BETTS, Ronald William
| Service Number: | O118325 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 4 March 1968 |
| Last Rank: | Pilot Officer |
| Last Unit: | No. 9 Squadron (RAAF) |
| Born: | Launceston, Tasmania, 1 March 1947 |
| Home Town: | Launceston, Launceston, Tasmania |
| Schooling: | Avondale College, Cooranbong |
| Occupation: | RAAF Helicopter Pilot |
| Died: | GSW, Long Binh, South Vietnam, 20 March 1971, aged 24 years |
| Cemetery: |
Carr Villa Memorial Park, Tasmania Cremation - Monumental Block C - Row 14 - Grave 60 |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Devonport Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall, Grafton Clarence Valley Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Kallangur Vietnam Veterans' Place, Port Pirie Vietnam Veterans Honour Wall, Seymour Vietnam Veterans Commemorative Walk Roll of Honour |
Vietnam War Service
| 4 Mar 1968: | Enlisted | |
|---|---|---|
| 22 Jul 1970: | Involvement Pilot Officer, O118325, No. 9 Squadron (RAAF) | |
| 22 Jul 1970: | Involvement Royal Australian Air Force, Pilot Officer, O118325 |
Pilot Officer Ronald William Betts
O118325 Pilot Officer Ronald William Betts, No. 9 Squadron RAAF
DOW 20 March 1971
Last Post ceremony: 5th June 2021
Refer: Tony Cox http://www.3rar.com.au/supportkia.html#rb
Today we remember and pay tribute to Pilot Officer Ronald William Betts.
Ronald Betts was born in Launceston, Tasmania on 1 March 1947 to “Mannie”
and Jean Betts. Mannie had served with the Royal Australian Air Force in New
Guinea during the Second World War and then worked for Tasmanian
Railways. A part-time jazz musician, his trio regularly played in Launceston.
Ron’s mother was energetic and sporty, and a strict Seventh Day Adventist. Ron
also had an elder sister and two younger sisters.
In 1958 the family moved to Hobart. They settled in Moonah, where Ron
attended the Seventh Day Adventist school. His schoolwork dropped away as
other interests grew. He was good at a number of sports, particularly swimming,
and he quickly became good on the piano. Known as “Pinky” to his family, Ron
was a charming young man. But his real passion was flying.
Ron joined the Tasmanian Transport Department in 1963 as a junior clerk. He
then attended Avondale College at Cooranbong in New South Wales, and
obtained his leaving certificate by the end of 1965. Ron returned to Launceston
where he and a school friend joined the local aero club and took flying lessons.
The following year Ron travelled to Papua and New Guinea with a friend whose
uncle had lined up work for the pair. He became a clerk in the Department of
Public Health in Port Moresby, and he continued flying. As his ambition was to
join the air force and fly fighters, he applied to the RAAF in mid-1967. By
January the following year he had been accepted.
After attending No. 1 Flying Training School at Point Cook, Ron was
transferred to No. 2 Flight Training School in Western Australia, where he
began training in Vampire fighters. He qualified as a pilot in June 1969 and was
transferred to No. 35 Operational Conversion Unit at RAAF Williamstown,
flying Sabres. By the end of 1969, having not attained the required standard,
Ron was transferred to No. 5 Squadron at Fairbairn in the ACT to fly
helicopters, namely the Bell UH-1 Iroquois or “Huey”.
Taking well to the helicopters, Ron soon qualified on the Huey and in late July
1970 he was posted to Vietnam with No. 9 Squadron. In a letter to his mother
written shortly before he was posted to Vietnam he said:
“To tell you the truth I don’t particularly want to go at all … My only
reason for not wanting to go is moral. I don’t believe in war anyway …
I’m not a conscientious objector and as a professional I would go if asked
but I wouldn’t try to justify it morally and patriotically as I don’t think
there is any such justification ... Financially a tour of [Vietnam] and the
operational experience would be the main attraction for me, if I have to
go …”
Ron arrived in South Vietnam on 22 July 1970 and was soon in action, seeing
many hours of operational flying. Missions varied from reconnaissance to fire
support, SAS insertion or medevac flights, known as “dust-offs”. In January
1971 he wrote that he was “enjoying Dust-off as it’s a very challenging job and
I’m handling it OK … I feel as though I’m doing something worthwhile. A
small sane island in an ocean of insanity”.
The following month Ron was put on “Bushranger” operations, flying
helicopter gunships that provided fire support for troops on the ground. Ron’s
last letter home, written on 9 March 1971, noted, “The flying has picked up
quite a bit over the last week or two on gunships… I’m going to be glad to get
out of here for a breather and get home and see you all.”
On the afternoon of 20 March, elements of 8 Platoon, C Company, 3 RAR
encountered a well-concealed enemy bunker system north-east of Xuyen Moc.
As they moved to engage it an intense firefight erupted and the Australians
became pinned down. Their leader, 2nd Lieutenant David Paterson was mortally
wounded and two others were hit.
9 Squadron was called to assist and two heavily armed gunships were
despatched. Shortly after 2 o’clock Bushranger 71 and 72 arrived over the
battlefield. Flight Lieutenant David Freedman piloted Bushranger 71; in the seat
beside him was his co-pilot, Ron Betts.
