Are soldiers allowed to bring back weapons from the enemy (souveneers) God knows I misspelled that one!lmao

I think vietnam soldiers brought back some full auto AK's, and I'm almost certain WWI and II vets brought back some goodies.

What's the rules on this one?

If you can, where do I sign!

P.S. even if youcan't, what an incredible incentive to join the army. If they decided to let you keep all small arms taken from enemy fighters, they would never be in short supply of recruits. Heck, I bet half the people in this forum would join. HOOAH

No you aren't allowed to bring back any type of weapon acquired while deployed.

I'd prefer to bring back scalpes.

You are joking, right?


No.

Not only no, but hell no.

About all you can bring back nowadays is  the bruises and scars.  Not even the sand in your boots is allowed anymore.

that sucks

what about other items
like swords, knives and or just gun parts??

you used to be able to right?

Can you bring back demilled items (recievers welded, barrels filled, etc.)?

Quoted: you used to be able to right?

Depends... No MG42s, that's for sure but I've heard of Lugers and Nambus (I think that was one of the Japanese handguns) being spirited home.

Didn't some guys just get busted like the other week for trying to smuggle some AKs home?

You've got to be kidding, right?

There were some guys that got put in jail for a long time after they brought back 6 AK's from Panama.  That's a big no-no these days.  IIRC you are not allowed to bring any "souveniers" of war home.  

Before the 1968 GCA veterans did smuggle home automatic weapons.

Hence the short amnesty in the GCA.

Not anymore!!

CRC

there was a thread in the legal section that seems to have disappeared,

basically, weapons made prior to 1893, and bayonets. No automatic weapons, and anything else was next to impossible to get the signatures to bring back. but disclaimer, don't just take my word for it, I'm not a lawyer or expert  

i know a dude who tried to bring home an arm ... yeah, he didnt get far with that  

i guy i know know that over there said he can bring back bayanets and aproved demilled items.

I imagine you can bring back anything you want so long as you don't get caught.

No. When I came back, the rule was no weapons of any kind(bayonets included) no gun parts, no personal possesions of enemy soldiers, no captured Iraqi flags, and several other things that I can't remember.

Quoted: i guy i know know that over there said he can bring back bayanets and aproved demilled items.

Of course. You could bring back an approved nuclear device if you wanted to. Problem is, no one will approve anything. That kinda throws a monkey wrench into it.

so let me see if I get this:

- the gov won't allow/trust you to keep your service issued rifle
- the gov won't allow you to keep small arms (rifles, many of which are full auto)from war anymore
- the gov pays you the same amount as a pizza delivery boy

yet they have  people that sign up for the armed forces everyday....they must do it for you and me, because I could never do it for a gov that treats it's soldiers like that.

it makes me feel like they don't trust you as far as they can throw you, but then again, I'm not a soldier...so what do i knowhinking.gif

it's a hell of a thing to ask a man to go to war. IMO a soldier should be held in the highest respect!!!

Quoted: so let me see if I get this: - the gov won't allow/trust you to keep your service issued rifle - the gov won't allow you to keep small arms (rifles, many of which are full auto)from war anymore - the gov pays you the same amount as a pizza delivery boy yet they have  people that sign up for the armed forces everyday....they must do it for you and me, because I could never do it for a gov that treats it's soldiers like that. it makes me feel like they don't trust you as far as they can throw you, but then again, I'm not a soldier...so what do i know it's a hell of a thing to ask a man to go to war. IMO a soldier should be held in the highest respect!!!

We do get the short end of the stick in many aspects. But i've got no regrets.

We don't do it for the money.

We don't do it for the fame.

We don't do it for the respect.


We do it for freedom.

Quoted: - the gov pays you the same amount as a pizza delivery boy

I see your point, but it is worth pointing out that I got paid nearly $30,000 the last year I was in and had free housing, medical and dental care, food, and no bills that weren't voluntary. Depending on where you are stationed and the cost of living, that can be one hell of a deal. Even in southern California where I was, an kid making $30,000 a year with no bills to pay is doing pretty well.

No that I am out, I have yet to find a job that I am qualified for that provides comparable benefits and pay. While it was only a stepping stone for me, for many, the military is the best they will ever do.

a big HOOAH to ya' brother!

can I bring home locks of hair of the enemies whose lives I have taken?

no hair...only ears, damn man! what are you an animal?!

Quoted: can I bring home locks of hair of the enemies whose lives I have taken?

