Doing some research on the percentage of GWOT/OCO vets who served in "combat" (defined here as engaged in kinetic action against/from enemy forces). Looking for sources if anyone has some handy.
What Percentage of GWOT Veterans Served in "Combat?"
- Thread starter Marauder06
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CAB and CIB award statistics are probably your best bet for empirical data.
That's useful for Army stats, but I'm also interested in the total of all services.
The number of AF Combat Action Medals awarded.
SpongeBob*24
Verified Military
Humble people won't talk, and those that never did anything will tell amazing stories.
Good luck solving this riddle....
Good luck solving this riddle....
These will be deceiving. Quite a few fobbits put themselves in for CAB/CIB and received them for indirect fire after "returning fire", meaning firing a magazine randomly in the direction the round came from. I know of three that were awarded that way while I was there and an HQ that had every officer in for one due to a single rocket strike in the compound with no kinetic engagement.
I don't disagree but if you're looking for data you're going to have to go with some sort of metric. The services already have some level of checks on decorations themselves. You'll get some inflation in the aggregate - but you'll also have folks that were deserving and were never awarded. Short of interviewing every veteran with a lie detector I don't think you're going to do much better.
Florida173
SOF Support
Wonder how many people have earned both a CIB and CAB.
Not too many, and I'd venture to say "none at all." The CAB was invented so that engineers, cav scouts, and various other fobbits could get a bit of bling saying "I got shot at, just like the infantry." I'm not sure how many 11-series guys would actually reclass to a noninfantry MOS after having a combat tour or two. They'd either stay infantry or get out. In the event that they do reclass to a non-infantry MOS, and he's got a CIB, the likelihood that he'd opt to have a CAB is pretty small. That's like leaving your supermodel wife at the house so you can take your 300lb swamp donkey mistress out on a date. The CAB is definitely the lesser of the two medals.
Brill
SOF Support
Out of the 12 SOT-As in 2/20th, there were only 3 of us who just had CABs and the rest had CIBs (reclass'd).
Fully agree with @compforce that many folks were awarded CABs for IDF on the FOB vice being in direct combat.
Before the CAB came out, the CIB was done as a blanket award. Although in those days most everyone did experience the two way range several times throughout a deployment. There were several people who were awarded the CIB who didn't not rate one.
As for the stats, I truly doubt there is anyway with consistency and accuracy outside of unit after action reports, unit history and some kind of a sworn statement database for enemy contact.
Maybe contact the dudes who compile the lessons learned stuff.
As for the stats, I truly doubt there is anyway with consistency and accuracy outside of unit after action reports, unit history and some kind of a sworn statement database for enemy contact.
Maybe contact the dudes who compile the lessons learned stuff.
Florida173
SOF Support
There are actually a lot of guys that reclass from infantry. After the three deployments I did as infantry, I transitioned to the guard to a soft skill for my next two deployments.
I'd agree with you that the CAB is the lesser award and will never wear mine, but it's really not in regards to 670-1. I'd honestly rather wear my EIB but that is the lesser award.
As others have said there were plenty of people that got their CIB for IDF. CAB was actually harder for the longest time because they were actually following the regs on when to award it.
Kraut783
SOF Support
You would be surprised....we had three in my reserve unit. All were DS vets and received their CIB's, they later left the military, then came back into the reserves and had reclassed prior to 9/11...off to OEF and OIF and they received their CAB. Of course they never wore it, but were awarded it.
Florida173
SOF Support
If you try to get a badge after the fact, you need some of that stuff
The swamp donkey bit had me rolling!
I know quite of few guys who left the Infantry for MI, SF, SOF, WOC Aviation, etc. It's actually pretty common as the knees and back only go so long. Alot of guys (including myself) stopped wearing our CIB's.
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This thread reminds me of one of my favorite episodes of M*A*S*H.
- In the Season 5 episode "Ping Pong", Lt. Colonel Harold Beckett, an old friend of Potter's, is given command of his own combat unit- needing five more days on the line to get his Combat Infantryman Badge and an assured promotion to full Colonel. But when he and many of his men are wounded, one soldier reveals that it was Beckett's incompetence that got them in trouble; after suffering significant casualties the unit was ordered to withdraw and Beckett froze. But when Potter confronts Beckett about what happened he blamed it on Intelligence failure. Potter orders him sent back down saying "I don't give a damn about your promotion or your lousy C.I.B.; all I care about are those kids[...] and if one gets hurt the price is too high."
Combat Infantryman Badge - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Performing duties while personally present and under fire while serving in an assigned infantry, ranger or Special Forces capacity, in a unit of brigade, regimental, or smaller size, engaged in active ground combat, to close with and destroy the enemy with direct fires.
Combat Action Badge - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Active engagement or being engaged by the enemy after September 18, 2001
How many Soldiers earned a bull shit CIB or CAB? I know of quite a few Marines with CAR's who just happened to be in the right place at the right time and had their name thrown into the hat.
So just over 78k CIB's and over 100k CAB's during the GWOT according to Wikipedia.
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