At the end of the Vietnam War, six Australians were among the 2,338 people then listed as missing in action. Four Australian Army soldiers and two Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) were classified "missing in action" in four separate incidents with all six presumed to have been killed in action. Following the war, the remains of the servicemen were recovered and repatriated to Australia. As of 30 July 2009, no Australian servicemen remain missing in action from the Vietnam War.
The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) is the principal aerial warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Australian Army. Constitutionally the Governor-General of Australia is the de jure Commander-in-Chief of the Australian Defence Force. The Royal Australian Air Force is commanded by the Chief of Air Force (CAF), who is subordinate to the Chief of the Defence Force (CDF). The CAF is also directly responsible to the Minister for Defence, with the Department of Defence administering the ADF and the Air Force.
A Vietnam veteran is an individual who performed active military, naval, or air service in the Republic of Vietnam during the Vietnam War.
The Royal New Zealand Air Force is the aerial service branch of the New Zealand Defence Force. It was formed initially in 1923 as a branch of the New Zealand Army, being known as the New Zealand Permanent Air Force, becoming an independent air force on 1 April 1937.
The Special Air Service Regiment, officially abbreviated SASR though commonly known as the SAS, is a special forces unit of the Australian Army. Formed in 1957 as a company, it was modelled on the British SAS with which it shares the motto, "Who Dares Wins". Expanded to a regiment in August 1964, it is based at Campbell Barracks, in Swanbourne, a suburb of Perth, Western Australia, and is a direct command unit of the Special Operations Command.
Airfield Defence Guards (ADG) are a mustering of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) that are dedicated to the security and ground defence of airbases and other military aviation assets. Other duties include training other RAAF personnel, in skills such as the handling of small arms and infantry tactics. They do not, however, operate anti-aircraft artillery or missiles.
Missing in action (MIA) is a casualty classification assigned to combatants, military chaplains, combat medics, and prisoners of war who are reported missing during wartime or ceasefire. They may have been killed, wounded, captured, executed, or deserted. If deceased, neither their remains nor grave have been positively identified. Becoming MIA has been an occupational risk for as long as there has been warfare.
RAAF Base Tindal is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) military air base and civil aviation airfield located 8 nautical miles east southeast of the town of Katherine, Northern Territory in Australia. The base is currently home to No. 75 Squadron and a number of non-flying units, and also hosts the civilian Katherine Tindal Airport. First constructed in 1942, it was refurbished in the late 1960s as a bare base capable of being utilised when required. It was opened as a permanently manned RAAF base in 1989.
No. 2 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) squadron that operates from RAAF Base Williamtown, near Newcastle, New South Wales. From its formation in 1916 as part of the Australian Flying Corps, it has flown a variety of aircraft types including fighters, bombers, and Airborne Early Warning & Control (AEW&C). During World War I, the squadron operated on the Western Front conducting fighter sweeps and ground-attack missions. It was disbanded in mid-1919, following the end of hostilities. The squadron was briefly re-raised in 1922 as part of the newly independent RAAF, but was disbanded after only a couple of months and not reformed until 1937. It saw action as a bomber unit in the South West Pacific theatre of World War II and, equipped with English Electric Canberra jets, in the Malayan Emergency and the Vietnam War. The squadron was again disbanded in 1982, following the retirement of the Canberra. It was re-formed in 2000 to operate the Boeing 737 AEW&C "Wedgetail". One of the six Boeing 737s was deployed to the Middle East in September 2014, as part of Australia's contribution to the military coalition against ISIS.
The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) traces its history back to the Imperial Conference held in London in 1911, where it was decided aviation should be developed within the Armed Forces of the British Empire. Australia implemented this decision, the only country to do so, by approving the establishment of the Central Flying School (CFS) in 1912. The location for the proposed school was initially to be at Duntroon, Australian Capital Territory, but in July 1913 Point Cook, Victoria, was announced as the preferred location. The first flights by CFS aircraft took place there in March 1914.
No. 9 Squadron is a unit of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). The squadron was formed in early 1939 and saw active service in World War II as a fleet co-operation unit providing aircrews for seaplanes operating off Royal Australian Navy cruisers. It was disbanded in late 1944, but was re-raised in 1962 and later became an Army co-operation unit, flying helicopters in support of Australian troops during the Vietnam War. The squadron was disbanded in 1989 when the RAAF transferred its battlefield helicopters to the Australian Army's aviation regiments. It was re-raised in June 2023 to operate Northrop Grumman MQ-4C Tritons.
No. 12 Squadron was a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) general purpose, bomber and transport squadron. The squadron was formed in 1939 and saw combat in the South West Pacific theatre of World War II. From 1941 to 1943, it mainly conducted maritime patrols off northern Australia. The squadron was based at Merauke in western New Guinea from November 1943 to July 1944, when it was withdrawn from operations. After being re-equipped, it operated as a heavy bomber unit from February 1945 until the end of the war. The squadron continued in this role until it was redesignated No. 1 Squadron RAAF in February 1948. The squadron was reformed in 1973 to operate transport helicopters but was again disbanded in 1989.
