RAA Liaison Letter 2025/2026 Edition 3 Jock and this stuck with him all his life. In 1955, Jock was selected in the First Eleven for the RMC Cricket Team as a medium pace bowler. Jock graduated on 11 December 1956 as Lieutenant, number nine in the Graduation Order of Merit. He was allocated to the Royal Australian Artillery (RAA), one of 12 Graduates who were so allocated. Jock’s first posting was to the School of Artillery where he completed the ROBC. In 1957, with National Service in full swing in Australia, Jock was posted as an instructor initially with 12th National Service Battalion (NSB) at Holsworthy and then to 13th National Service Battalion at Ingleburn. In June 1958, Jock was posted to his first RAA appointment when he joined 102nd Light Battery of 1st Field Regiment at Holsworthy. The Regiment had taken over the barracks vacated by 12th NSB. In September 1958 Jock married Marguerite and in November 1958, Jock moved to 101st Battery and as a Temporary Captain. In early 1959. 101st Battery had been warned out to replace 100 ‘A’ Field Battery in Malaya. The following year in September 1959, Jock and 101st Battery boarded the MV Flaminia on route to Malaya. They arrived in Singapore on 1 October 1959 and moved to Butterworth to take over from ‘A’ Battery. Their first son Gordon was born in December 1959. Jock at this time was Troop Commander of Charlie Troop. He was appointed Captain in December 1960 while in Malaya and spent time working at the Headquarters, 17th Gurkha Division. A second son, Charles, was born in June 1961. In October 1961 the Battery returned to Australia to become part of 4th Field Regiment at Wacol in Brisbane. Jock was then posted as Adjutant of 11th Field Regiment in Brisbane. This was a Citizens Military Force (CMF) Regiment with a Regular Army Cardre staff. During 1963, Jock was detached to 34th Construction Squadron, Royal Australian Engineers, for Operation Blowdown. Operation Blowdown was an explosives test carried out in the Kutini-Payamu jungle of Australia's Cape York Peninsula in 1963, to simulate the effects of a nuclear weapon on tropical rainforest. After this detachment, Jock was posted as an Instructor at the Officer Cadet School (OCS) Portsea. A daughter, Susan, was born in September 1963. The following year, 1964 he was promoted to Major and appointed Senior Instructor, OCS. Towards the end of 1965, Jock’s promotion to Major was confirmed and he was posted as Battery Commander (BC) of 108th Field Battery, 4th Field Regiment, then barracked at Wacol in Brisbane. Australia had committed troops to the Vietnam war and 105th Battery had deployed there in September 1965 with RAA resources eventually increased to Regimental Level. 1st Field Regiment had deployed in May 1966 and were to be replaced by 4th Field Regiment, with 106th and 108th Batteries. Jock took 108th Battery to Vietnam in May 1967 after a long battle with shortage of personnel and limited time for training a battery for war. Many of the new Gunners joining his Battery were National Servicemen. During the Battery’s 12-month deployment, they fired 68,159 rounds. Jock was awarded a Member of The British Empire (MBE) for his services as BC of the Battery in Vietnam. Jock and his Battery returned to Australia in May 1968 to their old lines at Wacol. In June, elements of 4th Field Regiment moved to Townsville. Jock was appointed Second in Command (2IC) of the Regiment and from August 1968 until January 1969, was appointed Admin Commander of the Regiment. He was then posted to the Headquarters of 1st Division in Sydney as Staff Officer Grade 2. In 1970 Jock was posted to Staff College in the England. He remained there for just under two years before a posting back to
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