c company

C Company arrives in Vietnam

8 October The advanced party of the Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment (HHD) consisting of 6 officers and 18 enlisted personnel, departed from Oakland, California by air for Vietnam. This deployment of representatives of the battalion and each of the organic companies (A, B, and C) and Headquarters Platoon, would be responsible for insuring that when the bulk of the battalion arrived in Vietnam that the necessary transportation from point of debarkation in Vung Tau to their new compound in Long Binh Post and the necessary administrative and logistical support systems were in place and functioning at a proper level.

10 October The advance party arrived in Vietnam and began preparation to build the temporary quarters to house the Battalion at Long Binh Post upon their arrival

19 October The remainder of the 720th Military Police Battalion after a brief stopover at the Island of Okanawa in Japan, arrived at the port of Vung Tau aboard the USNS Daniel L. Sultan. They were then transported to the air field and air lifted to Bien Hoa Air Base where motorized transport was waiting to have them and their equipment trucked to their new compound area in Zone III, at Long Binh Post, located in Bien Hoa Province.

ZONES

20 October to 4 November The men of the 720th MP Battalion under the command of LTC Glen A. Hill began the task of constructing the first semblance of what would eventually be their headquarters and home in Vietnam until 13 August 1972.

During the construction phase the men of the three organic companies (A,B, & C) also shared the task of security for their compound and the Long Binh military post which was still in it’s infancy and would soon grow to be the largest HQ and logistical supply base in Vietnam.

5 November The Battalion became "Mission Capable" and HHD, and A, B & C companies were assigned their first operational orders by the 89th MP Group.

The first official missions were unit specific however all three companies shared responsibility for many of the early missions jointly or on a rotating basis every few months. The missions included: Battalion perimeter security; post patrol for Long Binh; patrol of Bien Hoa City; 3rd Ordinance Ammunition Depot interior and exterior perimeter security; security for Cogido Docks (ammunition and fuel barges); and ammunition resupply convoy escorts to Tay Ninh.

8 December PFC Charles "Chuck" DeWayne Damsgard, age 20, 1st Platoon, C Company, from St. Paul, Minnesota, became the 720th MP Battalions first casualty in Vietnam. PFC Damsgard was killed by small arms fire while performing night ambush duties outside the perimeter of the 3rd Ordinance Ammunition Supply Depot at Long Binh Post.