Dawn Patrol Vietnam 1964

Four American "Advisors" ready themselves for a patrol in the early day of US involvement in South Vietnam. 

.45 Grease Gun, 2 .30 carbines and a 12-gauge Trench and lots of frag grenades give the Advisors a decent amount of firepower.
 

  Into the jungle where danger is everywhere, animals, insects, diseases and the Viet Cong.

These are plastic kit-bashed pieces that I painted this week.

Vietnam 1962-the Advisors Phase

Armed with the reliable .45 cal. M3 Submachine Gun, popularly known as the "Grease Gun," this American Advisor has taken an active part in an Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) patrol. In the last years of the Eisenhower Administration some 700 US military advisors were active in South Vietnam. In 1962, the new Kenedy Administration sent an additional 500 to assist the ARVN. 
 

With continuing requests for more advisors and support personal from the South Vietnamese Government and US military, the numbers of American forces committed grew steadily, reaching 11,000+ by the end of 1962. To that date 53 US military personnel had be killed in Vietnan.

Within a year the number of American service personnel in Vietnam had reached 16,000 and the next phase of US escalating the war into full combat involvement was on the near horizon.

This is a kit bashed plastic piece I painted in January.

Marine Recon on Patrol

The Elite Marine Recon units ranged far into the most hostile ares of VC controled territory throughout the Vietman War.

Armed with the M-16 rifle, a heavy colt .45 1911 pistol, and the famous K-bar knife, this Marine is ready for any dangers the bush holds.

This figure is my first attempt at a Vietnam War miniature. He is a metal 25mm figure that I painted in the early 2000's.