A 1950s Rakkasan On Service In Japan And Stateside

Fred Forsythe was born in 1933 and grew up in Buffalo, New York. His father was a Certified Public Accountant, and his mother was a homemaker. He was raised with 7 siblings, 2 brothers and 5 sisters. As a boy, Fred enjoyed competing on the swim team. Later, he worked in a machine shop for over a year. Before he was drafted, he had heard about the war in Korea, mostly the rugged terrain, the weather extremes, and the war having no end in sight. Fred had tried to get into the Coast Guard, but he was proud to be called up for the Army. After taking a train to Ft. Devens, Massachusetts, he took a plane to Ft. Campbell for basic training. He enjoyed shooting, but did not like being assigned to KP (Kitchen Patrol). After basic training, he completed airborne school and then it was off to Colorado for cold weather training. Learning to ski and sleep in a tent in cold weather was “interesting.” After training, he deployed to Japan, where he joined the unit at Beppu, Japan. He enjoyed experiencing Japanese culture, and remembers the people as very curious. He met a girl who had been burned by the bombing during WWII, but she displayed no hate towards Americans. He remembers working in a motor pool and being a .30 cal machine gunner. When he returned to the States, as part of Operation Gyroscope (designed to rapidly move units into and out of combat zones), he was assigned to Ft. Bragg, North Carolina. He describes returning to Ft. Campbell when the 101st was reactivated and his company, I Company, 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team, became Abu Company, 327th Infantry. In his interview, he describes his best experience as jumping near Mt. Fuji. He reflects on flying through a typhoon in a C-47 and having to land at an abandoned airbase. Back at Ft. Campbell, he served as the driver for the Commanding General, General Stillwell. After leaving the Army, he worked in a machine shop for 16 years and as a tool room machinist for 24 years. He also served as a Cub Scout Leader. In 1992, he began attending reunions, and he continues to do so to remember unit history and strengthen friendships with others who have served in the 101st. He concludes the interview by stating he was “proud to serve my country” in a well-respected unit.