Vietnam Advisor M1 helmet

[Rakkasan187]

Marty,

Here is what I was able to find in the US Army Register (1 January 1961)

Terrance William McClain 074370, Born: Colorado 5 September 34. Appointed from Connecticut (Where he initially entered the service). Graduated Infantry School Officer Basic Course 1954. BA in Political Science from The Citadel 1956. 2nd Lt Infantry, US Army Reserve 2 June 56 to 1LT Army of the United States (AUS), January 58. RA (Regular Army) 2nd Lt Infantry 23 July 56. D/R (Date of Rank) 23 July 56 to 1LT 23 July 59. P/L 23087 (PL= Promotion List)

Hope this helps a little

Best regards Brother..

Smitty

[Tank Destroyer]

The jump wings and Ranger tab makes me 100% convinced it’s his helmet.

[BlackCat1982]

Great helmet find! Love it.

[helmet2id]

Well done Marty! I like these "Follow Me" pieces!

[MAP]

What a productive day off. After those 15+ hour days week after week, most would kick back and sleep...but you went out looking for militaria! ROFL

Fantastic piece! Well deserved

[Tank Destroyer]

What a productive day off. After those 15+ hour days week after week, most would kick back and sleep...but you went out looking for militaria! ROFL

Fantastic piece! Well deserved

Michael, I read your post and had to step back and say “your right” I should have slept late... nope I was up a 0600 and went to the hotel gym then watched Church service online after service I Googled antique shops and the rest is history. I will not have another off day until Nov 1.
I’m tired, I miss my family but the people of Florida,Alabama and Louisiana have been through SO MUCH... do I have a reason or right to complain... NO, I’m thankful and thank God for my health and pray for the families affected. I did feel guilty for my crew in Lake Charles La. that had to ride out Hurricane Delta last Friday while I’m in FL.

Thanks for the thumbs up on the helmet...it’s on the tv stand in the hotel room LOL.
HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY!!!!!
Marty

[BlackCat1982]

Stay safe Marty and God protect you and those you protect also.

[Tank Destroyer]

