Kerry's PCF (Swift) Boats Records [Where Is He?]

Swift Boats Net ^ | Composite

[Hon]

Kerry commanded his first swift boat, No. 44, from December 1968 through January 1969. He received no medals while serving on this craft.

Kerry experienced his first intense combat action on Dec. 2, 1968. He was slightly wounded on his arm, earning his first Purple Heart.

In late January 1969, Kerry joined a five-man crew on swift boat No. 94 completing 18 missions over 48 days, almost all of them in the Mekong Delta.

Kerry earned his second Purple Heart after sustaining a minor shrapnel wound in his left thigh on Feb. 20, 1969.

---

February 28, 1969: When Kerry's Patrol Craft Fast 94 received a B-40 rocket shot from shore, he hot dogged his craft beaching it in the center of the enemy position. To his surprise, an enemy soldier sprang up from a hole not ten feet from Patrol Craft 94 and fled. The boat's machine gunner hit and wounded the fleeing Viet Cong as he darted behind a hootch. The twin .50s gunner fired at the Viet Cong. He said he "laid 50 rounds" into the hootch before Kerry leaped from the boat and dashed in to administer a "coup de grace" to the wounded Viet Cong. Kerry returned with the B-40 rocket and launcher. Kerry was given a Silver Star for his actions.

---

Kerry and crew stand together in An Thoi, Vietnam, on February 28, 1969, after presentation of Kerry's Silver Star. He also received a Purple Heart for a minor wound. From left: Del Sandusky, John Kerry, Gene Thorson, Thomas Belodeau. Kneeling from left, Mike Medeiros, Fred Short.

---

On March 13, 1969, a mine detonated near Kerry's boat, slighting wounding Kerry in the right arm. He was awarded his third Purple Heart. PCF (Patrol Craft Fast) 94 crew in March 1969, from left, Gene Thorson, David Alston, Thomas Belodeau, Del Sandusky, and John Kerry.

PCF 44
Crew	e-mail Address	Dates	Base	Comments
		17 April 1966	Cam Ranh Bay	first arrived in South Vietnam
Leland M. Mills, LT, OinC		4/66-??	Cam Ranh Bay	??Glenview, IL??
George Hoover, BM2		4/66-??	Cam Ranh Bay
David Franklin Parsons Jr, RM3	brenda.parsons@version.net	4/66-??	Cam Ranh Bay	Lakeland, FL
Francis Joseph "Sonny" Buchta, EN3		4/66-5/66	Cam Ranh Bay	Dayton, TX
Cox, GMG3		4/66-??	Cam Ranh Bay
Wayne Watkins, SN		4/66-??	Cam Ranh Bay
Lucian Gale Jewell, EN1		5/66-1/67	Cam Ranh Bay	Dawson Springs, KY
James A. Colombo, LT, OinC	Midnightvette@cs.com	??-6/67	Cam Ranh Bay	Hagerstown, MD
James Stephen Matheny, RMSN	jsm4914@peoplepc.com	3/67-6/67	Cam Ranh Bay	Granite, IL
Michael Gene Cosper, GMG3		??-6/67	Cam Ranh Bay
Gary Earl Nolan, RM3		??-6/67	Cam Ranh Bay
Ralph E. Duerre, LTJG, OinC		?/67-12/67	Cam Ranh Bay	was from Ithaca, NY
Joseph R. LaVoie II, QM1	JLavoie101@.aol.com	67-68	Cam Ranh Bay	Kent, WA
W.P. "Sonny" Taylor, RD2	tnfayette@aol.com	5/67-3/68	Cam Ranh Bay	Oakland, TN
		12/27/67-4/30/68		overhaul in Sasebo, Japan
Robert T. Grace, LTJG, OinC		5/68-??	Cam Ranh Bay	Virginia Beach, VA
MacKinnon, QM2		5/68-??	Cam Ranh Bay
Goss, BM3		5/68-??	Cam Ranh Bay
Anthony, EN2		5/68-??	Cam Ranh Bay
Donald J. Shaw, RD2		5/68-7/68	Cam Ranh Bay	Northbrook, IL
Robert Allen Kreyer, GMG2	bkreyer@egcrc.net	5/68-8/68	Cam Ranh Bay	Novoto, CA
John Everet Repshire, EN1	russpr@st-tel.net	6/68-??	Cam Ranh Bay	Russell Springs, KS
Peter V. Carey, LTJG, OinC			Cam Ranh Bay	was from Farmington, CT
Thomas Williams Wright III, LT, OinC	twright3@hotmail.com	11/68-4/69	An Thoi	Savannah, GA
James T. Thompson, EN2		11/68-4/69	An Thoi
George E. Bobb III, RD3		11/68-4/69	An Thoi	Westerville, OH
William J. Newman, BM3		11/68-4/69	An Thoi
Donald Eugene Kinser, BMSN		11/68-4/69	An Thoi
Frederick  J. Nastasuk, GMGSN		11/68-4/69	An Thoi
Michael A. Adkins, LTJG, OinC		6/69-5/70		La Mesa, CA
		31 October 1969	Saigon	transferred to South Vietnamese Navy
PCF 3851

