Australian troops welcomed to Vietnam by the Vietnamese Minister of Defence, Maj-Gen Nguyn Van Thieu. DPR/TV/258

The Australian Army Force was officially welcomed by the people of Vietnam at a ceremony held at Ton Son Nhut Stadium, Saigon. 350 soldiers from 1RAR and supporting elements marched on to the parade ground to the strains of Waltzing Matilda played by 1RAR band. Vietnamese soldiers with mine-detectors cleared the area before the parade began and hundreds of Vietnamese civilians lined the ground. The Vietnamese Minister of Defence reviewed the troops and addressed them. Honour guards from the Vietnamese Paratroopers, Marines, High Command, Air Force and Navy paraded with the Australians. The C.O. 1RAR, Lieut-Colonel I.R.W. Brumfield commanded the parade. The troops travelled from their base at Bien Hoa in a convoy of buses escorted by heavily armed U.S. vehicles. Identified personnel: General William Westmoreland, Mr David Anderson Australian Ambassador to Vietnam, Maj. General Nguyen Van Thieu, Maj-General Tran Van Minh, Col. A.D. Jacksono. Cameraman W.O.II Bryan Dunne.