history paper on Battle of Long Tan The battle of Long Tan took place during the Vietnam War on the 18th of August 1966 near the Nui Dat region in South Vietnam. 50 to 100 me were sent out into the forests to find the source of the mortar fire that had just been targeting the Australian base. previous intelligence informed the Australian troops of a possible 30 Viet Cong soldiers but unexpectedly ran into a much lager force of 2500. This was a big surprise to then and had to adjust to survive until reinforcements arrived. Ultimately, the Australian D company survived for many reasons which included the tactics and strategies they used to avoid the fire from Viet Cong. This is very important because The Battle Of Long Tan is considered the …show more content…
The Australians had much superior weaponry to the the Viet Cong and had the supplies to rain a continuous fire on the enemy soldiers for the 48 hours that the battle lasted. They also had the support of tanks and Regional Force Soldiers from the local area which was a massive advantage for the Australia D Company. Granted that the artillery controlled by Australian soldiers was effective beyond expectation but it is worth remembering that it was their training and coolness under fire that allowed the soldiers to carry out their role to the high degree of mastery they displayed potentially saving the live of all of D coy. The main weapon used at the battle of long tan by the Australians was the M16 rifle and the L1A1 Self-Loading Rifle. The M16 was considered more powerful and more accurate but was prone to jamming which was a big problem that the had to deal with. The L1A1 Self-Loading Rifle wasn't as powerful as the M16 but was much more reliable and didn't jam as frequently. This weaponry was much superior to the Vietnamese weapons which were unreliable, harder to operate and less accurate. Ultimately, the higher level of weaponry that the Australians had over the vietnamese in the form of guns, mortars and tanks helped them in their success in the battle of long