Going Back Read online

  During their tour of duty soldiers would be given a few days’ R&C leave at Vung Tau. This was usually granted about six times during a one-year tour, if you were lucky, and was designed to refresh soldiers. Groups of about 100 or more could be accommodated at a time, and when the 1 ALSG rest centre was established at Back Beach it was called the Peter Badcoe Club after the posthumously decorated Victoria Cross winner from the AATTV. Soldiers were then billeted in a hostel in town, which was named ‘The Flags’ on account of Allied nations’ flags decorating the opposite street. The men were free for about 48 hours to visit the town dressed in civilian attire, and went unarmed—but also forewarned that the greatest danger they now faced was not the VC but VD. There were about 3000 bar girls plying their trade, and sexually transmitted diseases were prevalent; it was an offence if a soldier failed to take precautions and became a casualty.

  So, it was a case of taking it easy and relaxing by swimming, drinking, boating, drinking, dining out and drinking, and occasionally taking in the cultural delights of the town such as bars, saloons and hotels. The Military Police were kept busy and generally most of the soldiery who went to Vung Tau had a good time—if they could remember it. The officers were billeted at the Grand Hotel, which sat on Front Beach facing the South China Sea and had a luxurious beer garden, a reasonable restaurant and of course the obligatory dimly lit bar, where exorbitantly priced drinks were dispensed by hostesses who insisted on being bought a ‘Saigon tea’, which was a method of extracting good money for worthless coloured water.

  A popular ditty that circulated at the time has now reemerged on souvenir items ranging from T-shirts to stubby coolers, which are boldly emblazoned with versions of these words:

  Uc Dai Loi, he cheap Charlie,

  He no buy me Saigon tea,

  Saigon tea cost many many pee*

  Uc Dai Loi, he cheap Charlie

  (* for piastre—the local currency during the war)

  Bill Kromwyk was asked if he remembered his visit to Vung Tau on R&C leave and he replied, ‘. . . sort of’. On his first visit back in 2001, Bill stayed in a hotel and walked around the town. ‘But it all looked different you know, I couldn’t quite recognise much of it—just around near the Grand [Hotel], I thought I remembered a little bit around there.’9

  Ben Morris had reasons for not liking the town when he went down there on R&C leave with his platoon. The staunch Catholic explained:

  To me Vung Tau was the Forbidden City. It was the place I didn’t really like going. I hated taking soldiers there on R&C because the bastards would all piss off. They’d all be in the out of bounds area and there was not much you could do about it . . . And invariably there were the one or two that you had to find and no-one in the world loves going back to Nui Dat to face the CO, missing a Digger or two.10

  Ben has been back to Viet Nam three times now and has travelled from one end to the other. Of the modern Vung Tau he said:

  Vung Tau is like a lot of Viet Nam. It’s moved on. It’s become cleaner. For a Communist country they believe in a lot of capitalism. I really am intrigued by the fact that here we are in a country that’s supposed to be Communist, and it’s raw capitalism.11

  Fred Pfitzner was based in Nui Dat and only visited Vung Tau a few times during his tour of duty. Asked whether he was disappointed in the changes and being unable to recognise places, Fred replied, ‘Not at all. I would have been disappointed not to have seen great change.’12

  Aviator Peter Rogers also went around town looking for landmarks and explained:

  We had a sister unit in Vung Tau, the 54th Aviation Company, and they used to do maintenance for us, and if we went to Vung Tau we would stay with them. I went looking for their place and it was hopeless because the whole of Vung Tau has changed so much. I was also amazed at how big Ba Ria had become, monstrous.13

  Ron Shambrook recalled his own reaction to visiting Vung Tau after 40 years.

  When I first saw Vung Tau there was virtually nothing on those sand dunes, and now there’s high-rise resorts and apartments. In our tour [1966–67] we didn’t have the Badcoe Club complex and the swimming pool and ALSG, and no more permanent accommodation than tents. Towards the end of our tour, my company—Charlie Company—was given the task of going down and setting up some tents near the beach so we could cycle people through to help their health.14

  When the 5 RAR pilgrims returned to Vung Tau in 2005 they arrived on the hydrofoil ferry service from Ho Chi Minh City. John Taske recalled his reaction as they entered the port:

