Royal Artillery Units and Reinforcement Drafts to West Africa, 1940-1942
Convoy Departure Sailed Arrived Freetown Ship(s) Serial Units/Drafts Officers WOs ORs Total Destination Disposition
WS4 Oversay 02/11/1940 16/11/1940     draft 2   22 24 Freetown to Sierra Leone H.A.A. Bty
WS5A Liverpool & Clyde 18/12/1940 06/01/1941   29307 197th H.A.A. Bty (less one section)          Freetown disembarked Freetown, less detachment to Takoradi:  197th Bty to Sierra Leone Hvy Regt then Sierra Leone A.A. Regt then 1st H.A.A. Regt, W.A.A.
          29307(a) one section 197th H.A.A. Bty         Takoradi disembarked 14th January 1941.  Merged with 3rd H.A.A. Bty WAA on 3rd June 1941
          30121 71st L.A.A. Bty (less one troop)          Freetown disembarked Freetown, less detachment 547 Troop to Takoradi.  Posted to Sierra Leone Heavy Regt then Sierra Leone A.A. Regt then 1st L.A.A. Regt. 
          30121(a)  one troop (547) 71st L.A.A. Bty         Takoradi disembarked at Takoradi on 14th January 1941.  By September 1941, known as 'C' Troop.  Posted to 2nd L.A.A. Baty, W.A.A. on 24th September 1941
WS6A     01-02/03/1941 Highland Brigade   H.Q. 'X' H.A.A. Regt         Freetown disembarked on 4th March 1941 - 5 Officers and C.O. to Sierra Leone A.A. Regt.  Had been despatched as R.H.Q. for the 197th and 71st Btys.  Posted to the H.Q. Sierra Leone A.A. Regiment and batteries on arrival
Independent   26/05/1941      ? Mjr Macnabb, 7   96 103 Freetown to 1st L.A.A. Bty WAA and, most likely, 71st L.A.A. Bty, RA
Independent   29/05/1941     Lt. Col Drew         Freetown C.O. 1st L.A.A. Regt WAA
WS 10 Liverpool 31/07/1941 17/08/1941     RFZXH 4 4 8 16 various  
  Avonmouth 30/07/1941       RFZFF 2 1 13 16 Bathurst  
  Clyde 02/08/1941       RFZFH 4     4 Freetown  
  Oversay 03/08/1941                    
WS11 Liverpool and Channel Ports 30/08/1941 13/09/1941   15/09/1941 31122 308th H.A.A. Bty 11 26 349 386 Freetown regimented with the 4th A.A. Regiment, W.A.A. on disembarkation
  Clyde 31/08/1941 31295a H.Q. A.A. Troop 109th L.A.A. Bty 6 10 110 126 Lagos sailed on to Lagos with 'A' and 'B'Troops
  31295c 'B' Troop 109th L.A.A. Bty 2 6 33 41 Lagos [Serial 31295c appears to have been 'C' Troop]  'B' Troop to Lagos with B.H.Q. and 'A' Troop, 109th L.A.A. Bty
  31295d 'C' Troop 109th L.A.A. Bty 2 5 34 41 Freetown disembarked at Freetown and initially attached to 1st L.A.A. Bty, W.A.A. then posted to 71st L.A.A. Bty R.A. on 28th September 1941
  31301 64th L.A.A. Bty 10 21 221 252 Freetown, Bathurst and Lagos B.H.Q. and 'C' Troop disembarked at Bathurst on 24th September 1941; 'A' Troop (58 BORs) disembarked at Freetown on 16th September 1941 and was posted to 1st L.A.A. Bty W.A.A., moved to the Gambia, arriving 6th January 1942 to join 64th L.A.A. Bty, R.A.; 'B' Troop to Lagos
  31294 313th H.A.A. Bty (part) 3 5 164 172 Bathurst re-embarked for Bathurst, arriving by end of September 1941
  31409 H.Q. 'T' L.A.A. Bty 4 4 16 24 Takoradi? from Freetown, left for the Gold Coast and appears to have arrived at Takoradi on 24th September 1941 (and maybe not 24th October 1941) and with 547 Troop, 71st L.A.A. Battery, R.A., formed 2nd L.A.A. Battery, W.A.A. on 24th October 1941.
            Drafts …..            
WS11X to Gibraltar   07/10/1941 H.M.S. Princess Beatrix   4 Officers and 40 Other Ranks         Freetown after disembarkation, formed the Battery H.Q. 3rd L.A.A. Bty, W.A.A.
  Liverpool 16/09/1941   ?   4 Officers and 34 Other Ranks          Freetown advance party for the 4th H.A.A. Bty, W.A.A., at first taken on by 2nd H.A.A. Regt, W.A.A.
  Clyde 17/09/1941                    
WS12 Liverpool & Clyde 29/09/1941 14/10/1941   313th H.A.A. Bty (remainder) 3 8 199 210 Bathurst 94 personnel disembarked at Freetown, of whom 21 B.O.R.s to 2nd H.A.A. Battery, W.A.A.  The balance of the detachment appears to have gone to Bathurst, the Gambia, to join the detachment there
  Oversay 01/10/1941 Narkunda   'X' L.A.A. Troop 1 4 18 23 Freetown disembarked at Freetown on 15th October 1941 and posted to the 3rd L.A.A. Bty WAA
  Narkunda   405th H.A.A. Bty H.Q. and one 4 gun section 2 6 100 108 Takoradi sailed on from Freetown under command of 'C' H.A.A. Regiment, R.A., which became 3rd H.A.A. Regt, W.A.A. on arrival at Takoradi on 24th October 1941 
  Narkunda   'U' L.A.A. Bty H.Q. and 1 Troop 2 2 20 24 Freetown formed in the United Kingdom from elements of 54th L.A.A. Battery, R.A.; disembarked at Freetown on 15th October 1941 and posted to the 3rd L.A.A. Bty WAA
    'S' H.A.A. Bty H.Q. and one 4 gun section 2 6 24 32 Freetown formed from cadre 405th H.A.A. Bty, R.A.  Disembarked at Freetown on 15th October 1941, joined the advance party to form the 4th H.A.A. Bty, W.A.A.  
