The Australian War Memorial Collection. Test site
The position occupied by the detachment from Headquarters 1st Australian Task Force (1ATF) at Fire Support Base (FSB) Coral. Some of the HQ staff are cleaning up the HQ position, which was dug in below ground level, after it was flooded on the night 13/14 May 1968. The tent on the left is probably that of the Air Cell, with the United States Air Force Liaison Officer (USAFLO) communications M151 Mutt parked nose in. The multi-sectioned tent on the right probably contains the co-located Operations Command Post (CP) and Artillery Tactical Headquarters (Arty Tac HQ), possibly also the Intelligence Cell. The officer wearing the bush hat, back to camera on the left is Captain A.J.C.(Tony) Wells, of Arty Tac HQ and the officer next left, at the entrance to the tent, is Major T.B. (Brian) Fuller, the General Staff Officer Grade 2 (Air) (GSO2 (Air)). FSB Coral was the 1ATF base for Operation Toan Thang I, within its Area of Operations (AO) Surfers. AO Surfers was centred some 10 km NW of Tan Uyen on the Song Dong Nai, and 30 km NNE of Saigon. FSB Coral included HQ 1ATF (Main), with arms and services units supporting the infantry operations of 1RAR and 3RAR within the AO. North Vietnamese Army (NVA) and Viet Cong (VC) forces had been moving through the AO as well as adjoining allied AOs to conduct their May 1968 offensive against Saigon and were expected to withdraw on the same routes. The initial deployments of 1ATF units into FSB Coral late on 12 May 1968 had been subject of a major enemy attack in the hours of darkness of the morning of 13 May 1968, and a further similar attack on the then fully occupied base was to follow on the night 15/16 May 1968.
A Battery, 2/35th Artillery (US) M109 155 mm self-propelled howitzers dug in at Fire Support Base (FSB) Coral during Operation Toan Thang I; two artillery red and white aiming posts are evident to the
The elevated canopy is probably covering a section administrative area of Headquarters 1st Australian Task Force (1ATF). There may be an adjoining weapon pit to the left, under the weather protection
One of the weapon pits used by the detachment from Headquarters 1st Australian Task Force (1ATF) after the second attack on Fire Support Base (FSB) Coral before dawn on 16 May 1968. FSB Coral was the
One of the weapon pits used by the detachment from Headquarters 1st Australian Task Force (1ATF). This weapon pit is constructed with weather protection provided by light press-studded and eye-letted
The weapon pit in the foreground was one of the pits used by the detachment from Headquarters 1st Australian Task Force (1ATF). This weapon pit has been constructed with weather protection provided by
South Vietnam. 1968-05. Major Ian McLean, operations officer with the 1st Australian Task Force (1ATF) at Fire Support Base (FSB) Coral, rests on a stretcher in his dugout between duties in the Comman
