War Diary - CRA - September 1941
Iceland Force Headquarters (49th Division) Commander Royal Artillery War Diary – September 1941. 1 September 1941
Two detachments 77 Light Anti-aircraft Battery in action REYKJAVIK area – located at TOWER HILL and HOFDI.
6 – 16 September 1941
C.R.A., accompanied by B.M.R.A. inspects outlying units as follows:-
7 September 1941 – 18 Heavy Anti-aircraft Battery Royal Artillery (less two Sections) – AKUREYRI
8 September 1941 – Troop 52 Light Anti-aircraft Battery Royal Artillery – AKUREYRI
8 September 1941 - 69 Field Regiment Royal Artillery (less one Battery) – AKUREYRI
10 September 1941 – 448/69 Field Battery, Royal Artillery – REYDARFJORDUR and SEYDISFJORDUR.
10 September 1941 – Troop 77 Light Anti-aircraft Battery, Royal Artillery – REYDARFJORDUR
10/15 September 1941 – 388/143 Field Battery, Royal Artillery – BORGANES and REYKERSKOLI.
13/14 September 1941 – Recce of BORDEYRI – STYKKISHOLMUR area. Journey round island carried out by road – 1050 miles in all. Weather good on the whole.
14/15 September 1941 – Carried out scheme with 388 Field Battery Royal Artillery – Night occupation and practice with live ammunition. Farmer subsequently put in a claim for Kr. 25 (£1) per shell hole – claim satisfied for one bottle of whiskey! Even this was exorbitant considering the rarity of this commodity.
9 September 1941
Amendment No 1 to Royal Artillery Operation Instruction No. 3 issued and attached to the War Diary as Appendix A. (For details see below).
10 September 1941
143 Field Regiment, Royal Artillery carry out Field Firing Exercise – KLEIFARVATN with special reference to Clock Code Procedure. Officers 70 Infantry Brigade co-operate.
14 September 1941
HQ, 143 Field Regiment, Royal Artillery move from GEITHALS to area REYKJAVIK (BUNKERS HILL Camp).
17 September 1941
Force Exercise No. 9 (Intelligence Exercise) 143 Field Regiment Royal Artillery co-operate.
18/25 September 1941
Relief Carried out – 274/69 Field Battery, Royal Artillery AKUREYRI and 448/69 Field Battery Royal Artillery REYDARFJORDUR and SEYDISFJORDUR. Relief carried out by road in good weather and with only minor mechanical breakdown. Three weeks later road was blocked by snow and will be closed until mid-June next year.
18 September 1941
Royal Artillery Training Exercise No. 5 (Night occupation) for 143 Field Regiment Royal Artillery (less one Battery plus 366 Field Battery Royal Artillery).
20 September 1941
Lecture by Flt/Lt BACKMAN on “Fighter Interception Methods” Officers and NCOs 12th Heavy Anti-aircraft Regiment attended.
26 September 1941
Amendment No. 2 to Royal Artillery Iceland Force Operation Instruction issued and attached to War Diary as Appendix B. (Copy was not included in the file at The National Archives).
Appendices attached to the September 1941 War Diary of the Commander, Royal Artillery, Iceland Force.
Appendix A – Amenment No 1 to Royal Artillery Iceland Force Operation Instruction No 3 (revised) dated 20 August 1941.
This single page document listed the number of guns held by each unit or sub-unit and the number of rounds per gun held of ammunition stocks. The total allocated was some 82,888 rounds plus a Force Reserve of 35,000 rounds. These consisted of 85% High Explosive and 15% Smoke shells. Each Battery was expected to hold 12 rounds per gun of armour-piercing rounds.
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