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All We Wanted to do Was Get on That Bird

Ron Mackedanz remembers his last day, and the anxiousness to get home, very clearly. He especially recalls the advice to wear civilian clothing, not his uniform, at the airport.

This clip is from the TPT documentary Perspectives. Learn more below.

Like that's gonna hide the look in our eyes? We all looked like hell. We looked like we'd just lived through hell, which we had.

Biographical Details

Primary Location During Vietnam: Lai Khe, Vietnam Vietnam location marker

Story Subject: Military Service

Military Branch: U.S. Army

Dates of Service: 1968 - 1970

Unit: BANDIDO CHARLIE COMPANY 1ST BATTALION

Specialty: 16TH INFANTRY (MECHANIZED)

About Minnesota Remembers Vietnam: Perspectives

Through a series of 12 short profiles and a feature-length documentary, Twin Cities PBS producer Luke Heikkila unpacks the personal narratives of family members and Minnesota veterans who endured one of the most unsettling chapters in American history: the Vietnam War. These stories reveal the unexpected ways that war forever changes someone.

Story Themes: 1968, 1969, 1970, Army, Bandido Charlie, Coming Home, Hutchinson, Lai Khe, October, Perspectives, Ron Mackedanz, Spicer, TPT, Travis AFB, Travis Air Force Base, Twin Cities PBS, Watch, Willmar

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