Anti-Aircraft Gun

floodland · Post by **floodland** » Wed 28 Mar, 2007 6:24 pm

does anyone have any info on the AA gun (some variant of the Bofors 40mm i think) that was mounted on the island overlooked by Crown Point Bridge? the buildings were where the Leeds Sea Cadets were based - only last year they moved further down the canal opposite Thwaite Mills, and the gun has followed. i was always fascinated by this when i was younger; when we'd go into town on a Saturday, we'd leave the car at the car park by the bridge (which has since been built on) and i'd go look at the gun. was the gun originally mounted there during the war, and what did the position look like then?

south of the river · Post by **south of the river** » Thu 29 Mar, 2007 6:58 pm

I well remember the gun mounted by the sea cadets hut...i worked right oppsite..on the land where the royal armouries stands now..one summer Prince philip came to view the cadets in their uniforms..Also on the other side of the river was the Lock keepers house...and further up was Leeds ashphalte...at the corner of clarence road..Lots of smoke there as they used a furnace i believefor making the blocks..Fascinating to watch that..i was an office boy then and was often late back from my lunch hour rubber necking..

floodland · Post by **floodland** » Fri 30 Mar, 2007 1:03 am

i've just been checking out some pics of the island from the '70s on leodis, and the gun isn't present back then.

Old A/B · Post by **Old A/B** » Tue 15 Jul, 2008 12:03 am

The anti aircraft gun was a Bofors 40mm. It arrived sometime while I was a Sea Cadet in Leeds 1966-69. There was also two containers which had 4 dummy shells in each. We dragged these out to the gun one Sunday when no one was looking but I don't remember them fitting or we were scared of them getting stuck in the mechanism. The cover had become damaged (weather and age) and may have gone for repair so the gun was irresistable. We trained it around pointing it at various building or whatever, no planes about.We never had it uncovered or trained on it on parade nights - sadly.There was also and old Field Gun and tender box (if memory has the name right) complete with ropes, shackles etc. We cadets did this up and charged about the parade ground with it.There would be sailing on weekends in Clarence Dock. Shell had a depot there and I remember tanker barges entering the dock - never looked like they would fit they looked so big.