6 RAR exercise DPR/TV/370

Raspberry Creek: Bone-weary, dirty and grimm assault pioneers of 6 Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment after a 28 hour foot-slog through "enemy" held territory at Shoalwater Bay raced against time to establish a Landing Zone for a mass fly in of troops as the Battalion probes the area for "enemy" pockets. The Pioneers, led by Lieutenant Neville Lee, 27 of Sydney, a full-time CMF officer serving with 6 RAR, evaded "enemy" pockets and cleared trees in a race against time to prepare the LZ. Within minutes of the all-clear being signalled to the Battalion HQs, six Iroquois helicopters of 9 Sqn RAAF, supporting the Battalioon during Exercise Foxhole, took off from their base at Raspberry Creek and flew to the Plains area to pick-up "A" Company who had been allotted the task of fly-in company. In a precision smooth lift off of troops the helicopters flew miles to deceive the "enemy". From then on the tiny LZ - carved from the jungle by the Battalion Pioneers, became a hive of activity as a procession of helicopters lifted in "A" Company. Battle equipped "A" Company men, deplaning in seconds were out of the aircraft and had disappeared into the jungle in their search for guerillas who had been harassing the Battalion for the last three days since the commencement of "Foxhole". The company, from the LZ position, had the task of cross country movement to avoid the "enemy" parties and report back locations of strengths. The mass air move was one facet of this massive counter-insurgency operation aimed at "honing" the battalion to its military peak before departure for service in Vietnam soon. Phase One of Foxhole finalises on 21 April to make way for Phase Two to be held in Clinton Peninsula. Total completion is aimed for 2 May and return then to the Battalion base at Enogerra, Brisbane.