bondoman wrote: |
Thank you Primm. That man in the back of the pic is the loadmaster? Any more pics of that quality would be great, Did the medivacs have Marine Nurses on board? What was their insignia? |
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"That man" was me when I was all of 21 years old. At the time we weren't known as "loadmasters", we were referred to as "crew chiefs". The normal crew was four...Pilot, Co-Pilot, Crew Chief, and 1st Mech.
Later when I got out of the Marines and enlisted in the Army and started crewing CH-47s, the number of crewmembers was the same..four. Pilot, Co-Pilot, Flight Engineer (same as Crew Chief on CH-46s) and Crew Chief (same as a 1st Mech on CH-46s).
As I understand it, the selection and training of enlisted aircrew for CH-46s has changed quite a bit since I crewed in the 70's. The process of selecting and training crewmembers used to be much more informal. In the past, prospective crew members were chosen from the helicopter mechanics within the sqaudron who showed initiative and a positive attitude, and aptitude towards working on helicopters. After a period of about three months under the tutleage of a more experienced Crew Chief, the prospective crewmember had to undergo a series of check rides, oral, practical and written exams to test technical knowledge of the aircraft and gain the approval of the Line Chief and be endorsed by the C.O. before being awarded permanent aircrew status. (A similiar process was in place for qualifying as a crewmember in the Army)
As has already been mentioned, all medical personnel assigned to Marine Corps units are actually Naval medical types. We didn't have any medical personnel assigned to us at the Squadron level, but while deployed as detachments we would often have some medical personnel assigned, depending on the size of the detachment and where we were sent, but they didn't typically fly any missions with us.
The medical personnel assigned to Marine Corps units normally wear the same work uniform (utilities) as Marines, and the only way to tell that they aren't Marines is the collar insignia they wear, or when they are in their dress uniforms. I never saw any Corpsmen wearing red cross armbands if that is what you are asking.
Medical personnel assinged to the Marine Corps, especially those assigned to infantry units, are usually highly regarded and efforts are made to keep them happy....No one wants to******off "doc".