Finds from a market

[Dave Mills]

Hello Mike,
Interesting to read the CMF 2/15 threads. In 1978 HQ Battery of 2/15 Fd Regt was located at the Dandenong Depot, I enlisted there originally as a Signaller in 1978 with 2 Fd BTY at Batman Avenue and 23 Fd BTY at Frankston, must have enlisted about the same time as Bill?

1979 was the year that the Regiment raised two gun detachments attached to 2 Fd BTY but located at HQ BTY due to dwindling recruitment at the Bateman Avenue Depot, I transferred from Sigs to Guns and was attached to 'Echo' 2 Fd Battery as a Gun Number manning the M2A2 105mm Howitzer.

In 1979 2/15 reorganised and moved the HQ at Dandenong into 2 Fd BTY and 2 Fd BTY into the HQ BTY at Bateman Avenue and then set about retraining the Sigs to be gunners and gunners to be Sigs.

The once proud Arty Regiments no longer exist and are now issued with 81mm tubes and are called a "Light Battery" and there is only one on them and they are now attached to the Infantry. The gunners are still referred to as gunners and can still wear the White lanyard.

In reference to the photos, yes, regular army staff had been posted to the Regiments to bolster the training and so had been drivers. In the 70's and 80's the regiments kept their vehicles in the depots and only drew on storage vehicles if required, mainly the landrover or RAEME wrecker. We however had not been permitted to permanently mark the vehicles with our Regimental emblems instead using the Tactical Sign which was removed in the bush.

Great to see that people are still talking about the old Regiments.

Dave.