[calcowgirl]

Sometimes I feel like the 700-year-old Knight Templar in one of the Indiana Jones films — the Last Defender of the Swift Boat Veterans....

If you were, I'd consider that a badge of honor.
You performed a great service, and not just keeping JF'nK out of the White House.
You helped educate many people, including me. I am very thankful for that.

[MasterGunner01]

There were three waterborne elements to the Brown Water Navy in Vietnam: (1) Task Force 115 — Operation MARKET TIME — where the PCF or Swift boats were; (2) TF-116 — Operation GAME WARDEN — where the PBRs and Spec Ops people were; and TF-117 — Mobile Riverine Force — a joint USN-Army 9th Infantry Division operation with troops and modified landing craft. The fourth element was the Naval Support Activities (NSA) and Advanced Tactical Support Bases (ATSB).

Aft first, the Swifts (PCFs) were used for offshore interdiction of supplies. Later they were sent into the canals of the Ca Mau Peninsula which was a very dangerous place for them. The jungle grew down to the water's edge (perfect for ambushes), the canals were subject to tidal drops that could leave the boat high and dry until the next tide, and (3) the canals would narrow so it was impossible to turn the 50-foot PCF around.

The “Swiftie” crews are bona fide members of the Brown Water Navy (aka “River Rats”) band of brothers. To learn more about these three task forces and NSA/ATSB, go to: www.warboats.org, Vietnam War, and scroll down to “The Brown Water Navy in Vietnam.”

[Interesting Times]

Thanks.