- Home
- Gailes Airstrip
/
Gailes Airstrip
Wacol, A-9 Airstrip/RAAF Emergency Landing Ground
An airstrip was cleared at Gailes for the Americans in 1942. Although several hideouts for aircraft were constructed, the airfield was a poor site and was soon abandoned. It was later categorised as a Relief Landing Ground (RLG) and Crash Strip by the RAAF.
The northwest end of the graded section of the airstrip was located just north of Tile Street, east of its intersection with Boundary Road, while the southeast end was located between Doreen Crescent and Sinclair Drive, north of Southampton Road. Trees were also felled to clear approach areas beyond each end of the graded strip. No visible remnants of the airstrip exist.
Two large concrete slabs in bushland southwest of the intersection of Clendon Street and Waterford Road may have been related to the Darra Ordnance Ammunition Depot, which was located east of the airstrip.
Place information
Location
Place type
Airfield
History
The arrival of US forces in Queensland from late December 1941 led to an increased demand for airfields to accommodate US aircraft. Existing RAAF airfields were used, and new fields were also constructed.
The single airstrip at Gailes (also referred to as Wacol or A-9) was built in 1942, and the contractor MR Hornibrook was employed by the Americans to carry out construction of a hangar and associated camouflage work at the site around May 1942. It is likely that the “hangar” was an arched timber truss hideout, as “several unserviceable hideouts” were referred to on notes accompanying a RAAF Landing...
Share
Copy Link