ROK Force Recon

[nightinsertion]

I was at MEPS today draggin ass and I started reading the Marine Times. In the issue they discussed the ROK Marines and their Force Recon. It said that they come highly respected by their American counterparts. Is this true? Have any of you worked with them?

[Gary]

Top notch and very Bad Ass!

[lavbo0321]

nightinsertion/Gary

Westpac 88. We were niclely attatched with 4 ROK Recon Marines. The ROK team leader was a S/Sgt. We insrted at 0 dark thirty in the morning in a dryed out rice field. We ran to the edge of the woods. We did a short security halt/coom check/map check/ and then began our movement. We started going up a heavly bused out draw. It was touch going. When we reached the top we got in a 360 as best we could and tried to catch our breath. The ROK Maines just went off by them selves and started smoking. In the middle of the night. Now you could say man those guys were in shape. True. But smoking in the middle of the night when we are playing that we are deep behind enemy lines? My Team Leader Cpl. Sebastianski (passed away last December 99 in that helo crash off San Diago) went over there and told them to knock it off, and they did and there team leader gave a thousand apologies.

After that they were tight. Very strong and very guite.

I have a nice Green Beret I traded a bush cover and K-bar for.

Also a bunch of nice pics too.

When we set up our OP they went to the local vil' and got us some rice and wine. Needless to say we had a great op.

S/F

[nightinsertion]

According to the article, one of their regrets is that they haven't really been active since Vietnam and are in more of a defensive mode now, and also that they cant train as far abroad like U.S. Marine Recon. Has their mission capabilities suffered because of this? Are their missions similar to our Force Recon?

[YTDEVIL]

Ski was a good guy.

[Daredevil]

I'd read where the VC were terrified of ROK Marines because they had a fanatically intense hatred of communists.

[Duel Cool]

We played an intremural Soccor game against some ROK marines. It was the best bloody fight I have ever beenn in my Life. Brings a whole new meaning to Combat Soccor. These men are highly diciplined Solgiers and are definately worthy of my respect on any battlefield to come.

The level of Dicipline in their ranks is very commendable. Having seen a diciplinary action take place on one of their troops and the self dicipline of ROK marine to take the ass kicking and stand proud and accountable.

Reminds me of the old corps, where if you had a dissagreement with an NCO, their was a smoker out behind the barracks. Even if you won the fight you lost it, their was another NCO ready to jump in and take over the fight. Dicipline was maintained and the messege was clear, dont Fuck with a Marine NCO-SNCO.

My father served as a corpsman in Khe San and told me about amazing things the ROK marines did over there. One of the most important things he told me was about their mindset. They had a policy that stated. " Our Job is too make sure not 1 american will die over here in Vietnam, they are our Saviors and our Brothers." He told me they lived this policy and were deadly to the Vietcong and NVA.

Semper Fidelis,

DC

[LRSC Grunt]

Do marines stationed over in korea have south korean citizens augmented into their ranks, like the armys 2nd ID?

[Duel Cool]

The Marine Corps does not play racial or Gender politics. However those with linguist abilities will have the opportunity to serve in theaters that will benifit their linguist abilities.

Ive served with koreans, polynesians, chinese and vietnamese,laos, cambodian citizens that were in the Marine Corps. The marine Corps affords most MOS's the opportunity to pick an area to serve. Ie 1MEF, 2nd MEF and 3rd MEF, as well as the various MCSF and Airwing station assignments, Most of the guys I knew picked the areas that were close to their ethnic origins, for most it was an opportunity for them to serve the marine corps and to see the origins.

[Duel Cool]

We dont have station assignments in korea however we are part of the pacific Force infrastructure and do deployments and combined arms exercises with the koreans, as well as crosstraining and interservice familiarization.

Korea is just one of many countries to prepare for combat, in the pacific rim.

[LRSC Grunt]

The situation I was talking about isnt racial politics. The army has South Korean citizens who are augmented into 2nd ID. I forgot what they are called, something that starts with a "k". Anyways, they do this for linguist and cultural adaptation reasons. Usually the koreans that get assigned this are the ones with wealthy family to keep them away from the abusive ROK army. I was wondering if the marine corps did this also.

[LRSC Grunt]

They are called "KATUSAs".

Do the marines have katusas?

[This message has been edited by LRSC Grunt (edited 02-09-2001).]