Battle of Binh Ba
Battle of Binh Ba | |
---|---|
Part of the Phuoc Tuy Province, South Vietnam | |
Result | Australian victory |
North Vietnam
South Vietnam
No. 9 Squadron RAAF
6 wounded
8 captured[1]
10 wounded[1]
The Battle of Binh Ba (6–8 June 1969), also known as Operation Hammer, took place during the
Prelude
Situated north of the
In an attempt to demonstrate that they could move freely within the province, a combined force including a company from the PAVN 33rd Regiment, elements of the VC D440 Provincial Mobile Battalion, the Bình Ba and
Battle
The 1 ATF Ready Reaction Force under the command of Major Murray Blake consisted of an understrength D Company 5 RAR (of just 65 men), a troop of Centurion tanks from the
The Australians reached the edge of the village at 11:20, coming under light fire. Initially the tanks were effective for close action, however by the time the marketplace had been reached in the centre of the town concealed RPG-7s had caused external damage to two Centurions, whilst another was penetrated. Within an hour, three of the four tanks used in the initial assault were disabled through damage and crew casualties. It became clear that the initial assessments of PAVN/VC strength had been inaccurate, and was probably closer to a battalion than a platoon. In addition helicopters overhead reported another large enemy force of up to 60 moving to the south and west. Blake subsequently decided to swing the attack left, in order to clear the southern edge of the town before moving out to western side of Bình Ba. As the Australian armour moved through the rubber trees they clashed with a company forming up to counterattack, inflicting heavy casualties on the PAVN/VC in the process.[10]
By 14:00 the Australians were bolstered by additional troops from B Company 5 RAR, under Major Rein Harring, which took up blocking positions to south and east. The Commanding Officer of 5 RAR, Lieutenant Colonel Colin Khan, now assumed command of the battle. With a fresh troop of tanks together with APC support, D Company conducted a second assault on the village, this time with the infantry leading. One tank and two M113s accompanied each platoon in close support.
This type of action was typical all along D Company's assault line and every time the Australians received fire from a building, tank rounds were used to breach the walls and a small team of infantry would conduct room clearance until all resistance was quelled.[10] During the fighting some of the PAVN/VC had discarded their uniforms and weapons and attempted to mingle with the pockets of civilians that were unable to escape. The continued presence of civilians in the village required the Australians to expose themselves to extreme danger while trying to usher these groups to the rear of the battle zone. Others tried to flee the village, or hide in the small air raid bunkers attached to every house.[13] The fighting continued all afternoon and only ended at last light. With Bình Ba still insecure, D Company and their armoured support subsequently occupied a defensive harbour for the night, exhausted by the fighting.[10] Overnight B Company killed two VC trying to break out to the south.[13]
At 06:00 on 7 June B Company intercepted a PAVN/VC company attempting to enter the town, and after blocking the exit and entry routes—and again supported by armour—they forced them to withdraw. On the second day the clearing of the village continued. D Company, with a platoon from B Company attached, met sporadic resistance from a number of small groups still holed up in the village. To fully clear the village every bunker, house and any likely areas of concealment had to be searched. Later in the morning South Vietnamese forces in the northern hamlet of Duc Trung came under attack, and B Company and the Assault Pioneer Platoon were deployed to provide assistance.[10] Indeed, most of the action now centred on Duc Trung, with a helicopter reporting a force of up to 80 PAVN/VC troops moving between the buildings. With the pioneers blocking to the south a Regional Force reaction company cleared the village, however the PAVN/VC had already left.[14] By 13:00 heavy firing again broke out in Duc Trung, with the South Vietnamese rapidly overrun by over a hundred PAVN/VC. Accurate artillery fire was effective in stabilising the situation, however, and B Company with a troop of tanks swept the hamlet.[15] During the afternoon D Company continued to clear Bình Ba and further close-quarter fighting followed before the Australians withdrew to allow the South Vietnamese to complete the clearance. By the evening the village was secure, and B and D Companies adopted blocking positions overnight.[6]
Aftermath
Operation Hammer concluded by 09:00 on 8 June with one final sweep carried out that morning to ensure that Bình Ba was clear.[6] By this time a large PAVN/VC force had been defeated by the Australians, and the village practically destroyed.[16] Indeed, Bình Ba was so badly damaged that many of the villagers whose homes were destroyed were subsequently resettled with the help of the 1st Australian Civil Affairs Unit.[15][17] Despite efforts to clear the village of civilians before the battle, a large but unknown number of civilians had undoubtedly died during the fighting. This fact, coupled with the one-sided casualty count, later led to claims in the media of an Australian atrocity.[18] One Australian had been killed and 10 wounded, while PAVN/VC losses included at least 107 killed, six wounded and eight captured.[1]
The battle was one of the major victories of the Australians in South Vietnam and although they would occasionally encounter PAVN/VC Main Force units in the future, it effectively marked the end of such large-scale clashes. Indeed, as a result of such heavy losses suffered at Bình Ba the PAVN were temporarily forced to move out of Phuoc Tuy and into the adjoining province of Long Khánh.[6] The Royal Australian Regiment, the 3rd Cavalry Regiment and 1st Armoured Regiment were subsequently awarded the battle honour 'Binh Ba', one of only five presented to Australian units during the war.[19][6]
Notes
Footnotes
- Long Khánh Province into Phuoc Tuy having been monitored by 1 ATF's signals intelligence unit.[8]
Citations
- ^ a b c McKay & Nicholas 2001, p. 212.
