Named after the tunnel rats in the vietnam war, the mixedgender, multiracial collective consists of some seventeen individual members and incorporates four affiliated groups, lpg, future shock, foundation, and new breed, which have recorded both within tunnel rats and. During the vietnam war, if a us tunnel rat got injured. Jimmy thomson is a journalist, author and screenwriter whose credits include the abctv series rain shadow. This is vietnam fiction at its brutal, realistic best. It was long known that such complexes existed, but it was not realized just how extensive they were in some areas, how important they were to the viet cong, and how difficult it was to detect and neutralize. Named after the tunnel rats in the vietnam war, the mixedgender, multiracial collective consists of some seventeen individual members and incorporates four affiliated groups, lpg, future shock, foundation, and new breed, which have recorded both within tunnel rats and independently. A harrowing account of americas tunnel rats in the underground battlefields of vietnam. Sep 03, 2018 the description of that final descent into a viet cong tunnel is the climax of the book rat six, written by flowers, that documents his service in vietnam and the littleknown story about. Numerous and frequentlyupdated resource results are available from this search. Most of us who served as tunnel rats during the vietnam war quickly realized that crawling through. The vietnam war memorial park in ho chi minh city formerly saigon is host to the cu chi tunnels. I would never have done it myself for all the tea in china.
If that is a squad, the smallest of the ten would do it and the rest of us would prot. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Crooked cops and kings cross crims by the man who saw it all. Tunnel rats vs the taliban jimmy thomson and sandy. Rats tunnel in the war of vietnam learning history.
Tunnel rats is a west coast underground hip hop collective founded in 1993 in whittier, california. Vietnam travel packages, vietnam family travel collette. Other tunnel rats procured their own personal firearms to suit their own needs. The story of a marine grunt in the first battle of khe sanh april 1967 duration. While the book has lots of photos of tunnel rats in vietnam and while rottman describes what the men went through, he never mentions the name of any individual who served as a tunnel rat. Our itinerary at a glance day 1 monday 4 november australia to saigon. Pete rejoruiz, a cubanborn tunnel rat, is shown popping out of a north vietnamese tunnel. Australia fought side by side with the usa in vietnam from 1962 to 1973 as a counter to the communist tide that was sweeping through asia. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the tunnels of cu chi. A harrowing account of americas tunnel rats in the underground battlefields of vietnam 9780891418696. The tunnel rats were american, australian and new zealand soldiers who performed underground search and destroy missions during the.
Small villages dot this land, worked by peasants, who have lived there. Read this in preparation for my trip to vietnam my first trip to asia ever to visit my. See more ideas about vietnam war, vietnam and vietnam war photos. During the vietnam war tunnel rat became a more or less official specialty for volunteer infantrymen, primarily from australia, new zealand, and the united states. Opinion my life as a tunnel rat the new york times. Crossing the line, and cowrote tunnel rats and a sappers war with sandy macgregor. Attacking underground bunkers in vietnam was the least of my. Tunnel rats vietnam war this war book has much of the material used for the self published book no need for heroes. A second murder in bangkok links the deaths to a group of vietnam veterans who worked as tunnel rats, one of whom is about to become vicepresident of the usa and cannot have their secret revealed, so he sends a mercenary to take care of any revelations. Jimmy thomson is a journalist, author and screenwriter. Book i of a two book adventure featuring vietnam s legendary tunnel rats a special team of american soldiers who fight an underground war against the enemy.
They would gain the nickname tunnel rats please do not reupload. Did not try and raise a us v aussie issue regarding who was first of the tunnel rats. Tunnel rats were generally men of smaller stature 56 and under, who were able to maneuver more comfortably in the narrow tunnels. For a soldier during the vietnam war, one of the most dangerous of obstacles was faced by a select few soldiers known as tunnel rats. Merchandise get the simple history vietnam war book on amazon. Now we also visit fsb balmoral sites tunnel rats tour. Buy tunnel rat in vietnam warrior by gordon l rottman isbn.
