I was in Viet Nam, and had just returned from R&R in Hong Kong and was waiting to catch a plane back up north to Phu Bei. There is like a thousand troops in lines to go to different location. I hear somebody yell, hey Johnson, I look around and of course don't see anybody that I know. Then I hear it again, hey Johnson, and I see this guy waving in my direction. So i'm like me? And he shakes his head. So I still can't tell who it is. So he gets out of his line walks over and I'll be damn Its Billy Blackwell. HEYYYYYYY, hugs. I asked what the hell are you doing here. He says he just got in country. And was assigned to the 2nd of the 502 Infantry. He was headed to Phu Bei also. So we flew together up north and just so happens my CO is being picked up by our company clerk/driver and we catch a ride with him. Now I don't even claim to have any Political pull at all in the Army, but I asked my Co if he could help Billy get out of being a grunt. The CO asked Billy if he could drive a Jeep, of course Billy said yes. Co says he has a friend who's a Colonel who needs a driver. Billy got the job. About 3 weeks before I had ran into Cliff Sullivan, so all three of us got to hookup. Its was so cool running into people I knew so far from home.
Bill Johnson
I was in Viet Nam, and had just returned from R&R in Hong Kong and was waiting to catch a plane back up north to Phu Bei. There is like a thousand troops in lines to go to different location. I hear somebody yell, hey Johnson, I look around and of course don't see anybody that I know. Then I hear it again, hey Johnson, and I see this guy waving in my direction. So i'm like me? And he shakes his head. So I still can't tell who it is. So he gets out of his line walks over and I'll be damn Its Billy Blackwell. HEYYYYYYY, hugs. I asked what the hell are you doing here. He says he just got in country. And was assigned to the 2nd of the 502 Infantry. He was headed to Phu Bei also. So we flew together up north and just so happens my CO is being picked up by our company clerk/driver and we catch a ride with him. Now I don't even claim to have any Political pull at all in the Army, but I asked my Co if he could help Billy get out of being a grunt. The CO asked Billy if he could drive a Jeep, of course Billy said yes. Co says he has a friend who's a Colonel who needs a driver. Billy got the job. About 3 weeks before I had ran into Cliff Sullivan, so all three of us got to hookup. Its was so cool running into people I knew so far from home.