My first experience with Nam came aboard the wooden deck aircraft carrier USS Princeton (LPH-5). I was assigned to HMM-161 another 46 squadron just arriving from the "World".

We arrived off the coast somewhere close to Quang Tri late in the afternoon in the middle of May 1968. The airlift to base would begin in the morning and I had one more post to stand before it would start.

The second shift for me was the quietest and this one started just like all of the others. The post that I stood was on the flight deck and I remember how dark and peaceful it was, this would change for me all to soon.

After about an hour a series of large flashes appeared just over the horizon and within seconds the thunderous whumps of explosions crossed the ship. The barrage lasted about half an hour, with spuratic blasts for another hour or so.

For the two and a half years since reporting to boot camp, I've been training for this time. But training for war and being in or close to it are two completely separate things. All of the training and preparation didn't prepare me for the feelings I was experiencing and just like the night I put my feet on the yellow feet at the receiving barracks, this night would change how I thought about life and what I needed to do to get through it.

After my shift ended I returned to my rack, but sleep didn't come and I thought about the days ahead of me. Finaly the time had come, reville sounded and we hit the deck running to complete this final chapter of our relocation mission from MCAS New River to Quang Tri.

Sometime during the airlift we received a couple of 46's on board. The aft pylon had the letters "ET", the other Sea Knight squadron at Quang Tri we were told. Little did I know it would be the unit I would joining later in the year.

The contrast between our clean unscratched choppers and the gritty look of these war birds wasn't what we expected. It reminded me of watching one of those war films when the gnarly vets meet the incoming clean shaven, new uniform rookies and I was one of those rookies.

After the airlift was completed I was part of a small contingent to stay on board for a short deteour to DaNang. The trip to DaNang and returning flight to Quang Tri was uneventful I guess, because I don't remember a single moment of it until we landed at the Quang Tri. What greeted us was heat, blowing sand and a burned out C-130 adjacent to the runway. Well not my choice for a home but then again there wasn't much I could do about it.

Not sure when I forgot to worry about the tomorrows, the next few weeks just became a blur with cold showers, 7 day work weeks, 12 hour shifts, powdered eggs and green koolaid for breakfast along with the lack of sleep from the 1AM wake up calls from the VC.

Semper Fi Marines

Steve Stanick (Cpl, 68-69 Hydraulics Shop)