Between February 1942 and November 1943, during the Pacific War of World War II, the Australian mainland, domestic airspace, offshore islands and coastal shipping were attacked at least 97 times by aircraft from the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Force and Imperial Japanese Army Air Force. These attacks came in various forms; from large-scale raids by medium bombers, to torpedo attacks on ships, and to strafing runs by fighters.
No. 75 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) fighter unit based at RAAF Base Tindal in the Northern Territory. The squadron was formed in 1942 and saw extensive action in the South West Pacific theatre of World War II, operating P-40 Kittyhawks. It was disbanded in 1948, but reformed the following year and operated jet aircraft throughout the Cold War. The squadron was based at Malta from 1952 to 1954, flying de Havilland Vampires, and Malaysia from 1968 to 1983, with Dassault Mirage IIIs, before returning to Australia.
No. 76 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) flight training squadron. Established in 1942, it operated P-40 Kittyhawk fighter aircraft in the South West Pacific theatre during World War II. Following the end of hostilities it re-equipped with P-51 Mustangs and formed part of Australia's contribution to the occupation of Japan until disbanding in 1948. The squadron was re-formed in 1949 and three years later transferred to Malta, where it operated de Havilland Vampire jet fighters on garrison duty until again disbanding in 1955. It was reactivated in 1960 and operated CAC Sabre and Dassault Mirage III fighters in Australia until 1973. No. 76 Squadron was re-formed in its present incarnation in 1989 and is currently stationed at RAAF Base Williamtown, New South Wales, where it operates Hawk 127 jet training aircraft.
RAAF Base Townsville is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) air base located in Garbutt, 2 nautical miles west of Townsville in Queensland, Australia. It is the headquarters for No. 1 Wing Australian Air Force Cadets and, along with Lavarack Barracks, establishes Townsville as a key military centre. The base's airfield is shared with the Townsville Airport.
Air traffic control in Australia is provided by two independent organisations, one civilian and one military. The civilian provider is Airservices Australia, which controls civilian airfields and airspace. The military provider is the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), which controls military airfields and adjoining airspace. This includes Australian Army and Royal Australian Navy aviation bases. Some airfields in Australia are categorised as Joint User airfields, where there are both civilian and military operations based at the airfield. Normally, Joint User airfields have air traffic control provided by the RAAF.
No. 13 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) squadron. The unit saw combat during World War II as a bomber and maritime patrol squadron and is currently active as a mixed regular and reserve RAAF unit located in Darwin, fulfilling both operational support and training duties.
No. 201 Flight was a Royal Australian Air Force experimental electronic intelligence flight of World War II. The flight was formed in March 1945 but the first of its modified B-24 Liberator heavy bombers was not ready until July that year. As a result, while a detachment of the unit was deployed to Darwin in the Northern Territory No. 201 Flight did not conduct any operational missions before the end of the war. Following the Japanese surrender some consideration was given to retaining the flight as part of the RAAF, but it instead ceased to function in December 1945 and was disbanded in March 1946.
No. 12 Squadron was a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) general purpose, bomber and transport squadron. The squadron was formed in 1939 and saw combat in the South West Pacific theatre of World War II. From 1941 to 1943, it mainly conducted maritime patrols off northern Australia. The squadron was based at Merauke in western New Guinea from November 1943 to July 1944, when it was withdrawn from operations. After being re-equipped, it operated as a heavy bomber unit from February 1945 until the end of the war. The squadron continued in this role until it was redesignated No. 1 Squadron RAAF in February 1948. The squadron was reformed in 1973 to operate transport helicopters but was again disbanded in 1989.
No. 452 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) air traffic control unit. It was established in 1941 as a fighter squadron, in accordance with Article XV of the Empire Air Training Scheme during World War II. The squadron flew Supermarine Spitfires for the entire war, initially over the United Kingdom and Nazi-occupied Europe. It was later based in Australia and the Netherlands East Indies, before being disbanded in 1945. It was re-raised in its current role in February 2011.
No. 20 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) support squadron. Coming under the control of No. 96 Wing, it is responsible for the management of the airfield at RAAF Base Woomera, South Australia. The squadron originated as a maritime patrol unit during World War II. Raised in August 1941, it operated PBY Catalina and Short Empire flying boats from bases in New Guinea, Queensland and the Northern Territory, conducting search-and-rescue, mine-laying, anti-submarine and bombing missions against Japanese targets in the Pacific theatre. Following the conclusion of hostilities, the squadron was disbanded in March 1946. It was reactivated as an airfield support squadron in April 2015.
