Quote:
Originally Posted by Stealhead
People ignore more or less the guys that fought in Korea and even more Vietnam we call WWII fighters the bravest yet men that fought in Vietnam spent nearly 180 day per year in combat compared to the average of 10 days per year I call the person that spent 180 days in combat damn brave if he was lucky enough to survive
|
I think those numbers are probably skewed by the many more people involved in supporting WW2s maximum war effort compared to that in the limited wars of Korea and Vietnam. Of course combat arms troops like armor and infantry spent far more time in combat in WW2 than just 10 days a year and their tours were mostly "for the duration" instead of just 12 months.
Also I read somewhere awhile back that the mortality rate in WW2 was 1 in 15, just like it had been in all our wars since the Revolution, whereas during Korea and Vietnam, and every war since, it was about 1 in 1500 due to advances in battlefield medicine and the helicopter evac.
This is not to disrespect the bravery of Korea and Vietnam vets. They fought their wars with the same amount of courage and skill that our soldiers and sailors have always displayed and continue to do so to this day.
Personally I'm content to let the WW2 vets have their accolades. They'll be all gone soon enough and it will be the Korea and Vietnam vets turn to be feted.