Ordnance Corps

NIKE AJAX AND HERCULES ORDNANCE SUPPORT UNIT SHORT, TALL STORIES

Air Defense Artillery

Yeah, which one?
By: Rodney D. Jones
E-Mial:  eratech@citlink.net

          I, SP 5 Rodney D. Jones (24Q30) was assigned to the T-1 Radar Signal Simulator serial number 1023 in the spring of 1970 through about Nov of 70, which was at that time being used between Wheeler (B) battery and Porter (A) battery, our billets were technically at Munster but we usually stayed wherever the trailer was, we were attached to the unit but assigned to Headquarters at Arlington Heights and worked under supervision of Sergeant Major Alonzo J. Waugh. The T-1 crew consisted SP 4 Mike (Meatball) Hood, SP 5 Randall P. Jones, SP5 Rodney D. Jones and SP 5 (?) Randy or Rodger D. Jones. The stage is hereby set for a bunch of wiseacres to have some fun. Myself and Randall are Caucasian, Rodger is black, we call ourselves the Jones boys and sometimes pass ourselves off as being brothers, all in good fun and because we are training the crews at the sites we usually keep to ourselves as was recommended policy from S-3 not to get too close to the crews we were training.

          Well, as things would have it we usually answered the phone "Red Baron, T-Wonderful, what can I do for you?" Wherein the caller would usually ask or say "I'd like to speak to SP-5 Jones please" wherein our stock reply was "Yeah, which one," which would usually bring the next question or reply, "Uh, that’s SP-5 R. Jones" which we countered with "Yeah, which one" and then would come a somewhat aggravated "That's SP-5 R D Jones" which we countered with "Yeah, which one", well you get the pix, sometimes this dialog would go on for three or four minutes before the unsuspecting person on the other end would abruptly hang up and a few moments later be banging on the door to the T-1 van, usually in a huff and ready to put someone on report. Never happened though because our routine included all three of us to chime in "YESSIR, Yeah which ONE!" in chorus whenever someone came to the door after such an exchange as above and ask for SP-5 Jones!

          Anyone out there remember these shenanigans?

          I apologize if I got Hood's first name wrong cause we never referred to him by name or initials, he was always known to us by his nickname, "Meatball" and am not sure if it was Randy or Rodger on the third Jones man, been over 30 years and I have slept since then but I clearly remember a few huffed up Captains and Lieutenants banging on the T-1 door because of our antics. We had a good time training crews and there were always newbies to pull this prank on, most of the veteran crews went along with us and would set up the newbies for the gag...

Rod Jones