- PCF 44 and 6 other swifts were delivered to Cam Ranh Bay, from Subic Bay, PI, onboard the USS Tortuga, LSD-29 on 17 April 1966.   While offloading, at night, from the LSD, one (1) boat suffered a damaged screw and four (4) others damaged skegs.

- PCFs 43, 44 and 47 stopped an infiltration attempt by taking an enemy arms trawler under fire and destroying it, 29 February 1968.

- In August 1969, a ceramic gunshield was installed on mount 52 for evaluation.   The disadvantages of restricting the movement of the .50 caliber mount, with the after pin removed, the restricted viewing area, due to the height of the shield, and the fact that it was a one shot item, that would have to be replaced after any damage, ruled out any further installations.

PCF 94
Crew	e-mail Address	Dates	Base	Comments
		October 1966	An Thoi	first arrived in South Vietnam
Thomas S. Winslow, LTJG, OinC		5/67-5/68	An Thoi	Oakland, CA
Quint, RM1		5/67-5/68	An Thoi
Carlyle John Brown, EN2	johnbrown578@aol.com	5/67-5/68	An Thoi	Watervliet, MI
Guraltemo, GMG2		5/67-5/68	An Thoi
James L. Brookshire, BM3	jbrook1029@aol.com	5/67-12/67	An Thoi
Mike ????, SN		5/67-5/68	An Thoi	Navajo Indian
Thomas M. Herritage II, OinC		3/68-3/69		Novi, MI
Larry James Balok, OinC	seascow@msn.com	7/68-11/68	An Thoi	Bradenton, FL
James L. Miller, RD1	jlmiller@tscnet.com	7/68-11/68	An Thoi
Kenneth Poole, EN2		7/68-11/68	An Thoi
Vern Radcliff, GMG3		7/68-11/68	An Thoi
		11/9/68-1/17/69		overhaul at NSF Cat Lo
Edward Robert "Tedd" Peck, LTJG, OinC	tpeck49@cableone.net	1/69-1/69	An Thoi	Santa Rosa, CA
Delbert Sandusky, QM1		1/69-1/69	An Thoi
Eugene Kenneth "Thor" Thorson, EN2		1/69-1/69	An Thoi	Ames, IA
Michael Richard Eugene Medeiros, QM2		1/69-1/69	An Thoi	San Leandro, CA
Stanley E. Jenereski, RD2	Jenereski@aol.com	1/69-1/69	An Thoi	Southborough, MA
Daniel Salinas II, LTJG, OinC		1/69-??	An Thoi
Joseph Edward Muharsky, RD2	ndc@mwwed.com	1/69-4/69	An Thoi	Mentor, OH
Larry G. Potter, QM2		1/69-??	An Thoi
James Barry Bogart, EN3	bogey67401@yahoo.com	1/69-8/69	An Thoi	Salina, KS
Dalmas K. Coates, BM3	dalyeame@midusa.net	1/69-??	An Thoi	Wamego, KS
Chris Whalen, GMGSN		1/69-??	An Thoi
Henry "Buddy" Berman, QM2	buddyb@atlantic.net	5/69-7/69	An Thoi	DeLeon Springs, FL
Alfonso Abrego Garza, RD3	algarza@earthlink.net	6/69-6/70	An Thoi/Cat Lo	Richmond, TX
John Ellis O'Neill, LTJG, OinC	oneilljohn@copn.com	9/69-3/70	An Thoi/Cat Lo	Houston, TX
Harry George McConnell, LTJG, OinC	hmcconnell@daytonalaw.com	12/69-11/70	Cat Lo	Ormond Beach, FL
Bradford Miles Slepicka, RD3	ElbowG97@aol.com	9/70-10/70	Cat Lo/Sa Dec	Katy, TX
		1 October 1970	Cat Lo	transferred to South Vietnamese Navy
PCF 3915

- On 29 January 1969, PCFs 5, 72, 93 and 94, together with units of COSDIV 13, conducted operations in the Cua Lon river.  PCFs 72 and 94 came under fire while probing a side canal resultings in 3 USN WIA and light damage to PCF 94.

