reassigned back to the southern force. On 21 October, a day after rejoining the northern Sea Dragon unit, the destroyer observed the return of 14 North Vietnamese prisoners-of-war. Two days later, a failure of the counter-recoil mechanism in the forward turret forced Perth to withdraw from Sea Dragon and sail south to less-demanding gunline duties of Danang. She remained on station until November, when she sailed to Hong Kong for personnel leave. Operation Sea Dragon was cancelled completely on 1 November. The ship was assigned to the II Corps area on 12 November, providing gunfire support for a battalion of the Korean 26th Regiment, then later relocated south to the IV Corps area to provide similar services for the South Vietnamese 7th and 9th Divisions. Perth returned to the gunline off Danang on 12 December, sailed back to the IV Corps area four days later, then effectively turned around on arrival as the ship was ordered to sail to the II Corps area and provide gunfire support for Operation McLain; firing 511 rounds in one day. On 19 December, Perth sailed back to IV Corps, where, apart from a brief deployment to Taiwan at the start of 1969, she remained until 20 January. The destroyer was assigned to the destroyer screen of the aircraft carrier for ten days, sailed to Subic for maintenance on 7 February, then returned to naval gunfire support duties on 22 February. From 25 to 28 February, the ship operated in support of Operation Victory Dragon VIII, and fired 690 shells at a variety of targets. Perth continued on fire support operations until 16 March, when she sailed to Hong Kong. Perth was awarded the United States Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation for the second deployment. An appointment as a Commander of the Order of the British Empire, two Mentions in Despatches, and 25 Naval Board commendations recognised the achievements of individual personnel during the tour of duty. Third deployment Perths third and final tour of duty in Vietnamese waters began on the ship's arrival in Subic on 26 September 1970. After relieving Hobart and completing work-up trials, the destroyer arrived off Danang on 3 October and took up gunline duties in Military Region 1. On 23 October, the ship supported a United States Navy SEALs; although two commando teams were able to infiltrate the Cua Viet River, the operation was inconclusive. On 26 October, Perth sailed