Basic Training Nostalgia

[199er]

"All Clear"!!........"take your mask off" !!













One of the many 'nightmares' of Basic Training.

[Old Grump]

I hated that place, some guys could stand there without a mask and smoke a cigarette or eat a candy bar but that gas turned my skin red and burned before I even got in the chamber. Worst yet I was the NBC NCO and had to run everybody through so I got to stand there and get it all day long. Didn't bother my lungs much but I was definitely sensitive to it.

[bmpeele]

My Dad told me about the gas chamber, He also said that the Drill Sergeant told them to flap their arms like a chicken and it would make the effects go away. What a sight that would have been.

[199er]

Posted by bumpeele

My Dad told me about the gas chamber, He also said that the Drill Sergeant told them to flap their arms like a chicken and it would make the effects go away. What a sight that would have been.

Really??? I spent a total of 5 years as a Drill Sergeant (11/77-11/80 & 2/83-2/85) and never knew that flapping your arms like a chicken "negated" the effects of the CS gas...................we always told our troops to rub their eyes vigoriously for 30 seconds then rinse the gas out of their eyes with water from their canteens (he,he,hee).

[Snakedriver]

Originally Posted by 199er

Really??? I spent a total of 5 years as a Drill Sergeant (11/77-11/80 & 2/83-2/85) and never knew that flapping your arms like a chicken "negated" the effects of the CS gas...................we always told our troops to rub their eyes vigoriously for 30 seconds then rinse the gas out of their eyes with water from their canteens (he,he,hee).

Dude, that's just so wrong!!!

[199er]

we always told our troops to rub their eyes vigoriously for 30 seconds then rinse the gas out of their eyes with water from their canteens (he,he,hee)................

Dude, that's just so wrong!!!

Wrong ????? If you have them "do it in the right sequence" , that method always without fail relieved the burning in the eyes (he, he,hee).

[Snakedriver]

Originally Posted by 199er

Wrong ????? If you have them "do it in the right sequence", that method always without fail relieved the burning in the eyes (he, he,hee).

When I was at Ft. Riley, they made us go out in the field as a unit and live in mobile airfields. Somehow (I don't know how?) the Admin. tents and the slick drivers always got gased in the middle of the night by the OPFOR. Somehow, (again I don't know how?) the gun platoon always missed out on the fun. One time six CS grenades went into a single tent and that really was a problem for those poor souls. Rubbing the eyes and flushing didn't seem to help them.

[199er]

Posted by Snakedriver...
Somehow, (again I don't know how?) the gun platoon always missed out on the fun.

I would suspect the Gun Platoon was the culprit, especially after the second attack (Duh?)

One time six CS grenades went into a single tent and that really was a problem for those poor souls. Rubbing the eyes and flushing didn't seem to help them.

Ya'll were on an FTX so where were your M25a1 Protective masks?? .............stored in your choppers or packed away in your duffle bags?

I learned early on that keeping ones protective mask with them on an FTX wasn't just soley for tactical purposes............... Screams of "GAS"!!! were often heard in the wee hours of numerous mornings and it wasn't always as part of the field problem either.

[Snakedriver]

Believe it or not we actually flew several gas missions in Vietnam with those silly things on. They fogged up and generally were a big pain in the a$$.

As you say, when on FTX you learned to have your mask close by at all times.

ETA: I wasn't, but a lot of the warrants I flew with were prior service badasses with multiple tours in Vietnam. Playing war stateside just brought out the stinker in them. I was just an innocent young guy looking for fun.

[millwright]

CS gas is for sissies !! Its follow-on, CS2, OTOH, was another beastie entirely. In confined spaces it could be lethal due to a number of factors.

FWIW, I spent a couple of months making/packing CS-2. Unlike its predecessor, CS, it required a dedicated facility that, (allegedly), ran at negative pressure. Workers making both products were of no doubt as to the potency.... >MW

[jack404]

chasing out the KR in tunnels was not fun we'd gas em ( CS used CS-2 in training and thankfully it was not field used then) then someone would have to go in and check

guess who the skinny dude was who got to check ..

that and a torch and a F1 or pistol forget the gas mask i needed every bit of eye and ear access for that one

i'd come out snotty and grotty teary eyed and awfull ticked off

i guess nothings changed eh

its amazing what you can get used too ..

[Marlin T]

I had to laugh when I saw that one.

[Insulation Tim]

I remember taking the mask off at Ft. Jackson, taking a big whiff, and feeling as if I had been punched in the gut and couldn't breathe. Once out of the building, there were all kinds of guys retching and snot pouring out of thir eyes and nose. It made a big impression on me; CS is nasty and the masks do work.

[Night Driver]

My daughter graduated basic training from Ft Jackson on 8/5. She said nearly all the members of her platoon were violently sick as they emerged from the "gas shack". She said she was close to vomiting but since she was older than most of the recruits (27) she felt compelled to try and set a poitive example. She agreed it was the worst experience she had at boot camp.

Otherwise she did pretty well in basic training overall. In fact she and 5 other recruits, 3 male & 2 female, were the only members of the 53 person training platoon that qualified on their first trip to the rifle range. After qualifying she asked if she could shoot some more but was refused with the explanation that they didn't have enough ammunition! (?)

I can only assume she was paying a lot more attention to dad on those trips we made to the range than I thought. You just can never tell with kids sometime.

[xm774u]

not fun grrr mopp drill