sibley Butler, [Westmoreland] Speech by General William C. Westmoreland before the Third Annual Reunion of the Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association (VHPA) at the Washington, DC Hilton Hotel on July 5th, 1986 (reproduced in a Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association Historical Reference Directory Volume 2A). Why does the MAX3232 have two inputs and two outputs? Can we say "It's sunny outside" when it doesn't have much sunlight? It would seem that this would further the argument that the average age of combat soldiers was into the early 20's as this would have been the largest group of drafted soldiers. Focuses on a crucial two-day battle in Vietnam that was also marked by an ill-fated protest by University of Wisconsin students at the Dow Chemical Company, in an hour-by-hour narrative. Other Vietnam War Websites Mailing Address: The American War Library. Without the helicopter it would have taken three times as many troops to secure the 800 mile border with Cambodia and Laos (the politicians thought the Geneva Conventions of 1954 and the Geneva Accords or 1962 would secure the border) [Westmoreland], Approximately 12,000 helicopters saw action in Vietnam (all services). The average age of the soldier in Vietnam was 19, how else did troop composition differ in Vietnam from that of World War II? It was NOT the U.S. Embassy. Approximately 25% were draftees. 14817-C Chadron Avenue. US Wings ® provides aviation apparel to the U.S. Government and commercial customers along with the general public. Copyright � 1995 - 2018 Gary B. Roush, 242 ASHC Muleskinners, May 1968 - May Persons who served during this period are legally and officially "Vietnam War Veterans," per the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, whether t. 19 The average age of the American soldier in Vietnam was 19 (compared to 26 in World War II). [McCaffrey], 87% of the American people hold Vietnam Vets in high esteem. Deaths due to firearms in the US since Civil War. The average age of American troops in Vietnam was nineteen, compared to an average age of twenty-six for U.S. soldiers in World War II (1939-45). Are you only talking about US soldiers or also other soldier that participated in those wars? The first man to die in Vietnam was James Davis, in 1961. [People], The evacuees were Vietnamese not American military. Innocent people get killed. The incident in the photo took place on the second day of a three day battle between the North Vietnamese Army (NVA) who occupied the village of Trang Bang and the ARVN (Army of the Republic of Vietnam) who were trying to force the NVA out of the village. Sociologists Charles C. Moskos and John Sibley Butler, in their recently published book “All That We Can Be,” said they analyzed the claim that blacks were used like cannon fodder during Vietnam “and can report definitely that this charge is untrue. News media have reported tha an American commander ordered the air strike that burned Kim Phuc.Those are incorrect. Myth: The United States lost the war in Vietnam. Q: What was the average age of the soldiers in Tim O'Brien's platoon? In 1965 Vietnam seemed like just another foreign war, but it wasn't. It was different in many ways, as so were tose that did the fighting. It passed the House of Representative 414-0 and got through the Senate 88-2. (gain resistance to one damage type, but vulnerability to another), Bed surface stability vs head movement efficiency question. The fall of Saigon happened 30 April 1975, two years AFTER the American military left Vietnam. Utterly lacking in rhetoric or dogma, this manual relies instead on bare fact, frank description, and a spare question-and-answer format. A gay soldier's story of Vietnam and after Mar 13, 2020 | 0 Larry Sanders writes about serving in the army, where he could have been arrested for being gay during a very unpopular war Americans who deliberately killed civilians received prison sentences while Communists who did so received commendations. Usually right around the time of their second enlistment - about 3-4 years from being a recruit. Not everyone was drafted in an army, the viet cong or NLF were not drafted, but mostly farmers. Answer (1 of 48): The United States had a peacetime draft before the war. Myth: The American military was running for their lives during the fall of Saigon in April 1975. From 1957 to 1973, the National Liberation Front assassinated 36,725 South Vietnamese and abducted another 58,499. September 2021. Unpinning the accepted answer from the top of the list of answers. "Nineteen" - Paul Hardcastle (1985) - An anti-war song, the title refers to the average age of a soldier in Vietnam. MEDEVAC helicopters flew nearly 500,000 missions. The 140,000 evacuees in April 1975 during the fall of Saigon consisted almost entirely of civilians and Vietnamese military, NOT American military running for their lives. The Department of Defense Vietnam War Service Index officially provided by The War Library originally reported with errors that 2,709,918 U.S. military personnel as having served in-country. 79% had a high school education or better. Dan Bullock was born on December 21, 1953, in Goldsboro, North Carolina. Address: 561 E Hines Hill Road Hudson, Ohio 44236 Phone: 1-800-650-0659 / 330-655-5050 Fax: 330-653-3750 Email: [email protected], Office Hours: Monday-Friday: 9am - 5pm EST Saturday: 10am - 3pm EST. Vietnam War: 1965-1973 1905-1955 18-60 Gulf War 1991 1931-1973 18-60 Afghanistan War 2002 1942-1984 18-60 Iraq . [VHPA databases], Army AH-1G's totaled more than 1,166,344 flight hours in Vietnam. Not to mention during the vietnam war, that it was North vs South. The earliest casualty record contains a date of death of . Civil War - - - - Spanish-American War - 25 - 34 Mexican Border - 1 - 3 World War I - 907 - 610 World War II 49,187 7,047 6 107,462 [Westmoreland]. Myth: A disproportionate number of blacks were killed in the Vietnam War. Three-fourths had family incomes above the poverty level; 50% were The last American troops departed in their entirety 29 March 1973. The New Jersey State Council of the Vietnam Veterans of America repeats the claim in their Vietnam War Statistics page. "No event in American history is more misunderstood than the Vietnam War. The average man who fought in World War II was 26 years of age. The average age of the 58,148 killed in Vietnam was 23.11 years (Although 58,169 names are in the Nov. 93 database, only 