David Johnson |
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Introduction of David Johnson
What side were you fighting on and what branch?
The Americans, and the U.S. Army Special Forces and Paratrooper.
Why did you decide to volunteer to fight?
When I originally volunteered to go to Vietnam a friend of mine from high school, who was also my neighbor across the street, he graduated a year and half before I did and he was killed in the Iron Triangle with the 101st. Like I said we were good friends and a neighbor, he was killed. My dad was a paratrooper during the Korean War, so I volunteered and went in and volunteered to go Airborne and it was unusual because when I went in at 1968 they were allowing privates to go into Special Forces, if you placed high enough on your aptitude test, which I did. So, I was able to go into Special Forces as a private.
What made you want to extend your visit 4 times?
I was good at my job and our job was to keep Americans alive and we were good at it. See I was lucky when I went to the 173rd. People I should be with were Special Forces too and we had served together in forces. So we stayed together, and they used us as a recon team and sniper. And so, we were able to go out have a lot more freedom of movement then a lot of your regular infantry would do because we should be responsible to the CG of the unit. I wasn’t responsible to a captain; I didn’t have a lieutenant over me, and basically they let us work the way we work with Special Forces.
How old were you when you entered?
17. Then I turned 18 when I was in the Army, because you have to be 18 before you can enter a combat zone. That’s another thing about Vietnam, the average age of the average soldier was less than 20 years old of age. Plus, Vietnam too, they did a study a few years ago and the average soldier during WW2 and the Korean War, if they were in service the day the war started and went all the way to the end of the war, during WW2 and Korean War they spend an average of 160 and 180 days in combat. In Vietnam, during his one year, he averaged 285 days in one year.
Object Description
| Profile of | David Johnson |
| Title | Experiences from Vietnam War by David Johnson |
| Profile bio | David Johnson hails from Fresno, CA, where he was born on May 16, 1950. Dave is one half Native American and one half German. Before enlisting in the war in 1968, Dave was a student. Once he enlisted, he entered Special Forces as a Private, and was stationed in many regions including Bong Son, Da Nang, and Dong Dat, among other areas in Viet Nam. He was deployed with Fifth Special Forces Group, 173rd Airborne Brigade, and the 23rd Infantry Division, or more commonly known as the 'American Division'. When Dave returned from the service on Dec. 3, 1971, he became a correctional officer. He now cares for an elderly man with special needs. |
| Profiler bio | Jordan Tolentino; Alayna Lewis; Bryce Herman; Sang Lee |
| Subject |
American Combat Helicopters Profile The Draft US Army US Special Forces Viet Nam |
| Profiled by | Tolentino, Jordan; Lewis, Alayna; Herman, Bryce; Lee, Sang |
| Profile date | 2016-02-26 |
| Geographic subject (city or populated place) | Fresno; Da Nang |
| Geographic subject (county) | Fresno |
| Geographic subject (state) | California |
| Geographic subject (country) | USA; Vietnam |
| Coverage date | 1950; 1968; 1971 |
| Publisher (of the original version) | http://anotherwarmemorial.com/david-johnson/ |
| Type |
images video |
| Format | 1 image; 6 video files (00:24:18); 6 transcripts |
| Language | English |
| Contributing entity | University of Southern California |
| Part of collection | An Other War Memorial -- Memories of the American War in Viet Nam |
| Filename | johnsondavid |
Description
| Profile of | David Johnson |
| Title | Introduction of David Johnson |
| Format | 1 transcript, 1p. |
| Filename | johnsondavid-vid1_tr1.pdf |
| Full text | Introduction of David Johnson What side were you fighting on and what branch? The Americans, and the U.S. Army Special Forces and Paratrooper. Why did you decide to volunteer to fight? When I originally volunteered to go to Vietnam a friend of mine from high school, who was also my neighbor across the street, he graduated a year and half before I did and he was killed in the Iron Triangle with the 101st. Like I said we were good friends and a neighbor, he was killed. My dad was a paratrooper during the Korean War, so I volunteered and went in and volunteered to go Airborne and it was unusual because when I went in at 1968 they were allowing privates to go into Special Forces, if you placed high enough on your aptitude test, which I did. So, I was able to go into Special Forces as a private. What made you want to extend your visit 4 times? I was good at my job and our job was to keep Americans alive and we were good at it. See I was lucky when I went to the 173rd. People I should be with were Special Forces too and we had served together in forces. So we stayed together, and they used us as a recon team and sniper. And so, we were able to go out have a lot more freedom of movement then a lot of your regular infantry would do because we should be responsible to the CG of the unit. I wasn’t responsible to a captain; I didn’t have a lieutenant over me, and basically they let us work the way we work with Special Forces. How old were you when you entered? 17. Then I turned 18 when I was in the Army, because you have to be 18 before you can enter a combat zone. That’s another thing about Vietnam, the average age of the average soldier was less than 20 years old of age. Plus, Vietnam too, they did a study a few years ago and the average soldier during WW2 and the Korean War, if they were in service the day the war started and went all the way to the end of the war, during WW2 and Korean War they spend an average of 160 and 180 days in combat. In Vietnam, during his one year, he averaged 285 days in one year. |
| Archival file | Volume4/johnsondavid-vid1_tr1.pdf |
