# Australians in Vietnam



## pardus (Dec 23, 2011)




----------



## Manolito (Dec 23, 2011)

Pardus what weapon were they carrying?


----------



## pardus (Dec 23, 2011)

Manolito said:


> Pardus what weapon were they carrying?


 
Standard rifle is the L1A1, a British version of the FN FAL manufactured in Lithgow, Australia. Magnificent rifles, my favourite of all time. I still own one 

The submachine gun is the Owen gun. A very successful SMG.

Then weapons I'm sure you are familiar with, the M60 MG and the M79 grenade launcher.


----------



## Manolito (Dec 23, 2011)

Thanks I appreciate the information. We had several Australian LST's come up to our base in the river to supply your troops. You guys eat a lot better than we do. Merry Christmas


----------



## pardus (Dec 23, 2011)

Manolito said:


> You guys eat a lot better than we do. Merry Christmas


 
I would still much much rather have the NZ 24 ration pack than MREs (though they do seem to be getting better), I think the MRE is a stupid Idea but that's for another thread.

The Aussies eat like chickens compared to the Kiwis. In NZ if you take too much food/more than one meat choice, the cooks jump on us. One exercise I did in OZ a guy at the head of the line took two meats, everybody stopped and looked at the cook, he just looked at us uncomprehending, we went apeshit piling food onto our plates like we'd just escaped from Auschwitz. By the time it came for the SNCOs and Officers to get in line there was no food left! 

To the cooks "Why didn't you stop them?!"
The cook shrugged, still not exactly sure what had happened in his mess. Good times 

Merry Xmas to you too Bill.


----------



## digrar (Dec 24, 2011)

Being good to the guests in that scenario, they were always on the ball when it came to telling us "one scoop" or only one of those, etc etc.

The Owen didn't last long before they were swapped out with M16's. I'm pretty sure 1RAR was the only Infantry unit to go to Viet Nam with out conscripts.


----------



## Manolito (Dec 24, 2011)

http://images.search.yahoo.com/imag...b=14qil8u40&sigi=12f0f80up&.crumb=xQy8jaLXyqJ

Great Picture
Bill


----------



## sfmike (Dec 26, 2011)

We had an Aussie WO in B-36 named Mike Krasnoff.  Crazy guy who carried his FN FAL everywhere he went!


----------



## digrar (Dec 26, 2011)

There is a Captain Stan Krasnoff on the roll, born in China as Sviatoslav Eugene Krasnousoff. He served as an Infantryman with the Australian Army Training Team Vietnam from late 67 to late 68, ended up commanding 3RAR in the early 80's before retiring. He wrote a few books, Shadows On The Wall, A Claytons Defence and Crazy Hor.

http://www.vietnamroll.gov.au/VeteranDetails.aspx?VeteranId=1246983

Taking our rifles everywhere we went was still getting drummed into us 30 years later.


----------



## pardus (Dec 27, 2011)

One Vietnam vet I knew told a story of him with a Vietnamese whore, said he had his SLR under her pillow pointed at the door with both hands on the weapon as he was shagging her.


----------



## Manolito (Dec 27, 2011)

Pardus I don't know about that but I can tell you one often stood guard while the other enjoyed a steam bath and massage with a happy ending. We never owned the prperty outside the wire where I was at. That may be different in other parts of the country.
Most common heard phrase " You buy me Saigon tea GI answer NO you numba ten GI"


----------



## Lefty (Dec 27, 2011)

We had an Aussie on our BDQ team who was an original character. Total misfit in the base compound, drank to insensibility, contantly in trouble, but outstanding fieldman, once he was sober. Took a day or so in the field to sweat all the booze out, then he was supremely competent, much beloved by the BDQs. Unfortunately could not control his penchant for drinking and fighting, esp. with REMFs. Eventually took on the APs at the local AFB, I had to fetch him from their custody. He was xferred back to Australian Army.
Last heard back in the late 70s he had run afoul of the law in Australia. Lots of anecdotes about him, too many unsavory, too bad considering how great a team member he was.


----------



## digrar (Dec 28, 2011)

Sounds similar for a lot of the AATTV blokes at the time, many had time up in Korea, Malaya, Borneo and a tour of Viet Nam prior to going on a AATTV job. Self medicating at the boozer seemed to be the order of the day for a lot of blokes who served at that time.


----------



## sfmike (Jan 17, 2012)

The "Bloke" that we had in B-36 was Stanley "Mike" Krasnoff!  He was absolutely crazy.  One night we were at an officer's club on Ton Sun Nhut AB run by the "Thunderbirds".  The detachment CO Major Bob Lunday was standing at the bar drinking when the squadron commander (0-6) walked in.  He immediately recognized that there were a bunch od strangers in the bar and he approached Lunday.  He asked Bob if all of his troops were officers?  (We were wearing Tigers)  Lunday assurred him that we were by telling him that we all commanded at least a platoon.

The Colonel then noticed the "Green Beret" that the Major had in his pocket and said, "you will never catch me wearing a "Girl Scout" Hat!!"  Bob told him that you had to be a real man to be able to wear a beret.  The SC pulled the hat out of Bob's pocket and placed it on his head.  Lunday showed him how to place the flash above his left eye & reached up and rang the bell!  All clubs in RVN had signs that said, "He who wears their hat in here, Buys the club a round of Cheer!"  The colonel was forced to buy a round for all who were in attendance.

The night had started off slow, but soon it picked up and the pilots and the SF people were getting plastered.  The club officer tried to get everyone to leave but no one listened.  He had to call the Air Police to evict us.  Mike Krasnoff armed with his Australian Rifle shot all of the lights out that surrounded the bar!


----------



## Red Flag 1 (Feb 17, 2012)

Manolito said:


> http://images.search.yahoo.com/images/view;_ylt=A2KJke0I7_VO5A4AH9aJzbkF;_ylu=X3oDMTBlMTQ4cGxyBHNlYwNzcgRzbGsDaW1n?back=http://images.search.yahoo.com/search/images?p=australian+navy+in+vietnam&_adv_prop=image&va=australian+navy+in+vietnam&fr=chr-frontier&tab=organic&ri=123&w=720&h=485&imgurl=i135.photobucket.com/albums/q121/tommykm/AnAustrailianSASreconteamgetting-2.jpg&rurl=http://www.mvca.com.au/forum/viewtopic.php?f=12&amp;t=1607&amp;view=previous&size=108.8 KB&name=... Australia Incorporated • View topic - Vietnam - Australian SAS Recon&p=australian navy in vietnam&oid=f5b565e9cced25e54058a95a1070ee04&fr2=&fr=chr-frontier&tt=...+Australia+Incorporated+%E2%80%A2+View+topic+-+Vietnam+-+Australian+SAS+Recon&b=121&ni=112&no=123&tab=organic&ts=&sigr=12csl272v&sigb=14qil8u40&sigi=12f0f80up&.crumb=xQy8jaLXyqJ
> 
> Great Picture
> Bill


Great string of pics Bill. #8 always bothered me.

RF 1


----------



## digrar (Feb 17, 2012)

#8 is three ships for me, which one were you talking about?


----------



## Manolito (Feb 17, 2012)

The Monk burning himself and the little girl naked and burned were played a lot but each area had its own memories. I have often wondered if AStan is that way the guy up north had a different war than the guy in the Delta was it that way in AStan?


----------

