Gary G. Kasten

395 Days Gary G. Kasten

It is about a young Marine being sent to Vietnam and my experiences in the infantry. Assign to the 1st Battalion 9th Marines, Charlie Company 2nd Platoon. Just before I get to my new outfit, a Marine that has been in Vietnam for a while come up to us and tells us that we're going to a badass outfit.

I joined the 2nd platoon of Charlie Company with 46 men in March of 1967 and ended up with only four men left in Dec. pf 1967. During that time with the 1st Battalion 9th Marines other Marines outfits called us "the Walking Dead". From the time I was with them the N. V. A. have hit us with mortars, artillery, human wave attacks, flamethrowers, and ambushes. The only people that help us were artillery from both the Army and Marines and F-4 Phantom aircrafts.

On Dec. 16, 1967 I transferred over to a new Recon outfit being for in the 3rd Marines Division called "E" Echo Company. The last time this company was formed was back in World War II. When back to Okinawa for thirty days to be trained as Recon and then sent back to Vietnam to finish my tour. I stayed with this outfit until I rotated back home which was April 1, 1968.