The Star of Gallantry (SG) is a military decoration awarded to personnel of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) and other persons recognised by the Minister for Defence. It is awarded for acts of great heroism or conspicuous gallantry in action in circumstances of great peril. It is the second highest of the military gallantry awards in the Australian Honours System, only surpassed by the Victoria Cross or Victoria Cross for Australia (VC).
The Battle of Gang Toi was fought during the Vietnam War between Australian troops and the Viet Cong. The battle was one of the first engagements between the two forces during the war and occurred when A Company, 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment struck a Viet Cong bunker system defended by Company 238 in the Gang Toi Hills, in northern Bien Hoa Province. It occurred during a major joint US-Australian operation codenamed Operation Hump, involving the US 173rd Airborne Brigade, to which 1 RAR was attached. During the latter part of the operation an Australian rifle company clashed with an entrenched company-sized Viet Cong force in well-prepared defensive positions. Meanwhile, an American paratroop battalion was also heavily engaged in fighting on the other side of the Song Dong Nai.
On 6 June 1982, during the Falklands War, the British Royal Navy Type 42 destroyer HMS Cardiff engaged and destroyed a British Army Gazelle helicopter, serial number XX377, in a friendly fire incident, killing all four occupants. Cardiff, on the lookout for aircraft flying supplies to the Argentine forces occupying the Falkland Islands, had misidentified the helicopter as an enemy C-130 Hercules. Although the helicopter's loss was initially blamed on enemy action, a subsequent inquiry found Cardiff's missile to be the cause.
Air Marshal Sir Alister Murray Murdoch, was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). He served as Chief of the Air Staff (CAS) from 1965 to 1969. Joining the Air Force in 1930, Murdoch trained as a seaplane pilot and participated in an Antarctic rescue mission for lost explorers in 1935. During World War II, he commanded No. 221 Squadron RAF in Europe and the Middle East, and later occupied senior positions on the staff of RAAF formations in the South West Pacific. His post-war appointments included Commandant of RAAF College from 1952 to 1953, Air Officer Commanding (AOC) Training Command from 1953 to 1955, Deputy Chief of the Air Staff from 1958 to 1959, and AOC Operational Command from 1962 to 1965.
Commencing with World War I, Puerto Ricans and people of Puerto Rican descent have participated as members of the United States Armed Forces in every conflict in which the United States has been involved. Accordingly, thousands of Puerto Ricans served in the Armed Forces of the United States during the Vietnam War, also known as the Second Indochina War. Hundreds of them died, either killed in action (KIA) or while prisoners of war (POW). The Vietnam War started as a Cold War, and escalated into a military conflict that spread to Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1959 to April 30, 1975.
Air Vice-Marshal Brian Alexander Eaton, was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). Born in Tasmania and raised in Victoria, he joined the RAAF in 1936 and was promoted to flight lieutenant on the outbreak of World War II. He held training positions before being posted to No. 3 Squadron at the beginning of 1943, flying P-40 Kittyhawk fighter-bombers in North Africa. Despite being shot down three times within ten days soon after arriving, Eaton quickly rose to become the unit's commanding officer, and by year's end had been awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. His leadership earned him the Distinguished Service Order and Bar in 1944–45, and command of No. 239 Wing RAF in Italy, with the temporary rank of group captain. He was also awarded the US Silver Star in 1946 in recognition of his war service.
Air Commodore Peter Frank Raw, was a senior officer and pilot in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). He saw combat in a heavy bomber unit in the European theatre during the later stages of World War II and as a senior officer in the Vietnam War, and served in many flying, training and administrative roles.
Vance Drummond, was a New Zealand–born Australian pilot who fought in the Korean and Vietnam Wars. He initially saw service in the New Zealand military, but joined the Royal Australian Air Force in 1949 and graduated as a sergeant pilot in 1951. Posted to No. 77 Squadron in Korea, he flew Gloster Meteor jet fighters and earned the US Air Medal for his combat skills. He was shot down by a Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 in December 1951 and imprisoned for almost two years. After returning to Australia he converted to CAC Sabre jets and in December 1961 became a flight commander with No. 75 Squadron; he subsequently led the squadron's Black Diamonds aerobatic team, and was awarded the Air Force Cross in 1965.
Garry Gordon Cooper, is a retired airline captain and a former fighter pilot in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) who attained the rank of flight lieutenant. Cooper served on assignment with the United States Air Force (USAF) as a Forward Air Controller (FAC) in South Vietnam. Whilst working as a FAC in 1968, he was assigned to support the United States Army's 9th Infantry Division. For his actions in Vietnam, Cooper was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and the United States' Air Force Cross for heroism.
