The formation was raised as 30th (Northumbrian) Anti-Aircraft Group on 1 November 1936 at Sunderland forming part of 2nd Anti-Aircraft Division. Its initial order of battle was as follows:[1][2]
In 1938 the RA replaced its traditional unit designation 'Brigade' by the modern 'Regiment', which allowed the 'AA Groups' to take the more usual formation title of 'Brigades'. Brig F.C. Chaytor, OBE, MC, was appointed brigade commander on 1 November 1938.[4]Anti-Aircraft Command was formed in April 1939 to control all the TA's AA units and formations. 30th AA Brigade transferred to the new 7th AA Division when that was formed in Newcastle upon Tyne in June 1939.[5][6] As AA Command continued to expand, 62nd AA Regiment and 47th Searchlight Battalion moved to other brigades in 7 AA Division and were replaced by newly formed units.
Second World War
Mobilisation
On the outbreak of war 30th AA Brigade was mobilised to defend its home area of Tyneside and Sunderland, with the following order of battle:[7][8]
63rd (Northumbrian) Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery – as above
64th (Northumbrian) Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery – as above
In 1940, RA regiments equipped with 3-inch, 3.7-inch or 4.5-inch AA guns were designated Heavy Anti-Aircraft (HAA) to distinguish them from the new Light Anti-Aircraft (LAA) regiments, and RE AA battalions were transferred to the RA and designated Searchlight regiments.
30 AA Brigade Signal Office Mixed Sub-Section (part of No 1 Company, 7 AA Division Mixed Signal Unit, Royal Corps of Signals)
Reorganisation
On 30 September 1942 the AA Divisions and Corps were dissolved and 30th Anti-Aircraft Brigade came under a new 6 AA Group covering Scotland and North East England and aligned with No. 13 Group RAF.[5][32][33][34]
Order of Battle 1942–44
Under the new command structure, 30 AA Bde had the following composition:[35][36][37]
However, in April 1944 the brigade's reporting line changed again and it became part of 5 AA Group covering the East Coast and East Midlands. A number of its former units returned to its command, and over succeeding months it exchanged units with other brigades in 2 and 5 AA Groups.[38]
By October 1944, the brigade's HQ establishment was 9 officers, 8 male other ranks and 25 members of the ATS, together with a small number of attached drivers, cooks and mess orderlies (male and female). In addition, the brigade had a Mixed Signal Office Section of 1 officer, 5 male other ranks and 19 ATS, which was formally part of the Group signal unit.[39]
War's end
By the end of 1944, 21st Army Group was suffering a severe manpower shortage, particularly among the infantry, and AA Command was forced to disband several regiments and batteries, and release their personnel. At the same time the German Luftwaffe was suffering from such shortages of pilots, aircraft and fuel that serious air attacks on the United Kingdom could be discounted, so the War Office began to convert surplus AA regiments into infantry battalions, primarily for line of communication and occupation duties in North West Europe, thereby releasing trained infantry for frontline service.[33][40][41] Being stationed in Eastern England, still threatened by V-1 flying bombs air-launched from the North Sea, 30 AA Brigade was less affected by these changes. Nevertheless, in January 1945, 128th LAA Rgt was converted into 628th Infantry Rgt, RA,[18][42] and went to Europe, while 183rd (M) HAA Rgt was sent to Antwerp to defend that city against bombardment by V-1s.[43][44][45]
Order of Battle 1945
From mid-February 1945 until the end of the war, 30 AA Bde had the following composition:[38][46]
When the TA was reformed in 1947, 30th Anti-Aircraft Brigade's Regular Army units reformed 8 AA Bde at Newcastle, while the TA portion was renumbered a 56th (Northumbrian) Anti-Aircraft Brigade,[a] with its HQ at Washington, Co Durham, and the following order of battle:[1][48][49]
654 LAA Regt was placed in suspended animation in May 1949, and 325 LAA Regt merged into another unit in January 1954. Then on 1 March 1954, 56th (Northumbrian) Anti-Aircraft Brigade HQ was disbanded at Seaburn, Sunderland.[3][48]
^ abOrder of Battle of Non-Field Force Units in the United Kingdom, Part 27: AA Command, 12 May 1941, The National Archives (TNA), Kew, file WO 212/79.
^Order of Battle of Non-Field Force Units in the United Kingdom, Part 27: AA Command, 2 December 1941, with amendments, TNA file WO 212/80.
^Order of Battle of Non-Field Force Units in the United Kingdom, Part 27: AA Command, 14 May 1942, with amendments, TNA file WO 212/81.
^Order of Battle of the Field Force in the United Kingdom, Part 3: Royal Artillery (Non-Divisional units), 2 April 1942, with amendments, TNA file WO 212/515.
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Hewitson, T L (2006). Weekend Warriors. From Tyne to Tweed (1 ed.). Stroud: Tempus. ISBN978-0-7524-3756-9.
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