The headquarters of the 2/47 Panther Battalion was in Binh Phuoc. The base was first inhabited by the 5/60 Mechanized Infantry and named Camp Robert Bethune in memory of their first KIA. When the 2/47 Mechanized Infantry moved in from Bearcat during October 1968, they renamed it Camp Panther. To most it was know simply as Binh Phuoc.

When the 2/47 Infantry arrived in Vietnam on January 31, 1967, they were one of two mechanized battalions in the Division. The other, the 5/60 Infantry, was dismounted in September 1968 leaving the 2/47 the Division's only mechanized asset to operate in the Delta. Left - A couple of M-113 ACAV (armored cavalry assault vehicle) tracks sit in the company motor pool. Center - The back section of a two-unit, XM-571, 1-ton, articulated, utility vehicle rests to the left of a M-548, 6-ton, ammunition carrier. The crest on the sign that has caught the eye of the troop at the right displays the red shield and Viking long boat of the 86^th Combat Engineer Battalion. Right - This ammunition carrier has been adorned with the inscription FORD meaning, in this instance, FIX OR REPAIR DAILY. The M-548s were manufactured for the US Army by the Ford Motor Company.

FIRE MISSION! The ground trembled when the 105s  of Battery B, 2/4 Artillery, went into action. Being so close to the source was a thrilling experience similar to being very near a Fourth of July fireworks display. The resonance of the cannon's bark bounced off your stomach and stirred your soul. Yet, it was a sad occasion. The artillery fire meant someone out in the bush was in trouble. Artillerymen knew this and responded with utmost alacrity. They accepted the responsibility that soldiers' lives were in their hands. A late or inaccurate fire mission could mean dead comrades. The Army purposefully placed small infantry units in harm's way to draw out the enemy. Squads were not expected to engage superior Communist forces. Overwhelming firepower was the key to supremacy in the field. This was the theory of small unit engagement in Vietnam, although the theory didn't always work out so well for those  engaged.

Left - SAY A LITTLE PRAYER!  Forever buddy. An M-578, light, armored, recovery vehicle has enough crew messages painted on it to occupy a few moments reading time. WIDOW MAKER! YOU CALL - WE HAUL! Center -  A platoon prepare their tracks for an operation. Right - Beyond the wire one never knew what to expect. Route 207 ran between Tan An and Binh Phuoc. It literally ended at Camp Panther's front gate. Route 207 was also known as Thunder Road.

WELCOME TO BEAUTIFUL DOWNTOWN BINH PHUOC - That's what the Bravo Battery, 2/4 Artillery, greeting sign said. Well, at least someone had a sense of humor! Binh Phuoc was anything but beautiful. Battery B's six, towed, 105mm howitzers were emplaced on the north side of the base.

Left - Snoop IV was one of headquarters company's four M-106A1 tracks fitted with 4.2" mortar tubes. The company was nicknamed 4-Duece. Center - It certainly looks like a junk yard but it isn't. Tracks churned up the Delta until roads were little more than quagmires and mud bogs. Right - Bandsmen Fischer and Mills enjoy the sodden ambiance of Binh Phuoc. If you added ed to Phuoc it sounded like what the Army did to the Queen of Battle.

Left - Camp Panther's three helicopter pads (one fabricated and the other tow earthen) were outside the north berm along Route 225. In this view a Slick sits on the fabricated concrete pad (out of view to left) and a company of tracks occupy the earthen pads. A pair of M-113 ACAVs, parked side by side, have effectively blocked traffic on the road. Center - The monsoon season arrived during the month of May. It brought torrential rains to already inundated lowlands. Sudden downpours made unpaved roads barely passable. Right -  Kids were everywhere in the Delta. Here a bunch wait with the band for a helicopter pick up.

A side road off of Route 225 on the east perimeter led to several Vietnamese hootches and a company-size compound of the 15^th Engineer Battalion. The platoon in these scenes got into trouble when one of their tracks slid off the road into a paddy. It had been quite exciting watching them churning up papa-san's rice paddies, not to mention the road itself. Lots of noise and exhaust smells!

Left - The Vietnamese peasant didn't understand the concept of sanitation. This contract laborer is washing in storm sewer water at Camp Panther's garbage dump. The orange and white cartons in the garbage heap are Foremost Dairies, Inc. quart milk containers. Center & Right - The Vietnamese always chose the highest and driest plot of land to bury their ancestors. The monuments offered good concealment and cover, not to mention a great background to take pictures. Desecratingly great ones!

View #1 - This distinctive Buddhist temple sat in an open field across Route 207, a short distance from the southwest corner of Camp Panther. View #2 - The village of Binh Phuoc was also south of Route 207 near that road's intersection with Route 225. This view of the village was taken from Camp Panther's main gate. View #3 - In the Delta what looked pastoral and bucolic during the sunlight hours often turned into a nightmare of evening flares, tracers, mortars, RPGs, and small arms fire. The Viet Cong were farmers by day and guerilla insurgents by night. Both friend and foe carried weapons. Our orders were not to fire unless fired upon. Black pajamas were the uniform of the peasant as well as the VC. You really couldn't tell the good guys from the enemy. View #4 - Lambretta 550 scooter busses were ubiquitous in the Delta. Their motors made a distinctive popping sound that could be heard quite a distance away.

INDICATED MONTHS OF COMMAND ARE APPROXIMATE

* April 27, 1967

**July 3, 1968