The Bunny Platoon - Who We Are

The Bunny Platoon?

While perhaps a funny name to some, it is a most treasured name to the men that were in that unit while in 1968/1969 Vietnam. It means that we are among the few people that know of places called Binh Phuoc, Tan An, Ben Luc, The Y Bridge, the Plain of Reeds, Lai Khe, Quan Loi, The Black Bitch, The Iron Triangle and the list goes on and on. Most of all, it means a closely-knit platoon of men who in 1968/69 fought together in Vietnam, or as we called it “The Nam”.

How Did it Start?

Originally, we were the 3rd Platoon, Bravo Company, 5th Battalion Mechanized, 60th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade of the 9th Infantry Division in Vietnam 1968. We became the 3rd Platoon, Bravo Company, 1st Battalion Mechanized, 16th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade of the 1st Infantry Division in Vietnam during late 1968 and 1969.

It has been said that in 1967 the platoon was visited by a group of Playboy® Bunnies and we derived our name from that. What is known for sure is that during the Tet offensives of 1968, our Platoon Leader, Lt Armand Murphy (better known as, Peter Rabbit) decided our platoon lacked distinction. He ordered one of the men, Spec Ray Ortlieb, to paint the Bunny image on our four Armored Personnel Carriers (APCs or tracks) and his jeep. Banners were made to fly from our radio antennas. Some had berets made to prominently display our borrowed Bunny image.

We Had Our Symbols

Did it Work?

We fought hard and often. More times than not, it was just our platoon, in whole or part, that was fighting together. When we were on operations, we were generally by ourselves but sometimes with other elements of Bravo Company. We took great pride in being The Bunny Platoon and would like to believe that units we faced in combat feared our well known Bunny image. The Viet Cong did put a price on our heads so our beliefs were perhaps correct.

Sometimes They Wrote About Us!

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We Were Moved!

We were Mechanized Infantry. The 9th Infantry Division operated in, and around, the Mekong River Delta south of Saigon. This was also known as the rice belt; very wet and muddy land. There were many places where the tracks couldn’t go. There was another Mechanized Infantry Battalion in the 9th Division. For more effective use of our tracks, a decision was made in the summer to exchange our battalion with one of infantrymen from the 1st Infantry Division. We were infused and the battalion became the 1st Battalion Mechanized, 16th Infantry Regiment.

They Gave Us a New Symbol

But we still kept our bunny flags!

Who Were We?

We were a group of boys and young men who enlisted, or were drafted, into military service. Most, but not all, of us were trained as light weapons infantrymen. Most had never seen a track before being assigned to our unit. For some it seemed the Army had it in for us by sitting our unshielded bodies on top of this huge target called a track. We came from a cross segment of Americana, for the most part many were from the lower socioeconomic part of that society. There were some to which those statements didn’t apply. Many of us didn’t want to be there, nevertheless, our country said it needed us and we took on the fight. In other wars we would have been called heroes. In this war we were called and treated as anything but. There were many who did heroic things, some recognized and others not. Those who were killed are heroes by any measure. Mostly we didn’t, and don’t see ourselves as heroes. It may have not been the war of choice, but it was the war we were called to fight. We just served our country!

We were each assigned duty for a year to the unit, some spent less and others much less time. There was a constant turnover of men. Many times the ones who had been there for a while wanted little to do with the new guys. They were too likely to be hurt (WIA) or killed in action (KIA). Their squad leaders, or others, would try to help them survive. Nevertheless, some didn’t make it. Most of our war dead were with the unit less than 90 days. It hurts to lose anybody in your unit but it is so much worse when it is a friend. You limit your friends to those you know can count on.

Who Are We?

Many times combat veterans of our war have been seen to be as renegades or weird or hermits or... Most combat vets carry on a normal life eventhough most, if not all, suffer from the the consequences of putting our lives on the line, and seeing our friends killed in horrid ways, only to come home and be called baby killers or spit upon. The truth is we are you! Postmen, contractors, accountants, financial planners, truck drivers, laborers, many disabled to varying degrees and some retired. We want what all Americans want: The right to “Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness”.

The Future?

It is 40 years later. Why didn’t we all stay in contact? Many left the platoon abruptly. Those who didn’t left one by one. When we were leaving, we often felt guilty for leaving our buddies behind. Many times we didn’t want to know if our buddies were killed or wounded after we left. It was just too much pain. We were on our way home. The war was over for us! There are many reasons but a few stayed in contact.

Enough time has passed. Some of us are searching for those with whom we served. Over the years the names, faces and/or memories sometimes fade. Nevertheless, there is nothing like meeting buddies you haven’t seen in all that time. Nobody knows the good and bad times as do the men who were with you when...

It is our hope that this website will help us find some men we haven’t yet. In addition, it gives our members, and surviving family members, a place to meet, ask questions, express ideas or opinions and just communicate together. This will be a growing site. We welcome relevant pictures, comments and information about our members. If you are/were a Bunny Platoon member or family please join today. There is no cost.

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