Charlie Company 4RAR/NZ (ANZAC)

Charlie Company 4RAR/NZ (ANZAC), 2nd tour, 1971-1972

C Company had two-hundred and sixty-eight all ranks pass through its lines from March 1970 till return to Australia on 17 December 1971. The training and the tour were now over.

A new OC was about to take command. What happened in those two years belongs to 4 RAR and to every soldier who served, for C Company was not an individual unit but a part of an infantry battalion.

C Company held a place in the withdrawal from South Vietnam. It held the lowly tasks of constant patrolling, cleaning of the 500 area at Vung Tau with our gunner friends, of coming home.

Little glory, no major battles, just hard work - discipline some call it, doing what you are told.

What reward did we find and every man does need recognition for the work he does. To say we were well led is a pathetic excuse for self justification.

To say we had the great comradeship about which many have written books is to state the obvious, for who can live together for so long without being in comradeship.

No! There is nothing more to say that C Company was a group of Australian soldiers in 4 RAR/NZ doing their job. That is professional motivation and that is why C Company did not need a "thing" to be classified as better. We held onto 4 RAR/NZ and are thankful that they held onto us. We just stayed loose.

7 Platoon

SOMEHOW !, WE RECALL

Going back - going back again.

Assaulting with tanks.

Harbouring with Company Headquarters.

We are only going 500 metres.

The Warbies and the swamps.

Groganville.

The offsider and his boss (Sgt Garry Chad and Lt Paul Andrews).

"Give us this day our daily dud"

8 Platoon

SOMEHOW!, WE RECALL

Jim persuading someone to carry him from the boozer every night on the advance party.

Ron tried to eradicate fire flies once and for all.

Trying to get some sense out of Boris on a Saturday.

Pig Pen's tree top sentry.

Clarkie's happy laughter.

John's family album.

From all over Australia. (Ptes Peter Pratt, "Bubs" Jankowski, L/Cpl "Spider" Webb, CpIs John McKinley and "Snow" Matthews, Bdr Kevin Scrimshaw, Ptes Charlie Hill and Darryl Bishop).

9 Platoon

SOMEHOW!, WE RECALL

Into coffee that was rubber.

Hodgie's Q Store move.

The 123 feature.

Doc Bellman.

Hornbill.

"Things will be different in Vietnam".

"Sssst. I'll have 20 bucks on Silver Knight, Sarge"