Raised in 1962, the unit was formed solely for service as part of Australia's contribution to the war, providing training and assistance to South Vietnamese forces.

Members of the team worked individually or in small groups, operating throughout the country from the far south to the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) in the north.

[2][3] Most of the advisors were career officers and senior NCOs, with the majority from the infantry, SAS or Commandos, although there were a number of signalers, engineers and other specialist corps represented.

[4] Due to the nature of service as a combat advisor personnel serving with the AATTV were all mature and experienced soldiers, with an average age of 35.

[4] The Australian government's decision to raise the force was announced on 24 May 1962 and shortly afterwards personnel began concentrating at the Intelligence Centre at Mosman, New South Wales.

[7] At the conclusion of pre-deployment training, the 30 advisors departed Australia from Mascot, New South Wales, aboard a Qantas charter flight on 29 July 1962.

[2][Note 1] Serong would later be seconded, and in one capacity or another would remain in Vietnam until the Fall of Saigon in April 1975, serving as a senior advisor to both the US and South Vietnamese governments.

[15] The groups began training the Vietnamese in barracks, providing instruction in "jungle warfare techniques and technical areas such as signals and engineering".

[16] The jungle-warfare methods practiced by the AATTV emphasised patrolling and contact drills which taught soldiers to react automatically in battle with the aim of providing them with an advantage over an enemy which was reliant on command.

[13] Over time the role and of the AATTV changed, and in addition to training, individuals would often command units, advise South Vietnamese personnel and officials, serve as staff on headquarters and determine policy.

[28] A few were attached to Provincial Reconnaissance Units with whom they became involved in the controversial Phoenix Program run by the US Central Intelligence Agency,[29] which was designed to target the Vietcong infrastructure through infiltration, arrest and assassination.

[28] Unlike 1 ATF, the majority of team members were deployed in I CTZ and the Central Highlands, where the fighting was often of a higher tempo and more protracted.

[32] That year, as the Australians, New Zealanders, and Americans prepared to withdraw, a process of Vietnamization began, and the AATTV established a jungle training centre in Phuoc Tuy Province.

[4] Some members of the AATTV also served in Mobile Advisory and Training Teams (MATTs) operating within Phuoc Tuy Province at this time.

[26] The AATTV had the longest tour of duty of any Australian unit in Vietnam, serving a total of ten years, four months and sixteen days.

[43] In 2002, the AATTV's badge and an Australian flag were included on a memorial unveiled in North Carolina, in the United States, dedicated to US special forces that served during the war.

[51] Ironically the crossbow was not a symbol of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam, but a weapon used by the Montagnard and banned by President Ngo Dinh Diem in 1955.

[50] In 1970 a metallic version of the badge became available, and was worn on a unique "rifle green" beret which was adopted in an attempt to standardise the uniform of members of the team.