A Mother's Worry: Young Bagzar
To say that Ian Bagzar Stiles OAM has led an interesting life would be a considerable understatement. The book is now fully updated with his early years, including his time with the Rhodesian SAS.
At just 14 years of age, Stiles began work in a gun shop, where he developed a strong knowledge of firearms and hunting. At 17, he joined the Australian Army, and by 18 had passed both SAS selection and parachute training, entering the elite Special Air Service.
Sent to New Guinea for training ahead of clandestine operations against Indonesian forces in Borneo. Deemed too young at 18 for active service, he was transferred. By 19, however, he was deployed on active service in Vietnam with 3 SAS Squadron.
Returning to Australia, Stiles left the Army and spent ten months working a variety of jobs - from abalone diving in Tasmania to underground mining on Bougainville Island - before re-enlisting in the SAS for a second operational tour of Vietnam. His rapid rise through the ranks, from Private to Sergeant in under 12 months, caused friction with some older, less aggressive SAS NCOs.
On returning to Australia once more, the young warrior struggled to adapt to peacetime soldiering and the rigid protocols enforced by a parade-ground-focused Regimental Sergeant Major. Following a court-martial stemming from a fistfight in the Sergeants' Mess, he left the Australian Army and joined the Rhodesian SAS, fighting terrorists in Zambia and Mozambique.
Sent to Bloemfontein in South Africa, Stiles trained as a freefall parachutist and pathfinder with South Africa's Recces. Returning to the Rhodesian SAS, he parachuted into Mozambique on combat operations before deploying into Zambia as a demolition team leader during Operation Big Bang.
The memoir is laced with raw, unfiltered humour and vivid stories of SAS men who played hard and fought even harder.
Drawing on Australian War Memorial records and first-hand experience, this memoir provides a rare insider's view of pre-deployment training and combat methods used by elite units operating in Vietnam and southern Africa.
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