RAAF Operations Building Site facts for kids
Quick facts for kids RAAF Operations Building Site |
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RAAF Operations Building Site
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| Location | Green Street, West End, City of Townsville, Queensland, Australia |
| Design period | 1939 - 1945 (World War II) |
| Built | 1942 |
| Official name: RAAF Operations Building Site (former) | |
| Type | state heritage (built, archaeological) |
| Designated | 7 February 2005 |
| Reference no. | 602260 |
| Significant period | 1942 (fabric) 1942-1945 (historical) |
| Significant components | office/administration building, slab/s - concrete, hut/shack, bunker - concrete, strong room |
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The RAAF Operations Building Site is a special place in Townsville, Queensland, Australia. It was built in 1942 during World War II. This building was a secret command center for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). It helped control planes and send important messages. What makes it extra cool is how it was hidden! From the sky, it looked like a normal house. Today, it's a heritage-listed site, meaning it's protected because of its important history.
Contents
A Secret Building from World War II
The former RAAF Operations building was built in 1942. It was an important operations and signals building for the Royal Australian Air Force. It worked with RAAF Base Townsville at Garbutt and the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) Base.
The bottom part of the building was made of strong concrete. It had a flat concrete roof. A timber "house" was built on top of this concrete part. This was done to hide the building from enemy planes flying overhead.
Townsville's Role in the War
Townsville became a very important city during World War II. It was already a big port city in Queensland. By 1940, about 30,000 people lived there.
When Japan and America joined the war in late 1941, many soldiers came to Townsville. The number of military people grew huge. There were more soldiers than regular citizens!
The Australian Air Force
The Australian Air Force (AAF) started on March 31, 1921. It became the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) later that year. Before this, the Australian Flying Corps (AFC) trained pilots. The RAAF was the first independent air force in Australia.
Building the Airfield
Townsville's first airfield was built in the late 1920s. But it wasn't a good spot. A new airfield was chosen at Garbutt, west of the city. This area was mostly low-lying land.
Work began to clear the land. The new airfield opened in January 1939. At first, it only had a gravel path for a runway.
Expanding for War
As Japan became more active in the Pacific, Australia needed more air bases. The Australian Government took over the Garbutt airfield in 1940. They started building hangars, workshops, and living areas for the RAAF. The runway was made wider and longer.
By mid-1941, the RAAF's 24 Squadron was based at Garbutt. Regular flights also continued there.
American Forces Arrive
The Americans also needed bases in the Pacific. They came to Townsville in late 1941. The USAAF planned to repair and assemble aircraft there. They built a large camp with many "igloo" shaped buildings. These were used as repair shops, stores, and offices.
The War Heats Up
Japan attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. This brought America into the war. Japan quickly took over many areas, including the Philippines and Singapore. In February 1942, Darwin was bombed.
Australia faced the threat of invasion. Townsville was put on invasion alert in May 1942. So, Australia and America decided to build a huge military base in Townsville. The air base grew even bigger. Thousands of troops arrived. Townsville became the main base for the North East Area Command. Its job was to protect sea routes to Port Moresby.
During the war, especially early on, the Townsville air base was vital. It was one of Australia's main air transport centers. It was also one of the few bases where fighter planes fought enemy aircraft.
The Secret Operations Building
The operations building on Green Street was built in 1942. This was after the war started in the Pacific. The site was a few kilometers from the main air force base. It was a quiet, undeveloped area.
The building's activities were very important to the Allied war effort. They were also very secret. The building did not need to be on the air base. In some ways, it was better to be off-base.
Secret Plans
Engineers prepared drawings for the building in April 1942. The drawings showed how secret the building was. Its real purpose was not written on any plans. It was called "RAAF Project No 81" or "Reinforced concrete building No 81." The site preparation drawings were even stamped "SECRET."
The Allied Works Council (AWC) likely built it. The AWC was set up in February 1942. It built most of Australia's wartime buildings. Records show a concrete operations building in Townsville was finished by June 1942. It was a top priority project. It cost about £30,000. This was probably the Green Street building.
How it was Hidden
The building was a rectangular concrete structure. A three-meter-high protective wall was built around it. This wall was called a "traverse." It was meant to protect the building from attacks.
All the walls, inside and out, were made of reinforced concrete. To hide the building from the air, a separate timber building was built on top of its flat roof. This timber building looked like a normal house. This made the whole complex look ordinary from above.
Inside the Secret Base
The concrete building had many important rooms:
- A crew room
- An operations room
- A signals office
- A receiving room
- Offices for intelligence, navigation, signals, and weather
- An emergency power plant
- A telephone exchange
- A cypher room (for secret codes)
- A strong room (for important documents)
It even had its own air conditioning system! A small fan room supplied cool air to the operations room.
Other small huts were also built. These included an orderly hut and a lavatory block. These huts had "dummy" stove areas to make them look more like regular farm buildings. The roofs were even painted to look older than they were.
Controlling Flights
This building was the main communications center for the North East Area Command. This area covered Australia's northeastern coast up to Port Moresby. The movements of Australian aircraft in this important area were controlled from here. Flight plans were made and watched. Pilots had meetings here before and after flights.
