Vietnam-era Radiomen life expectancy was 5 seconds

Aim for the Antenna man. Knock out the com ! Great post CW5 Jack Cardwell

I was a field radio operator (2531) but not in Vietnam. We still used all of the Vietnam era equipment in the early 1980's. A PRC 77 was the preferred radio to hump as it was relatively light. You always tried to get by with the 3 foot tape (which was good for a few miles). After that, it was the 10' whip, which, in the jungle hit everything. Even the LT's didn't want to be too close to you.

Some of the things they called "man pack" were laughable. If that was all you had to carry it was do-able but you still had your pack, armor, rifle, web gear etc. The weight could get out of control quickly.

Wow. The gear weight alone would have done me in.