Second Australian Imperial Force The Second Australian Imperial Force ( Second , or 2nd , AIF ) was the name given to the volunteer personnel of the Australian Army in World War II . Under the " Defence Act " ( 1903 ) , neither the part - time Militia nor the full - time Permanent Military Force ( PMF ) could serve outside Australia or its territories unless they volunteered to do so . The Second AIF fought against Nazi Germany , the Kingdom of Italy , Vichy France and the Empire of Japan . Formation . At the outset of World War II , there was controversy over whether Australia should concentrate on forming an expeditionary force for overseas service to fight Germany in Europe or a home defence force to fight Japan . Prime Minister Robert Menzies decided to do both , although the experience of the Great War indicated that Australia did not have the resources to do either . Conscription . On 15 September 1939 , Menzies announced the formation of the Second AIF , an expeditionary force of 20 , 000 , to consist of one infantry division and any auxiliary units that the Australian Army could fit into it . On 15 November 1939 , Menzies announced the reintroduction of conscription for home defence service effective 1 January 1940 . Unmarried men turning 21 in the year ending 30 June 1940 would be drafted into the Militia . Because of this , the AIF could not accept personnel who were in reserved occupation s . The Australian Militia and public opinion . Although the AIF had priority for scarce personnel and equipment over the Militia , many Militia commanders were understandably reluctant to release any to the AIF . Although the government had hoped that half of the new force would be drawn from the Militia , it was soon clear that this would not be achieved . The public was similarly torn between the dangers presented by Germany and Japan . After an initial rush , enlistments quickly tapered off . For these reasons , the Second AIF possessed only one division , the 6th Division , for nearly a year . Effect of the fall of France on enlistment . The fall of France shocked both the government and the people into action . A huge surge of enlistments — some 48 , 496 in June 1940 — provided enough personnel to fill not only the recently formed 7th Division , but to form the 8th Division and 9th Division as well , and the government ordered units to the United Kingdom to assist in its defence . Functions and organisation . Command . Lieutenant General Thomas Blamey was given command of the Second AIF on 13 October 1939 and retained it throughout the war . As such , he was answerable directly to the Minister of Defence , rather than to the Military Board . He was given a charter based on that given to Major General William Throsby Bridges in 1914 . Part of his charter required the Second AIF to be kept together , but a series of political and military crises resulted in the divisions rarely fighting together , with individual division s , brigade s and even battalion s deployed in different sectors or even different theatres . This resulted in conflicts with British commanders , particularly the Commander - in - Chief Middle East , General Sir Claude Auchinleck , most notably over the relief of Tobruk . The 6th and 7th Divisions departed for the Far East in January 1942 , followed by the 9th Division in February 1943 . The last AIF units , three forestry companies , returned via the United States in late 1943 . All units of the Second AIF were thereafter deployed to the South West Pacific theatre , although some individuals remained in other theatres on exchange or liaison duty , such as Vernon Sturdee , who was head of the Australian Military Mission in Washington , D . C . from 1942 to 1944 . A controversial decision of the Menzies government was that senior commands in Blamey ' s 6th Division would be restricted to Militia officers . This greatly upset many PMF officers . However , when the 7th Division was formed in May 1940 , a regular officer , Lieutenant General John Lavarack was appointed to command it . Blamey appointed two regulars , Major Generals Vernon Sturdee and Henry Wynter to command the 8th and 9th Divisions , but Wynter became ill and Sturdee was appointed Chief of the General Staff following the death of General Sir Brudenell White in the 1940 Canberra air disaster . The commands then went to two CMF soldiers , Major Generals Gordon Bennett and Leslie Morshead . Organisation . The Second AIF ' s main strength consisted of five division s : the 6th , 7th , 8th and 9th , and the 1st Armoured Division . Divisions numbered 1st to 5th were Militia divisions , as were the 10th through 12th and the 2nd and 3rd Armoured Divisions . Units of the Second AIF