3rd Anti-Aircraft Division (United Kingdom)

The 3rd Anti-Aircraft Division was an air defence formation of Britain's Territorial Army, created in the period of tension before the outbreak of World War II. It defended Scotland and Northern Ireland during the early part of the war.

Origin
Large numbers of Territorial Army (TA) units were converted to anti-aircraft (AA) and searchlight roles in the Royal Artillery (RA) and Royal Engineers (RE) during the 1930s, and higher formations were required to control them. 3rd AA Division was the first division-level headquarters created de novo (earlier ones being converted infantry divisions). It was formed at Edinburgh on 1 September 1938 within Scottish Command, transferring to Anti-Aircraft Command when that formation was created on 1 April 1939. It was responsible for the AA defences of Scotland (except the Orkney and Shetland Defences, which had their own organisation (OSEF)) and Northern Ireland

Order of Battle
The composition of 3 AA Division on the outbreak of war was as follows:


 * 3rd Anti-Aircraft Brigade formed 7 December 1938 at Belfast. The TA did not exist in Northern Ireland before the war, so the part-time units in the province were part of the Supplementary Reserve and were numbered in sequence after the Regulars.
 * 3rd (Ulster) Searchlight Regiment, RA (SR) – formed 1939
 * 8th (Belfast) AA Regiment, RA (SR) – formed 1939
 * 9th (Londonderry) AA Regiment, RA (SR) – formed 1939
 * 102nd AA Regiment, RA (TA) – formed at Antrim 10 September 1939
 * 3 AA Brigade Signal Section, Royal Corps of Signals (RSC)
 * 92 AA Brigade Company, Royal Army Service Corps (RASC)
 * 3 AA Brigade Workshop Section, Royal Army Ordnance Corps (RAOC)


 * 36th (Scottish) Anti-Aircraft Brigade formed 1 May 1938 at Edinburgh, responsible for the city of Edinburgh and the Firth of Forth
 * 71st (Forth) AA Regiment, RA – formed 1938 at Dunfermline
 * 94th AA Regiment, RA – formed April 1939 at Turnhouse
 * 101st AA Regiment, RA – formed August 1939 at Inverness
 * 36 AA Bde Company RASC


 * 42nd Anti-Aircraft Brigade formed 1 October 1938 at Glasgow, responsible for the city of Glasgow and the Firth of Clyde
 * 74th (City of Glasgow) AA Regiment, RA
 * 83rd (Blythswood) AA Regiment, RA – converted 1938 from 7th (Blythswood) Battalion Highland Light Infantry
 * 100th AA Regiment, RA – formed at Motherwell
 * 42 AA Bde Company RASC


 * 51st Light Anti-Aircraft Brigade formed 25 Aug 1939 at Edinburgh, originally to command the LAA units of 3 AA Division, but later assumed responsibility for north east Scotland
 * 14th (West Lothian Royal Scots) Light AA Regiment, RA – converted August 1938 from part of 4/5th Battalion Royal Scots at Linlithgow
 * 18th LAA Regiment, RA – formed December 1938 at Glasgow
 * 19th LAA Regiment, RA – formed January 1939 at Edinburgh
 * 31st LAA Regiment, RA – formed August 1939 at Perth
 * 32nd LAA Regiment, RA – formed August 1939 at Falkirk
 * 51st AA Bde Company RASC

– converted 1938 from part of 4/5th Bn in central Edinburgh
 * 52nd Light Anti-Aircraft Brigade formed August 1939 at Stirling with responsibility for searchlight provision across 3 AA Division's sectors
 * 51st (Highland) Anti-Aircraft Battalion, Royal Engineers – formed 1938 at Aberdeen
 * 4th/5th Battalion, The Royal Scots (The Royal Regiment) (52nd Searchlight Regiment)
 * 5th/8th Battalion, The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) (56th Searchlight Regiment) – converted 1938 at Glasgow
 * 5th/8th Battalion The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) (57th Searchlight Regiment) – formed 1 November 1938 by duplication of above, based in south Glasgow
 * 52nd AA Bde Company RASC


 * 3 AA Divisional Signals, RCS formed in Edinburgh in 1939
 * 3 AA Divisional Workshops, RAOC

War service
In November 1939, 3 AA Bde HQ and some of its units went to France with the British Expeditionary Force, defending the lines of communication. 3 AA Brigade HQ returned to Northern Ireland after the Dunkirk evacuation.

