Horseshoe, Phouc Tuy Province
This shot is from 1968. "Horseshoe" was a permanent outlying patrol and fire support base for the Australians in Phouc Tuy Province. (Grid Square 4962 on 1:100,000 Sheet 6430). There were some U.S. units there from time to time, and we often had U.S. Army 155mm Self Propelled Artillery and a semi permanent U.S. Army Searchlight crew operating with us.
The base was manned by an infantry company with the task of patrolling and ambushing the surrounding area as well as training some ARVN units.
We trained elements of the 18th ARVN Division here. They were the last unit to stand and fight against huge odds in the battle for Xuan Loc just before Saigon fell.
This black and white photo shows the helicopters just about to scramble out to the aid of a 12 man fighting patrol which has just had two killed and a number of wounded after triggering an M-16 mine in an area known as the "Light Green" about 9 clicks south east of the position.
In this shot, from nearly the same vantage point in 1998, there's nothing left of the Ghosts of War.