How many military members actually see combat?

My question is "what part of 'INFANTRY' do you seem to not grasp? Medic is ambiguous because it could be a medical guy in a rear facility, or it could be a COMBAT MEDIC. Then there are the COMBAT ENGINEERS, and artillery. Then you have the chopper crews who fly into combat to pick up dead and wounded. THERE Chinook and Blackhaek and other chopper crews. There are para-rescue and combat controllers in the AF. The Army and Marines have RTOs with every squad and they, along with combat medics have the biggest bulls eyes there are. My advice would be to shut your pie hole until you learn a few basic facts about the other branches' combat arms, and maybe figure out a truthful way to compare those positions and their pros and cons to whatever the Navy has to offer.

Sure except for the MPs at roadside checkpoints, drivers, TCs, gunners, and extra guys pulling security. The supplies don’t magically appear on post. You think there’s a guy in a USPS truck dropping the mail off? Who do you think is pulling Guard on those posts?

Okay so to answer the question directly. If you look ta the number of awards given in the form of CIB's, CAB's, and the CMB, you will find that approximate 1 in 5 people actually see combat, and that is for those people in a direct combat arms field.

Support personnel, like mechanics, cooks, etc have been placed in line units, but others like finance and personnel, were not.

Basically, if a civilian contractor could do your mission, you got put in the field, all of out cooks were sent with alpha company to round out their unit.

Finally, if you read the book 100 days of bad road (or maybe 100 miles of bad road), not sure which is the right title it will tell the story of a guy in Vietnam, whose sole job as an infantry support tank was to keep the MSR open so the beans and bullets could get to where it needed to be.

That is he EXACT mission that 80% of the "infantry" and other units in Iraq were doing, MSR security, it was we did at my fob, and the guys driving the trucks, the 88M's were the ones taking the brunt of the fire.

If you have guys that want to see combat, put them in as RPs, CBs, AWs, AMH/Ss, ADs (tell them to go Helos), and HMs.

a GOOD recruiter would not need to resort to lies, because he would understand the rates that were dry land types and could or would see combat.

Dude you need to bone up on your military jobs , being a recruiter. I was in the Infantry. which their job is to kill the enemy and I was a combat Engineer also and deployed to Kosovo . But in my Iraq deployment I was still a combat Engineer but was with a Het unit. Heavy transportation company, truck driver and we seen combat. So do your homework recruiter. You guys play with the Mariners and you didn't know what the Infantry was? Unexpectable.

MY first reaction to this was to laugh... What rating are you? Because as a Petty Officer 1st class, that question should not even be in your head. What do you think Combat Medics are? They are attached to every combat unit on the line. Truck drivers? Who do you think moves ammo and supplies to the boots on the ground? But the big one... Infantry? Really? What the hell do you think infantry are? THEY ARE the combat troops on the line...

The more I re-read what you wrote, the more I can't believe you even posted your question and said that.. Even though you and I are apparently Navy, I knew this before I even got to my very first ship.

I bet you have no idea that many Navy personnel of ALL ratings have seen actual shooting combat, do you? I started my career as a Sonar Technician Surface. And I can tell you I am now medically retired due to 5 major service connected on duty injuries at 85% physical which also has me 100% IU now... and I did not get those injuries sitting behind a desk or swabbing the deck on a ship.

As an Infantry officer in Vietnam in 1967 and in 1972 , we experienced hostel action almost on a daily basis. Both tours in Vietnam were spent in Quang Tri province, primarily, although we did go further south and west on occasion.

Everyone in a combat zone near the front lines will see combat. Infantry and medics definitely, truck drivers when they are on convoy in hostile areas probably. I was told when I joined the Army that everyone including cooks needed to know how to shoot and fight because the enemy in Korea completely overran units. Even in Vietnam when a Fire Support Base was under attack everyone including cooks had to fight. Our helicopter company at a base camp was mortared repeatedly even though only the flight crews were in combat everyday. If there is a war on and you're in a combat zone chances are you'll see action or the results.

Was in the Navy and truck drivers where pretty much always on convoys which meant leaving base. Medics is a given you will leave base. Infantry does not hang out and Guard the DFACS. They are on the convoys or something else fun.

Hospital Corpsmen with the Green Machine don't sit on their butts in the rear we are out with our assigned Platoon taking care of our Marines.

Some people will not actually see combat while in the Navy also. Your ship may be in a combat zone and you get a medal for being there. You are supporting the mission but you were never in actual combat like a front line soldier/Marine. Now Navy Medics are in front line rolls with Marines. Don't be a sexual intellectual aka a friggin' know it all about other services rolls.