
By Colonel John Warr, DSO, (Dec)
Commanding Officer, 5RAR South Vietnam
1966-67.
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On the 1st of March 1965, the Fifth
Battalion, the Royal Australian Regiment,
was raised at Holsworthy NSW, from members
of the First Battalion. Two months later the
First Battalion was committed to operations
in Bien Hoa Province in Vietnam.
In January 1966, 5RAR was brought to full
strength with over 300 national servicemen
and 200 regular soldiers who had all
completed their basic training. It was
generally accepted by the members of the
battalion at that time that 5RAR would
replace 1RAR in Vietnam when it completed
its service there in May 1966. It was about
three months from that time until 5RAR was
in action in Vietnam.
During this time of preparing for active
service, the 25 members of the band were
required to meet the training requirements
of the Battalion to work six days a week,
often from early morning until late at
night. This training included field craft,
weapon training, mines and booby traps,
night movement, lectures on Vietnamese
history, culture and customs, exercises in
the mountains at Gospers, special training
at The Jungle Training centre at Cunungra
Queensland and familiarization in helicopter
movement.
In addition to this training, the band
members spent considerable time on first
aid, musical training and playing as
a band on special occasions. The pressure of
these constant activities and the
encouragement and firmness of leadership of
Bob Taylor and the Drum Major, Ken Benson
began the bonding together of this special
team within the Battalion.
On the 8th of March 1966, the Australian
Government announced an increase of the
Australian Forces in Vietnam to a task force
of 4,500 men, based on 5RAR and 6RAR and
supporting arms. This was the first official
announcement that 5RAR would serve in
Vietnam.
Early in April 1966, the band performed
publicly for the first time when the
Battalion carried out the ceremony of
Beating the Retreat at Holsworthy. A few
days later, the band led the battalion when
it marched through Sydney as part of 1
Australian Task Force before departing for
Vietnam.
During April and May, the Battalion moved to
Vung Tau, either by aircraft or by the
troopship carrier HMAS Sydney, after which
it had about three weeks to acclimatize and
complete helicopter and other special
training.
At this time a close friendship developed
between 5RAR and the American 68 US Aviation
Company, which had been providing helicopter
training for the battalion. The friendship
was further cemented when a dinner was
arranged for members of the 68th ( known as
Top Tigers ) at which the band played the
regimental march of the 68th, "Those Daring
Young Men in Their Flying Machines" and
other appropriate tunes. From that time
onward the 68th would do anything possible
to provide maximum possible support to 5RAR.
From the time he joined the Battalion, Bob
Taylor had been thinking about a Regimental
March for 5RAR and he had concluded that the
most appropriate was "Dominique". He
arranged the music then suggested to the CO
that Dominique be accepted as the Regimental
March. Colonel Warr was not convinced as he
had never heard the tune. Bob Taylor, with
the support of Major Max Carroll, the
Operations Officer, then proposed that the
band play Dominique and two other marches
for the 800 men of the battalion who would
be asked to vote for the march they thought
would the best. Dominique received an
overwhelming vote from all ranks and so it
became the march of the 'Tiger Battalion'.
By early 1966, The Viet Cong had established
two main force regiments, 274 and 275
Regiments, each of three battalions in the
north east and north west of Phuoc Tuy
Province. These forces were in addition to
the Provincial Battalion D445 and numerous
village guerrilla platoons. Almost all of
the province of Phuoc Tuy, except for the
major towns of Xuyen Moc, Duc Thanh and the
provincial capital Baria were controlled by
the Viet Cong and even these towns had been
heavily infiltrated by the Viet Cong. The
total number of Viet Cong in the province at
that time was estimated to be 4,800. They
were well armed, knew the country in detail,
received considerable support either
willingly or by coercion from the local
people and they had the ability to merge
with the people so that it was often
impossible for the Australians to determine
exactly who were enemy and who were not. The
support received by the Viet Cong from the
local people made it easy for them to know
of the movement of our forces, which could
be easily seen and reported.
It was into this situation that 5RAR was
launched in May 1966 in 'Operation
Hardihood', which aimed to clear Nui Dat for
the establishment of the Australian Task
Force. During the next eleven months, 5RAR
conducted 23 battalion sized operations and
in between such operations no less then one
company was always outside the base area.
Because, on operations, the bandsmen were
deployed with one of them as a stretcher
bearer to each platoon, they contain all the
collective experience of all the enemy
contacts and incidents, some of which
resulted in battle casualties. The total
casualties the battalion during 1966-67 were
25 killed in action or died of wounds and 79
wounded in action. The band's own causalties
included Private Michael Poole killed in
action, three wounded in action, including
the Drum Major Ken Benson while acting as
CSM B Company, in addition to three members
evacuated to Australia as a result of
serious accidents and illnesses.
Whenever the battalion returned to its base
after an operation, the band would
immediately reform and play in company lines
as a morale booster in the base area when
the situation permitted, the band played
Retreat in the evenings and everyone
appreciated the significance of this
ceremony. A major problem facing the task
force in 1966 was that, in Phuoc Tuy
Province the Viet Cong had been able to
replace Government control with their own
administration in most villages and hamlets.
This had been achieved by creating a cadre
in each village. These cadres were composed
of dedicated communists, whose task was to
discredit the Government, indoctrinate the
villagers with communist propaganda and
build an organization to support the Viet
Cong in the field with food, medical aid,
recruits and money. The methods used by the
cadres to obtain the co-operation and
support of the villagers was brutal and
effective. The head men, school teachers and
local administrators were either eliminated
or their families killed or tortured if they
failed to co-operate. The cadres also
recruited young men and women into the Viet
Cong forces and provided labour when
required. It was clear that, if the village
cadres were eliminated and the people were
protected from the influence of the Viet
Cong, the major advantages enjoyed by the
Viet Cong would disappear, if they were
unable to use the villages as operational
bases. The Viet Cong would be isolated from
the people and their military effectiveness
reduced as their ability to obtain food,
taxes and intelligence decreased. In
addition, the Viet Cong would not be able to
visit their homes and families and their
morale would be reduced accordingly. It was
therefore decided that, as the first step in
returning Phuoc Tuy Province to the control
of the Government of South Vietnam, the
village cadres must be eliminated. 5RAR
therefore developed techniques to cordon and
search villages to find the cadre members.
These techniques required a night approach
march to the selected village then surround
and seal off the village before any of its
inhabitants could leave. The people were
then removed from the village and questioned
by Government officials. During this
interrogation period, medical and dental aid
was provided for the people and food was
distributed. In order to create the best
possible atmosphere for these activities,
the band played appropriate music.
The bandsmen were required to accompany
their platoons as stretcher bearers during
the night approach march and then, when the
questioning of the villagers commenced, they
would assemble at a designated area and
resume their role as bandsmen. Their band
instruments, music, chairs etc would be
brought forward either by APC or trucks or
helicopters if necessary. While the musical
activities of the band were well received by
the villagers they suggested that they would
appreciate hearing their own Vietnamese
tunes rather then our western music. Bob
Taylor then set to work immediately to
prepare the necessary music for the band by
the time for the next cordon and search in
two weeks. The band was playing the tunes
requested by the villagers.