  It brought back a lot of memories. That was the view that I got because I came up on the HMAS Sydney with Charlie Company. And Back Beach—it was a disappointment from the point of view that it looked absolutely nothing like when we first arrived because all it was was just undulating sand hills—it was just tents among the sand dunes. And then when the monsoons came, it all got flooded out and then they had to level it and start again. But it was nothing like what I expected. But it’s beautiful; I’m delighted to see it develop.15

  Roger Wainwright had the honour of commanding the first rifle platoon into the Back Beach area in 1966, which was then a mass—and mess—of empty sand hills. Roger was to a large extent the senior tactical person in the area, and here he recounts his journey after landing at Tan Son Nhut:

  We got into a C-123 [Provider] and flew down to Vung Tau airstrip . . . We were put into the back of a cattle truck and went through what were essentially sand hills to Back Beach. There was no population around; we were going through winding little sand hills in that area. We spent the next couple of days essentially putting up [fencing] wire for the rest of the battalion so they could put up their hoochies. I was just racing around making sure the area was secure.16

  The 5th Battalion did some refresher training as well as the normal acclimatisation runs and physical training to maintain fitness. ‘We were the only battalion that used Back Beach as a firing range, firing mortars and RCLs [recoilless rifles] and small arms out to sea at a few floating targets dumped out there by a boat.’17 It was far from pleasant—‘stinking hot and no shade, in the full sun on the sand, and problems with weapons’.

  Asked how he felt when he was approaching Vung Tau again, Roger replied: ‘Coming down the river on the hydrofoil and just seeing Cap Saint Jacques and Little Hill and Big Hill in the background sort of gives you a few goose bumps and things like that.’18

  Posing for a group photo in front of an Iroquois helicopter at the War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City are, from left to right, Paul Greenhalgh, Peter Isaacs, Ted Heffernan, Roger Wainwright (rear), John Taske, Ron Shambrook (front), Tony White, Ben Morris and Fred Pfitzner. Photo courtesy Ron Shambrook

  Standing in front of a B-52 bomb crater at the Fire Support Base Coral battle site, visiting veterans and partners listen to tour guide Garry Adams (third from left, pointing) describe the battle. Photo courtesy Paul Greenhalgh

  At the risk of scaring the locals the 5 RAR pilgrimage group pose at Vung Tau in 2005, recreating a photograph taken of their group in 1966. Pictured are, from left to right: Dr Ted Heffernan, Dr Tony White, Ben Morris, Dr John Taske, Ron Shambrook, Roger Wainwright, Paul Greenhalgh, Peter Isaacs and Fred Pfitzner. Photo courtesy Paul Greenhalgh

  The officers of 5 RAR’s first tour of duty pose for a Mess photograph in 1966 before leaving on Operation Hardihood to secure the Australian Task Force base at Nui Dat. Back row, left to right: 2Lt Jack Carruthers, Lt Roger Wainwright, 2Lt John Deane-Butcher, 2Lt Dennis Rainer, Lt Greg Negus, Capt Ron Boxall, Capt Ron Bade, Capt Bob O’Neill, Capt Brian Ledan, 2Lt Bob Gunning, 2Lt Trevor Sheehan, Lt John Hartley, Lt Ralph Thompson, 2Lt John McAloney. Centre row, left to right: 2Lt Harry Neesham, Lt David Rowe, Mr John Bentley (Salvation Army), 2Lt Ted Pott, 2Lt Mick Deak, 2Lt Finnie Roe, Lt Bob Supple, 2Lt John Cook, Capt Don Willcox, Capt Bob Milligan, 2Lt Terry O’Hanlon, 2Lt John Nelson. Front row, left to right: Chaplain Ed Bennett, Capt Ron Shambrook, Maj Bert Cassidy, Maj Bruce McQualter, Maj John Miller, Maj S
tan Maizey, LtCol John Warr, Maj Max Carroll, Capt Peter Isaacs, Maj Noel Granter, Maj Paul Greenhalgh, Capt Tony White, Chaplain John Williams. Photo courtesy John Cook

  The hydrofoil ferry service docking at Vung Tau has become a very popular way to travel to the seaside resort town. The hills of Vung Tau are visible in the background. Veterans will be hard pressed to locate any former R&C haunts, but the town still has the charm it held 40 years ago. Photo courtesy Ron Shambrook

