Battle of Binh Ba The Battle of Binh Ba ( 6 – 8 June 1969 ) , also known as Operation Hammer , was a hard fought , but one - sided , battle during the Vietnam War . The action occurred when Australian Army troops from the 5th Battalion , Royal Australian Regiment ( 5 RAR ) fought a combined communist force of North Vietnamese Army and Viet Cong , including a company from the 33 NVA Regiment and elements of the Viet Cong D440 Provincial Mobile Battalion , in the village of Binh Ba , north of Nui Dat in Phuoc Tuy Province . The battle was unusual in Australian combat experience in Vietnam as it involved fierce close - quarter house - to - house fighting . In response to communist attempts to capture Binh Ba the Australians assaulted the village with infantry , armour and helicopter gunships , routing the Viet Cong and largely destroying the village itself . Such battles were not the norm in Phuoc Tuy , however , and the heavy losses suffered by the communists forced them to temporarily leave the province . Although the Australians did encounter communist Main Force units in the years to come , the battle marked the end of such large - scale clashes , and ranks as one of the major Australian victories of the war . Prelude . Situated north of the 1st Australian Task Force ( 1 ATF ) base at Nui Dat on the western side of Route 2 , the village of Binh Ba had a population of around 3 , 000 people — mainly farmers and rubber plantation workers . Tidy and rectangular in shape , and mainly constructed of solid brick and tile , Binh Ba was well known to the Australians . Indeed during 5 RAR ' s first tour in Vietnam a rifle company and a mortar section had been briefly stationed within the village itself . This strategy proved to be a deterrent to the Viet Cong tax collectors and assassination squads taking control of the village . The drain on the finite resources of the small Australian force proved to be too much however , and the village was later left to the protection of South Vietnamese Regional Forces . In an attempt to demonstrate that they could move freely within the province , a combined communist force including a company from the 33 NVA Regiment , elements of the Viet Cong D440 Provincial Mobile Battalion , the Binh Ba and Ngai Giao Guerrilla Squad and the Chau Duc District Company had occupied Binh Ba on the evening of 5 – 6 June 1969 . In response , South Vietnamese forces were sent from Duc Thanh the following morning . Initial intelligence suggested that a group of about platoon strength had infiltrated the village . Meanwhile during a separate operation 6 RAR had also been engaged in a heavy contact several kilometres north of the task force base and at 08 : 00 on 6 June , an Australian Centurion tank and an armoured recovery vehicle moving through Binh Ba to assist 6 RAR were fired upon . A rocket propelled grenade struck the Centurion penetrating the turret , and causing damage to the tank and severe injuries to one of the crewman . The district commander subsequently asked 1 ATF for assistance in clearing Binh Ba . Battle . The 1 ATF Ready Reaction Force under the command of Major Murray Blake consisted of an understrength D Company 5 RAR ( of just 65 men ) , a troop of Centurion tank s from the 1st Armoured Regiment and a troop of M - 113 armoured personnel carriers from the 3rd Cavalry Regiment and subsequently reacted to the incident . In direct support was 105th Battery , Royal Australian Artillery . Meanwhile , elements of the 1st Battalion 33 NVA Regiment took up defensive positions within the village and prepared to fight to the death . By 10 : 30 the Australians approached Binh Ba from the south , and were engaged by a volley of RPG fire from a row of houses . After clearing evacuating much of the town ' s population , D Company assaulted the village from east to west following preparation from helicopter gunships of No . 9 Squadron RAAF . South Vietnamese Regional Force troops were deployed into blocking positions . Four tanks led the assault , with the infantry remaining mounted in the APCs following behind . The Australians reached the edge of the village at 11 : 20 , coming under light fire . Initially the tanks were effective for close action , however by the time the marketplace had been reached in the centre of the town concealed RPG 7 s had caused external damage to two Centurions , whilst another was penetrated . Within an hour , three of the four tanks used in the initial assault were disabled through damage and crew casualties . It became clear that the initial assessments of communist strength had been inaccurate , and was probably closer to a battalion than a platoon . In addition helicopters overhead reported another large enemy force of up to 60 moving to the south and west . Blake subsequently decided swing the attack left , in order to clear the southern edge of the town before moving out to western side of Binh Ba . As the Australian armour moved through the rubber trees they clashed with a company forming up to counterattack , inflicting