60 years old.
“Of the 2,709,918 Americans who served in Vietnam, Less than 850,000 are estimated to be alive today, with the youngest American Vietnam veteran’s age approximated to be 60 years old.”
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How old is the youngest living Vietnam vet?
Dan Bullock (December 21, 1953 – June 7, 1969) was a United States Marine and the youngest U.S. serviceman killed in action during the Vietnam War, dying at the age of 15.
Dan Bullock | |
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Born | December 21, 1953 Goldsboro, North Carolina, U.S. |
Died | June 7, 1969 (aged 15) An Hoa Combat Base, Quảng Nam Province, South Vietnam |
Did 17 year olds serve in Vietnam?
During that year, 1,928 soldiers died in the Vietnam War. Seventeen year-old James Calvin Ward was one of them.James Ward was one of at least 18 juvenile soldiers killed at Vietnam—five were 16, like him, 11 others were 17, and one was 15 and had forged his birth certificate to join.
Who was the youngest soldier killed in Vietnam?
Bullock
On June 7, 1969, Bullock was killed by small arms fire while on night watch at An Hoa combat base. He was 15 years old and had been in-country nearly one month. He was the youngest American service member to be killed in the Vietnam War.
What unit saw the most combat in Vietnam?
Activated in 1915, as the 173rd Infantry Brigade, the unit saw service in World War II but is best known for its actions during the Vietnam War.
What was the average age of soldiers in Vietnam?
19
The average age of a soldier in Vietnam was 19, and he was likely to be unmarried—a significant difference from a soldier in World War II. Approximately 25% were draftees.
Did 16 year olds serve in Vietnam?
Statistics show that at least five men killed in Vietnam were sixteen years old, and at least 12 were seventeen years old. 61% of those killed were younger than twenty one and 11,465 of those killed were younger than twenty years of age.
How many soldiers died on their first day in Vietnam?
997 soldiers
997 soldiers were killed on their first day in Vietnam. 1,448 soldiers were killed on their last day in Vietnam. 31 sets of brothers are on the Wall. Thirty one sets of parents lost two of their sons.
What ages were drafted in Vietnam?
Before the lottery was implemented in the latter part of the Vietnam conflict, there was no system in place to determine order of call besides the fact that men between the ages of 18 and 26 were vulnerable to being drafted. Local boards called men classified 1-A, 18-1/2 through 25 years old, oldest first.
What was the average age of a soldier killed in Vietnam?
In another estimate, the Department of Defense’s Combat Area Casualties Current File, with 58,169 names (58,148 with both birth date and date of event), says that the average age of those killed in Vietnam was 23.11 years old.
Who served the most tours in Vietnam?
Apparently the longest-serving American in the Vietnam War was Robert Lewis Howard, who started his first tour in 1965 with the 101st Airborne Division, and went on to serve with the Special Forces and Military Assistance Command Vietnam/Studies and Observation Group (MACV/SOG), doing a record five tours of duty and
How many US soldiers died of snake bites in Vietnam?
The United States Archives and other sources suggest that between 25 and 50 American soldiers a year were bitten by snakes during the war in Vietnam. Some 10,786 American soldiers died of non-combat causes, including 9,107 by accidents and 938 due to illness.
What was the worst Battle of Vietnam?
The Battle of Khe Sanh (21 January – 9 July 1968) was conducted in the Khe Sanh area of northwestern Quảng Trị Province, Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam), during the Vietnam War.
What percentage of Vietnam veterans actually saw combat?
Of the 2.6 million, between 1-1.6 million (40-60%) either fought in combat, provided close support or were at least fairly regularly exposed to enemy attack. 7,484 women (6,250 or 83.5% were nurses) served in Vietnam.
What was the last combat unit in Vietnam?
The last U.S. ground combat unit in South Vietnam, the Third Battalion, Twenty-First Infantry, departs for the United States. The unit had been guarding the U.S. air base at Da Nang. This left only 43,500 advisors, airmen, and support troops left in-country.
How many black soldiers served in Vietnam?
300,000 African-Americans
By lowering the education standards of the draft, an estimated 40% of the 246,000 draftees of Project 100,000 were Black. A total of 300,000 African-Americans served in Vietnam.
Did any American soldiers stay in Vietnam after the war?
It’s estimated that tens of thousands of veterans have returned to Vietnam since the 1990s, mostly for short visits to the places where they once served. Decades after the fall of Saigon (now Ho Chi Minh City) many former soldiers still wonder why they were fighting.
Did anyone fight in ww2 and Vietnam?
Veteran Fought In World War II, Korea And Vietnam : NPR. Veteran Fought In World War II, Korea And Vietnam Command Sergeant Major Basil Plumley, who served in three wars, has died at the age of 92. Command Sgt.Plumley gained fame for his part in the the battle of Ia Drang in Vietnam in 1965.
What were the odds of a soldier dying in Vietnam?
One out of every 10 Americans who served in Vietnam was a casualty. 58,148 were killed and 304,000 wounded out of 2.7 million who served. Although the percent that died is similar to other wars, amputations or crippling wounds were 300 percent higher than in World War II.
Who was the last soldier killed in the Vietnam War?
Charles McMahon (May 10, 1953 – April 29, 1975) and Darwin Lee Judge (February 16, 1956 – April 29, 1975) were the last two United States servicemen killed in Vietnam during the Vietnam War. The two men, both U.S. Marines, were killed in a rocket attack one day before the Fall of Saigon.
What was the life expectancy of a door gunner in Vietnam?
between 13 and 30 days
From there, they were taken to a base at Da Lat in the central highlands of that nation. Vlach served with the 54th General Command as a door gunner on an UH1 “Huey” helicopter. “They were short of gunners on helicopters, because the life expectancy was somewhere between 13 and 30 days,” he said.