MY BOSS…THE C.O.

Lt. Col. Colin Townsend


By Gary McMahon


Successful commanding officers, as was said of one of Wellington's ablest battalion commanders in the Peninsular War, have a genius for war. Call it luck if you like but there is more to it than that.
They have personality as well as bravery, an inbuilt instinct as it were to be in the right place and to do the right thing at the right time.
I’m talking here about not the high command but the units that do the actual fighting, the infantry battalions.
Command in time of war is a lonely outpost. Leadership, like courage is hard to define but the basic requirement of the commanding officer of an infantry battalion, is that he should be good at his job, able to command respect and obedience and to inspire confidence in his men. My C.O. was all of that and more. Remember that I was only 19 on my first tour of duty in the Vietnam War and I looked up to this man as a father figure I guess, certainly as the man who would lead all my mates and me in battle. In short I looked at him with respect.
It required special qualities to take a battalion forward time after time in Vietnam. The very minute we set foot outside the battalion perimeter we were vulnerable and the boss knew that. He set us on a routine of patrolling and ambushing and standing patrols and clearing patrols and listening posts and gun piquet’s and he was ruthless in making sure that we understood why and carried out our duties. This was reflected in the platoon commanders and platoon sergeants and section commanders that we had because they were the very best anyone could hope for and the toughest and most able men that I have ever met. I look back now and I know that without doubt I am alive because of the men who lead me in that place. I didn’t appreciate it fully at that time of course and called them all names and cursed them when I thought I could not go another step but the fact is they kept me alive, and for that I am eternally grateful.
Now 6 RAR was a tough and able unit, full of independently minded men, educated men and troublemakers to a man. If we did not respect you there was no way you could handle us, let alone train us and lead us into battle. We all loved a drink, we all liked to play a joke, we all loved a good knuckle and by god we did all of those things all of the time and in doing that we forged a bond unlike any that men can forge anywhere else. Only men who train together in the art of war and live together, sleep together, love together, fight together and die together will even understand what I am talking about.
My Boss, Colonel Townsend was always in the background however and I am sure he knew about a lot of the stuff we got up to and left us alone as long as we did the job and respected our commanders and the Regiment and were ready the next time he ordered us to saddle up.
As an example of our attitude I can tell now of one episode where we (A Coy) were on R&C and I missed the transport back to Nui Dat. I was pissed and forgot so was in all sorts of trouble when I got back the next day but the only thing I was scared about was that my section (9 section, 3 Platoon) had gone out the bush without me. They hadn’t and my OC was really good to me and decided to let me go with them when they did…haha. He charged me with AWOL whilst on active service. Now I know that in the old days you were shot for that so he was a real good bloke and gave me 7 days field punishment instead. Thank you Sir.!@#$%^* and 7 days loss of pay. I have to say the extra night was worth it…I think.
There are stirring examples of triumph as well as disaster, of honour as well as infamy, of deeds well done and of all
Sorts of war stories but my experience and my heart tell me that those of us from that magnificent unit called 6 RAR are now and ever more in the history of the Royal Australian Regiment and the reason so many of us lived through that war and are alive today to tell the story is in no small part because of our Commanding Officer and for that I say thank you sir……I salute you and I love you.
Gary McMahon
9 Section, 3 Platoon, A Coy.
(Bob Toyers Platoon)

And damn proud of it.

[ Sign my Guestbook] - [Read my Guestbook ]
[Guestbook by TheGuestBook.com]

HOME PAGE