The Infantryman, the MSC and the .45

He was an Air Force Medical Service Corps Officer, a Captain stationed at Cam Ranh Bay Vietnam in 1971. As chief of administration, one of his duties included customs inspections for departing hospital ship patients.

The Captain stood at the severely wounded infantryman's bedside. He was assisting with processing the patient for imminent evacuation on a ship the next day. With some time remaining, he asked the soldier how he was injured. The soldier was lucid and could see everything that had happened to him.

"I was on a recon when the soldier in front me hit a tripwire that killed him. I quickly looked around and saw a figure running away through the bush. I chased him down and killed him. I found a .45 on him and headed back to my unit carrying the .45 with me. As I was returning, I hit another trip wire that blew off my legs and arms.

Colonel Collins E. "Hugh" Smith Jr., USAF, MSC (Ret)
Cam Ranh Bay, Viet Nam, 1971

The Captain explained he was the customs inspector and asked the soldier if he had any weapons or narcotics with him. The soldier said; "Yes Captain. There's a .45 right in the middle of my back." The MSC said; "Will it be okay if I turn you a little and take a look at it?" The soldier agreed. The MSC said; "Please tell me it's unloaded." The soldier assured him it was not so he then gently lifted the soldier's shoulder revealing the .45 underneath.

The MSC removed the clip and inspected it and the chamber. Finding both empty, he then said; "You know you can legally go home with this as a war souvenir. I can run over to my friend the provost marshall, get it attested for you and be back within 5 minutes."

The soldier said; "No, you keep it.  I am not going to make it." The MSC noted the soldier's contact information. After a week or so, the MSC called the soldier's home. He offered to get the .45 shipped to the soldier but the parents told him to just keep it. Their son after all, did not make it.

After thirty-one years, the MSC retired as a Colonel having served as a Director of Base Medical Services at three facilities for his last 10+ years.  Today, more than 25 years post-retirement, the Colonel still softly tells the story with a deep, abiding sense of love and respect for the infantryman with the .45.