The vc also would set out boxes of scorpions with a trip wire that would open the box. Obviously researched, gleaning background info from more than one source. Those were the guys who wriggled their way through the ridiculously narrow tunnels the viet cong used to transport personnel and weapons, set boobytraps, and all that. For them, thats what they do and only they will do it, normal infantry within australian rank would not go into tunnel system, and they are the only unit tagged with tunnel rat acronym. The vietcong had been using tunnel systems for many years against the chinese, japanese and french invaders. A harrowing account of americas tunnel rats in the underground battlefields of vietnam kindle edition by mangold, tom. The vietcong used elaborate tunnel systems to store food and ammunition as well as housing medical and combat facilities. Our last tour of the trip, we took advantage of our riverfront location to cruise by speedboat to see the famous cu chi tunnels historical site, a vast network of underground passageways built and used by the viet cong to evade detection as they moved troops and supplies throughout saigons northern. Small villages dot this land, worked by peasants, who have lived there for centuries. This is an odd omission in a book that showcases the unique, extremely dangerous, tensionfilled job that tunnel rats did in the war. By the way this is not the official website of the vietnam tunnel rats association which is au. What was the life expectancy of a tunnel rat in vietnam.
A graduate of the royal military college, duntroon, as a young captain sandy macgregor commanded 3 field troop in vietnam, where he won the. There were numerous underground guerilla bases in south vietnam that had been built and supplied by forced labor from the surrounding villages. I seem to remember a book my friend read in high school about 20 years ago that was about or had a section on the tunnel rats, i can picture the cover but i cant see the name in my minds eye. As a young captain sandy macgregor, a graduate of the royal military college, duntroon, commanded the original tunnel rats of 3 field troop in vietnam and was awarded the military cross. The tunnel rats were american, australian and new zealand soldiers who performed underground search and destroy missions during the vietnam war. Sorry to say i havent read it, but its author did serve in vietnam. Nick wright is the detective trying to solve the mystery of the double killing. His hunt for a motive takes him to the tunnels in vietnam, where the american tunnel rats fought the dirtiest battle of the war against the viet cong. The larrikin aussie legends who discovered the vietcongs secret weapon ebook written by jimmy thomson. The so called tunnel rats had to explore, destroy, and hopefully not find the. Oclcs webjunction has pulled together information and resources to assist library staff as they consider how to handle. Stroll along the front beach at vung tau with 56 bookings in already our tunnel rats tour back to vietnam is going gangbusters pack ya bloody mozzie gear for this insane visit to an old vc base camp in the mangroves.
Would recommend this book over the movie tunnel rats. Most of us who served as tunnel rats during the vietnam war quickly. It was long known that such complexes existed, but it was not realized just how extensive they were in some areas, how important they were to the viet cong, and how difficult it was to detect and. Jimmy thomson and sandy macgregor have cowritten two books about australian sappers in vietnam, tunnel rats and a sappers war, both published by. In their 1985 book, the tunnels of cu chi, bbc reporters tom mangold and john penycate told the story of the american tunnel rats, a saga they learned about for the first time from the viet cong, who admired the tunnel rats as the best soldiers among the american forces. During the war, the viet cong dug tens of thousands of miles of tunnels that run underneath the cu chi district. Operations of australian 3 field engineers 1rar viet cong. I read this book, describing the us side and the sorrow of war. Reliable information about the coronavirus covid19 is available from the world health organization current situation, international travel. They were infantrymen who volunteered to go down the tunnels of south vi. Tunnel rats as a unit is indeed exist for australian force in vietnam, they are the men of 3 troop, 1st field sqn, royal australian engineer.
