Can you imagine if Boy Scout uniforms looked like that now?
Charles Evans Hughes with Scouts, probably during the time he was an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. He ran for president in 1916 and later was appointed Chief Justice of the Court.
(Source: Men of Schiff)
Today we commemorate the 72nd anniversary of the Japanese attack on the US fleet at Pearl Harbor. It’s been a long time since that day. So long that last year was the final year for formal ceremonies. Some make the argument that by bringing it up every year, it perpetuates long held grudges. And to them I say, “Those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it.” Just consider my generation’s Pearl Harbor; the 9/11 attacks. Once again, America was the victim of a surprise attack that shocked the world. But, just like after Pearl Harbor, when America was attacked on 9/11 her citizens banded together and dealt with her aggressors. We must always be vigilant.
So here is my salute to America’s Greatest Generation and more so to those who served in the military during the inter-war years. That was true dedication. Thank you for showing us the way. May we always follow your example. And, a moment of silence for the 2402 Americans who were lost on that day and the hundreds more who were wounded in service to this great Nation.
President Roosevelt called today, “A date which will live in infamy.” May we never forget it.
I spent last week in San Antonio visiting with Hodge Defense. Naturally, I had to take a little time to see the sights. One thing that is a must-see is the Menger Hotel Bar. It’s one of the recruiting sites for the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry aka Roosevelt’s Rough Riders. Apparently, TR would stand at the end of the bar and recruit the men, with enlistment documents being signed upstairs in the bar ‘s loft. The Menger is also the site of the first demonstration and sale of barbed wire in 1876 which ended the free range era.
If you’re ever in San Antonio, make sure you drop by the Menger Hotel. It’s right across the street from the Alamo.
In this photo taken in 1925 of CMC, then Maj Gen John LeJeune, he presents a group of Boy Scouts with awards. That sure is an interesting hat the legendary General LeJeune is wearing.
We recently published a photo from Larry Vickers that showed a rebuild of the carbine he used in the Model Prison Raid during the Invasion of Panama. In chapter 1 of the new web series BCM Gunfighter History, LAV gives the rest of the story behind that gun.
When I checked into the Operator Training Course (OTC) at 1st SFOD-Delta in late 1988, I was issued a brand new, straight from Colt, base carbine. The official Colt designation was Model 723, but we simply referred to those carbines as CAR-15s. To be honest, I was initially very unimpressed.
In OTC, we completed a basic rifle marksmanship class with accurized M14s and after shooting those guns, with excellent triggers, the Mil-Spec trigger on my CAR-15 was terrible. I also distinctly remember only one failure-to-feed malfunction in OTC with my CAR-15; but after that, I honestly do not remember a single stoppage the entire time I used that weapon. Colt was building some of the best carbines in their history at that time and mine was a prime example. It was an excellent small-arm that performed for me its entire service life.
This CAR-15 was the first individual weapon I had ever used with a red dot sight; in this case an Aimpoint 2000. Experience with it made me realize that target engagements with a red dot optic vs iron sights were much quicker and more accurate across the spectrum from daylight to low light. This started my relationship with Aimpoint that continues to this day. They are quite simply the best red dot optics, in my opinion.
In addition, a waterproof SCUBA dive flashlight painted black was installed underneath the bottom handguard via hose clamps, and then our commo guys wired the flashlight for push button activation. It worked well for the intended purposes but they were replaced in short order once Surefire 6P flashlights came online. 1988 was a long time before Surefire weapon lights hit the market and became the industry standard.
The buttstock was a standard two-position Colt retractable. Very lightweight for sure, but it had a sloppy fit to the buffer tube compared to later aftermarket stocks. Our armorers would mill a third buttstock position at the shooters preference once an Operator determined his correct length of pull while wearing body armor. This setup worked quite well, with my only real complaint being the previously mentioned sloppy fit of the buttstock to the buffer tube.
Last but not least, I used an easy to adjust two point sling on my CAR-15 and later my issued M4 carbine that, little did I know, would lead to some great things in the future. I would use my knowledge and experience gained with that sling and combine it with Ashley Burnsed’s commitment to quality to make the Blue Force Gear – Vickers Combat Applications Sling; a sling that has now been sold in the thousands to our military as well as LE and civilian shooters and was recently adopted as the preferred M4, M27 IAR and M16 sling by the US Marine Corps.
It all started for me, with that original CAR-15 I used during my time in Delta Force.