- PCF-94, in company with PCFs 22, 35 and VNN PCF-3806, 14 January 1970, were supporting a troop sweep when PCF-94 was hit by a claymore mine resulting in two (2) friendly WIA and damage to the hull and one engine.

- While patrolling on the Rac Giang Thanh, 25 April 1970, PCFs 3 and 94 came under heavy AK-47 and B-40 rocket attack.  Three (3) B-40 rockets detonated close aboard PCF-94, causing shrapnel damage, the starboard bow was also hit by 9 AK-47 rounds.  One crewman on PCF-3 was wounded.  The PCFs suppressed the fire and then spotted for a SEAWOLVES strike on the surrounding area.

[RaceBannon]

I zoomed in, those look Green and White, not red.

Is the Navy Bronze Star Green? Otherwise, I think theylook like Navy Achiement medals or something

[Mr. Lucky]

Then, never mind.

[LisaMalia]

Interesting. Thanks for posting.

[There's millions of'em]

The crew on the boat would have been official witnesses to Kerry's actions. They may have actually submitted statements as part of the documentation for the SS.

[demlosers]

Who put Kerry in for the silver Star??? Kerry???

I'm betting Kerry did.

[camas]

maybe it was the ammo you remember. hollow point is a no no and wooden bullets are outlawed too.

[TC Rider]

LOL, Check it out!

Kerry's call sign was "Boston Strangler"!

http://swiftboats.net/extras/call_signs.htm

[donnalee]

Easy now, be nice, my husband served with F Troop 8th Cav Americal Divison as a scout pilot in Chu Lai 1968-69.

[afraidfortherepublic]

"Kerry declined a request from the Globe to sign a waiver authorizing the release of military documents that are covered under the Privacy Act and that might shed more light on the extent of the treatment Kerry needed as a result of the wounds."

But the Dems have DEMANDED that Bush release all of his NG records -- and then they still find fault with them...

[Hon]

Call Signs

---

Officer-in-Charge

Boats	Tony P. Gisclair
Boston Strangler	John Kerry
Boston Strangler	Clayton G. Zucker
Boy Scout	Bruce Wentworth	had been an eagle scout and was very moral
Brass Brat	John M. Pinney

[bray]

If McAwful was the head of the RNC, he would claim Comrade Kerry found a dead body and fired three in the air, then made the rest of the story up. Any Witnesses??? Lot's of questions??? There was plenty of witnesses of him declaring Vets murderers. Pictures of him chummying with Black Panther Al Hubbard and others.

Pray for W and The Truth

[oh8eleven]

Mike Gann ... got the DaNang "O" club closed for a month by an Admiral who didn't like his drinking habits.
LOL! - some of the comments are terrific.

[demlosers]

Navy Commendation medals for the crewmen and Kerry gets the Silver Star.

Navy Commendation Medal

Silver Star

---

The Silver Star

Establishing Authority

The Silver Star was originally established at the direction of President Woodrow Wilson as a "citation star," as provided in section 5 of War Department General Orders Number 6 on January 12, 1919. It was modified slightly and affirmed as an Army decoration by Act of Congress (Public Law 193, 65th Congress) approved July 9, 1918. The Silver Star medal was created in 1932 and was extended to the Navy and Marine Corps by Act of Congress (Public Law 702, 77th Congress) approved August 7, 1942.

Effective Dates

No initial qualifying date was set for either the Silver Star Medal or its predecessor, the Silver Citation Star. Since the earliest action for which a Silver Star was ultimately issued was during the Civil War, Members of the Army have therefore been eligible to receive the Silver Star for qualifying acts from April 15, 1861 to the present. Members of the Navy and Marine Corps have been eligible to receive the Silver Star for qualifying acts from December 6, 1941 to the present, with certain provisions for retroactive awards prior to that date.

Criteria

The Silver Star may be awarded to any person who, while serving in any capacity with the Armed Forces of the United States, is cited for gallantry in action;

(1) against an enemy of the United States;

(2) while engaged in military operations involving conflict with an opposing foreign force; or,

(3) while serving with friendly foreign forces engaged in armed conflict against an opposing armed force in which the United States is not a belligerent party.

The required gallantry, while of a lesser degree than that required for the award of a Distinguished Service Cross, Navy Cross, or Air Force Cross, must nevertheless have been performed with marked distinction.

