AATTV (Night Operations Training Teams) Badges

[slick_mick]

AATTV (Night Operations Training Team) Badge - Vietnam War - Circa 1971

I have seen both a pin back version and a version with a single brooch pin. This picture was sent to me by an AATTV NOTTS advisor.



Below was from an email I received from an AATTV member when I inquired about the badge:

"I was with the NOTTs Teams so what I am about to relay to you is as accurate as I can I recall.

Prior to December 1971 there was a establishment at Dong Tam in the Delta about 11 kilometres from My Tho and there was a Team of Australian Advisors there. If memory serves me right there were about five Warrant Officers and one Sergeant there. Their role was to train American and Vietnamese Officers and NCO' selected from various provinces throughout IV Corps in Night Operations and Ambushing Techniques. Those attending were there for about six weeks. The idea was that on completion of the training those who had attended would go back out to their respective outposts and train the RF /PF soldiers in the villages and hamlets in precisely what they had learnt at the course. Periodicly the Aussie Advisors would go out to the outpots the students had come from to assess if the training had been succesful. If memory serves me right the Dong Tam establishment had been going since May 1970.

In addition to these were another two teams. One worked out of Cho Goa and consisted of three Warrant Officers, of which I was one. The other team consisting of one Warrant Officer (Aust) one Warrant Officer (NZ) and a Cpl (Aust) worked out of My Tho.Our task was different to those at Dong Tam as we would go out to the outlying outposts and live and work (train) and go on operations with the RF/PF soldiers in situ for periods of up to three to six weeks.

The above Teams were known as NOTT's (Night Operations Training Teams) and later as NOAT's Night Operations Advisory Teams.

THE BADGE AT THIS TIME HAD NOT COME INTO EXISTENCE

In late December 1971 we were all recalled to Can Tho and after a few days were broken up into teams of two and were then allocated two or three provinces, to which we had to visit a number of outposts in each province, and assess if the training at Dong Tam had been successful and implemented at the out posts we visited. I would say that of the three provinces Harry Buckley and I visited, in two of them it was very apparent that the training had been very succesful. One of those provinces, I think it was Go Cong, was almost completely pacified, the second could be classified as succesful but the third Kien Hoa had done absolutely nothing, however it must be remembered that Kien Hoa was the home of the VietCong and I have an idea it was also the birthplace of Ho Chi Minh. The process of assessment took about three weeks and then we all went back to Can Tho to present our reports.

We were required to deliver an oral presentation to a very select group who included John Paul Vann the director of CORDS in IV Corps. , The AATTV Commander AAYTTV Lt Col Geoff Leary, General Troung and some visiting officers from Australia. It was agreed as a result of the presentations at the meeting that a NOTT Teams would be restablished at Dong Tam and another one at Bac Lieu.

Bernie Mc Gurgan, Ian Caskey (NZ ) and myself were despatched to Bac Lieu to set up a training centre ther and get the training going.The remainder went back to Dong Tam.

And so from then until November 1971 ( I went home in late October) these Teams did similar to what we had been doing previously at Dong Tam . The teams during that time built up to about seven members per Team. I think it was around about March of 1971 that the issue of the Night Owl Badge came into being. It was firstly awarded to all of us Aussies (NOTT Instructors) and also presented to the students who had attended the courses. In the main these were mostly RF/PF soldiers.

I don't know who thought of the idea or who designed the badge, however I know it was very much envied particularly by the Americans. They certainly admired our Night Ops technique and were quiet proud of the fact that they had attented a Night Ops course. I know quite a few who had attended courses in the period May - Dec 1970 certainly went to a lot of trouble to get confirmation that they had attended a course so they could wear the badge. I must see if I can find out some more about it. "

[saumua]

Great info. Any pictures of the badge worn?

[slick_mick]

I don't have any but I'll see what I can find from a mate of mine who is a big Vietnam collector.

Mick