A Sappers' War
How the legendary Aussie Tunnel Rats fought the Vietcong
Published on 1. September 2012
280 pages
978-1-74343-067-5 (ISBN)
Description
We make and we break.'
They were the forward scouts, the mine clearers, the bridge builders and the tunnel rats. They were frequently not just on the front line, but right at the sharp end of the action. They were the legendary Aussie sappers, the army engineers, who were literally everywhere in the fighting against the Vietcong.
This special breed of soldier lived hard and played hard. They were there at the beginning of the war. They were also among the last to leave. And along the way, they fought with their mates in infantry and tanks to bear the brunt of the Vietcong's revenge.
To the rest of the world, Vietnam was a conflict of ideologies. On the ground it was a battle of wits and the sappers were at the forefront. This is their story.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
NSW
Australia
File size
2,33 MB
ISBN-13
978-1-74343-067-5 (9781743430675)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Jimmy Thomson | Sandy MacGregor
A Sappers' War
How the Legendary Aussie Tunnel Rats Fought the Vietcong
Book
09/2012
Allen & Unwin
€43.88
Article exhausted; check different version
Persons
Jimmy Thomson is a journalist, author and screenwriter whose credits include the ABC-TV series Rain Shadow. He is the author of Snitch, Tunnel Rats and Watto.
A graduate of the Royal Military College, Duntroon, as a young captain Sandy MacGregor commanded 3 Field Troop in Vietnam, where he won the Military Cross. He served in the Army for 30 years, finishing as a colonel in the Reserves.
Content
- Title page
- Imprint page
- Contents
- Dedication
- Map of Vietnam
- Foreword
- Prologue
- 1 . The Team
- 2 . The Original Tunnel Rats
- 3 . Tunnels and Bunkers
- 4 . Splinter Teams and Mini-Teams
- 5 . On Patrol
- 6 . The More Things Change . . .
- 7 . Foot Soldiers
- 8 . Coral, Balmoral and Beyond
- 9 . Know Your Enemy
- 10 . Landmines Don't Take Sides
- 11 . The Song That Shook a Nation
- 12 . With Tanks . . .
- 13 . Black Saturday
- 14 . Clearing the Minefields
- Picture section
- 15 . Sin City
- 16 . The Tethered Goat
- 17 . Land-clearing
- 18 . Building Bridges
- 19 . Hearts, Minds . . . and a Little Bear
- 20 . They Also Serve . . .
- 21 . Sappernuity
- 22 . Funny You Should Say That . . .
- 23 . The Final Days
- Afterword
- Praise Indeed
- The War That Never Ends
- Sappers still clearing mines
- Sapper Sources and Other Reading
- Glossary
