No. 79 Wing RAAF

No. 79 Wing RAAF
No. 79 Wing RAAF
77Wing1944 (NWA0864).jpg
Commanders of No. 18 (NEI) Squadron and No79 Wing: Lieutenant Colonel Asjes (second right) and Group Captain Ryland (far right) at Batchelor, Northern Territory, 1944
Active 19431945
Country  Australia
Branch Ensign of the Royal Australian Air Force.svg Royal Australian Air Force
Role Attack
Size Twofour flying squadrons
Part of North Western Area (194344)
Northern Command (194445)
First Tactical Air Force (1945)
Engagements World War II
Commanders
Notable
commanders
Charles Eaton
Aircraft flown
Attack Beaufort
Bomber B-25 Mitchell
Fighter Beaufighter

No. 79 Wing was a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) wing of World War II. It was formed in December 1943 at Batchelor, Northern Territory, as part of North Western Area Command. Led by Group Captain Charles Eaton, the wing comprised four squadrons on its establishment, flying Beaufort and B-25 Mitchell bombers and Beaufighter heavy fighters. No79 Wing took part in the New Guinea and North Western Area Campaigns during 1944, transferring to bases in New Guinea and later Morotai as the Allies advanced northward. By the end of the Pacific War, the wing was attached to the Australian First Tactical Air Force and was made up of Nos2 and 18 (Netherlands East Indies) Squadrons, both flying Mitchells. The latter transferred to the Netherlands Air Force in late 1945, while the former returned to Australia where it disbanded the following year.

History

Group Captain Eaton (pictured in 1941), inaugural commander of No79 Wing

No79 Wing was established at Batchelor, Northern Territory, on 30 November 1943. Its combat units included No1 and No2 Squadrons (flying Beaufort light reconnaissance bombers), No31 Squadron (Beaufighter long-range fighters), and No18 (Netherlands East Indies) Squadron (B-25 Mitchell medium bombers). The wing was commanded by Group Captain Charles Eaton, whose Dutch personnel nicknamed him "Oom Charles" (Uncle Charles).[1][2]

Operating under the auspices of North Western Area Command (NWA), Darwin, No79 Wing participated in the New Guinea and North Western Area Campaigns during 1944.[2] Through MarchApril, the Beaufighters attacked enemy shipping, while the Mitchells and Beauforts bombed Timor on a daily basis as a prelude to Operations Reckless and Persecution, the invasions of Hollandia and Aitape. On 19 April, Eaton organised a large raid against Su, Dutch Timor, employing thirty-five Mitchells, Beauforts and Beaufighters to destroy the town's barracks and fuel dumps, the results earning the personal congratulations of the Air Officer Commanding NWA, Air Vice Marshal "King" Cole.[2][3] On the day of the Allied landings, 22 April, the Mitchells and Beaufighters made a daylight raid on Dili, Portuguese Timor. The ground assault met little opposition, credited in part to the air bombardment in the days leading up to it.[2]

B-25 Mitchell bombers from No18 (NEI) Squadron in formation near Darwin, 1943

In May 1944, Nos1, 18 and 31 Squadrons attacked enemy positions in Timor, while No2 Squadron was withdrawn from combat to re-equip with Mitchells. No79 Wing's light and medium bombers suffered from a lack of suitable targets as they had few airfields in forward areas from which to refuel. No2 Squadron returned to operations with Mitchells in June. That month, No18 Squadron flew 149 sorties, damaging Japanese airfields and shipping in the Timor area, but lost its commanding officer to anti-aircraft fire during a raid.[4] In JuneJuly, No79 Wing supported the Allied attack on Noemfoor. No18 Squadron was again the wing's most active unit, flying 107 sorties. In September, the Beaufighters and Mitchells attacked Japanese shipping and infrastructure in Ceram and Celebes, but lost nine aircraft and twenty-six crewmen killed. By the end of month, Mitchell missions were put on hold while replacement crews were trained.[5] In late 1944, the decision was made to transfer No79 Wing and its Mitchell squadrons from North Western Area Command to Northern Command (formerly No9 Operational Group) in Papua New Guinea, to undertake operations against the Japanese in New Britain. No31 Squadron was transferred from No79 Wing to the Australian First Tactical Air Force at Morotai in December.[6][7] The same month, Group Captain Eaton posted out and was replaced by Group Captain John Ryland.[8]

Weather hampered the wing's activities in January 1945. No1 Squadron was withdrawn to Queensland to re-equip with Mosquitos, with No13 Squadron, flying Venturas, taking up the slack on anti-shipping missions. The squadron accounted for around half of the thirty-eight enemy vessels sunk by No79 Wing in February, and a similar ratio to the twenty sunk the following month. On 6 April, all twenty available Mitchells of Nos2 and 18 Squadrons joined B-24 Liberators of No82 Wing in an assault on a Japanese convoy that included the cruiser Isuzu; the Mitchells claimed two direct hits without loss, despite anti-aircraft fire from the cruiser and other ships, and frontal attacks by enemy fighters.[9] Allied submarines sank the damaged Isuzu the following day.[10] In July, following the Battle of North Borneo, No79 Wing and its remaining squadrons, Nos2 and 18, were transferred to the First Tactical Air Force at Labuan.[11] The wing's final recorded action was repatriating RAAF personnel from the islands of Borneo to Australia, following the end of the Pacific War in August 1945.[12] No18 Squadron was reassigned to the Netherlands Air Force in November 1945;[10] the next month No2 Squadron returned to Australia, where it disbanded in mid-1946.[13]

Notes

References


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