Three of the APCs, supported by foot soldiers from B Company, would arrive at the 11th Platoon’s position at 18:45, just in time for their contribution to be decisive. The Viet Cong were sending wave after wave of men against the faltering Australian line. And despite the constant bombardment from Australian and allied artillery and the massive casualties being inflicted on the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese troops, victory never seemed certain for a moment. And then, as what little sun there was retreated behind the threatening storm clouds shrouding the battlefield in darkness, they retreated, handing the Australians an impossible—if no less brutally contested—victory.
It didn’t seem like victory though. In the immediate aftermath, the Australians believed they had suffered a terrible loss with D Company having lost a third of its strength. Carrying out their reconnaissance of the battlefield over the next couple of days, though, they soon realized the battle had decisively been theirs. Outnumbered almost 20 to one they had routed the Viet Cong, stalling their momentum and laying waste to their plans to move against the Nui Dat. That being said, few would have wanted to call Long Tan a success: it proved to be the costliest battle for the Australians during the entire Vietnam War.
Recognition was slow to come for the men of Long Tan. In 1987, Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke announced that August 18 would be the country’s “Vietnam Day“. But because the country used the Imperial honors system, the number of awards that could be given out were limited (at the time only four men were awarded for their actions, in fact). Adding to the controversy was the fact that, as soon as the battle had finished—at a time of intense emotional and physical fatigue—commander Harry Smith was given under 24 hours to nominate those for decoration. And of the men he recommended to his superiors, many were downgraded, rejected, or the information simply went missing.
It wouldn’t be until March 31, 2010, after over forty years of hard-fought campaigning from the doggedly determined Harry Smith, that the Delta Company of the 6th Royal Australian Regiment was awarded a Unit Citation for Gallantry. But despite the extreme social and political controversy surrounding Vietnam War from every country involved, the men of Long Tan were already being unofficially recognized back home for their unwavering heroism and their steel and determination in the face of almost certain destruction.