well done
Posted on 08/11/2016 2:27:34 PM PDT by naturalman1975
Ten Australian Vietnam veterans will be awarded military honours 50 years after fighting in one of the bloodiest battles of the Vietnam War.
Following a long fight with Canberra, soldiers who took part in the Battle of Long Tan on August 18, 1966, will finally have their heroism recognised ahead of 50th anniversary commemorations.
Veterans Affairs Minister Dan Tehan announced on Wednesday he would write to the prime minister and governor-general to recommend the 10 soldiers be awarded military honours or have existing honours upgraded.
Retired Lieutenant Colonel Harry Smith, 83, was commander of Delta company during the Battle of Long Tan and was not satisfied with the level of recognition awarded to soldiers at the time.
He has campaigned for decades to rectify deficiencies in what he believed was a shambolic system for military awards.
Justice has been done,' he said on Wednesday.
'I believe that the outcome has been excellent, compared with what has been done before.'
The Defence Honours and Awards Appeals Tribunal recommended the military honours or upgrades, but Mr Smith's bid for the late Jack Kirby to receive a Victoria Cross was rejected.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
Back in the 1960s (and until the 1970s) Australian servicemen received 'Imperial Honours' when they were decorated - the same medals that British service personnel received. The system worked until Vietnam because until then Australians had always been serving alongside British troops in the same wars. But Vietnam was different - Britain was not part of the war, and the British Ministry of Defence (which had to approve Australian recommendations for decorations) was reluctant to pass on too many such recommendations.
Also, in contrast to all previous wars that Australian troops had served in, there was no immediate 'End of War' Honours list for Vietnam - the purpose of the 'End of War' list was to identify and recognise actions that had been overlooked during the conflict. But when Australia exited the Vietnam War, a socialist government had just been elected that wanted to put Vietnam behind them as fast as possible and didn't care if this meant service personnel were not recognised. That oversight was eventually corrected in 1998 when the Howard government did formulate an End of War list for Vietnam 25 years after it should have been done - but even with that, there were still men who went unrecognised.
We needed to correct this. It is - literally - a matter of honour.
THE BATTLE OF LONG TAN
The Battle of Long Tan on August 18, 1966, was one of the fiercest battles fought by Australian soldiers in Vietnam.
A total of 105 Australians and three New Zealanders faced a North Vietnamese and Viet Cong force that exceeded 2000.
Despite the odds, the Australian troops forced the Vietnamese to retreat.
Eighteen Australians died and the enemy death toll likely exceeded 500.
Hand Salute.
And thank you, Australia.
Lieutenant Adrian Roberts to be awarded the Medal for Gallantry. This is a tacit acknowledgement that he should have received the Military Cross for which he was recommended.
Sergeant Frank Alcorta to be awarded the Medal for Gallantry. This is a tacit acknowledgement that he should have received the Military Medal for which he was recommended.
Lance Corporal Barry Magnussen (now deceased) to be awarded the Medal for Gallantry. This is a tacit acknowledgement that he should have received the Military Medal for which he was recommended.
Second Lieutenant Gordon Sharp (now deceased) to receive the Commendation for Gallantry. This is a tacit acknowledgement that he should have been Mentioned In Dispatches.
Private Neil Bextrum to receive the Commendation for Gallantry. This is a tacit acknowledgement that he should have been Mentioned In Dispatches.
Private Ron Brett (now deceased) to receive the Commendation for Gallantry. This is a tacit acknowledgement that he should have been Mentioned In Dispatches.
Private Ian Campbell to receive the Commendation for Gallantry. This is a tacit acknowledgement that he should have been Mentioned In Dispatches.
Private William Roche to receive the Commendation for Gallantry. This is a tacit acknowledgement that he should have been Mentioned In Dispatches.
Private Geoffrey Peters to receive the Commendation for Gallantry. This is a tacit acknowledgement that he should have been Mentioned In Dispatches.
Private Noel Grimes to receive the Commendation for Gallantry. This is a tacit acknowledgement that he should have been Mentioned In Dispatches.
A good movie about the Aussies in Vietnam is “The Odd Angry Shot” from 1979. Was an early 80s HBO staple. If you’ve seen many Aussie films then you’ll recognize some of the actors like Bryan Brown ( FX1 and 2 ).
“Justice has been done,”
Yes it has.
Thank you for your efforts soldiers.
About time. Sounds like the Australian liberals treat their VN vets the same as US types.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gUSq7pxux4
My dad and uncle (Nam vets) always tell me the Aussies in Vietnam were not to be trifled with.
“...the Aussies in Vietnam were not to be trifled with.”
Particularly at the NCO club. Never make the mistake of trying to keep pace with one when you’re drinking beah!
I had the pleasure of serving with them. They always called us “Yanks”. If you earned their respect they called you a “bloke”.
well done
We had to get off the road and find sanctuary with a friendly unit. We scored a bunch of cervesa and hunkered down during a mortar and rocket attack.
The Ozites fund that we took the situation in a frivolous way, different cultures.
Thank you for your service. I just heard an interview on the radio with the author of Poking Lions.
amazon.com/Poking-Lions-Keith-Quincy/dp/1785544160/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1470960805&sr=8-1&keywords=poking+lions
The author talked about the bad stuff done by the Americans soldiers in Vietnam, the guilt they have today and the lack of support they receive. The author wrote in fiction so that they will not be charged. Brutal war stories. President JFK gets a lot of blame.
As I recall one of their favorite games (after drinking a lot of beah) was to stand on a table and stop the ceiling fan with your head (face first). Is that where the term “bloody” comes from?
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