The convoy reached Malaya two-and-a-half weeks later, with the Queen Mary disembarking the 2/10th at Malacca, in Johore, on 19 February 1941 at 5.00am.
19th, 20th Batteries and Regimental HQ marched about 1km south of the town to Malacca High School while X Battery was based about 2km north of the town in the Anglo-Chinese School at Tranquerah. Every couple of months the batteries swapped quarters to ’keep them on their toes’. At this stage their guns and vehicles had not arrived so the troops were kept busy with lectures, drills and route marches.
In order to entertain the troops a number of local European women set up a canteen opposite the high school where the soldiers could write letters, read, play the piano and obtain a reasonably priced meal.
Manoeuvres were carried out on 6th and 7th March in the Tampin area and divisional manoeuvres towards Mersing from the 10th to the 12th of March.
On the 12th of April Frank developed appendicitis and was sent to 10AGH for treatment. He returned to 2/10 Field Regiment at the beginning of May.
It was not until mid-July that the batteries finally were able to calibrate their guns.
19
On 7th September, 19 Battery moved from Jemaluang to a new position at
At the beginning of October the first reinforcements arrived to boost the numbers of troops in 2/10 Field Regiment. Most of the rest of the month was spent building defensive works and roads. The surveyors produced accurate maps as the supplied maps were greatly inaccurate. This would be of great benefit later when the Japanese arrived using the old maps for guidance.
In mid-November the Regimental CO, Col Kirkwood, returned to