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I enlisted at 17 and it was a great experience. Honestly I think the U.S should have a 1 year Government service requirement like Israel. A lot of people would be better for it (IMO)

If he was for sure American... this puts him into a VERY small category of people who successfully lied about their age to get in.

Perhaps he is confused about the details and means the Korean War. All the same uniforms and equipment - if he's going off of photos...

If he was European it becomes a lot more likely... I was always dismissively told grandpa was in the Army/Air Force. I never met him. Finally up comes a picture of him in his POLISH Army uniform.

Example of a Soviet "Child of the Regiment".

I signed up when I was 15 1/2. I effectively started my service at 16.

This guy enlisted at 14 and was a MOH winner at 17.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacklyn_H._Lucas

But these are the exceptions, very well known exceptions. Typically you can ferret out military service with as few as six questions.

What was your MOS?

When and where did you serve?

The easiest ones are guys who claim to be SEALs, really what was your BUDs class number? It's not classified and it's easy to look up. If their name isn't there, they weren't there.

Also if they actually DO have a DD214, there really isn't anything "classified" that isn't on there. I knew two guys growing up who actually were SOG, they actually were in Laos and Cambodia, the President and the CIA might have been keeping tight lipped about what was going on but when they got out their DD214s pretty much covered everything they did and where they did it.

I've never seen a DD214 for a Delta member, but I suspect it's on there.

SteyrAUG wrote: ↑Wed Aug 26, 2020 2:57 am
I've never seen a DD214 for a Delta member, but I suspect it's on there.

I have, it does.

Hombre wrote: ↑Tue Aug 25, 2020 10:33 pm I enlisted at 17 and it was a great experience. Honestly I think the U.S should have a 1 year Government service requirement like Israel. A lot of people would be better for it (IMO)

Yep, me too. I enlisted right ON my 17th birthday.
June 1974 and was discharged 7-7-77

Learned a lot. Met some "different" people and the G.I. Bill paid for my college and the V.A. Mortgage guaranteed my home loans. (I certainly got the best of that deal !!)

My dad's best friend enlisted the morning after Pearl Harbor. Army found out he was 14 and tossed him out when the bus arrived at boot camp.

He re-enlisted at 16 in the Navy, and had two ships sink under him before he broke his leg on leave in July 1945 and missed the end of the war.

My dad enlisted at 17 in Army Air Corp and spent the entire war in the US. They had plenty of B24 pilots when he finished training so he retrained as a navigator on B29s just in time to read about the Japanese surrender.

Jedd

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Back to the original question. I usually ask for their serial number AND their MOS (military occupation specialty). They are usually easy for anyone who is a veteran to remember. My dad remembered his numbers (WW2) late in his life and I remember mine (from 50 years ago) now. The MOS is usually a short series of numbers (Marine Corps - 4 digit) or numbers and letters (Army). I don't know about Navy/Air Force or Coast Guard but if they're a series of "digits" then I believe them. A lot of vets (me included) have a notation on my Drivers License. Of course there's always the V.A. ID card if they're seeking, or have sought, medical or emotional treatment.

Air Force is called AFSC - Air Force Specialty Code, yes, a series of digits, though I understand they've added letters. First indicates general area of job (not geographic, but type) the second is s sub code for more definition, third is type of operations 4th is skill level, forgot what the 5th is. Officers are usually 4 digits.

My dad enlisted when he was 16 with parental consent. He spent 22 years in the Navy.