Heavy Truck Operations Li'l Abner and the SSC 79 Maintenance CC&S Heavy Lift Group, Long Binh) from Rick Kouns

When I was 18 I went to live with my uncle in Davenport Iowa. Looked for a job there but no one would hire me so I enlisted in the Army, went to Ft Des Moines Iowa.

The Army sent me to Fort Polk Louisiana, took all my training there and tested for all wheel units.

When I was sent to Vietnam I landed in Cam Ranh. Then they sent me to 90th replacment center, Long Binh. I was assigned to Saigon Support Command, 79TH Maintenance Battalion CC&S Heavy Lift Group. Our compound was next US Army Depot Long Binh.

My first impressions of the place is how different the country and people looked and how the place smelled. My time in country was June 69 to June 70.

The 10 Ton Tractor had a 903 Cummings V8 with 300 Hr power  and the Transmission was a 5 speed  with a low & high range and front wheel drive. In the field we had M88 tank retrievers that went with us.They were ours. We had 4 of them. At Long Binh we had our own cranes to load & unload us. We hauled any kind of tank, new or to be shipped out for repairs. Also trucks, jeeps, dozers, earth movers.

We would take the tanks to wherever the 11th Armored Cavalry went and stayed with them until they went back to their base camp.

We were a transportation detachment with the 79th Maintenance Bn.

10-Ton with 50-Ton Trailer and disabled M-48 Tank at Cam Ranh Bay.	Rick Kouns with Li'l Abner when the truck was new

Loaded with a earth moving scraper pan at Long Binh, Rick is at the right	Don Singer from Cleveland Ohio.

After Vietnam the Army sent me to FT Carson Co, with 1st 29th Artillery A Battery 4th IN Div 155 S&P;spent 7 months then got out.