- Thread starter
- #61
Thank you for your service, Greg!!
Glad you found this thread!!
Please post up some pics of your TLC.
Glad you found this thread!!
Please post up some pics of your TLC.
Welcome to Veterans' Highway! (10 Viewers)
- Thread starter Solace in Solitude
- Start date
This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.
That's an interesting story, thanks for sharing, and thanks for your service to our country!!
Skip
Guess Ill jump in and add my story to this group....
Joined the AF in 1997 just after high school. Started off doing working on hydraulics on AC-130U Gunships down in Florida from 1998-2006. Spent a lot of time in lots of sandy places paying back 9-11 one round at a time. Left for Germany in 2006-2009 with trash hauling 130E's that have since made it to the great airplane graveyard in Tucson AZ. After Germany I was finally approved to be a Flight Engineer. My grandfather was an assistant Flight Engineer as well as nose gunner on B-24s in 1943-44 (started in North Africa and then made it to Italy and then into France with the 513th Heavy Bombardment Sq. One of the first units to bomb the Ploesti Oil Fields in Romania. If you dont know that story it was a hellish set of raids) so I thought the lineage would be cool. Went through all the schools and finally after 2 years became an FE on HH-60Gs out here in Vegas. Spent some more time in sandy places doing combat search and rescue as well as medical and casualty evacuation. Has by far been the most rewarding and demanding job that I have ever done but I would never do anything else. All in all, I have had a great 18 years and the AF has treated me pretty well and I have been pretty much all over the world and done lots of rewarding things. The best part is I get paid to fly and blow sh*t up! Then make sure unlucky guys make it back home to their families when they find themselves in a bad way.
The Toyota obsession started back in 2004 with a Tacoma. Great little truck but was only an extended cab and when my son was born realied I needed a bigger truck. Screwed up and bought a Chevy and hated that POS. Got back into a Toyota in 2007 but a 4Runner this time. Keep it until it got totaled on one of the highways here in Vegas. Guy lost a big steel I beam in the road and I had no where to go but take it about 50 mph down the passenger side and trashed the undercarriage. It was a great rig but moved into an 11 Tacoma. Absolutely loved that rig but my son outgrew the rear seat so I upgraded back in December to a 14 Tundra. I really like it but after all of my last Toyotas having plush suspensions that I could take on trails the Tundra is not leading the pack in favorites but it has potential. Tundra upgrades have taken a backseat to retoring a 73 FST FJ40 that I picked up on an even trade for a Jeep Wrangler back in 2011. I have finally gotten it back in a full roller and ust needs a couple of more things and it will be ready for body work and paint.
Here are couple of pics of the 40 and Tundra. Ill see if I can find some of the 4Runner. First is the 40 prior to teardown, second is current as of today and one of the Taco prior to the Demello bumper. Finally, my work truck.
Joined the AF in 1997 just after high school. Started off doing working on hydraulics on AC-130U Gunships down in Florida from 1998-2006. Spent a lot of time in lots of sandy places paying back 9-11 one round at a time. Left for Germany in 2006-2009 with trash hauling 130E's that have since made it to the great airplane graveyard in Tucson AZ. After Germany I was finally approved to be a Flight Engineer. My grandfather was an assistant Flight Engineer as well as nose gunner on B-24s in 1943-44 (started in North Africa and then made it to Italy and then into France with the 513th Heavy Bombardment Sq. One of the first units to bomb the Ploesti Oil Fields in Romania. If you dont know that story it was a hellish set of raids) so I thought the lineage would be cool. Went through all the schools and finally after 2 years became an FE on HH-60Gs out here in Vegas. Spent some more time in sandy places doing combat search and rescue as well as medical and casualty evacuation. Has by far been the most rewarding and demanding job that I have ever done but I would never do anything else. All in all, I have had a great 18 years and the AF has treated me pretty well and I have been pretty much all over the world and done lots of rewarding things. The best part is I get paid to fly and blow sh*t up! Then make sure unlucky guys make it back home to their families when they find themselves in a bad way.
The Toyota obsession started back in 2004 with a Tacoma. Great little truck but was only an extended cab and when my son was born realied I needed a bigger truck. Screwed up and bought a Chevy and hated that POS. Got back into a Toyota in 2007 but a 4Runner this time. Keep it until it got totaled on one of the highways here in Vegas. Guy lost a big steel I beam in the road and I had no where to go but take it about 50 mph down the passenger side and trashed the undercarriage. It was a great rig but moved into an 11 Tacoma. Absolutely loved that rig but my son outgrew the rear seat so I upgraded back in December to a 14 Tundra. I really like it but after all of my last Toyotas having plush suspensions that I could take on trails the Tundra is not leading the pack in favorites but it has potential. Tundra upgrades have taken a backseat to retoring a 73 FST FJ40 that I picked up on an even trade for a Jeep Wrangler back in 2011. I have finally gotten it back in a full roller and ust needs a couple of more things and it will be ready for body work and paint.
