1968-1969 red horse phu cat afb vietnam, ran those machine for about 4 mounth , 6 days a week, I was 19 , still beat the hell out of me
They reckon all scraper operators are just a little bit crazy! Must be all the shaking and bouncing that rattles your brain! I drove a Euclid S7E for a while in 'Nam. Screaming 4 cyl Jimmy right alongside you, exhaust about 3 to 4 feet from your ears, little wonder I can't hear anything today! No cab, no ROPS, seat like a park bench, bolted to the frame - but easy to get into, and out of! I don't think my brain has ever properly recovered from the shaking and rattling!! LOL We worked with seatbelts unfastened, in case we ran over a mine. Better to be blown clear, than cut in half with a seatbelt or held in position so you could get the full effect of the blast! One of our scraper operators took a 20lb shaped charge right under the drivers side wheel! Man, you should've seen the carnage! Blew the entire wheel and hub and planetary gears right off, then the charge split the brake drum, and bored a huge indentation into the lower brake shoe lining! The blast shattered the fuel tank (which is right behind the wheel), so that added more fire and flame to the blast! The crater was about 4 foot deep! Operator got blown about 20 yards away, he survived, but only just. Ended up badly burnt, as well as blast concussed. Thought I had some photos of the carnage after they dragged the scraper back into our plant yard, but can't find them now. Probably lost them in my house fire in '82. Unidentified member of the 17th Construction Squadron, Royal Australian Engineers, operating a ... www.awm.gov.au Here's one of our poor old beaten-up War Veterans, as she stood in civilian life in 2015! She should be given a medal, and a proper retirement! Log into Facebook Log into Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family, and people you know. www.facebook.com
Was that with the 819th in Phu Cat ?