2/153rd Australian General Transport Company

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Brief History

This unit was formed originally as the 7th Infantry Division Petrol Company at Woodside in South Australia during May 1940, and they embarked for the Middle East in October 1940. On arrival they moved to Barbara in Palestine before relocating to Qastina in February 1941, and Hill 95 in March. In April 1941 as a result of the rapid German advance in North Africa, the 7th Division was held back from Greece and moved to western Egypt where the AASC Companies were re-organised in May and this unit became 25th Infantry Brigade Composite Company AASC. They then moved to northern Palestine to prepare for the invasion of Vichy Syria.

While in Syria they were renamed 5th AASC Company, 7th Infantry Division, and then they moved to Daher el Ain in September where they became the 2/4th Company AASC. By January 1942 they were back at Kilo 89 in Palestine and were renamed yet again, this time they reverted to 7th Infantry Division Petrol Company. With Japan's entry into the war the 7th Division returned to Australia in March 1942. Following leave they gathered at Glen Innes in NSW, but with the rapid Japanese advance in New Guinea the 2/4th Company AASC moved to Port Moresby by November 1942. Over the next three months they set up detachments along the Kokoda Track with a rear base at Port Moresby. In January 1943 their base was at Sopta with detachments at Ilolo, Jumbora and Pondondetta before returning to Port Moresby in February enroute to Ravenshoe in Queensland.

In May 1943 the unit was re-organised again, shedding the composite platoons and the transport platoons joining the 2/4th Coy AASC to form the 2/153rd General Transport Company with three transport platoons. When the 7th Division moved back to New Guinea to attack Lae, this unit moved to Port Moresby with a detachment at Nadzab. By December 1943 most of the unit was at Dumpu supporting the advance up the Ramu Valley. In early 1944 the Platoons moved back to Queensland with their respective Brigade groups. Here during July 1944 the unit was again re-organised to form three independent Transport platoons, each with a workshop section, with the platoons re-equiped with jeeps and trailors to work with individual brigades. By August 1944 the Division had moved to Kari in north Queensland, awaiting their next role, ion the islands north of New Guinea. In February 1945 they gained the 2/43rd Transport Platoon, and the unit left in May with their brigades for the staging area on Morotai. The unit landed at Balikpapan in July and remained in the area until the end of the war.

5th AASC Company, 7th Australian Infantry Division

• Robert Ralph Thompson ?? May 1941 - 31 Jan 1942

2/4th Australian Company AASC

• Robert Ralph Thompson 1 Feb 1942 - 7 Jul 1944

2/7th Transport Platoon

• Ernest Emanuel Mills 30 Oct - 27 Nov 1945

2/9th Transport Platoon

• Ernest Emanuel Mills 28 Nov - 23 Dec 1945
• David Gibson 30 Dec 1943 - August 1945
• Robert Ralph Thompson 8 Jul 1944 - 11 Oct 1945