  The harbour and hills of Vung Tau peninsula welcome visitors to the seaside resort much as they did the many Australian soldiers and sailors who came to the harbour aboard the HMAS Sydney during the war. Photo courtesy Roger Wainwright

  The 5 RAR pilgrimage group pose in front of the Nui Thi Vais (also known as the ‘Warbies’ or ‘Warburton Mountains’) on their tour around the old Phuoc Tuy Province. From left to right are Dr Tony White, Roger Wainwright, Peter Isaacs, Ben Morris, Fred Pfitzner, Ron Shambrook and Paul Greenhalgh. Photo courtesy Gary Mckay

  The Nui Dat Medical Association, who had their first and last meeting in early 1967 prior to returning to Australia, celebrate and reminisce 38 years later very close to where they first downed some French pink champagne. Toasting the fact that they are still alive and upright are doctors John Taske, Tony White and Ted Heffernan. Photo courtesy Tony White

  Paul Greenhalgh peers through the soft gloom of the rubber in Nui Dat near where 5 RAR established their original home in the Task Force base. Many veterans can place where their tent lines were during their stay in the area. Photo courtesy Paul Greenhalgh

  A veteran walks back from his old tent lines in the northern sector of the former Task Force base at Nui Dat. The rubber is once again being worked and a factory now stands close to where the aircraft refuelling point was located. Photo courtesy Tony White

  This road on the eastern flank of the Nui Dat base was once called Infantry Circuit and the three infantry battalions shared the avenue. Further south and beyond the photograph the road enters a prohibited zone where the current D445 Battalion is located. Photo courtesy Garry Adams

  Standing amidst the ruins of what was the artillery command post at Nui Dat the 5 RAR tour group consult maps and memories as they survey the former Task Force base area. Photo courtesy Peter Isaacs

  One of the few remaining signs of Australian occupation at Nui Dat is the ruins of the back gates to the Task Force base. Photo courtesy Garry Adams

  Today, the local people ride their bikes through the Nui Dat rubber near the ruined gates. Photo courtesy Peter Isaacs

  The 5 RAR pilgrims reflect on the battle at Long Tan in 2005 after a brief but moving informal remembrance service by several veterans who served in the battle area in 1966. Photo courtesy Rupert White

  The Memorial Cross at Long Tan stands silent and sombre under the rubber canopy. The site has become iconic to veterans returning to Viet Nam and is one of only two foreign war memorials in the country. Photo courtesy Elizabeth Stewart

  Embracing in front of the remains of The Horseshoe that had briefly carried the name Fort Wendy are Wendy Greenhalgh and her husband Paul, whose subunit was the first rifle company to occupy and begin fortification of the permanent fire support base in early 1967. Today the feature is being quarried for road base and is slowly disappearing. Photo courtesy Tony White

  The view looking south-east from The Horseshoe with the edge of the Long Hais barely visible through an approaching afternoon thunderstorm. Photo courtesy Garry Adams

  5 RAR Association President Roger Wainwright leaves a simple yet moving tribute to the officers and men of his rifle company who were killed in a mine incident outside the village of An Nhut on 22 February 1967. Photo courtesy Roger Wainwright

  Villagers tend to their rice crops east of Ba Ria and close to the village of An Nhut, with the Long Hai Hills in the background. Photo courtesy Paul Greenhalgh

  Comparing notes and war stories in the Long Hais are former D 445 Battalion officer Lieutenant Hoang Ngan, 5 RAR platoon commander Roger Wainwright and RMO Dr Tony White. Mr Hoang runs the Long Hai museum and a small café in the Long Hai Hills. Photo courtesy Rupert White

  Shrapnel scars and bomb-fractured rocks adorn the entrance to a former Viet Cong hospital set amongst the caves and enormous granite boulders in the Long Hais. The area has been allegedly cleared of mines but visitors should exercise caution when moving off defined paths and tracks. Photo courtesy Garry Adams

  Above: Looking south towards the Long Hai Hills and the former Minh Dam Secret Zone, which had a reputation as a place you really didn’t want to go if you were an infantryman. The Hills have once again recovered the growth that had been severely defoliated by chemical spraying. Photo courtesy Garry Adams

  Facing page: Dr Ted Heffernan in front of a monastery where he once conducted a medical aid program during Operation Hayman on Long Son Island in early November 1966. The area had not changed much in the intervening years and it brought great delight to the doctor to see where he had once worked with the local Vietnamese community. Photo courtesy Rupert White