Jimmy thomson and sandy macgregor have cowritten two books about australian sappers in vietnam, tunnel rats and a sappers war, both published by allen and unwin. During the vietnam war our government never anticipated that tunnel warfare would. Chris masters, a great tv journalist, did this story for page 1 channel 10 more than 20 years ago in 1988. Sep 05, 2011 there are two more videos tunnel rats 2, vietnam and tunnel rats 3, vietnam. For me that first operation seemed to be one hell of an introduction to my tour in vietnam, though i had no. Jun 20, 2015 men who hid in tunnels during wars viet nam. The tunnel rats were american, south vietnamese, new zealand, and australian soldiers who performed underground search and destroy missions during the vietnam war later, similar teams were used by the soviet army during the sovietafghan war and by the israel defense forces in campaigns in the middle east. Aug 06, 2017 vietnams littleknown underground war and the men and women who fought it. The pistols that were carried by the tunnel rats were varied, the. These unsung heroes of the vietnam war were american, australian, and new zealand soldiers specially trained as combat engineers, who carefully crawled through the cramped viet cong underground to perform perilous covert search and destroy missions. Feb 20, 2012 buy tunnel rat in vietnam warrior by gordon l rottman isbn. He is the author of snitch, watto and wendell sailor. The tunnel rats were not spies or saboteur sent to north vietnam or neutral cambodia.
Their motto was the latin phrase nongradus rodentumnot worth a rat. That excellent website is predominantly by and for aussie vietnam. Here is another good book by osprey publishing, tunnel rat in vietnam. Tunnel rats by cliff banks meet your next favorite book. There are two more videos tunnel rats 2, vietnam and tunnel rats 3, vietnam. Tunnel rats, as american soldiers who worked in the cu chi tunnels during the vietnam war were known, used the evocative term black echo to describe the experience of being in the tunnels. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read tunnel rat in vietnam. Their motto was the tongueincheek latin phrase non gratus anus rodentum not worth a rats arse in the early stages of the war against the french colonial forces, the viet minh created an. Eightyfive percent rural, the few large cities and towns. Since the 1940s, during the war against the french colonial forces, the viet cong had created an extensive underground. Feb 20, 2012 tunnel rat in vietnam ebook written by gordon l. Special us soldiers called tunnel rats would crawl through the systems to find the enemy.
Book i of a twobook adventure featuring vietnams legendary tunnel ratsa special team of american soldiers who fight an underground war against the enemy. The largest tunnel systems in south vietnam some under us bases could be as vast as 200 kilometers 125 miles long and were built to withstand bombings, explosions, poison gas etc. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. In 1965, soon after the first us combat troops had arrived in vietnam, it was realized that in some areas the viet cong had developed vast tunnel complexes in which to hide from the enemy. Over 45,000 people died defending the cu chi tunnels during the vietnam war. Feb 09, 2018 sapper jim marett outside the ruins of a rubber plantation mansion in vietnam in 1970. With 56 bookings in already our tunnel rats tour back to.
I believee alot of those guys are bothered by it today. As a young captain sandy macgregor, a graduate of the royal military college, duntroon, commanded the original tunnel rats of 3 field troop in. First of all, those ops were certainly not off the book. Tom mangold and john penycate, authors of one of the definitive accounts of tunnel warfare in the vietnam war, reported that u. If you prefer a room on your own, the extra cost is. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read tunnel rats. Vietnams littleknown underground war and the men and women who fought it. Tunnel rats used the term black echo to describe the conditions in the tunnels.
During the vietnam war, tunnel rat became an unofficial specialty for volunteer combat engineers and infantrymen from australia and the united states who cleared and destroyed enemy tunnel complexes. If the tunnels were the secret weapon of the viet cong, the tunnel rats were the unsung heroes of the american forces. Sandy has added extra historical information from his own archives and research which is now more so offered as a military history book. Book your air travel carefully to ensure you arrive in saigon in time to get to the hotel, checkin. Have a look around this website and the books this is a great slice of genuine australian history featuring 67 forgotten heroes of the vietnam war. Sapper jim marett outside the ruins of a rubber plantation mansion in vietnam in 1970. A harrowing account of americas tunnel rats in the underground battlefields of. But his search places him in grave danger with a killer determined to protect the secrets of the tunnels. War underground, chu chi district, operation crimp, the guerillas of the viet cong, the tunnels, survival underground, born in a tunnel, the tunnel rats, not worth a rats ass, stop the americans. The larrikin aussie legends who discovered the vietcongs secret weapon. Tunnel rats ofvietnam vietnams littleknown underground war and the men and women who fought it sgt. They were usually the smallest guy in your group when a hole is found.
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