Information

Located at Fort Lytton, this was one of several four-gun anti-aircraft positions situated along the Brisbane River, a system designed to monitor and prevent aircraft entering Brisbane airspace during WWII by using the river as a navigational aid. They also protected Allied facilities located along the river. These defensive positions were located at Colmslie/Lytton, Victoria Park, Balmoral, Pinkenba, Hendra, Hemmant, Amberley and Archerfield. The Heavy Anti-Aircraft Battery had standard four-gun emplacements, with magazines, a central control room, and a gun crew of 10-12 men. The Australian Women’s Army Service were involved in operating instruments such as range finding and spotting, but generally not in the firing of the guns. By 1944, when the perceived threat from Japanese invasion had decreased, personnel on the battery was limited to maintenance and training purposes. The Lytton HAA was disbanded in January 1945, and all Heavy Anti-Aircraft Battery sites in Brisbane were disarmed at the end of the war.

Citations

Queensland Government, Queensland WWII Historic Places, 6 (385th) Australian Heavy Anti-Aircraft (HAA) Battery, (www.ww2places.qld.gov.au/places/?id=2033), sighted 22 July 2017.

Image Citations

Gun crew run to their gun pit in response to an action alarm for the 385th troop, 6th Australian Heavy Anti-Aircraft Battery, Lytton, November 1943. Australian War Memorial. Record Number. 060060.

Map References

QSA. QSA Series ID 2058 Moreton District Maps – A Series. 4 miles to the inch. Moreton District. Sheet 1. 4 miles to the inch. Survey Office, Brisbane.. 634925