Estate sale book has Vietnam Flag

[painter777]

Purchased a few things at an estate sale last Friday. A old gunsmith book had a flag in it.
Along with the flag was a typed page with a translation.

Pardon all the pics but I'll share all I have.
Few questions....
Anyone think this is real?
If so Is it NVA celebrating a victory over the South?

Any help appreciated
Charlie-Painter777

P.S. At this same sale I bought a (I believe) a Vietnam era helmet (rear seam) with era correct camo cover and inner liner marked US 4. Plus a front seam unmarked WW11 shell and liner. I'll get pictures and do a new topic for help on these.

Information

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[painter777]

Does anyone think this might be real?

Would it be a Commie flag?

A good Guess is welcomed

Charlie-Painter777

[Bruce_in_Oz]

VERY "commie" flag, complete with "socialist realism" artwork.

Loosely translated (and I am very rusty with what is left of my very rudimentary Vietnamese):

Top Line:

People's Liberation Front of South Viet Nam.

Bottom lines:

(Struggling now)

Something about:

Civil "stream" to arm Pleiku "district" k9 with knowledge volunteers

(Something, something)

1969

It appears to be a "unit flag / "colour", belonging to an "armed propaganda team" from the "National Liberation Front" / Viet Cong.

What is its provenance?

"Southern" Vietnamese has slightly different "tones" in its words and a lot of different names for objects, when compared to "Hanoi" Vietnamese.

Any translation advances?

[browningautorifle]

Yes, I think it IS original. Exactly what it's celebrating is another thing...

[HOOKED ON HISTORY]

Add this to your meatball flag in the other post and may I suggest you find a casino ASAP to see if you have any good luck remaining.
Nice find.

[Peter Laidler]

Of things NVA and VC, I wonder where our old pals in D-445 are now?

[USGI]

If this Wiki article is factual, they were a darn tough bunch. - Bob

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D445_Battalion

[Bruce_in_Oz]

Peter asked:

"Of things NVA and VC, I wonder where our old pals in D-445 are now?"

Mostly dead or very retired.

A lot of VC were involved in the famous "Tet" (Lunar New Year) offensive and were very heavily "thinned" by US air power when they were used to perform a series of infantry assaults into the major cities in the south. Being caught, en masse, in the open by marauding "Spookys" is a definite health hazard.

Those that survived, probably tried to go back to as normal a life as they could find, post war. This was apparently "interesting", as the place was suddenly awash with "victorious" regular northern troops, who rapidly went into garrison mode.

I know of at least one retired VC "tax collector" who ended up working in a brewery in Dong Nai province, not far from the old Bien Hoa airfield.

And only five years later, they mounted up again and rolled across the Parrots Beak, to deliver a response to the Khmer Rouge.

Long Tan veteran, Terry Burstall did a book based on his combat experience with D-Coy, 6RAR. (“The Soldier’s Story)” University of Queensland Press, ISBN 0 7022 2002 7).

There is also a “follow-up” volume called “A Soldier Returns”.

See [URL="https://espace.library.uq.edu.au/data/UQ_190986/DA557_8_L66_B875_1990.pdf?Expires=1497405664&Signa ture=Ho98XluNmd4tKKV2rX3Eji6idNzdh4WPZdB-uW8qZH8PnjA87S3Kzc8AmLuUuH0JUgyLMpnXkmByFZxQhbTc0t jV5~itmYJEiDmbN5elxSBOvBihLXGoNw7faHv3hCen1BzkUQgB HnubcEBYNhGHoix8auOXkJE7sWYfcOe53OFuAq7Dz8Xwg4~xBa nVT1Wz3Q5hhV3HZfGwhPznyjzjQTyvo5nPazV7nfT78VncRWTE S~BO3gQQtM3ap1l3nyLbCWjK3dHRKffpeXb8-6wi37TiQ7pRuRrpErQFI2DyyqMQ86umhCiRdyF5-B2L4Id456hCjFB1r3vL3Sl4xtDXAA__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJKNBJ4MJBJNC6NLQ."]

One of the photo plates in the book contains a 1987 photo of D445’s Colonel Bao.

Another from the same trip, shows Burstall in conference with Colonel Nguyen Thang Hong (Hai), one-time commander of the VC forces at Long Tan.

[CINDERS]

I've got the Long tan book and the Battle for Coral in storage for a later read what's the jist of Terry Burnstalls "A Soldier Returns" if its a good read will acquire a copy for a latter read.

[Bruce_in_Oz]

The long and poorly posted link I presented previously before should lead to an on-line copy of "A Soldier Returns".

I have not yet found my "tree-ware" copy; probably still in the box I stored it in during renovations here.

Another interesting read is by Frank Palmos; "Ridding the Devils". (1990). It covers his "adventures" in Indonesia during some wild times under Sukharno, and moves to Viet Nam; including being in a VC vehicle ambush, and being the only survivor.

Link here


(with any luck...