Others always on McClain’s mind during battles
BY ABBEY ZELKO
Times Staff Writer
As a child growing up dur- ing World War II, Col. Ter- rence “Mac” McClain spent his time collecting and play- ing with war cards and think- ing about the day that he would join the military.
“There was always one pile you kept and another pile you played with,” McClain, 80, recalled while sitting on the back porch of his Biglerville home with his wife and two Dobermans by his side.
It didn’t take long for this childhood game to become a reality, McClain said.
Although he knew from the time he was young that he wanted to join the military someday, the influence from a family friend, a Distinguished Service Cross winner from World War II who stopped a German commando raid single-handedly, gave him the extra encouragement he need- ed to sign up.
In 1956, after graduating as a distinguished military graduate from The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina, he joined the mili- tary and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the regu- lar army.
Throughout his 27-year career, McClain has served in numerous infantry assign- ments including the 101st Air- borne Division and the XVIII Airborne Corps and has com- manded troop units at the pla- toon, company and battalion levels.
McClain’s service included overseas tours in Vietnam and Korea. He volunteered for both assignments.
“Cops arrest bad guys, fire- men go to fires and infantry fight wars,” he said. “That’s what you wear the tape for. Otherwise, don’t sign up.”
McClain said one of the highlights of his service was the break out of Tan Canh, Vietnam in April of 1972.
The North Vietnamese had launched a series of offen- sives, and the 320th Infantry Regiment, supported by tanks, had overrun Tan Canh. Mc- Clain was serving as an advi- sor to the South Vietnamese 23rd Division, which was destroyed at Tan Canh, but he was able to get all nine of his American men out. His men used the tanks as cover and gained fire superiority over the North Vietnamese rifle
company and platoon of tanks. McClain earned his Silver Star and the Purple Heart for his service during the break- out of Tan Canh. Throughout his 27 years of service, he has also received the Combat In- fantry Badge, the Bronze Star for Valor with four oak leaf clusters and the Air Medal for Valor with six oak leaf clus-
ters.
After he made it out of Tan
Canh, McClain tried to call his wife to let her know that he was alright. He said he was only authorized one telephone call, but when the switchboard operator asked him for the telephone number, he realized he didn’t know his area code. In fact, he didn’t know what an area code was at all.
“I had no clue what he was talking about,” he said.
McClain guessed the wrong area code, but when a woman answered the phone, he yelled into the phone for her not to hang up because he only got one phone call.
“I just got out of Vietnam,” he told her. “I’m ok, I’m fine. Don’t hang up. Would you get this message to my wife?”
The woman did as she was asked.
McClain and his wife laugh about this incident now, re- calling it as one of the funnier moments of his service.
“There’s a lot of funny stuff that goes on,” he said.
But even though she had to sit at home waiting for phone calls to find out if her husband was fine, McClain’s wife said she wasn’t scared during his overseas tours because she “knew he was doing what he wanted to do.”
McClain said fear didn’t re- ally exist for him either while he was serving overseas, even when machine gun bullets were literally flying straight between his legs. He just screamed obscenities at the enemy and shook his fist, he said laughing.
McClain said he would be lying if he said he wasn’t scared every day he was out on the battlefield, but he didn’t think about the fear because he was too busy thinking of other things.
“You’re thinking of other people,” he said. “You no lon- ger exist as a humanoid. You exist as the guy who makes sure everything works for ev- eryone else.”
McClain said his most in-
triguing assignment did not take place on the battlefield but instead working as secre- tary of the Military Armistice Commission in August 1976 to renegotiate the Korean Ar- mistice Agreement, which had not been renegotiated since the first time it was written in 1953.
Prior to signing the rene- gotiated terms, two of Mc- Clain’s men were killed in Korea’s demilitarized zone as a group of North Korean sol- diers wielding axes and metal pikes attacked U.S. and South Korean soldiers on Aug. 18, 1976.
McClain’s men had been trying to cut down a tree that was blocking the view of United Nations observers. The incident today is thus known as the Tree Trimming Inci- dent.
“We came as close to going to war as you could possibly come that day and to go with North Korea,” McClain said.
After that, McClain began negotiations with the North Koreans and Chinese while serving with the United Na- tions Command at Pan Mun Jon, Korea.
The meeting and signing of
SUBMITTED PHOTOGRAPH
Col. Terrance McClain
the renegotiated terms only took four minutes, McClain said, but in those four min- utes, he was able to make a statement and take the oppor- tunity to humiliate the North Korean general.
Prior to the signing, Mc- Clain went to the news media outlets and told them to have their cameras ready at the ex- act moment he was going to pass the papers to the North Korean general.
When McClain passed the papers, he dropped them so the general would instinctive- ly reach out with both hands to grab the papers, which is a sign of humility in the far east, McClain said.
“I had some smart guys working for me, and that was something we could do to hu- miliate them,” McClain said. “And we did.”
The photo was printed in every major newspaper in the far east.
“The world had the photo- graph we had hoped for,” Mc- Clain said. “They were furi- ous, absolutely furious.”
McClain’s career also in- cluded other unique assign- ments, such as Special Agent with the Counter Intelligence
Corps and Senior Army Rep- resentative to the United States Marine Corps Edu- cational Command. He also served on the Department of the Army Staff, the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the De- fense Intelligence Agency in Washington, D.C.
The leadership experience McClain gained while serving 27 years in the Army is some- thing that he’s been able to put to good use after returning to civilian life, he said.
“In the military, you’re al- ways a teacher,” he said. “It’s a combination of teacher, fa- ther and grandfather all the way through.”
After he returned home, he worked as a substitute teacher for Adams County and also spent six or seven years work- ing at the Hoffman Home as a guest teacher.
“I thought to myself, what could be better than teach- ing history to a bunch of high school students,” he said laughing. “The answer to that is a root canal with no pain killer, the removal of an ap- pendage, several other things pop into mind.”
McClain also got involved in local politics with the Franklin Township Planning Commission, and he served on the Gettysburg Area School District school board for about six years with his wife. McClain and his wife were able to establish junior ROTC at Gettysburg High School.
“That is the one thing that has probably influenced posi- tively more kids than anything else,” he said. “It’s just a real honor to have been able to do that because it’s changed so many lives of so many kids.”
But McClain said his great- est honor will always be serv- ing with his fellow soldiers during his overseas tours.
“Working with soldiers is the pinnacle of anything,” he said. “It’s just the honor of be- ing able to work with young dedicated men in a hostile en- vironment, which brings out the best in them. It is just the greatest honor you have, and bringing them back is the key- note to that.”
“Profiles in service” is a Gettysburg Times feature that tells local veterans’ stories. Suggestions for future install- ments can be made to Abbey Zelko, azelko@gburgtimes. com or 717-253-9414.

[Tank Destroyer]

First of let me start off by apologizing for my poor research and jumping the gun on my conclusion without being 100% correct. I thought I was correct but I had a few more leads and I assumed the leads would confirm my investigation.
The helmet has now been confirmed by the man himself that wore the helmet during his tour in Vietnam as an advisor to the BDQ ARVN Rangers. I’m proud to be the caretaker and hopefully learning more about the man.

I present to you. LTC Raymond J. McClean US Army Advisor to the 6th Vietnamese Ranger group.

[reneblacky]

Brilliant Marty! hope he doesn't want it back? Outstanding find!! Cheers for sharing!