Posted on Apr 28, 2015
A Fish Story? Paratrooper Who Completed Final Jump With Pet Fish Receives UCMJ
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Army SPC Matthew Tattersall, the Paratrooper who gained fame just last week for celebrating his final training jump by bringing his pet fish along with him and filming the experience on a Go-Pro camera, has now faced the wrath of the UCMJ for his stunt.
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Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 262
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Dang!!! Y'all MUST have landed in the Guiness Book of Records for this thread!!! This series of posts should have its own unique MOS identifier cause a veritable career has been created from the "flying fish" story. Per the McDonald's commercial... "I'm lovin' it"!!!
SP5 Gerald Barnett SSG Pete Fleming PO1 Robert Payne COL Mikel J. Burroughs SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth Sgt Steven Thomas [~129632:SGT Tom Allard SSG Ronald Limbaugh SSG James Arlington SSG John Bacon SGT Jim Barrows SGT (Join to see) CPT (Join to see) SGT Robert George SSG Billy Crosby LTC (Join to see) Alan K. SFC Anthony Beck SPC Douglas Bolton LTC William Smith LTC Stephen F.
SP5 Gerald Barnett SSG Pete Fleming PO1 Robert Payne COL Mikel J. Burroughs SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth Sgt Steven Thomas [~129632:SGT Tom Allard SSG Ronald Limbaugh SSG James Arlington SSG John Bacon SGT Jim Barrows SGT (Join to see) CPT (Join to see) SGT Robert George SSG Billy Crosby LTC (Join to see) Alan K. SFC Anthony Beck SPC Douglas Bolton LTC William Smith LTC Stephen F.
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SGM Robin Johnson
This is the guy I would have been friends with when I was JE. The kind who would exchange glances when we both had the same smart...alec...thought go through our head at what the 1SG said, then we would try not to be the first one to laugh and get called out. Yeah...find him!
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SMSgt Lawrence McCarter
Hmmm, even if the fish hadn't of gone on the jump guess You still wouldn't have called Him a leg would You ?
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Black Hats let him through? Well, hes an E4...they got all kindsa hiding places.
Even still though, what about the Jump Master? He didn't see him?
Also, I know he coulda got someone killed with an entanglement, but the odds of that seemed pretty low...why didn't they just scuff the shit out of him? So quick to paperwork a guy, these days.
Even still though, what about the Jump Master? He didn't see him?
Also, I know he coulda got someone killed with an entanglement, but the odds of that seemed pretty low...why didn't they just scuff the shit out of him? So quick to paperwork a guy, these days.
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SGM (Join to see)
It was a water bottle that he had in his cargo pocket. If the Jumpmaster noticed it, he noticed that it was a bottle, and probably didn't consider whether it might contain something more than water.
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back in the 80's I knew a guy, that when he was in 82nd, he jumped with his Guinea Pig.
he tied it to a Parachute from a 4.2 inch Flare Round.... he would throw it out the door first and jump after it.
he tied it to a Parachute from a 4.2 inch Flare Round.... he would throw it out the door first and jump after it.
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Well, I'm not airborne so I don't know the risk of having a water bottle with a fish in it on a jump. As of right now I would say there were people doing things that were a hell of a lot more stupid.
The army might want to rethink its priorities
The army might want to rethink its priorities
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SGT Daniel Rocco Ames
Considering if you get airsick they give you plastic bags to vomit in which you then have to jump with, I'd say minimal at best.
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Hahahaha I've always said if I got promoted as many times as I got demoted I would be Sergeant Major of the universe. however, this article 15 I would have to say would be worth it ;) ..... this would be definitely one for the memory books :-) this kid needed to be in the army back in the days with me. we would have had a blast and our first sergeant and Commander would have then banging their heads against their desk and their feet against our butts...hahahaha
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I commanded in the 82nd and cannot believe they are giving UCMJ action over jumping a fish in a water bottle. Back in the 90's it would have been nothing more than a laugh and something to talk about around the BN AO. Way too serious and I'm not sure how it was a safety issue other than when he took the bottle out to snap the photo during the ride down and that is stretching it. Paratroopers have been snapping pictures for years and although it is a "safety violation" it never warrants UCMJ. Think there is more to the story and this might have been the icing on the cake for SPC Tattersall. Could also be he was told specifically not to do it and ignored the directive too.
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SPC Jan Allbright, M.Sc., R.S.
SPC Tattersall broke the E-4 code .. he got noticed .. and for that he was punished.
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MAJ Craig Clark
true, MSG Sand...but even making Tattersall write an essay was silly, in my opinion. What was the purpose of that? Pure punishment for he wasn't going really learn anything or gain some insight that made him remorseful about what he did and they left themselves open to Tattersall writing jokes into the essay. Besides opening themselves up to what he wrote, the essay was akin to writing "I won't take a fish on a jump" 200 times on the chalkboard. The entire thing seems to be over ego's. Someone made too big of a deal over a fish, then got their feelings hurt because the kid getting out wasn't quaking in his boots "taking it serious" so they said watch this, Article 15. Reminds me a the Caine Mutiny from WWII. "Who ate my strawberries...." an overreaction and escalation when it should have be laughed off and SPC Tattersall pulled CQ or painted some rocks.
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SPC Jan Allbright, M.Sc., R.S.
I think the only reason anything happened is when the facebook post went up, CC's phone exploded.
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CSM Charles Hayden
Yes, normally not a problem. BUT-Airborne Training suspended after 2 mishaps in the last 2 weeks that each resulted in death of a trooper. Tighten UP!
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I think he was punished more for the photo ending up all over social media than the actual safety violation. What he did was dangerous but not something that nearly every paratrooper has done at least once since the days of cheap disposable film cameras. I think 12 days extra duty is a fair, light punishment because he got caught.
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SPC Jan Allbright, M.Sc., R.S.
Truth ... if I had a fish and a camera in '68 .. this would be old news
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I believe he knew that he could receive punishment for his actions and has accepted it like a man. He created a very awesome memory of his last jump in uniform, no one was harmed, not even the fish! I know that doesn't make it right but it appeared he took what precautions he could and was able to take the discipline he expected to receive. I personally think an Art 15 may be excessive, and not sure what it really had done other than the extra duty since he is separating. You make your bed, just be ready to sleep in it. I wish him good luck in his future!
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