Jack is the author of 16 screenplays, one novel and one play. He has written comedies, dramas and adapted 5 books for the screen.

LONG TAN Producer Martin Walsh said, “We are very excited to have Jack Brislee onboard to write the script for our LONG TAN movie along with James, Karel and Paul. The Story Shop team have really captured the essence of this story in the Outline and we know we now have the right approach to telling this very important, unique story and critically in a way which will work across all audiences and on the big screen”.

Jack is an active member of the Australian Writers Guild, having served as the chairman of the NSW Associates Committee for the past six years. He hosts monthly panel discussions with writers, directors and producers and heads the NSW AWG writers group, that critiques and improves the scripts of AWG members. Jack has an encyclopedic knowledge of the theory and practice of screenwriting, and has reviewed many leading books on the subject.

LONG TAN is based on the true story of 108 ordinary young Australian and New Zealand soldiers and their extraordinary courage, heroism and triumph against an overwhelming enemy force of 2,500 soldiers.

Late afternoon August 18, 1966 South Vietnam – for three and a half hours, in the pouring rain, amid the mud and shattered trees of a rubber plantation called Long Tan, Major Harry Smith and his dispersed company of 108 young and mostly inexperienced Australian and New Zealand soldiers are fighting for their lives, holding off an overwhelming enemy force of 2,500 battle hardened Viet Cong and North Vietnamese soldiers. With their ammunition running out, their casualties mounting and the enemy massing for a final assault each man begins to search for his own answers and the strength to triumph over an uncertain future with honor, decency and courage.

The ensuing Battle of Long Tan becomes one of the most savage and decisive engagements in ANZAC history earning both the United States and South Vietnamese Presidential Unit Citations for gallantry along with many individual awards but sadly not before 18 Australians and more than 500 enemy are killed. Heroism, tragedy and the sacrifice of battle, Long Tan is a grueling and dramatic exploration of war with all its horror, that will rightly take its place alongside war classics such as Gallipoli, Breaker Morant, Saving Private Ryan, Zulu & Blackhawk Down. This movie is a tribute to the nobility and uncommon valor of these men under fire. It honors their loyalty to their country and to each other, and it brings to light the heroism and unimaginable sacrifice of all military men and women both home and abroad.

With a large budget, an internationally appealing ensemble cast featuring three generations of Australia’s leading actors and the best creative team offscreen, LONG TAN will be remembered for its visceral scenes of combat, its deep and broad range of characters, and the uncommon drama of ordinary boys who became extraordinary men.

Company Sergeant Major WO2 Jack Kirby, D Coy 6RAR on the morning after the Battle of Long Tan

The Commander at the helm of the historical and bloody Battle of Long Tan has welcomed the addition of an ‘unsung hero’ of the Vietnam War to the list of candidates for a retrospective Victoria Cross.

Lt Colonel (Retired) Harry Smith said it was “only right and proper” that the Defence Honours Awards Tribunal investigate posthumous VCs for soldiers in the Vietnam and Korean conflicts alongside those for the two World Wars.

“I am cheered that my formal application for Warrant Officer Jack Kirby for his sustained gallantry at Long Tan has been accepted. Throughout the battle ‘Big Jack’ disregarded his own safety while braving enemy fire to distribute ammunition,” commented Smith. You can read more about what Jack Kirby did during The Battle of Long Tan in our previous blog post: Jack Kirby – An Unsung Hero of The Battle of Long Tan.

“Jack continuously exposed himself to enemy fire to carry wounded Australians over his shoulder back to the Company Aid Post. He also rushed out of the D Coy perimeter to silence a wheeled enemy heavy machine gun which was setting up less than 50 metres away from the Australians.

“Jack knew instinctively that in just a few moments this heavy machinegun would be able to strafe and decimate the Australians. He killed the enemy machinegun crew, then rushed back and continued to carry on handing out ammunition, moving around the entire company position and giving out words of encouragement.”

Long Tan took place on 18 August 1966 in a rubber plantation amid torrential monsoonal downpours, and involved ammunition resupplies by helicopters and continuous 24 gun artillery barrages. 108 Australian and New Zealand troops, many of them young conscripts – repelled an enemy force of more than 2,500.

