Long Tan - Part 1

The Prelude

Lieutenant Sabben and 12 Platoon, Delta Company.

With the newly established 1st Australian Task Force settled in to Nui Dat, work started on neutralising the Viet Cong activity in the area. The Viet Cong had other ideas. They wanted to draw out the Australians and engulf them with overwhelming numbers. Despite the mounting evidence, Brigadier Jackson didn't believe the North Vietnamese Army had arrived in Phuoc Tuy Province, even after a mortar attack was unleashed on the Task Force Base.

Phouc Tuy Province. Vung Tau is on the peninsula to the south. Nui Dat is to the north west, where the 1ATF icon is pointing.

Aerial View of 1st Australian Task Force Base, Nui Dat.

The Provinces of Vietnam.