3RAR unit

Ron Cashman, Observation post Little Gibraltar, Hill 355, '53

Big enough to put a shell in, which "Charlie" did.

Natural air conditioning, built mostly using native materials, environmentally blended decor.

Location much desired by neighbors.

This is a good example of how not to build an observation pit.

Clearly it would have stood out to the enemy, and surely they would nail it.

In the case of this ill devised pit, I was sharing it with two others one day looking for targets of any kind. From out in the distance we heard the POP of a Chinese mortar being fired, shortly thereafter the bomb just cleared the overhead cover. Exploding in the entrance to a bunker, and on top of my gear which was stashed there. The gear caught fire and the bunker partially collapsed, trapping several men inside and shocking the heck out of us all. Between we three groggy blokes from the pit, and others who came to the rescue, the entombed ones were rescued and taken to the medics. They suffered only shock.

Fortunately our counter battery lads were on the job and replied so quickly at the Chinese mortar, they had to run for cover or we would have worn several more with dire results. That pit was given the miss for observing from after that.

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