Task Organization for 1st Battalion, 503rd Airborne Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade "Sky Soldiers!"



Headquarters and Headquarters Company












Total: 200 soldiers in the HHC
200 + 489 = 689 soldiers in the Airborne Battalion

Rifle Company (A, B & C Companies)




Total: 163 soldiers in the Company x 3 companies = 489

The Battalion has three Companies. Each company has three rifle platoons with three squads each. This is nine squads for the Company and/or nine platoons for the battalion.There are four 81mm Mortars at battalion to support the platoons in the field and three 60mm mortars at company to support the squads in the field. The Anti-armor teams at Battalion are probably 90mm or 106mm recoilless Rifles mounted on M151 Jeeps. The Anti-armor weapons at Company are probably Light Anti-Armor Weapons (LAAW) with teams who carry several of them. These teams are attached to the rifle platoons for their use and may consist of four men carrying a bunch of LAAWs.

Rifle Squad:
Squad Leader (SSG)
A Team Leader (SGT)
Auto Rifleman (SP4)
Grenadier M79 (SP4/PFC)
Rifleman (PFC)
Rifleman (PFC)
B Team Leader (SGT)
Auto Rifleman (SP4)
Grenadier M79 (SP4/PFC)
Rifleman (PFC)
Rifleman (PFC)

I believe @CaptainBritton intends to take the A Company Commander slot for his character. I intend to write up the 1-503 Battalion Commander and then various other characters within the battalion as the story progresses.

AIRBORNE!

Going back to the idea of liaison/advisors...could we do somebody on an exchange tour from another military? I thinking a low ranking officer like a platoon commander or company XO...

I had two ideas for that...one would be an ANZAC, the other would be a Brit from the Far East forces...

I

A small notice: Due to Christmas, this RP shall be postponed until after the holidays are over, (or when I can sit down and make a good starter.) I hope you all can understand, it's just busy right now so I need to spend time with my family. Don't worry though, the RP is still in the works.

No problem. I have enough to keep me busy during this holiday week.

Sounds good, pretty booked this week and next as well.

Alright, now I have time to think about this RP so it's back in the saddle. I've decided that the two sides would deploy differently. The AVRN would deploy on the ground, American and allied forces will either deploy in a setting near a beachhead or they arrive via choppers. VC, Chinese, and North Vietnamese forces will be like the ARVN, but they will start off in tunnel networks and in the north in terms of setting. The battlefield setting is still under consideration, but I'll post when I know which region of Vietnam we're going to start in.Once more, sorry for the delay. I merely had Christmas and family to spend time with.

1-503 PIR, 173rd Airborne Brigade will come in by either parachute or helicopter.

Update: So, I've decided to go with the Central Highlands as was suggested to me. Thus we're going to have the setting where there is a strong ARVN and allied presence. Also, due to the fact most people here have requested to be on the forces of the capitalist powers, I'm going to substitute NPC's and characters on the communist side to balance this out. I will also be introducing a Chinese officer 'antagonist' to be the coordinator of the NVA forces. This way, we can have a character trying to oppose the others behind the enemy lines and directing the enemy forces until we get more people willing to play on the side of the communists.

If anyone has any more suggestions, please inform me so I can try to formulate a proper starter. This is a major series of historical events, so I need all the help I can get.

1-503 PIR, 173rd Airborne Brigade will come in by either parachute or helicopter.

Both are reasonable, but parachute maybe if this starts out as a night operation.

Update: So, I've decided to go with the Central Highlands as was suggested to me. Thus we're going to have the setting where there is a strong ARVN and allied presence. Also, due to the fact most people here have requested to be on the forces of the capitalist powers, I'm going to substitute NPC's and characters on the communist side to balance this out. I will also be introducing a Chinese officer 'antagonist' to be the coordinator of the NVA forces. This way, we can have a character trying to oppose the others behind the enemy lines and directing the enemy forces until we get more people willing to play on the side of the communists.

If anyone has any more suggestions, please inform me so I can try to formulate a proper starter. This is a major series of historical events, so I need all the help I can get.

Kon Tum is the province that borders Laos and is a decanting area for the Truong Son Road, better known as the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Dak Lao, Dak Nong, Gia Lai all border Cambodia and are also staging areas for PAVN activity.

There is actually a degree of acrimony between Vietnamese and Chinese types, the Russians were way more supportive. There was such acrimony between the North Vietnamese and Ethnic Chinese, Nungs, that the Nungs moved south in 1954 and became some of the most capable troops that Special Forces trained in Vietnam, out of a number of different ethnic minorities that the US reached out to. Montagnards are particularly represented in the Central Highlands.

Anyway, a Chinese advisor might get a pretty frosty reception from Vietnamese troops. No love lost there, even for fellow Communists.

My focus will probably be on the air support element, especially CSAR operations.

Attention: Now that my Christmas and New Year's break is over, I'm going to sit down and make a starter. However, this will be a very lengthy process as I have never really made a big advanced RP before, but I'm going to sit down and try to get all the pieces together. I advise everyone to please have patience with me, but get ready.

Attention: Now that my Christmas and New Year's break is over, I'm going to sit down and make a starter. However, this will be a very lengthy process as I have never really made a big advanced RP before, but I'm going to sit down and try to get all the pieces together. I advise everyone to please have patience with me, but get ready.

No problem. I still have to decide what exact formation I am going to play, but it will probably be assorted elements of the USAF 14th Air Commando Wing, which provided all sorts of close air support, airlift and various unconventional operations from Thailand to Laos to parts of Vietnam. I'll probably add on more conventional CSAR units as well.

So yeah, the BAT-21 stuff.

So, are we going to have allied ground units? If that is the case then the Aussies would be out because they stuck to Vung Tao. I think it was the same for the ROKs...they stayed in one general area too. So you would have ARVN, and U.S. only as major combat formations. Which is fine with me, BTW

So, are we going to have allied ground units? If that is the case then the Aussies would be out because they stuck to Vung Tao. I think it was the same for the ROKs...they stayed in one general area too. So you would have ARVN, and U.S. only as major combat formations. Which is fine with me, BTW

I just posted my main character as the Battalion Commander for the 1st Battalion, 503rd PIR, 173rd ABN BDE. It is my intention to RP the entire Battalion when I can. I will at least discuss what the battalion is doing. @CaptainBritton is taking A Company, 1-503 PIR, 173 ABN BDE. You are welcome to take a soldier within the Battalion or choose another unit in the 173rd. I also believe the 4th Infantry Division is in this Area of Operations in 1967 if you would like to pull in another unit. Or you could create some other foreign national unit like Republic of Korea (ROK) or Australia?

Yes, 1st Brigade, 4th ID. I would like to take one of the 1/4th's battalions, or even the whole darn brigade if nobody else is going to take any components from that division.

Are we doing Dak To? :)

Are we doing Dak To? :)

I was wondering the same thing. That is summer of 1967.

1st Brigade, 4th Infantry Division
Commanded by a Colonel
1st Battalion, 8th Infantry
2nd Battalion, 8th Infantry (Mechanized)
3rd Battalion, 8th Infantry
1st Battalion, 12th Infantry
4th BN, 42nd Field Artillery Regiment (105mm) Towed

I served in the 4th ID Mech in 1983-84.