Long Tan awards still sore points

Herald Sun ^ | 17th August 2004

[naturalman1975]

ALMOST 40 years on, the performance of the Vung Tau postman is still discussed among Australia's Vietnam War veterans.

For his role he received the award of mentioned in dispatches (MID).

It was announced in January 1967 in the same awards list as MIDs for Lieutenants Dave Sabben and Geoff Kendall, platoon commanders during the epic battle of Long Tan in which 108 Australian soldiers fought off overwhelming numbers of Viet Cong for the loss of 18 troops.

Both were originally recommended for the Military Cross.

Those and other discrepancies between what awards were recommended and what were actually handed out remain sore points for the veterans of Long Tan, the best known single battle of Australia's controversial involvement in Vietnam.

In Canberra today, seven of the key figures involved in the battle gathered at the Australian War Memorial for the launch of a new book, The Battle of Long Tan as told by the Commanders to Bob Grandin.

Major Harry Smith, the commander of Delta Company, 6RAR, said he had never forgiven the senior officers for the way they downgraded the proposed awards to his men.

"I was absolutely disgusted that in December 1966 the awards I had recommended, in some cases had not been processed, and in some cases had been downgraded and belittled with my platoon commanders being put on the same list for MIDs – which are normally for administrative good work or posthumous awards for bravery – as the postal officer at Vung Tau," he said.

"We on the other hands were highly decorated by the Americans, with the presidential unit citation, and by the South Vietnamese government.

"There was something obviously wrong with our system at that time and I hope it is being corrected."

There's some hope of that with Labor promising an inquiry should it win government.

The Battle of Long Tan was fought on August 18, 1966 when the members of Delta company set out to find Viet Cong (VC) mortar crews who had attacked the Australian base at Nui Dat.

In the rubber plantation of Long Tan they ran headlong into a VC regiment. In the ensuing desperate three-hour battle, the diggers fought off successive massed VC attacks, aided by accurate artillery fire from the base.

But it remained a close fight, eventually ending with the arrival of a relief column of armoured personnel carriers.

RSL national president Major General Bill Crews said the Battle of Long Tan stood out because of the success of one well-led company against overwhelming odds.

"I stand in awe of the collective authors of this book. They were the commanders on the day," he said. "Thirty-eight years ago they were subjected to the ultimate test of (article is truncated at this point)