No. 3 Fighter Sector RAAF facts for kids
No. 3 Fighter Sector (3FS) was a special unit of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) during World War II. Its job was to control and guide fighter planes in the Townsville area. The unit collected important information from different listening posts. Then, it would tell fighter or bomber squadrons what to do. 3FS was connected by phone and radio to all anti-aircraft guns, searchlights, and radar stations around Townsville.
It first started on February 25, 1942, at Townsville Grammar School. Women from the Women's Auxiliary Australian Air Force (WAAAF) who worked at 3FS lived at St Anne’s Girls School.
In 1942, a new main building for No. 3FS was built at Wulguru, Townsville. This was a proper military camp. It had its own power station, barracks (places for soldiers to live), kitchens, toilets, and a recreation hall. There were as many as 62 different buildings at the 3FS main site. The camp was on the side of a hill near Mount Stuart. It was on the west side of the road to Charters Towers. You can still see it today on the hill across from the Stuart Shopping Centre.
No. 3FS was renamed 103 Fighter Control Unit (103 FCU) on March 7, 1944. The Stuart complex was fully ready to use by December 20, 1944. The main operations building was a strong bunker. It was made of 30-centimetre (12-inch) thick reinforced concrete. This was designed to survive a direct bomb hit. It had an extra floor inside and was air-conditioned. The building had 32 rooms and many hallways. It still stands today and is about 18.3 meters (60 feet) long and 12.8 meters (42 feet) wide. All air raid warnings were sent out from this bunker. They used red, yellow, and white flares. There was also another main building in North Ward, Townsville. The 103 FCU unit was closed down in Townsville on January 21, 1945.
After the War
After World War II ended, the buildings were used for a new purpose. They housed new migrants coming to Australia. The buildings still had their furniture at that time. In 1961, James Cook University of Queensland bought the site. They used it as a temporary place for students to live. This was while their permanent student homes were being built. The bunker itself still had its communication and signal equipment. A few years later, a fire destroyed the inside of the bunker. In 1971, the rest of the buildings were taken down. Today, the land is owned by the Department of Environment and Resources.
The Bunker Today
In 1999, a group of people worked to fix this bunker. They wanted to turn it into a museum. However, the Department of Environment and Resources said the building was not safe. In 2009, the bunker was fenced off to keep people away.
Some people in Townsville believe that the bunker might still have old war items inside. They also think that the bunker is part of a secret network of tunnels. These tunnels were supposedly built during the war in the hills around Townsville. The Department of Defence has said that these ideas are not true.
Images for kids
-
The western side of the bunker
-
The columns in the main room of the bunker
