The 3rd Carabiniers did not see active service until 1943 when they were transferred to Imphal to counter Japan’s invasion of India. In April 1944 tanks of the 3rd Carabiniers’ B Squadron supported an infantry assault by the 1st Dogras on Japanese hilltop positions at Nunshigum, north of Imphal. The tanks had to ascend the steep terrain slowly, with their commanders leaning out of the turrets to see where they were going. Vulnerable to attack from above, the tanks were stopped in their tracks. After all the 3rd Carabiniers' officers had been killed, Squadron Sergeant-Major William Craddock, and Subedar Ranbir Singh of the Dogras, led their men to outflank the Japanese positions and capture the ridge.
Moving south into Burma, the Carabiniers found themselves engaged in jungle warfare and encountered fierce often suicidal, Japanese resistance. They helped to capture Mandalay before entering the capital Rangoon in May 1945.