Eighteen Australians were killed and 24 wounded. Enemy forces suffered horrendous casualties. Figures released in 2006 suggest as many as 1,200 killed or died from wounds.

“Personal gallantry is not the only requirement for the VC, and as in the regulations, some previous VCs have been awarded for ‘extraordinary performance of duty in the face of the enemy’,”  said Smith, who has been a gadfly for awards recognition for his men for the past 18 years and belatedly received a Star of Gallantry Medal last year in lieu of a Distinguished Service Order downgraded in 1966.

“Thus, apart from personal gallantry under fire, I believe Jack qualifies for his extraordinary performance of his Company Sergeant Major duties under fire at Long Tan.

“It is an abysmal situation that not one VC was awarded in the Australian Task Force battalions between 1965 and 1972, although they fought significant battles such as Long Tan, Coral-Balmoral and Bin Ba,” said Colonel Smith.

“It is particularly shameful when you consider that in those 10 years Australia lost some 520 young men and another 2,200 wounded.”

Kirby, who served with the 1st Battalion in South Korea (1954-55) and 3RAR in Malaya (1957-59), died tragically from a friendly artillery salvo misdirected by an inexperienced artillery officer six months after Long Tan.

Media inquiries to Martin Walsh, Red Dune Films – 0438 417143

*Keith Payne, Kevin Wheatley, Ray Simpson and Peter Badcoe were awarded a Victoria Cross in Vietnam but they were part of the Australian Army Training Team Vietnam (AATTV) and not 1 Australian Task Force.

The first thing we wanted to outline is that obviously a movie is not a documentary (and we’ve already done one of those anyway!) and therefore there are certain techniques, dramatisations and liberties we need to take in order to make a great, memorable movie. However, we are keeping these to an absolute minimum. The fact that we are dealing with a true story actually complicates our task even more but at the same time it also presents us with a huge array of story and character opportunities.

Movie - Step Outline Cards

We are currently working through what is called the ‘Step Outline’ phase. A Step Outline is around 40 odd pages and each step is effectively a short description of each scene, what happens in that scene and who is in it. To the right is an example of a Step Outline, in this case for the Die Hard movie:

This step outline is our roadmap for another full draft script.

Once this step outline is complete and we are happy with it, we then move to a full draft script. A full draft script is usually around 1 page per minute of screen time.

A full draft script is what we use to complete the financing of the movie and secure all of the principle cast and creative team.

However, this is not the end of any changes to the script. This script draft may actually be rewritten anywhere from 2-3 times all the way up to 12 times before we get to a final shooting script. The shooting script is what is used during production of the movie by the director, crew and actors.

We expect to have the full step outline complete in mid to late November and then we will quickly move into the draft script phase. The draft script phase will take around 8-12 weeks depending on how happy we are with its progress!

This will in fact be the third full draft script we have developed. Previously we felt that we just hadn’t yet nailed the drama, character, suspense and ‘whose story it is’. Long Tan is not about a single character, a single person or a single hero. It is the sum of all of the individuals who participated in this amazing story.

A movie is a form of story telling and to enable audiences to understand, connect and empathise with the story they have to follow and live the story through a number of characters. We don’t really want to say too much more about the script direction, suffice to say we are all very, very excited with this new direction and with our new team of writers.

We believe that we now have the makings of an exciting film which will stand the test of time and appeal not only to Australian and New Zealand audiences but also to many other people from around the world.

Please let us know what aspects of the story have resonated with you the most and which characters have made the greatest impression on you!

“What an extraordinary coincidence that two young McCormack’s, unrelated and from different states, ended up dying next to each other on a battlefield in Vietnam.”

Albert McCormack at 19, just a few months before being conscripted for National Service.

A knock at the door….the fateful telegram….and then the 20th August 1966 headlines in that evening’s edition of the Examiner Express – ‘Launceston Boy Killed in Viet. Battle’ – thrust the Vietnam War into the face of every Tasmanian. Albert Frederick McCormack was Effie and George McCormack’s youngest and Tasmania’s first son to die in the conflict that hardly seemed real in the distant ‘Apple Isle’…until Long Tan.

Albert’s life began and ended in war. He was born on 20 March 1945 before World War II had ended in either Europe or the Pacific. Twenty-one years later his life was cut short in the hail of bullets that has come to represent the defining Australian battle of the Vietnam War – in a rubber plantation on the outskirts of the hamlet of Long Tan.