Here are couple of pics of the 40 and Tundra. Ill see if I can find some of the 4Runner. First is the 40 prior to teardown, second is current as of today and one of the Taco prior to the Demello bumper. Finally, my work truck.
Chungas Revenge
SILVER Star
Welcome aboard...!!
Spooky II's are an incredible platform. More than one operator owes another day on God's green earth to that birds ability to "loiter" . Just the other day I was just shooting the breeze with a "Spectre" crew member, same family!! Great story about your Grandfather as well....Thanks for you service and it looks like you have a great project going too...Keep checking back on this thread. We are taxiing and hope to be wheels up soon....!
Last edited:
- Thread starter
- #65
Great story and pictures Zach - thank you for your service!!
My father-in-law was an 18B in 7th SFG when it was at Bragg. When he found out what I did he told me of a couple of stories, that had one not been overhead his op may have had a different ending and my wife wouldn't be here today.
I haven't done anything more than you did Danny. You paved the way for me to be doing what I love so I should be the one thanking you.
Chungas Revenge
SILVER Star
Sounds like you married into a pretty good family...
After 10 years I am too scared to leave!!! She can shoot like he can. He is great she is really good, I watched her walk a golf ball around at the range one day. He taught her a lot and she is a perfectionist so I am too scared to run away.....All kidding aside, I lucked out thats for sure.
Last name ?
Newsome. Discharged in 80 or 81 if I remember correctly. Wife was born in 83 and he was out then.
Just before my time at Bragg.
Would have stayed longer but his parents and sister were killed in a plane crash so he did a humanitarian discharge. He was an A team sniper prior to discharged
Chungas Revenge
SILVER Star
Thanks for breaking squelch on this net..!
There is a MUD member (DJBHM) over on the "40 forum" who is doing some "missionary" type work In Bolivia. His thread is "Just bought an 1974 FJ40 in Bolivia" . Don't know if he was ever in the military but, he is a pilot and from what I can gather, is a 1st timer in to that AOR.... Don't know if you still have/maintain any contacts in that neck of the woods, but if so, sounds like he could use some advice/direction and a good mechanic
... Thanks for you service......!!!
Chungas Revenge
SILVER Star
The following link contains a "By State" listing of Veterans benefits provided by each respective state:
http://veteranprograms.com/id136.html
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virgina
Wisconsin
Wyoming
http://veteranprograms.com/id136.html
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virgina
Wisconsin
Wyoming
Chungas Revenge
SILVER Star
It is interesting to remember that for "American Veterans" our lineage, from the not so distant past, had two fathers...
For those of you who live below the Mason-Dixon line, this type of Military History can and often does still spark late night conversations, frequently rousing "spirited" debate and heated discussion(s)....For those from all other points of the compass, it probably is nothing more than a forgotten post script in an 9th Grade American History class. But regardless, I just figured this would be a good place to interject, on occasion, a little reminder of our past...Often, when a nation forgets the past, it is the soldier/sailor/airmen/marine who does the "remembering" all over again........
"1864 – Close-range firing and hand-to-hand combat at Spotsylvania Court House, Virginia, result in one of the most brutal battles of the Civil War. After the Battle of the Wilderness (May 5-6), Generals Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee raced respective Union and Confederate forces southward. Grant aimed his army a dozen miles southeast of the Wilderness, toward the critical crossroads of Spotsylvania Court House. Sensing Grant’s plan, Lee sent part of his army on a furious night march to secure the road junction before the Union soldiers got there. The Confederates soon constructed a five-mile long system of entrenchments in the shape of an inverted U. On May 10, Grant began to attack Lee’s position at Spotsylvania. After achieving a temporary breakthrough at the Rebel center, Grant was convinced that a weakness existed there, as the bend of the Confederate line dispersed their fire. At dawn on May 12, Union General Winfield Scott Hancock’s troops emerged from the fog and overran the Rebel trenches, taking nearly 3,000 prisoners and more than a dozen cannons. While the Yankees erupted in celebration, the Confederates counterattacked and began to drive the Federals back. The battle raged for over 20 hours along the center of the Confederate line—the top of the inverted U—which became known as the “Bloody Angle.” Lee’s men eventually constructed a second line of defense behind the original Rebel trenches, and fighting ceased just before dawn on May 13. Around the Bloody Angle, the dead lay five deep, and bodies had to be moved from the trenches to make room for the living. The action around Spotsylvania shocked even the grizzled veterans of the two great armies. Said one officer, “I never expect to be fully believed when I tell what I saw of the horrors of Spotsylvania.”
