4 Field Regiment (SVN) 'Old Boys' Newsletter - November 2019 Edition

Gabby Hayes, our long serving Treasurer reports that our term deposit was rolled over in October and now stands at $6163.99. Our “working account” has a total of $948.69. I would like to acknowledge Gabby for looking after our funds and he occasionally slips his loose change into our account to keep it from becoming “inactive”. We appreciate your efforts Gabby. We will purchase some more book prizes for members of 4 th Regiment this year so expect expenditure of up to $100.00. One of our Old Boys, Ben Lans, has written a book about his time in the Army. Ben deployed to SVN in January 1970 and was initially posted to 1 Field Regiment. He stayed on with 4 Field Regiment until RTA in January 1971. I’ll let you read his book to find out all the details. Please let me know your thoughts on the book if you get to read it and we’ll include a review in our next edition. Speaking of books. Another of our Old Boys, Lance Grimstone has had three books published and I have read two of them to date. I started the third but initially decided to not continue because of the intensity of feelings for various characters in the book. Having since spoken with Lance and his wife Ollie, I will now finish the third book. I have reviewed the first two books later in this issue. It was great to catch up with Lance and Ollie recently during their travels in their campervan. I recently went to see the movie “Danger Close”. I found the movie “interesting” but the two non-military mates I went with both really enjoyed it and asked me many questions. The basics were there and well put together. I guess I was a little too critical of some of the portraying of the events and personnel. I would be very interested to hear your comments on the movie. I just saw an update from our Patron David Anderson who has just completed a trip from Laverton (WA) to Uluru (Ayres Rock) on the Great Central Road. David reports “ A fantastic drive through majestic country on 1,200 km of dirt or gravel roads which, at times, were not very comfortable”. David now plans to spend time int the West MacDonnell Ranges and then home via Alice Springs, the Plenty Highway through to Winton and home by the end of November. Safe travels David. John Kinsela was back in Blacktown Hospital recently (late October) after a sever panic attack relating to his health. One of John’s comments was “it’s good to say we have the best emergency services in the world”. Take care John and good health for the future. Just received an update from Dave Drabble . He, Rick Liddlelow and Alan Hutchinson will be in Townsville from 28 April until 4 May. From John Wilson on 9 April. Charles Plumb was a US Navy jet pilot in Vietnam. After 75 combat missions, his plane was destroyed by a surface-to-air missile. Plumb ejected and parachuted into enemy hands. He was captured and spent 6 years in a communist Vietnamese prison. He survived the ordeal and now lectures on lessons learned from that experience! One day, when Plumb and his wife were sitting in a restaurant, a man at another table came up and said, ' You're Plumb! You flew jet fighters in Vietnam from the aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk. You were shot down! 'How in the world did you know that?' asked Plumb. 'I packed your parachute,' the man replied. Plumb gasped in surprise and gratitude. The man pumped his hand and said, 'I guess it worked!' Plumb assured him, 'It sure did. If your chute hadn't worked, I wouldn't be here today.' Plumb couldn't sleep that night, thinking about that man. Plumb says, 'I kept wondering what he had looked like in a Navy uniform: a white hat; a bib in the back; and bell-bottom trousers. I wonder how many