No. 44 Wing is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) wing responsible for providing air traffic control services to the Australian Defence Force. It directly commands two squadrons, which in turn command eleven air traffic control flights located across the country at nine RAAF bases, HMAS Albatross and Oakey Army Aviation Centre. The wing was formed during World War II, in December 1942, and was disbanded in August 1944. It was re-established in its current form in November 2000.
No. 21 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) general reserve squadron. Formed in the mid-1930s as a unit of the part-time Citizen Air Force (CAF), it was mobilised for service during World War II, when it saw action against the Japanese as a fighter unit in the Malayan campaign, a dive bomber unit in the New Guinea campaign, and a heavy bomber unit in the Borneo campaign. After the war, the squadron continued to fly until 1960, when the CAF ceased flying operations. At that time, No. 21 Squadron converted to a non-flying support role, which it currently fulfils at RAAF Williams.
The Central Bureau was one of two Allied Signals intelligence (SIGINT) organisations in the South West Pacific area (SWPA) during World War II. Central Bureau was attached to the Headquarters of the Allied Commander of the South West Pacific area, Douglas MacArthur. Central Bureau's role was to research and decrypt intercepted Imperial Japanese Army traffic and work in close co-operation with other SIGINT centres in the USA, United Kingdom and India. Air activities included both army and navy air forces, as there was no independent Japanese Air Force.
No. 457 Squadron was a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) fighter squadron of World War II. Equipped with Supermarine Spitfire fighters, it was formed in England during June 1941 under Article XV of the Empire Air Training Scheme. The squadron was transferred to Australia in June 1942 and saw combat in the South West Pacific Area before being disbanded in November 1945.
The Volunteer Air Observers Corps (VAOC) was an Australian air defence organisation of World War Two. The VAOC was formed in December 1941 to support the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) with its main roles of sighting and observing aircraft over Australia. The VAOC swiftly established thousands of Observation Posts (OP) across the country and provided information to the RAAF's regional air control posts.
No. 86 Squadron was a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) fighter squadron of World War II. The squadron was formed in March 1943 and was deployed to Merauke in Dutch New Guinea in July that year. While No. 86 Squadron was stationed at Merauke until April 1944, it saw little combat. After being transferred back to Australia its aircraft and personnel were transferred to other units, and only a nucleus of the squadron remained. While it was re-equipped with new aircraft in June 1945, the war ended before the squadron was ready for combat and it was disbanded in December 1945.
The North-Western Area Campaign was an air campaign fought between the Allied and Japanese air forces over northern Australia and the Netherlands East Indies (NEI) between 1942 and 1945. The campaign began with the Japanese bombing of Darwin on 19 February 1942 and continued until the end of the war.
John Margrave Lerew, DFC was an officer and pilot in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) during World War II, and later a senior manager in the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). As commander of No. 24 Squadron, based in New Britain, he became famous in the annals of Air Force history for his irreverent response to orders by headquarters in Australia during the Battle of Rabaul in January 1942. After his squadron was directed to assist in repelling the invading Japanese fleet with its one serviceable bomber, and to keep its damaged airfield open, Lerew signalled headquarters with the ancient Latin phrase supposedly used by gladiators honouring their Emperor: "Morituri vos salutamus". He also defied an order to abandon his staff, and organised their escape from Rabaul.
No. 1 Wing was an Australian Flying Corps (AFC) and Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) wing active during World War I and World War II. The wing was established on 1 September 1917 as the 1st Training Wing and commanded the AFC's pilot training squadrons in England until April 1919, when it was disbanded. It was reformed on 7 October 1942 as a fighter unit comprising two Australian and one British flying squadrons equipped with Supermarine Spitfire aircraft, and a mobile fighter sector headquarters. The wing provided air defence to Darwin and several other key Allied bases in northern Australia until the end of the war, and was again disbanded in October 1945.
Gunner was a male kelpie dog who became notable for his reliability to accurately alert Allied air force personnel that Japanese military aircraft were approaching Darwin during the Second World War.
