Hear Their Story

The day that man first landed on the moon, an Australian patrol in Vietnam was devastated by a landmine explosion. The incident was made famous by the Redgum song “I was only 19”. This is an eyewitness account of what really happened that day and how, for one soldier David Sturmer, that detonation echoed over the next forty years.

Modern warfare has distanced us from the trauma of battle. Returned soldiers go quiet on their experiences. Terry James spent three continuous days in battle in Vietnam. He relates what it is like inside a firefight in the battle of Binh Ba, and what is was like returning to Sydney after his tour.

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.

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.

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.

Minh Tuyen Hoang 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 at the age of 16, 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 fled Vietnam through Khmer Rouge controlled Cambodia to Thailand where he was accepted as a refugee by Australia.

Part 2 of the story of Helen and Joseph, who met after the fall of Saigon. Helen escapes from the communist regime with eight other members of her family. After trials few of us would survive, she is re-united with her husband in Hornsby.

David Sturmer is discharged from the army in 1970 and starts to fight his second war, grappling with PTSD. His psychologist and his painting help put Vietnam over his shoulder. He now helps returning soldiers whenever he can.

When the war is over, is the war over? Veterans returning from Vietnam were faced with public rejection and the ghosts and demons they carried with them. They learn how to navigate the new world and give help to those following.

A farewell to the first season and a description of my new podcast "I'll Be Free". More at www.fishwishing.com.au