3rd Indian Light AA Regiment

Discussion in 'British Indian Army' started by RobG64, Aug 6, 2018.

  1. RobG64

    RobG64 Well-Known Member

    Hello DRyan67, do you have any information about this formation (including it's batteries)?
    I believe it eventually consisted of 12th, 13th & 14th Light AA Batteries but 14th Battery seems to have been detached and served in Ceylon and perhaps later at Addu Atoll?

    Regards
    RobG64
     
  2. dryan67

    dryan67 Senior Member

    Rob:

    Here is all I have. As you know, material on Indian Artillery is sparse.

    3rd Indian Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, IA (Static)
    Raised
    1 February 1942 at Karachi
    Batteries
    10th (Ahir), 11th (PM), 12th Light AA Batteries - 1942-43
    12th, 31st, 32nd (Madrassi) Light AA Batteries - 1944-45

    Title Changes

    3rd Indian Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, IA - 1945


    The regiment served in East Bengal and the final phase in Burma. Two troops of 11th Battery were sent to serve on at Addu Atoll from Karachi on 22 February 1943. The regiment was reformed as Madrassi in 1942, sending its batteries to other regiments. 10th LAA Battery went to 9th Light AA Regiment, IA and 11th LAA Battery went to 17th Light AA Regiment, IA. It served under 13th British AA Brigade from September 1943 until the end of the war in the Arakan.
     
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  3. RobG64

    RobG64 Well-Known Member

    David, that's great.
    Thank you once again

    Rob
     
  4. dryan67

    dryan67 Senior Member

    No problem. I hope that helped.
     
  5. RobG64

    RobG64 Well-Known Member

    Oh yes it did! However, it throws up another problem for me in that I thought 31st & 32nd Batteries were in 5th Indian Light AA Regiment. Farndale says that this regiment formed with 16th, 17th and 18th Batteries but that 31st & 32nd Batteries joined later. Does this mean that 13th and 14th Batteries re-joined 3rd Regiment?
    This could get silly very easily!

    Regards
    Rob
     
  6. dryan67

    dryan67 Senior Member

    Rob:

    I will take a look tomorrow and get back to you.

    David
     
  7. dryan67

    dryan67 Senior Member

    Here is what I have on 5th Light AA Regiment, IA:

    5th Indian Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, IA
    Raised
    15 December 1942
    Batteries
    16th (Madras), 17th (Madras), 18th (Madras) Light AA Batteries


    The regiment served in Assam under 9th British AA Brigade from September 1943 until March 1944, when it transferred to 3rd Indian AA Brigade. It transferred to 24th AA Brigade in March 1945 and served with it in the advance to Rangoon. In June 1945 it transferred back to 3rd Indian AA Brigade in the Rangoon area. On 15 August 1945 the regiment formed part of 61st Army Group RA (AA) in Burma.
     
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  8. dryan67

    dryan67 Senior Member

    This chart from Kempton, Chris. The Regiments & Corps of the H.E.I.C. & Indian Armies: Volunteer Forces. Dunstable, Bedfordshire: The Military Press, 2012. might be helpful:

    IA_HAA_LAA.jpg
     
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  9. RobG64

    RobG64 Well-Known Member

    David, this is fantastic! Thank you so much

    Best regards
    Rob
     
  10. dryan67

    dryan67 Senior Member

    I find the only problem with Kempton's HEIC book is that everything is rounded off to the closest year. Considering how many units he covers and the period of time, this is not surprising.
     
  11. Mandeep

    Mandeep Member

    Hello DRyan67,
    Can I request you to confirm the source/reference about 11th Battery being sent to Addu Atoll.
    Will be grateful if you could confirm.
    Thanks,
    Mandeep




    Here is all I have. As you know, material on Indian Artillery is sparse.

    3rd Indian Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, IA (Static)
    Raised
    1 February 1942 at Karachi
    Batteries
    10th (Ahir), 11th (PM), 12th Light AA Batteries - 1942-43
    12th, 31st, 32nd (Madrassi) Light AA Batteries - 1944-45

    Title Changes

    3rd Indian Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, IA - 1945


    The regiment served in East Bengal and the final phase in Burma. Two troops of 11th Battery were sent to serve on at Addu Atoll from Karachi on 22 February 1943. The regiment was reformed as Madrassi in 1942, sending its batteries to other regiments. 10th LAA Battery went to 9th Light AA Regiment, IA and 11th LAA Battery went to 17th Light AA Regiment, IA. It served under 13th British AA Brigade from September 1943 until the end of the war in the Arakan.[/QUOTE]
     
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  12. Rothy

    Rothy Well-Known Member

    Hi all. Some responses to this interesting discussion. Please note that all the following details have been taken from the available war diaries of the AA brigades and Indian regiments and batteries, as well as other files notably those of higher formations and commands. As David and others have found, the secondary sources available are mostly short on detail and often inaccurate. That said there is not a complete set of diaries and some have more detail than others. There remain many gaps and questions, I'm afraid.

    Here is what I have so far on the units under discussion.

