4 Field Regiment (SVN) 'Old Boys' Sep 25 Newsletter

ambush position. Mick and I at the rear, plotting Df's when (we thought about 15-20 VC) walked straight into us. Mick stayed with W Coy and I was sent to the Land Clearing Team as their FO for several months. The team was made up of 3 D8 Bulldozers with a sled each to carry all the equipment an APC which I worked from and we were out in the jungle for lengthy periods. On one occasion we were clearing the jungle around a village when one D8 hit a mine that had been planted the night before. We were clearing jungle within close proximity to the Long Hai’s. On this occasion we had 2 tanks with us and were operating out of a bund. After a few days the tanks left. One night "Snoopy" picked up movement outside our Bund and we called in Artillery fire. The next day the 3 D8"s, one after another hit land mines and were severely damaged. That was the end of The Land Clearing Team. On returning to the Bty I had a few days of doing nothing, mainly hanging around the orderly room with Swiftie. Our BSM (Syd Farrow) asked me if I would operate the boozer. Together with Swiftie, Dave Larter, Peter Smith, Peter Bruce, Mick Long and a few others we remodelled the boozer and added a concrete slab for a beer garden. The concrete we stole from a consignment meant for ( I think, Brigade HQ). As a side note both Swiftie and I were questioned by the MP,s over the redirection of the load of concrete. As I had a projectionist licence, I also ran the cinema of a night I was on my last R&C in February when I was called back to the Battery and sent out with a 7 RAR platoon on their last Op. The Plt leader located a disused water hole and we ambushed it for 5 days. One night on my way back to my sleeping area from machine gun picket I became disorientated and spent several hours sitting against a tree. I still remember how black the night was. I have been back 3 times, one to Hanoi and surrounds. I did go back to Nui Dat in the 90’s and found the site of my tent, last on in the top corner of the Bty lines, and the concrete slab was still there with our initials etched in. The most important thing out of that 12 month period was the lasting friendships we all made. A letter from Jeff O'Brien, RSL NSW State Secretary This Vietnam Veterans Day, 18 August, RSL NSW is backing a member-led campaign for the Federal Government to deem some 2,500 National Servicemen who served in Vietnam, our 'Nashos', eligible for the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal (RVCM) before it's too late. These men were conscripted under Australian law. They didn't volunteer. They were ordered to leave their homes, families, and jobs to serve their country in a war that divided the nation. And so they went, some never to return, others to return scarred in ways seen and unseen. Yet today, this group remains officially unrecognised in one critical way: they are denied the RVCM, a service honour bestowed by the former Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam) to those who fought on their soil. Why? Because their period of service in Vietnam fell just short of an arbitrary 181-day requirement, despite meeting every other measure of duty and sacrifice. Two years ago, RSL NSW formally apologised for the mistreatment of Vietnam veterans who returned home from the conflict - and reaffirmed the League's pledge to stand for all veterans now and in the future. This year, RSL NSW is demanding urgent action to correct this long-standing injustice for our Nashos.