Major General David Mathieson Butler AO DSO (Rtd) as a platoon commander 3rd Battalion The Royal Australian Regiment (3 RAR) and other appointments, Korea 1951-1954, interviewed by Colonel David Chinn MBE (Rtd).

Major General David Mathieson Butler AO DSO (Rtd) (57006) as a platoon commander 3rd Battalion The Royal Australian Regiment (3 RAR) and other appointments, Korea 1951-1954, interviewed by Colonel David Chinn MBE (Rtd).

David Butler talks about: the spirit and character of 3 RAR and compares it with 2 RAR and 1 RAR; the composition of the personnel at the time of embarking for Korea; the relevance of his general training and the limited nature of specific training for service in Korea; initial weeks in Korea; the CO’s requirements of his men; the first action, the battle of Apple Orchard and the importance of deployment training; the coldness of the Korean winter and the lack of preparedness for it on both sides; the character of 3 RAR; the nature of the North Korean forces; the South Korean forces; a description of the battle of Apple Orchard; the Chinese army; his experiences as ADC to the Commander-in-Chief BCOF during the battle of Kapyong; cold-weather casualties and manning; the complications of being an Australian battalion in a British brigade; problems with casualty evacuation; the other battalions– Middlesex and Argylls – in 27 Brigade; circumstances leading to the death of Lt Col Green, commanding 3 RAR; Lt Col Charles Green, the man; other 3 RAR officers who influenced him; his time as ADC to Lt Gen Sir Horace Robertson, C-in-C BCOF; reinforcing 27 Brigade from BCOF after the battle of Kapyong; the C-in-C and the British high command; the Canadian contingent; General MacArthur’s farewell; being PA to Major General J A Cassels, General Officer Commanding (GOC) 1st Commonwealth Division; the deployment of the division headquarters from Japan to Korea; Lt Gen Cassels, the man; personnel of the Commonwealth Division headquarters; a comparison with a US force; his posting to 2 RAR at Puckapunyal; Puckapunyal, an Army disgrace; training 2 RAR under difficult circumstances; deployment to a static situation in Korea; replacing the King’s Own Scottish Borderers on ‘The Hook’; the extent of Chinese casualties discovered after the truce; being the Signals Officer of 2 RAR during The Hook action; a comparison of 2 RAR and 3 RAR; a comparison of unit deployment systems between the Korean and the Vietnam wars; his views on training; the need for better equipment and support for the battalions, and that support staff need to be properly catered for and not allowed to dilute battalion resources;