Nui Dat

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Nui Dat
Luscombe Bowl and airfield, Nui Dat, 1971
Nui Dat is located in Vietnam
Nui Dat
Nui Dat
Coordinates10°33′25″N 107°13′20″E / 10.55694°N 107.22222°E / 10.55694; 107.22222 (Nui Dat)
Site information
ConditionAbandoned
Site history
Built1966
In use1966–1972
Battles/wars
Vietnam War
Garrison information
Occupants1st Australian Task Force
Luscombe Airfield
  • AMSL
115 ft / 35 m
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
2,900 884 asphalt

Nui Dat (Núi Đất) is a former

Ba Ria–Vung Tau province, Vietnam. It is not the name of an official ward, it just means "dirt hill" (núi đất).[1]

History

1966–1972

In 1966, when the area was part of the then

Long Phuoc
, with a population of 3000. Both villages were subsequently destroyed and the villagers rehomed in brand new and improved villages built by Australian engineers; a task which was complete by July 1966.

From 1966 until 1972 the Australians and New Zealanders of the

building villages, improving infrastructure, and providing medical and other civil services for the locals.[3][4]

After the withdrawal of Australian forces in December 1972, the base was handed over to the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) and "stripped bare".[5][6]

A controversy has arisen over the so-called "Bamboo Pickers Incident".[7] According to Australian Vietnam veteran Ben Morris, Australian soldiers killed five civilians, including two teenage girls, in October 1967 who they mistakenly thought were Viet Cong. Many of the soldiers involved in the incident have suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder.[8][9]

Notes

  1. ^ Grant 1992, p. 270.
  2. ^ DVA (Department of Veterans' Affairs) (2020), Phuoc Tuy Province, DVA Anzac Portal, accessed 20 December 2022, https://anzacportal.dva.gov.au/wars-and-missions/vietnam-war-1962-1975/events/phuoc-tuy-province
  3. ^ McNeill 1993, p. 222.
  4. ^ McNeill 1993, pp. 240–241.
  5. ^ Guest & McNeill 1992, p. 174.
  6. ^ Kelley 2002, p. 368.
  7. ^ "2014: Masters student's interview tapes accepted into National Collection - University of Wollongong – UOW". www.uow.edu.au. Retrieved 2 March 2022.
  8. ^ "Vietnam veteran from Wollongong reignites controversy over Nui Dat slaughter". ABC News. 13 October 2014. Retrieved 2 March 2022.
  9. ^ "Veterans forced to suffer in silence". PerthNow. 12 October 2014. Retrieved 2 March 2022.

References

External links