It happened at Tan Son Nhat by Michael Downey

It happened at Tan Son Nhat International Airport, Saigon in the January of 1970 .

I was one Australian in a long line of Americans boarding a transport plane bound for the former French Colonial beach resort town in the north called Nha Trang where a Medical Conference on Drug and Alcohol use by The Military was to be held.

The American Sergeant at the door asked to see my “Orders”.. .panic !  While I had permission from my CO to attend the conference, I had no written document to confirm this as did the other attendees.

The Sergeant, observing my agitation did nothing to make matters easier.  “ I`m sorry Sir but without “orders” I cannot let you on this plane”.

Suddenly, from behind me, an unknown American Major thrust some papers into the Sergeant`s hand .  “These are his Orders , Sergeant , he dropped them a minute ago and I happened to pick them up”.

While the Sergeant was studying my rescuer`s documents we both bustled past him and into the plane. The Sergeant called after me; “Thank you Major Bey, Sir (not my name), but by this time it was too late and we were both on our way – two soldiers and only one set of Orders !

Security in the Military in South Vietnam in 1970 was not the same as it might be today. Even so, that Sergeant had the authority to throw me off the aircraft and I would have missed a very useful conference.

My rescuer, Doug Bey was by total quirk of fate a brother Psychiatrist serving his time in the American Forces and we have remained friends to this day.

He has subsequently  written a number of books about his experiences “in country” , in  the first of which ,  “ Wizard 6 - A Combat Psychiatrist in Vietnam “ (published by Texas A&M press 2006) ,he refers to this episode .

Michael Downey ( Major Rtd )