The Platoon Commander

With special guest:

• John O’Halloran
  … in conversation with Bill Kable

John O’Halloran was an unlikely war hero. With the assistance of Ric Teague John tells his story for the first time in The Platoon Commander: The extraordinary story of the man who led Australia’s most decorated platoon of the Vietnam War.

Coming from Tamworth in country NSW John was called up in the first conscription ballot. But before doing his compulsory medical he was involved in a street accident which badly damaged his foot which should have ruled him out as medically unfit. However with a bit of help from a local medico he got over that first hurdle and soon distinguished himself in training.

John was made Platoon Commander and at the age of 21 he was sent to Vietnam. In that war-torn country he now had enemy soldiers shooting at him, trying their best to kill him. And the men under his command were dependent for their lives on his decisions under fire.

John has only shared his story with old mates up until now. John was in the biggest conflicts including the well-known Battle of Long Tan and finished up being in the most decorated platoon of the Vietnam war. We also hear a story how there was a break from the fighting and John came in from the field hoping to hear a concert that had been arranged with Little Pattie and Col Joye. They heard the tantalising sounds of the bands warming up but unfortunately the risk was too great and the concert was called off.

In among the carnage of Vietnam there is a heart warming story about a Vietnamese woman who had been working in a Viet Cong mountain radio communications hideaway before she was captured by John’s unit. This woman was in the headlines of Australian newspapers described as the “water torture woman” because of her treatment after John handed her over. Decades later there was an emotional reunion between them.

John is a modest fellow and he has never forgotten the men he served with. He pays tribute to them throughout the book. Equally John is even now regarded as a national treasure by so many of his peers.

This story is a big one and it is told in the authentic voice of someone participating on the front line.

John O’Halloran

John O’Halloran led 6 RAR’s B Company 5 Platoon through some of the toughest conflicts of the Vietnam War, including Operation Hobart, the Battle of Long Tan and Operation Bribie. Now retired, he lives in Perth with his wife, Lesley.

Song selection by our guest: The Ballad of the Green Berets by Sergeant Barry Saddler

Podcast (mp3)