  Narkunda   'Y' L.A.A. Det 1 7 8 Freetown formed in the United Kingdom from elements of 54th L.A.A. Battery, R.A.; disembarked at Freetown on 15th October 1941 and posted to the 3rd L.A.A. Bty WAA
  Narkunda   'Z' L.A.A. Det 1 7 8 Freetown formed in the United Kingdom from elements of 54th L.A.A. Battery, R.A.; disembarked at Freetown on 15th October 1941 and posted to the 3rd L.A.A. Bty WAA
  Narkunda   141 L.A.A. Troop 2 5 53 60 Freetown part of 54th L.A.A. Battery, R.A. retained after this Battery was reorgnaised at Southend on 2nd August 1941; disembarked at Freetown on 15th October 1941 and posted to the 3rd L.A.A. Bty WAA
    14th Light A.A. Brigade 6 2 4 12 Freetown disembarked at Freetown on 15th October 1941 and became operational 24th October 1941
    H.Q. 'B' H.A.A. Regt 3 3 5 11   assumed to have been posted to the R.H.Q., 2nd H.A.A. Regiment, W.A.A. upon disembarkation at Freetown on 15th October 1941
  Narkunda   H.Q. 'C' H.A.A. Regt 4 3 5 12 Takoradi at Freetown transferred to H.M.S. Royal Ulsterman and arrived at Takoradi on 23rd October 1941 - became 3rd H.A.A. Regt, W.A.A. 24th October 1941
        Narkunda    H.Q. 'D' H.A.A. Regt 3 3 5 11 Bathurst re-embarked at Freetown on 21st September 1941 to arrive at Bathurst on 23rd October 1941 where the H.Q. was retitled to become the 4th H.A.A. Regiment, W.A.A. on 24th October 1941
WS12Z Liverpool & Clyde 12/11/1941 25/11/1941     251st H.A.A. Bty 7 10 217 234 Lagos disembarked at Lagos on 19th December 1941.  Regimented with the 5th H.A.A. Regt, W.A.A. on 3rd January 1942
  Oversay 13/11/1941   Rangitata   408th H.A.A. Bty 7 10 71 88 Freetown having been diverted to Gibraltar, the ship reached Freetown on ar ound 13th December 1941, where the personnel disembarked at Freetown to come under the command of the 2nd H.A.A. Regt, W.A.A.  On 26th December 1941, the 408th H.A.A. Bty, R.A. was redesignated as 5th H.A.A. Bty, W.A.A., 2nd H.A.A. Regt W.A.A.
            'A' L.A.A. Troop  2 5 33 40 Bathurst went to Bathurst, then moved from Bathurst to Freetown and posted to 1st Battery, 1st L.A.A. Regt, W.A.A. with effect from 29th December 1941.  Returned to Bathurst and posted to 64th L.A.A. Bty, R.A. on 6th January 1942
            'C' L.A.A. Troop 2 5 33 40 Freetown disembarked at Freetown and posted to the 3rd L.A.A. Bty, W.A.A as part of an Africanised L.A.A. Troop
WS14 Oversay 09/12/1941 21/12/1941   'B' L.A.A. Troop 2 5 33 40 Bathurst arrived at Bathurst from Freetown on 25th December 1941 and attached to 64th L.A.A. Bty as 'B' Troop, u/c 4th H.A.A. Regt, W.A.A.
    'D' H.A.A. Bty 7 10 72 89 Freetown formed from cadre 408th H.A.A. Bty, R.A.  Disembarked at Freetown on 22nd December 1941 and on 26th December was redesignated as the 6th H.A.A. Bty, 2nd H.A.A. Regt, W.A.A.
            H.Q. 'E' A.A. Regiment 4 5 5 14 Lagos disembarked at Lagos on 2nd January 1942 and was re-designated the following day to become the 5th H.A.A. Regt, W.A.A.
??     19/02/1942     4 Officers and 15 B.O.R.s 4   15 19 Freetown posted to the 1st H.A.A. Regiment, W.A.A.
            10 Officers 10     10 Freetown posted to the 1st L.A.A. Regiment, W.A.A.
            'Z' H.A.A. Section 2   19 21 Takoradi at Takoradi, posted to the 405th H.A.A. Battery, 3rd H.A.A. Regiment, W.A.A.
?? Clyde 29/01/1942 Sobieski   S' Anti-Tank Bty Lagos disembarked Lagos via Gibraltar and Freetown on 27th February 1942.  Redesignated 1st Anti-Tank Bty, W.A.A. on 2nd March 1942
  Gibraltar 10/02/1942 18/01/1942 Batory                
WS20? Liverpool 20/06/1942 02/07/1942     draft RFGZA         Takoradi disembarked Takoradi on 10th July 1942 and formed the 5th L.A.A. Battery, W.A.A.
  Clyde 21/06/1942                    
  Oversay 21/06/1942