By
FLGOFF Georgina Lowe
Volume
48, No. 3, March 9, 2006
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Officer
Commanding No. 41WG GPCAPT Chris Westwood stands at the
remains of a Direction Finding site on Bathurst Island.
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THE
Tiwi people have welcomed the Air Force back onto Bathurst Island,
more than 60 years after they warned Australia of the first Japanese
air raids against the mainland in World War II.
Located in the approaches to Darwin, Bathurst Island has a long
association with the defence of Australia.
On February 19, 1942, a priest working on the island, Father John
McGrath, reported the approaching Japanese enemy aircraft to Area
Combined Headquarters in Darwin.
Cape Fourcroy, where a lighthouse now stands, was the site of
the Air Force’s No. 38 Radar Station (38RS) from 1942 to
1945. During its time, 38RS were equipped with the Australian-built
Light Weight Air Warning radar set, highly regarded by allied
Air Forces in the South-West Pacific for its ruggedness and capacity
to endure the harsh tropical climate.
Another radar site was discovered on the south coast of Bathurst
Island during recent surveys that shows evidence of having been
prepared for another unit to occupy.
However there is no written record of what actually occurred at
this site.
The Air Force returned to Bathurst Island with the establishment
of a new, purpose-built radar site at Point Fawcet. No. 41WG will
deploy one of the Air Force’s radars to the site in May.
The radar will be operated remotely and maintained by No. 114
Mobile Control and Reporting Unit at Darwin.
While many Defence organisations and individuals contributed to
the development of the new radar site, the Tiwi people of Bathurst
Island also played an important role.
Thanks to the efforts of many people, the new radar site will
become an integral part of the Air Force’s air surveillance
capability of the ‘Top End.’