prefixed their numbers with a ' 2 / ' ( pronounced ' second ' ) to distinguish themselves from Militia units . Where such a unit did not exist in the First AIF or the Militia , the ' 2 / ' was not initially used , but later it was generally adopted as identifying a unit of the Second AIF . After the war with Japan began , large numbers of experienced AIF officers were posted to Militia units . As a consequence , units in which more than 75 % of their personnel were AIF volunteers were permitted to call themselves AIF units . By November 1944 , 20 of the Militia ' s 33 infantry battalions were entitled to call themselves AIF . At this time the Army was 423 , 000 strong , of whom 25 , 000 were women , and 307 , 000 were members of the AIF . In the South West Pacific , the Army found that its force structure was completely unbalanced , with a preponderance of operational units and a grave shortage of logistical units . The Army was also faced with government requests to release manpower to industry , and later to discharge long - serving personnel . This was remedied by disbanding operational units . From 1 May 1945 , the Army ' s monthly quota was only 420 men and 925 women . As its wastage was greater than this , units were disbanded for reinforcements . Weaponry and equipment . Unlike in 1914 , Australia did not possess a stock of modern weapons and equipment . As in 1914 , the British Army was unable to help much in the initial stages , as it was preoccupied with its own mobilisation . The Treasury Department strenuously opposed the diversion of large numbers of men and women from industry , the conversion of industries to production of weapons , and the expenditure of large sums on defence . It took time for the Army to overcome its objections , and modern weapons , such as the 25 pounder , were soon coming off the assembly lines in Australia . In the meantime , the AIF , like the Militia , made do with the weapons that the First AIF had brought back from the Great War . Armour . The 1st Armoured Division was formed at Puckapunyal in 1941 after the German blitzkrieg had demonstrated the value of armour in modern warfare . Personnel . Personnel were required to be between 20 and 35 years old on enlistment , although there were many cases of this being evaded . A suspiciously large number of personnel were aged 20 on enlistment , and many former members of the First AIF joined up , a practice encouraged by some unit commanders , who liked to have some old hands around . Pay . Although volunteer militiamen were paid 8s per day , an unmarried private in the AIF was paid 5s per day in Australia , with an extra 2s per day after embarkation for overseas . This was less than the 8s 6d per day dole , not to mention the average basic wage of £2 16s . Serial numbers . All members of the Second AIF were allocated a serial number . The first letter represented the state of enlistment : N - New South Wales ; V - Victoria ; Q - Queensland ; S - South Australia ; W - Western Australia ; T - Tasmania ; D - Northern Territory . The serial numbers of female soldiers followed this with an F . AIF serial numbers then had an X . A low number indicated an early enlistment . General Blamey was VX1 . Soldiers transferring from the Militia often kept their old number with 100 , 000 added , while PMF officers had 20 , 000 added . Shoulder patches . Units wore the shoulder patch of the corresponding unit of the First AIF , with a grey border to distinguish the unit from the Militia unit wearing the same patch . The shape of the grey indicated the division , which sometimes differed from that of the coloured part . Later , AIF personnel in Militia units were authorised to wear the grey border , resulting in some units wearing the same patches . The 9th Division replaced all its patches with a new type in the shape of a " T " . As there were more units in the Second AIF than the First , many units wore patches of a new design . Women in the AIF . From the first , women served with the AIF in the Australian Army Nursing Service . The Australian Army Medical Women ' s Service was formed in 1942 , and the Australian Women ' s Army Service on 13 August 1941 . The latter had a strength of 24 , 000 . Some 35 , 000 women served in the Army , making up about 5 % of the force . Operations . The 6th Division , under Major General Iven Mackay fought in the Western Desert Campaign at Bardia , Tobruk and Benghazi . It experienced many casualties in the Greek Campaign , where 3 , 000 Australian soldiers were taken prisoner . After refitting in Syria , the 6th Division was recalled to Australia take part in the Pacific War in February 1942 . Its 16th and 17th Infantry Brigades were temporarily diverted