My Cousin Albert’s funeral is one of my most vivid childhood memories. Although I was just six years old at the time, the images are indelibly etched: uniformed soldiers with medals and brass crowding the small Elizabeth Street Gospel Hall; the coffin draped in the Australian flag accompanied by marching soldiers all the way to Carr Villa Cemetery; young soldiers firing a salute before the coffin was lowered. I remember innocently running to collect the empty cartridges only to have two unexploded blanks confiscated by an astute uncle. I revisited Carr Villa Cemetery a few years ago and found Albert’s grave next to that of his parents, and also, movingly for me, exactly as I had remembered it three-and-a-half decades earlier.

Albert was the youngest of seven children and grew up in Ormley Street, Launceston. He studied at Launceston High School and after working for three years with the Tasmanian Government Insurance Office, moved to Brisbane in 1964 to work for an insurance firm there. Just three months after his twentieth birthday, Albert was conscripted into the newly established 6^th Battalion of the Royal Australia Regiment (6RAR), raised specifically for Vietnam and composed almost entirely of conscripts among the non-commissioned ranks. After 12 months of training he was deployed with the battalion in June 1966.

Albert’s mates from D Company, especially those he fought with in 11 Platoon, describe a sensitive, articulate and musically talented bloke who was most content playing his guitar with the band he helped to form. All the Diggers from D Company knew him as Lionel McCormack. Apparently he reminded some lark of the singer Lionel Long and his nickname has stuck for 40 years. He was the designated stretcher-bearer for 11 Platoon and had primary responsibility for administering medical aid.

Albert’s last letter was written to his parents the day before he was killed. He described the Viet Cong mortaring the Australian base at Nui Dat in the early hours of 17 August 1966 and how the B Company patrol had located the mortar base plates but had not encountered the Viet Cong soldiers responsible. Instead, it was Albert and the other 107 Diggers of D Company, sent out on just another routine patrol from Nui Dat in the early afternoon of 18 August 1966, who encountered as many as 2500 Viet Cong massing in the Long Tan rubber plantation for a serious assault on the Australian force.

How dreadful the ensuing fire fight must have been as literally thousands of bullets exploded out of automatic weapons, destroying the rubber plantation and the lives of many of the young men crowded in it, producing pungent, acrid, cordite smoke and streaks of tracer fire. Simultaneously, thousands of shells fired from the heavy artillery at Nui Dat smashed into the ground, blasting shrapnel and body parts throughout the plantation. The heavy skies opened and a torrential monsoon seemed only to add to the inferno rather than douse it.

Private Dennis. J. McCormack, 21 from Adelaide, SA

The Diggers of 11 Platoon were the first to engage. In the lead section of the platoon another McCormack was an early casualty. Private Dennis McCormack had also been conscripted into 11 Platoon, D Company, 6RAR with the next consecutive service number (assigned on the basis of surname in alphabetical order) to my cousin Albert’s. When the names of the 18 Diggers killed at Long Tan are read out at memorial services people often wonder whether two brothers were killed that day. Dennis was from Adelaide and no immediate relative of Albert but when he was shot, Albert went to him and was himself fatally wounded in the stomach as he attempted to administer first aid. What an extraordinary coincidence that two young McCormack’s, unrelated and from different states, ended up dying next to each other on a battlefield in Vietnam.

The immortal words of The Ode are as true for Albert as for all other lives cut short prematurely: “They will not grow old as we that remain grow old. Age shall not weary them.” My cousin is forever a fit, strong and youthful 21 year old. I was so young when he died and I had so much growing up to do. Now I am more than twice his age and past my physical prime. His mates are in their 60′s and in just a few more decades none will remain.

Albert McCormack funeral procession Elizabeth Street Launceston 1966

Of course I would rather have him alive and be able to talk to him about his memories if he were happy to share them. But he at least did not suffer the ignominy of utterly unjustified and shameful vilification upon his return from a controversial war. No one spat at him or verbally abused him, as was the experience of so many returning Vietnam veterans. His death occurred before the anti-war movement had gathered momentum and the people of Launceston turned out to honour him. He is immortalised on the honour roll of the 6th Battalion and in the hearts of his immediate and extended family.

