The 90th Replacement Battalion arrived in Vietnam on August 30, 1965, in anticipation of a large US troop build-up. Engagements with the North Vietnamese Army and the Viet Cong during the past year dismissed any doubt as to Communist resolve to reunited the two Vietnams. The 90th Replacement Battalion relieved the small, prewar, processing center at Camp Alpha on Tan Son Nhut Airport in Saigon and was joined the following year, on August 31, 1966, by the 22nd Replacement Battalion at Cam Ranh Bay.
The average stay at the 90th Replacement Battalion for a troop in-processing was 3 days. While awaiting orders transients below the rank of E-6 got to do all the chores for the cadre. Typical work details included policing the grounds, painting buildings, KP, or whatever else needed to be done. Because of my clerical MOS I got to sweep out the administration office and help file paperwork. When my orders came down I was assigned to the 9th Adjutant General Administration Company at Dong Tam. I was going south into the Delta with the 9th Infantry Division.
When I arrived in Vietnam the USARV no longer authorized sewn-on sleeve rank. Instead they opted for tiny, collar insignia pins. Mine was a tin stamping painted black. It soon rusted in the humidity of the Delta. Some troops opted for cloth sewn-on variants of the collar pins. All were subdued.
Interestingly, Long Binh wasn't a Vietnamese city or town at all. It was a military designated area northeast of Saigon in Bien Hoa that encompassed a complex of US military installations, including the 90th Replacement Battalion.
I found it interesting that when I out-processed in August, the 90th Replacement Battalion kept US returnees isolated from those processing in. I guess they were afraid we'd share our in-country experiences with the FNGs!
