It didn't take me long to experience what it would be like to be posted with the RAAF ADG-ER's. They were a unique group of individuals…to say the least…and humping the flight line, or pulling bunker and mobile Golf units with them was an experience I will never forget!
      I want to break away from my experiences with the Royal Australian Air Force, at Vũng Tàu Air Field, to give you some perspective on their role in the Vietnam War.

 9SQ veterans seem to come from all walks of life. This is one of the
Vietnam veterans who represented the Australian Vietnam motorcycle club.

RAAF No. 9SQ members forming up for
the march to the Tamworth Vietnam Memorial.

      Operations began the very next day when the Squadron received an urgent request for the 5th Royal Australian Regiment (5RAR) for a resupply of ammunition. While it was not expected that operations would begin so quickly, the ammo resupply mission was accepted. This first mission was to mark the beginning of six years of combat flying for the 9th Squadron.
      Australian and New Zealand forces served honorably during the Vietnam War. Their actual involvement in Vietnam began in 1962, when a thirty man Australian Army Training Team - composed of jungle warfare specialists - arrived in-country to train South Vietnamese Army Forces.
      In April 1965 Australia deployed its first combat troops, the First Battalion of the Royal Australian Regiment, which was attached to the U.S. 173rd Airborne Brigade at Biên Hòa Air Base. By September 1965, Australia had supplemented the initial battalion of 778 personnel with units of artillery, air reconnaissance, and engineers, totaling 1,447 personnel.

Vietnam War Memorial - Tamworth, New South Wales
AUS RAAF No. 9SQ Wreath Laying Ceremony

     Throughout its participation, Australia relied heavily on U.S. logistical support and as a result only a small percentage of its troops engaged in support services. In contrast to the U.S., Australia rotated entire regiments, rather than individuals, into and out of Viet Nam, but like the U.S., it conscripted soldiers to fill its ranks.
      Australia combined its military forces with those of New Zealand. With its military contribution expanding rapidly, they established a concerted presence in Phouc Tuy Hoa and Bein Hoa Provinces, operating base camps in such places as Nui Dat, northeast of the Vung Tau Peninsula, and Fire Support Bases Coral and Balmoral, northeast of Saigon.
      The Battle of Coral was the biggest unit level battle involving Australian and New Zealand forces in the Vietnam War. For twenty-six days in May/June 1968, units of the First Australian Task Force fought a series of actions around Coral and Balmoral, Against combined units of NVA and VC forces, where ground forces fought close-combat actions against a determined enemy force. Their tactical use of artillery support and helicopter gun ship missions turned the battle against the enemy and broke enemy controls of this key staging area for attacks directed on the Saigon area. At the end of the operation, the First Australian Task Force dominated their area.

The RAAF flag ceremony that concluded the wreath laying
ceremony at the Tamworth Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

     Australian and New Zealand forces left Vietnam in 1971. Only a small contingent of Australian Army Assistance Group (AAAG) personnel remained in Southeast Asia to continue to train South Vietnamese and Khmer Republic Forces. They remained until January 1973.
      Australian and New Zealand forces (ANZAC) reached its peak number of troops at 7,672 personnel, in 1969. A total of 386 ANZAC personnel were killed-in-action and 2,193 wounded.
      The RAAF troops with whom the 377th Security Police personnel were assigned base defense duties with were a very unique group of individuals. The 'Aussies' and the 'Yanks'…as we called each other…formed immediate friendships and introduced each other to their ways of doing things.
      The Aussie's were experts in the consumption of alcoholic beverage. I never drank more beer in my life than during my three month TDY at Vũng Tàu Air Field. Their beer of choice was Victoria Bitter, or more commonly known as VB, and they seemed to keep a "tinny" in my hand at all times when we were off duty. A tinny was a twelve-ounce aluminum can of beer.
      Let it be known that the Aussie ADG troops were damn good soldiers, but they seemed to have a fondness for the practical joke, of which, the Yanks were the targets for these shenanigans. The Aussie's would report for duty with SLR 7.62 assault rifles. The flash suppressors on the SLR's were similar to the one's on the U.S. M-14 rifles, and they would cover their flash suppressors with long, aluminum cigar canisters. Each canister could hold a large cigar and the Aussie's would use these to minimize the amounts of dust and rain that could seep into the rifle barrel. One of their pranks was to remove the projectile off of a 7.62 round and use the primer and residual gunpowder to shoot the aluminum canister at unsuspecting 377th SPS personnel.
      You had to keep your eyes on the perimeter fence line AND on the Aussie ADG troops around you because the threat of "assault" was equal on all sides. I reluctantly returned to Tan Son Nhut Air Base in July 1968. The friendships and camaraderie we had with the Australians made it hard to leave Vũng Tàu.

In 1998, I began an effort to locate my old Aussie buddies from Vung Tau. It was a formidable task to say the least! Trying to locate them after thirty years, with the Pacific Ocean between us, made contact unlikely. Well, through the miracle of the internet, I found a few Australian web sites that were dedicated to their Vietnam Veterans organizations. I began to sign their guestbooks and left information on my unit's assignment at Vũng Tàu with my dates of service at the airfield.

Dave and Bev Dowdell attending the RAAF No.9SQ Vietnam
Veteran's Reunion, in Tamworth, New South Wales AUS.

      I came away from the 9SQ Reunion with a commitment from the Aussie veterans to make a concerted effort to link up old USAF personnel with ANZAC personnel, in an attempt to renew old friendships. I know there are a lot of Vietnam Security Police Association members who had similar contacts with Australian military personnel while they were stationed in South Vietnam and Thailand. Whether it was at Korat AFB, Phang Rang AFB, or Vũng Tàu Air Field, the VSPA and 9SQ/ADG Associations need to compile their membership lists and internet addresses so more of us can experience the joy of renewing old, old friendships.

David Dowdell
377th SPS,
1967-1968

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