By Margaret Maccoll
About 40 veterans marched in the parade in Tewantin on Friday 18 August to mark the anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan and pay respects to 521 Australians killed in the Vietnam War.
Many dignitaries, friends and relatives watched on.
Tewantin-Noosa RSL president Mick Reid told the Vietnam Veterans Day ceremony how Vietnam was a mostly green palette of paddy field, jungles and army personnel with a splash of navy blue.
“The navy was there from day one,” he said.
Mick spoke about the HMAS Sydney which ferried troops to and from Australia to Vietnam and the constant threats it faced from the enemy.
He also spoke of the HMAS Hobart which was mistakenly targeted by US fighters, killing two and injuring many others.
Wreaths were laid and the band played both the Australian and New Zealand national anthems.
