Jumping/Skydiving

by **sureshot** » September 30th, 2003, 9:45 pm

Rangers-

While you are in Bat, can you jump as much as you'd like to for training, or are you given a certain number of times per week or per month that they will allow you? Also, just out of curiosity, does anyone skydive outside of Bat in their free time? Thanks.

by **Saltbitch** » September 30th, 2003, 10:45 pm

As far as your first question, I didn't jump that often at all. In fact, I was a 'pay-hurt' most of my time in Bat. It was feast or famine; some guys, like the JCT would jump 5 or 6 times in the same week during training time. Then they might not jump for two months. I was one of the Company's few master drivers, so I usually was an 'airlando-commando' during these times. I jumped just enough to keep my jump status/jump pay. Sometimes this necessitated going down to Airborne School and 'straphanging' with them. Which was fun; we were treated like gods by the cadre(even though a few were ex-Batboys). There might only be ten or so of us, but we'd get our own pass, free of Airborne studs....membership has its priveliges. :wink:

As far as skydiving, I know/knew many guys who were civilian licensed and went as often as they could.

by **Spartan** » September 30th, 2003, 11:58 pm

In 2/75 the guys who got the most jumps were not the JCTs, but the BSFET's.

by **sureshot** » October 1st, 2003, 5:37 pm

Ranger Neves-

Only found one other mention of JCT in this forum with no explanation and no mention of BSFET. Pardon the ignorance, but what do they stand for? Thanks.

by **Spartan** » October 1st, 2003, 6:50 pm

sureshot wrote:Ranger Neves-

Only found one other mention of JCT in this forum with no explanation and no mention of BSFET. Pardon the ignorance, but what do they stand for? Thanks.

Oh, sure - no problem. We get to taking these for granted after a while.

JCT = Jump Clearing Team
BSFET = Board Surfing Forced Entry Team

by **Tater Nuts** » October 9th, 2003, 2:30 pm

This was an eye opener for me, in the early 80's everyone at 1st Batt. was getting 30-50 jumps a year and over half were night combat equipment with -1B canopies, I would say less then 5 were t-10 jumps. Some days we would take a chinook and a pallet of chutes for a platoon and make 5-6 hollywood jumps in one day. Was it still like this for you Bell after I left.

by **Bell** » October 9th, 2003, 2:47 pm

Sure was. I think I mentioned it in here before. We'd grab choppers and have squad competitions all day long. Jump for the tape in the middle of the DZ. First guys to the tape were the winners. We jumped a lot.

Every where we went, we jumped in. It seemed like everything we did was mission oriented. They always figured some way to turn anything we did into a training mission.

RLTW
Bell

by **Spartan** » October 9th, 2003, 3:01 pm

Had two fun jump days when I was in B co 2/75. Got 3 jumps one time and six another. But that was nothing compared to the last day of RIP. They brought over a box truck full of chutes that were going to expire and require repacking. Everyone who was going to graduate got to burn through it with a pair of hueys. These were MC-1 chutes and after 2-3 jumps some of us wised up and learned that the trick was to try and land right next to that box truck each time so we could be rigging a new chute on within 3-4 minutes of landing. I got either 9 or 11 jumps that day, I don't recall which.

When I got to Bn, I already had about 15 jumps under my belt.

by **The Holmchicken** » October 9th, 2003, 6:05 pm

I was in Jeeps and Bikes Platoon (RSOV) before all the RSOVs and bikes in Battalion were collected and one compnay was designated the RSOV company. That company happened to be mine. So the entire time I was in 2/75, I got 24 jumps total. Half the time I was a pay hurt and my RIP class didn't jump. So while other guys got to rotate thru JCT and what not, my platoon was stuck with air lando-commando about 90% of the time.

by **harrisn** » October 9th, 2003, 9:17 pm

6 years in 1/75, only 57 jumps on the log,... funny though, seems like there was more... Orderly Room shitbirds... figures... :roll:

by **Steadfast** » January 19th, 2004, 11:22 pm

Oh how I envy all those jumps you guys made.

Sureshort said: Only found one other mention of JCT in this forum with no explanation and no mention of BSFET. Pardon the ignorance, but what do they stand for? Thanks.

Spartan replied:

Oh, sure - no problem. We get to taking these for granted after a while.

JCT = Jump Clearing Team
BSFET = Board Surfing Forced Entry Team

Like sureshort, I did not know these terms either nor had I ever heard of them. I learned something new today.

During my time in the 75th Inf we never made one single jump from a fixed wing aircraft. I sure would have liked that. All parachute jumps by the Army was halted after the 173rd Brigade jumped into RVN in MAY 65 was what I heard.

Again, I envy you Paratroopers.

by **BadMuther** » January 20th, 2004, 3:07 am

I got 40 jumps my whole time in.

And I was in the JCT platoon..... :roll:

They said that birds were over in Saudi, so while that was going on I didn't jump at RIP and I barely jumped the first half of my first year in Batt.

We did "5-ton jumps"......for an artep one time, we actually had to rig up and got driven to the strip.....then we all pretended like we had just jumped......can you say GAY?????

I did a few fun jumps when I was in too.

by **Saltbitch** » January 20th, 2004, 3:54 am

Yeah, the Mailman and I can remember quite a few 'Bluebird' infil/exfils. You know, the schoolbuses the Army uses!! :lol:

....we Bluebird in; we stakebed out...
....'Death from above, we'll scream and shout'....

Running cadence my squadleader would sing. We weren't 'allowed' to sing about '...Blood, guts, sex and danger...' on Main Post.

by **Steadfast** » January 20th, 2004, 5:24 pm

I remember that song, blood, guts, sex and danger. We sang it in jump school along with I wanna be an Airborne Ranger. Dang I really envy you guys. I went to the 82nd after jump school and I made but 2 jumps only so that I could continue to get out jump pay. All monies we were told were being diverted to RVN. All I can say is two jumps is better than being a leg!

by **Slowpoke** » January 20th, 2004, 5:57 pm

Steadfast wrote:Oh how I envy all those jumps you guys made.
During my time in the 75th Inf we never made one single jump from a fixed wing aircraft. I sure would have liked that. All parachute jumps by the Army was halted after the 173rd Brigade jumped into RVN in MAY 65 was what I heard.

Again, I envy you Paratroopers.

The 173rd Abns "combat jump" was during Operation Junction City in '67. We didn't get to participate in that BS but we did get to make some (4, I think) fun jumps (Hollywood) from a Huey, in the rear area in Bien Hoa, while I was there. We also got to practice McGuire Rig exfils, that was even more fun than jumping. Nothing quite like dangling on a rope 100 ft. under a Huey at 2,000 ft. to make you feel like Peter Pan. Also makes you pretty good with knots.

Jumping/Skydiving

Jumping/Skydiving

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