Oboe: an unknown battle
Balikpapan wasn’t exposed like Tobruk or Kokoda

The author Sgt Bill Thurley with the diorama of the beach landings at Balikpapan.

An aerial view of the diorama. Photos provided by Sgt Bill

By Sgt Bill Thurley

THE invasion of Borneo in 1945 has been covered in many books since the end of WWII. The invasions were more politically driven than military, but the fact that the Japanese held the largest oil installations in the Southwest Pacific in 1945 made the allies take the decision to invade.

Many have since argued that the Japanese were withering on the vine, their supply lines were cut and the allies had air and sea supremacy, so why invade and risk so many Australians that late in the war? In any case, the task was given to the Australians with the US Navy supplying the ships and the logistic support to put them ashore

On June 2, 1945, troops of 7 Div departed Townsville. On June 7, 1945 ships of the convoy arrived at the staging base at Morotai.

The biggest task was to get 7 Div ready for the sea voyage to Borneo. Until June 20, guns, equipment, ammunition and supplies were shuffled into and around ships that would take them on their final journey. Sorting out the loads and associated landing craft took time and required scrutiny. From a tactical aspect, the outstanding feature was the extremely thorough briefing of all ranks. It was decided to use the short twenty-five pounders in DUKWS (Amphibious 6x6 2.5-ton trucks) for the initial landing because they were more suited for engaging targets at short range, particularly fifteen hundred yards. Eight Bty was selected to land the first guns so they used the “shorts” in the DUKWS.

At 2pm on June 26 with more than 100 ships under his command, Adm Barbey, US Navy, ordered the invasion fleet to sail. The fleet included, three aircraft carriers, nine crusiers, including HMA Ships Shropshire and Hobart, five infantry landing ships, troopships, including HMA Ships, Manoora, Kanimbla and Westralia, 34 destroyers, 28 tank landing ships, infantry landing craft and mechanical landing ships.

H hour was 9am, selected because full light was at 7am and the bombarding warships could not begin firing until then. For 22 days prior to the landings at Balikpapan, the 7th Fleet and both the 5th and 13th US Air Forces had pounded the place. Three thousand tons of bombs, seven thousand three hundred and sixty one rockets and thirty eight thousand and fifty two shells ranging from 8-inch to 3-inch had been dropped or fired and one hundred and fourteen thousand sorties of strafing aircraft had been unleashed.

In the hour and ten minutes before zero hour, 62 Liberators bombed Balikpapan, five cruisers and 14 destroyers of Adm Ralph Biggs’ cruiser squadron as well as the rocket LSTs fired seventeen thousand two hundred and fifty projectiles.

American underwater demolition teams had destroyed beach obstacles and cleared the approaches for the landing craft with mine sweepers. Two of which were sunk and one damaged by shore gunfire.

Salvo after salvo smashed into their targets, the guns belching smoke and flame for over two hours, and just before the first wave of infantry went in, ten thousand rockets were launched which dimly illuminated the coast with their bursts. The beachhead stretched two thousand yards from Klandasan to Stalkudo, divided into sections designated Red, Yellow and Green beaches. Under a grey overcast morning with the sea running a good swell and plenty of green tops breaking on the ‘sharp end’, they set off for the beaches. At 8.55am 18 Bde landed on Red Beach and Yellow Beach and one battalion from 21 Bde, the 2/27 on Green Beach.

With the enemy reception proving nothing like they had anticipated, troops pushed inland. Eighteen Bde pushed east into the town. The occupation of the Newcastle feature, was the first objective of 18 Bde, and was achieved on time, despite the various holdups. From the high ground a wonderful view could be had of Pandansari, also portions of the harbour and the Japanese defences to the rear. Quite a number of fleeing Japanese could be seen in various directions, and these were soon engaged with gunfire.

At 1pm Gen Douglas MacArthur and Australians Gen Morshead and Maj-Gen Milford waded ashore in a show of solidarity. Fighting intensified, and the Japanese were slowly pushed back from the coast. Firing ceased around July 22 after the town of Balikpapan and the coast north and south had been secured.

As spearheads of a combined force of more than 30,000, the men of 7 Div had pressed the Japanese hard in a series of bitterly fought actions. When the Japanese surrendered on August 15, 1945, the Australians were still mopping up isolated pockets of resistance. The cost to the Australians was 229 killed and 634 wounded, a high price so late in the war.
On September 8, 1945 the Japanese in the southern part of Borneo under VAdm Kamada signed the instrument of surrender before the GOC, Maj-Gen Milford, on HMAS. Burdekin.

Gen Douglas MacArthur said in a typically flamboyant communiqué:

“It is fitting that the 7th Division which in July three years ago met and turned back the tide of invasion of Australia on the historic Kokoda Trail, should in the same month secure what was once perhaps the most lucrative strategic target on our East Indies sector and virtually complete our tactical control of the entire South-West Pacific.”

Sgt Bill Thurley joined the Regular Army in 1971 serving with 16 AD Regt, 1 Fd Regt and 4 Fd Regt and is now serving with 11 Bde HQ as a reservist working at JLU/NQ as a civilian in the vehicle loans pool.

Sgt Thurley has had a long interest military history through his military career and since, and was involved with 4 Fd Regt historical collections for many years. In that time he coordinated the restoration of one of the Regt’s twenty-five pounder field guns, which was used by the 2/4 Fd Regt in WWII and is now on permanent display there. He has been making models since he was five years old and he is currently president of the Townsville Scale Model Club.

The Diorama took over nine months to construct, cost in excess of $1,500. It has over 40 individual kits, 50 - 70 figures, 8kgs of clear resin, beach sand from Caloundra, plaster, wire and imitation grass and many cast palm trees. The diorama depicts a period of time between H+30 and H+120 on D Day, July 1, 1945, showing landing craft, Amtracs and vehicles landing on the invasion beach at Balikpapan. It has been heavily researched to make sure that even the vehicle and amphibious craft have the correct markings.

The diorama was built as a reminder of the operation, which has never had the exposure of Tobruk or the Kokoda Trail, yet over 30,000 troops of 7 Div landed there and 229 were killed. It was also built in honour the late Gnr Ray Webster, a family friend, who served with the 2/5 Fld Regt at Balikpapan. The diorama is to go on display at the Maritime Museum in Townsville and be a reminder that July, 1 2005 will be the sixtieth anniversary of the battle.

Extracts: Australia in the War of 1939-1945 by Gavin Long