Cootamundra

8 The original blueprints allowed for two 120,000 gallon tanks and a 40,000 gallon tank for Tetra Ethyl Lead (TEL) fuel mix, along with mixing, piping and pump facilities. Work got underway on Cootamundra’s No. 3. Inland Aviation Fuel Depot (3IAFD) in early 1941 with the Government writing to BHP Port Kembla in early February to reserve sufficient steel plate and long sections to fabricate the all-important tanks. But such was the demand from the Royal Australian Navy, Australian Army and other Services, BHP warned to expect a four-month delivery turnaround time. ABOVE GROUND TANKS The blueprints for the proposed bulk storage tanks were drawn up by Shell Company of Australia and the Vacuum Oil Company Australia Pty Ltd (future Mobil) who had been building such tanks around the world for over century. The actual construction was the work of engineering contractors with BHP supplying the steel. On 1 July 1941 a sketch of the Cootamundra property for 3 IAFD was produced and two weeks later the RAAF began the legal process of acquiring land for the extension of 3 IAFD to accommodate the drum storage facility. Tanks 3 and 2 (left to right). Greg Davis Cootamundra, NSW. Acquisition of Site – Site Plan 1st July 1941. National Archives of Australia.