Actuallty, this was another prohibeted item. Specifically, bodyparts to include hair, eyes, ears, fingers, heads, and any human bones regardless of age or historical significance.

Nope..pretty much soldiers can only bring themselves home.  EVERYTHING else is a big no no. Fucking liberals.

Quoted: I'd prefer to bring back scalpes.

It happens.

Quoted: I'd prefer to bring back scalpes.

I prefer ears.

we where allowed to bring back ak bayonets during the first gulf war.i got 2 and made a plaque out of them.

There has never has been permission given to Soldiers to bring home war trophys. The ones that were brought back we snuck back and many of the commanders overlooked it because they were taking things home too. It was pretty easy to sneak home a Luger or other items in your gear then because the military customs didnt exist in WW2.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Quoted: so let me see if I get this: - the gov won't allow/trust you to keep your service issued rifle - the gov won't allow you to keep small arms (rifles, many of which are full auto)from war anymore - the gov pays you the same amount as a pizza delivery boy yet they have people that sign up for the armed forces everyday....they must do it for you and me, because I could never do it for a gov that treats it's soldiers like that. it makes me feel like they don't trust you as far as they can throw you, but then again, I'm not a soldier...so what do i know it's a hell of a thing to ask a man to go to war. IMO a soldier should be held in the highest respect!!! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- We do get the short end of the stick in many aspects. But i've got no regrets. We don't do it for the money. We don't do it for the fame. We don't do it for the respect. We do it for freedom.

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Well Said!

You should at the very least be able to bring back their women.

Quoted: You should at the very least be able to bring back their women.

yuck! Why would you want to?

i know someone who mailed an ak piece by piece back to his mother durring vietnam. yes it has happened and yes you will go to federal pound me in the A$$ prison if you get caught. IMHO it's not worth the risk.

Quoted: You should at the very least be able to bring back their women.

You obviously haven't seen their women. There's a reason they wear a black bedsheet with only their eyes showing.

lol..

Wow, this thread has been interesting!  I worked as an MP in Customs in Kuwait City last year, and for eight months made a living as the asshole that had to take stuff from my fellow troops who were returning home.  It was not a very rewarding job, let me tell you!!!  I hated taking souvenirs from these guys and girls, who I considered heroes, but like everyone else, I had my job to do.

Some of the stuff I’ve seen in this thread is a little off, and some is just dead wrong.  

There has never has been permission given to Soldiers to bring home war trophies.

That is incorrect.  Army folks would have to refer to AR 608-4.  Sailors, Marines, and Airmen have their own similar regulations, I’m sure.  The current AR 608-4 has been in effect since 1975.  Depending on what you call a “trophy” (assuming you’re not only talking about firearms), you can bring trophies home.

AR 608-4 was augmented by policies from just about every agency there is, including the Department of Agriculture in particular.  On the day you return to CONUS from, say, the Middle East (since it’s the current answer for just about everyone), you’ll go through a briefing where you’re told (by me if you were in Kuwait City between May and December 2003) what you can, and what you can’t, bring back to the U.S.  The information the briefer gives you often changes day to day since some items are matters of policy, not federal law.  For example, when I first began that duty, NO Iraqi uniform items were allowed to come home.  We felt this was bullshit, but I was only an E6, and didn’t get to make such decisions.  I remember specifically taking a beret from a very young female PO3 corpsman on my first night.  No rank insignias, no belts, no shirts, no pants, no unit patches, etc.  No uniform items.  No artwork.  No license plates (these were a big hit!).  No narcotics.  No firearms.  No bayonets.  No explosives.  No pornography or alcohol (since they are illegal in Muslim countries and you were prevented by CENTCOM regulation from having them in the first place).  No shrapnel.  No wildlife (another big one).  No Cuban cigars.  No switchblade knives.  You could bring home a 4-foot sword, but not a bayonet or switchblade!  The rules didn’t always make sense.  No captured communication equipment.  No captured personal items.  No little bottles of sand.  All vehicles had to be CLEAN!!!  Pressure washed, no dust, Department of Agriculture regulations.  Iraqi money was allowed after I’d been there about 3 weeks.