- ^ O'Neill 1968, p. 30 and 66.
- ^ Battle 1970, p. 51.
- ^ a b McNeill 1993, p. 298.
- ^ O'Neill 1968, pp. 193–194.
- ^ a b c d e f Coulthard-Clark 2001, p. 291.
- ^ a b Odgers 1999, p. 349.
- ^ Chamberlain 2014, pp. 47–84 and Appendix 17.
- ^ Coulthard-Clark 2001, pp. 289–290.
- ^ a b c d e f g Coulthard-Clark 2001, p. 290.
- ^ McKay & Nicholas 2001, p. 198.
- ^ McKay & Nicholas 2001, p. 209.
- ^ a b Battle 1970, p. 55.
- ^ Battle 1970, p. 56.
- ^ a b Battle 1970, p. 57.
- ^ Coulthard-Clark 2001, p. 289.
- ^ Palazzo 2006, p. 130.
- ^ Ham 2007, p. 484.
- ^ Horner 1990, pp. 459–461.
References
- Battle, M.R. (1970). The Year of the Tigers: The Second Tour of 5th Battalion, the Royal Australian Regiment in South Vietnam, 1969–70. Brookvale: Printcraft Press. ISBN 0-85581-000-9.
- Chamberlain, Ernest (2014). The 33rd Regiment – North Vietnamese Army: Their Story (and the Battle of Binh Ba). Point Lonsdale, Victoria: Ernest Chamberlain. ISBN 9780975035054.
- Coulthard-Clark, Chris (2001). The Encyclopaedia of Australia's Battles (Second ed.). Crows Nest: Allen & Unwin. ISBN 1-86508-634-7.
- ISBN 978-0-7322-8237-0.
- ISBN 0-04-442227-X.
- McKay, Gary; Nicholas, Graeme (2001). Jungle Tracks: Australian Armour in Vietnam. Crows Nest: Allen & Unwin. ISBN 1-86508-449-2.
- McNeill, Ian (1993). To Long Tan: The Australian Army and the Vietnam War 1950–1966. ISBN 1-86373-282-9.
- Odgers, George (1999). 100 Years of Australians at War. Sydney: Lansdowne. ISBN 1-86302-669-X.
- OCLC 20116.
- Palazzo, Albert (2006). Australian Military Operations in Vietnam. Australian Army Campaigns Series. Vol. 3. Canberra: Army History Unit. ISBN 1876439106.
Further reading
- Cameron, Bruce (2012). Canister! On! Fire!: Australian Tank Operations in Vietnam. Vol. 2. Newport, New South Wales: Big Sky Publishing. ISBN 9781921941993.
- Ekins, Ashley; McNeill, Ian (2012). Fighting to the Finish: The Australian Army and the Vietnam War 1968–1975. The Official History of Australia's Involvement in Southeast Asian Conflicts 1948–1975. Vol. Nine. St Leonards, New South Wales: Allen & Unwin. ISBN 978-1865088242.
External links
- Battle of Binh Ba: June 1969 – Australia and the Vietnam War