He did not ask to go to war and did not relish his participation in it. He inscribed the motto of the anti-war movement ‘Save our Sons’ on his army hat and wrote home about his personal struggles with the horrors he witnessed in the conflict. Irrespective of the merits of the war, he went to Vietnam because his country asked it of him. In paying the supreme sacrifice, he was true to the 6th Battalion motto – Duty First.

Long Tan Nui Dat 18 Aug 1969. Pipers Lament for the dead of Long Tan at the consecration of the Long Tan Cross. D Coy veterans of the battle on their second tour of Vietnam, are with the pipers.

On the third anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan, 6RAR was back at Nui Dat on the battalion’s second tour of duty. D company, which included veterans of the battle, erected a memorial cross in a clearing next to the rubber plantation in honour of their fallen comrades. The Long Tan Cross has now become symbolic of the loss of Australian lives at Long Tan and of the cost of the nation’s participation in the conflict. One of the Diggers who helped erect the cross told me that, as the chopper lowered the cross into the clearing, the heavy monsoonal clouds parted and a shaft of sunlight lit up the cross and followed it throughout its descent. He was visibly moved as he recalled the spectacle he witnessed so many years ago. Long Tan, for us, and for many other Australians, is hallowed ground.

There were 105 soldiers from D Company, 6RAR and 3 soldiers from 161 Battery RNZA who fought on the battlefield at Long Tan. The list below totals more than 108 as some members of D Coy were on language courses and attending to other duties at the time of the battle. However, all members of D Coy, 6RAR from August 1966 are entitled to wear the Australian Unit Citation for Gallantry (UCG) and the U.S. and South Vietnamese Presidential Unit Citations for Gallantry.

You can also download a .PDF version of the D Coy, 6RAR Battle of Long Tan Manning details.

Click on the image for a larger version

The long wait for proper recognition of the gallantry of those who fought and died in this battle is almost over.

45 years ago today 105 Australians and 3 New Zealanders fought and defeated an overwhelming enemy force of 2,500 North Vietnamese and Viet Cong soldiers in a rubber plantation in South Vietnam called Long Tan. This three and a half hour battle was so fierce it resulted in the deaths of 18 Australians and more than 500 enemy.

43 years ago U.S. President Lyndon B Johnson awarded the U.S. Presidential Unit Citation (PUC) for gallantry to D Company, 6RAR for extraordinary heroism. A similar award was also given by the South Vietnamese President. However, no unit citation was given by the Australian or New Zealand governments and individual awards were downgraded or not given at all. Some of these individual awards have only recently been upgraded.

2Lt Dave Sabben (21 yrs) - Former platoon commander 12 Platoon, D Coy, 6RAR

Today, at Gallipoli Army Barracks at Enoggera in Brisbane, the long wait for proper recognition comes to an end. At 3pm today, Australian Governor General Quentin Bryce will formally present the Australian Unit Citation for Gallantry (UCG) to the surviving Long Tan veterans of D Coy, 6RAR. In addition, former 12 Platoon Commander Dave Sabben will also be presented his upgraded individual medal, the Medal for Gallantry (MG) for his acts of leadership and gallantry on the battlefield at Long Tan. Current soldiers of 6RAR who have recently returned from a second tour of Afghanistan will formally troop the colours and be on parade during this historic ceremony. Many surviving Long Tan veterans will be on parade today, many with their family present along with a number of Next of Kin of those who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country 45 years ago.

This is an historic occasion. Today’s serving members of 6RAR battalion will be parading alongside the original founding members of 6RAR from 1965 in this case the veterans of D Coy, 6RAR who fought at Long Tan on 18 August 1966.

We would like to thank all of the Long Tan veterans and their families for their service and sacrifice, especially those who did not come home. Lest We Forget.

Unit Citation for Gallantry

The Unit Citation for Gallantry is awarded to a unit for extraordinary gallantry in action. The Meritorious Unit Citation is awarded to a unit for sustained outstanding service in warlike operations.

The actual citation is a warrant presented to the unit. Insignia are worn by individuals to denote their membership of a unit that has been awarded a citation. Personnel cannot be issued with the insignia until the authorised unit representative, normally the CO, has been formally invested with the citation.

