Fire Support Base (FSB) or Landing Zone (LZ) as they were called earlier in the Vietnam War were where we would rest between patrols. Most patrols lasted from 12 to 15 days out in the jungle looking for the enemy or his activities. We would then spend 3 or 4 days on a FSB. The larger FSB's would have 105 or 155 mm howitzers, mortar platoon, command & control bunker, mess hall, medical aid station and other supporting resources. The FSB's were set up to support the maneuvering companies out in the jungle, other FSB's and recon by fire on suspected enemy location's. It was truly amazing how fast and accurate those guy's were with there howitzers and mortars.

Our rest period would include pulling guard duty 24 hrs a day. Each infantry man would pull a 1 or 2 hour stint in one of the guard bunkers rotating among all of our enlisted men in the company. The 1st Cavalry FSB's were built in the form of a triangle with a combination sleeping and guard bunker on each corner. There was an M-60 machine gun, claymore mines, starlight night vision spotting scope and a radio in each of the guard bunkers. There also was a shooting range where we would shoot up our old ammunition and make sure our weapons were in good working order.

Then there was latrine duty. When the cut off 55 gallon barrel became full of human waste we would add fuel oil and a little gas to burn the waste up. THIS DID NOT SMELL GOOD. There also was garbage detail. We would pick up the trash barrels on a mule (small motorized cart) and transport it outside the fire base perimeter and dump it into a large pit where it was later burned.

While on the FSB we would receive mail and any packages from back home. A good cold pop or beer was had by spinning it on a block of ice when we could get our hands on one. We could also take a well deserved shower. This consisted of a tripod with a canvas bucket that had a shower head attached to it. You would stand on a wooden pallet to keep out of the mud. No privacy but it sure felt good. A trip to the barber and medical aid station were usually a necessity. The jungle was not kind to our bodies as in BIG BUGS, man eating ants, leeches and plants that had an attitude. Our feet also took a real beating during the rainy season.

©2003 John Banicki