Firebases were reference points in an Infantryman's Viet Nam tour. Their primary purpose was to provide artillery fire in support of infantry combat operations. Since the artillery and signal personnel on the firebase could not defend "the hill," infantry companies rotated turns in providing firebase security. Since there were four rifle companies in the battalion, about a fourth of the time was spent "pulling security" on a firebase. The chart below lists the name of a firebase or a grid location such as 3527. The grid location refers to the local tactical map but generally the company would be within 10-20 kilometers of the battalion firebase.
More photos of firebases ...
Firebase Locations in time sequence
| Date |
Firebase or Location |
| Sep 1967 |
Phuoc Vinh |
| Jan 1968 |
FSB Keene |
| Jan 1968 |
LZ Judy |
| Feb 1968 |
Song Be |
| Mar 1968 |
AO Harrisburg - YD 430250 |
| Mar 1968 |
FSB Paris |
| Apr 1968 |
Song Be Bridge |
| Jun 1968 |
Dak To - Firebase 5 |
| Jun 1968 |
Cu Chi |
| Jul 1968 |
FB Patton |
| Jul 1968 |
FB Wallace |
| Oct 1968 |
Camp Eagle |
| Oct 1968 |
FB Boyd |
| Oct 1968 |
FB Panther II |
| Nov 1968 |
Camp Evans |
| 1/1/1969 |
YD 3527 (approx 8 km north of FB Granite and 8 km sw of FB Sword) |
| 1/8/1969 |
YD 4030 (2km sw FB Sword) |
| 1/19/1969 |
A Company on Jack; Charlie at 4231 (FB Sword) |
| 1/29/1969 |
Charlie 5134 (3 km nw of Camp Evans); Alpha on Jack and Jeane |
| 2/6/1969 |
A Company on Jack, Charlie on Jeanne, others at 5134 |
| 2/8/1969 |
All on Jeanne except HHC at 5134 |
| 2/13/1969 |
Charlie still on Jeanne |
| 2/17/1969 |
Alpha on Jack; Charlie on Jeanne; others on Sword |
| 2/24/1969 |
Charlie on Jeanne and then Jack |
| 3/8/1969 |
Charlie left Jack |
| 3/22/1969 |
Charlie goes to Longshot |
| 4/1/1969 |
Charlie on Kathryn |
| 4/7/1969 |
A Company on Kathryn |
| 4/9/1969 |
B and C on Kathryn; D on Gladiator |
| 4/11/1969 |
A and C on Kathryn; D on Gladiator |
| 4/16/1969 |
C left Kathryn |
| 5/10/1969 |
All begin NW move toward Laos |
| 5/19/1969 |
NW area |
| 6/7/1969 |
C Co on Granite |
| 6/21/1969 |
C Co left Granite |
| 7/7/1969 |
A and C on Currahee; B and D on Blaze |
| 7/14/1969 |
C on Currahee |
| 7/20/1969 |
C at 3601 (Currahee) |
| 8/6/1969 |
C at 4801 (left Currahee 8/6) |
| 8/8/1969 |
C at 4700 (Eagle's Nest) |
| 8/15/1969 |
C left Eagle's Nest |
| 9/22/1969 |
C on Birmingham |
| 10/16/1969 |
C left Birmingham |
| 11/2/1969 |
A and C on Arsenal |
| 11/12/1969 |
C on Arsenal |
| 11/22/1969 |
C on Bastogne |
| 12/7/1969 |
C left Bastogne |
| 1/8/1970 |
C at 6508 (7 km E from Bastogne) |
| 1/21/1970 |
C on Granite |
| 1/29/1970 |
C left Granite for Berchtesgaden |
| 2/2/1970 |
C left Berchtesgaden |
| 2/13/1970 |
C 3902 (8 km E of Berchtesgaden) |
| 3/1/1970 |
C on Granite |
| 3/23/1970 |
C left Granite |
| 4/2/1970 |
C on Maureen |
| 4/16/1970 |
C left Maureen |
| 4/25/1970 |
C on Rakkasan |
| 5/24/1970 |
C left Rakkasan |
| 5/25/1970 |
A and D at 4912; B and C at 4706 |
| 6/1/1970 |
A and D on Ripcord; C at 5310 (Cannon?) |
| 6/5/1970 |
C on Ripcord |
| 7/23/1970 |
C left Ripcord |
| 8/4/1970 |
C on Veghel |
| 9/4/1970 |
C left Veghel |
| 9/12/1970 |
C on Arsenal |
| 9/29/1970 |
C left Arsenal |
| 10/19/1970 |
C on Birmingham |
| 10/30/1970 |
C left Birmingham |
| 11/26/1970 |
C on Tomahawk |
| 12/16/1970 |
C left Tomahawk |
| 1/4/1971 |
C on Bastogne |
| 1/14/1971 |
C left Bastogne |
| 2/6/1971 |
C on Arsenal |
| 3/29/1971 |
C on Fury |
| 4/6/1971 |
C left Fury |
| 5/5/1971 |
C on Bastogne |
| 7/11/1971 |
C on Arrow |
| 8/9/1971 |
C left Arrow |
| 8/28/1971 |
C on Bastogne |
| 9/23/1971 |
C left Bastogne |
| 10/2/1971 |
C on Rendezvous |
| 10/21/1971 |
C left Rendezvous |
Fire Base and Other Locations
This table provides geo coordinates as well as the military grid. Select a set of geo coordinates and paste them into google maps. You can also select the 3D mode in google maps to get a sense of the location's relation to the surrounding terrain.