to garrison Ceylon . The 19th Infantry Brigade was sent to Darwin , except for its 2 / 11th Infantry Battalion , which went to Western Australia . When the remainder of the 6th Division returned , it was committed to the fighting in New Guinea . The 16th Infantry Brigade participated in the fighting on the Kokoda Track and at Buna . The 17th Infantry Brigade fought in the Battle of Wau and the Salamaua campaign . The 7th Division , under Major General Arthur Allen and other Australian units formed the body of the Allied invasion of Lebanon and Syria in 1941 . The division ' s 18th Infantry Brigade fought at Tobruk . Following the outbreak of war in the Pacific , elements of the 7th Division were sent to the Dutch East Indies , reinforcing a few 8th division units . The bulk of the 7th Division was deployed in support of Militia battalions engaged in a rearguard action on the Kokoda Track Campaign in New Guinea . With elements of the 1st Armoured Division and 6th Divisions , and Militia , it formed a large part of the Allied forces which destroyed the major Japanese beachhead in New Guinea , at the Battle of Buna - Gona . Most of the 8th Division ' was sent to Malaya to strengthen the garrison prior to war with Japan , while the remaining battalions were deployed in the Dutch East Indies and New Guinea . Consequently , most of the division was lost at the Fall of Singapore in February 1942 , where the division lost 1 , 789 killed and 1 , 306 wounded ; another 15 , 395 were captured . The divisional commander , Major General Henry Gordon Bennett created an enduring controversy by escaping . A small , lesser - known force known as Mission 204 was drawn from units in Malaya , including forty men of the 8th Division . It served in China , advising the Chinese Army , until it was withdrawn in October 1942 . The 23rd Infantry Brigade remained , but without battalions , as these had been lost when Ambon , Rabaul and Timor fell . It was filled up with Militia battalions , and it and other remaining elements of the 8th Division participated in the campaigns in the South West Pacific . The 8th Division was reformed after the war to process prisoners of the Japanese . Australian prisoners of war , like other Allied prisoners of the Japanese , were often held in inhumane conditions , such as Changi prison or in Japan . Some were subject to forced labour , including the Burma Railway or forced long distance marches , such as on Sandakan . AIF Independent companies continued guerrilla operations in East Timor for many months until being evacuated in January 1943 . Independent companies played an important part in the defence of New Guinea . The 9th Division fought in the North African campaign under Major General Leslie Morshead and distinguished itself first at the Battle of Tobruk , where it became the first Allied unit to resist German " Blitzkrieg " tactics . The Axis leader in North Africa , Lieutenant General Erwin Rommel , described the 9th Division at Tobruk as : " immensely big and powerful men , who without question represented an elite formation of the British Empire , a fact that was also evident in battle . " The 9th also served with distinction at the First and Second Battles of El Alamein . It returned to Australia in early 1943 . In 1943 , the 6th , 7th and 9th Divisions were reunited on the Atherton Tableland . General Douglas MacArthur , Supreme Allied Commander in the South West Pacific Area depended on the AIF as the spearhead of his land forces in 1942 and 1943 . The 7th Division , now under Major General George Vasey , fought at Nadzab and in the Finisterre Range campaign . Meanwhile the 9th Division , now under Major General George Wootten fought at Red Beach and then in the Huon Peninsula campaign . MacArthur deployed the AIF divisions in secondary assignments during 1944 - 45 , where they often fought what many considered to be pointless battles . A shortage of first operational units and then logistic units caused the 6th Division , now under Major General Jack Stevens to be committed to the Aitape - Wewak campaign despite MacArthur ' s efforts . He employed the 7th and 9th Divisions in the Borneo Campaign ( 1945 ) . A planned invasion of the Japanese home island of Honshū in 1946 , Operation Coronet , would almost certainly have included an " Australian 10th Division " , made up of experienced personnel from the three existing divisions . However , the Japanese surrendered before the invasion took place . Disbandment . Most Second AIF personnel were demobilised by the end of 1946 . The Second AIF officially ceased to exist on 30 June 1947 . All Second AIF personnel still on full - time duty were transferred to the Interim Army on 1 July 1947 .