FSM Vets Pics and Original Pics of Military Modelling Subjects...

Good to see you back on here Rob! 

Rob Gronovius

I did 28 years in the Army, four in the Guard while in college and 24 years as an officer. I retired almost 5 years ago as a lieutenant colonel at Fort Knox. Most of my career was spent on tanks and in armor units. My profile has the list of vehicle types I crewed. I've got lots of photos, too many to post.

Picture of my as a 23 yr old 2LT watering the grass at Hohenfels, Germany circa 1988.

A photograph of my platoon and me somewhere in Germany during REFORGER '88. I am seated with glasses.

Photo of me as a young captain during a subsequent tour to southwest Asia, summer 1992.

My son Matt, somewhere during one of his two tours in Afghanistan.

The plaque he got me for my 50th birthday. His UAV unit flew an American flag inside the aircraft during a mission, scoring two confirmed kills in Afghanistan.

 

ROB cool pics. i don't remember Hohenfels being that green. 

LONEMOOSE after a stint as A@ tank platoon leader i commanded the battalion 4.2" mortar platoon. best job.

this is me in my younger years; 1987 Ft Hood, MILES trainer sitting on an M1 think i am facing west but i think we were on the east side of the training area. i recall ripping the side out of a tire on my pickup out there and doing some serious self recovery.

waynec

ROB cool pics. i don't remember Hohenfels being that green. 

LONEMOOSE after a stint as A@ tank platoon leader i commanded the battalion 4.2" mortar platoon.

I did not serve due to physical problems.

My brother was in Army Intelligence for 20 years, retired as Captain, and then the PAO of Lemoore Naval Air Station for 20 years.  Did a couple tours in Korea and a couple of tours in Nam.  Somewhere in the middle of those, he found time to go to Airborne school and learned to jump out of perfectly good aircraft.  

I did have 2 uncles that served.  One was in the Submarine Service in a Gato class submarine.  Never found out exactly which one.  He did scratch build a model of it but it was destroyed while moving from Penna. to N.J.  His brother was an officer in the Merchant Marines and had 2 ships blown out from under him.  Both of them got me and my brother started building models. Anytime they came over, they always had a couple of models for us or some other supplies.  Mom and dad thought that building models was a waste of time and money.  I have 1 pic of them, in uniform, with me.  It was taken in 1943 and the cute little kid standing between them was 3 yr. old me.  Sorry I can't post the pic as PB and I don't play well.

Jim  

fox

Both of them got me and my brother started building models. Anytime they came over, they always had a couple of models for us or some other supplies.  Mom and dad thought that building models was a waste of time and money.  I have 1 pic of them, in uniform, with me.  It was taken in 1943 and the cute little kid standing between them was 3 yr. old me.  Sorry I can't post the pic as PB and I don't play well.

Jim  

 

fox

 I have 1 pic of them, in uniform, with me.  It was taken in 1943 and the cute little kid standing between them was 3 yr. old me.  Sorry I can't post the pic as PB and I don't play well.

Jim  

 

I did a project for my daughter's kids.  Built kits of the plane I worked on (AT2 Rick Heinbaugh in S-3A of VS-41, 1976), the plane that Great Grandpa Gene flew in (PFC Gene Paap in AD-5, 1960) and the plane that Great Grandpa Vern flew in (1LT Vern Moncur in B-17G "Thunderbird", 1944).  Maybe the next step would be to gather up some photos, someday. 

Another project is to build 1/700 kits of my three ships - USS Jouett CG-29, USS Independence CV-62 and USS Stein FF-1065.

fox

I did have 2 uncles that served.  One was in the Submarine Service in a Gato class submarine.

Lot's of my relatives are or were horse and cow.

Me in 1971/72

My second tour, 1974

A couple of my biggest vehicles for work.

Waiting for this to come out.  One of my Grail kits.

Well this youngster is not a USAF vet yet... but he will be one day... and posing at Lackland  in front of the aircraft his grannddad (my dad) flew in...

