What is your funniest salute story?

A couple of buddies and I were coming out of a restaurant and a 2LT was walking toward us. My buddies saluted, but I didn't see the 2LT, so I didn't salute right away. He stopped us and made me stand still and salute him for a whole five minutes and he never rendered my salute.

Funny that you say. I was assigned to a Royal Air Force Base overseas. This was an American base with US Air Force Personnel. Here I was a Third Class (PO3/E4) just out of "A" school. While walking around the base. Everyone was saluting me. I did not know the Air Force ranking structure, so as a courtesy I saluted back. People were saying, "Good Morning Sir" and Let me get that door for you sir? I was very confused. Then when I got back to my command. I told everyone what was happening to me. I later founded out that they were saluting because everyone thought I was a colonel and only saw the eagle on my collar. Then when I would walking around and got a salute. I would explain to the USAF personnel that I was an E4 then tell them about my insignia. The chevron indicated my paygrade and eagle for the Navy. So after a year on base I still got saluted. I got tired of explaining so I would say, don't salute "I am Navy enlisted E4.

I was the company clerk at Group HQ company. My desk looked out of a window that faced the Lt. Col. office. One morning as the Lt. Col. came staggering out of his back door (unfortunately not an unusual event) our "papasan" janitor gave him a very crisp salute. The bleary eyed Officer looked back and gave him an equally crisp salute. Not sure if he knew who he was saluting.

Had broken a finger in my right hand and with a hard cast extending from finger to forearm i had been informed to salute with my left hand until the cast was removed. The next morning i smartly saluted the first officer i saw with my left hand and i could see he broke stride as he did a double take to what he was witnessing.

At Aberdeen PG my battle body and I got out of the mess hall and there is this 2LT walking towards us, I got to salute him and my buddy didn't. Few steps after, we got call by the LT, which we thought it was for not saluting him, instead he hand me his silver coin for being the first enlisted to salute him, while a senior NCO that was nearby, chew my partner for not saluting an officer......

my funniest salute story

Standing in a Brigade formation next in line for the Commander and CSM to review my rank when a bird flew over and dropped his load on my Class A Uniform and I didn't know it.. It happened at Ft. Hood TX as I was getting ready to call the PLT to attention
1ST Armored Bde HHC

Similar left hand salute story. A couple weeks from graduating from Basic at Ft. Jackson (Dec 1973) I was called to the orderly room one evening after dinner. As I came around the corner of the Orderly Room, our XO came out the door. In full stride as my left hand was coming up, I brought it to my hat as I came to a stop. The XO, as he was turning away from me, came to a complete stop, stood straight up, did a nice about face. By then I had stopped and had my right hand in the proper salute position. He takes a couple of steps in my direction, I'm still at attention. Says, Private Flack, "what did you just do?" Sir, I caught myself, Sir!" Ok, nice job, carry on......

My wise guy friend and I were coming up on a Bird Colonel that we didn't particularly like. So, without even discussing it, we snapped a great salute, both of us with the left hand. He returned the salute but you could see him, as he passed, look at his own hands. And then, that same Colonel came out of the chow hall and proceeded to lose his lunch at a tree. Three of us surrounded him and saluted as he called for Ralph. We didn't wait for a return salute that time. :)

I was assigned to the Atlanta Army Depot (Renamed Ft Gillum a long time ago) in the early 70's as a helicopter test pilot.
The head of aircraft maintenance for the Alabama Nation Guard was a crusty old W4 who did not play by the rules.
He was walking with a some civilian employees on the ramp and passed a 2nd LT without saluting him. When the LT passed him, he yelled at the LT to come back and began chewing him out for not Saluting a "Field Grade Warrant Officer" (That was back when W4 was the highest Warrant Officer rank.) The LT saluted and apologized and returned to his unit across the street.
The LT found out that the W4 was messing with him and came back looking for him but he had already taken off for Alabama with the parts he needed that he got through the back door as usual. He was not one for doing paperwork.

1995. Fort Bliss TX, home of the Army Air Defense Schools which are shared with Marines. I am a former Marine Sgt and retired Army Officer so I have an officer's sticker on my truck. Driving through the Post when I pass two young Marines Privates. Naturally they see my sticker and both salute, both using their outboard hands. One right handed salute, one left handed salute. I whip around, drive up on the curb to cut them off, and in my best Marine Sergeant voice demand to know, "Has my Marine Corps changed so much since I got out that you now salute with your left hands?!" Since they are fresh out of Bootcamp I have them quivering in their boots (as an aside here, I was good friends with the Marine Detachment First Sergeant). The Private that saluted properly tries to cover for his buddy by explaining that "He is a southpaw, Sir". I rip into them for a few moments more about representing the entire Marine Corps while on an Army installation, threaten to tell the First Sergeant, and then let them go trying to maintain that stern Marine attitude the entire time. In their defense, when I was fresh out of Boot Camp and assigned to a Navy installation we often ignored Navy officers in cars just to annoy them.