Giru Airfield

The US 91st Engineers, a 'Colored' labour Battalion with little military training arrived in Woodstock without equipment in April 1942 to assist the US 46th Engineers, a white unit, in building three landing strips.

On 23 April the US 91st Engineers were moved to Giru to construct an airfield. Armed with only hand tools, the unit cleared an area for three landing strips and operated 24 hours a day. Machettes were used to clear the long grass and home made wheel barrows were made with empty beer cases. A farm tractor and a horse drawn mowing machine were rented from nearby farmers. Seven well worn dozers and a few cargo trucks were sourced from Melbourne in May, with them finally arriving in July.

The western runway, which originally measured 7000ft in length, has been incorporated into Woodstock Giru Road. The majority of the eastern and southern runways (5500ft and 5300ft long respectively) have been dismantled; their length now covered by agricultural fields. The junction of the western and southern airstrips is visible at a point along Woodstock Giru Road (-19.53879674741361, 147.0711573228158). East of this location, a straight portion of the southern airstrip's cleared corridor remains, although the gravel base has been subsumed into cattle pasture.