2 / 4th Armoured Regiment ( Australia ) The 2 / 4th Armoured Regiment was an armoured regiment of the Australian Army , which served during World War II . The regiment was formed in November 1942 as part of the Second Australian Imperial Force by amalgamating a number of previously existing armoured units and was disbanded in September 1946 after seeing action in New Guinea and Bougainville Island , where it provided individual squadron - group sized elements which operated in support of infantry operations against the Japan ese . During its service the regiment received 10 battle honours . History . The 2 / 4th Armoured Regiment was one of the last armoured units raised by the Australian Army during the war , being formed in order to replace the 2 / 6th Armoured Regiment which had been detached from the 1st Armoured Division to serve in New Guinea . Under the command of Lieutenant Colonel D . A Cameron , the regiment was raised in November 1942 from elements of a number of Australian armoured reconnaissance units , including ' D ' Squadron of the 2 / 11th Armoured Car Regiment and the 2 / 1st and 2 / 2nd Light Tank Squadrons , and was concentrated at Wee Waa , New South Wales . Initially , the regiment formed part of the 2nd Armoured Brigade of the 3rd Armoured Division and was equipped with M3 Grant medium tanks and M3 Stuart light tanks . At the beginning of 1943 , the regiment was relocated to Manumbah in Queensland , travelling over from Narabri to their final destination near Murgon . The move north was punctuated by heavy rain that turned the road into a quagmire that was meant that at times the tank transporters had to be towed by the tanks that they were supposed to be transporting . Upon reaching their destination they commenced training and would remain in Queenland for the best part of a year . In October 1943 , however , the 3rd Armoured Division was disbanded and the 2 / 4th was allocated to the 4th Armoured Brigade , an independent armoured brigade , and was re - equipped with Matilda II tank which were better suited for jungle warfare than the Grant and Stuart tanks . In August 1944 , after training at Southport on the Gold Coast , the regiment received orders to deploy overseas and was moved to Madang in New Guinea , where it replaced the 1st Tank Battalion . Deployed to provide support to the Australian Army infantry units fighting the Japanese , the regiment provided a number of elements — organised into squadron - group sized elements each with its own support units — to different infantry formations and the first element of the regiment to see action was the ' C ' Squadron Group which was attached the 6th Division during the Aitape – Wewak campaign from November 1944 until the end of the war . In December 1944 the ' B ' Squadron Group was sent to Bougainville Island to support the Australian II Corps during the Bougainville Campaign . This squadron first saw action on 31 March 1945 when it played an important role in supporting the 3rd Division during the Battle of Slater ' s Knoll . The Regimental Headquarters and the ' A ' Squadron Group were also sent to Bougainville in May 1945 and the regiment continued to provide support to the Australian infantry until the Japanese surrender taking part in a number of battles during the advance towards Buin in the southern sector , including the fighting around the Hongorai River and the crossings of the Hari and Mivo Rivers . In July a troop - sized detachment was allocated to the 23rd Brigade which was fighting along the Ratsua front in the northern sector of the island in the Bonis Peninsula . Following the end of the war a detachment from the regiment was deployed to Rabaul to assist with guarding the 100 , 000 Japanese troops in the region . As the regiment ' s numbers were gradually reduced due to the demobilisation process , the 2 / 4th Armoured Regiment returned to Australia in May 1946 and was finally disbanded in September 1946 . During the course of the unit ' s war service it suffered 25 men killed in action or died on active service and 31 wounded . Members of the 2 / 4th received the following decorations : one Distinguished Service Order , three Military Cross es , two Orders of the British Empire , three Military Medal and seven Mentioned in Despatches . Battle honours . The 2 / 4th Armoured Regiment received 10 battle honours for its service during World War II , these were :