SCUD HUNTING
SCUD hunting wasn’t a mission we anticipated – regardless, our Squadron was prepared for it. The Squadron Commander, a forward thinking Vietnam MAC-V SOG Recon Team vet with extensive combat experience, had “read the tea leaves” months earlier and instituted a refined Desert Mobility Skills Package that would be a critical “tool in the toolbox” for us in this mission.
Based on his experiences in Vietnam, the commander of Coalition forces, General Schwarzkopf, was not a fan of SOF (Special Operations Forces). He was, however, very pro-Delta Force. The Unit had been providing security for him during the buildup to Desert Storm and Schwarzkopf developed a great working relationship with the guys who worked for him.
When Desert Shield became Desert Storm, Iraqi SCUDs immediately began hitting targets inside Israel with the goal of bringing Israel into the war, fragmenting Coalition forces. The Coalition included several Middle Eastern nations who were steadfastly opposed to Israel’s existence and might disengage from the war effort, rather than fight “alongside” Israeli troops.
Coalition or not, the Israelis were not going to let Saddam attack their country with impunity. Aircraft were standing by to cross the border into Iraq, when the National Command Authority delivered an assurance to the Israeli government – the US had finally deployed its most elite troops to locate and destroy the SCUD TELs.
With our Advanced Desert Mobility Skill Sets fresh and in place, our Squadron was first to go.
Delta deployed far behind enemy lines, watching the main routes of travel that the Iraqis were using to launch SCUDs from. Once identified, airstrikes would be called in to eliminate the TELs. Our tactics had immediate and positive results. The accuracy of the SCUD missiles dropped dramatically, as the Iraqi SCUD crews rushed through proper set up and missile targeting to avoid being killed by US aircraft. In the end, Israel stayed out of the war and Kuwait was liberated from Iraqi occupation.
This remains the most memorable time of my life and is precisely why I joined the Delta Force. Shortly before, I had been involved in the rescue of Kurt Muse from the Carcelo Modelo Prison in Panama City. From the deserts of Iraq to the jungles of Panama, this was the right place at the right time in history.
Up until this point, the military was largely using variants of the M16 full-size rifle and SOF was using H&K MP5s. The first organization that thought outside of that box and used a weapon that bridged the gap between sub guns and rifles, was Delta Force. The customized CAR-15s issued by Delta became the main drivers for the modification/customization capability available on all M4 Carbines issued today.
The issue CAR-15 (Colt Model 723) served me well in Panama and Iraq, but everyone on the ground in Delta quickly came to the same conclusion. We essentially had a 200 meter carbine in terrain where we could see the enemy approaching from over a mile away and to engage them effectively, we needed 7.62 NATO battle rifles. A limited number of M14s had been employed by our snipers, but we did not have enough to go around. In addition, while the platform is certainly reliable, bringing it up to modern standards still remains a challenge. In the early 1990’s, when no aftermarket accessories where available, it was a time-intensive process that few armorers were capable of. Since then, there has been a resurgence in both improved M14 parts and accessories, as well as battle rifles in general. This resurgence can be directly traced back to SOF battle rifle use in Desert Storm.
SOF in general has been a catalyst for improving and reinventing things that were set in stone. SOF legend Major Richard Meadows, the man I consider to be the first Delta Operator, was involved with not only MACV SOG but was a team leader on the Son Tay Prison Raid, arguably one of the most influential SOF missions in history. Delta Force grew from that kind of outside-the-box thinking.
It was the Son Tay Raiders who first fielded a red dot sighted weapon system, and it was Delta who picked up the ball with Aimpoint sighted CAR-15s. Every Soldier, Sailor, Marine and Citizen who uses a tricked out M4 style carbine today owes a debt of gratitude to individuals like Major Meadows, the Son Tay raiders and the Operators of the Delta Force for pushing the limits of the AR style carbine into one the most successful fighting weapons in the history of the US Military.
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
-Theodore Roosevelt
26th President of the United States
Excerpt from the speech “Citizenship In A Republic” delivered at the Sorbonne, in Paris, France on 23 April, 1910.
I know all of you youngsters have been a gaged in combat since 2001 but back in the 80s and 90s, combat operations were rare. One of the biggies was Operation Just Cause, the invasion of Panama. Retired Army MSG Larry Vickers participated in Operation Acid Gambit, a component of that invasion that rescued American Kurt Muse from the clutches of a despotic Panamanian regime. LAV has recreated the Colt 723 carbine he used on that raid.
It includes an Aimpoint 2000 and a SCUBA flashlight hose clamped to the handguards. Compare that to what we see today. The rifle oh 1989 is essentially the same but the accessories are light years apart.
Since 1775 you’ve stood watch over America. We salute you!
