Barnby, Donald Richard (Trooper, b.1950)

Collection relating to the Vietnam War service of 217585 Trooper (Tpr) Donald Richard Barnby, 2nd Special Air Service Squadron, Vietnam, 1971.

Folder 1 contains:
1 x pay variation form dated March 1971;
2 x Telegrams dated 8 and 10 April 1971 wishing Tpr Barnby a happy birthday;
1 x Easter card from his parents and sister Helen, dated April 1971;
13 x birthday cards for Tpr Barnby’s 21st birthday dated April 1971;
1 x ‘get well soon’ card dated June 1971;
2 x forms relating to Tpr Barnby’s return to Australia, with focus on his health;
1 x QANTAS ticked from Saigon to Sydney dated 7 October 1971;
2 x copies of ‘Australia Force Vietnam / RTA Briefing Note – QANTAS Charter Saigon/Sydney’ document;
1 x copy of ‘Quarantine and Customs Regulations Brief for RTA and R & R Personnel’ document;
1 x unused ‘Australian Forces Vietnam’ air mail envelope; and
2 x newspaper clippings relating to everyday life in Australia.

Folder 2:
- 20 x letters, 19 of which are written to Tpr Barnby, and one that is written by him. The letters span the period from 18 February 1971 to 2 September 1971, representing almost the entire length of Tpr Barnby’s tour in Vietnam. The letters are largely written by friends and family, with multiple letters from his father and his mother. The letters discuss general affairs at home, including two letters from Tpr Barnby’s father, in which he discusses his feelings about the war and implores his son, in the first letter, to come home to Australia on leave, and in the second letter, to return to Australia as soon as he can to join the police force. The single letter written by Tpr Barnby discusses his first patrol, including an incident where he suspected radio waves caused the detonation of a series of claymore mines, and the tracking of two members of the Viet Cong. Included are two dried, pressed flowers; and
- 1 x empty, used envelope

Folder 3:
- 1 x 1971 ‘pictorial calendar’ with ‘Diary of Don’s Vietnam tour’ written on the cover in black texta. The calendar features images of Australia for each week. Within the calendar are entries written by Tpr Barnby’s mother for the dates spanning 13 February to 21 June, 1971. These entries include details such as when letters were both sent and received, and occasional details about operations Tpr Barnby was involved with, and events of family importance;
- 1 x green canvas-covered ‘field and message note book’, reprinted in April 1970, with ‘Barnby, D’ written on the cover in ball-point pen. Entries span the period February to October 1971. The notebook contains miscellaneous entries such as members of particular patrols, details of signals, code words, daily planners, and notes from briefings; and
- 1 x blue-covered general (non year-specific) ‘Woods Australian Diary’ with ‘Pte D Barnby’s name on a green label attached to the cover. On the inside cover are brief summary details of Tpr Barnby’s tour including his tour dates, unit, base, and number of operations. The following leaf contains statements regarding his general dislike of Vietnam. The diary then begins with entries spanning the period 16 February to 8 October 1971. The diary largely contains entries about leisure time in Vietnam, brief details about patrols, tasks carried out while on base, and the conditions faced by soldiers.