By the time I left, they’d lifted the ban on all uniform items.   You still couldn’t take captured communication equipment (we saw some Russian-made field phones and a radio or two), but you could take rucksacks, load-bearing equipment, etc.  Firearms are only allowed after a lengthy request process that offers the items up to every military museum in the country.  If they all refuse it, your unit gets the item, but firearms must be demilled.  In 8 months, I saw ONE successful request.  A Marine Reserve unit got to take home a Yugoslavian RPK they’d captured.  It was a nice piece.  Nobody else received permission to take weapons home.  We even saw weapons that had been demilled, the units hoping we’d cut them permission.  They didn’t understand that we (a company, captain level command) didn’t have the authority.  It had to be approved at CENTCOM level (a two star command, I think).  You can’t just show up with a demilled weapon and get approved by a staff sergeant, unfortunately.  I also stress that these weapons are UNIT property, not personal property.  They go on the unit’s property books as relics or some such title and are accountable.

As far as purchasing weapons overseas, not gonna happen in the Middle East.  I have had friends who purchased weapons while stationed in Germany during the Cold War and they told me they brought them back legally, but you’re not gonna do it during a current tour in Iraq, unless the rules have changed.  

Not even the sand in your boots is allowed anymore.

That’s just about right!  We had EVERYONE come through with a little MRE tobasco bottle filled with sand.  One creative guy even had different sand from Baghdad, Kuwait, Babylon, and Mosul.  Department of Agriculture prohibits any sand or dirt, even in the little bottles.  They say microbes, etc, from the foreign soil do billions of dollars in damage to U.S. agriculture every year.  I couldn’t tell you whether that’s true or not, but we had to confiscate sand.  Yes, I said it!  In the middle of the desert, I had to confiscate sand.  Sounds pretty stupid, huh?

what about other items like swords, knives and or just gun parts??

Gun parts were taken too.  By policy, not regulation.  By regulation, I THINK, only receivers are controlled.  Senior officers, of course, simplified the matter and ended the argument by simply not allowing any gun parts.


i know a dude who tried to bring home an arm ... yeah, he didnt get far with that

Oh, yeah.  Ears, thumbs….arms?  All illegal, obviously.  Nobody tried it on my night shift, but the opposite shift (day shift, different MP unit) had an arm while I was there.


No. When I came back, the rule was no weapons of any kind(bayonets included) no gun parts, no personal possesions of enemy soldiers, no captured Iraqi flags, and several other things that I can't remember.

Yeah, simply bad timing, joker581.  Flags were legal after a while too.  After the federal law, there are the agency policies.  After the agency policies anything left is subject to your MACOM commander’s policy.  He could outlaw Fruit Loops if he wanted.  He’s the man with the authority.  That’s part of why this stuff changed so often.  If you’d come home later, I bet you’d have been able to keep a flag.  This BIG variable is also why different things are allowed after different wars.  It’s a different commander’s policy.

We do get the short end of the stick in many aspects. But i've got no regrets.
We don't do it for the money.
We don't do it for the fame.
We don't do it for the respect.

We do it for freedom.

That about sums it up.  If you’re there for the money, you’d better be an officer ‘cuz the enlisted don’t get paid much.  If you’re there for the money, you screwed up somewhere.

can I bring home locks of hair of the enemies whose lives I have taken?

Technically no.  Realistically, I doubt the inspectors would know what it was, but…..ew!  Have you seen the hair of anyone in the desert for more than a couple days?

You should at the very least be able to bring back their women.

I worked security for MWR trips in Kuwait City for 2 months.  We watched over the soldiers taking a day off to go shopping, etc.  I almost got run over by one of the hottest women I’ve ever seen.  She was doing about 70 in a Ferrari, coming out of the parking garage of the Marina Mall in southeast Kuwait City.  Don’t kid yourself about the Middle East.  They’re not ALL conservative.  Kuwait was a mix of conservative Muslim, and liberal…whatever.  There’s a road called Arabian Gulf Road that runs across the northern edge of the city, just below the bay, and then turns right to run down the east side of the city along the Persian Gulf (it’s also called route 25, IIRC).  When I was patrolling there, it was not unusual to see two or three Ferraris, Lamborghini’s, or other such exotic cars in a single afternoon.  It’s only about a ten or fifteen-mile stretch of road but it’s where all the rich folk live.  The guys would drive their Italian sports cars to the malls to pick up chicks, just like in America.  Some of the “liberated” women there are VERY attractive, and are out cruising for guys (yes, there are quite a few butt-ugly ones too).

What does the government do with all of the items confiscated?  The drugs and that type of item are destroyed I asume,     But what about the weapons?  What happened to the gold plated AK's we all saw pictures of?