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Sorry, not alcohol-related. But: I arrived at Kwang ju Air Base, South Korea as a VERY new Senior Airman.(E-4) My first assignment was maintaining the USAF's navigator trainer, a Boeing 737 modified as a flying classroom. The fighter aircraft in the Pacific Air Forces were a whole new ball game for me. My second day at work, two Marine F-4s stopped for "gas & lunch". Now, I would eventually come to understand that we Airman probably "go by the book" too much while the Marines probably don't follow it enough. Ready to launch the jets out, I told the pilot that I spotted a minor hydraulic leak under his aircraft. He said "Chief, you know what that means, don't you"? I said "No Sir". He replied "That means there's still fluid in the system". We launched them out for the return flight to Iwakuni, Japan.
When you ride in a Marine CH-46 or 53 and fluids AREN'T leaking all over the place, that is when you worry. Because that meant there was none left.
Our 3rdMarDiv artillery unit caught floating battalion duty in the South China Sea. Subic Bay was our home port, but we stopped in Manila once for 24 hours, and no one was allowed to leave the ship.
Our Top, aware of how bored we were with the shipboard routine, suggested a tour of the San Miguel Brewery, and the CO agreed, provided that only 25 men would go. I was one of the lucky ones.
It was December. I was 17, homesick, and wanted to send some Christmas gifts home to my family. So, after the tour, when we were in the tasting room rapidly putting away as much free beer as we could, I decided that I wanted to go shopping in Manila. I waited until our platoon leader was wasted and the Top was feeling pretty good, and then I asked for permission to go into town. Although he said "Yes," I don't believe that he knew what I was asking. A buddy wanted to tag along, and off we went.
We were enjoying the sights when I noticed two guys in suits following us. Now I'm getting a little worried, as I only had greenbacks, not MPC. They finally stopped us, and identified themselves. One was a cop and the other guy worked for a newspaper or TV station, I can't remember which. They were just curious, as we were the only uniformed military in town.
Hearing my story they took us to some really nice stores, where I purchased gifts for the whole family. They then took us out for a nice meal and a few beers. George and Mario planned on visiting the States one day, and wanted me to fix them up with some blondes. We had a few laughs, exchanged addresses, and then parted company.
My buddy Matt and I continued to enjoy what Manila had to offer, until we remembered that the ship would be departing in a few hours. When we returned nobody said a word, but we got Office Hours a short while later that morning. We were both given 30 days restriction to the ship, as we headed out for another 30 days at sea. (Some restriction!) For some reason the Article 15 never appeared in my record.
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