SwiftVets.com

[PhuCat to Phu Quoc]

John Kerry's biographer Douglas Brinkley -- in his book length puff piece 'Tour of Duty: John Kerry and the Vietnam War' rushed to print in time for John Kerry's primary campaigns -- captioned a photo of U.S. Navy riverine craft - "A Swift boat convoy headed up the Bo De River (Courtesy of Stephen D. Hayes)".

Douglas "Not So Swift" Brinkley obviously did not recognize the distinctive radomes of the Raytheon 1900 Pathfinder radar and the canvas canopies on the boats in the photo. Looks like PBRs to me!

The Swift Boats (PCF) used the Decca 202 radar, I know, I worked on both. This could be the intern factor you get when you rely on students to write your book for you. I'm guessing Stephen D. Hayes probably knows better and probably deserves an apology from Brinkley. - Richard Rongstad, U.S. Navy, Republic of Vietnam, 1969-1970.

There are some other awkward moments in Brinkley's book, such as; "Medeiros put on every armament he could think of, including forty-five grenades hanging from his belt, bandoliers, and ammo rounds, and an M-16." and "In the process they stumbled on a motherload." (page 292)

COMMENT: Since in the account of Kerry's Swift Boat crew on that particular day Medeiros jumped off the boat into shallow water with a soft bottom, methinks the "forty-five grenades hanging from his belt" would have sunk him up to his neck, but maybe the correct account is Medeiros was packing a .45-cal. pistol, plus some 40mm. It's hard to tell, but after reviewing Brinkley's puff piece on Kerry, I have to conclude it was written and edited poorly especially in those narratives that neither Brinkley, nor his assistants, nor his editors as non-veterans are capable of understanding. Regarding "...motherload [sic]", yeah maybe a motherload in the pants in that situation, especially if Medeiros had taken his chloraquine-primaquine (big orange pill).
_________________
I'm a U.S. Navy Vietnam War vet against John Kerry
Phu Cat to Phu Quoc 1969-1970

Did Jane Fonda help the North Vietnamese communists?
http://vikingphoenix.com/politics/polls/jfondapoll-1.htm

[scotty61]

Behold! The power of a comma!

Perhaps it went "including forty five, grenades hanging from his belt,"

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