  The ubiquitous hawkers and peddlers will pursue tourists almost anywhere to sell their souvenirs and goods. Ambushed and with nowhere to go atop the monument to the Viet Cong in Vung Tau are, in the foreground and from left to right, Rupert White, Dr Tony White and Doffy White. In the background, considering the merits of yet another T-shirt they don’t need, are Fred Pfitzner and tour guide Garry Adams. Photo courtesy Paul Greenhalgh

  Resplendent in their 5 RAR cravats and ready for a night out in Vung Tau are, from left to right, Ron Shambrook, Dr Tony White and Peter Isaacs. Photo courtesy Tony White

  The ever busy Hoa Long markets are still a thriving meeting place for the local villagers who rely on fresh produce daily. The village was known to be pro-Viet Cong during the American War and supportive of anti-government activities. Photo courtesy Roger Wainwright

  Peter (‘the Pirate’) Isaacs entertaining a horde of Catholic school children in the town of Binh Gia where the 5 RAR pilgrims stopped for a rest. The friendliness of the local populace is one aspect that never fails to impress visiting veterans. Photo courtesy Ron Shambrook

  The opportunity to dine out in one of the many fine restaurants in Viet Nam was not passed up by the 5 RAR pilgrimage group when they had a sightseeing day and enjoyed lunch at the Ha Hoi Restaurant in Hanoi. Photo courtesy Roger Wainwright

  The 5 RAR pilgrimage group pose on the steps of their hotel in Hanoi towards the end of their tour. Pictured standing from left to right are Dr Ted Heffernan, historian Elizabeth Stewart, tour guide Garry Adams, Roger Wainwright, Fred Pfitzner, Peter Isaacs (eye patch), John Taske, Tina Wainwright, Paul Greenhalgh (front), Ben Morris (beard), Joy Heffernan and Ron Shambrook. Seated are author Gary McKay and Wendy Greenhalgh. Photo courtesy Paul Greenhalgh

  In 1966 the 5 RAR officers took a group photo at Back Beach, and when the pilgrimage group regathered there in 2005 they did not let the moment pass unrecorded. Recreating situations such as group photos (and the Nui Dat medical fraternity champagne toast) can provide lasting memories that allow the veteran to assess the passing of time and place their past service in perspective.

  The pièce de résistance, however, was saved for when the group assembled for dinner one night in Vung Tau, dressed resplendently in slacks, shirts and gold battalion cravats. Did they look out of place in Vung Tau? Absolutely. Did they care? Absolutely not. The party then had a group dinner at a local restaurant owned by expatriate Australian Alan Davis and his Vietnamese wife Anh, during which Tony White showed a compilation video from all his 8-mm film that he took during his tour of duty in Viet Nam. It created a terrific atmosphere—and the bar owner’s wife, who came from near Binh Ba, recalled some of the incidents on the film footage and said it brought tears to her eyes when she recognised the Army doctors doing their Medcaps. It was a memorable evening all round.

  Long Son Island

  Not far north up the road from the port city of Vung Tau is Long Son Island.
The island is about seven kilometres long from east to west, three kilometres wide from north to south, with a large hilly complex on the eastern end. During the war it was totally isolated, except by boat; today a causeway at the eastern end connects the island to the mainland. Near the causeway is a village, and a hamlet is located at the far western end. Apart from some industrial estate development near the causeway, the island has not changed very dramatically since 5 RAR conducted Operation Hayman between 8 and 12 November 1966, a search and clear operation designed to flush any lurking enemy out of the hilly, scrubby areas into the more open lowland areas where they could more easily be rounded up. During the operation, Australian SAS patrols stood by in inflatable boats to intercept enemy soldiers fleeing the sweep. The insertion was not without incident, as Ron Shambrook recalled:

  We flew into the top of this hill and it was a marginal LZ because the gradient of this hill was very poor; too steep. And anyway the first four choppers landed and they indicated that they were getting some small arms fire. I came in in the second group of four, and so our attention to detail was good at that stage, because nothing rivets your attention more than a little bit of lead flying through the air, but there was none when we landed. Anyway the fourth lift came in and one of the pilots over-corrected and thrashed the plane to bits by running the rotors into the hill. I thought we were being mortared; it made an awful lot of noise and I didn’t know what was happening there for a moment.19