Bromley (168th, 169th and 194th HAA Btys) with a mixture of old 3-inch and newer 3.7-inch guns, and was transferred to a new 48 AA Bde formed within 1 AA Division. Battle of France On 10 October 1939 the regiment moved to France with 24 x 3-inch guns to join the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) and deployed to Beauval as part of Brig E.W. Chadwick's 2nd AA Bde. When the Battle of France began in May 1940 the regiment was responsible for defending six airfields of the Air Component of the BEF around Abbeville. However, the BEF was soon in retreat, and its AA units were swept up in the confusion. 60th HAA Regiment fought first at Villers-Bretonneux and then between Béthune and Seclin, where 169th Bty was attacked by tanks and aircraft and eventually had to destroy its guns. 168th Battery went to Béthune then to St Omer and 194th to Merville. On 21 May 60th HAA Rgt was ordered to defend Merville. It had by then 8 x 3-inch, 4 x 40mm, a troop of AA Light machine guns and two Troops of 5th Searchlight Bty. By 25 May the regiment was in constant action at Dunkirk: 'Orders received to take up positions around Dunkirk beach to protect the evacuation of the BEF, intense enemy air activity. 194th Battery in action at Uxem, heavy palls of smoke over the whole area made observation difficult. Gunner Walker killed in attack on No 1 gun.' (War Diary 60th HAA Rgt). 2nd AA Brigade took over the AA defence of the Dunkirk area during the evacuation, deploying 60th HAA Rgt at Bergues in the southern sector with additional responsibility for anti-tank defence of the Dunkirk-Bergues Canal. As the 'pocket' shrank, the AA units destroyed their guns and joined the queues waiting to embark in the small ships of Operation Dynamo. The Blitz AA units returning from France were rapidly reinforced, re-equipped where possible, and redeployed for future integration into existing defence plans. 60th HAA Regiment went to Aberystwyth where it re-equipped with 3-inch guns. In the summer of 1940, along with other AA units equipped with 3-inch or 3.7-inch AA guns, the 60th was designated a Heavy AA Regiment. After re-equipment, the regiment joined 34th (South Midland) AA Bde in a new 11th AA Division. 34 AA Brigade's role was to cover Birmingham and Coventry, which were heavily attacked during The