Surface_Line

I did a project for my daughter's kids.  Built kits of the plane I worked on (AT2 Rick Heinbaugh in S-3A of VS-41, 1976), the plane that Great Grandpa Gene flew in (PFC Gene Paap in AD-5, 1960) and the plane that Great Grandpa Vern flew in (1LT Vern Moncur in B-17G "Thunderbird", 1944).  Maybe the next step would be to gather up some photos, someday. 

Another project is to build 1/700 kits of my three ships - USS Jouett CG-29, USS Independence CV-62 and USS Stein FF-1065.

 

Rick

 

 

Thanks Rick for showing your great set of models.  I recognize the name of Lt. Vern Moncur of the 303rd Bomb Group Association and website.  I go there alot as my uncle was a flight engineer in the 427th BS from April 13, 1943 to October 1943 when he and his crew was transferred to the 482nd BG (the Original Pathfinders) after the Second Schweinfurt mission.  He was with the 482nd until January 13, 1944 after he had completed his 25 missions.  He returned to the US for a USO tour, and then he ferried new B-17's to England.

Was that shot taken at the parade field or somewhere else?  When I was there a long time ago for a school they had moved several aircraft form the small museum they had near the gate over there, although they had a large amount of aircraft on display near the different barracks and used some for the Security Police school as training aids.  At one time they even had some V-1s on display here and there.

That was on the Parade Field. One side is bombers, another is transports, and a third is fighters. Then off on of the gates there is a collection of Vietnam War aircraft. And at the Airmans' Heritage Museum is a few more aircraft. And then there is the Security Forces Museum as well. A very nice base with quite a bit to see.

I heard they were going to close down the Security museum.  The S.F. were at one time called the Security Police, after they dropped the Air Police name.  Law Enforcement or Security.  I was L.E.  If you were going to a base in S.E.A. then you attended the A.Z.R. combat school at Lackland, Medina Annex, and Camp Bullis.

Well the Security Forces Museum was still open as of mid May, and showed no signs of being shut down. It was a very nice musuem I thought. Lots of good artifacts on dispaly from the birth of the Air Force until today's current combat operations. IIRC, were there not two branches, Air Police and Security Police? One did more typical Law Enforcement and the other was tasked with flight line type security. That's how a guy I knew explained it to me around 1980 or so. He was stationed then at March AFB guarding the B-52s there when it was an active SAC base. We grew up in the same neighborhood. March was something like a 45 minute drive from home back then.

All of my old pics are in storage, but I do have some pics of 2 of the units I served aboard. 

WMEC 38 Storis (The Galloping Ghost of the Alaskan Coast), which was decommissioned in Feb 07

WHEC 725 Jarvis, which was transferred to the Bangladesh Navy in 2013 as the BNS Somudra Joy, a guided missile frigate.

There are no kits of either of these fine ships.

Simper Paratus

Steve

The A.Ps were created in the early days of the Air Force.  They wer responsible for both L.E. and Security.  I imagine you were given one or the other and that was the job yu retained permentantly unless they needed you in the other field at your next assignment or you found a way yourself.

I got drafted in 1970 and after basic went to school at Lackland were I was in the first of the specilized courses for either L.E. or Security.  Fortunately I went into L.E.

My first badge was labeled Air Police but these were being recalled and the new ones reading Security Police were being issued.

Another change that took place was the creation of the combat school that anyone in the S.P. that received orders for anywhere in South East Asia, including Korea, were required to complete.  The reason was as they explained it was that during the Korean war the A.P.s had basically no combat training and a base was over run.  Tha aircraft were evaced out but were supposed to remain and cover the pull out of the last troops.  Wanna guess who that was?  The aircraft just kept going and the defenders were stranded with no help.

When the base was retaken they found all the cops murdered and many hung on meat hooks.

Afterward the fighter squadron (s) and other units (fighter wing) were marked and disgraced and would never be allowed to be re assigned in the U.S. again.

I'm pretty sure I know who they were because I heard similar stories at one base I was assigned to years later.

When I went through the school we received much of the same training given to the Army with modifications needed for a Air Base role.  We had armor, heavy weapons and good leadership.

Here's a couple of my favorite shots:

You have to feel sorry for this guy: