09/06/2026
Lest We Forget.
RSL Victoria today remembers the sacrifice of Corporal David Dubber MID who died on this day in 1971 while serving Australian in the Vietnam War.
David was born in Coburg in 1943 to Alfred and Florence Dubber and attended St Ambrose Boys College, leaving at the age of 14.
He married his partner June and worked in various jobs in the northern suburbs of Melbourne before taking up a role of Undertaker's Assistant at Joseph Allison Funerals where he drove funeral hearses.
He voluntarily enlisted in the RAAF in 1967 soon after the birth of his only daughter, Lisa. He was a member of the Airfield Defence Guards in bases around South Australia and New South Wales.
He did his first tour of Vietnam in 1968 with No.2 Squadron and was Mentioned in Despatches for his leadership and courage as a section leader of the Airfield Defence Guards.
He returned to Australia and settled into a house in Queanbeyan with his wife and daughter as he commenced training as a door gunner at the Fairbairn air base in the ACT and was promoted to Corporal.
He returned to Vietnam in May 1971. In early June 1971 Australian soldiers from 3RAR attacked a heavily fortified communist camp in what became known as the Battle of Long Khanh.
The battle raged on between 6 and 7 June and B Company was falling desperately short of ammunition. One resupply mission succeeded in getting through to the soldiers on the ground and helped stabilise their position.
At 11 am on 7 June Corporal Dubber was serving as a door gunner on an Iroquois helicopter which was attempting a second resupply mission when it came under heavy ground fire and crashed, killing Corporal David Dubber and pilot Lance Everitt. Two other Australians were injured.
The body of Corporal Dubber was returned to Australia and he was buried at Fawkner cemetery, leaving behind a wife and 5-year-old daughter.
He was 28 years old.