The total effect on the villagers of these
cordon and search operations was quite
noticeable and the band played an
increasingly important role in winning the
hearts and minds of the people. In addition,
during the cordon and search operations, the
band would usually intersperse its playing
with assistance to the medical civil aid
program.
In the seven months period, July 1966 to
February 1967, 5RAR carried out nine village
cordon and search operations which resulted
in 14 Viet Cong killed, five wounded and 224
prisoners.
On several occasions, the band, at short
notice, provided protection for disabled
APCs at night and also provided ambush
parties. The band was also required, like
every other platoon, to provide clearing
patrols around the base and sentries every
night. Several times, Bob Taylor commanded a
rifle platoon or acted as CSM of a rifle
company. Ken Benson while acting as CSM B
Company in February was wounded in action
which resulted in his evacuation to
Australia.
The 5RAR Band was the only effective service
band in Vietnam and it was always in demand
to play at church and memorial services and
parades for presentation of awards. It gave
concerts at the US 36th Evacuation hospital,
2 Field Ambulance RAAMC, 1/83 US Artillery
Battery, A Battery 2/35 US Artillery
Battery, the 805 Transport Company, the
American Rest and Recreation Centre at Vung
Tau and at a Fourth of July celebration at
Ba Ria for American Advisers. These concerts
were of great value in cementing the good
relations which had been established with
American units. In addition, appropriate
music was provided for the Task Force on
such occasions as the visit of Marshall Ky
and General Johnson, the US Army Chief of
Staff. When 5RAR returned to Australia in
April 1967, the band, in spite of its own
casualties, was able to lead the Battalion
in a parade through Sydney.
During service in Vietnam in 1966-67,
Corporal Peter Fraser was awarded the
Military Medal (MM) and Private Laurie Lewis
was 'Mentioned in Dispatches' (MID), for
bravery for treating casualties under fire.
There is no doubt that a number of members
of 5RAR owe their lives to the immediate aid
given them, usually under difficult
circumstances, by members of the Band. The
5RAR Band demonstrated clearly that in
operations, the value of the band of an
infantry battalion, when used to its fullest
potential, is out of all proportion to its
numbers.
The Band Members
Band Master
Bob Taylor

Cornets
Norm
Sims, Norm Harris, Jock Bouse,
Ted Gadd, Garry Phillips, Frank
Baker,
Bill McIntyre, Ken Edmunds and
Geoff Lowe.

Tenor Horns
Mick
Poole, Barry Pemberton, Mick
Dwyer
and Laurie Lewis, MID

Baritones
Jack
Curtis and Paul Maloney

Trombone
Geoff Reid

Euphoniums
Charlie Johnson and Nev Graham

Tubas
Peter Tuck, Peter Lapko and
Geoff Lowe

Percussion
Ken
Benson, Ron Shoebridge
and John Nyhuis

Alto Saxophone
Peter Fraser MM
This page is
dedicated to Pte Mick
Poole, Bandsman and
Stretcher Bearer, killed in
action on the 21st of
February 1967.
Lest
We Forget
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