Ft. Monmouth, NJ 1953-1956
When I entered active duty I was not sent to the Signal Officers Course
at Fort Monmouth. I was part of an experiment where ROTC 2nd
Lieutenants went directly to an overseas assignment and attended the Signal
School upon their return from overseas. My first several months at Fort
Monmouth were spent attending school.
After I completed school I was assigned to the Field Training Department
at Camp Wood. Camp Wood was the area beyond the Officers Club and near the
Hexagon, home of the Signal Corps Research and Development Command. I was
the supply officer and maintained all of the equipment used in the field
training of officers in both the Basic Officers Course and the Advanced
Officers Course. This assignment was uneventful but it did prepare me for a
future assignment.
In the summer of 1955 I was selected to take a team of two sergeants on
a training mission to Brazil. We did not know the scope of our mission until
we arrived in Rio. We traveled to Mobile where boarded a C-46 cargo aircraft
for the two day trip to Brazil. Our first stop was Port-au-Prince in Haiti
where we stayed overnight. That is where I had my first gin and tonic which
had not yet migrated to the States. We then flew to Belem, at the mouth of
the Amazon. After a few hours in Belem we continued on the Rio de Janeiro.
Upon
arrival we were met by a Lieutenant Colonel who was the Signal Officer of
the Joint US Military Assistance Group. He took us to our hotel, the Miramar
Palace Hotel which overlooked Copacabana beach. What a fantastic place to
stay. We were given a short time to clean up and then went to the
Colonel' apartment which also over looked Copacabana beach. There we met his
wife an 18 year old daughter. We had a delightful evening with good drinks,
good food and good company.
We left the hotel about 8:00 each morning for the hour drive to the Vila
Militar where all of the Brazilian Army Service Schools were located. We
arrived back at the hotel about 4:30 each afternoon and had plenty of time
to relax and enjoy the lively night life on Copacabana beach. Although this
was their winter, the days were comfortable and you needed a light jacket in
the evening.
During the next three months we visited all of the Brazilian Army
schools and trained their personnel on maintenance. This was primarily
preventive maintenance. They had a lot of Signal Corps World War II
equipment but they thought it would last forever without any attention. We
basically taught them how to keep the equipment clean. Switchboards would
not work because the brass plugs were not clean. A BC-610, HF Transmitter
would transmit at only 30% level because there was a large dead rat in the
cabinet. When we completed our training The Brazilian Army knew that
they had to keep the equipment clean on the inside and outside for them to
function properly. Prior to leaving Brazil I received a Letter of
Commendation from the Chief Signal Officer of the Brazilian Army.
During this three month period I developed many friends of several
nationalities, including Polish, German, Egyptian, White Russian, French and
even one American. This was one of the hardships of military service.
When I returned from Brazil I commanded the Radar School for several
months. This was a typical administrative assignment.
In the late winter of 1959-60 I received orders to Korea. I arranged to
move my family off post so that they could remain in the Fort Monmouth area.
Shortly after I completed this move I received amended orders. Headquarters
US Army Far East in Japan had my orders changed and we went to Japan in the
spring of 1956.