With limitied number of aircraft available to defend the island, the axis depended heavily on the assistance provided by anti-aircraft guns. The Guarena Battery named so because of its proximately to the Guarena Palace or as it is better known to the lacasl as “Il-Fortizza ta’ Hassajek”, formed one of these lines of defence. Its guns opted to use two types of methods to engage the enemy aircraft which included action relaying on fire control instruments and pure gunnery together with a second method that involved a barrage method used to build a defensive cover or ‘umbrella” over a vunurabble position.

The Guarena Battery consisted of two troop positions and was armed with four heavy anti aircraft (H.A.A.) guns of 3.7 inch and 4.5 inch caliber, a height and range finder together with a predictor instruments that gave the likely position of approaching enemy aircraft. The battery was additionally complimented with a radar unit, a searchlight and sound locator.

The command center within the battery formed the nerve center of the whole operation, where information was received, analyzed and directives were transmitted to the respective gun crews.

Concrete pens were constructed and located in the immediate vicinity. These housed the height finder and predictor instruments. Crew bunker accommodations (10 – 15 men) together with the commanding officer’s personal bunker also formed an integral part of the command center.

The Heavy Anti Aircraft guns were sited in specially constructed concrete pens on the seaward side of the command post with the crew’s accommodation bunker formed part of the gun’s emplacement defensive protection.

Having the respective gun crews (5-7 men) accommodated close to their gun emplacement provided a more efficient manning of the guns in the event of attack by the enemy. This setup further reduced causalities when the battery sustained “direct hits” from the enemy.