For those of you who live below the Mason-Dixon line, this type of Military History can and often does still spark late night conversations, frequently rousing "spirited" debate and heated discussion(s)....For those from all other points of the compass, it probably is nothing more than a forgotten post script in an 9th Grade American History class. But regardless, I just figured this would be a good place to interject, on occasion, a little reminder of our past...Often, when a nation forgets the past, it is the soldier/sailor/airmen/marine who does the "remembering" all over again........
"1864 – Close-range firing and hand-to-hand combat at Spotsylvania Court House, Virginia, result in one of the most brutal battles of the Civil War. After the Battle of the Wilderness (May 5-6), Generals Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee raced respective Union and Confederate forces southward. Grant aimed his army a dozen miles southeast of the Wilderness, toward the critical crossroads of Spotsylvania Court House. Sensing Grant’s plan, Lee sent part of his army on a furious night march to secure the road junction before the Union soldiers got there. The Confederates soon constructed a five-mile long system of entrenchments in the shape of an inverted U. On May 10, Grant began to attack Lee’s position at Spotsylvania. After achieving a temporary breakthrough at the Rebel center, Grant was convinced that a weakness existed there, as the bend of the Confederate line dispersed their fire. At dawn on May 12, Union General Winfield Scott Hancock’s troops emerged from the fog and overran the Rebel trenches, taking nearly 3,000 prisoners and more than a dozen cannons. While the Yankees erupted in celebration, the Confederates counterattacked and began to drive the Federals back. The battle raged for over 20 hours along the center of the Confederate line—the top of the inverted U—which became known as the “Bloody Angle.” Lee’s men eventually constructed a second line of defense behind the original Rebel trenches, and fighting ceased just before dawn on May 13. Around the Bloody Angle, the dead lay five deep, and bodies had to be moved from the trenches to make room for the living. The action around Spotsylvania shocked even the grizzled veterans of the two great armies. Said one officer, “I never expect to be fully believed when I tell what I saw of the horrors of Spotsylvania.”
The series of Wilderness battles produced the most casualties of the war. Grant lost about 18,000 men and General Lee lost about 13,000. Grant lost almost 36,000 men all together during the whole Wilderness Campaign. The Army of Northern Virgina lost roughly 25% of its manning throughout those few months. Hard to fathom that many men laying dead or wounded on the field of battle.
JohnnyC
Long ago TLCA# 2231
The Van Alstyne family on my wife's side is steeped in military history... Her family has been in the albany area since the 1660's
Notably Captain Abraham Van Alstyne (7th Regiment 5th company) under General Gates, He had fought in the "Battle of Saratoga"
The Van Alstyne family was large and in different areas throughout the "Fort Orange" / Albany NY areas... some were loyalists who fled to Canada after the war... good thing her direct family were Patriots of the area...
This is a picture of Peter Van Alstyne's promotion papers to Major in 1809 (ensign 1786, captain 1787, major 1809, colonel 1818)
Picture of his Home as well... the stone 'Fort' was originally a "roofless" fort (stone wall structure) for protection at times of dispute from Indian attack... later enlarged and roof added by Abram Van Alstyne
His promotion papers signed by D.Tompkins Governor NYS and later 6th? VP of the United States
Notably Captain Abraham Van Alstyne (7th Regiment 5th company) under General Gates, He had fought in the "Battle of Saratoga"
The Van Alstyne family was large and in different areas throughout the "Fort Orange" / Albany NY areas... some were loyalists who fled to Canada after the war... good thing her direct family were Patriots of the area...
This is a picture of Peter Van Alstyne's promotion papers to Major in 1809 (ensign 1786, captain 1787, major 1809, colonel 1818)
Picture of his Home as well... the stone 'Fort' was originally a "roofless" fort (stone wall structure) for protection at times of dispute from Indian attack... later enlarged and roof added by Abram Van Alstyne
His promotion papers signed by D.Tompkins Governor NYS and later 6th? VP of the United States
JohnnyC
Long ago TLCA# 2231
a little more about "Van Alstyne's Regiment of Militia"
link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Van_Alstyne's_Regiment_of_Militia
link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Van_Alstyne's_Regiment_of_Militia
Chungas Revenge
SILVER Star
^^^What he say!!^^^
Thanks for sharing this story/history!
Thanks for sharing this story/history!