Operation Portsea DPR/TV/592

At Luscombe Airfield in Vietnam, troops of 6 RAR "saddle up" for Operation Portsea before they are airlifted by helicopter into an area eight miles south-east of their base. The 6th Battalion is spearheading the operation aimed at sweeping the Viet Cong from one of their last remaining strongholds in Phuoc Tuy Province. Boarding the helicopters at the double, the Australian soldiers were flown to a jungle landing zone. 6th Battalion is supported by elements of the 5th Battalion, the 3rd Cavalry Regiment and a squadron of the American 11th Armoured Cavalry Regiment in the biggest operation so far conducted by Australian troops in Vietnam. It is the first operation in which Allied troops have been controlled by the Task Force Commander, Brigadier S.G. Graham. Sixth Battalion have already had several sharp clashes with the enemy. A Section leader waits for the right moment, then calls his men forward, in a deadly game of hide and seek. The enemy showed his hand, and diving for cover, the Australians showed their jungle fighting ability in an eruption of small arms and machine gun fire. The M60 machine-gun proved its value as is sent a continuous hail of bullets sweeping through the Viet Cong positions. An Australian soldier was wounded in the leg and two of his mates helped him away from the scene of the action. Blood trails and drag marks found after the clashes indicate that a considerable number of Viet Cong have been killed or wounded. Australian casualties have been light and the Viet Cong regiment has been hurled back in disorder, some fleeing as far back as 20 miles into the jungle. Captured enemy equipment was carried away by the Australians. Among the items recovered were automatic rifles and grenades. The operation involves a direct thrust at Viet Cong installations and supply routes from the coast - inland through the eastern section of the province, and the opening of the main road linking the province capital of Baria with the district capital of Xuyn Moc. Water is even more important than food during the follow-up operation, when the enemy is on the run, and you are trying to catch up with him. Water bottles were available in bulk, as the Australian soldiers prepared to push the enemy back even further. Operation Portsea has already succeeded in distrupting the long-planned offensive of the Viet Cong 275th Regiment. This Regiment had planned a series of attacks against the populated areas in the south of Phuoc Tuy province to restore some of the prestige and boost recruiting and resources potential for the monsoon season. [Identified personnel are: Sgt Frank Alcorta of Windsor, Brisbane; Pte Terry Armstead of Mitchelton, Brisbane; Pte Leo Kucks of Toowoomba, Qld; Peter Short of Hervey Bay; Lt-Col. Colin Townsend of Brisbane; Maj Owen O'Brien of Sydney; W.O. Brian Forster of Canberra.]