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USAF Security Police M16 Pouches


craig_pickrall
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  • 2 years later...

Now I have always believed that the twin belt pouch with baby LTD snaps, made of rubberised canvas and sized to take 1 M16 20rd mag per cell were a USAF item designed for Security Police and similar armed use. I have percieved their value as 20-50 bucks. I need another one. :thumbsup:

Recently I have seen a couple of separate ebay vendors advertising them as SOG and asking several hundred bucks.

 

What is the truth of this?

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It is very simple, "SOG sells", especially to the uninformed. I personally do not know of any SOG use, but there may be a few of the pockets that fell into their hands. Of course images speak...and I notice no Vietnam period photographs of their utilization by SOG units appear in the aforementioned ePay auctions. The only Vietnam period photograph I personally know of shows them being worn by a US Army MP!

 

The truth of the matter is they are specific US Air Force procurement and were standardized in 1967 as a replacement for the M-1956 "universal" small arms ammunition case. They were trialed by the US Air Force during their program Operation SAFE SIDE [between 01SEP66 through 11AUG67] for use by Security Police. Once standardzied it was recommended, by the final report of SAFE SIDE, that the pockets be issued three [3] per individual. For the masses they are designated:

 

POCKET, AMMUNITION MAGAZINE

FSN 8465-890-2014

 

Your value estimate is pretty much dead on. I purchased a large lot of them from a surplus store ten years ago for $1 a piece. Over the years I sold them all to friends and such and kept a few for my collection. Guess I need to sell them as "SOG used" on ePay and retire!

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Thanks for your replies. I need two more then not just one.

I think I will buy the Air force ones rather than the SOG ones :think: :lol:

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craig_pickrall

Here is a pic of the USAF version. Sorry but I don't have a pic of the SOG version but I think if you turn this pic upside down it is the same as the SOG.

 

post-5-1276184845.jpg

post-5-1276184856.jpg

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People will say anything is SOG to sell it. Heres an interesting photo of an ARVN using them though. Dont know exactly when it was taken but its from a 1971 ARVN calander.

post-24355-0-40863000-1410661071.jpg

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i have two pouches myself and still use them to this day for my AR-15 20 Rd mags....they are very handy and way les bulky than the M-56 or M-67 pouches which i have also.....by the way the Airforce pouches were made to to carried up side down as shown in Pic's.....vince g. 11b inf...

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  • 3 months later...

Thank you for the wonderful pictures of the SP's in VN. Now we have proof that the USAF doesn't always live in AC tents or hoochs or state of the art facilities.

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  • 1 year later...

I don't know whether these were pictured on the Forum before but here are some pics of the ammunition pouches unique to the USAF and used during the Vietnam War. They are double pouched and made from a waterproofed material with small lift-the-dot snaps, and a rear sleeve to fit on the belt. They take one M-16 magazine per pouch. Note the photo of these pouches in use. It shows my friend Larry Sutherland when he was an Air Force Security Police "Safe Side" member in 'Nam.

post-24355-0-69322500-1410661237.jpg

 

post-24355-0-97214200-1410661238.jpg

 

post-24355-0-07588100-1410661240.jpg

 

post-24355-0-23206200-1410661241.jpg

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Excellent! Never knew such pouches existed. Were they just made at unit level/procured locally in small quantities?

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I will have to take some pics and post mine up. There were actually 3 variations of these. I have two that are grey oil cloth and not rubberized. I forget what the third variation is though. Give me some time and I will add pics of mine.

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  • 2 years later...

Here are a couple of closeups from an image taken at Tan Son Nhut showing members of the 377th Security Police Squadron in action against Viet Cong infiltrators. Note the pouches on the rear of the belts. The man in the last photo (and accompanying close-up) has his pouches upside-down for ease of magazine retrieval.

 

 

 

a1.jpg a2.jpg

 

 

a3.jpg a4.jpg

Photos from the USAF Vietnam history, GPO 1984.

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  • 4 months later...

I can confirm this info as well, with the 377th at Tan Son Nhut. My father was there from Dec '67-Dec '68. Here is a picture of him stationed at a little bunker between runways 25 Right and 25 Left....

 

* Upload not working. I need to resize, my file is too big. Will post once I figure this out.

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as to how an army MP got them, i was an army mp for the 199th inf bde. we used to swap stuff with the AF SP's when ever we could, as they had a better parts system for the V100 armored cars we used for convoy escort duty. we had stuff they couldn't get, and traded with the guys at tan son nhut mainly.

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439th Signal Battalion

as to how an army MP got them, i was an army mp for the 199th inf bde. we used to swap stuff with the AF SP's when ever we could, as they had a better parts system for the V100 armored cars we used for convoy escort duty. we had stuff they couldn't get, and traded with the guys at tan son nhut mainly.

 

Would like to reiterate what Ron said about the 199th.

 

Here are just a few pics (of many I have) of Scout Dog Handlers from the 199th's 49th IPSD wearing these pouches in 67-68. Apparently, these were popular with the personnel that used them.

 

post-4009-0-19309200-1422015438.jpg

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439th Signal Battalion

post-4009-0-49777400-1422015562.jpg



As Ron previously stated, because of the 199th LIB's proximity to Tan Sanh Nhout and Bien Hoa, they were able to acquire select pieces of equipment that were not necessarily issue to other US Army personnel.



I know of a handful of soldiers that when first assigned to the 199th in the first few days/weeks of being in-country and going through the "Redcatcher Jungle School," they were given "slick slide" weapons to train with, otherwise known as the SP1 upper on an M16. One soldier that served with B/2-3 received this model as late as September, 1969.



I have no idea how these weapons got into the 199th's inventory, but I would suspect that they may have come from an Air Force source at some point.




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