ABOUT THE WEBMASTER
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I grew up on a dairy farm which in later years became a sheep farm in Clevedon New Zealand and learnt to shoot with a single shot Lithgow 22. In my late teens I purchased a Krico bolt action 22 for eleven guinies. Many fun days were had in the quarry up from home and many hunting trips looking for rabbits, goats and pigs.

When I worked for the Forestry, I borrowed the Rangers Jungle Carbine 303 and this was even better on pigs and because of the overall length it was easy to scramble through the bush with this rifle.

On arrival in Australia, my travelling companion had brought his 270 and we had numerous hunting trips shooting wild pigs and the odd kangaroo.
 
During National Service (Left) Quigley NJ 1733706 for Australia and a tour of Vietnam in 1968-1969 with the Royal Australian Signals 104 Sig Sqn the main weapon issued was a FN 7.62 SLR. Simply a great knockem-down rifle. Although heavy compared with the modern army .223, the SLR was sure and deadly.

The M79 (Left) was a 40mm single shot. But you could select frag, alluminations, HE, ballbearings or splintex

 

(Above) the M60 7.62 classified as a heavy machine gun is used in this instance as a gunpit machine gun, but was also carried by the Infantry while on patrol


The US Armalite 5.56mm

7.62mm door gunners view from chopper

F1 Sub Machine gun 9mm


This unique shot was captured at FSB Duster at the time the home of the Big Red 1 US Marines.
Two versions of the M16 on my shoulders and an antitank rocket launcher in my hands

 
4x 50cal machineguns mounted on a 5 ton truck and used for convoy control
Captured RPG3 & RPG7 rockets and stick grenades NVA & Vietcong
SAS M16 with a M79 mounted under
This is a 106mm Gun mounted on a Land Rover
M60 7.62mm mounted on a military 720th Police jeep
The Centurian tank used by Australia in Vietnam
US M42 tanks with twin 40mm canons
7.62mm tracer pouring into a target from a Spooky (DC3) gunship
US Vulcan tanks with 20mm rotary and night scope vision

Clearing patrol with SLR

Captured AK47


Rifle safety in vehicles
2" rockets and a 7.62mm minigun on a US gunship

This is a sample only of the firepower and devices used in Vietnam 68 - 69. Unofficially we got to use US 45cal auto handguns and the Australian Army 9mm autos too. Some of the officers in the 720th Military Police in 1969 where I was billited while at DTOC had there own revolvers and were quite happy to let us try them out. Ammunition was not a problem.
While based with the 2/52nd ARVN at Trang Bom our Australian Officer had a pump action 12gauge; not a standard issue along with his issued 9mm auto. Although the F1 9mm was used in training, once in Vietnam we never saw another one. I do recollect that they were used by the Australian troops who first ventured into Vietnam.

 
       
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