Ken Cross is a Senior Surveyor at Glencore’s Newlands Closure Project. In July he put his surveying skills to the test, retracing his grandfather Oswald Norman “Norm” Cross’ steps to Borneo where he and his fellow soldiers were involved in the WWII Battle of Balikpapan aimed to liberate Japanese-occupied Borneo.
Ken’s grandfather died when Ken was eight years old.
“He was one of those Diggers who never really spoke about the war, never went to Anzac Day events or anything remotely associated with it.
“He was very respected in the community though, he owned the local store and he coached rugby league. He was never one to tell his own story or talk about what he did.
“I am disappointed I didn’t get to spend more time with him particularly as an adult.
“I didn’t have any information and anything I had from family was quite sparse and contradictory. So, my research journey began.
“I have always been keen on military history. I spent eight years in the Australian Army myself when I was in my 40s in the Survey Squadron. There was definitely that sense of family connection with me joining the army and around the time I joined so did my son. Three generations.
“During my time I taught surveying to soldiers at the School of Military Engineering in Moorebank, Sydney as a senior instructor where they run Engineering courses.
“Having that military experience really spurred on my interest to find out more about my grandfather,” Ken said.
Ken’s grandfather enlisted in the part-time militia in 1938 in the 11th Light Horse Regiment and was called into full time deployment in 1941. Five months later, Norm was promoted to Corporal and in early 1942 he was transferred into the 11th Motor Regiment.
In 1943 he was transferred to military police but it didn’t suit him so he reverted back to the rank of Private at his own request and in July 1943 was transferred to the 2/10th battalion and sent on a troop ship to Port Moresby.
It was Norm’s mission in Borneo that interested Ken the most. At the time, what turned out to be two weeks before the end of World War II, the Operation was a significant undertaking for Australian soldiers.
“The Operation was two weeks before the Japanese surrendered and was entirely run by the Australians with support from the American Navy.
“The more I researched I started looking at the Operation through the perspective of the individual people, not just the soldiers, and I had empathy for the locals who were involved in the country with little control over what was happening around them.
“At one stage I tracked down some of the soldiers who grandad served with. My wife, my parents and I went out to the town that they lived in and found the Diggers and took them out for lunch. After a few rums, they really started talking,” laughed Ken.
“They were happy to talk about their time in the war with my grandad, so I learnt heaps about him from them.”
Delving deeper into the history books Ken discovered he would be able retrace the footsteps the soldiers took.
“My surveying background meant I had the skills to plot a map comparing Google Earth to the maps the soldiers used. I could work out where his Battalion landed on a section of beach in Balikpapan, where they went and what they did.
“I checked the date and it was going to be exactly 80 years this year since the Operation. I sat back and thought, ‘how great would it be to be standing on the beach where they landed at 9am imagining everything taking place’.”
So, that’s exactly what Ken did.
He travelled to Borneo in July and retraced his grandfather Norm and the 2/10th Battalion’s mission.
“It was humbling.
“Knowing how well trained those guys were and the risks involved in a beach landing during WWII, it’s hard not to be impressed by their bravery and skill.
“There is one spot I went to (called Green Spur on the maps in World War II) where the Company my grandfather was in came under medium machine gun fire from a pillbox. A Corporal McDougal took it upon himself to run towards that pillbox firing his light Owens gun which jammed just before he got there.
“While he was leaning against the side of the concrete pillbox trying to clear the stoppage he was fired at by a sniper in another adjacent pillbox. Seeing this, another Digger, Private Stevens, crawled below the line of fire until he reached the pillbox then stood up and shot the sniper and undoubtably saved his mate’s life.
“Neither of these blokes received any official recognition for their courage that afternoon as far as I can see but that was one of many similar stories in those few days after the landings.
“It was great locating all those spots.”
Standing on the beach where Ken’s grandfather’s battalion landed was like no time had passed.
“I was really grateful to be there and to be honest the 80 years seemed like nothing. There were little kids playing on the beach watched over by their mums and completely unaware of what had taken place all those years before.”
Ken said the locals were another highlight of the trip.
“I had no phone signal so my translate app didn’t work and although the locals knew little or no English we got along fine. They were really friendly everywhere I went and the whole time I was there.”
What’s next for Ken and his research?
“At a bare minimum its history and records I can keep for the family and for the other soldiers families who were involved.
“I had considered writing a book but it looks like someone has beaten me to it! I recently learnt a book about the Borneo landings has been written and is being released in August.
“So, I’ll read this book and see how close to what I wanted people to know about the landings it is and whether there’s any gaps. It might lead to another trip, I’ll wait and see!”
