Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

2nd later 2nd/2nd (later Composite) Anti Aircraft (AA) Regiment (Regt)

Initially raised as the 2nd AA Regt comprising 4th, 5th and 6th AA Bty, for service in the Middle East, in 1940.  

When the 1st Anti Aircraft Brigade of which the Regiment was part, was re-designated as a 2nd AIF formation, the Regiment too was re-designated, becoming the '2nd/2nd Heavy AA  (HAA)' Regt,  Its Batteries (Bty) were renumbered accordingly (2nd/4th, 2nd/5th and 2nd/6th HAA Bty respectively). 

Equipped with the superb 3.7 inch Heavy Anti Aircraft gun, the 2nd/2nd HAA Regt and its Bty were deployed at various locations around Syria, Palestine and Lebanon and finally Egypt from whence they returned to Australia.  In August 1943, it was re-constituted as a Composite AA Regt for deployment in forward areas, by re-allocating some of its Heavy Bty and having them replaced by LAA Bty  

Composite Regiments comprised one x Heavy AA  Bty , one x Light Bty (equipped with the 40mm Bofors LAA gun), and generally a Searchlight Battery.