Army marches DPR/TV/505,509

The Australian Army went on show in two far flung corners of the world recently - in Saigon, Vietnam and Rockhampton, Queensland. To mark Vietnamese National Day, 100 Australian soldiers and members of the RAAF marched with other free world troops through the streets of Saigon while 2000 Australian troops marched through the streets of Rockhampton to mark the end of the three nation exercise "Barra Winga". The South Vietnamese Prime Minister Air Vice Marshall Ky, took the salute in Saigon alongside commanders of troops from the allied nations. The Commander of the Australian Force in Vietnam, Major-General K. Mackay, took the salute as the Australians, from 5 RAR and other Task Force units marched in company with New Zealanders, Americans, Koreans and even bare footed Montanyard tribesmen. The march was part of celebrations which marked the third anniversary of the November, 1963 revolution. In Rockhampton, more than 30,000 men, women and children lined the route to farewell troops when they marched through the town at the largest Australian peacetime exercise since World War II. With Army bands, infantry troops, armoured vehicles, artillery and a final fly-past of 20 RAAF and Army bombers and helicopters the parade ended two months of Vietnam style counter-insurgency warfare training at Shoalwater Bay army training areas. Led the commander, 6th Task Force, Brigadier R.I. Hughes, the parade of troops and Army equipment took 20 minutes to pass the dias outside the Rockhampton Town Hall where the Commander, 1st Australian Division, Major-General D. Vincent, took the salute. [Sgt Gillman filmed the sequence in Rockhampton]