Order of Precedence

The Silver Star is worn after the service Distinguished Service Medal and before the Defense Superior Service Medal.

http://foxfall.com/fmd-common-ss.htm

---

[sonofatpatcher2]

Re: Easy now, be nice, my husband served with F Troop 8th Cav Americal Divison as a scout pilot in Chu Lai 1968-69.

My apology, missey. I was refering to F-Troop, a rather lame sitcom from the 1960s starring Ken Berry and all the ususal gangster-typed actors playing Indians...

"What'ca talking about? We never amubushed nobody! Figit'bout it!"

[demlosers]

"Kerry declined a request from the Globe to sign a waiver authorizing the release of military documents that are covered under the Privacy Act and that might shed more light on the extent of the treatment Kerry needed as a result of the wounds."

What are you hiding Kerry? I see Kerry has changed his mind about going after President Bush's ANG record. What comes around goes around.

[terilyn]

On March 13, 1969, Rassman, a Green Beret, was traveling down the Bay Hap river in a boat behind Kerry’s when both were ambushed by exploding land mines and enemy fire coming from the shore. Kerry was hit in the arm, while a mine blew Rassman’s boat out of the water. With enemy fire coming from both sides of the river and swift boats.

“We were still under fire, and he was wounded at the time,” recalled Rassman. And with his boat’s gunners providing suppressing fire, Kerry extended his wounded arm into the water, the two lieutenants locked arms and Kerry pulled him abroad."

Yesterday, Rassman called the D.C. headquarters of the Kerry campaign hoping to be reunited with Kerry for the first time since 1969.

Rassman, a retired Los Angeles county sheriff who now lives in Florence, Oregon, flew to Iowa this morning to reunite with Kerry. Rassman got a good laugh from the crowd when he admitted he was a registered Republican.

“I remember the day and the moment we last met; the lingering bond between us comes from the shared experience of our service,” Kerry said. “I told Jim what I tell the thousands of veterans I have met in Iowa: As president, I will never—ever—forget your service.” Kerry added.

For Kerry’s bravery, Rassman recommended that Kerry be recognized, and Kerry was awarded the Bronze Star with Combat V. The citation that followed the award read as follows:

“The man was receiving sniper fire from both banks. Lt. Kerry directed his gunners to provide suppressing fire, while from an exposed position on the bow, his arm bleeding and in pain, with disregard for his personal safety, he pulled the man aboard.

"Lt. Kerry then directed his boat to return and assist the other damaged craft and towed the boat to safety. Lt. Kerry's calmness, professionalism and great personal courage under fire were in keeping with the highest traditions of the US Naval Service.”

http://forum.johnkerry.com/index.php?showtopic=852

I'd love to see this one vetted. Rassman coming forward at the prime opportune time has 'smelled' funny to me from the start.

[jackbill]

I just zoomed on it also and it looks like the Commendation Medal, as #93 stated.

[PeoplesRepublicOfWashington]

What was he doing running after VC when he had just been wounded in the thigh?

By his own admission, none of his three wounds were really serious. Besides, having a gook point a B-40 at you up close would give anyone the motive to run after him, no matter how lame you are, before he covers enough distance to launch.

I can understand people questioning Kerry's war record, given what a sleazeball the guy is. However, once investigated there appears to be nothing to gain by continuing to question or to berate his military performance. In fact, doing so likely merely plays into his hands, as every time you publically question his performance one broadcasts the fact that he is a veteran with a chest full of medals.

[Just mythoughts]

What smelled to me was that only after the Brinkley book did Rassmann appear.

Thus far nothing I have read before Brinkley's book, (and this event sure seems noteworthy), that makes any mention of it.

Rassmann surely had to be aware of Senator JFKerry all these years and what JFKerry did after he came home and there is nothing about Rassmann anywhere, thus far, until late last year.

I held my words about what I thought when he was presented to the world on that Iowa stage as a Republican and JFKerry was willing to save him. JFKerry was not only a "war" hero he became a "saviour".

All bets came off after the AWOL bashing of President Bush started by that no brainer (can't think of his name) showed up with Wesley the idiot.

Then the money boy of the Clintons began slandering President Bush. Time has come for the "LIARS" to show and tell the military records of JFKerry.

Thanks for the post.

[Hon]

"By his own admission, none of his three wounds were really serious."

Well, this is the ONE wound that Kerry claimed was serious enough for him to lose two days service.

I just find it a little hard to believe that it was at all serious.

And, again, you are confusing the stories. The time he ran ashore FIVE days after his wound, nobody pointed a B-40 at him.

It turned out to be an animal.