Thirty-nine staff, midshipmen and officer cadets from the Australian Defence Force Academy travelled to Vietnam in October on a tour of the battle sites at which Australians saw action during the war.

Seven RAN midshipmen were part of this group.

The tour began in Saigon with the obligatory tours of the museums, the Reunification Palace and the local nightlife.

Whilst in Vietnam, the group travelled to Vung Tau, Nui Dat, the Long Tan cross and rubber plantation, the site of the battle of Coral and Balmoral and the Viet Cong training bases in the Long Hai Hills.

Along the way, the group visited the Cu Chi tunnel system, the Long Phuc tunnels and the Horseshoe area.

Whilst in Vung Tau, one of the group, Officer Cadet Christine Pope was able to meet her aunt, uncle and cousin for the first time. Christine's father was a soldier during the war and married her mother, a Vietnamese national, on return to Australia.

During the visit to Nui Dat, the group experienced its first torrential downpour and met many of the children now living in a village that uses Luscombe airfield as its main road.

The midshipmen and officer cadets, like all Australian servicemen and women, love to mix with the children and handed out many small gifts.

Whilst here, some of the children offered dog tags of Australian servicemen they had found in the area surrounding Nui Dat.

One belonged to Jack Selmes (he has since been contacted and reunited with his tag in Bungendore, NSW). Another belonged to 4718325 RJ Carter, who is yet to be located (anyone with ideas on his whereabouts would be appreciated).

The group was fortunate to meet and speak with local veterans, both Australians living and working in Vietnam, and Vietnamese veterans who fought against ANZAC forces in and around Phuc Tuy province.

These meetings were extremely valuable for the midshipmen and officer cadets as it gave them an insight into Australian operations during the war and into some of the more obscure aspects of life as a soldier in Vietnam at the time.

During each of the visits to battle sites, the group discussed each action and members were briefed, both by CAPT Paul Finch and SGT Clayton Richards of ADFA and by the Vietnamese guides, on the events which led to and surrounded each of the battles.

Whilst in Long Tan, the midshipmen and officer cadets 'emu-bobbed' the area, did some weeding and cleaned up the site a little.

They also held a short and very moving memorial and wreath laying service that touched all present.

The group also visited the Australian Veterans sponsored orphanage at Ba Ria, where many gifts ranging from stationary to T-shirts and baseball caps were presented to the children.

This visit was extremely successful and the group left determined to foster a close relationship between ADFA and the orphanage for successive tours.

The tour also travelled north to Hue, Da Nang, China Beach and Hoi An. This was aimed more as a brief look at the US involvement in the was, an opportunity for sightseeing and shopping for extremely inexpensive clothes and souvenirs.

The shopping in Hoi An, with its streets of tailor shops enthralled the group and each left with average of ten outfits, individually tailored to exact specifications.

Overall, the tour was a great success and an invaluable opportunity for the midshipmen and officer cadets to view some of the recent Australian military history.

All participants had a very enjoyable time and have developed vivid memories that will last a lifetime.

The group now has a far more realistic view of what life was like at the time and they have experienced, many for the first time, international travel and a culture very different from our own.

By CAPT J Paul Finch.