Australian Veteran stories of Vietnam
Short features portraying the experiences of Australian Veterans in Vietnam distributing via the Community Radio Network.
Produced by Triple H 100.1FM's Neil Ashworth, over his decade in community radio Neil has frequently come into contact with “the deeply moving and powerful experiences most of our servicemen have been through”.
Despite having always been a pacifist having marched against the Vietnam War in the 60s and 70s, Ashworth feels he's not "immune to respecting and admiring these people" whose stories are illustrated with moving interview, song and sound for the air.New episodes in this series available in April 2018
| Episode and Duration | Synopsis | Distributing on CRN |
Kick The Moon |
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| 11'29 |
Reunites veterans David Sturmer and Peter Bradford, 40 years on from the aftermath of a mine explosion in Vietnam on the day of the moon landing. This is the story immortalised in Redgum’s song “I was only 19”. |
Wednesday 16 August 2017 Extras 1 [13:04 AEST] Available for download |
Binh Ba: Bad Moon |
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| 11'36 |
Hornsby RSL Sub-Branch President Terry James (pictured, above and left), chronicles his experience at the 3-day Battle of Binh Ba. “The day after my 22nd birthday, I thought that it would be my last birthday, so it’s very significant in my life,” Mr James said. “Being interviewed by Neil, and others, always brings back some certain memories, some which are distasteful, others which are fond, so it does strike at the heart strings and it makes me feel very happy that I’ve been in the Australian Defence Force and served my country in times of trouble.” |
Wednesday 16 August 2017 Extras 1 [13:04 AEST] Available for download |
Over The Moon |
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| 11'37 |
War is about killing people and breaking things. But some people spend their war saving lives. Ian Getley was a pilot who flew missions in the dying days of the war in Vietnam evacuating civilians from war zones, including a plane load of orphans some of them only a few weeks old. This was known as Operation Babylift.
It was an experience that still brings him to tears fifty years later. |
Wednesday 25 April 2018 Extras 2 [14:04 AEST] Available for download |
Incident at Xuyen Moc |
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| 11'58 | Phillip Chin Quan was conscripted into the Australian Army in 1970. It was the first time he had ever left home. He became part of Psychological Operations, working closely with Vietnamese villagers to identify enemy infiltration. This often put him in harms way, but gave him a deep understanding of the people they were fighting a war amongst. |
Wednesday 25 April 2018 Extras 2 [14:04 AEST] Available for download |
Tough Luck, Pal |
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| 11'02 |
Bill Roberts is from a military family so it seemed only natural he would enlist in 1963. He became a medic and did a tour of Borneo in the Konfrontasi, and then was posted to Vietnam, a very different conflict. Bill spent a year in Vietnam, and in this episode he recounts three dramatic incidents that have stayed with him his whole life. |
Wednesday 25 April 2018 Extras 2 [14:04 AEST] Available for download |
No Guns, No War |
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| 11'30 |
Minh Tuyen Hoang (pictured above) is known to his friends as Joseph, and he runs a successful bakery and restaurant in Hornsby Mall. What many of his friends don't know is he was born near Ha Long Bay, was conscripted into the North Vietnamese Army, spent six months on the Ho Chi Minh Trail under constant attack from American B52 bombers, had his hand blown off by a mine, and then in 1976 fled Vietnam through Khmer Rouge controlled Cambodia to Thailand where he was accepted as a refugee by Australia. |
Wednesday 25 April 2018 Extras 2 [14:04 AEST] Available for download |
Produced with financial support from the Community Broadcasting Foundation and training from the Community Media Training Organisation.
Photos by Michael Bianchino.
For CRN subscribers:
- Episodes 1 and 2 distributed 16 August 2017 and captured to DDN stations ordering Extras 1
- Epsidoes 3 to 6 distributed Anzac Day 25 April 2018 and captured to DDN stations ordering Extras 2
- Download options available
- For downloads and more information contact CRN staff on 02 9310 2999 or email [email protected]
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