page_title: 5th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment
section_title: Second tour of Vietnam
hierarchical_section_title: 5th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment / History / Second tour of Vietnam
caption_attribution_description: English: AWM image BEL/69/0741/VN. SOUTH VIETNAM. 1969-10. RAAF CARIBOU AIRCRAFT OF NO. 35 SQUADRON WERE USED TO AIR-LIFT AUSTRALIAN TROOPS FROM THE FIELD TO THEIR NUI DAT BASE. IT WAS THE FIRST TIME THE CARIBOU HAVE BEEN USED IN THIS ROLE BECAUSE THE TROOPS, MEMBERS OF 5TH BATTALION, THE ROYAL AUSTRALIAN REGIMENT (5RAR), HAD BEEN OPERATING NEAR THE VILLAGE OF XUYEN MOC, EAST OF THE TASK FORCE BASE, WHICH HAD A GRASS STRIP CAPABLE OF TAKING FIXED WING AIRCRAFT. WEARY TROOPS WAIT FOR THE AIRCRAFT AFTER A MONTH IN THE FIELD.
context_page_description: The 5th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment is a regular motorised infantry battalion of the Australian Army. Originally established in 1965 it would serve two tours of South Vietnam before it was linked with the 7th Battalion to form the 5th/7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment in 1973. In late 2006 the two units were de-linked, and 5 RAR again joined the Australian Army's order of battle in its own right. It has since served in Iraq, East Timor and Afghanistan.
context_section_description: The 5th Battalion commenced its second tour of South Vietnam in February 1969, this time under the command of Lieutenant Colonel C.N. Khan. After shaking out for two weeks, the Battalion began a reconnaissance in force in the northern and eastern parts of the rugged Nui Dinh mountain complex on 1 March 1969 – Operations Quintus Thrust I and II. Other activities followed: reacting to a significant threat against United States forces in the Long Binh and Bien Hoa areas (Operations Federal and Overlander, 10 March to 8 April 1969); ambushing in the Nui Thi Vai mountain complex (Operation Twickenham I, 2 to 13 May 1969); the Battle of Binh Ba, for which the Royal Australian Regiment received a battle honour for its action against a battalion of the 33 NVA Regiment (Operation Hammer, 6 to 8 June 1969); operations to locate and destroy the D445 Viet Cong Battalion (Operation Kingston, 14 September to 15 October 1969); and cordon and searches of the hamlets of Duc Trung, Binh Ba and Duc My (Operations Bondi I and II, 27 December to 16 February 1970).
  'During the second tour the emphasis [of operations] turned more towards route denial and conventional operations involving seeking out and closing with the guerilla and Main Force units such as D445 Battalion and 274 Regiment. Ambush and reconnaissance tasks were also conducted at platoon and company level. Attacks and the clearance of bunker systems played a major part of operations... The tour [also] saw the extensive use of Australian and United States M113 APCs in support of tasks... Towards the end of the tour, elements of the Battalion also contributed to the pacification process through the construction of schools and housing and through the provision of medical and dental support to such villages as Ong Trinh and Phuoc Le'. Operations were also characterised by a higher number of mine incidents than had been experienced previously. 'The majority of the mines were taken by the VC from a barrier minefield laid by the Australians between the Horseshoe [feature] and Phuoc Hai. The enemy used these mines offensively rather than using them to protect their bases. The VC would lay the mines on tracks, in likely ambush and harbour locations, and around houses and villages. During Operations Esso I, II and III in June and July 1969, special precautions were taken to counter the problem of mines. Special training was conducted, all vehicle floors were sandbagged, flak jackets and helmets worn whenever possible, and mine detectors used by all patrols. Despite these precautions, seven soldiers were killed and 43 were wounded by mines on these operations alone'.
  Arguably the most well known action ever fought by the 5th Battalion was the Battle of Binh Ba, which took place between 6 and 8 June 1969 and saw the defeat of a well armed and determined North Vietnamese Army (NVA) battalion. The action began at 08:10 hours on 6 June when a Centurion tank and armoured recovery vehicle moving to a fire support base manned by 6 RAR was fired on by a rocket propelled grenade (RPG) from one of the houses in the village, located about three miles north of the Australian Task Force base at Nui Dat. D Company, 5 RAR was the Task Force quick reaction force, which also included a tank troop and an APC troop, and was sent out in response to a request for assistance from the local District chief. Whilst determining that the village was clear of civilians, the force came under heavy RPG fire. The Commanding Officer's Tactical Party and B Company joined the action at midday, with B Company being placed in a blocking position to the east of the village. By this time D Company and its supporting arms had fought their way into the centre of the village. 'The fighting was so fierce and confused for two hours that a detailed description is impossible'. By 14:00 hours D Company formed up west of the village and began a second sweep, with infantry leading and the tanks and APCs close behind. A difficult combined arms clearance supported by Bushranger helicopter gunships and artillery then took place against dete
caption: 5 RAR soldiers waiting to be picked up by a RAAF de Havilland Canada DHC-4 Caribou at the conclusion of a month-long operation in October 1969
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