Back to the Track 2021

[Mike Cecil]

Hi Lang,

Actually, I think you accorded 12 Aust Inf Division a much shorter life than it actually had, and listed units that were not part of the 'Division'.

On 19 Dec 1942, NT Force HQ issued an instruction which stated that 'to give formation identity to units now classified as Force Troops, they will be re-designated as shown below ...' The list has two columns: the left being the NT Force name, the right being the new designation. A few examples: HQ RAA NT Force became HQ RAA 12 Aust Div; NT Force Cipher Section became 12 Aust Div Cipher Section; NT Force Provost Company became 12 Aust Div Provost Company, and so on. These units continued, while they existed, in the order of battle (OOB) for NT Force as 12 Aust Div units, and later 12 Aust Div (AIF) units, until a reorganisation in 1945. Correspondence for all units in NT was still to be addressed to 'HQ NT Force' and signals to 'NORFORCE'. The units you listed as part of 12 Inf Div, unless I've missed a subsequent instruction, remained as part of the over-arching formation, that is, NT Force.

So NT Force was never renamed '12 Aust Div', only units of Force Troops within NT Force, and those designations were retained for the duration, although some documents, just to confuse things, seem to use the two designations interchangeably. The differentiation between Force and Field Troops (ie NT Force and 12 Inf Div) for command and administration was retained until 7 October 1944, when all Field Troops (12 Aust Div units) came back under direct command of NT Force HQ.

The formation sign of a Buffalo over a boomerang, in white on a black background: during 1942, NT Force issued specific instructions on several occasions that all formation insignia in the form of emblems be removed from vehicles, with a horizontal bar above or below the unit sign, either white or grey depending upon the unit's designation, used to indicate NT Force Units. The earliest official reference I have to the buffalo over boomerang formation sign for NT Force (and hence, all the units within NT Force, including those designated as 12 Inf Div) is a list of approved formation signs dated 7 April 1943. Secondary sources (eg Taubert) state the sign dates from Dec 1942, but nothing I've seen to date in either LHQ or NT Force instructions supports that. I may well have missed an instruction, of course, but the above is what I have at the moment. The formation sign remained extant for the duration.

Hope that clarifies things a little. Very nice car: should be a pleasant motoring holiday in the company of many like-minded enthusiasts.

Mike

[lynx42]

Hi Lang and Bev, Have a great trip. I have had to pull out of the trip so I and my 1940 Chev Staff Car, ex Lieutenant General Sir Stanley George Savige, KBE, CB, DSO, MC, ED., Middle East 1940/41. will be sitting at home watching for reports on the trip. I have been waiting on yet another back operation for almost 2 years but Work Cover are mucking me around again. One W/c insurer has stopped being a W/c insurer and handed me over to another company. This other mob want to look at things again and I cannot take the risk of being 1/2 way to Darwin and get an appointment for an operation. I will be rightfully p!$$ed if I am still sitting at home at the start of September. Have fun and keep the reports coming.

69869929_375152796717569_1737411887248703488_n.jpg

If it is 1/2 as good as 'Back to the Track 1995', you'll have a ball. This is us in 1995.

[Mike K]

Getting back to that pic and the cars. ARN 132425 was a Ford De Luxe sedan model 21A with chassis nr. 3A 2660 F . It was eventually disposed and sold to the Dept. of Works and Housing .

We don't know when or where the shiny chrome bits and black finish livery were applied but it seems to have been a factory finish paint job , hard to say.

I've only ever seen one of these RHD 42 Ford sedans , Bert Barker of the VMVC had one . Can't find more than a mere handful of the 21A models in the ARN books. Quite a rare vehicle today, in Australia at least.

[Lang]

Rick

Very sorry to lose you. One of the high points was going to be getting the two Chevs together for a photo shoot.

Looks like you are in double jeopardy any way with both the insurers and Dangerous Dan throwing up obstacles to your trip.

Lang

We leave in the morning for Mount Isa and Tennant Creek.

[Mike K]

Jeep in the N.T. 1948.

https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-143473988/view

https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-143473681/view

https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-147920481/view

[Lang]

Second last day. All going well with only mino disasters.

Dawn this morning at coomalie abandoned ww2 bomber strip. Hardy aviation from hardy aviation from darwin brought in their dc3 late last night to add to our camp site

[Tony Smith]

How many vehicles on the trip, Lang?