The AA regiments of the RA were designated 'Heavy AA' (HAA) from 1940 to distinguish them from the newer Light AA (LAA) units. (Prior to that, some of the Regular Army and Supplementary Reserve regiments had included both HAA and LAA batteries.) Also during 1940 all the searchlight units, whether AA battalions of the RE or still forming part of their parent infantry regiments, were transferred to the RA. The units of 52 AA Bde were therefore redesignated as follows:
 * 51st (Highland) Searchlight Regiment, RA – from January 1940
 * 52nd (Queen's Edinburgh, Royal Scots) Searchlight Regiment, RA – from August 1940
 * 56th (Cameronians) Searchlight Regiment, RA – from August 1940
 * 57th (Glasgow) Searchlight Regiment, RA – from August 1940

In September 1940, 3 AA Division formed 3 AA Z Regiment, equipped with Z Battery rocket projectiles.

In November 1940, at the height of The Blitz, a new 12 AA Division was formed to take over responsibility for western Scotland and Northern Ireland while 3 AA Division retained responsibility for eastern Scotland. 3 and 42 AA Bdes were transferred from 3 AA Division to the new formation, and 12 AA Divisional Signals was formed by expanding the Glasgow company of 3 AA Divisional Signals. Both 3 and 12 AA Divisions, together with OSDEF and 7 AA Division covering northern England, formed part of a newly created III AA Corps, and 3 AA Division's commander, Maj-Gen Hugh Martin, was promoted to command the new higher formation.

Reorganisation
From November 1940, therefore, 3 AA Division's order of battle was as follows:


 * 36 AA Bde Edinburgh & Forth
 * 71 HAA Rgt – as above
 * 114 HAA Rgt – formed November 1940
 * 31 LAA Rgt – as above
 * 32 LAA Rgt – as above


 * 51 AA Bde NE Scotland
 * 108 HAA Rgt – formed August 1940
 * 40 LAA Rgt – formed September 1939; transferred to 51st (Highland) Division in May 1942
 * 67 LAA Rgt – formed December 1940


 * 52 AA Bde Searchlights
 * 51 S/L Rgt – as above; became 124 (Highland) LAA Regiment in February 1942
 * 52 S/L Rgt – as above; became 130 (Queen's Edinurgh, Royal Scots) LAA Regiment in March 1942
 * 56 S/L Rgt – as above; became 125th (Cameronians) LAA Regiment in February 1942


 * 3 AA Z Rgt
 * 3 AA Divisional Signals

Disbandment
At the end of September 1942, AA Command disbanded the AA Corps and Divisions and replaced them with new AA Groups, whose areas of responsibility coincided with the Gtoups of RAF Fighter Command. 3 AA Division's responsibilities were taken over by 6 AA Group, which coincided with No. 14 Group RAF. In October 1942, 3 and 12 AA Divisional Signals re-merged to form 6 AA Group Signals.

General Officers Commanding
The commanders of 3 AA Division were as follows:
 * Major-General Lancelot Hickes, from formation until 24 September 1939
 * Major-General Leslie Hill, 24 September 1939 – 14 August 1940
 * Major-General Hugh Martin, 14 August–November 1940 (promoted to command III AA Corps)
 * Major-General John Younger, November 1940 (from 4 AA Division) to 7 January 1942 (posted to Washington)
 * Major-General William Wyndham Green, DSO, MC*, 7 January 1942 until disbandment (posted to 5 AA Group)

External sources

 * British Generals of WWII at Generals.dk.
 * British Military History
 * Orders of Battle at Patriot Files
 * The Royal Artillery 1939–45