Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!cs.utexas.edu!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!att!cbnews!military From: bxr307@csc.anu.oz Newsgroups: sci.military Subject: Re: Friendly Fire Message-ID: <1990Jun30.054114.5122@cbnews.att.com> Date: 30 Jun 90 05:41:14 GMT Sender: military@cbnews.att.com (William B. Thacker) Organization: Computer Services, Australian National University Lines: 55 Approved: military@att.att.com From: bxr307@csc.anu.oz I know of three interesting stories about attempted own goals with regards to the Vietnam war. The first two refer to when American forces accidently "bumped" into Australian army patrols. The first was an SAS 5 man patrol. Once the contact had begun the Australians reported that they had encountered what was likely to be an Enemy patrol of approximately platoon strength (it was later to be discovered to be a Battalion actually) and that they had initially the upper hand. The Americans apparently reported they had run up against at least a NVA regiment! The situation was saved when the American commander was informed he was fighting his own allies by the Australian Task Force HQ which suspected something was amiss when they overheard on one of the nets the Americans. The SAS were safely extracted with no casualties while the Americans lost several men wounded, luckily none killed. The Americans were discovered to have been at fault for overstepping their area of operations while the SAS were in the area. This has just been related in a new book published here about the SAS which was written from official records, called "Phantoms of the Jungle". The second concerned a similar situation and was told to me personally by the patrol commander concerned (late on night in the mess;-). He was tasked with taking a fighting patrol of a section plus (15 men) out of a local company harbour one night which had been set up near the border of the province in which the Oz Army operated in (Phuac Tuy). He said that he was expecting trouble and so took a heavier armament than normal of three M60 GPMG's instead of the one normally allocated to each section. As they were moving into a likely ambush position they suddenly encountered a unit of Americans which had stumbled into the area. After an initial exchange of shots all hell broke loose. The Australians knew they had encountered Americans because they could hear the Americans' voices. The Americans let loose with all and sundry at their disposal at the Australians, including calling artillery and airsupport. All seemed lost, the Americans where not listening to the messages being shouted at them. The Australians couldn't get in contact with their own HQ and have them inform the American HQ what was happening. What saved the situation was the fact that the Forward Air-Controller who just happened to be changing frequencies at that time to call in a different unit, suddenly overheard the Australians attempting to call their HQ. He then called off the Americans. The reason he later gave to this friend of mine as to why he had called off the Americans was that he knew it couldn't be VC because of the volume, quantity and originality of the swearing that was going on over the radio! The final case I know of, as an own goal for the Australians during the Vietnam war was when one of our DDG's (whos name unfortunatly escapes me at this moment :-( ) was hit by a Shrike Anti-radiation missile while on patrol off the Vietnamese coast. We lost several men dead, and quite a few wounded. Apparently after the ship berthed in Subic Bay for initial repairs the ships compliment had to be confined to ship, to prevent them going on a rampage against the US Navy as they were the one who had fired the missile. Brian. p.s. I just heard on the radio that someone in Alaska in the USAF just attempted to shoot down one of his own aircraft by mistake with a live missile. Now that is an own goal!