The insignia of a Unit Citation for Gallantry is a gilt rectangular frame surrounding a deep green ribbon. The frame has a design of flames emanating from the outer edges of the frame to the centre.

Australian Unit Citation for Gallantry (UCG)

The insignia of a Meritorious Unit Citation is a rhodium-plated rectangular frame of the same dimensions and design surrounding a ribbon of old-gold.

Personnel who were members of the unit when an award was made wear a Federation Star in the centre of the ribbon and continue to wear the insignia after leaving the unit. Personnel who are subsequently posted to the unit wear the insignia without the Federation Star and only while actually posted to the unit.

2LT Dave Sabben, Commander 12 Platoon, D Coy 6RAR overlooking dead enemy surrounding their wheeled 7.62 Machinegun the morning after the Battle of Long Tan.

There is still availability on the 7 day Long Tan Trek Tour departing 12 October 2011, and the follow-on 12 day Decisive Battlefields Tour to Vietnam 18 October 2011, both hosted and guided by Long Tan veteran, former commander of 12 Platoon, D Coy 6RAR 2Lt Dave Sabben.

This Tour also makes a donation to the AVVRG (Australian Vietnam Veterans Reconstruction Group) – an Australian non-government organisation(NGO), which is a community of volunteers seeking to make a difference to the lives ofdisadvantaged citizens of Vietnam. AVVRG is registered and licensed to operate and provide humanitarian aid in Vietnam, and is the official custodian of the Long Tan Cross. You can read more about the Kindergarten they built in South Vietnam here.

The 2010 tour was a huge success (please go to www.longtantrek.com and select “the 2010 Long Tan Trek Tour Report” or download the full 2011 itinerary from “the 2011 Long Tan Trek Tour Details”). You may do either of the tours or both of them. Tour numbers are limited but we do require a minimum number to operate.

Almost all meals, touring, sightseeing, entrance fees and group tipping are included. Your only outlay will be a few meals, your drinks and souvenirs.

Both tours are very comprehensive, and you visit the prime battlefield sites of the three Indo-China Wars. Download the full tour flyer with pricing.

The first tour, The Long Tan Trek Tour, visits Saigon, Balmoral, Coral, Dong Nai, Vung Tau, 1ALSG area, Nui Dat, Horseshoe, minefield, Frankie’s mine incident, the Long Hai’s, and features a 4 hour guided walk across the Long Tan battlefield where Dave Sabben will describe “in real time” all the significant events of the battle, on the locations where they actually happened. We end with a visit to the Cu Chi Tunnels. You can then stay on for the additional tour…..

The second tour, The Decisive Battlefields of the Vietnam Wars, which commences at Saigon airport and visits Hoi An, Da Nang (Op Starlight, 1965) Marble Mt (VC Hospital), China Beach, Red Beach 11, Hai Van Pass, Hue (Tet ’68), Quang Tri, Dong Ha, the DMZ, Khe Sanh, the Vinh Moc tunnels and the A Shau Valley (where we will see Hamburger Hill, weather permitting), then to Hanoi and the Army Museum and Hanoi Hilton, continuing to Dien Bien Phu. We finish with a 2 night R&R at beautiful Ha Long Bay.

A more personal and comprehensive tour of the Battlefields of Vietnam cannot be found. We have included time in both Hoi An and Ha Long Bay, both beautiful sightseeing areas. Ladies are of course more than welcome! In fact, past Tours have comprised about one-third Vets, one-third their partners, family or friends and one-third teachers, historians, museum curators, serving members, including Police, and other people interested in the history of the Vietnam War.

You will be surprised by the high quality of hotels, coaches and meals.

This is a rare chance to visit these Vietnam battlefields with Dave, who as you know has first-hand knowledge of Long Tan and other sites. The success of each tour will determine any future tours. We would appreciate your assistance in passing this opportunity to anyone you feel may be interested.

Bookings for these tours will close the first week in August. A visa for Vietnam is required and Judi at National Network Travel can assist with this. For any information please contact Judi at National Network Travel on 03 96544000 or judi@nntravel.com.au.

Download the full tour flyer.

21 year old National Service Officer 2Lt Dave Sabben, 12 Platoon, D Coy, 6RAR. 1966.

If you’ve ever wanted a more detailed understanding of The Battle of Long Tan, you should check out this fantastic, animated and interactive PowerPoint presentation created by Long Tan veteran Dave Sabben.

