Share
Clip description
This clip looks at the major roads in what was then known as Phuoc Tuy Province of South Vietnam.
Curator’s notes
This clip shows both aerials and ground-level footage of the major roads in the region surrounding 1ATF’s base at Nui Dat, in particular Route 15, Route 2, Route 23 and Route 44. Footage shot in Ba Ria, and other local villages traversed by the main roads, provides an insight into South Vietnamese life at the time and the way in which western modernity was infiltrating traditional society. Aerials clearly illustrate the destruction of some of the major roads wrought by the war. Australian engineers and troops spent a lot of time repairing roads and constructing diversion ways. The segment ends with aerials of some old French colonial villas located on the coast along Route 44. What looks like camera shudder is actually the shake of the helicopter from which the material was filmed.
