Guest speaker reflects on 80th anniversary of crucial year in World War II as new flags fly at Albury service

Guest speaker Colonel Clare Kellaway, the commandant of the Border's Army Logistics Training Centre spoke of 1942, the year in which Darwin was bombed and HMAS Kuttabul was sunk in Sydney Harbour as part of Japanese attacks.

It was also a time when confrontations occurred at Milne Bay, Kokoda and on the Coral Sea, in the South Pacific and at El Alamein in north Africa.

"Throughout the perilous year of 1942, at home and abroad, the Anzac spirit prevailed," Colonel Kellaway told those gathered before sunrise.

"The nation was mobilised, Australians were united in their patriotism and their quest for freedom and peace, much the same as we who stand here today yearn for peace in our troubled world and remember and honour the sacrifices that have kept us free.

"From those brave souls that have gone before us we draw inspiration and confidence for the days to come.

"Lest we forget."

Hundreds gathered at the memorial on Monument Hill for the traditional service.

A relatively mild 8.7 degrees greeted the crowd with a near cloudless sky and a slight breeze.

Those puffs of wind ensured the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags were fully visible for much of the time.

It was the first time the Indigenous symbols had been on display for Anzac Day, after being installed last year following a strong debate within Albury Council.

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There was no formal mention of the new additions, which flank the western side of the monument, with the Australian and New Zealand flags on the eastern side.

As part of the ritual, the flags were raised from half to full mast as the Reveille was sounded.

Albury RSL sub-branch president Graham Docksey reflected on the Gallipoli campaign, as he said Anzac Day was about honouring the sacrifice of the fallen and not glorifying war or celebrating violence.

He said the 12,000 soldiers buried at Gallipoli "are the silent and constant reminder of the terrible price of war" and "so many died and dreams died with them".

At the morning service at the monument, two new plaques recognising the Afghanistan war and those who served in it will be unveiled.

As the dawn service concluded, host Nigel Horne acknowledged the presence of Mark and Alan Bartleson, the grandsons of Tom Bartleson who built the memorial in the 1920s.

Mark Bartleson wore the medals of John Bartleson, Tom's teenage son who was killed in action in France on July 26, 1916, during World War I.

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