    Steve

    3rd L.A.A. Regiment, I.A.:
    Raised on 1st February 1942 (WO 33/1924) as a static regiment at Karachi and regimented the 10th, 11th and 12th Light Anti-Aircraft Batteries, I.A. Personnel training was carried out at No.2 A.A. Training Centre (L.A.A.) at Deolali up to May 1942 during which time it was decided to reform the regiment as Madrassi. There was a shortage of British N.C.O.s to support the number of anti-aircraft units being formed and a programme was initiated to raise units manned by Madrassis who would also take up the N.C.O. posts in those units (WO 106/4562). The Regiment was re-raised as an all Madrassi unit during August 1942, with the 12th, 13th and 14th Light Anti-Aircraft Batteries, I.A. being regimented (WO 106/4562). On 1st March 1944, the regiment was described as no longer a static unit (WO 33/2162a).

    According to the war diaries, the 31st and 32nd L.A.A. Batteries were not regimented at any time with the 3rd L.A.A. Regiment, at least not before late 1945 or later. These batteries were regimented with the 5th L.A.A. Regiment, I.A.

    11th L.A.A. Battery, I.A.:
    The Battery was formed in November 1941 as part of the 4th Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment, I.A. (Far East Theatre p358). The Battery was re-regimented with the 3rd Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, I.A. upon formation of that unit during February 1942. The Battery was a Madrassi unit. It was formed as a static battery and remained so until 1945. It became independent at Karachi by August 1942 (WO 106/4562) and was listed as such on 1st September 1943 (WO 33/2146) and 1st November 1943 ( WO 33/2162). In March 1943, two troops of the 11th Light Anti-Aircraft Battery, I.A., were sent to Addu Atoll and came under the command of the 9th H.A.A. Battery H.Q. for the duration of the posting (WO 172/3798). During September 1943, the 102nd A.A. Battery, I.A. arrived at Addu Atoll to relieve the detachments from the 9th and 11th Batteries. The detachments of the 9th and 11th Batteries boarded the transport 'Wing Sang' on 9th October 1943, and the ship departed on 13th October, bound for Colombo on the first leg of the return journey to India.

    During 1943, the Battery was regimented under the 17th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, I.A. (not later than 1st March 1944 according to WO 33/2162a). On 12th January 1945, the 11th Light Anti-Aircraft Battery, I.A. was identified by G.H.Q.(I) as regimented with the 17th L.A.A. Regiment, I.A., and located at Madras. The Headquarters proposed that the Battery be re-regimented with the 9th (Rajputana) L.A.A. Regiment, I.A., to replace the 10th L.A.A. Battery which was to be detached from that regiment and sent to the North West Army. The H.Q. ALFSEA rejected this proposal later that month, on 20th January, as the 9th Regiment was a pre-war class regiment and also as at the time the 11th L.A.A. Battery was a static unit and a mobile battery was required. The G.H.Q.(I) responded on 21st February 1945 with conformation that the 11th Battery would be reorganised and equipped as a mobile battery at the same time as it was regimented with the 9th Regiment (WO 203/1844). The battery was regimented with the 9th (Rajputana) Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, I.A. at Gulunche in February 1945, replacing the 10th L.A.A. Battery which had been detached to the N.W. Army (WO 203/1844). It was re-regimented once again in January 1946, becoming part of the 6th (Punjab) Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Indian Artillery.

    14th L.A.A. Battery, I.A.:

    Appears to have formed in February or March 1942 as part of the newly raised 4th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, I.A. A static battery. As part of the reorganisation and reforming of light anti-aircraft regiments and batteries during the summer of 1942, the Battery was re-regimented with the 3rd Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, I.A. during August 1942. The Battery became an independent battery in October/November 1942 before being re-regimented briefly with the 3rd Regiment in early 1943. The Battery moved to Ceylon in April 1943 where it came under the command of the 24th Anti-Aircraft Brigade, it did not serve at Addu Atoll. The Battery returned to India in August 1943 and from October 1943 returned to being under the command of the 3rd Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, I.A., with whom it remained until at least the end of July 1945.

    5th L.A.A. Regiment, I.A.:
    The Regiment was originally planned to be raised in early 1942 with the 16th, 17th and 18th Light Anti-Aircraft Batteries, I.A. Due to the shortage of British N.C.O.s and Indian V.C.O.s, the Regiment was reorganised and the 16th and 17th Batteries were re-regimented with the 4th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, I.A. during August 1942, this regiment scheduled to reform during October 1942. The 5th Regiment was subsequently formed or re-formed on 15th December 1942 as a static unit with the 18th Battery (WO 106/4562). The 5th Regiment then formed the 31st and 32nd (Madrassi) Light Anti-Aircraft Batteries in January 1943, the batteries becoming regimented with the 18th Battery. The target date for operational readiness was April 1943 however, the Regiment was still being described as "forming" in May 1943 (WO 33/2032a). It appears the Regiment was activated during August 1943 when it left Calcutta for Jorhat to come under the command of the 9th Anti-Aircraft Brigade. On 15th March 1944, the Regiment was reorganised on a new war establishment (WE 1/15-A/2) (WO 172/4513). This placed the Regiment on a static (WO 203/1713) 54 gun establishment, having been previously on the 36 gun establishment. On 6th September 1945, the Regiment received an order from the 3rd Indian Anti-Aircraft Brigade to stand down from active operations. The Regiment then concentrated at Rangoon, returned all of its guns except for those in use with two troops of the 18th L.A.A. Battery at Kalewa, and was involved in internal security duties until leaving for India in January 1946.
     
    Last edited: Apr 12, 2019
    timuk, dryan67, Mandeep and 2 others like this.
  13. dryan67

    dryan67 Senior Member

    I am very impressed with your research on the Indian Anti-Aircraft Artillery since it is such a difficult subject to explore.
     
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