The troops on the ground desperately needed a resupply of coloured smoke
grenades so they could mark their positions. As Bushranger 71 came in low to
make the drop it was engaged by an enemy heavy machine-gun, which
peppered the aircraft. Ron was struck in the head. Freedman managed to pull
away and fly the chopper to a nearby fire support base where Ron was quickly
transferred to another helicopter which sped him to the US military hospital at
Long Binh. But his wound proved mortal; Ron was dead on arrival, the first
RAAF pilot killed in action in Vietnam.
Ron’s father received a telegram from Wing Commander Peter Coy the next
day and immediately drove from Devonport to Launceston to inform Ron’s
mother. Their son’s body was returned to Launceston. A service took place at
the Launceston Seventh-day Adventist Church, and Ron was laid to rest at Carr
Villa Cemetery. He was 24 years old.
His name is listed on the Roll of Honour on my left, among the 521 Australians
who died while serving in the Vietnam War.
This is but one of the many stories of service and sacrifice told here at the
Australian War Memorial. We now remember Pilot Officer Ronald William
Betts, who gave his life for us, for our freedoms, and in the hope of a better
world.
Details supplied by Tony Cox
Reviewed: Craig Tibbitts
Historian, Military History Section
Australian War Memorial
Canberra ACT
Submitted 19 September 2021 by Tony Cox
Biography
Ron Betts was born in Launceston, Tas, in 1947. Like a lot of young men of his time, the only thing he ever wanted to do was fly aeroplanes. In 1958, Ron’s family moved to Hobart where his interest in flying continued to grow.
After finishing High School in 1965, he left Tassie for Cooranbong in NSW where he attended Avondale College and did his aviation theory subjects. Finishing and passing those in 1966, he hitch-hiked to Cairns then flew to PNG where he started work as a clerk with the PNG Administration.
His father, Mannie Betts, who had been a radio operator with the RAAF in PNG during WWII; he knew a few people and helped Ron get the job. While there he spent all his spare funds on learning to fly and eventually obtained his Private Pilots Licence (PPL).
In 1968, with his PPL and a few hours in his log, he applied to the RAAF to become one of their pilots. He was accepted and undertook his basic training at Point Cook on the Winjeel. Then it was over the RAAF Pearce in WA to complete his training on the Vampire where he graduated in June 1969.
After Pearce, in September, 1969, he was posted to a fighter squadron but was ultimately sent to 5 Squadron at Fairbairn to train on the Iroquois. In July 1970, Ron and a number of his course colleagues were sent to 9 Squadron in Vung Tau.
On the morning of the 20 March 1971, 9 Sqn was required to carry out a “Sniffer” flight which proved to be a routine task with few readings. The “Sniffer” was an electronic personnel detection device, developed by General Electric for the US Army Chemical Corps and was mounted in the helicopters. It detected effluents unique to humans such as those found in urine and sweat.
Early in the afternoon of 20 March, after the completion of the Sniffer flight, two Bushranger aircraft, Bushranger 71 and Bushranger 72, (with B73 and B74 in reserve) were called to support 8 Platoon C Coy, 3RAR, which had run into a bit of trouble to the north of Xuan Moc, Phuoc Tuy. A patrol was engaged by enemy in bunkers, with small arms RPG (Rocket Propelled Grenades) and hand grenades mortally wounding the Platoon Commander, 2LT David Paterson (/explore/people/21076), and seriously wounding the Machine Gunner.
The remainder of the patrol was forced to withdraw with another seriously wounded soldier (Pte MS Macanas) and called in the Light Fire Team but on arrival the aircraft could not engage effectively because the patrol was unable to mark the target having run out of smoke grenades and were in very close proximity to the enemy.
The enemy were entrenched close to an escarpment on the northern side and only about 30 meters from the Australian platoon's position which meant the aircraft had to fly low and close to the enemy’s position. Such was the terrain that, after each pass, the Bushranger had to break right to escape. Whilst that happened, it was covered by the other Bushranger. On one pass with Ron flying, the aircraft broke right, the turn being so tight that it experienced retreating blade stall.
Recovering from this manouevre the aircraft (B-71) had to return to Nui Dat to rea-arm and re-fuel. Ron it was said was keen to return to the fray 'to get his hsours up', and in due course they were back over the contact. The "Bushranger" (Pilot FlgOff DC Freedman) attempted to drop more smoke grenades. It came to the hover over the patrol when it was hit some 47 times by small arms fire just 50 feet above the patrol. One or more bullets hit the co pilot (FlgOff Ron S Betts) mortally wounding him and forcing the aircraft to land at Fire Support Patrol Base Beth, where Ron Betts died; the first RAAF pilot to die in Vietnam.
Eventually the patrol was joined by the 3RAR Assault Pioneer Platoon (LT Peter Abigail) mounted in Armoured Personnel Carriers and a troop of tanks which forced the enemy to withdraw, The bunker system (20 bunkers) which had been occupied by elements of D445 Battalion Headquarters and one of its Recce Platoons was subsequently destroyed by a tank dozer.
This biography a compilation of material from the RAAF Radschool Association Website (permission pending) and material submitted by Bob Wood (3RAR)
Click images to start slideshow.