About Dave: as a 20 year old, Dave registered for national service but his number didn’t come up. Unperturbed, Dave packed his bags, presented himself at Victoria Barracks and volunteered, applying for officer selection training. After successfully completing the six month Officer Training course at Scheyville in NSW, Dave reported for duty to 6RAR at Enoggera Barracks in Queensland as a newly minted 2nd Lieutenant to command a platoon of 28 soldiers – one day after his 21st birthday.

Dave Sabben led his mix of national service and regular soldiers of 12 Platoon, D Company 6RAR during the Battle of Long Tan and for his actions was awarded a ‘Mentioned In Dispatches’ (MID). *After a Government inquiry in 2008, Dave’s medal was upgraded to the ‘Medal for Gallantry’, the equivalent of the old imperial Military Cross. You can learn more about Dave on his own website – www.dave-sabben.com.

There are a number of ways you can view and access this great presentation. The best experience is to download the presentation or watch it in your browser (options 1 & 2):

1. Download Long Tan PowerPoint Presentation (.pps 7.2MB)
2. View the Long Tan PowerPoint Presentation in your browser (no need to have PowerPoint installed!)
3. Watch a video version of the Long Tan Presentation (below) – there is no audio and you may need to pause some slides so you can read all the text:

CSM WO2 Jack Kirby, D Coy 6RAR

Arguably the backbone and discipline of any infantry company is the Company Sergeant Major (CSM). These soldiers of Warrant Officer rank are part father figure, part teacher and part principle / headmaster. Almost all of the CSM’s I’ve come across have had very strong and unique personalities made up of steadiness, humour, discipline but ultimately a sense of fairness. In the case of D Company (Coy), 6RAR, the CSM was the 31 year old WO2 (Warrant Officer) Jack Kirby.

While the short and nuggetty Major Harry Smith, Officer Commanding (OC) D Coy and the young soldiers strode out on training runs, Jack Kirby was feeling his age and weight. Kirby was a Malaya veteran and naturally a big build. Unable to keep up on the runs, he nevertheless plugged along, always finishing and earning the respect of the soldiers. At the Battle of Long Tan he was to deepen and broaden their regard with his steadiness, bravery and humour.

Throughout the battle ‘Big Jack’ Kirby disregarded his own safety while braving enemy fire to distribute ammunition. Kirby continuously exposed himself to enemy fire to carry wounded Australian’s over his shoulder back to the Company Aid Post. At a critical point in the battle Kirby rushed out of the D Coy perimeter to silence a wheeled enemy heavy machine gun which was setting up less than 50 metres away from the Australians. He knew in just a few moments this heavy machinegun would be able to strafe and decimate the Australians. Kirby killed the enemy machinegun crew, rushed back and continued to carry on handing out ammunition, moving around the entire company position and giving out words of encouragement to the D Coy soldiers.

Here are just some highlights of what CSM Jack Kirby was doing throughout the battle:

• The Australian choppers banked over the tree tops, kicked out the ammunition and it crashed down into the centre of D Coy’s position, only metres away from Kirby, but was securely packed in boxes. It was needed at once as many of D Coy’s soldiers were down to 15 rounds of ammunition each. Kirby and Sgt Rankin had trouble trying to break open the boxes to get at the ammo, it seemed to take ages. And firing could be heard to their front again – belts of machinegun ammunition and rifle ammo were carried back to the CHQ position and thrown to each group – magazines were refilled and firing at the enemy resumed.
• Kirby turned up near Private Brian Reilly’s position and called to the nearby diggers: “Do you know who that is? No? Well, shoot ‘im!”
• Kirby noticed a wounded machinegunner, Private Webb, and ran up to the exposed position, picked up the tall soldier and carried him back to the Company Aid Post. Webb’s M60 machinegun could not be retrieved so Kirby had to put it out of action by firing a few rounds into it.
• Out on the thin perimeter of D Coy, Corporal Laurie Drinkwater was watching the area to his front when Kirby came by and called : “Drinky, you can shoot anyone you don’t know!”
• Private Brian Reilly heard Kirby call out, pointing to a group of enemy, “Do you know who that is? No? Well shoot the bastard!”
• With the ammunition starting to run low again, Kirby went over to the three man New Zealand forward artillery party and took their unused magazines, leaving them one magazine each. Throughout the embattled D Coy position, Kirby continued to move around underneath the flights of bullets, steadying soldiers. A long standing joke in the company was Kirby’s insistence that Private Harry Esler was in fact Private Ralph, who had last been heard of on patrol in Malaya. “You remind me of the bludger”, Kirby would say to Esler; and on his journey around the perimeter that afternoon, Kirby would remark: “How are you Private Ralph?” And “You’re not going to get back if you don’t watch out”. Undismayed, Esler would reply: “I will. You make sure you do!”
• At a critical point in the battle Jack rushed out of the D Coy perimeter to silence a wheeled enemy heavy machine gun which was setting up less than 50 metres away from the Australians. He knew in just a few moments this heavy machinegun would be able to strafe and decimate the Australians. Jack killed the enemy machinegun crew and rushed back with the enemy firing at him all the way.
  

