The major field radio of the Vietnam War was the AN/PRC-25. "AN" meant it was a piece of military electronics, not a truck or a weapon or a can of SPAM. "PRC" meant it was a portable radio, "-25" meant it was the 25th one the military had standardized. It was inevitably referred to as a "Prick Twenty-Five" by GIs, or "Prick" for short. The PRC-25 was about the size and weight of a case of soda. With its battery "can" included, call it a case of soda sitting on top of a six-pack. (It actually weighed slightly more than that, 23.5 pounds) There was a handle on each side at the top to carry it. The radio consisted of two parts, both in metal boxes, called "cans." The upper can held the radio itself, the lower can held its battery pack. Metal buckles held the two together. The radio was tough and would easily survive a 50 foot fall from a helicopter onto a metal-planked runway. You could throw the whole thing in the water for an hour, completely submerged, then pull it out and expect it to work.
The RTO (Radio / Telephone Operator) was usually carefully chosen. He had to be someone with experience, who wouldn't get rattled under fire. He had to be able to read maps, too. If something happened to the officer, the RTO would effectively command the unit, calling in fires, getting in medevacs, etc. It was also a dangerous job, since the radio antenna said to the enemy "Shoot ME first!" But an experienced RTO became like a "private secretary" to the officer, anticipating what might be wanted and preparing it in advance. At night, he and the officer, the platoon sergeant, and platoon medic slept close together, alternating radio watch, the "Twenty-Five" within reach of all. RTOs within a unit got to know each other too, and formed a kind of bond, since they did all the communications. There was a "status" to being the RTO. (source:
Tour of Duty info)
Ace Workshop has released the BEST Vietnam War military figures to date and that was the Operation Delaware 1968 – 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) 12-inch military figure which was superb! You can check out the preview pictures
HERE. It's so good it got me hooked even though I have moved away from collecting military figures to focus on movie-related figures - see my November 2015 haul posted on my toy blog
HERE. And now Ace is teasing me with this RTO "Radioman" figure from the Vietnam War era as well. The AN/PRC-25 has a lot of significance to me because I had used it while serving my National Service and am all too familiar with the rather heavy portable radio pack and can understand why the GIs call it the "
PRi
Ck". Radios have become much smaller and less cumbersome since.
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