heavy casualties on the communists in the process . By 14 : 00 the Australians were bolstered by additional troops from B Company 5 RAR , under Major Rein Harring , which took up blocking positions to south and east . The Commanding Officer of 5 RAR , Lieutenant Colonel Colin Khan , now assumed command of the battle . With a fresh troop of tanks together with APC support , D Company conducted a second assault on the village , this time with the infantry leading . One tank and two Armoured Personnel Carriers accompanied each platoon in close support . The lead platoon made contact with the enemy immediately and the advance was slow due to the need to clear every house . The communists occupying the houses fired on the Australians from the windows and doorways before withdrawing into tunnels as they passed . An Australian soldier — Private Wayne Teeling — was killed by a shot through the neck as his team approached the first line of houses . A tank fired one round of HE into the building occupied by the Viet Cong . The house exploded , and the clearing team assaulted immediately . Six dead were found in the ruins . This type of action was typical all along D Company ' s assault line and every time the Australians received fire from a building , tank rounds were used to breach the walls and a small team of infantry would conduct room clearance until all resistance was quelled . During the fighting some of the VC had discarded their uniforms and weapons and attempted to mingle with the pockets of civilians that were unable to escape . The continued presence of civilians in the village required the Australians to expose themselves to extreme danger while trying to usher these groups to the rear of the battle zone . Others tried to flee the village , or hide in the small air raid bunkers attached to every house . The fighting continued all afternoon and only ended at last light . With Binh Ba still insecure , D Company and their armoured support subsequently occupied a defensive harbour for the night , exhausted by the fighting . Overnight B Company killed two VC trying to break out to the south . At 06 : 00 on 7 June B Company intercepted a communist company attempting to enter the town , and after blocking the exit and entry routes — and again supported by armour — they forced them to withdraw . On the second day the clearing of the village continued . D Company , with a platoon from B Company attached , meet sporadic resistance from a number of small groups still holed up in the village . To fully clear the village every bunker , house and any likely areas of concealment had to be searched . Later in the morning South Vietnamese forces in the northern hamlet of Duc Trung came under attack , and B Company and the Assault Pioneer Platoon were deployed to provide assistance . Indeed most of the action now centred on Duc Trung , with a helicopter reporting a force of up to 80 communist troops moving between the buildings . With the pioneers blocking to the south a Regional Force reaction company cleared the village , however the VC had already left . By 13 : 00 heavy firing again broke out in Duc Trung , with the South Vietnamese rapidly overrun by over a hundred communists . Accurate artillery fire was effective in stabilising the situation , however , and B Company with a troop of tanks swept the hamlet . During the afternoon D Company continued to clear Binh Ba and further close - quarter fighting followed before the Australians withdrew to allow the South Vietnamese to complete the clearance . By the evening the village was secure , and B and D Companies adopted blocking positions overnight . Aftermath . Operation Hammer concluded by 09 : 00 on 8 June with one final sweep carried out that morning to ensure that Binh Ba was clear . By this time a large communist force had been defeated by the Australians , and the village practically destroyed . Indeed so badly damaged was Binh Ba that the villagers were subsequently resettled . Despite efforts to clear the village of civilians before the battle , a large but unknown number of civilians had undoubtedly died during the fighting . This fact , coupled with the one - sided casualty count , later led to claims in the media of an Australian atrocity . One Australian had been killed and 10 wounded , while communist losses included at least 107 killed , six wounded and eight captured . The battle was one of the major victories of the Australians in Vietnam and although they would occasionally encounter communist Main Force units in the future , it effectively marked the end of such large scale clashes . Indeed , as a result of such heavy losses suffered at Binh Ba the North Vietnamese were temporarily forced to move out of Phuoc Tuy and into the adjoining province of Long Khanh . The Royal Australian Regiment , the 3rd Cavalry Regiment and 1st Armoured Regiment were subsequently awarded the battle honour ' Binh Ba ' , one of only five presented to Australian units during the war . It ranks as one of the major Australian victories of the war .