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New Zealand Mobile Broadcasting Unit commentator Doug Laurenson [Military Service no. 34957] on board a troopship (the ""Empress of Japan""), talks about preparing for their first shore leave at their first port of call.
(Their destination was unable to be identified due to wartime censorship, but was Fremantle, Western Australia.)
It is expected most of the men will have at least 11 hours on shore which will include a march through the city.
Residents of the town have already sent messages offering hospitality to the men and local airplanes have been sighted flying overhead.
This item is part of a collection of recordings made by the Mobile Broadcasting Units, which travelled overseas with New Zealand forces between 1940-1945. They recorded New Zealanders' experiences of war and messages to their families and friends, which were sent back home to be played on a weekly radio programme.