| 18th Surgical - Quang Tri |
YD 541318 |
16.5547017,107.3810570 |
| 22d Surgical - Phu Bai |
YD 885149 |
16.3981668,107.7010426 |
| 85th Evac - Phu Bai |
YD 879146 |
16.3955299,107.6953924 |
| AO Harrisburg |
XT 959499 |
11.3013354,106.7948112 |
| Arrow |
YD 798107 |
16.3612690,107.6191457 |
| Arsenal |
YD 812080 |
16.3367232,107.6319140 |
| Barbara |
YD 253290 |
16.5323148,107.1110511 |
| Bastogne |
YD 630083 |
16.3414893,107.4617213 |
| Berchtesgaden |
YD 423013 |
16.2804309,107.2673522 |
| Birmingham |
YD 704101 |
16.3569258,107.5311477 |
| Blaze |
YD 520020 |
16.2857616, 107.3581423 |
| Boyd |
YD 740133 |
16.3854175,107.5652001 |
| Camp Eagle |
YD 827137 |
16.3880209,107.6466368 |
| Camp Evans |
YD 530310 |
16.5475934,107.3706674 |
| Cannon |
YD 473029 |
16.2943768,107.3142827 |
| Carrol |
YD 064547 |
16.7662218,106.9363672 |
| Cu Chi |
XT 430116 |
10.9575844,106.3087052 |
| Currahee |
YC 399949 |
16.2228577,107.2442500 |
| Dak To (FB5) |
YB 898188 |
14.6270890,107.6901512 |
| Eagle Beach |
YD 830330 |
16.5622700,107.6518148 |
| Eagle's Nest |
YD 406036 |
16.3013770,107.2516905 |
| Fury |
YC 534846 |
16.1284504,107.3693557 |
| Gladiator |
YD 416211 |
16.4593547,107.2628679 |
| Granite |
YD 439189 |
16.4392488,107.2841652 |
| Hamburger Hill |
YC 328981 |
16.2524572,107.1781833 |
| Hill 916 |
YC 315970 |
16.2426448,107.1659174 |
| Hill 996 |
YC 313940 |
16.2155627,107.1637509 |
| Jack |
YD 498282 |
16.5226415,107.3403960 |
| Jeanne |
YD 552395 |
16.6241301,107.3922182 |
| Kathryn |
YD 468111 |
16.3684965,107.3104764 |
| Keene |
YT 043358 |
11.1734091,106.8709209 |
| Longshot |
YD 435317 |
16.5549092,107.2817768 |
| LZ Judy |
XT 985390 |
11.2026620,106.8180055 |
| Mai Loc |
YD 098516 |
16.7379131,106.9679633 |
| Maureen |
YD 429122 |
16.3788301,107.2741018 |
| Mooney |
YD 446195 |
16.4445970,107.2907806 |
| Panther II |
YD 798107 |
16.3612690,107.6191457 |
| Paris |
YT 133092 |
10.9324536,106.9517170 |
| Patton |
XT 693217 |
11.0477678,106.5498179 |
| Phu Bai Combat Base |
YD 885135 |
16.3855249,107.7008683 |
| Phuoc Vinh |
XT 962488 |
11.2913754,106.7974969 |
| Rakkasan |
YD 490198 |
16.4468526,107.3319963 |
| Rendezvous |
YC 436962 |
17.1374918,107.2897130 |
| Ripcord |
YD 344194 |
16.4447153,107.1952951 |
| Shepard |
XD 934410 |
16.6435483,106.8132827 |
| Shrapnel |
XD 857592 |
16.8086143,106.7426073 |
| Song Be |
YU 144076 |
11.8217704,106.9678781 |
| Song Be Bridge |
XT 928426 |
11.2355176,106.7660160 |
| Sword |
YD 425312 |
16.5504951,107.2723585 |
| Thor |
YC 665835 |
16.1171204,107.4916384 |
| Tomahawk |
ZD 117014 |
16.2733822,107.9162443 |
| Veghel |
YD 549036 |
16.2999091,107.3854376 |
| Victory |
XD 942476 |
16.7031153,106.8213450 |
| Wallace |
XS 574856 |
10.7219187,106.4393392 |
