Australians Missing in Action in the Vietnam War
Encyclopedia
Overview
No Australian servicemen remain missing in actionMissing in action
Missing in action is a casualty Category assigned under the Status of Missing to armed services personnel who are reported missing during active service. They may have been killed, wounded, become a prisoner of war, or deserted. If deceased, neither their remains nor grave can be positively...
from the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
.
At the end of the Vietnam War 6 Australians were among the 2,338 people then listed as missing in action in the Vietnam War. Four Australian army
Australian Army
The Australian Army is Australia's military land force. It is part of the Australian Defence Force along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. While the Chief of Defence commands the Australian Defence Force , the Army is commanded by the Chief of Army...
soldiers and two Royal Australian Air Force
Royal Australian Air Force
The Royal Australian Air Force is the air force branch of the Australian Defence Force. The RAAF was formed in March 1921. It continues the traditions of the Australian Flying Corps , which was formed on 22 October 1912. The RAAF has taken part in many of the 20th century's major conflicts...
(RAAF) were classified "missing in action" in four separate incidents with all six presumed to have been killed in action
Killed in action
Killed in action is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their own forces at the hands of hostile forces. The United States Department of Defense, for example, says that those declared KIA need not have fired their weapons but have been killed due to...
. All the remains of the servicemen missing in action have been found as of 30 July 2009.
Missing in Action
- Lance Corporal Richard Harold John ("Tiny") Parker (24) and Private Peter Raymond Gillson (20), were both regular army soldiers with A Company, 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment is a regular light infantry battalion of the Australian Army. 1 RAR was first formed as the 65th Australian Infantry Battalion in 1945 and since then has been deployed on active service during the Korean War, the Malayan Emergency and the Vietnam War...
attached to the United States ArmyUnited States ArmyThe United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
's, 173rd Airborne Brigade. On 8 November 1965, during Operation HumpOperation HumpOperation Hump was a search and destroy operation initiated on 8 November 1965 by the 173rd Airborne Brigade, in an area about 17.5 miles north of Bien Hoa. The 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, deployed south of the Dong Nai River while the 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry, conducted a...
in Bien HoaBien HoaBiên Hòa is a city in Dong Nai province, Vietnam, about east of Ho Chi Minh City , to which Bien Hoa is linked by Vietnam Highway 1.- Demographics :In 1989 the estimated population was over 300,000. In 2005, the population wss 541,495...
province, both soldiers were observed by their comrades to be hit repeatedly by enemy machine-gun fire at close range. Despite brave attempts by other soldiers, their bodies could not be recovered, owing to heavy enemy fire which pinned down their company. The remains of Lance Corporal Parker and Private Gillson were located in southern Vietnam in April 2007 and the remains were repatriated to Australia in June 2007.
- Private David John Elkington Fisher (23), was a national serviceman serving with 3 Squadron, Special Air Service RegimentAustralian Special Air Service RegimentThe Special Air Service Regiment, officially abbreviated SASR but commonly known as the SAS, is a special forces unit of the Australian Army...
. On 27 September 1969 a SAS patrol which had contacts with parties of Viet Cong in Cam My district, about 35 kilometres northeast of the 1st Australian Task Force base at Nui DatNui DatNui Dat in Phuoc Tuy Province was the location of a prominent Australian military base in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War. The site was chosen by Lieutenant General John Wilton in 1966 and was built mainly by men from the 6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment...
. During a "hot extraction" by a RAAF helicopter, Private Fisher fell about 30 metres into dense jungle from a rope attached to the helicopter. He was believed to have been killed and searches failed to recover his body. In August 2008, the Australian Defence ForceAustralian Defence ForceThe Australian Defence Force is the military organisation responsible for the defence of Australia. It consists of the Royal Australian Navy , Australian Army, Royal Australian Air Force and a number of 'tri-service' units...
reported that the possible location of Private David Fisher had been identified. On 11 September 2008, the Australian Defence Force advised that the remains found as part of the investigation had been positively identified as Private David Fisher and preparations were underway to return the fallen soldier with full military honours. "It is now known that Private Fisher died as a result of the fall and was hastily buried by enemy soldiers who discovered his body," Defence Science and Personnel Minister Warren Snowdon. Private Fisher was the last of the missing Australian army personnel to be located in Vietnam.
- Pilot Officer Robert Charles Carver (24) and Flying Officer Michael Patrick John Herbert (24), of No. 2 Squadron RAAFNo. 2 Squadron RAAFNo. 2 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force squadron. From its formation in 1916, it has operated a variety of aircraft types including fighters, bombers, and Airborne Early Warning & Control.-World War I:No...
, were both career air force officers based at Phan Rang Air BasePhan Rang Air BasePhan Rang Air Base is a Vietnam People's Air Force military airfield in Vietnam. It is located north-northwest of Phan Rang-Thap Cham in Ninh Thuan Province....
. On 3 November 1970 on a night bombing mission their Canberra bomber, Serial No. A84-231, disappeared in the northern 1st Corps Tactical Zone region of South VietnamSouth VietnamSouth Vietnam was a state which governed southern Vietnam until 1975. It received international recognition in 1950 as the "State of Vietnam" and later as the "Republic of Vietnam" . Its capital was Saigon...
after dropping its bombs near Da NangDa NangĐà Nẵng , occasionally Danang, is a major port city in the South Central Coast of Vietnam, on the coast of the South China Sea at the mouth of the Han River. It is the commercial and educational center of Central Vietnam; its well-sheltered, easily accessible port and its location on the path of...
. An extensive aerial search of the area failed to find any trace of the aircraft or crew and was called off after three days. On 21 April 2009, the Australian Defence Force reported that they have located the RAAF Mk 20 Canberra bomber wreckage in thick jungle in an extremely rugged, remote and sparsely populated area of Quang Nam ProvinceQuang Nam ProvinceQuảng Nam is a province on the South Central Coast of Vietnam. It is bordered by Thua Thien-Huế province to the north, the nation of Laos to the west, Kon Tum Province to the southwest, Quảng Ngãi Province to the southeast, the South China Sea to the east, and the city of Da Nang to the...
, Vietnam, near the LaotianLaosLaos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
border. The Australian Government announced on 30 July 2009 that the remains of the airmen have been found in the wreckage of their crashed bomber and have been positively identified and are awaiting repatriation.
- Lance Corporal John Francis Gillespie (24) was a helicopter medic with the 8th Field Ambulance. On 17 April 1971, during a "dustoff" operation in the Long HaiLong HảiLong Hải is a township and town in Long Điền District, Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province, in Vietnam....
hills in Phuoc Tuy province to rescue a wounded South Vietnamese soldier. The Australian army/RAAF helicopter, Serial No A2-767, UH-1H IroquoisUH-1 IroquoisThe Bell UH-1 Iroquois is a military helicopter powered by a single, turboshaft engine, with a two-bladed main rotor and tail rotor. The helicopter was developed by Bell Helicopter to meet the United States Army's requirement for a medical evacuation and utility helicopter in 1952, and first flew...
was hit by enemy ground fire and crashed. Gillespie had been pinned under the wreckage and his body could not be recovered from the burning wreckage. Three other soldiers also died in the crash. The remains of Lance Corporal Gillespie were located in February 2004, positively identified as those of Lance Corporal Gillespie in December 2007 and repatriated to Australia on 22 December 2007.