We welcome your comments on this interview at VeteransHistoryProject@AtlantaHistoryCenter.com
Catalog number: VIS 201.0798
In this interview, Gerald Green recalls his experiences serving in the United States Navy in the Vietnam War. He enlisted the day after his 17th birthday in 1963 and chose to become an aviation structural mechanic, receiving orders to serve in a transport squadron based in Japan. He describes the carrier onboard delivery "COD" planes used to deliver passengers and supplies to the ships; living conditions; relations between officers and enlisted personnel; and off-duty activities during the early part of his five years with the squadron. He recalls how the work load changed as the intensity of the war increased in 1964 and reflects on race relations in Vietnam. He describes in detail a Medevac mission his crew undertook to transport a seriously injured sailor from the USS Midway to the hospital and how he managed to locate the man twenty years later. He explains the differences between carrier deck and catapult launches and comments on the quality of the leaders under whom he served. He remembers returning home, separating from the Navy, and later working for the airline industry. He reflects on his military experience; how the Vietnam War is remembered today; and how members of the military are treated today. Interviewer Joe Galloway presents him with his Vietnam War 50th Commemoration pin.