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Title
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McCrumb, Vance Lee
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Performer
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Vance Lee McCrumb
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Interviewer
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William Vollano
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Description
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Vance joined the service right after high school. He was always fascinated with airplanes. After basic he volunteered for K-9 duty. He had to go through Air Police training and then Sentry Dog School. He was assigned to guarding B-52s in Oklahoma before being sent to Vietnam. In Vietnam, Vance patrolled the perimeter of the base with his dog, Dutch. He and Dutch went through training together. Dogs were trained to detect intruders and also Booby Traps. Sentry duty lasted all night and they were responsible for the integrity of the base. Handlers would alert the Air Police when an intruder was detected. Although Vance's unit received a Presidential Citation and an Outstanding Unit Award with the V device for Valor, he was most proud of the Good Conduct Medal. In the Air Force, a person needed good conduct for three years, which he admits was difficult. Vance had a difficult time transferring Dutch to another handler. "Not a day goes by that I don't think of Dutch." After Vietnam, Vance was again sent to Oklahoma to guard armed aircraft. Upon discharge, Vance returned to Michigan and eventually retired as a Supervisor at AT&T. Vance is married and has two children and eight grandchildren. After his retirement from AT&T, he took a job at Milan Precision. Vance is very active in the community and in Vietnam organizations.
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Subject
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Enlisted; United States Air Force; 11th Combat Defense Squadron; Vietnam War, 1961-1975; Vietnam; Senior Airman
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Collection Location
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3/21
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AvKx7t2fsCE&list=PL05gqqIuA4HK1S_labZh5qO9iutjJf_gO&index=10
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Date
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1963-1967
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Dates of Service
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Spatial Coverage
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Vietnam
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Vance Lee McCrumb