In May 1942, the Battle of the Coral Sea happened. This was a big naval and air fight against Japan. It was a major win for the Allies. It was the first time Japan was stopped in the Pacific.
The House on Top
The timber building on top of the concrete operations building was also important. It was shaped like an "L." It had rooms for officers and another strong room. There were no inside links between the two buildings. The timber building was reached by outside stairs.
To make it look even more like a home, there were flower boxes, shrubs, and even an artificial tree. The protective wall (traverse) was painted to look like timber posts. The rest of the concrete roof was covered with camouflage netting.
Camouflage is the art of hiding things. It became very important in World War I. It means "to make up for the stage." The goal is to hide that you are hiding something.
Clever Hiding Techniques
The Green Street site used "concealment" camouflage. From the air, the operations building looked like a typical Queensland house. The other buildings also had tricks to make them look normal. This kind of hiding was popular. Factories were sometimes covered with huge nets painted to look like houses or farms.
The Green Street site was not the only secret unit. The RAAF had the No 1 Wireless Unit at Stuart. This was a very secret post that listened to enemy aircraft signals. An officer described it as looking like an old farmhouse from the outside. But inside, it was a solid concrete building with many operators.
Camouflage was common in Australia. The East Sale RAAF base in Victoria was built to look like a country town from the air. Some building roofs were even painted to look like tennis courts!
After the War
The RAAF Operations building is a rare example of a camouflaged building from World War II. Its concrete bunker below and timber house above still show how it was hidden. Some parts of the original camouflage, like the artificial tree, are gone. The protective wall (traverse) was also removed later. But the main part, the timber "house" on top, still exists.
Other camouflaged sites in Townsville still exist. The No 1 Wireless Unit is one. The Operations and Signals Bunker at Stuart also has parts of its camouflage paint left. This paint was chosen to match the pink rocks of Mt Stuart.
Much of the military buildings from WWII were temporary. Most were taken down after the war ended in August 1945.
Until 1943, the Townsville air base was run by both Australians and Americans. Then, the Americans took full control until early 1945. But the threat of Japanese invasion lessened by late 1942. So, the Townsville air bases became more like workshop areas.
The RAAF used the Green Street site until the late 1960s. The building was no longer needed then. The Department of Defence still owns the site. But the State Emergency Service (SES) in Townsville has used it since the late 1960s. Some wartime buildings were removed by the SES. Others were added.
No old equipment is left inside the building. But it can still be used as a "remote operations headquarters" for the nearby RAAF base if needed in a war or emergency. The building is no longer owned by the Department of Defence.
What the Building Looks Like Now
The former operations building is the main building here. It has two parts. The bottom part is made of strong reinforced concrete. It has a flat concrete roof, floor, and walls. The top part is a building that looks like a house. It sits on top of the concrete building.
Inside the bottom part, there's a long hallway. Rooms open off this hallway. These rooms were once the receiving room and signals office. Some walls at the east end have been removed. This created a larger space now used as a lecture room. This room has a stepped floor and smooth walls. The bottom part is mostly original, with only small changes. The old air system was removed.
The top part looks like a typical tropical house. It has a sloped roof and wide overhangs. It has windows with louvers and casements. The walls are timber. The inside is lined with plywood. It has many rooms opening from two hallways. A strong room is in the northeast part of the house. The porch area has been closed in. The bathroom and kitchen have been changed. The roof has new metal sheeting. Some louvered window panels have been removed or covered. The area next to the house, over the lower section, is now covered with bitumen. This area used to have camouflage netting.
The former Orderly Room is a low building. It has a rectangular shape. It has a mix of gabled and skillion roofs. These roofs hide the size of the single room inside. The building has been made bigger with two small additions. The main building has a corrugated fiber roof and weatherboard siding. The additions have fiber sheeting and a corrugated iron roof. The SES added a kitchen and a bar. A false ceiling has been put in throughout the building.
Other structures are also on the site. The rappel tower was built after 1969. It's a timber pole structure with platforms on two levels. It was built for SES training.
Why This Place is Important
The former RAAF Operations Building Site is important for several reasons:
- It shows how Queensland's history changed.
This site is part of the military buildings built in Townsville during World War II. At that time, Townsville's population tripled with soldiers. This building was the main communications center for the North East Area Command. This area covered Australia's northeastern coast up to Port Moresby. The site shows how important Townsville was in the war in the Pacific.
- It shows rare or special parts of Queensland's history.
The former RAAF Operations Building is a rare example of clever camouflage from World War II. It is still mostly in its original form since 1942. Other similar buildings exist, but this one is very special because it has changed so little.
- It shows what this type of place is like.
This building is a good example of wartime construction. It has a concrete base and a timber "house" on top to hide it. The way it was hidden is still clear to see. Other camouflaged sites in Townsville exist, like the No 1 Wireless Unit and the Operations and Signals Bunker at Stuart. But the Green Street site is in better condition.
- It is linked to important people or groups.
The former RAAF Operations Building site is specially linked to the Australian and American military during World War II. It also shows the work of the Allied Works Council. This group helped build many important wartime structures across Australia.