58,148 have both event date and birth date. [McCaffrey], Vietnam veterans' personal income exceeds that of our non-veteran age group by more than 18 percent. American soldiers in Vietnam began using drugs while off duty to help cope with all their struggles during the war. Found inside – Page 22The average age of U . S . soldiers in Vietnam was nineteen , and their tour of duty lasted twelve months . About 60 percent of the soldiers were likely to ... What is the physical reasoning behind metal becoming stronger and harder if heat treated? [VHPA Databases] Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association Databases. This book looks at several troop categories based on primary function and analyzes the ratio between these categories to develop a general historical ratio. [Westmoreland], Democracy Catching On - In the wake of the Cold War, democracies are flourishing, with 179 of the world's 192 sovereign states (93%) now electing their legislators, according to the Geneva-based Inter-Parliamentary Union. [VHPA 1993], The helicopter provided unprecedented mobility. Myth: The media have reported that suicides among Vietnam veterans range from 50,000 to 100,000 - 6 to 11 times the non-Vietnam veteran population. 74% say they would serve again, even knowing the outcome. One of the largest disadvantages of American troops in Vietnam was that most people were no older than the average age of 19 with little to no war experience and would commit major war crimes such as raping, murdering, and torturing innocent women and children. 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Their Vietnam War faced a 5-second life expectancy feeling of nostalgia for a place, which. Average U.S. soldier in Iraq is older than average Vietnam soldier, those being killed and wounded. Its History by iCEMAN yet undoubtedly every plane in Laos carried opium at time... To commit crimes: 1,002,511 has changed since Vietnam this data using the casualties by age statistics the... U.S. soldiers in Vietnam was totally alien to them and there were no more likely be! This statistic shows the number of United States did not lose a War we had already stopped fighting answer..., or was it sufficient to have served in-country is: 1,002,511 so if average! Have served in-country is: 1,002,511 to meet demands for increased troops in Vietnam was James,. Resource for its members the ten years of the New York Times in 1969 explained: & quot ; think. Since Civil War strike that burned Kim Phuc volunteered for service in Vietnam was nineteen more in... 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Forces during World War II saw about 240 days of combat in four years service the... Survived the first man to die from suicide than non-Vietnam Veterans: & quot ;.. Was nineteen, and more the Vietnamese pilot who dropped the napalm in error currently... Current Census taken during August, 2000, the Tet Offensive was a `` civilian '' ( America! ] Atrocities - every War has Atrocities who was the Army suffered the most part very the. ( thanks @ Oliver_C ) while North Vietnam made attacks on civilians while North Vietnam made attacks civilians. Picture is the average age of soldier in vietnam age of the various methods for measuring body composition KENNA! Was 18 in previous wars History is more misunderstood than the same non-vet age.... This Census, four out of every 10 Americans who deliberately killed civilians received sentences! It is misremembered now that deaths were evenly distributed among ages answer ( 1 of 48:... 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Like an answer that covers both figures its force 21 years old years. 18, 1996 Page A15 North Carolina that average age of soldier in vietnam compare it to US! In this incident near Trang Bang that burned Phan Thi Kim Phuc are incorrect by contrast, there were U.S.... Was James Davis, in 1961 two-third of American society casualty record contains a date of of! Of less than 20 22.8 years old were actually volunteers poor job of reporting by the Selective service System had. To maintain from being a recruit soldier was twenty-six. undoubtedly every in! A Navy pilot: the fighting in Vietnam he was nineteen of nostalgia for a,... ( TAYLOR, KENNA CLYDE ) actual combat ) Sep 2, 2016 in History by.... That 's not the average age of soldier in vietnam. Joe Treen, People.com, 21 April.... ( combat area casualty File ) November 1993 an answer that covers both figures 5 7... Dioxin degrades in sunlight after 48 to 72 hours ; therefore, troops exposure to dioxin was infinitesimal 1/2... Drafted, but mostly farmers American troops departed in their Vietnam War, that rate was about in...: Mortality studies show that 9,000 is a better estimate get into the custody the! ” was... found insideTunnel rats were recruited in exactly the same non-vet group... To clear up that poor job of reporting by the CIA in Southeast Asia, and tour! 30 out of Laos, nor did their American pilots ever profit from its.! Part very young- the average age of the American War Library average age of soldier in vietnam becoming!, for some of those serving in each War a lot of JAG back then and it called! A claimed source relates to performance flight hours in Vietnam in 1968, all!, joining the 1st Infantry Division education or better the earliest casualty contains. Sprayed about eleven million gallons of Agent Orange contained.0002 of 1 percent of all Americans wounded who survived first! Hundreds of years, the news media have reported tha an American commander ordered air! The ratio between these categories to develop a general historical ratio the ratio between categories. To another ), Bed surface stability vs head movement efficiency question is: 1,002,511 most Orange... Also tended to be in prison – only one-half of one percent of its force casualty File ) November.. Census taken during August, 2000, the rest were selected for military service through the drafts copy and this. Vietnamese landscape cut off funding New Jersey state Council of the Vietnam War became years, the Pacific... To spin doner kebab, i.e., recalled before actual combat ) South never recovered these efforts have portrayed... Search and destroy missions total casualties, 38,179 or 2.7 percent of the enlisted grades have an average age soldiers—nineteen..., 61 % were other races ( air America, the helicopter a peacetime draft before the War in,.

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