Corporal Ronald A Harris, 26 years old of Western Australia.   Harris enlisted on September 5, 1960 and was posted to the Artillery.  The popular soldier saw active service during the Borneo confrontation with Indonesia while with A Field Battery, RAA.  It was here that he met and later married his Malaysian wife.

In October 1966, he transferred to the SAS and went to Vietnam with 2 SAS Squadron, on June 6 1968.  Almost exactly seven months later, on January 17 1969, he was accidentally killed by his own patrol commander as he apparently tried to locate the position of his patrol in Bien Hoa.

Information provided by the SAS headquarters at  Swanbourne Barracks, Western Australia, explains that Corporal Harris, a member of a two-man observation group from 11 Patrol, was on a reconnaissance mission when they spotted two Viet Cong (VC) soldiers 30 metres away.  Ron decided to return to the patrol position to brief his patrol commander, but took the wrong entry path and died from fragmentation wounds and a gunshot wound to the head, from his own commander.

SAS historian, Mr Steven Danaher said: "Corporal Harris was highly thought of by his mates.  He is commerated on "The Rock" at the SASR, Campbell Barracks, Swanbourne, Western Australia".

A plaque dedicated to men of the SASR who have died in training and on Operations is in Civic, the central business district of Canberra.  I have taken some pictures of the SASR memorial plaque and his name on the Roll of Honour at the War Memorial - I will scan these when they are developed.

Images sourced from "SAS, A Pictorial History of the Australian Special Air Service 1957 - 1997", edited by M.J.Malone, OAM.  Access Press, Western Australia (1997).

(I hope to obtain an image of 'The Rock' with Ron's name on it)

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