  2Lt Dave Sabben surveys the Long Tan battlefield on 19 August. Enemy dead lie beside their 7.62mm heavy machinegun which was silenced by CSM Jack Kirby.

• Kirby again made it around to Esler, doling out the meagre ammunition available and asking Harry Esler, “You alright Private Ralph? Doing a good job?” Kirby then dropped twelve rounds of ammunition by Esler’s side.
• In the midst of the attacks, with no help in sight, one or two of the soldiers began to show signs of strain. Kirby would then place his large hand on the soldier’s shoulder saying, “Get a grip on yourself, son. You’re paid to kill these people and here’s your chance to earn your money. Get over there.” To many of the diggers that long afternoon, Kirby personified the traditional image of a Sergeant-Major. One of the diggers later likened Kirby to the imperturbable British Regimental Sergeant Major who told the redcoats to “do up your buttons, and never mind the spears”.
• On the morning after the battle there were many media and task force HQ personnel crisscrossing the battlefield and making thoughtless remarks about Australian casualties. Sergeant Bob Buick was about to explode when the observant Jack Kirby materialised beside him. Kirby quietly pointed out an area of rubber trees a short distance away: Buick was to be responsible for securing and searching it. This moved Buick away from the scene, gave him something to do, and allowed him to calm down.

CSM Jack Kirby, D Coy 6RAR the morning after The Battle of Long Tan

The tragedy of Jack Kirby’s story is that he was killed six months after the Battle of Long Tan in February 1967 by a friendly artillery salvo misdirected by an inexperienced New Zealand artillery officer.

CSM WO2 Jack Kirby was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal (DCM) for his actions at Long Tan but many of the veterans, historians and his former commanding officer, Lt Col Harry Smith (RTD) agree that Kirby should have been cited and awarded a Victoria Cross. Unfortunately, immediately after the battle, Harry Smith was only given 18 hours to write and submit all of the citations for his men. Harry did suggest to 6RAR Commanding Officer Lt Col Colin Townsend that Kirby should have got a VC but Townsend said he would only sign a DCM citation.

There have been many precedents for the upgrading of gallantry medals to soldiers throughout all wars (recently some of the other Long Tan veterans) and we believe that Jack Kirby’s gallant and heroic actions at Long Tan are well deserving of a Victoria Cross. Lastly, not a single Victoria Cross was awarded to any soldier in the Task Force, despite 500 men being killed in action.

*Keith Payne, Kevin Wheatley, Ray Simpson and Peter Badcoe were awarded a Victoria Cross in Vietnam but they were part of the Australian Army Training Team Vietnam (AATTV) and not 1 Australian Task Force.

Here is a list of the Australian’s who were killed fighting in the Battle of Long Tan:

Private Paul Large, 21 years old. 12 Platoon, D Coy, 6RAR. Paul was the last Australian killed in action during the last minutes of the Battle of Long Tan.

KEY TO ABBREVIATIONS USED IN LIST
1 APC Sqn = 1st Armoured Personnel Carrier Squadron
2Lt = 2nd Lieutenant (Army rank)
6RAR = 6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment
Civ: = Civilian occupation
Commem: = Commemorated at
Cpl = Corporal (Army rank)
KIA = Killed in action
L/Cpl = Lance Corporal (Army rank)
Pte = Private (Army rank)
WIA = Wounded in action