Veteran's History Project

The Veterans History Project of the Library of Congress collects, preserves, and makes accessible the personal accounts of American war veterans so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand the realities of war.

William G. Norton (Bill) had graduated from high school when he was 17 yrs old. He had some time to do jobs and plan a career. He stopped by the US Army Recruiting office and made some inquiries. Soon a recruiter was doing some follow up and went to Bill's house.

The recruiter laid out what the Army had to offer then said Bill needed to sign this paper because the recruiter had gone to all the trouble to get a vehicle, gather display materials, and use his time. Bill signed it... then later realized he had signed a letter of intent to enlist. (Gulp!) He was still under age though and his father wasn't in a hurry to let his son go away, but finally did. It wasn't long after that that Bill and several other young men were given train transportation to Fort Leonard Wood, MO.

The train arrived late and the men got to the base at 9:00 PM. After a measure of being messed with at night, the guys were bedded down so that they could get up the next morning at 0400. They were familiarized with the morning routine... hygiene, clean the area, and finally, while in civilian clothes and probably wondering what they had gotten themselves into, they were taken to the mess hall for breakfast. This was still at a leisurely pace. When they finished putting their meal trays away, they were immediately taken to the "hair adjustment facility" where they were treated to the real "buzz cut". Next, they were marched directly to the clothing issue point and provided the clothing and gear they would need. Now, they were starting to feel like they were in the Army.

Bill said the training cadre had just graduated from "Ranger" School. Along with the beautiful Drill Sergeant Hat, they wore the Ranger tab on their sleeves as well. The training routine was presented to the recruits at about three levels above expectations. The first day in training, three miles were run in formation and in uniforms and newly issued boots. When running in formation, the men were to stomp the ground on the fourth beat. The Drill Sergeants worked the recruits hard! After four hours, the Drill Sgts still looked great! The esprit de corps instilled in the recruits was palpable.

The new guys had to learn quickly how to spit shine their new boots, how to get their uniforms squared away and how to pass inspections the first time and every time. The real hard chargers would shine the soles of their boots...

There were items that needed learned and memorized such as the General Orders and the Soldiers Creed. Physical fitness was an uncompromised requirement. Shooting the M-14 rifle was too. So was marching to and from the rifle range.

At the end of eight weeks, it was time to march to the parade field for graduation. Bill's next assignment was Advanced Individual Training (AIT). The Army needed helicopter mechanics. Bill was sent to Fort Rucker, AL to get the basics of this field. The course of instruction started out to be eight weeks and was pared down to five weeks.

The main push in the classroom was getting familiar with the service manual. These field manuals provided straight forward verbiage and pictures/drawings. They did not have the opportunity to see, much less work on a helicopter. There was also a stern warning to be very careful so nothing was broken.

Bill went to a couple of other military bases but ended up at Fort Hood, TX. He was assigned to the 228th Attack Helicopter Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division. By mid-August 1965, this unit was going to deploy to Southeast Asia.

The unit worked its way to Florida, where they boarded the USS Boxer CV-21. This was a wooden-deck WWII era carrier designed for aircraft transportation. It also sailed to the combat zone alone, without a strike force to protect it. There were about 5,500 men on board plus the helicopters. The trip was from August 15th to September 9th. This was a unique experience for an Army soldier and Bill enjoyed it.

The ship sailed to the ports at Cam Ranh Bay, about 180 miles east of Saigon. Here, the helicopters were unloaded and work to re-assemble them began. The soldiers were allowed off the ship at Quin Yan and loaded onto 6x6 trucks and taken by convoy to An Khe in the Central Highlands of Vietnam. When the men reassembled they were provided an Army entrenching tool (a small field-ready shovel) and two rounds of ammunition. Somehow, the container carrying the ammunition for the entire unit was not loaded onto the USS Boxer. Undoubtedly a "hair-on-fire" moment for many folks. It took about a week to get re-supplied.

In the US Army, the major change in weaponry had happened. The M-14 was to be replaced by the M-16. This meant re-qualification if you were willing to stay at the rifle range on a Saturday afternoon. There were none needing extra work.

In that there was no operating base when they arrived, the men were told where their encampment would be and soon tents were lined up and put together. A tent at this time was a canvas shelter half with pole and pegs. Two soldiers had to combine their issued shelter halves to make one tent. Life in the small tents was not easy. Bill's tent-mate had mental issues...

For the next few months, the soldiers took over an area of land so that they could have a base to operate from. With their entrenching tools, and other items, they worked to clear jungle and rice patties, bringing in fresh dirt or mud, and forming up an establishment. Bill said the worst of it was the number of deadly snakes. There were green snakes, bamboo vipers, and the two-step snakes. (If a two-step snake bit someone, he had two steps to take before dying.)

By this time, the entire 1st Cavalry Division had arrived in-country. Now, there were 22,000 soldiers working to get their area established and running. The men were given C-rations for food. They also ate a lot of Spam, canned ham, and more Spam. Showers were not brought in for 7 weeks. The men figured out a way to rinse off while wearing ones uniform. An NCO Club was built from wooden ammunition boxes and canvas. They were making progress, no?

After the base was established, it was time for the 1st Cav to get into the war. As combat was engaged, senior soldiers and mechanics became casualties. The soldiers who were said to be trained, were soon called mechanics ready to work on helicopters that they had never seen. Bill was sent to the field to work on and service the CH-47s. The rotation of service was that all mechanics worked on a helicopter as needed. If it was shot up or needed periodic maintenance checks, the mechanics handled it. The learning curve was dramatic.

Bill was aboard three helicopters that were shot down. In one of the actions, Bill was shot by enemy gunfire. The round hit him in the buttocks. He said he screamed like hell and pranced around. He was soon taken to the medical clinic where the bullet was removed and he was sewn up. Within a few days, he was in a wheel chair. An Army Dr. saw him and said he needed to get out of the chair and serve ice water to other sick/injured people. At this point, Bill figured that if he could walk around a hospital, he could walk around his Company area, so he left and returned to duty. He was in the field from October 1965 to June 1966.

When it was time to re-deploy, Bill's orders were slow to appear. Finally, on his flight home, he was in a C-141. The plane also carried the aluminum caskets of 75 KIA soldiers. Somber, living soldiers sat on the perimeter sling seats. In the end, the plane landed in Oakland, CA.

Bill gathered up his two duffel bags and in uniform, boarded a commercial bus to go to the base. There was a man sitting in the front of the bus who told Bill he was not welcome to sit next to him. Bill found himself in the back of the bus. Bill still had months to go before he was to be discharged.

All the helicopters were in Vietnam. There was nothing to physically work on in his field. Bill was sent to Fort Huachuca, AZ to work for a Signal Battalion.

Bill earned the several awards. He still carries the cloth patch of his assigned unit in his billfold. He got a lot out of his enlistment.

Specialist William G. Norton, you were a good, solid soldier. When your Nation called, you responded and did your best! Thank you for your service!