Get the Bloody Job Done

The Royal Australian Navy Helicopter Flight-Vietnam and the 135th Assault Helicopter Company 1967-1971

This book tells the story of a small group of Australian sailors who served with distinction in a very difficult and unpopular war. They were the hardest-fought Australian aviation unit to serve in the Vietnam War and suffered a much higher casualty rate than the RAAF or Australian Army aviation units. The sheer intensity and protracted nature of their combat service is not understood or recognised by the Australian community or even by the Australian Defence Force.

Every person who served in the RANHFV was a hero. Nearly all the maintenance and support staff voluntarily flew on operations as door gunners, sharing the hazards of action with their aircrew colleagues. On the ground the Australians were subject to rocket and mortar attacks which caused destruction and death. Despite these dangerous living and working conditions the Australians played a central role in making the 135th Assault Helicopter Company the best all-round helicopter company in Vietnam.