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In February, 1965, the Viet Cong attacked an American military base near Pleiku. Using the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, President Johnson sent in 3,500 Marines, the first official troops, to South Vietnam. By the end of the year, there were 200,000 US troops in Vietnam.
Force Recon Officers are typically not the Gung-Ho soldier fighting the battle, but more of a command/logistics organizer back at base. The Marines put a strong emphasis on leadership, so usually a enlisted Sergent will be the one leading the Recon team on missions. However, officers usually will be the key planners of the mission, and will sometimes be sent out with their team, especially if the Recon team is sent to a forward operating post in Afghanistan or something similar to that. Also, officers almost never attend Recon training. As an officer you would have to select the Infantry MOS and then serve your 3-4 years as an infantry officer. You would see combat then, but after you reach the rank of 03-04, you typically won't see much combat as an infantry officer. Once you serve you required time as a payment for your training, you may request to be transfered to Recon. It is very hard to get your commanding officer to recommend you. If you were good at your last job he might not let you go, and if you were bad then he wouldn't recommend you because it might eventually come back to him. Overall, Recon does see combat, but very little compared to a typical Marine unit. Officers will almost never see combat as a Recon Officer, so If you want to be a "gunfighter", enlistment would be your best option as you can choose a Recon MOS. Hope this helped!
'55 to '75.
Lyndon B Johnson
Assuming an 18-year old was in Vietnam in April, 1973 when the last U.S. combat forces left Vietnam, he might live to be 90 years old in 2045. Most Vietnam vets have turned 65, or will turn 65 in the next five years.